Hi. I’m Paul Sutton, an independent digital marketing and social media consultant.

I specialise in offering strategic consultancy, creative campaign advice and best practice training to marketing directors, business owners, in-house marketing teams and communications agencies.

I established my consultancy business at the end of 2014, and the areas of digital communications I cover are increasingly broad. Digital transformation is a major challenge among businesses of all sizes, and my goal is to simplify and demystify this as much as possible.

Effective use of the social networks continues to be the mainstay of my work, but I also now advise clients on everything from PPC and social media advertising to podcasting and technologies such as voice recognition and artificial intelligence. But it wasn’t always that way.

LEARNING THROUGH NECESSITY

Back in 2006 I was working as Creative Director at a fast growing PR agency. I’d been working in marketing for the best part of a decade and was growing more and more interested in ecommerce and online marketing.

At that time, online marketing meant SEO, banner advertising, enewsletters and, to some extent, blogging. So I set about learning all I could about them.

By early 2007 I was running my own ecommerce company. It won a retail industry award during its first year of business and was featured in The Guardian newspaper. Unfortunately however, thanks to the small matter of a global recession it didn’t last. But everything I learned during those three years as a small business owner was invaluable.

I learned all about Google and search. I learned about web design, conversion tracking and online brand reputation. As Facebook and Twitter took off I learned how to cultivate hugely beneficial relationships and how to use social media to build communities of advocates.

I learned at the coal face. I learned because I had to. And I immersed myself in the digital marketing world. Truth be told, I became a bit of a geek.

THE GEEKS SHALL INHERIT THE EARTH

When I returned to marketing communications in 2010, I was lucky enough to put all of that learning into practice with some fantastic brands. Among many others, I had the honour of working with the likes of BSkyB, AXA, Goodyear, Poundland, Rentokil and Interflora.

Between 2011 and 2014 my work won 17 digital marketing industry awards.

But while short-term creative campaigns were fun, what I loved most was consultancy. I loved being able to have a long-term impact on a business, large or small, by passing on my knowledge and experience.

And so on 1st January 2015 I started out as an independent social media consultant.

THE RELENTLESS MARCH OF TECHNOLOGY

An awful lot has changed in the years since then. At the beginning of 2018 I started a podcast called Digital Download that investigates the latest thinking in digital communications, and I also now run an annual conference of the same name that still has a 100% recommendation rate after multiple events.

I’ve been hired by countless brands including Honda, L’Oreal, Virgin, Macmillan, Bristol Water and Oxford University Press, and the London Mayor’s Office contracted me to run the social media communications around the 2019 New Year’s Fireworks. I’ve also been invited onto the BBC, ITV and Channel Four multiple times to discuss developments in social media.

In 2020 I was awarded Independent Practitioner of the Year by the Chartered Institute of Public Relations, and in 2022 I was named Digital Journalist of the Year by the PRCA.

I’m fascinated by the way digital technology is transforming our lives, and I’m passionate about the promotion of brands and organisations through online channels.

Maybe you’re a communications professional for an agency, a brand or an organisation? Or maybe you’re a small business owner? If you’re looking for a social media consultant and think we could work together to achieve big things, I’d love to hear from you.

SOME OTHER STUFF YOU MIGHT LIKE TO KNOW

> I live in the Cotswolds in a 250 year old former pub. We still have a part of the bar in our living room

> I live with my wife, three children, a dog, two cats, two rabbits, five chickens and a tortoise. I lie approximately 16th in the hierarchy

> I like black coffee and red wine. Not necessarily in that order

> I have a penchant for flowery shirts. This is important

> I once met Pele. He was a lot shorter than I was expecting

> I’m a Tottenham Hotspur season ticket holder. But don’t let that put you off getting in touch…