Headed up by strategy director Hayley Peters, The Intention Unit combines strategy, creativity and channel mastery with an editorial mindset, to deliver best in class storytelling that drives genuine audience action.
The Intention Unit’s focus will be on utilising the agency’s data tools and research capabilities such as audience and trends analysis to deliver robust strategies and disruptive ideas rooted in insight.
Hayley Peters said: “This comes at a time when the world of comms is changing rapidly - newsrooms are diminished, the rise of independent content publishers, AI as a search engine - means PR plays a vital role in influencing and shaping the stories and content our audiences consume.
“Our intention is to do the thinking and heavy lifting that our clients don’t have the time to do. This will empower brands to step back, find clarity and tell compelling stories that ignite action.”
Hayley will be supported by Carl Stroud, Smoking Gun’s chief storyteller who has two decades of experience on Fleet Street as The Sun’s website editor and will lead on crafting compelling narratives. Carly Chell makes up the third element of the team, with 13 years of digital marketing experience, leading on the agency’s digital and influencer channel strategy.
In common with all the work carried out by Smoking Gun, effective measurement will be at the core of the Intention Unit’s work.
Rick Guttridge, owner and CEO of Smoking Gun, said: “We firmly believe that game-changing work is born out of collaboration between strategy, creativity and effective use of data.
“The Intention Unit brings all of this together and the work of the unit is already being utilised across the agency’s portfolio of clients. It is a powerhouse of diverse expertise which uses research-led insight to cut through the noise with our effective, results-driven approach.”
The Unit has already completed research led pan European comms workshops to find differentiated positioning
To find out more about how The Intention Unit at Smoking Gun can help your business get in touch here or visit smokinggun.agency.
