BEER MAT CAMPAIGN MEANS THE DRINKS ARE ON JOBS!

A range of comedy beer mats will be hitting the pubs and clubs of the UK's biggest cities next month as part of a drive to boost the numbers of applicants signing up to the JOBS multi-channel recruitment system.

Each beer mat design humorously describes a different type of occupation available through the JOBS portal ­ so, a picture of an intoxicated tie is backed by the subtitle "Typist", and an engine with ears sticking out yields "Engineer".

A total of eight designs make up the collection, which will start appearing in venues across the country from January 20th.

Colin Minto, sales and marketing manager of JOBS, said:
"The campaign is designed as a bit of fun, which we hope will generate interest in the JOBS service ahead of its official consumer launch later this year.

"And while I can't take any credit for the jokes, they do sum up the range of opportunities available through JOBS ­ via our telephone, interactive TV or internet channels."

Recruitment group Pertemps, the parent company behind the JOBS service, released research last year showing that two-thirds of UK workers admit to having a drink on a worknight.

BIRTH OF A FOAL LEADS TO NEW FIELD MARKETING COMPANY

A new field marketing company, which offers sales, merchandising and placement of point of sale, has been born in Reading after its director, Kathy O'Neil, who has worked in the industry for the past 20 years, experienced a bizarre set of circumstances, which saw her help to deliver a foal.

Kathy was dining with a friend at a stud in North Devon, when the mare, belonging to horse racing supporter Tim Watts, chairman of Pertemps - the UK's largest privately owned recruitment agency, based in Meriden, Warwickshire, collapsed as it tried to give birth.

With little equestrian experience, Kathy helped to deliver the foal, which has been bred to become a racehorse. She then discovered the identity of the owner and realised his recruitment agency could be the perfect match for the field marketing firm she hoped to set up, since new staff are constantly needed to run projects for clients.

Pertemps Field Marketing has now been established in West Street, Reading, as a wholly owned subsidiary of Pertemps. It's services, which are carried out by specially trained staff, will undertake the full salesforce role including checking stock, generating orders, collecting information and merchandising.

Pertemps Field Marketing offer experiencial marketing, such as high street theatre, product demonstration and in-store sampling which help maximise product trial within a target audience. In addition, compliance management ensures a product is competitively placed and complies with in-store layout, it also ensures retailers have sufficient supplies to meet customer demand.

Pertemps Field Marketing is run by director, Kathy O'Neil, she is currently recruiting a new business director and plans to take on more staff as the venture grows. Kathy works closely with some of Pertemps' other associate companies, including one that specialises in telemarketing.

With 20 years' experience in field marketing, Kathy has worked for agencies in the business, including CPM, Ellert and PMI. Former clients include Mars, BT, Bass, Sainsbury's and Britvic - Kathy spent the last three years as a freelance field marketing consultant.

Kathy said: "The circumstances that put me in touch with Tim Watts are really quite bizarre, but I could not have found a better match for a field marketing company. Big firms require large numbers of staff to maximize their sales and marketing activities. Pertemps provide candidates with appropriate skills so we can successfully deliver any project in the UK and Ireland.

"I have years of field marketing experience behind me, working with top brand names, and with Pertemps' support I am ideally placed to establish this new venture as a thriving and successful business."

Tim said: "I am delighted to see the launch of Pertemps Field Marketing, which perfectly complements our core recruitment business. Kathy is a highly experienced field marketeer and I am sure that the company will go from strength to strength under her leadership.

"It is very fortuitous that the birth of my foal should have put me in touch with someone who could help me launch such an exciting new business venture."