PeterCobley

Peter Cobley can safely claim to be a digital pioneer. He’s been selling digital solutions, albeit initially using laminated paper examples and CD-roms rather than live online demonstrations, since as far back as 1996.

At the time he was working for Reed Elsevier and says that the company may have survived because it spotted the opportunity early.

As well as time spent working for the interactive arms of TSMS – a pre-merger sales house for ITV – and Carlton, he’s also a search veteran, setting up Overture’s northern office in 2003.

Cobley points out that the north is a very different media environment to London, more business than glamour focused, a place where people “do the numbers” rather than being seduced by the promise or an easy headline in the trade press.

It’s also a place where people still buy on relationships and delivery. “I’m viewed a s a safe pair of hands, good at servicing and relationship-building. People buy from me based on my values that I stand for,” he says.

The effectiveness of that track record is already clear at I Spy where the northern office went into profit in March after opening in September 2008.

Although he keeps up to speed on the latest developments in the sector by reading the latest books on the business, Cobley says actually the best place to get up to date is with the technical team at I Spy.