The Darlington founded marketing agency has launched a dedicated Irish website following a 12-month agreement as PALI’s Preferred Website & Marketing Partner, creating an opportunity to support approximately 120 members across Ireland’s play, activity and leisure sector.
Myk Baxter Marketing has launched Myk Baxter Marketing Ireland, marking a significant step in its Irish expansion and bringing a dedicated website, booking technology and digital marketing offering to PALI members.
The move follows the agency’s appointment as the Preferred Website & Marketing Partner of Play, Activity & Leisure Ireland. The 12-month partnership gives MBM an opportunity to work with a network of approximately 120 members, helping operators improve their online presence, simplify bookings and strengthen the commercial performance of their digital channels.
For founder Myk Baxter, the expansion represents a new chapter in a business established in 2010, drawing on his 22 years of experience in digital marketing and eCommerce. For PALI members, it provides access to a marketing agency with practical experience of the sector and services tailored to the challenges of running a play, activity or leisure venue.
Founded in Darlington, Myk Baxter Marketing has developed its business around helping companies turn their websites and marketing activity into measurable commercial outcomes.
The agency’s work spans website design and development, search engine optimisation, paid advertising, content, email marketing and conversion rate optimisation. Its Irish expansion brings those capabilities together around a specific audience: PALI members operating in the play, activity and leisure market.
MBM’s Irish agency website sets out its background, team and approach, alongside a Dublin presence at 24A Baggot Street Upper.
The expansion builds on the existing MBM business, retaining its identity and experience while creating a dedicated point of contact for Irish operators. It also supports the agency’s ambition to grow its UK team and recruit locally in Ireland as demand develops.
The opportunity is substantial but clearly defined. PALI’s member network provides a route to relevant businesses and a framework for introducing services. Individual members can then consider the support that suits their venue, priorities and stage of growth.
The agreement brings together PALI’s industry knowledge and member relationships with MBM’s website development, booking technology and marketing expertise.
Alongside developing PALI’s new association website and member platform, MBM is making a range of services available to members through a dedicated Irish offering.
These include custom website design, online booking software, SEO and local search, Google Ads, Meta advertising, email marketing, hosting and ongoing support. Preferential member rates and review opportunities are intended to help operators assess their current position and identify where improvements could have the greatest value.
The PALI partnership centres on practical business needs: making venues easier to find, helping customers book with confidence and reducing the effort involved in managing digital systems.
For a busy operator, those needs are closely connected. A marketing campaign may attract interest but the website still needs to explain the experience clearly. A customer may be ready to book but availability, payment and confirmation must work smoothly. Once that customer has visited, appropriate follow up can help encourage a return.
The partnership creates an opportunity to address those stages together.
MBM’s work with Jungle Den, which operates venues in Naas and Newbridge, provided an important foundation for the relationship.
Working with the business gave the agency first hand insight into the demands of Irish play and leisure operations. Those demands extend beyond attracting website visitors to managing party availability, deposits, customer information, multiple locations and day to day administration.
The project combined a new website with custom booking technology and search marketing. Its objectives included making the customer journey easier, reducing reliance on commission based booking arrangements and giving the business greater control over its systems.
According to figures published by MBM during August 2026, Jungle Den had recorded 371 confirmed bookings for the month at the time of reporting, compared with 221 across August 2025. That was approximately 68% above the previous August total.
MBM also reported an estimated booking commission saving of €1,038.80 on the reported bookings, calculated using a previous 1% commission assumption. The figures are presented within its booking software and Jungle Den results information.
These are results from one business, rather than a forecast for other venues. They do not establish how much of the booking growth came from any individual website or marketing change. They do, however, provide a concrete example of the operational and commercial issues the wider PALI offering is designed to address.
A leisure website has several jobs to perform before a booking takes place.
Parents and visitors may need to establish whether an activity is suitable, what is included, where the venue is located and which sessions are available. Party organisers may need to compare packages, understand requirements and pay a deposit.
When those details are difficult to find, the result can be more enquiries for staff to handle or customers leaving before completing a booking.
MBM’s website design service for Irish play and leisure venues focuses on building around those customer journeys. The offering includes custom, mobile first websites with booking integration, clear navigation and content relevant to the venue’s activities.
The commercial objective is to make the next step easier, whether that means booking a party, reserving a session or making an enquiry about a group visit.
Custom development also allows the website and booking journey to reflect how the business actually operates, rather than requiring every venue to follow the same structure.
A central part of the Irish offering is booking software with 0% commission charged by MBM.
The distinction matters because percentage based booking charges rise with the value of transactions processed. Removing that commission can change the economics of online bookings, although venues still need to assess the full cost of their chosen system.
MBM’s offering includes deposits and payments, availability management, customer confirmations and multi location administration. It can also accommodate functions such as vouchers, memberships and custom booking rules.
Zero commission does not mean that the software or every transaction is free. Development, software and support costs may apply, alongside standard payment processing charges from the selected payment provider.
The proposition is therefore about giving operators a different cost structure and greater control over their booking process. The financial benefit will depend on the venue’s previous arrangements, booking volumes and new system costs.
The expansion also brings a dedicated digital marketing offering to PALI members.
SEO and local search are intended to help venues appear when potential customers look for relevant activities, parties and experiences. Paid search and social advertising can support particular services, seasonal campaigns and periods when additional demand is needed.
The website then has to convert that interest into action. Clear information, reassuring content and a straightforward booking journey are all part of that process.
Email marketing adds a further opportunity after the first visit. MBM’s email marketing service for Irish leisure venues includes customer segmentation, seasonal campaigns and automated follow ups, with consent and customer preferences taken into account.
For operators, this creates scope to communicate relevant events, school holiday activities, memberships or birthday party options to existing customers.
The overall approach connects customer acquisition, booking conversion and retention. Its value depends on how those activities work together and whether they contribute to the venue’s commercial objectives.
Although play centres and leisure venues sell experiences rather than physical products, their online customer journeys share many of the same demands as retail eCommerce.
Customers need to find the right offer, understand the price, trust the business and complete payment without unnecessary difficulty. Operators need reliable transaction information and a clear view of what it costs to attract a booking.
The PALI partnership puts those principles into a specific operating environment, where capacity, session times, party packages and repeat visits all influence performance.
For MBM, the opportunity is to apply its digital and eCommerce experience across a network of businesses with related needs. For members, the potential benefit is access to support informed by the practical realities of their sector.
That gives the expansion a clear commercial focus, with technology and marketing considered as part of the same customer journey.
The launch of Myk Baxter Marketing Ireland gives the partnership a central online destination.
PALI members can explore the agency’s background, review its services, read about the Jungle Den project and understand how the member offering relates to their own business.
For Myk Baxter Marketing, it marks the transition from an individual Irish client relationship to a structured partnership and a dedicated market presence.
The next phase will depend on delivering the association platform, supporting members and translating that access into lasting client relationships. The 12-month agreement provides the starting point for that work.
Sixteen years after MBM was founded, the Irish expansion brings together the agency’s experience, a defined sector opportunity and a new platform for growth.
Further information is available at Myk Baxter Marketing Ireland.
Publisher disclosure: eCommerce Xpert and Myk Baxter Marketing are trading styles of Myk Baxter Marketing Limited.
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