Freelance Brand and Creative Strategist / Strategic Planner and Fractional Strategy Director
I didn't get much work done last week because I was focused on riding in a side saddle display at the Great Yorkshire Show with the Yorkshire branch of the Side Saddle Association. In my world, riding at Great Yorkshire is a big deal, bucket list type event and the stakes were upped further by … Continue reading when amateurs do it better than the pros
Whenever you open a marketing magazine or head over to a marketing website these days you’re inevitably greeted by an article about the Internet of Things or Digital Content. Since 44% of UK the £14.7 billion UK media spend in 2013 went on ‘Internet’ (including PPC, display and content) the focus on all things shiny … Continue reading don’t forget that it isn’t all about Digital
I had an interesting discussion with a senior Creative about propositions the other day, re how ‘creative’ they should be. Since many clients prefer to sign off on a proposition before any creative work begins they have to be well written enough to engage and excite the client – but without going as far as … Continue reading how creative should propositions be?
Krow recently launched a lovely campaign for Pets at Home aimed at upping their warm brand fuzzies KPIs. The real-life clips seen in the ad below were all crowd sourced through social media and the campaign activity runs across TV, online and instore. It makes me want to a) rush out and buy a puppy … Continue reading lovely work from Krow for Pets at Home
There seems to be a movement in the marketing community towards better work-life balance. Whether it’s Chime’s Amelia Torode championing flexible and part-time working for Mums or what seems to be a massive increase in senior staff switching to freelance, it feels like the traditional 10+ hours, 5+ days a week agency model is under … Continue reading on allowing good people to work where and when they work best
I’ll have been an Account Planner for 15 years this Summer. Although it’s not up there with the longevity of some planners in London and perhaps Manchester, certainly in my neck of the woods I think I’m now scarily one of the most experienced (at least in years) Planners on the circuit. So much has … Continue reading 15 years a Planner
When I went freelance nearly four years ago I promised myself that from then on I’d try to only work with nice people. Life is just too short to be bullied, harassed or otherwise made to feel rubbish by people you work with. I’m not saying that my previous life as an agency staffer was … Continue reading why being nice matters
There’s been a bit of a hoo-ha in the press today about UKIP’s new outdoor campaign, some executions of which, it’s been suggested, could be interpreted as racist. Rather than paid for by UKIP itself, the media and creative has been funded by Yorkshire entrepreneur and long-term Euro-sceptic Paul Sykes. But is the campaign racist? … Continue reading a view on UKIP’s posters
I've always struggled to understand why business owners feel that their reputation will be somehow enhanced by becoming the focus of a fly-on-the-wall documentary. BBC2's Life in the Freezer Cabinet did nothing for Iceland's positioning and made CEO Malcolm Walker look like an idiot. Which according to a mutual friend is a misrepresentation. the Chief … Continue reading documentaries – is all publicity really good publicity?
I've been working on a project for a category recently that I had to politely refer to in client meetings as "a low interest category for shoppers instore". Jon Steel in his Planner's bible Truth, Lies and Advertising recounts the story of a 1980's client who, flushed with excitement that their new chocolate biscuit bar … Continue reading how do you turn questionable product features into relevant differentiation?