Clearcast - Robinsons London

Clearcast: Ad clearance and services for agencies and advertisers

Clearcast monitors TV advertising before it is broadcast, checking it for conformity with the TV Advertising Standards Code. Owned by eight leading commercial broadcasters, ITV, GMTV, Channel Four, Five, Sky, IDS (Virgin Media), Viacom and Turner, the company was formerly a part of ITV, but made the transition to an independent company in 2007. Here, Steph Hughes, Head of Internal Operations at Clearcast, explains the benefits of using Robinsons’ complete outsourcing service, Online Accounts.

“From the moment Clearcast became an independent company we have used Robinsons, and it’s a decision we’re very happy with. The transition from being a subsidiary of ITV to a limited company was obviously a time of great upheaval, and we needed to implement new systems and processes once we were a stand-alone company. Robinsons assisted us in introducing a number of appropriate systems to make sure our accounting was as easy as possible and worked with us to ensure unforeseen problems were quickly addressed.

We decided to go with the outsourced accounts service because we felt it suited our needs. The concept of offshoring or outsourcing an accounts department is one that I think many smaller companies are starting to wake up to. We use a simple system – we code our invoices in-house, upload them to Robinsons, and they handle the rest. They handle management accounts, VAT Returns, statutory accounts and all other accounting functions on our behalf. The team at Robinsons are on hand if we have a query, so we still have total control of our accounts at all times.

We have definitely saved money with outsourcing. We don’t have the expense of wages, office space, sick leave – all the things that as an employer you have to consider when introducing a new accounts department. And the outside expertise is useful – Joseph understands our business very well. In my opinion, outsourcing is the future for many companies, particularly in these tough times.”

For further details or to discuss how we can help your own situation, please get in touch with a member of the team.