118 118 UK marketing boss joins media agency MEC

Walker will oversee client leadership and communications planning, reporting into MEC’s deputy managing director Paul Hutchinson.

At 118 118, Walker was responsible for repositioning and refreshing the brand through advertising and sponsorship. This included the launch of a multi-million pound repositioning campaign and the development of a customer segmentation multi-channel media buying and creative strategy to optimise media effectiveness.

Her role will not be directly replaced, with Esther Teixeira, currently marketing and communications for 118 118’s voice business across Europe, taking on expanded responsibilities to include sister brands 118 118 Money and Beauty Pass. The company also used to own the KBGDeals daily deals brand, but it was sold to Atlanta base nCrowd earlier this year.

Before joining 118 118 in 2012, Walker was head of digital communications at HSBC. She has more than 20 years of client-side marketing experience, including working on the launch of the Nintendo Gameboy and Super NES, as well as launching T-Mobile in several European countries.

Walker told Marketing Week she is looking forward to trying something new and adapting her client-side marketing experience to the agency role.

She added “One area of marketing I always enjoyed was advertising and media planning – and that’s an area where the media agencies have increasingly got the edge over creative agencies as they really understand how to keep clients consistent to their brand message.

“I can add that client-side understanding of the importance advertising plays as part of your marketing strategy…but also an appreciation of everything else that goes on at other levels of the business.”

MEC’s clients include Comparethemarket, Nintendo, Paramount and The Royal Navy.