ANDY BIRTCo-Founder & Chief Executive Officer

After graduating, Andy worked in media sales handling leading national publications, websites and exhibitions for News International. He went on to work for a national radio group, and began helping small businesses to develop their sales and marketing strategies. From here, he co-founded Smart Traffic and used his experience of the SME sector to develop an offering that would allow small businesses to see a high, measurable ROI from Search Marketing. As Managing Director and now CEO, Andy has been responsible for the continued growth and development of Smart Traffic globally, with an eye to providing services which enable companies of all sizes to maximise their profits via robust Search Marketing strategy.

Being from the land of pasties, Andy spends his spare time surfing, wake boarding, snowboarding and traveling.

BEN NEVECo-Founder

Ben cut his teeth working in telecoms for the air force, before moving into direct sales for large telecoms infrastructure companies, targeting internet and media businesses. Following the .com boom-to-bust he decided to go it alone. He co-founded and became the Managing Director of Communication 4 Ltd, which operated successfully in the ecommerce B2C and B2B markets, saw high growth and increased profits for five years before being sold. Smart Traffic was founded with Andy and Simon after Ben recognised the value of SEO to other similar businesses.

Ben’s is a keen triathlon participant and has competed in major events across Europe and Asia.

SIMON CARPENTERCo-Founder

Simon is the former and original technical director of Smart Traffic, and now sits on the board as a non-executive director. Simon has an entrepreneurial background, having run several small businesses before.

Simon grew up in Cornwall, and met Andy and Ben later on in life, adding his technical expertise to their sales, media and internet marketing experience, and completing our deadly trio.

SIMON MUNROEAsia Pacific Sales Director Joined Smart Traffic in 2006

Simon began working in the IT industry straight out of university. He gained sales experience working for Telstra in Melbourne and the private banking industry in Thailand. He joined Smart Traffic when it first opened its doors for business, set up an office in Bangkok and found a place where he could combine both his IT and Sales skills.

Since then Simon has been an integral part in building and developing the business into what it is today. He’s worked in the retail sector in the UK and established the channel sales arm of the business. Recently he’s moved on to oversee and drive all company sales in the Asia Pacific region.

Simon's recommendation for SEO success:
'Only work with a company that delivers real ranking results: if they can do it for other clients then they can do it for you'

STEVE HARRISUK Sales DirectorJoined Smart Traffic in 2007

Steve is our UK Sales Director and is based in the Bristol office where he is responsible for our Campaign Management team. He has a solid background in sales and Campaign Management, is a self-confessed family man and an avid sports fan.

Steve's recommendations for SEO success:
‘Your SEO provider should work with you on a partnership basis and provide dedicated Campaign Managers for your SEO project. Our large resource of experts makes us one of the leaders in the industry when it comes to applying a personalised touch to your campaign. Communicating regularly, listening to your needs as they change and responding to them is what we pride ourselves on’.

RICH PEARCEUK Sales ManagerJoined Smart Traffic in 2010

Rich is our UK Sales Manager and is based in the Bristol office. He has experience in Sales Management across various industries including recruitment and insurance – this puts him in good stead to manage his diverse client portfolio, which currently includes everything from modelling agencies to home furnishings companies.

He loves spending time with his family and is a martial arts, running and general fitness geek.

Rich's recommendations for SEO success:
'Analytics is your passport to SEO strategy fulfilment – it's all about measuring your online marketing effectiveness'

NICK BASKERVILLESenior Campaign ManagerJoined Smart Traffic in 2010

Nick has been providing marketing solutions for SMEs for over eight years, with his experience encompassing Directory companies, Pay Per Click agencies and now SEO solutions.

His private life revolves around his two children, watching motorsports and track days in his car.

Nick's recommendations for SEO success:
'Have realistic expectations of the results you want to get. Clearly defining your search objectives will mean that you stand a better chance of meeting those expectations'

SAM MORTONSenior Campaign ManagerJoined Smart Traffic in 2010

Sam is an experienced business development professional, working across many industry sectors. When not bolstering our Bristol team with his expertise, he likes to get out and about as much as possible, DJ-ing and producing tunes. He also owns an impressive collection of holey woollen jumpers and is our unofficial team stylist.

Sam's recommendations for SEO success:
'There are many different approaches to SEO and many companies out there pertaining to have the perfect solution. If you stick to the basic concepts, links need to be built manually and in line with Google's natural link criteria. Work with as many variations of the main key terms as possible, and link in as many different ways as you can. There are no short cuts in an effective SEO campaign.

Don't spread yourself too thinly at the start of your SEO campaign by trying to get every keyword onto the first page. If budgets are tight, there are still lots of ways of building relevant traffic to the site, on budget'.

DAVID GRIFFITHSSenior Campaign ManagerJoined Smart Traffic in 2010

Dave has a strong marketing background, having worked on direct marketing projects for Virgin Media, BT and within the financial services industry, specialising in insurance. When he gets time away from the world of SEO he likes to spend it with his son, or on the beach with only a surfboard for company, trying his hardest not to fall off.

Dave's recommendations for SEO success:
'SEO isn't a quick fix! Many companies can achieve page one rankings relatively quickly, but the longevity of these results can be compromised when black hat techniques are employed. In my opinion with a little patience you’ll be rewarded, as it takes time to achieve white hat rankings. You’ll rank higher and for longer, and ultimately see higher ROI. It's not worth cutting corners in SEO. Just remember: if your backlink profile doesn't look natural to YOU, it won’t look natural to Google!'

JAY WATKINCampaign Development ManagerJoined Smart Traffic in 2010

Jay joined the Bristol team in 2010, and has solid experience in Financial Sales Management. He is a die-hard Manchester United fan with a healthy sense of humour- the two not being mutually exclusive.

Jay's recommendations for SEO success:
'Keywords. Relevant keywords are an indispensible part of content, and research and analysis is essential to make sure you place the right keywords at the right time in the right context. Focussing on relevance will ensure that you will reap the full benefits of your SEO campaign.'

DAVID HASLAMCampaign ManagerJoined Smart Traffic in 2010

David joined Smart Traffic with experience in Digital and Legal Sector Marketing and has an unhealthy obsession with Google Analytics. When not consumed with Bounce Rates, Conversion ratios and the many metrics taken into consideration for ranking purposes, David likes to relax by spending quality time with friends and family and is a firm fan of the city break – Barcelona being the city of choice. Poor Barcelona.

David's recommendations for SEO success:
'Your SEO Campaign Manager needs to understand your business, the market and your ideal target audience. Our partnership approach to SEO means that we use our client's knowledge to help us piece together the most commercially viable campaigns for them. An effective SEO strategy is a constantly moving target. I believe the key to Search Engine Ranking success is to ensure our client's offsite optimisation looks natural. The difficulty in synchronising all metrics required for a successful campaign cannot be overestimated- with over 200 metrics to think about each campaign is a challenge!'

RUSSELL GREGORYSenior Partner Development Manager (Reseller)Joined Smart Traffic in 2010

Russell moved to Bristol and launched a career in Digital Marketing and Sales after years of managing West End clubs and cocktail bars, working with large companies such as Bacardi.

He has been based in the UK office since it was established and works exclusively with our Reseller clientele, namely other SEO and digital professionals who require nothing but the highest quality products and services.

Russell's recommendations for SEO success:
'Quite simply, if you're an SEO agency, or offer SEO as a service, give me a call.'

MARC EDENAccount DirectorJoined Smart Traffic in 2008

Marc joined the company in 2008 as an Account Manager and is now an Account Director. With a background in marketing and customer service, he aims to use his SEO knowledge and experience to provide clients with new opportunities wherever possible.

Marc's recommendations for SEO success:
'Your SEO provider should approach your search marketing campaign as a partnership, facilitating a smoother path to meeting objectives.'

LAURENCE PORTERSenior Campaign ManagerJoined Smart Traffic in 2006

Laurence Porter was the first Campaign Manager to work for Smart Traffic, working with some of the company's first ever clients. He has just completed his 5th year of service. Laurence has a solid understanding of the technical workings of SEO, and has previously worked alongside our technical team. He focuses on delivering the best possible returns on his client's Search campaigns.

Outside of work he unfortunately supports Crystal Palace Football Club, and likes spending time at home with his family.

TOM SANGERSHead of Search, Smart ClickJoined Smart Click in 2010

Tom is the Head of Search at Smart Click, our dedicated PPC specialist sister company. His objective is to bring an integrated Search Marketing approach to our digital marketing service offering. He establishes and coordinates the PPC strategy for new and existing clients. His expertise lies in PPC, SEO, SEM, Social Media, Analytics, Email Marketing and Website Consultancy. His hobbies include running, going to the gym, motor sports and knowing everything.

Tom's Tips for effective PPC:
'A Good Click Through Rate is upmost for the health of your account'

THOMAS COPPENPPC Account Manager, Smart ClickJoined Smart Click in 2011

The other Tom, although no less important, Thomas works within our expert PPC team as an Account Manager. He grew up in Felixstowe, Suffolk, and enjoys sailing and racing boats. He is also a RYA qualified senior sailing instructor.

With experience in management, sales, customer service and account management he prides himself on a strong focus on marketing ROI.

Thom's Tips for effective PPC:
'PPC is all about the Quality Score.'

STUART POLLINGTONHead of SEO/Technical OperationsJoined Smart Traffic in 2009

Stuart's history with SEO began in 2005, when he headed up the online marketing and strategy for Student Computers with Communication 4 Ltd. After obtaining number 1 rankings for keywords such as 'cheap laptops' and 'cheap computers', above well-known brands and with a low marketing budget, Stuart landed in Smart Traffic's technical office in 2009. Two years have flown by and after highly successful results Stuart is now responsible for the full technical delivery of all of our clients' onsite and offsite work. His passion is SEO, but he is also a football fan (Brighton and Liverpool), and likes playing Pool.

Stuart's recommendations for SEO success:
'There are three basic steps for obtaining successful results for a website; be relevant, have good onsite focus and get people linking to you. Of course, each of these steps entails a lot more, depending on the site and targeted keywords, and there is also Social Media, Local SEO, and Mobile – but every campaign is made up of the basic three ingredients. This is why I love SEO: it keeps moving forward and changing, but the basics stay the same'

EMMA TOMLINSONHead of Retail (SEO)Joined Smart Traffic in 2011

Emma joined Smart Traffic after gaining experience as an e-commerce webmaster for a leading industrial and marine solutions company, where she learned the importance of an online retail presence in reaching both local and international customers. Emma joined the Smart Traffic technical office in early 2011, where she now oversees the SEO delivery for our clients. In her spare time Emma very sensibly enjoys traveling and spending time at the beach.

Emma's recommendations for SEO success:
'SEO should be the key consideration for anyone wanting to attract customers online and your website is your most powerful SEO tool – ensuring it is penalty free, clean and highly relevant is the best foundation. If you are looking into Content Management Systems always ask if the software is SEO friendly to save headaches further on down the road.'

JOHN BIGWOODGroup Financial ControllerJoined Smart Traffic in 2011

John is the right side of fifty but the wrong side of forty. He originally wanted to be a pop star, ended up as a Chartered Accountant, and is still trying to figure out how that happened.

He joined Smart Traffic in 2010 and is our Group Financial Controller, based in Bristol. He is also our resident Guru. We like to call him ‘Ask John’. He lives in Somerset with his partner and daughter.

GEMMA AMORMarketing ManagerJoined Smart Traffic in 2011

Gemma is a qualified marketer (ACIM) with experience in working client side across a variety of industries, from Engineering to Banking and Finance. Having made the leap over to the agency side of the river she is applying her strategic knowledge and focussing on keeping up with the ever-changing world of Search.

She is currently rehabilitating having just returned from a year travelling around the world, where amongst other things she dived with hammerhead sharks, learned to paraglide and spent three weeks trekking across Mongolia on the world's smallest horse. When not sulking about being back in the UK she is a shutterbug, film and fitness fan.

NATALIE HITCHENSales AdministratorJoined Smart Traffic in 2011

Natalie is our Sales and Accounts administrator and joined the Bristol office in 2011. She is one of only a few women in the Bristol office at the moment and is keen to start her own girl band to compensate for this.

Natalie was born in the UK's surfing capital Newquay, but later emigrated to the land of cider, otherwise known as Somerset.