About Codebreak

We exist because too many agencies take the money and don’t deliver.

Codebreak didn’t start because we spotted a gap for another marketing agency. There are plenty of those. It started because the numbers weren’t adding up, so we built a model where the only metric that counts is the one that shows up in your bank account.

Joel and Neil, Codebreak

The story

It started because Joel spent years as an accountant watching businesses pour money into marketing that produced nothing he could measure. He understood the books. He could see what came in and what went out. And what went out to agencies, month after month, rarely came back as revenue.

So he went and learned to do it differently. He built campaigns. He studied the numbers. He teamed up with Neil, who’d already driven over nine figures in trackable sales from paid ads. Together they built a model where the only metric that counts is the one that shows up in your bank account.

That’s Codebreak. Not another agency that talks strategy and hands you a slide deck. A team that builds systems, measures what they produce, and stands behind the numbers.

2025: 10 years of Codebreak, a celebration in Orlando Joel and Neil on how they met, what they believe, and how Codebreak really runs.

Meet the crew

Led by Joel Stone and Neil ‘Shoney’ MacLean. The people who build your strategy are the people who run it, senior, accountable, and in it with you.

Joel Stone

Founder

Joel Stone

I started out crunching numbers, not writing ads. Years as an accountant taught me to read a business by its bank statements, and to spot marketing spend that never came back.

So I learned to fix it. Fifteen years on, I’ve built and rebuilt agencies, worked with brands like Guinness and Channel 4, written an Amazon bestseller in Stay Hungry, and turned a lot of six-figure service businesses into seven-figure ones.

I host the Stay Hungry podcast, downloaded across 40 countries, with guests like Rob Moore and Kelsey Moreira. The bit I never tire of is the moment an owner sees how much opportunity has been sitting untapped in their business. Ask me what your marketing is doing and I’ll answer in pounds, not impressions.

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Neil ‘Shoney’ MacLean

Co-owner & Head of Ads Strategy

Neil ‘Shoney’ MacLean

For 13 years I’ve been fixed on one thing: turning ad spend into profit, fast. I built the Shoney 2-5-5 Method, a tested approach that’s helped thousands of businesses grow quickly. Not vanity metrics. Not flashy campaigns. Money in vs money out, the only scoreboard that counts.

What’s different about how I work is speed. My clients see results fast, and I’ve driven over nine figures in trackable sales doing it. I’ve watched a fair few accountants double-take at the ROI.

Your business is unique and your ad strategy should be too. No cookie-cutter, no one-size-fits-all. Just rapid, measurable results that land on your bottom line.

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  • Martha Dale

    Client Success Manager

    Martha Dale

    I make sure every account performs: that clients hit their numbers, that strategy turns into growth, and that nobody gets left on the shelf. Helping owners break through their ceilings is the part I love. Your wins are our wins. As Wayne Gretzky put it, you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. So let’s take a few.

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  • Josh Paterson

    Sales & Marketing Executive

    Josh Paterson

    Sales, strategy and results are what I do: Meta ads, Google campaigns, and getting clients the kind of impact that keeps them around. Before this, five years in luxury watches and jewellery taught me that detail and client experience are everything. Sales isn’t pressure. It’s trust, value and helping people scale.

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  • Ellie Farrow

    Marketing Assistant

    Ellie Farrow

    I write ad copy, design creative that converts, and work on campaigns built to land. I graduated with a first in Business Management and Marketing from the University of Reading. I’m here to help small businesses get noticed, because when they win, so do we. The only way to do great work is to love what you do. That’s the energy I bring.

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  • Selina Williams

    Marketing Assistant

    Selina Williams

    I’m all about bold ad copy, design that stops the scroll, and Reels that show a brand’s real personality. I went straight into social media in hospitality, building venue brands from scratch and making a few bars internet-famous (turns out chaos sells). I like getting to the heart of what makes a brand tick, then turning that into content that drives results.

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George, the Codebreak office dog

Office dog

George

Joel rescued me in lockdown after my first owners ended up in prison and the police left me locked up on my own. Long story. My specialisms: licking faces, nibbling ears and tug-of-war. If you want a guard dog, wrong dog. I just want to be friends with everyone. Favourite thing about Codebreak? All the fuss I get from the crew and the clients.

What we stand for.

  1. We measure money in vs money out

    Every system we build is judged on one thing: does it put more in your bank than it costs to run? If it doesn’t, we fix it or we stop charging.

  2. We say what we mean

    No jargon, no buzzwords, no holistic approaches. We’ll tell you what we’re going to do, what it’ll cost, and what to expect. If we think something won’t work, we’ll say so.

  3. We put skin in the game

    Miss the KPIs we agree together and we keep working for free until we hit them. We don’t ask clients to take risks we won’t take ourselves.

  4. We’re not for everyone

    We work with owner-led UK service businesses doing £750k to £5m+. Outside that range, or shopping for the cheapest option, we’re probably not your people. We’d rather say that up front than waste your time.

If that sounds like the agency you’ve been after, let’s talk.

Book a free strategy call. No pitch. No pressure. A straight conversation about your business and whether we can help.

Book your free strategy call