Casla Conversations... with Nicky Geraghty, Marketing Manager at Darwin Technology Solutions

Millie Hurst, 18th February 2026

Nicky Geraghty is no stranger to the challenges of B2B marketing. ‘My first job in marketing was in a company selling travel accessories to airports and places like Boots and WH Smith - and the equivalent of those around the world,’ she says.

Now three months into her current role as marketing manager at Sheffield-based tech-buying consultancy Darwin Technology Solutions, Nicky is building B2B marketing foundations from scratch.

‘I’m the company’s first dedicated marketing hire, which is exciting. Right now, I’m getting to know the business and the customers, and I’m doing lots of planning and making changes for this year,’ she tells us. ‘The business itself is still very young.’

Connecting in-person events, digital, data and sales

Nicky understands the power of events, having completed a Master’s in international events and conference management. ‘I started that in 2019 - it was a great time to get into events,’ Nicky laughs. But for Nicky, the real value comes from linking in-person and digital together.

‘One thing I heard when I started was, “We spend all of our money on events, because we know that events work, but we don't know which ones are the best because we're not really tracking properly,"’ she explains.

‘You can't spend all of your money on events, because there are so many potential customers who aren't attending, but are either searching or who we can target digitally.

‘There's more to it than just being at an event and having a presence. People who meet us at an event might go away and research us.

‘But if our website isn’t up to scratch, or if we're not posting regularly on social media, or there's no case study content to back up what we were saying, that presence loses its impact.

‘It's a full circle thing,’ she states.

Tracking what works

‘After we attended an expo, we had around 30 clicks come through from the expo’s website - so those people are interested, but when they get through to the website, it needs to convert them.

‘I’ve also been looking at ways to categorise and label the data on our CRM, Pipe Drive, so we can track what works and where the customers are coming from, but also help our outbound sales executive know who to contact.

‘Hopefully, with the categorisation and setting it up in a way that if we're uploading data from events, or if it's coming through from the website on a form, it should show exactly where they've come from.’

Career crossroads and cheerleader managers

Like many people working in marketing, Nicky describes her career as squiggly. When we spoke about her journey so far, she shared how much the support of one manager had meant to her.

‘I’d had a bad experience in an events and marketing role, which left me questioning my skills. Then Krissie Petfield hired me at True North Brew Co,’ Nicky says.

‘Meeting Krissie was a turning point for me. She was so different to any manager I'd ever had before. She was the biggest cheerleader,’ says Nicky.

‘She really helped me to build my confidence, and she helped me with my skills and knowledge. When she left True North, I stepped into my first marketing manager role.

‘She’d been building me up to do that role the whole time - it was really evident that she was helping to build my career. Always pushing me to do better and to be better.

‘Up until that point, I was probably taking things too personally. She taught me that it’s okay to push back and say no.’

Tool you can’t live without?

‘I love Monday.com. I put in dates for when I want to do things or when things are due, and I review it every morning.

‘I can't live without that anymore.’

What was the last great piece of B2B content that you saw?

‘At an expo I was at recently, a company called Zendesk had a machine, an iPad, a beer keg and a pint glass, and they put these things on your head, and said, “The more focused you are, the more perfect your pint will pour.”

‘It was using your focus and your brain waves to pour a pint - I’d never seen anything like it! It's not quite content, but it’s the best thing I’ve seen recently. Unfortunately, my pint did not pour very well.’

Biggest marketing myth?

‘The biggest marketing myth is that you have to jump on every trend or everything that's going on on social media. I often see brands do that, and I'm like, “Why? That doesn't fit with your brand.”

‘It feels inauthentic. It's a better idea to know who your audience is, what they'll be interested in, and what trends they might jump on.’

Outro

As she settles into her role at Darwin, Nicky is focused on laying down the foundations purposefully - being authentic and ensuring that events and content are all connected.