MARKETING
Cornerstone Marketing Solutions directors ( seated , from left ) Chris Petty , Jamie Tinkler and Chris Bibby with lead designer Adam Greenwood ( back left ) and social media marketer Grace McCardle .
WE ’ RE IN YOUR CORNER
How Cornerstone ’ s marketing team is helping firms grow
Getting the message out there – it ’ s a hugely important task for any business in an increasingly digital world . And one of Cornerstone Group ’ s five component parts , Cornerstone Marketing Solutions , aims to ensure its clients are being seen and heard across all the relevant channels through imaginative web and graphic design , social media management and creating engaging video content .
Less than two years after it started , in November 2019 , Cornerstone Marketing Solutions won the Best New Creative Business category at the 2021 Best New Tees Business Awards .
Fast forward to 2023 and still at the helm of the five-strong team is creative director Jamie Tinkler – once known for his work on the other side of the camera , having appeared on X Factor and Pop Idol , and having been part of the band Pop ! that had three top 40 hits in 2004 and 2005 .
And , according to group MD Chris Petty , Cornerstone Marketing Solutions is a key member of the Cornerstone family .
Chris said : “ They ’ re in the new building , with their own little studio set-up and chill out area . It ’ s basically what a modern marketing company should look like .
“ They do a package involving social media , web and video – basically we do all their marketing for clients for the whole month and it ’ s proving very popular .”
The original idea for Cornerstone Marketing Solutions , says Chris , came from the success of another part of the business .
He said : “ Cornerstone Business Solutions has a good brand out there – we ’ re on the back of Middlesbrough Football Club ’ s shorts , and Hartlepool ’ s and Stockton Town ’ s , for example . Our brand is well known and a lot of people were asking us , ‘ Who does your marketing ?’ Well , it was us – so it seemed an obvious thing to offer that service to others .
“ And when Jamie brought the videography into it , we thought that was a way forward too – rather than just doing plain posts , we ’ d be doing video posts for customers .” But how does it all come together ? Cornerstone sales director Chris Bibby explained : “ Traditionally , years ago , it was TV , newspaper and radio – now it ’ s social media .
“ By properly utilising things like Facebook , TikTok and LinkedIn , we can do things where we advertise and get people to physically be interested and fill in a form to create a lead . It depends on what the customer wants to achieve , really .
“ With us , they get a sales and marketing element as well , rather than just a company that can ‘ do ’ social media – they get the advice and expertise . We sit down and find out what they want to achieve as a company .”
WORDS : DAVE ROBSON
And Jamie says it ’ s vital Cornerstone Marketing Solutions keeps up to date with the rapidly changing digital and social media landscape .
He said : “ With the IT side of the company , we ’ re at the forefront of tech – we ’ ve always got to be one step ahead and advise our customers accordingly .
“ It ’ s the same with marketing . TikTok Shop is the new biggest craze , for example . It allows people to purchase directly using Apple Pay – they just click ‘ buy ’ and that ’ s it – and that ’ s taken off massively .
“ It won ’ t work for all businesses but it would work for , say , an events company selling tickets or a clothing company . That ’ s what we do as well – advise on the best routes to market .”
And with 21 clients at the moment , and more coming in , Cornerstone Marketing Solutions continues its upward growth trajectory .
Chris Petty explained : “ We ’ ll copy the Business Solutions model where , basically , we ’ ll grow as the customers come in .
“ We won ’ t just chuck a load of money at it for the sake of it . We ’ ll grow as and when we win more customers – and that ’ s what ’ s happening at the moment because of what we ’ re doing .”
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50 | Tees Business