A mini recruitment boom is underway at Wriglesworth with no less than four new graduate recruits joining the team this month to work on a range of property and financial services accounts.

Laura Scarrott has joined as an Account Executive to work on Property sector accounts. Laura has previously worked for the BBC and for a Broadcast PR agency.

Rosa Ellis, Hugh Murphy and Emma Beresford are joining as Junior Account Executives. They are all coming to Wriglesworth from PR roles in other agencies and organisations.

reallymoving.com – leading provider of online quotes for home-moving services – is delighted to announce that they have appointed the Wriglesworth Consultancy as their retained PR agency. This appointment takes place following a competitive three–way pitch.

As the property market starts to show signs of a recovery, reallymoving.com has brought in the Wriglesworth Consultancy to raise their brand awareness amongst consumer and trade audiences. The agency will focus on using data-led research and themed-campaigns to illustrate the value of using the site and – for businesses such as HIP providers, surveyors, solicitors and removal firms – offering quotes through the website.

Fiona Brandhorst – Director - will lead the account and be supported by members of Wriglesworth’s Property Team including Suman Hughes (Senior Account Manager). Wriglesworth will report directly to Rosemary Rogers, Director and one of the founders of reallymoving.com

Rosemary Rogers, Director of reallymoving.com said: “We have been growing our business organically for the past ten years however now the time is right to increase our brand recognition amongst consumer and trade audiences. As a result, we are delighted to be in a position to appoint the Wriglesworth Consultancy – an agency that combines solid market knowledge with a creative edge.”

Director - Fiona Brandhorst - commented: “This is a significant step for the company, as the property market showing signs of recovery. We are delighted that reallymoving.com has chosen us as the agency to help them capitalise on the expected uplift in property transactions. They are a well-established successful business that offers an excellent service and we look forward to growing their brand profile.”

Zoopla.co.uk – the UK’s fastest growing property portal - is delighted to announce that they have appointed the Wriglesworth Consultancy as their PR agency.

Zoopla.co.uk - which recently purchased the Propertyfinder Group and ThinkProperty.com as part of its ambitious growth strategy in the UK – has handed Wriglesworth both their trade and consumer briefs. The agency will be responsible maintaining and growing the company’s profile through a mixture of creative one-off PR initiatives as well as ongoing market leading research-led pieces such as Zoopla.co.uk’s Quarterly Homeowner Sentiment Survey.

Mark Baker – Director - will lead the account and be supported by members of Wriglesworth’s Corporate Team including Tom Urpeth (Senior Account Executive). Wriglesworth will work alongside and report to Lawrence Hall, Head of PR at Zoopla.co.uk who will continue to oversee all PR activities for the group.

Alex Chesterman, CEO of Zoopla.co.uk said: “We operate in a very competitive space and were looking for an agency that would help us to differentiate ourselves from the pack and raise our profile both in the consumer space, as the UK’s leading property market resource, and across the industry, as the most-efficient marketing partner for UK estate agents. We believe that Wriglesworth has the experience, creativity and drive to fulfil these requirements.”

Director Mark Baker commented: “Zoopla.co.uk has a strong product offering for consumers and really stands out when compared to the listings-only property websites. We are delighted that we have been given the opportunity to help them develop their profile further and use our experience to show consumers and estate agents why they are the natural choice.”

Galliford Try Homes – the housebuilding division of one of the UK’s leading housebuilding and construction groups – has hired The Wriglesworth Consultancy following a four-way competitive pitch.

Wriglesworth will promote Galliford Try Homes’ plans to deliver significant growth in the division over the next three years with a wide ranging national and trade brief aimed to increase their profile as a leading housebuilder.

The Wriglesworth Team will be led by Fiona Brandhorst (Director) who will be supported by a team drawn from Wriglesworth’s Property Team.

Ian Baker, Group Managing Director for Housebuilding at Galliford Try Homes, said: “As we forge ahead with our strategic expansion plans over the coming years, we needed an agency which understands the housebuilding industry and can profile our expansion as a major housebuilder at this key time of growth. We were impressed with Wriglesworth’s credentials and expertise in this area and look forward to closely working with the team.”

Wriglesworth Director, Fiona Brandhorst, said: “We are delighted to win the Galliford Try Homes brief. The housebuilding industry is entering a new phase of growth and has a host of challenges ahead. We look forward to raising the profile of Galliford Try Homes and promoting the excellence from each of its regional brands – Linden Homes, Gerald Wood Homes, Stamford Homes and Midas Homes – at a national level. ”

Crown Mortgage Management (Crown) is pleased to announce that they have hired the Wriglesworth Consultancy as their PR advisers to implement a programme designed to grow its media profile and build brand recognition. This appointment was made in recognition of Wriglesworth’s acknowledged credentials following a non-competitive pitch.

Crown specialises primarily in the servicing of performing and non-performing commercial and residential mortgage loans. The company wishes to build on its servicing capabilities to grow its market share substantially over the next few years, particularly in residential business, and has engaged Wriglesworth to drive the PR campaign to raise awareness of the company and support its brand expansion.

The Wriglesworth team – led by Brian Thorn (Director) – will focus on promoting Crown’s unique expertise in special servicing and more widely in mortgage administration, with over 30 years’ experience in the US, UK and elsewhere. Brian will be supported by a team drawn from Wriglesworth’s Corporate department.

Steve Haggerty, Crown Mortgage Management, said “I have known Wriglesworth for a great many years and am very pleased they are able to support Crown’s future growth plans. They have an in-depth understanding of the servicing business and the wider mortgage market. Wriglesworth is absolutely the right choice to handle our PR needs. ”

Wriglesworth director, Brian Thorn, said “We were delighted to win the Crown account, which plays to the agency’s strengths. I am also very pleased to be working with Steve Haggerty once again and am excited about Crown’s future plans. We look forward to working closely with the team to help Crown achieve its growth goals.”

Phoebus Software Ltd. has hired the Wriglesworth Consultancy to head a PR campaign promoting Phoebus’ partnership with three high-profile clients, and to position them as the systems provider of choice for mortgage servicing software.

The appointment was made following a competitive pitch process involving two other consultancies, including their incumbent agency.

Phoebus has been providing software in the financial industry for 20 years, starting as a bank subsidiary in 1989. Today, they provide a wide variety of lending origination and back-end servicing systems for residential and commercial mortgages. Individual modules and experienced development teams allow clients to mix, match, and adapt products to suit their unique needs.

Brian Thorn (Wriglesworth Director) will lead the account, supported by James Staunton and other members of the agencies Corporate team.

Phoebus Managing Director Paul Hunt commented: “As we continue to grow it has become apparent that we need to get the right message into our client’s business sector. We selected The Wriglesworth Consultancy to achieve this and help us increase our growth. They have the experience and initiative needed to help us move forward.”

Wriglesworth Director, Brian Thorn said, “Phoebus is an established company with exciting plans for the future. Our team is delighted to be a part of that plan!”

LSL Corporate Client Department, residential property portfolio managers, have appointed the Wriglesworth Consultancy to head a new promotional campaign. This appointment builds on Wriglesworth’s ongoing relationship with Your Move, an LSL subsidiary brand.

LSL CCD provides a comprehensive range of property solutions to lenders, developers and other corporate entities. The company has hired Wriglesworth to build its profile amongst residential landlords as a property portfolio manager able to provide a mixture of services including sales disposal, asset management and LPA receiver solutions.

The campaign will focus on highlighting their expertise in this arena and also positioning them as expert consultants for owners of large residential property portfolios. Mark Baker – Director - will lead the account and be supported by members of Wriglesworth’s Corporate Team including Sarah Davidson (Senior Account Executive).

David Brown, commercial director at LSL Property Services said: “Residential landlords need expert consultancy services now more than ever. Therefore, we decided this was the ideal time to step up our efforts to build our profile in this sector. Wriglesworth has a wealth of experience in this arena and we are confident that they will help us to grow our business.”

Director Mark Baker commented: “LSL CCD already has a strong reputation in portfolio management but has decided to step up their promotional activity to encourage commercial landlords to consider the benefits their service offers. We are therefore delighted that they have chosen to build on our successful relationship with Your Move and engage us to assist with this initative.”

P J Hayman - specialist Travel Insurance and Schemes provider – has hired the Wriglesworth Consultancy to promote their range of products and a selection of new initiatives. The appointment was made following a competitive pitch process involving six agencies.

P J Hayman firmly believes that ‘one size does not fit all’ when it comes to travel insurance and offers a range of specialist products including Free Spirit (a policy for people with medical conditions) and Adventures (a policy for active holidays and hazardous pursuits). Wriglesworth has been tasked with communicating the benefits offered by P J Hayman products to both consumer and trade audiences.

Laura O’Connell (Director at Wriglesworth) will lead the account supported by members of the agencies Retail Financial Services Team including Lee Blackwell (Account Director) and Faye Williamson (Senior Account Executive).

Peter Hayman, Managing Director of P J Hayman, said “We have some very exciting plans for the latter half of 2009 and have decided to hire an agency to assist us with the promotion of these initiatives. Following a rigorous pitch process, we chose the Wriglesworth Consultancy as they have the right level of experience, innovation and creativity.”

Laura O’Connell, Director at Wriglesworth, said: “P J Hayman is a well respected brand in the travel insurance market and they have some very interesting initiatives on the cards for the remainder of 2009. Therefore, we are delighted that they have decided to appoint us to assist them with the promotion of their expanding product range.”

The Wriglesworth Consultancy (TWC) is delighted to announce that they have appointed a new Junior Account Executive – James Craig – to support their Corporate and Employment Teams.

Prior to joining TWC, James worked in financial and professional services recruitment for two years following his graduation from University of Bath with a degree in Politics and Economics.

In his new role with Wriglesworth’s Corporate and Employment teams, he will work across a range of accounts including several recruiters, internet portals and property investment related companies. His appointment strengthens and increases the teams' capacity following a series of client wins and brief extensions for the agency.

Brian Thorn, director of TWC Corporate and Employment Team said:

"We're delighted to welcome James to the agency - he really has hit the ground running. His background in recruitment, his natural numeracy and his strong communications skills will be assets to the agency, and we look forward to working with him.

Yoo Capital has appointed the Wriglesworth Consultancy on a project basis to launch its new division, Green Shoots.

This new division from Yoo Capital - part of international branding, design and investment company Yoo - will seek to buy distressed new build housing schemes from developers across the UK and improve the spaces with good design and exciting innovations, before letting or selling the homes. Green Shoots will target developments in prominent locations with good growth potential and has tasked Wriglesworth with launching the brand to consumer, business and trade press.

As part of the brief, Wriglesworth will also be responsible for actively promoting Green Shoots first development – Silkstream in Colindale, North London, which is aimed at the first time buyer market. The account will be managed by Director Neil Mackwood and Senior Account Manager Sarah Lawrence.

John Hitchox, Chief Executive of Green Shoots, commented: "We are delighted to be working with Wriglesworth to promote this exciting new venture. With their extensive experience in Property PR they are the perfect fit to launch this exciting campaign.

Neil Mackwood, Director, said: “Green Shoots is an innovative reaction to the current economic situation from a respected industry figure and we expect the company to go from strength to strength. We are therefore delighted to be appointed to promote this new division of Yoo Capital and look forward to achieving excellent results.”

The Association of Home Information Pack Providers (AHIPP) is pleased to announce that they have appointed The Wriglesworth Consultancy for a three-month project. This appointment marks AHIPP’s return to the agency following a highly successful campaign surrounding the launch of HIPs in 2007.

AHIPP - which represents nearly 100 members - rehired Wriglesworth to provide strategic public relations support during the period of legislative changes to the Home Information Pack this Spring. The changes stipulate that every seller must have a HIP in place, before they market their home and will include a new Property Information Questionnaire, which has to be completed by the vendor.

The Wriglesworth team will draw on its previous work with AHIPP and its extensive knowledge of the property market to create a campaign that communicates the changes and promotes the benefits of the HIP, in addition to the importance of the HIP Code. Neil Mackwood, Director at The Wriglesworth Consultancy, will oversee the account and is supported by the agency’s experienced property team.

Neil Mackwood said: “We are delighted to be working with AHIPP again. This market is growing rapidly and AHIPP has established itself as a highly influential organisation. With the recent Government changes AHIPP will have an even more important role to play to promote the benefits of the packs to the consumer and the wider industry. We are delighted to be in a position to support them during this period.”

Mike Ockenden, Director General of AHIPP said: “We are pleased to be working with The Wriglesworth Consultancy once again. The team’s experience and extensive media contacts will ensure we are able to generate the greatest level of coverage during a very important time for the HIP industry.”

PropertyIndex.com, the UK’s leading property search site for overseas and UK property, is pleased to announce that it has appointed The Wriglesworth Consultancy as its retained PR agency. The Wriglesworth Consultancy will replace the incumbent firm.

Propertyindex.com, which lists thousands of residential properties from estate agents in the UK and overseas and is the leading pay-for-results portal, chose The Wriglesworth Consultancy to grow public awareness of its comprehensive listings service. The brief covers both trade and consumer PR initiatives. The Worcester-based company was looking for an agency with a substantial track record in property and an understanding of promoting a web-based business.

Over the years, the Wriglesworth team has worked with a number of online property firms to create successful campaigns. Neil Mackwood, Director at The Wriglesworth Consultancy, will oversee the account, and is backed by the agency’s experienced property team.

Headed by chief executive Lee Bramzell, Propertyindex.com is backed by Darren Richards who was the founder of Dating Direct.com, which was sold last year for £27.7 million.

Lee Bramzell commented: "It was a natural choice to select Wriglesworth. They have a long history of working with online property services and proposed innovative ways of utilising the vast data we have at our disposal. I am confident they will help us take our site to the next level."

Neil Mackwood said: "PropertyIndex.com is a pay for results portal that's well placed to grow during the recession. Agents pay only for sales, so they have nothing to lose in this challenging climate. In addition, consumers benefit from thousands of listings. Thus, PropertyIndex.com is positioning itself as a challenger brand and is climbing up the charts of property portals with great rapidity."

Property Portfolio Rescue, a new property recovery specialist, is pleased to announce that they have appointed The Wriglesworth Consultancy as their retained PR agency. The agency was chosen due to the recommendation of an existing client.

Property Portfolio Rescue, which helps small businesses, buy-to-let landlords and developers quickly divest residential properties, chose The Wriglesworth Consultancy to help grow their consumer base and public awareness of their discreet and speedy divestment strategies. Drawing on their significant experience in the property market, the Wriglesworth team will create a campaign that not only meets these goals, but also creates excitement about Property Portfolio Rescue among relevant audiences.

Fiona Brandhorst, Director at The Wriglesworth Consultancy, will oversee the account, and is supported by the agency’s knowledgeable property team.

Fiona Brandhorst said: “We are thrilled to be working with Property Portfolio Rescue. They help developers and landlords avoid financial difficulties by quickly freeing up capital thus avoiding insolvency. Their directors’ significant experience and services could never be in greater demand than in today’s historic property market. Property Portfolio Rescue is ideally placed to aid a large number of UK businesses and become the industry leader.”

Nick Hopkinson, Director of Property Portfolio Rescue, commented: “We are pleased to appoint The Wriglesworth Consultancy. Their experience in the property market is wide ranging and their campaign ideas were impressive. With the Wriglesworth team’s help, we are confident that we can expand our existing property portfolio significantly. I look forward to working with them.”

Clarity Credit Management is pleased to announce that they have appointed the Wriglesworth Consultancy as their retained PR agency. The pitch process was not competitive and the appointment was made due to Wriglesworth’s extensive experience in the UK mortgage and credit markets.

Up until now, Clarity Credit Management (Clarity) has focused mainly on providing credit management services to the unsecure lending sector. However, with the current market turmoil, they have can apply this expertise to the secured lending market which will be the focus of their new business initiatives and marketing push in 2009.

Wriglesworth has been brought in to build Clarity’s profile amongst these key audiences and proved ongoing profile raising support through targeted initiatives. Brian Thorn, Director at Wriglesworth, will lead the account supported by a team drawn from the agency’s corporate division.

Mike Perry, Sales and Marketing Director, Clarity Credit Management, commented: “In the current economic conditions, good credit management services are essential for lenders in both the unsecured and secured markets. Given our proven brand awareness and track record in the unsecured market, we now wish to devote more time and resource to raising our profile amongst mortgage lenders and other players in the secured market. Wriglesworth has an excellent reputation for profile raising in this specialist sector and we look forward to working closely with them to increase our brand awareness.”

Brian Thorn, Director at Wriglesworth Consultancy, comments: “As an agency, we have a long history of working with companies in these sectors and have a real understanding of the issues they face. We are therefore delighted to be in a position to promote Clarity Credit Management as they work to grow their presence in the secured market. They have lots of exciting plans for 2009 and we look forward to working closely with them.”

Smartlandlord.co.uk, a new property services site for landlords, is pleased to announce that they have appointed The Wriglesworth Consultancy as their retained PR agency. This appointment was made following a competitive pitch process.

The site, which helps landlords manage and expand their portfolios, chose The Wriglesworth Consultancy to launch their unique business proposition and promote awareness of their portfolio management services. The Wriglesworth team will draw upon its expertise in the internet and property sectors to create an exciting campaign that resounds in the professional landlord community.

John Wriglesworth, founder and Managing Director of The Wriglesworth Consultancy, will oversee the account, supported by the agency’s experienced corporate team.

John Wriglesworth said: “We are delighted to be working with Smartlandlord.co.uk. Their broad range of services and products ideally places them to shake up the market and threaten the role of traditional letting agents in the UK. We look forward to using our experience in this arena to build a successful ongoing campaign for them.”

Keshav Thukaram, managing director of Smartlandlord.co.uk said: “Our site will provide landlords with everything they need to take control of their investments and maximise their returns. We needed an agency that was able to develop a creative campaign to spread the awareness of our brand as an alternative to traditional letting agents. We have chosen the Wriglesworth Consultancy as they have the credentials and creative flair to help us grow our business.”

The Wriglesworth Consultancy is delighted to announce that it is launching a new Media Training department. This new team will be led by Katie White (New Business Development Director) who will market and develop the various services offered by Wriglesworth’s experienced trainers.

The team will offer organisations that operate in the financial services, property, legal or corporate arenas with top quality media training across broadcast, new media and print. Sandy Warr (Wriglesworth’s Head of Broadcast) and Neil Mackwood (Director) will both work closely with Katie to use their extensive experience as broadcast and print journalists to provide an added dimension to the agencies offering.

The launch of this department adds another specialist service to Wriglesworth’s existing range that already includes a broadcast unit, research team and event co-ordination team. The new service will offer a wide selection of courses that include:

• Broadcast specific training
• Print specific training
• Crisis communications training
• Presentation coaching
• Bespoke event/issues training


John Wriglesworth, Managing Director, The Wriglesworth Consultancy comments: “We have been offering our clients access to media training for several years and believe that now is the time to formalise and expand our service. We have a terrific team of trainers who are ideally placed to prepare spokespeople for every type of interview from hostile Watchdog interrogations to effective launches.”

Katie White, New Business Development Director continues: “Properly media trained spokespeople are vitally important – now more than ever. We look forward to providing our clients and other companies within the sector with top quality training and coaching.”

The Equity Release Solicitors Alliance (ERSA) is pleased to announce that they have appointed the Wriglesworth Consultancy as their retained PR agency. The appointment was made after a competitive pitch process.

ERSA is a new organisation of legal firms specialising in equity release legal advice. It has been set up to provide consumers and financial intermediaries with information on the importance of independent legal advice as part of the equity release process. The alliance has hired Wriglesworth to launch the brand to the market place in January 2009 and provide ongoing profile raising support through targeted initiatives. The campaign will focus on reaching both a consumer and business to business audience.

Laura O’Connell, Director at Wriglesworth, will lead the account supported by a team - drawn from the agency’s financial services division - comprised of Suman Hughes and Faye Williamson.

Claire Barker, Chairman of ERSA, commented: “With the equity release industry set to grow significantly over the next few years, ERSA has been launched to ensure that consumers and intermediaries understand the vital importance of independent legal advice as part of the purchase process. Therefore, we were looking for a PR company who not only had a deep understanding of this sector but innovative intelligent ideas on how to grow our profile. We believe we have found this in The Wriglesworth Consultancy and look forward to working with them.”

Laura O’Connell, Director at Wriglesworth Consultancy, comments: “As an agency, we represent some of the biggest names in equity release and thus have a thorough understanding of the issues facing this industry and the importance of independent legal advice. We are therefore delighted to be working with ERSA as they launch into the industry and we look forward to working to develop their profile within this exciting sector.