Digital link up helps Wigan firm box clever

A Wigan-based packaging manufacturer is boxing clever by ramping up its relations with a digital agency.

Corrugated cardboard specialist Belmont has doubled its retainer with Preston firm Bespoke to include a second brand, after the last four years of their contract together achieved 53 per cent year-on-year growth in website leads.

The Hindley Green firm manufactures custom-printed and plain corrugated cardboard boxes for retail, transit, subscription and display-ready packaging.

Working primarily in the footwear and fashion, health and beauty, food and drink and e-commerce sectors, Belmont Packaging first began working with Bespoke in 2014 to help increase the number of leads generated by its website.

The process began with a user persona workshop to develop a better understanding of the target customer.

With client and agency working in partnership, this was developed into a 12-month digital marketing strategy.

Focused on organic search engine optimisation (SEO), targeting high-value keywords with buying intent and developing a content strategy to address the target audiences’ needs, organic SEO was complemented by a strategic pay-per-click (PPC) campaign to maximise website leads.

Bosses say the collaborative campaign resulted in a year-on-year increase in sales leads via the website and increased overall sales efficiency, with reps having to spend less time travelling to sales meetings. Belmont owner Kate Hulley said: “Corrugated cardboard packaging is on the rise, with the war on plastic meaning businesses are looking for more sustainable options for their packaging.

“Belmont Packaging is on a mission to ensure environmentally-friendly packaging solutions are easy to access, and so we worked with Bespoke to help boost the effectiveness of our website.

“Bespoke are different from a lot of agencies in that they have a strongly systemised approach to working in partnership in order to achieve the best possible results.

“They speak for themselves and show the power of collaboration as opposed to a transactional approach to working with an agency.”