Children’s Hospice South West are one of the largest children’s hospice charities in the UK, providing Children’s palliative, respite, end-of-life and bereavement care for children with life limiting and life threatening illnesses and their families from the South West England region. Before the challenges of the 2020 pandemic, CHSW had already identified a need to boost fundraising income and grow their well established support base. Working with AgencyUK, the team have developed a strategy to raise brand awareness and start building a younger base of donors.
The first integrated campaign launches CHSW onto TV this Christmas, targeting the brand to potential new donors in the South West (Cornwall, Devon, Bristol). The strategy looks to connect CHSW with this new audience whereby a lasting relationship might be established.
“We wanted to create a campaign for CHSW which raises awareness of the brand, and the vital work they do. The sensitive nature of the subject matter meant the creative had to be researched and tested prior to final production and release. The advertising tells the story of families of children with life-limiting conditions, emphasizing their journey with the charity. Children’s Hospice South West is so much more than just end-of-life care associated with the term hospice – the charity supports their families to create times that matter; time to laugh, time to share, time to rest, remember, and most importantly, time to just be a family – something that any parent can relate to. Our creative approach therefore was to create a relatable campaign with an authentic narrative that was far more positive than a traditional charity TV campaign, that our audience feels good about supporting rather than guilt tripping people into giving,” says Nix Boulton, art director, AgencyUK
“As the creative work developed and more time was spent telling the stories of the families, the AUK team became emotionally attached to the work CHSW do. I don’t think one person involved in this production left the set without their life having been touched in some way,” says Amy Mansourpour, director, AgencyUK.
“We are delighted with the work we have created with AgencyUK, and the support the families have given us throughout this process. We’re looking forward to seeing the campaign go live, and the opportunity for us to build on it throughout 2022,” says Jess Patel, director of marketing and communications, CHSW.
“At AgencyUK we pursue opportunities to work with brands and organisations that we truly believe in and want to get behind as a team. We’re incredibly proud to call Children’s Hospice South West a client, as the work they do is truly remarkable. This isn’t just about a project or the next advertising campaign, this is about turning our skills as marketers and using them to make a difference each and every day. It’s about solidarity and human empathy,” says Sammy Mansourpour, managing director, AgencyUK.
The new CHSW campaign will be live over Christmas 2021, and will be launched on TV and YouTube, before amplification through broader social media channels and digital advertising formats.
The new ‘Intro to Game Art’ short course will give you an insight into the world of game art, exploring the range of roles and essential skills needed to get you started when exploring a potential future career in game art. There is a host of exciting modules that your tutor will guide you through, including:
Planning and producing work to a design brief.
Working in the games industry
Concept art for computer games
Modelling for computer games
This new and exciting programme is designed to equip individuals (aged 19+) with the technical skills, knowledge and understanding needed to produce digital content across several platforms, ensuring you can use social media most effectively for your small business, sports team or trade.
This course will provide a great opportunity for you to develop graphic design techniques, such as designing and producing a brand identity and branded graphics for Instagram, TikTok, Facebook and more. There is a host of exciting modules that your tutor will guide you through, including:
Planning your Project
Typography and Layouts
Working with Illustrator and Photoshop
Creating a Brand
First published on Carnsight.com
Typos are those annoying typing mistakes we all make from time to time. Words that we know how to spell but somehow always get wrong!
There are few things more frustrating than an ugly typo, and they can look unprofessional. We’re all human and we can’t avoid them 100% of the time, but those grammatical mistakes are a lot easier to avoid than you may think.
Here at Carnsight Communications, we create practical and powerful PR that delivers tangible results. Through carefully crafted and managed content, we get companies and individuals known – for their skills, products, and expertise.
But to get these results, we work hard behind the scenes to make sure we deliver high-quality content. Content that has been proofread and checked over a number of times and always by another member of the team, before we send it anywhere.
Making sure your content is free from typos is something we pride ourselves on. By paying strong attention to detail and using some foolproof steps, we can help you to get typo-free content.
In this blog, we wanted to share our top tips on avoiding typos.
It may seem strange but reading your work aloud helps you to pick up on any grammatical errors or typos and helps with the rhythm and pace of your work.
The rhythm and pace are vital to any piece of writing, but our appreciation of them is so much stronger when we read aloud.
Alongside this, the art of reading aloud has a number of benefits for adults, from helping improve our memories and understand complex texts, to strengthening emotional bonds between people. Many of us intuitively use it as a convenient tool for making sense of the written word, and are just not aware of it.
When you read aloud, you allow your mind to slow down along with your mouth, which increases the chance that you will catch those hidden typos.
Most printed publications are vetted by a whole editorial team before they are published. That might not be the case with blog posts and other forms of online content, which may be written and published by the same person.
But everyone’s writing can benefit from another set of eyes.
Ask your colleagues to have a read over your work before you go any further. It’s often that fresh pair of eyes that can spot minor typos or any errors.
We have a great selection of tools available to use that will help us to ensure our content is typo-free!
Often, we just need to familiarise ourselves with the functionalities on offer with our technology or software packages.
Remember though, these are not foolproof techniques to rely on. There will be times that they auto-correct certain words or grammar when actually, it’s not needed.
Just like having someone else read your work, printing off your document can assist with a ‘clear’ proofread!
This in turn will catch those typos out.
Having a break from the screen can help you to pick out the errors.
Sometimes, it’s best to just take a break from your work and come back with a clear head having had some time away.
A fresh, recharged mind can make a huge difference in spotting any grammatical errors or typos.
Last but by no means least, remember to learn from those mistakes.
Don’t rush or be too hasty when trying to work with tight deadlines. Take a moment away from your work and come back with a fresh pair of eyes!
If you have enjoyed reading our top tips on how to avoid typos, then why not take a look at another of our recent blogs’ where account manager, Leigh-Ann Hewer takes us through the best pieces of writing advice she has ever received.
If you’re considering using a copywriter, whether for your business blog, writing features for trade media, or penning longer thought pieces for social media, but aren’t quite sure how it works, here are some of the questions I’ve been asked, that might help you decide the best route forward for you and your enterprise.
Most copywriters will start by learning about your company. Whether that means reading through your website, looking at any hard copy marketing materials you have, talking to you and your team about your business and why it’s different from competitors offering the same product or service, a good copywriter will immerse themselves in your business world.
Once they have a good knowledge of your offering, they will ideally then create a schedule of content ideas – a plan as to what you could be talking about on your chosen medium and when. This plan may need to be flexible as new things crop up and priorities change, but it is useful to create visibility and transparency about work that has been completed, is in progress or is in the pipeline for a future date.
By having an informal chat up front, copywriters can glean all the information they need. What seems ‘every day’ and ‘not exciting’ to you is often gold dust from a marketing perspective. It’s hard to see it when it’s your own business, but a third party looking in can see all the benefits you have to offer.
Of course, some input from you will be required, but it shouldn’t be a hassle for you to pass this information across. For example, perhaps you work it into your working week or month, to jot down some thoughts about what you would like your company to be talking about, depending on what’s cropped up throughout the week. This shouldn’t be an extensive essay, just some scribbled notes or typed bullet points of headings or topics you would like your copywriter to explore on your behalf. For example, if you’re a yoga business, perhaps a client asks for advice on which yoga postures they could explore to help them sleep better. If you make a note of it and fire it off to your copywriter, they can place it in the schedule and when the time comes, research that topic and write a post for your approval.
No problem! Whilst I have come across a few copywriters that are precious about their work to the point they’d rather not make any changes, most of us are happy to work collaboratively because we understand that each piece of writing needs to reflect your business and your values. It’s very unlikely you would find yourself in a situation that you need a complete re-write, because hopefully you will have seen samples of your copywriter’s work before engaging them and you will have approved the subject matter before writing even commences., but if their writing style consistently isn’t working for you, or you feel you are having to have too much input, it might be worth looking around for someone else to replace them. Working with a copywriter is meant to make your life easier, not harder!
Every copywriter will be different but on the whole, if you have found someone that offers a copywriting service for business blogs, they will be happy to post your blogs too. They may need a bit of training on your particular blog admin system, but for a small amount of effort up front, you could be saving yourself a lot of time in the future. And if you’d rather keep control of posting the blogs yourself, that’s fine too. A good copywriter will be eager to work with you in a way that suits your business and fit in with the way you like to work.
Again, each copywriter will offer a different service when it comes to supplying images with the posts they write. Some have subscriptions in place with image websites such as www.shutterstock.com, so can usually find something suitable to accompany written pieces. Some may not use a subscription service but are happy to check on royalty free sites for images such as www.pixabay.com or www.pexels.com. These searches may or may not be fruitful depending on your line of work and how specific the search.
Do bear in mind though, that some feature articles or blog posts will require photography or imagery from you. If you want feature posts on your blog to introduce your team for example, or highlight a new product offering, you will need to take on responsibility for sourcing those photos yourself.
You should absolutely check any copy that has been ghost written for you before it goes live on your site or is printed in a magazine. At the end of the day, it’s your business being promoted, and you must be happy with how you’re being represented. Hopefully, when you have found the copywriter that works best with your business, it will be a quick read, and all will be well. Worst case scenario, you spot a couple of minor tweaks you’d like to make before the piece is published.
Again, if you find you are constantly making considerable changes to the writing you are presented with, it probably means you haven’t found the right copywriter just yet. Do keep looking because we all have different strengths, specialisms and interests that we can bring to the table.
Of course! Some businesses use copywriting services to complete ad hoc blog posts or feature article writing, in which case this won’t be relevant. However, if you are looking to partner with a copywriter for your features or business blog for the long term, you may be concerned about signing up for a set amount of work each month, for example two features a month, or four blogs a month. There shouldn’t be any need to worry about this as most copywriters are flexible with their output as long as they have some notice. So, if you sign up for four blogs a month and you find this is too much for you, talk it through with your writer and they will more than likely be able to switch you onto a different package. You may need to alter your contract with them, but this should be perfectly reasonable request. Similarly, if you agree to two features a month from the outset and find you have plenty more to say, ask if they have the capacity to take on more. If the answer is no, you may be able to find another copywriter to supplement the work.
These are some of the most common questions I have been asked when I start working with a new client, but if you have any other questions about outsourcing copywriting to an external copywriter, please drop me a line at helen@blogwrite.co.uk and I would love to help.
When many people think of SEO they think of Google and other search engines and how to higher up in the ‘rankings’ on their results pages.
Whilst this is still crucial and for many the cornerstone of the industry as a whole, there has been a lot of evolution in other platforms as well and the phrase SEO now covers optimisation strategies and techniques on a wide range of different platforms and sites including:
Essentially, you should be thinking of SEO whether you are uploading your latest company podcast or sending out your next company tweet. There are plenty of opportunities to get your content in front of a wider audience without focusing too much on the orderly nature of rankings.
Here we have compiled a guide of actions, strategies and quick wins that you can implement to improve the SEO of your Instagram page and start to create an audience that will support your growth as a business.
For the sake of time we will assume that you already have an Instagram page set up and ready to go with a good idea of the content you are looking to share, so where do you start with your SEO on the site?
One of the main steps you should take is to optimise your Instagram profile page. Not only will this help your SEO, but it will also add valuable content that will help visitors to the page work out who you are and what you are about. Below we have listed some of the steps to take to optimise your Instagram page for SEO.
If you want to optimise your profile for Instagram then including some primary keywords within your name and username will help increase your searchability, although it should be stated this is not the be-all and end-all for Instagram SEO. It is also worth noting that snippets from the profile bio’s are also pulled through, strengthening the case for having some target keywords within the first line of your Instagram bio.
Try to avoid ‘keyword-stuffing’, just like Google, this can be a spammy tactic that will not get you anywhere on a platform like Instagram where content is key and optimisation comes in as a supporting function.
Captions are a big part of Instagram SEO, and if you write keyword optimised captions you will make it easier for the Algorithm to pick up your posts and share them with the relevant people. It is worth noting that the content will be shown to different people depending on their interests, if you are a coffee company, your posts will be more likely to be shown to people who have expressed an interest in coffee, particularly if you are including relevant keywords within your captions.
Alt tags are fantastic if you are looking to upgrade your Instagram SEO, and whilst they are less important in the eyes of Google, they can still have a considerable impact on the social media platform. Much like on your website, alt tags will help visually impaired audiences and you can use #hashtags and competitor handles in your alt tags to improve visibility and be found alongside your competitors and other relevant content. Make sure the alt tag is descriptive enough to be of value to potential audiences.
Additionally, a recent talk from Digital AdDoctor’s Freya Jones at BrightonSEO confirmed that #hashtags should be included within the caption of your Instagram posts as opposed to the first comment to drive better engagement. This is crucial if you want your #hashtags to be picked up by the Algorithm to improve your Instagram SEO.
Whilst #hashtags are very important in Instagram just like other social media networks, you no longer need #hashtags to search for people or accounts, the information you have in your username and bio has become more important.
Whilst you may be tempted to use certain ‘black hat’ SEO tactics in Instagram like buying followers and likes, we recommend avoiding it at all costs. Much like Google, the Instagram algorithm will get better at weeding out companies employing poor tactics and punishing them accordingly.
Once you have implemented a good Instagram content plan optimised for SEO you will want to find a way of tracking your progress. Find a good analytics provider and measure your results, we recommend not putting too much focus on vanity figures like followers as these can be misleading, although they are still very useful as a starting point.
Look at your engagement and find out if your SEO efforts are helping you get greater coverage on Instagram, this will help you work out what the next steps are and how to use the additional coverage to drive better results and revenue for your business.
If you are looking to drive leads and traffic to a site, then make sure you consider that aim when it comes to your Instagram SEO. Whilst this should not be the end goal, getting users off the site and into your databases and lead funnels will help give you more control over your channels, although it is worth noting that engagement on the platform is just as important. Try not to view Instagram purely as a means of driving leads and signups for your business and potential clients.
Whilst having a strong Instagram presence will not directly impact your SEO in Google, it will help you build an audience and drive relevant and engaged traffic to your site, which will help build your overall digital visibility and following.
Make sure you keep an eye on your Instagram and keep up to date with any new SEO changes and tactics the site may be making to ensure you stay ahead of the competition. Of course, if you would like any information on SEO and how we can help, then feel free to get in touch with a member of the Varn team today.
If you want to get organised before developing content for your business blog, or in readiness for a freelance copywriter to populate your blog on your behalf, you need to create a Content Plan. Here’s how.
You may have heard the term Content Plan before and wondered exactly what it entails. It really isn’t anything complicated or difficult, it is simply a list of topics you want to cover in your business blog and an idea of when you want to cover them. These plans can be used for scheduling material for other social media channels as well, but this does get a little more complicated because of the speed of change, trending topics and the need for reactive posts in the wider social ether. So, for now, we will remain focused on creating a plan for your business blog.
First things first, what shall I write about?
I would suggest as a first step, making a list of topics you want to talk about on your blog. Some ideas that you could include, or that may inspire you:
Once you have your list of topics, draw up a table in Excel or your chosen platform, with months or weeks listed down the left-hand side. You can also use a hardcopy or online calendar but be careful not to lose sight of your blog post plan amongst everything else that may be on the same calendar platform. It needs to be easy to read at a glance.
Timing is everything
The timeline you include in your planning will depend on how many blog posts you feel it is realistic to produce for your business, whether that be one a month, two a week, or something in the middle. Fill out your timeline for the next 3-6 months, again depending on frequency. If you are aiming for two blogs a week, planning three months ahead is probably enough. But if you are only doing one blog a month, for example, aim to plan six or even twelve months ahead. Now go through your list of topics and populate your plan. Some posts may be time relevant – for example if they relate to an event or product launch – while others can be posted anytime.
A well-balanced blog
Once you have populated your plan, you need to look over it, to make sure it is well-balanced. You want to make sure that you don’t have three behind-the-scenes posts back-to-back, or you haven’t put all your more technical articles upfront and left all the softer issues for later. Try and make sure for example you have one technical advice blog post, followed by a step-by-step guide, followed by a more personal entry, followed by an introduction to a product or service. It is not easy to achieve this when you hit creative mode and start writing, so planning is important.
Once you have created your Content Plan, you can start writing, or hand it over to a freelance copywriter to start writing on your behalf. Be aware that the plan needs to be flexible. Things change, new things come up, product launches get delayed, your clients ask new questions that you think would be useful to share sooner rather than later. Whatever changes arise, try and keep your plan up to date, or ask your copywriter to update it regularly for you. It is such a useful tool to have in your armory for a quick glance at topics you have covered, topics you have yet to cover, gaps in the content you’re providing your audience, and how well you are progressing your blog in general.
Get cracking with your Content Plan today and you will be well on your way to a well-balanced, well-populated business blog in no time!
If you’re struggling to find the time to build or maintain a business blog yourself, you may need some outside support. Here’s my step-by-step guide to engaging freelance support for those who have never done it before.
Step 1
Don’t put it off any longer – decide once and for all whether you will be able to find the time to populate your business blog yourself. If you decide you can, be sure to set some time aside each week to make it work for you on a consistent basis. Don’t make your blog a one or two post wonder! Treat it with the same importance you treat any other aspect of your business. This can be difficult because there’s no deadline as such, like there is when you file your accounts for example. But consistency is key, so if you decide you don’t have the time to do your business blog justice, move on to step 2.
Step 2
Approach one or more copywriters and ask some of the following questions., depending on how much support you’re looking for and what you need to know to put your mind at rest.
Step 3
When you have spoken to a couple of freelance copywriters, hopefully, you’ll feel more confident in appointing one. If it gives you additional peace of mind most freelancers are used to working on a trial basis or even on a one-off basis, so you could start small and build up. You’ll still need to pay them for their time, even if you’ve agreed to a trial run, but explain you need to feel confident with how the process is going to work, so you’d only like to commit to a small number of blogs before confirming a long-term agreement. In the long run, it is worth engaging someone to supply copy consistently. They’ll get to know you and your business better than if you use several freelancers or start and stop with the same writer. Ask them to drive the programme though, to put ideas forward for content, research material and write content. If they are supplying a consistent number of blogs for you each month you can also agree a fixed price per month. This means you know where you stand and are only paying what you can afford. It’s also a good way to protect you from hidden extras or uncertainty if you pay by the word, or by the hour.
Step 4
Once you have a copywriter in place, view them as part of your team. Just as you might work with an external accountant for their specific expertise, a copywriter is there to deliver hassle-free content that will boost your profile. They should want what’s best for your business and to help you succeed, so answer their questions and give them the information they need. A little input upfront should make the long-term process much simpler and hassle-free for you.
Step 5
Once they have the information they need, your copywriter should be able to draw up a Content Plan for you to approve. This will be a list of suggested topics that you have come up with between you, laid out in a month-by-month or week-by-week plan. I often find as soon as this plan is in place, clients can see how the whole process is going to work. They relax because they can see they have full visibility of what I’ll be doing for them and when. There are no ethereal promises that are easily broken – the plan is there in black and white for all to see. Of course, things change, and all parties need to be a little flexible – perhaps you’ll decide to launch a new product or service and you want your blog to focus on that, or your copywriter might bring a new event or trending topic to your attention that you want to comment on – but if that happens, the plan should be updated, so everyone still knows where they stand.
Step 6
Once you get to this stage in the process, you should be able to take more of a back seat and let your copywriter do their job. You know what they’re writing about and when they’ll be writing it, so the next you should hear from them is when their e-mail pings into your inbox with a draft blog for you to approve. You might have some feedback at this point with some changes you’d like to make, but in time, it’s not too much to expect your copywriter to learn your voice and deliver content that is right first time. Most copywriters will have a set number of edits they’re happy to perform on any one piece of writing at any stage in the process anyway, so if a bit of to-ing and fro-ing is needed upfront, you don’t need to pay any extra to get it right. Hopefully, they’ll be reliable into the bargain, and you’ll come to know when to expect the latest blog in your inbox. If there’s a good time for you to set aside in your schedule to check a post, let them know and ask that they work to that deadline each week, or each month.
Step 7
Depending on your up-front agreement, the post may now be in your hands to upload, or you may give written approval for your copywriter to upload the blog post for you. It’s worth putting it in writing – even if just an e-mail that says ‘post approved’ to protect yourself and your copywriter. If your copywriter is also taking responsibility for accompanying images, make sure you get these sent to you at the same time as the copy to make it as hassle-free for you as possible.
All that’s left now is for you to sit back (or continue dashing around at the rate of knots running your business) and enjoy seeing your business blog grow and become a genuinely useful source of information for your existing and future customers.
Not everyone that wants a business blog can be expected to come up with ideas for regular content and produce beautifully written posts while successfully running their business. Some business owners enjoy writing but acknowledge they don’t have the skillset, while others hate writing but feel it’s something they should do to promote their wares. Others are great writers but are rushing the posts through because they don’t have the time to dedicate to the process.
Ever considered outsourcing?
If this sounds like you, don’t be afraid to look into outsourcing your blog. A business blog copywriter will ghostwrite your posts, so your blog will still sound like you and your audience will think that you’ve written it. You can have as much or as little input into coming up with themes and topics as you wish, but you will always approve content before it goes live, so you can be sure that all copy remains on message. If you want to dip your toe in the water with a copywriter, you might even be able to split the workload and share your blog with an external writer so that between you, you’re able to produce more content for your website.
Top tips to improve your written content yourself
If outsourcing the work isn’t an option for you, and you feel you have the time and space to create quality content yourself, there are still things you can do to make sure your blog posts do your business justice.
If you’re clear about what you want to say and to who, and you allow time to check and double-check the quality of the content you have produced, you are well on your way to producing quality blog posts that will get read.
The pandemic has seen UK industries split. Some businesses are still struggling to get back on their feet while others are booming beyond their wildest expectations. Those experiencing an upturn may be seeing sales soar because they adapted their business during periods of lockdown and have discovered a better way of doing things. Others may be experiencing higher demand because consumers have had time to take stock and make a change. Whatever the reason for the growth, it can leave busy businesses in a bit of a quandary when it comes to marketing their wares. The thought of bringing new customers on board right now might make you shudder. How will you cope? However, on the flip side, how will you cope when the work you’re busy servicing now runs out if your pipeline is empty?
Filling the pipeline
I’m writing this blog with a little smile on my face because this is a debate that raged for most of my 20 years working in agency life. There were days I didn’t know which way to turn we were so busy, and I admit, I didn’t relish the idea of pitching for new business when things were already so hectic. But there is no denying the importance of filling your business pipeline. You never know what is around the corner, so it is better to be prepared by continuing to market your business, even when times are good.
So how do you find the time to market your wares when you’re up to your eyeballs in servicing the customers you already have? It’s a fair question. One of the best ways to generate new business a bit more softly, is to generate inbound leads. For those of you unfamiliar with this term it means that you don’t have to generate a vast and complex suite of marketing materials, spend thousands of pounds on advertising, or spend hours on the phone calling your top list of prospects to try to drum up more business that you’re not sure you even want! Inbound lead generation focuses on marketing activity that encourages your prospects to pick up the phone to you.
Gently does it
Business blogs are a fantastic way of generating inbound leads. If people find a blog useful, they will revisit it time and time again and are more likely to contact the author of that blog when they need that product or service. Business blogs position you as an authority in your field, a trusted voice in a sea of noise. If readers like what they see, they may contact you immediately for more information about your offering. Or they may save you as a favourite, sign up to your blog, or follow you on social media (where you can regularly promote your blog) so they know where you are if they need you in the future.
Call for back up
I realise that right about now you’ll be shouting at your screen something along the lines, ‘how on earth am I going to find the time to write a blog right now?!’ Yes, I decided to give you the benefit of the doubt and keep it clean! I fully empathise with how much time writing and maintaining a business blog can take, but if you don’t have the capacity in-house, it could well be worth looking into outsourcing this part of your marketing. If you work with an external copywriter, they can spend the time learning about your business, absorbing the topics that are important to you, researching the posts you know you want to write about but don’t have the time, and ultimately populating your blog with fresh and engaging content. Content that will ensure your website is working hard to market your business, while you do what you do best and stay focused on delivering the fantastic product or service you offer your customers.
It’s difficult when business is busy to keep the pedal to the metal when it comes to marketing, but that’s where outsourcing really comes into its own. So, if you’d like to make sure the demand continues, while remaining focused on existing customers, don’t be shy in calling for back up. It might mean you can have your cake and eat it which is a pretty good place to be.
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