Olivia Clifford-Beeston, joins as a senior account executive, bringing a wealth of experience from PR agencies in both London and Sheffield, working across b2b and b2c accounts. 

Account executive Natalie Merrix, joins from events trade association Eventia to work across a number of hospitality accounts including Searcys, Innkeepers Lodge and Warwick Conferences. 

And recent graduate Kerri Smith completes the trio after gaining a 2:1 in events management at University College Birmingham as PR administrator. 

The expansion comes as the RAR Top 100 named WAA the 8th best UK agency outside London. Over 700 agencies in all disciplines were assessed in the survey, placing WAA in the top 1%.

Dan Clifford, head of PR at WAA, said: "The last 12 months has shown that PR is an increasingly sought after weapon in the marketing arsenal, especially when budgets are under so much pressure.

"The beauty of being a part of an integrated agency is that we can link our PR expertise in with the other skill sets within WAA to provide clients with a really rounded solution that complements their other activity.

"Along with some great new business wins we have also seen a lot of our clients turning to us to fulfil their social media and digital communication requirements and that certainly and area in which we see further growth going forward."

The Birmingham Mail's front page tells the 'Villa 82 Legends join Hall of Fame' story, following an exclusive briefing by WAA's PR team.

Former Villa manager Ron Saunders will make a rare public appearance at the black tie event (to be held in the Villa Park Holte Suite on Thursday October 27th), in order to bestow the honour on the squad – who will become only the fourth domestic side to be inducted.

Read the Mail's full story here.

WAA Head of PR Dan Clifford said: "It is a fantastic achievement by the team and our role was to ensure that the announcement got the maximum coverage in order to help them reach as many of their fans as possible and sell tickets for what should be a fantastic evening.

"There are a lot of fantastic stories surrounding the 1982 squad and we will be releasing them in the run up to the event to ensure that it retains focus as the date gets nearer.

"Once inducted, all the players are then included in an elite group that are given voting rights to nominate new inductees and as a Coventry fan I have already been lobbying the lads to put forward the Sky Blues 1987 cup winning side – I'll keep City fans posted!"

1982 squad member Ken McNaught, now the commercial manager of the Aston Villa Former Players' Association,  joined WAA to make the announcement. He said: "We relied totally on WAA's advice in terms of announcing this great honour and it has been a real success.

"It is a great honour and I cannot wait for the evening, hopefully the fans will really back it."

The agency uses the Cambridge-based Menagerie Theatre Company for coaching and workshops on leadership, teambuilding and creativity.Menagerie uses innovative programmes, including interactive scenarios, where participants work with actors and other creative artists to investigate behaviours and gain insights into performing effectively at work.Andy Wilson, CEO of WAA, first saw Paul Bourne, Menagerie’s artistic director, deliver a workshop on innovation and risk three years ago.Andy said: “WAA is committed to investing in its staff, as it not only benefits our clients but also shows staff that we encourage and value their growth.”WAA are now using Menagerie to provide workshops for WAA’s clients.Andy added: “The companies we work with are always seeking out attention-grabbing ways they can ingrain their staff with valuable skills in leadership, problem-solving and communication.“Having seen the impact it had on our own team, we realised they could be a great resource for clients.”

For many people, designing a space where they can escape and relax is a central part of home design and the new campaign will give them the opportunity to express their ideas. A select panel of judges will review the interiors that are shared through Bristan’s Facebook site and other social media channels and use them to appoint Bristan’s new stylist. The winner will receive a twelve month contract to have their say in the styling and presentation of new Bristan products.

The campaign, which launches in August, will raise awareness of the variety of sports and key fixtures showing in their Community and Town pubs. A number of competitions and incentives will be included within the promotion to encourage participation and generate atmosphere at each of the big sporting events.

The teams, which have an association with Boldmere Netball Club, were invited to the coastal town of Brean in Somerset over the weekend to take on teams from all over the country – with a little light partying thrown in of course!

The girls entered the tournament on a high – in 2011 the first team did not lose a game and finished third in the winter league.

However, there was plenty of friendly rivalry, banter and wounded pride following the first team’s recent shock defeat to the second team in an inter-agency friendly, so the stakes were high.

Their fancy footwork netted both teams respectable results against some of the best amateur women’s teams in the country.

Lisa Reeves, WAA’s production and operations manager (and wing defence), said: “We’re incredibly proud of all the girls in both teams. Through sheer willpower and dedication they have risen through the ranks and put in some superb performances.

“We had a great weekend and hope to go on to even greater success in the summer season.”

Another high stakes game is an upcoming match against the WAA guys, instigated after the cocky males insisted they could beat the girls. Probably time to heat up that humble pie fellas!

Pimp Your Pal allows both staff and non-staff to nominate a friend for a position at WAA and pocket £1,000 if their nomination is recruited and successfully completes their probation period.

It was launched to help WAA recruit the best candidates following an unprecedented period of growth.

Pimp Your Pal was the brainchild of WAA creative partner Chris Bailey. He said: “People in our industry have a rich pool of talented friends and contacts both personally and through social networks, many of whom are looking for a company that will nurture their talent and help them shine.

“As a 2011 Sunday Times Top 100 Company, we believe we’re perfectly placed to do that.

“We’ve already attracted three fantastic recruits and have some very interesting leads thanks to Pimp Your Pal.

“But we still have roles to fill, so if you have a mate who’s great check out our website and you could get a cool grand.”

The Pimp your Pal process is easy, just go to www.pimpyourpal.co.uk and follow the instructions.

Starting in the town centre before winding its way through Sutton Park, the run is an institution in the town and has over the years raised over £200k for charity.

More than 40 WAA employees and their friends and family have signed up for the run.

One group of employees have been training every Wednesday – a gruelling ordeal for both the team and their colleagues, who have to tolerate their griping about sore muscles every Thursday morning.

Levels of competitiveness among employees vary, with some hardcore elements aiming for a time of under an hour, while others looking forward to a pleasant afternoon amble.

Organiser Rob Dickens said: “We’re delighted with the amount of people who’ve signed up this year. There’s a lot of banter in the office and a few friendly wagers, so the day itself should be pretty interesting!”

After the event WAA is holding a BBQ and wind-down drinks for staff, friends and family.

Anyone at all - whether a member of staff or a savvy outsider - can nominate a friend for a position at WAA and pocket £1,000 if their nomination is recruited and successfully completes their probation period.

Chris Bailey, creative partner at WAA, said: “We've all got them - those ridiculously talented friends. And while others may look enviously on at their creative flair, planning abilities, account handling skills or digital dexterity, we’re offering the chance for you to help them find the perfect place for their skills to flourish and grow.

“As well as the warm glow of helping a mate get a fantastic role at a 2011 Sunday Times Top 100 Company, you’ll net yourself a cool, hard grand - not a bad reward for simply firing off an e-mail.”

The Pimp your Pal process is easy, just go to www.pimpyourpal.co.uk and follow the instructions.

Top stand-ups descended on The Station Pub in Sutton Coldfield for an exclusive gig on behalf of WAA’s workforce on Wednesday night.

The entertainment committee – also known as the ‘Fun Squad’ – held the event to reward staff for their hard work during an exciting and busy period of growth for the agency.

The top notch comedians included compere Karen Bailey, Andy White and Shaun Percival, with a headline performance by the highly-reviewed Steve Day, who describes himself as Britain’s only deaf comic (as he puts it himself: “If there are any others, I haven’t heard”).

Designer and Fun Squad member Mark Degenetais has organised comedy nights at The Station for more than a decade.

He said: “It was a fantastic night – when Andy White sang The Flintstones’ theme song in a sexually aggressive French accent I thought a few people were going to have an accident that necessitated a mop and bleach.

“Our compere also managed to expose the only couple at the agency and proceeded to ask them some very, shall we say, ‘intimate’, questions – not so funny for them, absolutely hilarious for the rest of us.”

The comedy night was the latest in a number of staff entertainment events held this year, with a night at the Michael Jackson tribute show ‘Thriller’ set for late April.

This is the second year of Selco’s deal with Masters Football to provide headline sponsorship for the high profile seniors tournament which sees some of the footballing world’s most famous old stars roll back the years.

WAA was awarded the brief after demonstrating how PR can be used to maximise value from the sponsorship deal by ‘sweating the assets’ through media coverage, promotional activities both at matches and within Selco branches and community relations.

WAA got the ball rolling by holding a press conference with Man City stalwart Uwe Rosler and Chelsea hero Tore Andre Flo in the run up to the two sides’ Premiership clash in late February.

The press conference, which took place at a hotel just down the road from Chelsea’s Cobham training ground, was attended by sports writers and broadcasters from The Daily Express, The Star, The Daily Telegraph TalkSport and numerous trade media, as well as reporters from Sky Sports News.

The results were extraordinary – delivering an immediate return on investment of £1:£48 in PR value from the launch event alone.

Over the tournament period, WAA’s PR team will also coordinate football-themed in-store activities and community events to supplement the sponsorship and maximise coverage.

WAA’s marketing team have further enhanced the offering by giving customers the chance to win an array of money can’t buy prizes.

Head of PR Dan Clifford said: “The Masters Cup has a huge profile with hours of live TV coverage and it is a real coup for Selco to be involved.

“It also presents a fantastic opportunity to generate awareness of Selco through events like this and other activities. The results so far speak for themselves – and this is only the beginning.”

WAA helped the independent garage network develop ‘Garage Speak’ in an attempt to put the brakes on gobbledegook that baffles and alienates motorists.

Halfords Autocentres is a new name to the marketplace after Halfords acquired and rebranded the Nationwide Autocentre network.

The business was keen to announce its arrival and its key messages of expertise, trust and value for money.

Garage Speak presented the perfect platform for WAA to achieve this. We created a ‘Garage Speak’ glossary, a book of the most confusing terms used by mechanics and their actual meanings, which was officially endorsed by Plain English Campaign.

Another key part of the campaign was the recruitment of respected motoring commentator Mike Rutherford, who undertook media interviews regarding the glossary and spoke about the frustration garage customers experience and highlighting the honest, transparent and trustworthy approach taken by Halfords.

These combined elements resulted in Halfords Autocentres getting widespread national media coverage for the campaign, including BBC Breakfast, TalkSport, The Sunday Telegraph, The Scotsman and The Daily Express, as well as regional coverage.

Over £500,000 worth of media value was achieved; with dozens or radio stations also giving out the Halfords Autocentres web address for downloads of the glossary.

The campaign was led by PR account director Jeremy Merckel. He said: “At some stage most people have felt overwhelmed by a visit to the garage.

“We undertook surveys and used the results to tailor Garage Speak to resonate with both the target market and the media. The depth of coverage shows the media appetite for stories of this nature and a gap in the marketplace for Halfords Autocentres’ straight-talking approach.”

The integrated communications consultancy, hit the headlines this weekend in the respected Sunday Times ‘100 Best Small Companies to Work For’ league table – coming in at number 60.

And testament was paid to the scope of the agency’s work and the approach it takes to its business, highlighted by WAA’s 9th place listing in the category of ‘Most Stimulating Workplaces’.

The recognition comes in a strong period of growth for WAA, and chief executive Andrew Wilson believes the foundations are in place for that success to continue.

He said: “We have always been very mindful that our people are WAA’s key asset and invested in them accordingly, so it is fantastic to see that translate into recognition of this kind.

“This is about the entire workplace experience, and we see this very much as the beginning of something rather than the culmination.

“There is certainly a buzz within our industry around the progress we are making, which is highlighted by the fact that we have already taken on a dozen new team members since the turn of the year.”

Sunday Times managing editor Richard Caseby paid tribute to all of the companies that made it into the Top 100, describing it as Britain’s toughest business competition.

He said: “I congratulate all of the companies that made this year’s list. Providing a dynamic and fulfilling workplace is not just a “nice to have” for our winners, it is an established part of the long term strategy.”

Qualifications provider City & Guilds turned to WAA to help realise their ambition of creating a stronger economy through increased vocational learning.

After fully investigating City & Guilds’ brand, culture and marketplace, WAA’s award-winning creative and strategic teams developed ‘Million Extra’ – an exciting mission to collaborate with training centres, employers, industry bodies and government agencies to help ensure one million people get the opportunity to shine and grow by starting an apprenticeship before summer 2013.

Chris Bailey, creative partner at WAA, said: “City & Guilds’ purpose is to create a stronger economy and more skilled workforce through vocational learning.

“Quite rightly, they have set an ambitious target and we needed a huge culture change to effect it.”

“It’s not just about ‘imagining’ what we can achieve together – it’s making it happen. City & Guilds needed to act collaboratively, bringing together learning providers, employers and learners to deliver sustainable skills and enhance employability. “

To achieve this, WAA created a range of traditional and new media platforms and products to bring the audiences together, supported by an online hub. The launch coincided with Apprentice Week and generated extensive coverage in print and broadcast media.

Chris added: “Million Extra empowers our audiences to play their part in a stronger economy through a collaborative approach to vocational learning. The client is delighted with Million Extra, and the results it is already achieving.”

The Sutton Coldfield agency will be working across a range of strategic projects including a campaign to promote apprenticeships to school leavers and employers. City & Guilds is increasingly embracing digital channels for external and internal communications, and WAA’s appointment is indicative of the importance the organisation is placing on technical best practice and ease of use.

WAA’s brief will see the agency deliver consultancy around City & Guilds’ digital strategy and customer value proposition, competitor intelligence and research and delivery of campaigns through a variety of digital channels including social media, video and on-site content.

Rachana Roberts, digital marketing manager for City & Guilds comments: “We were very attracted by the fact WAA is a full service agency, with a rich heritage in developing insight-led marketing strategies. It was important to us that our chosen agency partner could demonstrate experience in understanding consumer and business audiences as well as possessing genuine digital expertise, and WAA was able to meet this brief.”

Simon Cox, head of digital for WAA comments: “City & Guilds is a great brand with exciting developments in the pipeline so this is a terrific win for WAA. There is an exciting opportunity in this market to establish a serious multi-channel strategy and we’re delighted to be helping City & Guilds forge the way.”

Selco operates a unique concept of trade focused self-select warehouses in key urban areas throughout England and Wales. WAA’s remit is to support Selco’s ambitious growth plans with strategic marketing planning and commercially-rooted tactical initiatives.

Ongoing work will include a variety of campaigns and tactics, utilising both on- and off-line channels and in store activity, in addition to ongoing initiatives to gather customer and competitor insight.

Jacqui Lennon, WAA managing director comments: “Selco is a very impressive business and one we are delighted to have the opportunity to work with. It’s a tightly run operation, based on sound customer-focused principals and with exciting plans for the future. Our job now is to build on these solid foundations with insights and communications initiatives that will express Selco’s unique offering and deliver commercial advantage in this competitive market place.”

Simon Humpage, Selco marketing manager adds: “Throughout the pitch process the WAA team demonstrated an enthusiastic and intelligent approach to our brief.”

Set in the fantastic grounds of Trentham Gardens, Andy took part in the Trentham Triathlon, challenging himself to a remarkable 1.5km swim, followed by a 38km bike ride and finishing with a 10km run.

For four months ahead of the challenge, a dedicated Andy took to swimming, running and cycling at least once a week, increasing the miles slowly until he reached the racing distances. He also entered the Great Eastern Swim to perfect his weakest element, swimming!

And it seems his disciplined training regime paid off, as he crossed the line after an extremely respectable 2hrs 38, placing him at an impressive 18 out of 102, particularly inspiring for a first timer.

So, what’s next for Andy? Well, not for one for an easy life, next month he is taking part in a challenge to cycle across the Alps, raising money and awareness in aid of MPD-SUPPORT!

Good luck Andy!

If you’d like to sponsor Andy on his trip across Europe’s greatest mountain range, you can, just click here.