Marwick Marketing is a full-service marketing agency that covers everything from search engine optimisation and pay-per-click ads to social media management and website design. As a Google Premier Partner in the top 5% of all partners across North America and Europe, Marwick’s services are well sought-after, and they can make a big difference for local companies.
Previously, its team operated in the mountain town of Squamish, north of Vancouver in British Columbia, Canada. When Marwick’s CEO Christian Thomson moved to Squamish from Cornwall in 2012, it was a town focused on logging and mining. But over the past decade, it’s grown into a central hub for startups.
This year, Chris made the move back to Cornwall to expand Marwick’s presence and establish a new UK-based office.
Being from Cornwall, Chris already had some strong connections in the region, but that’s not the only reason the location was perfect for the company’s expansion. “Like Squamish, I’ve seen Cornwall quickly evolve in the past decade – especially places like Newquay, where there’s a thriving community of startups,” says Chris.
Newquay has all the infrastructure companies like Marwick need to succeed, including fibre-based broadband provided by Superfast Cornwall and innovative co-working spaces like C-Space. And with convenient train and airport links to London and beyond, it’s easy to stay connected. “I think the pandemic has helped even more businesses to see Cornwall as a compelling alternative to the city,” says Chris. “It’s proved working in Cornwall is achievable for many sectors, and the region makes it easier to offer the work-life balance so many people are looking for.”
While Cornwall’s business landscape is unique for the UK, Chris sees similar qualities to its Canadian headquarters. “Cornwall feels a lot like Squamish – it has a fast-evolving community and a similar pace of working, but there are enough differences to capitalise on,” explains Chris. “We’ve now got access to an entirely new market, and there are a lot of businesses in the region that can benefit from the services we offer.”
Marwick also recognises the big business community that’s growing in Cornwall. “There’s a lot of specialised groups throughout the region like Software Cornwall, and we’re excited to become part of them,” says Chris. “In Squamish, we’d host regular marketing conferences that brought people together from across Canada and the US – so it’s great to see a similar community environment in Cornwall.”
Marwick’s ambition is to grow a team like its one in Canada, completely in-house and full-service. “Many companies in our industry tend to outsource a lot of their work, but we’ve always seen the value of an in-house team,” says Chris. “It may be more expensive for us, but our clients see the value – they get a full-service package, and they can return to experts they trust.”
Marwick’s strategy has paid off too. It has a very low staff turnover, and it’s able to offer competitive salaries in the regions it operates.
Also, the company still collaborates with its Canadian team on a weekly basis, led by Chris’s business partner Angie Dosanjh. “Google is always changing, updating itself more than 200 times a year. These changes mean there’s always something new for our technicians and sales team to learn, so it’s helpful being able to share knowledge between our UK and Canadian teams,” says Chris.
One of the main reasons Chris wanted to establish a new office was to access UK and European markets.
Since moving to Cornwall, Marwick has already secured some local clients and helped increase their national and international export. One of its most notable projects is with The Cornish Bakery, helping increase the presence of its Pasty-by-Post campaign. Many food and drink companies started to offer delivery services during the pandemic, but Marwick helped The Cornish Bakery grow its organic website traffic by 51%.
Bonds the Jewellers, a husband- and wife-ran business in Bodmin, has found similar success with the agency. As a relatively small high-street jewellery store, Bonds may not seem like an international exporter – but its owners are ambitious entrepreneurs. Working with Marwick, Bonds managed to secure a top position on Google, raising its presence to international customers. Marwick also managed to reduce the company’s pay-per-click costs for Google Ads by 45%. Now, most of the company’s online purchases are shipped out to locations across Europe and the US.
As Marwick continues to make a name for itself in the region, it’s hoping to share similar success with other businesses in Cornwall and beyond. “We’re eager to work with clients who are driven and motivated to grow, but don’t have the internal marketing resources they need to get their name out there,” says Chris. “We can offer those resources and help companies reach more customers.”
If you think you could benefit from Marwick’s marketing services, get in touch with them at 0333 2423 699, or visit https://www.marwickmarketing.co.uk/ to find out more.
Also, Marwick is always on the lookout for new talent to join its team. If you think you’d fit into one of its technician, account manager, or sales roles, get in touch with the team today.
If you’re a business that’s looking to follow a similar path to Marwick and expand to Cornwall, speak to the Cornwall Trade and Investment team at +44 (0)1872 326 727, or info@cornwallti.com to find out more.
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