Manchester agency Deviation wins first US retained client in Upwork
The “Search Everywhere” agency will produce creator-led social search content to grow the freelancing platform’s share of search and AI citations.
Manchester’s Deviation, which bills itself as the “Search Everywhere Agency”, has been appointed by online freelancing platform Upwork to build its share of search and visibility.
The strategic partnership followed a pitch, with both sides recognising that search is changing and that brands need to win attention across a growing range of platforms.
Consumers now find and assess products and services on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, LinkedIn, blogs, forums and in AI-generated summaries well before they contact a brand, meaning traditional search engines are no longer the main way in.
Deviation will mainly produce a stream of social search content made with content creators, aimed at improving discoverability in key categories. The work is intended to increase Upwork’s share of search, its citations in AI and LLM tools, and related branded search queries.
Ashley Liddell, co-founder of Deviation, said: “The US tech market is at the forefront of how search behaviour is evolving. B2B Audiences are increasingly platform-agnostic, moving between YouTube, LinkedIn, TikTok, Instagram, and AI/LLM tools to inform decisions.
“Search Everywhere is designed to do exactly that, building visibility, authority, and preference wherever discovery happens. This partnership reflects both the growing demand for this approach in the US and our ambition to help tech brands lead in this new era of search.”
Blair Witte, director, brand and social marketing at Upwork, said: “Too many brands are still optimising for where search used to happen instead of where it’s going. Our customers are learning, comparing, and forming preferences across social platforms and AI tools. Partnering with Deviation allows us to meet that shift head-on and ensure Upwork is not just present, but leading the conversation around how work gets done.”
Liddell and Sam Broadhead set up Deviation in January 2025. The agency has grown quickly and now has a team of seven. Upwork is its first client in the US.
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