London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Oct 09, 2025

How small businesses can now advertise on Britain’s biggest news websites

How small businesses can now advertise on Britain’s biggest news websites

The end of lockdown couldn't come soon enough for small businesses up and down the country - but many are managing to come back with a bang through clever advertising

The end of lockdown couldn’t come soon enough for small businesses up and down the country.

After a difficult year, children’s sports activity company Richmond Playball is is back in business in south west London, and boss Bonny Santangeli, 38, could not be happier about it.

‘The past year has been a huge economic hit for us, and very worrying,’ she said. ‘Now we’re feeling positive, and keen to make up for lost time.’

To boost her business in the wake of lockdown, Bonny used Mail Metro Media’s new Ad Manager to advertise to local potential customers.

Bouncing back after lockdown: Bonny Santangeli, centre, and coaches at Richmond Playball

Bonny said: ‘I run Playball, which offers sports and movement camps and classes for children, in Richmond, Kingston and Barnes. Before lockdown, business was going really well – I had four coaches working for me and we were seeing 600-700 children a week.
‘But when lockdown struck we had to stop overnight. I took a Government Bounce Back Loan to help support my staff, and eventually furloughed myself on just over £500 a month.

‘It was so worrying. The loan was our biggest form of support but it’s still a loan, so a debt which we will have to pay back over the next few years.’

Bonny says seeing the childrens’ faces light up has been fantastic.


Bonny was thrilled when restrictions eased and she was able to open up her camps again for children. And one of the first things she did was take out a series of ads for her business on MailOnline using the online Ad Manager.

Bonny said: ‘It was so simple to use – really easy and straightforward setting up the ads.’
The results were great – and started straight away:

‘I’ve had so many emails, all from new people who we haven’t had before. I’ve been so busy, it’s great!’

So happy to be back in business: Bonny says seeing the children’s faces light up is fantastic

Now, Bonny says, her three Playball franchises are open and thriving.

‘A good thing about lockdown is it’s shown people the benefits of being outdoors, and starting to exercise from a young age to develop a love for activity outside,’ Bonny said.

‘We’ve spent the past year putting Covid protocols in place, and the children are absolutely loving being back – seeing their little faces light up when they see their friends, it’s fantastic.’

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
French Political Turmoil Elevates Marine Le Pen as Rassemblement National Poised for Power
China Unveils Sweeping Rare Earth Export Controls to Shield ‘National Security’
The Davos Set in Decline: Why the World Economic Forum’s Power Must Be Challenged
France: Less Than a Month After His Appointment, the New French Prime Minister Resigns
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Sarah Mullally Becomes First Woman Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
US Prosecutors Gained Legal Approval to Hack Telegram Servers
Macron Faces Intensifying Pressure to Resign or Trigger New Elections Amid France’s Political Turmoil
Standard Chartered Names Roberto Hoornweg as Sole Head of Corporate & Investment Banking
UK Asylum Housing Firm Faces Backlash Over £187 Million Profits and Poor Living Conditions
UK Police Crack Major Gang in Smuggling of up to 40,000 Stolen Phones to China
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Trump Proposes Farm Bailout from Tariff Revenues Amid Backlash from Other Industries
FIFA Accuses Malaysia of Forging Citizenship Documents, Suspends Seven Footballers
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
A Dollar Coin Featuring Trump’s Portrait Expected to Be Issued Next Year
Australia Orders X to Block Murder Videos, Citing Online Safety and Public Exposure
Three Scientists Awarded Nobel Prize in Medicine for Discovery of Immune Self-Tolerance Mechanism
OpenAI and AMD Forge Landmark AI-Chip Alliance with Equity Option
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
France Names New Government Amid Political Crisis
Trump Stands Firm in Shutdown Showdown and Declares War on Drug Cartels — Turning Crisis into Opportunity
Surge of U.S. Billionaires Transforms London’s Peninsula Apartments into Ultra-Luxury Stronghold
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Jeff Bezos Calls AI Surge a ‘Good’ Bubble, Urges Focus on Lasting Innovation
Japan’s Ruling Party Chooses Sanae Takaichi, Clearing Path to First Female Prime Minister
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Taylor Swift’s ‘Showgirl’ Launch Extends Billion-Dollar Empire
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
×