Paul Fabretti

The here and now

I currently head up social media for 02 Telefonica. With an an already enviable reputation for excellence in social media, I'm working to see how 02 can continue to lead the field and give our customers a great digital experience, however they wish to engage with us.

I'm also passionate about the concept of "social business" and how we can take learnings from customer behaviours and activity on our social channels and more deeply integrate them across the whole of our business.

More recently...

My previous role as Digital Director of Brazen PR saw me manage the digital/social output for over 12 million fans (some global) across 20+ social media channels.

As someone who has genuinely "been there and done that", I try to pass on my experience through this blog, blendingthemix.com which has been in the Ad Age Power 150 for over 4 years.

I'm also a featured blogger for US-based marketing publications, Social Media Today and MarketingProfs.

In the past I've worked with some of the world's biggest brands, providing consultancy, developing and implementing social media strategies in the UK and Europe for names such as Dyson, Lexus, Microsoft, Durex as well as The NHS, The North Face, Monopoly, Ronseal I could go on...!

My social media consultancy for Greater Manchester Police laid the foundation for their global hit, GMP24 in which the Force tweeted every 999 incident for a 24-hour period.

The Old days

My digital experience goes back to 2001 when the web was but a baby and I set up an online video game business thegamenetwork.co.uk (now defunct!). My social media experience dates back to 2005 when I formed, grew (using solely social media channels) then sold my online bathroom retail business bighippo.co.uk. Since then, I have gone on to set-up the social media teams and services of several large UK agencies.