Category Archives: Creative News

Creative News, Marketing, PR and SEO, News

Six steps to a leaner content operation in a post-COVID-19 world

Caroline Rothery, Consultant, Speak Media, shares her advice for businesses looking to streamline their post-pandemic content

Covid-19 is posing content teams a double-headed challenge. The first is how to make the best of the current circumstances and carry on operating even amid the obvious limitations of lockdown.

The second is how to plan for the mid-term future, given the likelihood of significant changes to the working environment for the foreseeable future.

While many of us have got used to working in leaner operations and without the usual tools and resources, what happens next? By experimenting with how your team collaborates, communicates and experiments, you can cut the fat from your team’s workflow and become a lean lockdown-proof team.

1) Refine your tech stack
If you haven’t done so already, you need to give some thought to formalising the tech stack that you and your colleagues need to run your lean, home-working operation.

Think about which specialist technologies and which general tools you need to keep going – for example, whether Zoom, Skype or another teleconferencing provider best fits your team’s needs. Are some of you using Dropbox and Google Drive, and others working from OneDrive? Are team conversations getting fragmented across Slack, WhatsApp and Basecamp?

At Speak, for example, we’ve trimmed our content-focused stack down to three core apps: Basecamp for top-level project management and comms; Airtable for editorial planning and tracking; and GatherContent for authoring, proofing and approvals. And, of course, like everyone else we’re still flitting between WhatsApp and HouseParty for all-important virtual social interaction, including ‘Friday beers’.

Perhaps lockdown has seen colleagues identify useful new tools – should these be rolled out across your team, or have some of them been incompatible? How well might they work back in the office? Refining your tech stack for a more streamlined workflow, and working with your IT support team to ensure smooth roll-out and remote training for any new apps will help ensure your team can get on with what they do best.

2) Innovate with your working day
Home-working undoubtedly has downsides – but one significant benefit for many is that they’ve regained the time previously spent commuting, providing new opportunities to change working patterns. After all, there’s no rule saying that we are only ever productive between 9am and 5.30pm.

Some of your team might appreciate the opportunity to start working earlier, or later, or have longer breaks during the day. Some may value flexibility over routine, or vice versa. Balancing those preferences is crucial – flexibility need not mean unreliability, nor should an overly strict routine be a rod for your back. Clear communication is key – keep discussing this with your team, be open to new ideas and always keep productivity (and client deadlines!) in mind as the overall goal.

3) Be more efficient with team meetings
Remember how much people disliked those long meetings you used to have in the office? Do some of your virtual meetings risk taking on the same, meandering form?

In these leaner times, little and often is much more the order of the day. Virtual meetings should be covered off in ten to fifteen minutes, and you might want to hold them in both the morning and afternoon to ensure everyone is powering on. Refine the format so that you are maintaining accountability on tasks and continuously encouraging productivity rather than eating into people’s stretched time. And of course, use them as an opportunity to chat and enjoy each other’s company, but don’t let that get out of hand!

At Speak – in the absence of physical meetings – we’ve upped our ‘facetime’ with clients. These short, sharp check-ins allow us to stay up to date with their thinking in this rapidly changing ‘new normal’, and to have those conversations about how to respond that just aren’t possible over email.

4) Get used to interviewing virtually
Video or voice interviews have inevitably become more difficult under lockdown. If you’ve not already, we advise taking a leaf out of the broadcast media’s book and recording interviews with people direct from video conferencing channels or even webinars. You could also ask them to record their own audio on their phone as a backup and send it to you afterwards.

Here and here are a couple of videos that we produced for Barclays, showing you how to turn home-produced video content into something more polished. While the high production values you once aimed for may take a hit, the people consuming that content understand the situation, and are going to cut you some slack.

5) Develop your freelance network – at home, and beyond
Now that we’re all virtual teams, look for ways to extend the capabilities of your virtual team by bringing in freelance help. This more flexible resource could be preferable to making full-time hires in the current climate, and these freelancers will often be used to home working.

Virtual working also means that location is irrelevant – turn this to your advantage. We recently developed a publication for a client which required swift turnaround, so used the skills of a proofreader based in Australia to help us to clean up our copy while we were all in bed. This massively helped us to hit deadlines that we might have struggled with had we not looked beyond the UK for talent.

6) Keep a sense of lockdown perspective
As a content professional, you may have had a safer, more comfy lockdown experience of home working, but don’t lose sight of the bigger picture. Content you create needs to avoid generalising about what has been a difficult time for different people in many different ways. Similarly, while some people will have taken positives from lockdown or want to create change as Covid-19 passes, these views won’t be shared by everyone.

This is particularly true as different businesses and sectors leave lockdown at different times and in different ways. A piece of content which feels relevant in development this week might not still be fresh if it only publishes next week – keep an eye on the news and think ahead.

Creative News, Marketing, PR and SEO, News

Bradford Digital Agency Swoops Double Award

Vogal Digital, a Bradford based digital agency established in 2013 by Shane Hollingdrake has swooped two awards at Corporate Vision Magazine’s inaugural Technology Innovator Awards. Over the last seven years Shane has worked with dogged passion to provide smarter, affordable digital solutions to small and medium business across West Yorkshire and beyond; from websites, on-line stores, to bespoke system solutions.

Not only has Vogal built a repertoire of corporate clients, it has supported a number of local causes, from developing a Neighbourhood Watch website for the village of Denholme, through to providing a platform for people needing help during the current Covid Pandemic (DenholmeAssist.co.uk). Vogal prides itself on the core values of; Friendly, Methodical, Transparent and Innovative, all of which are evident throughout it’s portfolio and has recently been recognised by Corporate Visions highly experienced judging panel, in the categories of ‘Best Bespoke Web Development Firm U.K 2020’ and ‘Best Creative Digital Agency West Yorkshire’.

Shane, Director Vogal Digital said: “I was surprised when we was first notified of the nomination and then stunned when we actually won – two awards at that! We have worked so hard over the years to deliver better results for our customers both in products and costs. The award for Bespoke Web Development solidifies our expertise for developing and scaling secure bespoke web solutions topped with the Innovators award demonstrating our core value. I am immensely grateful to our customers and to everyone that has made this possible.”

Vogal provide digital and creative solutions to small and medium businesses, they have particular expertise in propelling small start-ups with sophisticated and affordable web based business solutions. For more information about Vogal Digital and their full range of services visit www.vogal.digital

Creative News, Marketing, PR and SEO

Creative business owners launch YouTube channel to inspire professionals

Two Nottingham-based business owners have launched Tale Talks; a video series of bite-sized video Q&As with business professionals, entrepreneurs and athletes from across the Midlands region, to share insight and inspire.

Tale Talks started as an idea born during the current lockdown period by Alex Lees of Tale Production and Jennie Holland of Jennie Holland PR. Having moved their operations and teams to home working in mid-March in line with government guidelines, the pair thought due to the limitations of the current situation that there was a lack of communication and sharing of personal experiences when it is needed most.

The two agreed that creating a new digital platform to share open, practical and timely conversations would be relevant and welcomed – not just during home working – but beyond, as professionals consider work life post-lockdown and the need to utilise digital technology to keep in touch and share content.

Launched Monday, the Tale Talks channel already has a number of interviews live and new videos will be added weekly.

First up is entrepreneur Ross Kemp – Ross is the founder and inventor of Asap Water Crafts; a first of its kind electric water craft that allows users to explore further on water than ever before. Ross beat the odds when his funding round flat lined due to the pandemic, and his predicted forecasts for his leisure based board had to be altered. Ross’s determination and approach meant that he ended up overfunding on Crowdcube and has a great story to tell.

Co-creator of the new platform, Alex Lees says: “I wanted to launch Tale Talks as there are so many great stories out there in the Midlands, yet it’s difficult for people to talk about them currently and some may be worried to share positive experiences during what is a very difficult time for many. However, Jennie and I felt that the more positivity and success we put out into the business sphere, the better morale and collective insight will be.

“In addition, there are a lot of individuals pivoting and altering the way they are operating and some of that shared knowledge will hopefully inspire others and provide confidence to do the same. I’m hoping that these videos can bring everyone together, in a time where digital is the only form of communication.”

Co-creator Jennie Holland adds: “There is so much good going on behind closed doors as people press on and adapt as much as possible during these challenging times, and I think we all naturally take inspiration from people willing to talk through their experiences and share ideas. It also helps to give confidence to people who are likely feeling frustrated or demotivated in the current climate.

“Now is the time to pull together – even if we can’t be together – and Tale Talks is really a vehicle to do that; providing positive communication flow in an informal, useful and most importantly accessible way. Alex and I hope professionals will find this an uplifting resource and will be willing to go in front of the camera themselves to share their story.”

Tale Talks will be open for business owners, entrepreneurs, athletes and more to share their stories and those wishing to get involved can make contact via the Tale Talks channel on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCu9XhskVXW6ucGRoZ2w1Pxw/

Creative News, Marketing, PR and SEO

Crowd helps businesses thrive during COVID-19

Crowd, the Department for International Trade, and Great Britain Campaign are helping Prodigio re-imagine the magic of live exhibitions which are now affected by the global pandemic. Exhibitions and events are truly irreplaceable, as they allow like-minded people to create relationships, share ideas, and interact with brands in new and exciting ways.

Therefore, how can we find a solution that encompasses all the benefits of an exhibition in a virtual environment?

Mass gatherings, travel, and face-to-face interaction are off-limits during the Coronavirus crisis, and therefore, many events and conferences are being canceled for 2020. For exhibition experts such as Prodigio, this has led to a huge loss in business, so Crowd proposed Prodigio to mount a challenge to the world: How can we Re-imagine the Magic of Exhibitions through the Exhibition Futures Challenge 2020?

This challenge is offering businesses a platform to put forward their creative idea, achieve international exposure, win a cash prize of £5,000 together with a further £5,000 investment in the idea, including the support of the teams at Great Britain Campaign and at Department for International Trade.

Jamie Sergeant, Global CEO of Crowd, says: “We offer Challenges to our clients to help them overcome this difficult time. This helps organisations look at unique business challenges from a new perspective and harness the power of a crowd. With support from our partners, we managed to bring the idea to life and offer a platform to all the businesses across the country. We look forward to seeing all their creative ideas”.

The deadline for submitting questions about the challenge is 18th May and the deadline for putting forward the final idea is 1st July. Anyone and everyone, both within and outside of the events industry, are invited to participate. The Challenge microsite created by Crowd will provide more information, as well as:

  • Registration for a webinar which will include Prodigio management and key clients.
  • Key aims of the Challenge.
  • Q&A session which will allow initial ideas to be explored and tested before submission.
Creative News

The Impact of Animation on Businesses

Will Dawson, Creative Director at Raw Pictures, considers how businesses can benefit by using animation

Smart Insights recently reported that 92% of marketers see video as an important part of their marketing strategy.

Animation is an incredibly powerful form of marketing. With the ability to tap into a wider audience due to the universally visual nature, animation can not only be used within a marketing campaign but to enthuse employees, connect with clients or simply improve brand reputation.
This article will highlight various types of animation and offer some insight into the powerful impact animated video can create.

What type of animation is right for my business?

Before any business begins an animation video campaign, businesses need to consider the type of animation they will use.

What Are Different Types of Animation?

  • 2D Animation
  • 3D Animation
  • Hand drawn animation
  • Digital 2D animation
  • Infographics
  • Kinetic Typography
  • Motion Graphics
  • Screen Capture Animation

What makes a great animation?

There is no set formula for success when it comes to great animation but business should always aim to create an animation that:

  • Informs and entertains
  • Forms a connection with the viewer
  • Is of a suitable length
  • Accurately portrays a business & its values
  • Delivers a clear and impactful message
  • Is memorable and original

Businesses need to remember that regardless of budget, style or length the final animation must encapsulate the business as a brand and convey a message that stays with the consumer. Businesses must work to build trust with the consumer. Humanising a brand can help forge this trust and animated video can see brands form a connection with the consumer through a short, sharp, emotive piece of content.

Do I have the budget for an animated video?

Animation can be a highly cost-effective solution when compared to real-time footage. If a business were to create a promotional video without animation the following would need to be considered:

  • A film crew
  • Various equipment
  • Post-production costs
  • A suitable location or set
  • A shooting schedule
  • Actors

The above would be a much higher cost than that of animated video. Video production companies will be able to discuss various options as well as offer a complete service including post-production.

How can animation support the promotion of your business?

Animated video allows a business to condense all the information they wish to share in a completely original format. Allowing for complete creative freedom, it can encapsulate a brand’s story and uniqueness by incorporating brand schemes, colours and ethos.
Animated video as a sharable format can be used for:

  • Sharing brand stories
  • Showing a demo of a product
  • Sharing company/ customer insights
  • Demonstrating a new product
  • Introducing a webinar series
  • Advertising a new event

Animations that are sharp, snappy and succinct are instantly more shareable, so brands need to be sure they consider this in the production process. There are many ways to promote your video and ensure its success which will determine whether the strategy is worthwhile pursuing for your business. This needs to be included in the process to make the time and effort spent creating the animation successful.

The benefits of using animation for employee engagement

Animation can not only be used in the capacity of consumer outreach but internally by businesses too. It is important to ensure employees remain enthused and onboard regarding any updates or change in direction concerning the business. Animation videos are a powerful tool that can be used to share an idea or initiative with employees to maintain morale and productivity.

  • Forbes recently reported that highly engaged teams show 21% greater profitability.
  • Viewers retain 95% of a message they learn through video (Source: Wordstream), meaning a company will find their message resonates far more than through words alone.

As well as assisting in message retention, animation also gives businesses the opportunity to take a more personalised approach to team training and in-house practices. When time and care is put into employee engagement, employees are more likely to stay with a company because they feel valued.

Conclusion

Animated video can greatly impact a business’ marketing strategy, delivering key messages and increasing brand awareness in a format that is engaging, original and fun. When approached with the right story and impactful message, animation has the power to connect a business to their target audience and employees on a deeper, more personal level – all that’s needed is a great idea to bring it to life.

Creative News, Home Working, Marketing, PR and SEO, News

Biggest Lockdown Challenges As A PR Pro

‘Lack of motivation, clients pressing pause and a changing media landscape’: how coronavirus is hitting PR Pros.

This week CMG Communications asked PR professionals to share how their careers were being affected by the coronavirus. Here are some of the responses they received. Thanks to everyone who got in touch.

A Changing Media Landscape
“A lot of our local mags and papers have furloughed staff. I’ve seen one monthly mag move online only, another move to bi-monthly and a third close altogether after 25 years. These are all local business publications that we do a lot with. It’s such a shame. I understand it’s a similar position with lots of the London/national press.”

“With more journalists and editors working from home, it’s harder to get people on the phone than ever before (and it could be hard before!).”

“It’s been really tough, the media landscape has just totally shifted. However, a silver lining has been that I’m now getting global coverage for my clients which they could never have imagined getting before.”

“No one seems to want to cover anything that’s not corona-related.”

“There seems to be widespread contradiction. I’ve seen journalists claiming their audiences want non Corona-related or escapism, then publish or tell us the opposite! I think both sides are dealing with similar challenges.”

“A number of journalists that I have built great relationships with have been furloughed.”

Lack of Motivation
“Controversial one from me – my biggest challenge in lockdown is motivation and getting past thoughts of ‘the world is screwed, why on earth does this stuff matter’.”

“It’s really hard to focus at the moment and my ability to write quickly and efficiently has been affected.”

“I have found it difficult getting clients motivated enough to respond quickly to opportunities. Sometimes it’s not just lack of motivation but that their hours have been cut. The usual ‘machine’ or the pace has slowed down a lot which can make getting results harder.”

Working From Home
“When working from home, it’s so much easier to get distracted by children, partner, pets and things to do at home. I’m not as focused or as productive.”

“Boundaries have been an interesting one for me. It’s possibly just pressure I’m putting on myself or an imagined problem but I’m feeling like I have to respond to every query doubly quickly because I’m at home so what else am I doing!”

“Loneliness!”

Clients Pressing Pause
“Clients nervous to say anything in case it’s seen as crass in these times means some are paralysed with indecision and for them the easiest thing to do is just pause the PR.”

“A number of clients have sadly pressed pause on PR due to the very obvious circumstances.”

School Closures
“The reality for me and many other PRs is that schools closing is the biggest ‘hit’ to my ability to work. Not only do you have to manage / look after kids – you are expected to home school them.”

Charity & CSR, Creative News, News

Charity donations go online within two weeks with Caution Your Blast

Charities and churches were digitally enabled in a matter of days when it came to fundraising over the Easter break, thanks to a new online donations service launched by digital practice Caution Your Blast.

The service, aimed at charities who were, pre-pandemic, raising funds face-to-face or at donation points inside buildings, has been offered to 700 charities initially, with several dozen early adopters setting up in time for Easter weekend.

The urgent need arose as prior to the pandemic these charities were raising funds through contactless card payments via Give A Little, an Android App innovation which Caution Your Blast set up for Christmas 2019 and which has continued to gain traction since. More than £270,000 in donations had been raised since the software was made available for download, £40,000 of which was taken in February. However, these donations along with cash donations, dried up in a matter of weeks with the onset of COVID-19.

“With no one going to church right now, the rapid change that these churches and charities have undergone when it comes to shifting donations online has demonstrated the art of the possible, and gone some way to beating what would have otherwise been a blue Easter for them,” said Ben Stewart, CEO, Caution Your Blast. “In response to major events, all organisations large and small, need to be able to react rapidly, sometimes even changing their processes and ways of working. This is another area where digital services and products are able to make a huge contribution to social stability.”

“This has provided us with a valuable new opportunity for people to donate towards our ministry in a really user-friendly way. The seamless integration of the online giving feature with our SumUp account is a massive bonus,” said Nathan Conway, Operations Director at Top Church, Dudley.
The solution is available to over charities and churches via the Give A Little service across the UK and other global markets.

Charity & CSR, Creative News, Marketing, PR and SEO

Binumi Pro announces financial education provider RedSTART as its 2020 charity

Binumi Pro, the video-editing platform, has announced that its chosen charity for 2020 is the financial education provider RedSTART.

Founded in 2012, RedSTART works to put young people in control of their financial futures by teaching them the importance of good money management. RedSTART has already helped over 10,000 young people in the UK through experiential activities that teach important financial lessons for life in a fun and memorable way.

RedSTART runs educational workshops, including the Money Matters Workshop, an interactive financial education game for Primary school students which are led by expert volunteer partners from financial services organisations. The workshops take place either in schools or via school visits to the offices of RedSTARTs partners in the financial services sector.

However, the closure of schools to most children in the UK and the ‘work from home’ lockdown due to the Coronavirus pandemic means that RedSTART’s school visits are no longer possible for the foreseeable future.

Binumi Pro will work with RedSTART to develop educational videos on money management that can be accessed by children and their parents online at home.

Christopher Bo Shields, Chief Creative Officer and Co-founder, Binumi Pro, said:

“It is a huge pleasure to announce that RedSTART is Binumi Pro’s charity of choice in 2020. RedSTART does a fantastic job of putting young people in control of their financial futures by teaching the importance of money management.

“That work shouldn’t stop just because children aren’t in schools at the moment. That’s why we’re working with RedSTART to develop a virtual version of the school workshops, that kids can access from the comfort of their homes.”

Sue Halewood, CEO, RedSTART, said:

“We are absolutely delighted to partner with the talented team at Binumi Pro. They have already been instrumental in helping us to launch Money Matters Funsize for parents to play with their children at home.

“We are very excited by the many opportunities offered by the partnership with Binumi Pro to teach many more children how to take control of their financial futures.”

Creative News, Healthcare News

Children asked to think big and creatively to solve issues that affect us all – Healthy Young Minds asks for “a dollop of imagination” in nationwide online competition

Launching today is Healthy Young Minds, a national competition where primary school-age children are asked to tackle today’s big issues using their imagination and creativity. Run by creative healthcare agency, Create Health, the idea is to harness the power of children’s uninhibited thinking to come up with never seen before solutions and inspire them to stick with STEM subjects.

“We’re on a mission to brighten up isolation and inspire every child in the nation”, comments Phil Blackmore, creative director at Create Health. “Healthy Young Minds is our initiative to encourage children into STEM subjects by unleashing their creativity and imaginations. Children have creativity by the bucketload, but often aren’t consulted on the big issues that they will likely face in the future. We think they should be.”

Healthy Young Mind challenges are available to download online at https://www.healthy-young-minds.com. Challenges will run throughout lockdown and will be topical, including some inspired by the Coronavirus outbreak, to ecological topics. Entries can be drawn, photographed, scanned, or designed on tablets and computers before being uploaded on to the site.

The first round of judging will take place on 21st May, with the best 20 entries being awarded with a variety of e-prizes that can be enjoyed during lockdown. There will be a second round of judging in June.

Healthy Young Minds debuted at Summerhill Academy in Bristol last year, where 400 children tackled the issues of dementia and air pollution. A judging panel included Dyson and Alzheimer’s Research UK, and four winners were chosen who submitted inventions including a robotic remembering dog and pollution eating clothes. The nationwide roll out follows an enthusiastic response.

Create Health is a Bristol-based strategic and creative marketing agency, which works with healthcare brands such as Thermo Fisher and ConvaTec. Fascinated by the opportunities presented by new healthcare technologies, treatments and methods of care, the agency delivers powerful communications that influence mindsets, increase brand value and progress the world of health.

Charity & CSR, Creative News, Healthcare News, News

Equator works with Beatson Cancer Charity to bring new digital ‘My Light’ space to life

In memory of Eilidh McHugh, the uniquely tailored digital experience will support patients and families during the COVID-19 lockdown and beyond

Beatson Cancer Charity (BCC) has this month announces the launch of its new website and associated innovative new service ‘My Light’, brought to life in partnership with digital transformation agency Equator. Designed to help vulnerable patients and their families by offering personalised and practical information around their cancer journeys easily online, ‘My Light’ is needed more than ever now when, due to social isolation, hospital visits are restricted.

Commissioned to create a lasting legacy for Eilidh McHugh, who died following a short battle with a rare, incurable and untreatable cancer in March 2017 aged 22, Equator were briefed with transforming BCC’s online experience and helping connect the charity’s patient community online.

BCC was looking for greater automation and more integration. Starting work in summer 2019, Equator undertook a digital transformation project which reflected the refreshed branding and served as a powerful digital engagement service.

Measurement was important to BCC. Increasing donation levels and volunteer engagement are key indicators of success alongside being able to track patient satisfaction and the impact of the new digital services.

Equator completely overhauled the user experience, bringing the look and feel in line with the refreshed BCC branding and giving the charity the digital platform and identity that it deserves. The team worked hard to improve the UX for the charity’s donation journey which was key to ongoing success for the charity and also made back-end integrations with their CRM to ease the load for the BCC team.

‘My Light’ is the standout feature. It supports content related to different stages of individual cancer journeys, as everyone’s journey is different, for those directly or indirectly impacted by cancer. The service is best in class in the third sector.

Equator even incorporated ‘ring the bell’ into the experience – a digital version of the physical bell in the Beatson Cancer Centre that patients ring at the end of their treatment. On the new BCC site patients can click to ring it prompting them to share their good news by tweet.

Jamie Jefferson, Co-Founder and Creative Director at Equator said: “It has been an honour to work alongside Beatson Cancer Charity and the McHugh family on this unique project. The team have enjoyed bringing to life a new digital, patient services experience that seamlessly connects and transforms the Beatson Cancer Charity online experience. It is just the beginning of the road for this digital platform which will make a huge difference to cancer patients and their families for years to come.”

Martin Cawley, Beatson Cancer Charity CEO said: “We have relished the advice and guidance since appointment of Equator. Using our initial user research, we identified the need to help patients suffering from cancer to easily find the more relevant content based on their personal experience. Everyone at Beatson Cancer Charity is immensely proud of this new digital experience – it looks great and we have received lots of complimentary feedback already, and more importantly have seen an increase in our donations since it went live. We are delighted that it is now available to help more cancer patients throughout Scotland.”