Teesside marketing firm urges North East businesses to use digital strategies for export success

Forrest Digital, the Teesside-based digital marketing consultancy, is urging businesses in the North East to exploit the benefits of digital strategies when targeting international markets.

Iain Forrest, managing director of Forrest Digital, said: “There is a huge export opportunity for the North East.

“The latest Office of National Statistics report shows the North East along with Yorkshire and the Humber as the only English regions where export value fell in the year to December 2016, despite the value of UK trade in exported goods increasing overall by 5.6%.

“Given the manufacturing prowess in the region, and its importance to our economy as a whole, this is an opportunity that needs to be taken.”

Forrest Digital was one of the first in the UK to recognise the opportunities that platforms like Google offer manufacturing businesses of all sizes looking to export.

Google approached the consultancy in 2013 to offer hands-on support, which has led to Forrest clients receiving additional support through an official Google Partnership program.

The higher levels of support, which include access to new Google features before they become publicly available, are open to the highest performing organisations and allows them to share and collaborate with the global technology giant.

In 2014, Forrest Digital began working with a Teesside-based manufacturer to develop its presence in the United States. The manufacturing company has gone on to work with Redbull F1, Siemens, Caterpillar and Black and Decker, expanding year after year into international markets.

Forrest concluded: “Not enough companies in the area are utilising digital marketing in their growth strategies. For us, having the Google badge of approval guarantees our customers a level of expertise, experience and trust that other firms just can’t replicate.”