
Microsoft trainer receives international business thanks to free Google Ad Campaign
A Warkworth based Microsoft Office trainer has reaped the
benefits after receiving a fully funded digital marketing campaign and
marketing training through a programme launched to support businesses during
Covid.
Published: 29 June 2021
Lara Mellor, owner of Lara Mellor Training and Consultancy,
has worked with businesses across the North East to help them to build their
Microsoft skills since establishing the business in in 2000.
Lara is an expert in her field, working with big
companies including Fentimans, but as with many small businesses, Lara saw a
decline in demand for her services when the pandemic hit.
She said: “Initially my business plummeted. Training was
not high on the list of priorities of HR departments dealing with furlough and
trying to get people set up at home or safely back to the office.”
Lara delivers the Microsoft Office training for local
support programme Business Northumberland, her workshops cover PowerPoint,
Excel, Word, PowerBI, Teams & Microsoft 365 packages. It was through this
programme that Lara became aware of the Northumberland Covid Business Response
Programme (NCBRP) also delivered by Advance Northumberland.
NCBRP is offering fully funded digital marketing
campaigns to Northumberland based businesses and Lara knew this was something
her business could benefit from. Having never set up or managed a digital
marketing campaign, Lara worked with The Allies Group to build and establish
her Google Ads campaign as well as receiving 12 hours free support working with
a marketing coach appointed through Transmit.
All the support delivered was fully funded so there was
no cost to her business and it was all managed and set up by a business adviser
provided by the Business Northumberland programme meaning it was hassle free
for Lara.
NCBRP is a new service for businesses that have been
adversely affected by Covid. The Project is funded by the North of Tyne
Combined Authority and delivered by Advance Northumberland on behalf of
Northumberland County Council and the Northumberland Business Hub.
Boasting two main elements; Digital Advantage and
Business Advantage, Lara took advantage of both elements of NCBRP. She not only
received a fully funded digital marketing campaign to the value of £1,000 with
£500 of that going directly on a marketing campaign on Google but
The Business Advantage element saw Lara work with a coach
appointed through Transmit to help give Lara the skills to build on the
business marketing model through 12 hours of fully funded support.
“The marketing support helped me to target the right
businesses by learning how to effectively research their details. Google Ads I
was new to so it gave me the opportunity to try a campaign and see what the
results were which I wouldn’t have done otherwise.”
As well as working with businesses across the region,
Lara also works with the Business Northumberland programme and since its launch
in 2019 was the first trainer to deliver an online workshop for the programme
in 2020 just before strict lockdown rules were put in place.
Business Northumberland provides support to small and
medium enterprises across the North East who are looking to sustain and grow
their business online. The support programme is funded by the European Regional
Development Fund and Advance Northumberland, so there is no cost to eligible
businesses when accessing the support.
The results Lara received have made a huge impact on her
business and how her marketing strategy will work in the future, with the
skills to now implement various marketing strategies, Lara will really ush for
the marketing of her business.
“The traffic to my website went up over 80% with more
enquires over the period of the adverts and 3 new bookings from clients. One of
these is a large international company which could lead to a large volume of
ongoing business.”
Through NCBRP, businesses are also able to receive a
fully funded website for their business to help get an online presence, a
fantastic offer for businesses looking to create an information site, offering
a booking system for customers or sell products online.
To find out how NCBRP could support your business with a
fully funded website, please go to:
https://northumberlandbusinessresponse.co.uk
Find out more about
how your business can take advantage of the online courses run by Lara Mellor
Training & Consultancy and The Allies Group, as well as the other services
through the programme by registering at: www.businessnorthumberland.co.uk or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..