A small but award winning Cardiff public relations firm. Warwick Emanuel has a small team of nine,…read morebut they're widely regarded as experts in their field and have a number of high profile clients. The firm specialises in utilities and energy, but they also have clients such as Job Match Wales (so they've been very busy in this recession). More recently they've started making corporate films, which team member Stephen Thomas is heavily involved in. These films are highly professional, and don't appear at all naff like so many corporate films. The staff are young, friendly, and energetic and if you're in need of a Public Relations firm, you won't have any disappointments when it comes to Warwick Emanuel.

Effective Communication is an all singing and all dancing multi media, Marketing and PR company…read morethat even provides media training courses for their clients. Their area of expertise is vast, including established media, such as the press, and other published / printed material, all the way through to 'new media', essentially the burgeoning digital media market that we access via the internet, which includes social media websites like this one. It is becoming increasingly common for agencies of this nature to handle established media as well as the newer digital media formats. Those that don't have probably got a limited lifespan. Digital media is where it is at, with social media forecast to be the ultimate way forward for companies, of all kinds, to advance their position within their respective markets. This is why all printed media producers now has a strong on-line presence to augment their present position as well as ensuring that they don't get left behind. What is unusual about Effective Communication is that they offer 'the most incisive media training in Wales today'. Calling on some of the most experienced journalists in the country, Effective Communication are able to tailor specific courses to clients' needs. Courses include: media interview training, crisis communication training to presentation planning training. Effective Communication has two offices, one in Cardiff and another in Swansea, and will consider all types of client, regardless of scale and whether they be a manufacturing concern or a player within the service industries.

Apparently, Effective Communication is one of the fastest-growing communications agencies in the…read morecountry. With offices in both Cardiff and Swansea, they have a team of about ten professionals offering public relations, marketing, new media, media training, and - interestingly - a public affairs service, which can include lobbying and campaigning the Welsh Assembly on behalf of your organisation. The company is also part of the UK's leading regional media relations network, ReMne, which focuses on reaching consumers through the most trusted news source: regional newspapers. Their client list includes some big names such as Acorn, Camelot, Cardiff Blues, Careers Wales, Marriott Cardiff, Orange, Principality, Starbucks, and many other brands. Their website is not particularly stylish, but it's very clean and simple, and provides all the information you need to help make a decision about whether they're the right communications company for your organisation.

Cambrensis Communications Ltd is another shop fronted PR company in the Pontcanna area, just a…read morestones throw away from Effective Communication. I find this interesting. A lot of the businesses in this area, from the butchers and deli's to the cafes and hair stylists, see a lot of the 'who's who' in Cardiff (as well as a few interlopers: apparently Will Young is known to hang out in Café Brava when he's in Pontcanna visiting a friend), and so it seems that these companies have gravitated to where they need to be. There's quite a few new businesses in the area who have clearly opted to position themselves so that they can capitalise on the standing of the area, but not so Cambrensis Communications Ltd. This family business, that has now grown into an 'extended family' scenario, have been operative for many years. Their founder has had 40years in the PR industry alone. A progressive company, that has had to adapt and grow more flexible due to the ever changing financial and media conditions that present new challenges on an increasingly frequent basis, Cambrensis Communications Ltd continues to flourish. Offering a comprehensive suite of services that include; creating PR campaigns, media relations, media training, TV and radio production including corporate video and DVD production, as well as a broad ranging event management service that even includes wedding planning, launches, and conferences Cambrensis Communications Ltd is a bilingual company and consequently handles several accounts where Welsh speaking is a must.

This communications company was founded by Andrew Weltch, an award-winning editor and public…read morerelations professional with more than 25 years' experience. He has written books; taught media studies; provided sports coverage for regional, national and international media; and continues to be the company's senior consultant. Together with his team in Cardiff he works with a network of associates in journalism, public relations, broadcast production, design and event organisations to provide a comprehensive range of communications services. Sport is one of Weltch Media's specialist areas, with many years' experience of sports reporting for print, television and radio, as well as providing a range of public relations and editorial services for the sports sector. Clients in this sector include Tennis Wales, Autospeed, and ClassicRallyPress (who organise international historic rallies). They also have quite a few clients in the education and health sectors, such as Cardiff University, the Welsh Assembly Government and Health Challenge Wales - plus smaller, local companies such as Rhiwbina Hypnotherapy. For sports communications, they certainly seem to have the edge over other communications companies in Cardiff - but it's a shame their own website looks a bit dated.

Founded in 1996, Equinox is a well known communications agency covering public relations,…read moremarketing, design, social media, crisis management, and media training. Their client base is fairly diverse, spanning about 15 different sectors (including charity, media, education, transport, property, business-to-business, tourism, health, manufacturing, food & drink, retail, the environment, etc). They've worked with lots of non-profit organisations ranging frm the Arts Council of Wales to the Meningitis Trust, and also a lot of transport-related companies such as Cardiff Airport, Arriva Trains Wales, BMW, and National Express. Their website provides quick-glance case studies covering mission, approach and results giving prospective clients a good grasp of the kind of experience this company has. They tweet regularly at http://twitter.com/Equinox_Comms, sometimes offering handy PR tips, or offering updates on their current PR campaigns and events.

Talk about throwing me to the wolves: my new line manager had signed me up to take media training…read morewith Equinox PR on my third day of working in the communications department of an independent utility infrastructure company. The aim of the course was to teach the company's directors and communications staff how to effectively deal with the media's questioning following a utility disaster. I was scared to death, as I didn't have an in-depth knowledge about my new employer, so how was I supposed to answer any impromptu questioning? Thankfully, our day of training wasn't as terrifying as I had anticipated (claiming ignorance went a long way here), but it was still pretty intense: our instructors, Eryl Jones (Equinox's Managing Director) and an experienced journalist whose name escapes me, spent a few hours discussing strategy and interview techniques, followed by recording each of us on both tape and video, and ending with a critique. As a trained journalist, it was interesting to be on the other end of questioning for once! It's definitely worthwhile if your company is interested in any sort of media training.

I've worked with Jon as Intranet Future a number of times. His customer service is excellent, he's…read morevery knowledgable on Social Media and always has useful suggestions. I was so impressed with Jon's service I now use him exclusively for my Social Media business needs and refer him on to friends and clients whenever I can. R

From the owner: We help businesses use social networks like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+ and Pinterest to…read moreincrease sales and improve customer services. We provide workshops, one to one training and social media strategies as well as helping businesses set up their accounts and profiles.

James Wood set up this company in 1993 to work on bespoke design solutions from identities for…read moresmall businesses to literature implementation for both private and public organisations. So how did they get here? Well James completed a Foundation year at Newport Art College, before kick starting his career working at Brian Hughes Design in Usk for three years. He couldn't keep away from study and Newport and graduated with a BA (Hon) in 1991. A couple of years of work for Barrie West Associates in Ross-on-Wye and then Peter Gill Associates in Cardiff, before deciding 'Enough of the boss, I want to be self-employed!' All hail WOOD&WOOD. Since 1993, the consultancy has won a range of industry awards. Check these out: CIPR Excellence Awards 2010 / Integrated Campaigns - Winner Promax UK 2009 awards in the Best Press / Public Relations Campaign - Silver Over the years, WOOD&WOOD have created a large number of identities for individuals, organisations, brands and products including Avtex, Everwhite Plastics and JM Creative. They also design and produce a variety of literature for their clients, these include annual report and accounts, brochures, corporate literature, guides, journals, leaflets, magazines, manuals and newsletters.

Jeff Lewis is a Cardiff-based Graphic/ Web designer and Illustrator who formerly ran his own…read moremagazine publishing business. As such he has a good understanding of publication and print needs in terms of quality, layout and delivery. Whatever your style, Jeff can make you: small print adverts, tradeshow graphics, website solutions, and custom illustrations. His main focus is printed literature whether pocket guides, magazines, booklets, brochures, or illustrated posters. He also offers advertisements, exhibitions, annual reports, logo design, catalogues, folders, flyers, business cards, stationary printing, signage, packaging design, CSS website design, flash design and e-newsletters. Clients include: Cardiff Council, Bingham Hall Partnership Ltd, See Wales, Mowbray Publishing Ltd, APC Panels Ltd, DrugAid Cymru, and Schools Into Europe.