Peter Hoole, Spencer Gallagher, founders of growth consultancy Cactus and Agencynomics and Stephen Knight, Founder of Pimento are lending their support to the growth of the recently formed Alliance of Independent Agencies. Each will join the Board of the Alliance alongside its Founders Clive Mishon and Graham Kemp and the Alliance’s Managing Director Matt Sullivan. Collectively the networks boast over 1000 Independent agency members and around 8000 employees across the UK.
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This Board will direct the trade body that represents and promotes independent agencies and all the people that work in the sector.
The 3 Co-Chairs of the Membership Board, that directs the 9 Peer to Peer Action Groups, will continue to drive the strategic direction for the Alliance under their respective pillars of People (Ruth Kieran as Chair), Purpose (Laurence Parkes as Chair) and Performance (Dion Myers-Lamptey as Chair).
Spencer Gallagher, Founder of Agencynomics and joint CEO of Cactus said “whilst we predominantly support the founders of Agencies, the Alliance supports agency leaders and their teams, which is why it is a natural complementary fit, many of our clients are already members of the Alliance and we hope that more members of the community will follow suit to help their agencies get the additional support they need for themselves and their wider teams.”
Peter Hoole, Founder of Agencynomics and joint CEO of Cactus added “we have already seen the tremendous value and support that the Alliance is offering to the independent agency sector and we look forward to contributing further to their great efforts to date. We will be aligning Cactus and Agencynomics to the Alliance to bring an even better experience to our fast-growing community, and provide better representation of the industry”.
Stephen Knight, Founder of Pimento added “Independent agencies have needed a louder voice and representation for some time, the ethos and values of the Alliance align perfectly with our own and complement our own Member proposition. We are confident that Pimento members will benefit from our investment in the Alliance and that collectively we can punch above our weight”
The Alliance will continue to represent the interests of the independent sector through the Advertising Association and with their membership of the Federation of Small Businesses and The Debating Group.
Graham Kemp, Founder Director of the Alliance says “The independent sector has been recognised as an essential element of the communications landscape, providing creative, innovative and agile solutions for clients big and small. Through collaboration we can give real voice to the independent agencies so it’s a joy to think that now with the collective firepower of Agencynomics and Pimento we can further promote their excellence going forward. Spencer, Pete and Stephen have already made a significant contribution to the independent agency sector and as part of that have been great supporters of the Alliance”.
About the Alliance of Independent Agencies www.allindependentagencies.org
Independent Agencies are a unique and special group of businesses and people; connected by their independent spirit, ideals and purpose, not simply their service offering. To be independent is something unique, and very important in today’s evolving creative economy. The Alliance is the trade body that represents this community and enables its agency members to be as good as they can by nurturing all their people, supporting their purpose and giving guidance to optimise their performance.
In addition to delivering benefits to the independent agencies and their teams, the Alliance is equally focused on promoting the value and unique DNA of independent communication agencies to the wider industry and business community.
About Agencynomics https://agencynomics.com
Agencynomics is a not for profit, social enterprise which started out as an international bestselling book, and has now become an organisation dedicated to supporting the now, next and future of Agencies through it’s free community, events and it’s podcast, Agencyphonics
About Pimento https://pimento.co.uk
Pimento is the UK’s leading independent agency network. Founded in 2005, it now boasts 200 agencies and consultants, covering almost every aspect of marketing services. As such, the firm is able meet the complex demands of clients by creating bespoke teams, drawn directly from its members.
About Cactus https://cact.us
Cactus is the UK’s leading Agency growth consultancy and corporate finance broker. Cactus has worked with over 1,000 agencies globally over the past 9 years many of which are recognised as some of the fastest-growing agencies in their territories. Cactus help Agencies realise their true potential and true financial value.
Following the success and popularity of the last one, I’m thrilled to be hosting a second online discussion between authors of some of the best books on new ways of working, the future of work and self-management. It’s going to be another awesome conversation! The theme for discussion will be: New ways of working sound great! Where do we start? Grab your free ticket here and join me in the ‘fishbowl’ on 4 Nov @18.00 with:
You’ll get the most out of the event if you attend with colleagues (including leaders) and schedule a catch up after the event to discuss what landed and what you might try / change. So do invite your team along, and definitely invite your boss! You can watch a recording of the first discussion below.
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The Creative Economy Unit at UWE is researching the impact of Covid19 on the South West exploring resilience & adaptability in the sector.
They are reaching out to all sectors of the creative industries, from community arts to architecture, food to festivals, fashion to photographers, and everywhere in between.
The survey is anonymous and the research team aims to use the results to lobby policymakers & stakeholders with a more complete understanding of how the creative & cultural sector functions in order to support recovery.
Please share far and wide to support & ensure your needs are represented.
ADLIB, a B Corp certified recruitment business based in Bristol has become one of a handful of recruitment agencies in the UK to transfer 100% of its business to its employees. The company provides recruitment solutions across several core sectors, including Technology, Data, Engineering, Science, Sustainability, eCommerce, Marketing and Design. The business works with all manner of clients, from start-ups and scale-ups, through to global brands across the UK and increasingly overseas.
The Employee Trust will work alongside ADLIB’s Directors, to oversee strategy and growth, with an emphasis on ensuring that the business’s sense of purpose and values remains paramount.
ADLIB’s major shareholder, Nick Dean, will remain part of the Trust for the foreseeable future, whilst staff will play an increased role in directing business profits and inputting into the running of the business via the Trust, a model similar to that of the John Lewis Partnership.
A share ownership scheme will provide each and every employee access to share options based on length of service and responsibility. New employees will also be eligible to access the scheme and take advantage of a reward and ownership model that will significantly boost their earning potential, whilst creating a deeper sense of purpose and engagement.
Nick Dean “Over recent years we’ve been considering the future of ADLIB. We’ve always felt it would be a challenge to find a suitable buyer who would retain ADLIB’s ethos, substantiated by our B Corp certification in 2019, and the drive to balance profit and purpose. The most important factor was retaining our independence and the flexibility to invest into our growth, whilst ensuring we retain our B Corp certification. By far the best solution to ensure ADLIB has a long standing future, was to hand over the business to the people we know and have helped create it into what it is today, whilst adding an additional layer of employee attraction for those who will help spearhead our next phase of growth.”
For most companies, producing reports is a necessary evil.
It can be a dull, daunting and time-consuming task, with hours spent gathering data and creating graphs, formatting, fact-checking, and last-minute late-night copy editing. Additionally, if you’re printing a physical copy of a report, you face the additional stresses getting your report production and distribution-ready – not to mention the added costs involved.
Once your report is published and posted, it’s a case of hoping your recipients have the time to spare, the attention to give and enough interest to read it.
But publishing your reports isn’t a lost cause.
Businesses are increasingly using their reports as tools for lead generation, awareness building and trust amplification. Any report can be digitised: from market briefings, to sustainability and annual reports. But creating a report which stands out requires more than just designing a PDF.
Whether you create a microsite, or a new webpage which hosts your findings, as long as you have a clear strategy and vision you can turn every business report into a marketing tool that promotes your company and engages your audience all year long.
One of the best things about digitising a report is that you can study engagement more closely than with a print document. With a digital report, you can provide a much better user experience than via a printed report or a pdf, allowing for interactivity and responsiveness whilst providing greater clarity and impact.
There are a wide variety of different methods you can use to amplify your report’s underlying data and craft an improved story for your reader. Using interactive graphs or animations, you can provide a wealth of context to each chart, helping your audience to better follow and understand the core messages you want to share.
The global trend of mobile and tablet usage is continuing to rise, and a fully responsive report allows you to make the most of this opportunity. Not only will you reach new audiences across different devices, you’ll also improve the experience of your existing online audience too.
Tracking engagement and interaction is easier, too. The importance of mobile-optimised reporting is only going to continue its trajectory of growth, as ‘digital natives’ age and progress into more high-profile roles and senior appointments worldwide.
Crucially, it’s easy to make amends and additions to your existing online report, without having to reprint or republish. From small things such as copy amendments and imagery updates, to adding live, up-to-date information from an API, changes can be performed quickly and without needing to recall any existing reports. You’ll save time and money, whilst maintaining an audit trail to cover any legal requirements.
You can think of a digital report a little like a book: each chapter – or section – tells a different part of the ‘story’, while its overall title and theme remains the same. This is one of the key elements which make a digital report so valuable.
Think about a business’ sustainability report, for example. The overall theme is sustainability, and the report may be split into sections such as the corporate mission, sustainability goals, emissions reduction statistics, recycling statistics, employee engagement and waste, etc. Breaking a report down into these elements allows you to do two things: target additional, more specific audiences, and maximise your report’s longevity, relevance and impact.
By posting regular organic posts on social media and supporting them with paid (targeted) advertising, your report will reach new audiences who may have specific interests in themes contained within your report. You also boost your opportunity for increased press coverage and ongoing discussion on platforms such as LinkedIn, keeping your report – and your brand – front of mind for your readers and investors.
Digital reporting also offers increased accessibility. Multi-lingual functionality, left-to-right and right-to-left language support and text formatting optionality can all enhance your report’s accessibility – and therefore its reach to a wider audience, for global and regional coverage and relevance.
Localisation can even take this one step further, changing your report’s layout and content based on user behaviour, or third party data like their industry. This is another way to highlight different aspects of your report to drive even more engagement and boost your value to your reader.
When a search engine provider assesses your site, they use more than twenty different ranking factors. Their goal is to match people searching online with the content that’s most useful and relevant to them.
High engagement, other websites or ‘authors’ linking to your content, and online conversations about your content and your content’s quality are all among the ranking factors search engines use to determine your value. This is how more people will discover your content.
The more value you have, the more a search engine will increase your visibility to its users. Your ranking will improve across key search terms, in turn driving more traffic to your website and report.
Another key aspect of search engine ranking is your website’s authority. With an increased level of user engagement and a better user experience on your website, you send clear signals to search engines to increase the authority attributed to your page and website. You can also boost your authority by presenting search engines with a large volume of relevant, high-value content.
Increasing both page and domain authority is an excellent way to cement the trust people place in your website – and your business. Not only this, it can also improve your chances of ranking for a wider range of keywords associated with your site.
Creating a digital report will also allow external parties, such as press or investors, to link directly to your website, going even further to boost the authority of your page and domain in the eyes of a search engine.
Who are your readers? What do you know about them? Collating as much information about your audience – and desired audience – as you can will help you build a comprehensive report which meets their needs and captures their attention.
You may have different audience groups who will have different relationships to your content. Think about the sustainability report mentioned above: will one audience be focused on a specific section? Do they want more information on your figures or projections? Do they need to follow a certain format?
Unlike a pdf or printed report, tracking can be set up to monitor how people are actually interacting with your reports online, rather than just assuming their continued interest.
By identifying patterns and user behaviours, you’ll be able to understand the user journey through your report. In the long run, this insight will save you time and money, by allowing you to focus on optimising the sections and features that are the most important for engagement.
You can also use tracking to create audiences for your digital marketing. This might be useful should you wish to further publicise a particularly good result, product launch or outcome to people who have already shown an interest in your content.
At Proctor and Stevenson, we know a thing or two about crafting reports, and have been producing extensive, high-quality documents for over 40 years. From digital reports to microsites, we’ve designed bespoke content solutions for a range of clients, along with robust awareness-building campaigns to drive their audience numbers skywards.
When you digitise your report strategically, you have a marketing tool which promotes your company all year long – and with increased engagement and coverage, shorter production time and ultimately a stronger impact than ever.
When it comes to digital, our in-house team can take care of everything: from back-end development, to front-end and digital design, SEO, AdWords, automation, information architecture and content optimisation. And they’re led by our expert strategists, who’ll work with you to ensure we meet – and exceed – your expectations.
Get in touch, by emailing [email protected] today, and let’s discuss how to transform your business report into a brand beacon.
After 20 years specialising in B2B marketing, I’m about to make an uncomfortable admission. Possibly one that will put a few noses out of joint among my colleagues.
While it might not be up there with the invention of the wheel or the discovery of fire in terms of significance to the human race, this one breakthrough principle might help your branding – and so your business – become more effective than ever.
The essential problem is this. As soon as we put that B2B marketing hat on, all thought of people, of individuals, and the Pandora’s box of emotions that motivate them, goes right out of the (office rather than home) window. Instead, we become subsumed by the pursuit of sentiment-free business banality, and worship at the altar of corporate largesse.
And that’s wrong. For a brand to succeed – to be memorable, to resonate, to be the preferred choice – it needs to have humanity at its heart. Less business-to-business, and more human-to-human.
Before this theory is dismissed as an unmeasurable, intangible nice-to-have, there is some science to back it up. In 2019, Deloitte Digital conducted a report, The Human Experience: Quantifying the Value of Human Values. In it, the report writers concluded that the human condition is ‘universal and unchanging’, meaning it could be understood and measured.
Taking three core indices – customer values, workforce values and partner values –Deloitte was able to identify the ‘human centricity’ of an organisation, and predict those that were likely to grow faster and build stronger brand loyalty. Applying this measure to a testbed of brands in the fast-food sector, it found that those which focused on the human experience were twice as likely to outperform their peers in revenue growth over three years, and have 17 times faster store growth than those who don’t. Quite a prize then.
In carrying out the research, Deloitte also highlighted five ‘core human tenets’ that elevate the ‘human experience’ of a brand.
· Be obsessed by all things human
· Proactively deliver on human needs
· Execute with humanity
· Be authentic
· Change the world
But what does this mean for you when you’re developing and delivering your brand to the world? For us, it means considering the fundamental building blocks…
Great brands are built on great stories. And great stories are always about emotion. Things that capture our attention, stir our souls, fascinate or move us, leave us wanting to know (or feel) more. This is where your brand should begin, even if you’re operating in the most heavy-duty B2B markets.
Three or four years ago, I heard something said in a presentation that’s stuck with me ever since – ‘authenticity beats perfection’. And authenticity comes from us being human. When we’re authentic, we’re true to ourselves and the reality that lies behind our brands. Customers and prospects are able to trust us, to engage with us fully and to become familiar with what we stand for. They believe in us.
Technology drives today’s marketing. But technology should always be a means to create richer, deeper human-to-human connections through more intuitive and immersive digital experiences. Whether it’s AR, VR, AI, automation, or anything else, the way people experience your brand through technology must always bring them closer to you. And the same goes for the physical world. In creating a truly H2H brand, experience is everything.
The way your brand looks, feels, sounds and talks all have a part to play in its humanity. Have a personality. Avoid business jargon. Communicate like a person. Don’t use staid, cliched corporate imagery and stale, high-fiving commercial footage. Look for those unique, human moments in time that tell stories and create positive emotional associations. Be different. Be unique. Be you.
Getting to the heart of your brand’s humanity isn’t always an easy thing to do. We’re all so engrained in the traditional patterns of B2B thinking and speaking that it’s often lost amidst the front-of-mind commercial arguments we’re inevitably drawn to. But make no mistake – it’s essential if you’re going to invest in a brand that’s both measurable and memorable. And one that moves human hearts and B2B minds.
Want to know more about some of the brands we’ve helped build for our B2B clients? Take a look here.
Ifyou have an upcoming project you’d like to discuss with us, or learn more about the principles of H2H branding, please get in touch today by emailing [email protected].
This experimental interactive short by filmmaker Ru Howe is one of the first films crafted with trailblazing technology from Bristol based start up stornaway.io which lets filmmakers create story game experiences easily and creatively without coding. Released at Immersive Encounters this week, you can watch it here.
Part funny vlog, part game, the viewer gets to follow Wolfie all over Bristol, on multiple paths through the city – encountering and re-encountering memorable characters across two timelines.
Behind Howe’s signature jump cut editing and Wolfie’s wide eyed vlogging are layered some wonderfully meditative moments and conversations.
Life Moves Pretty Fast was made hand in hand with the creation of Stornaway.io itself. Originally mapped out on Howe’s kitchen wall with pieces of paper, he and producer Kate Dimbleby used the creative production process to design and prototype an authoring tool which would put the creative process at the heart of stornaway.io‘s revolutionary drag and drop vision.
The film was shot in 2 days with a cast and crew of professional friends on a minimal budget.
Life Moves Pretty Fast is designed to be watched and replayed multiple times – there are over 40 minutes of gameplay (if you find all the secret paths!) but allow yourself 15-20 minutes to take Wolfie through 2-3 different journeys of discovery.
If you are a filmmaker or business interested in making your own interactive content, please contact [email protected] or go to the website and sign up for a free 30 day trial and discounted licenses
https://www.lifemovesprettyfast.io
Could your business create a role to provide the start a young person needs in developing their career, whilst getting paid by the government to cover the costs? Find out more about the Kickstart Scheme for employers below.
The government has recently announced a new £2 billion Kickstart scheme to help create hundreds of meaningful jobs for young people aged 16-24 who are at risk of long-term unemployment. To apply directly, businesses need to be able to offer a minimum of 30 job placements.
We know this process will not work for many employers within the region’s creative industries. So we’re pleased to announce that Bristol Creative Industries is partnering with Business West and TechSPARK to enable small and medium sized business in our network to benefit from the scheme, opening up many more opportunities for young people across our region.
To make your initial enquiry please register via the Business West website.
Everyone who registers their interest will be invited to a one-hour Q&A session on Friday 9th October at 10am via Zoom.
Business West will talk through everything you need to know about the scheme, including details of the application process and FAQ’s.
Bristol Creative Industries is the membership network uniting Bristol, Bath and the South West’s creative sector. We are the largest creative network in the South West with over 500 members and a robust following across all the main social media channels. Industries include, advertising, marketing, design, digital, PR, graphic, film, TV, video, radio, photography, IT, software, createch, publishing, events and games.
Guess what? We are also open to students and graduates looking for work experience placements, short term contracts and full time jobs. It’s the place to join if you are looking to build a digital portfolio, make contacts and find employment. And, for students and recent graduates, it’s totally free to join.
Bristol Creative Industries brings together a community of like-minded individuals and creative businesses to promote opportunities and support sector growth. Each member gets an online profile in the membership directory which is a great place to get to know local employers. We also have a jobs board and host training and speaker events to inform and inspire our network.
As a Student / Graduate member you will get your own profile in the directory so employers can get to know you too. Also pick up discounts on training workshops and speaker events, and a host of other perks like money off your coffee fix!
All in all, it’s a great place to get noticed by employers, discover what’s going on in the creative sector and hear the latest industry thinking at our training and speaker events.
Sounds exciting? Sign up here.
Get involved, get connected and your career will start to take off.
Photo Credit: Access Creative College
Twitter @Access_Creative | Facebook @accesscreativecollege | Instagram @accesscreativecollege
We are pleased to announce the acquisition of Microserve, a Bristol-based Drupal development company specializing in cutting-edge website design-and-build projects, UX, strategy and website support and maintenance.
The acquisition of Microserve further bolsters Investis Digital’s ability to deliver on the company’s proprietary Connected Content™ approach, which relies on building and running intelligent websites and digital experiences that are rapidly deployed and strategically measured, all of which is underpinned by its secure Connect.ID technology.
Don Scales, Global CEO of Investis Digital, said, “As we continue to see an unprecedented rate of engagement online, embracing a digital-first world is paramount to driving business performance. This acquisition reflects our commitment to our clients to deliver against our 24/7 service model and to help them communicate the messages that matter most”.
Microserve is composed of 24 employees and has developed an exceptional reputation for developing robust digital solutions. Its team of accredited Drupal developers is one of the biggest in the U.K.
“We are so pleased to be joining the Investis Digital family, especially during a great period of growth”, said Dan McNamara, Managing Director, Microserve. “The opportunity to work alongside great talent, access a wider client base and use our technical skills to accelerate the Investis Digital vision makes this partnership the right choice. We’re also looking forward to offering our existing clients a greater breadth of services and strengthening our key relationships”
Like Investis Digital, Microserve has a strong client base, ranging from global blue-chip companies to charities, NGOs, local government and more. This portfolio of clients will add to Investis Digital’s own roster of ambitious clients, including ASOS, Anglo American, Rolls-Royce, Ocado, Heineken, Vodafone and more.
Following the transaction, the Microserve team will serve as an additional footprint in the U.K. and will continue to be based in Bristol. Dan McNamara, current Managing Director of Microserve, will take on a Business Director role leading the integration of Microserve into the Investis Digital business. He will be reporting into Adrian Goodliffe, Senior Managing Director, Europe.
Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.