HELLO
I build strong brands and help make marketing more effective.
I create clear, cohesive, customer-focused solutions for growth, transformation and problem solving.
WHAT I BRING
Strong marketing skills with specialist brand expertise.
Campaigns. Advertising. Communications planning. Marketing strategy. Customer insights. Segmentation. Measurement. Brand strategy. Positioning. Architecture. Messaging. Design systems. Transformation.
Extensive experience across different sectors.
20+ years experience: Standard Life. Aberdeen Standard Investments. abrdn. Sky. Discovery Channel. News UK. Forrit. Blair Black Films. Working Rite. Wordtree. Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop. Turn The Tables. Big Issue Invest.
Track record of delivering positive results.
Driving audience growth. Increasing income. Creating successful marketing campaigns. Launching new brands. Transforming brand experience and design. Crafting clear messaging. Identifying customer insights. Measuring brand and marketing performance.
HOW I CAN HELP
Leadership.
Need an experienced leader to drive strategy, action and delivery for your brand and marketing?
I have worked at senior levels in a range of different marketing and brand teams.
I can manage and lead all aspects of brand and marketing for organisations of all sizes on a permanent, contract, project or fractional basis.
I can work on location in Edinburgh or Central Scotland - or remotely anywhere.
HOW I CAN HELP
Consulting.
Looking for expert advice and practical solutions to make your brand and marketing more effective?
I can provide expert advice, guidance and practical brand and marketing outputs.
I have helped businesses with create new messaging, launching new brands, changing old brands and diagnose and solve marketing problems.
I can deliver services in person in Edinburgh and Central Scotland - or remotely anywhere.
HOW I CAN HELP
Collaboration.
Interested in getting a client-side perspective, sector insights or advice on how to get things done well in big companies?
Need someone to help uncover insights, spark ideas, craft messaging or shape strategy frameworks for your projects?
Looking for a specialist expert to help solve brand and marketing problems for your consultancies’ clients?
FEEDBACK
“Through our £1m partnership with Working Rite funded through the Aberdeen Group Charitable Trust, we aim to create lasting impact beyond just the grant amount, it was clear from the beginning that we could do more to help them with their brand identity and presence. Alongside some pro-bono from the business and our suppliers, we supported Working Rite to bring Steven in because of his expertise in brand, strategy, and his value‑led approach. Steven quickly got to the heart of the charity, understood their challenges, and built a smart, practical set of tools to tell their story with clarity and confidence.
His pace, process and impact were exactly what we look for in our partnerships. Working Rite now look and sound more assured, they’re engaging their audiences more effectively, and they’re communicating with a renewed sense of purpose. The results have been immediate with stronger engagement, greater understanding of their mission, and new external funding secured.
Steven’s expertise has transformed their ability to grow, influence and deliver”.
Kirsty Brownlie / Head of Charitable Giving / Aberdeen Group Charitable Trust
“The brand transformation has been a step change moment for us. Steven has been a huge support to me as the CEO throughout the project”.
Graham Robertson / CEO / Working Rite.
“Steven was able to capture the essence of our company and what we were trying to do - better than we could ourselves. He created a brand that is really effective across all platforms”.
Fiona Blair / Executive Producer / Blair Black Films.
“Steven saw ‘Turn The Tables’ and immediately recognised how well it captured our mission. At the time, we were called ‘Back to Back’, but adopting this new name gave me real confidence to present our concept in pitches, at events and promoting online. The feedback for our name has been incredible and I’m confident it’s been instrumental in our success”.
Robbie Tolson / Founder & CEO / Turn The Tables.
"Steven understood the NSN mission really well and he helped us make the most of it. His advice helped shape NSN's hooks for large corporates - and he gave practical guidance on how to manage our different brands, audiences and propositions".
Cat Divers / Founder & CEO / National Support Network.