Friday, 16 August 2013
The Changing Face of PR
Freestyle's Managing Director, Alan Boyden, recently contributed to a round table discussion for Midlands Business Insider magazine.
Alan and other PR professionals from around the region discussed the changing face of PR, including the use of outside agencies, social media and budget constraints.
When asked about social media and its potential to broadcast unauthorised information outside of the company's key marketing messages, Alan commented:
An overview of the round table can be found on the Midlands Business Insider Website and the full discussion is printed in the September issue of the magazine."That's the danger with treating social media as a separate channel. If anyone sent out a traditional press release without it being signed off there would be real anger. But that's exactly what you're doing with a blog or Twitter post created without guidelines."
Labels: Alan Boyden, Business, Business Insider, Freestyle, Freestyle Marketing, Managing Director, Midlands Business Insider, PR, Public Relations, Social Media
# posted by Freestyle PR : 15:53
Wednesday, 14 August 2013
Tennis Runs In Our Blood!
If you’re a fan of tennis, then you’ll easily
recognise Babolat’s ‘Tennis Runs In Our Blood’ slogan. As the leading French
manufacturer of tennis rackets, sports clothing and footwear, Babolat is now
one of the biggest brands in the world of tennis, and is favoured by top
players like Rafa Nadal, Andy Roddick, Li Na and Wimbledon semi-finalist, Jerzy
Janowicz.
When it comes to all things
tennis, Freestyle’s Creative Director, Tim Phillips is something of an expert.
Having picked up a racket at the tender age of 10, Tim is also a qualified
professional tennis coach. He just represented Nottinghamshire at Eastbourne , in the inter-county over 35’s tournament
beating rivals Oxfordshire.
Given his dedication to the sport, it's unsurprising
that tennis is very much a family business. His daughter Charlotte, once ranked
in the top five under 18’s, is now studying for a degree in sports management
on a tennis scholarship in Houston , Texas
 |
| Freestyle's Creative Director,Tim Phillips, has been able to bring his love of tennis to his work on projects with Babolat |
Tim has been able to bring his love of the game to his work at Freestyle, particularly over the last three years where he’s led the creative team on projects with Babolat to create major promotional campaigns, tactical marketing and online advertising material across the
 |
| Charlotte Phillips is playing the game she loves, while studying for a degree in sports management |
Fresh from his success at
the recent inter-county tournament, Tim explained why this project was
particularly meaningful, “One of the most important and often difficult
decisions that highly talented, top ranked junior tennis players have to make
is whether to further their education or whether to turn professional. It was
important to me to help guide these players and provide them with solid
information to help them plan their future. The Careers in Tennis campaign
material enables them to make informed decisions. Financial, personal,
educational, and professional development goals have to be considered. There is
no simple answer, and the reasoning is different for each player. There are
some great things you can do within the game. Our goal is to make sure that
their love of the game continues and they stay within the tennis scene.”
Labels: Andy Roddick, Babolat, Freestyle Marketing, International Tennis Federation, Jerzy Janowicz, Lawn Tennis Association, Li Na, Loughborough University, Rafa Nadal, Wimbledon
# posted by Freestyle PR : 13:00
Monday, 24 June 2013
Hats Off To Our Heroes
Nottingham will proudly host the UK's fifth Armed Forces Day National Event this summer. The event which will take place on Saturday, 29th June at the Victoria Embankment, will celebrate the work and outstanding contribution made by the men and the women of the Royal Navy, Army and Royal Air Force, plus reservists from all three services.
The event, which is part of a week-long programme of celebrations across the country, will feature a great line-up of activities and entertainment for the whole family to enjoy.
Freestyle is proud to have played a key role towards
this historic event. Working on behalf of the Nottingham City Council, our
creative team developed the creative concept behind the campaign, and devised
the now familiar “Hats Off To Our Heroes” theme. The theme, and
graphic featuring a trio of military service dress hats, have been adopted
across the city and can be seen on banners, posters and tram wraps. Together,
they form a powerful symbol highlighting the importance of the men and women
who serve the nation.
Alan Boyden, Freestyle’s Managing Director said, “Once in while you get the opportunity to work on a project that not only satisfies your professional appetite for creativity, but also feeds your emotional needs. Promotion of the national Armed Forces Day in partnership with Nottingham City Council was one such project. Here at Freestyle, we are delighted to be associated with an event of such national military importance and are proud to take our hats off to these heroes.”
City
Centre:
- City Centre parade
- Drumhead service
- Flypasts
- Past and present
military vehicles
- Exciting live and
static displays
- Live entertainment
- Armed Forces
through the ages
- Veterans marquee
Labels: Armed Forces Day, Army, flypast, Freestyle Marketing, Hats Off To Our Heroes. Military, nottingham, parade, RAF, Royal Air Force, Royal Navy
# posted by Freestyle PR : 14:26
Wednesday, 19 June 2013
Off the Eaten Path
New Freestyle recruit, Shirlene Campbell Ritchie shares her thoughts on what she misses most about sunny Singapore!
Wanting to make the best of the sunshine last week, we had some friends round for tea in the garden. Like me, Su Lin is a Singaporean married to an Englishman. And, as Singaporeans do, we started talking about the things we miss most – at the top of the list was food! My husband says that when Brits gather, they seem to talk about nothing but the weather, but when Singaporeans are together, they can’t stop talking about food – and Singapore has the most amazing variety of food so we have lots to talk about!
Culinary adventurers will be aware that
 |
| Hearty Prawn Noodles |
No one
in Singapore Singapore
I’ve
often wondered if we can make Singapore
It’s
always fun to go to Old Market Square Nottingham
that you’d like to tell us about?
Now that sounds like
some food for thought.
Labels: Chinese, food, Freestyle Marketing, hawker centres, Indian, Malay, nottingham, Old Market Square, Singapore, street food, World Street Food Congress 2013
# posted by Freestyle PR : 16:26
Tuesday, 4 June 2013
Serving up a laugh!
Freestyle’s Art Director, Dave Slaney has lent his artistic skills to illustrating a new book about the comical trials and tribulations of a fictional tennis club.
Off The Frame – The Lighter Side of Tennis is collection of short stories, poems and sketches,
written by Alistair Higham and Ronald Carter, based around the fictional ‘Long
Shott Tennis Club’ in ‘Spin
Valley
Dave’s witty cartoons feature throughout the book and depict a range of comic characters including ‘Rocket’ Eastwood, the tennis player with canon-ball power (but no backhand), and Cedric Ballsworthy, the partially-sighted umpire, in some very amusing situations.
Dave was thrilled to be
involved in the project, especially as it meant he got to sharpen his pencils and
open his sketching pad once again:
“It’s great to step away from the Apple Mac and get some good old-fashioned hand-drawing done now and then! Alistair and Ronald’s stories and poems are brilliantly entertaining and it’s been a pleasure to bring their characters to life in the book.”
A ‘Meet the Artist’ video
from the Off The Frame website shows
Dave hard at work:
Off The Frame – The Lighter Side of Tennis is available through Amazon and on Kindle now. An Audio book is currently in production and will be available in the coming months.
Labels: Alistair Higham, Art Director, Artist, Cartoon, Dave Slaney, Freestyle Marketing, Illustration, Off The Frame, Ronald Carter, The Lighter Side of Tennis
# posted by Freestyle PR : 12:05
Thursday, 28 March 2013
Have an Egg-cellent Easter Holiday!
Just a quick message to remind you that the agency will be closed for the Easter holidays from Friday 29th March until Monday 1st April.
The agency will be back open for business as usual from Tuesday 2nd April at 9am.
We hope you don't shell out too much on buying eggs and that you'll have an Egg-cellent holiday!
Happy Easter,
From all the team at Freestyle
The agency will be back open for business as usual from Tuesday 2nd April at 9am.
We hope you don't shell out too much on buying eggs and that you'll have an Egg-cellent holiday!
Happy Easter,
From all the team at Freestyle
Labels: Easter, Freestyle Marketing, Holiday
# posted by Freestyle PR : 11:31
Monday, 14 January 2013
Happy New Brand!
What better time to review
your branding than the beginning of the New Year. It is a perfect time to look
back and assess just what value it added to your business, and possibly how
much more it could add in the future?
Perhaps it’s not just your
commercial brand you should be reflecting on, but your personal one too? Have
you been true to yourself over the past year? Have you worked to your full
potential and outwardly demonstrated to the world just what you’re made of? I
thought not. So now’s the time to put things right.
Branding is much more than the external manifestation of an identity. It goes deeper than your logo and corporate colours, and wider than the clothes you wear or car you choose to drive.
This year more than any
other you have the opportunity to go for gold, inspired perhaps by the
tremendous achievements of our Olympians this summer. Or are you content just
to coast along, after all it’s the taking part that matters isn’t it?
I suspect like me, you want
a little more out of life, and whilst taking part is fun winning is what really
matters. If you’re looking for that edge over your competitors, particularly in
a commodity market, what better way to achieve
it than refreshing your brand offering? Whether you are looking for an
‘evolution’ or a ‘revolution’, getting an expert opinion can pay dividends.
Corporate or personal
branding professionals will help you avoid the pitfalls and guide you through the
intricacies of your brand journey. Discover your brand DNA and you’ll have a
friend for life. Ignore it and you’ll be forever re-inventing yourself.
Brands are like people, they
evolve over time; they grow up; some never have the chance; some get abused;
others just get tired; some lose their way; some achieve greatness and others
simply fade into obscurity through lack of investment. What do you want to do
with yours?
Labels: Advertising, Brand, Branding, Corporate, Freestyle Marketing, Image, Logo, New Year, PR
# posted by Freestyle PR : 13:22
Monday, 12 November 2012
The Ex Factor
Managing Director Alan Boyden shares his thoughts on business partnerships
"I
was reminded by an ex-colleague of a blog that I wrote back in June 2012, in
which I paralleled marriage to business partnerships. The irony of it was not
missed by him as I had recently announced my “divorce” in the business press.
So what of the Ex? The truth of the matter is that you have to move on. You’ll
never get anywhere if you’re constantly looking in the rear view mirror. I’m
pleased to say that I managed my business “divorce” (after eighteen years
together) without too much acrimony and the offspring seem to have come out of
it relatively un-scared too.
I've spoken to a number of entrepreneurs who have also sold their businesses
recently and the common factor seems to be not what happened leading up to or
during the deal, but what they did in the intervening period between selling
and starting up again. One of them referred to this as a period of “limbo”,
another was in a “commercial wilderness”.
Personally
it was a period of trepidation mixed with great excitement - an opportunity to
take time out to reflect on what you really want out of life. They all agreed
that at times during this “limbo” period you can easily slip into a negative
mind-set, over- reflecting and hankering after commercial stimulation.
So
what to do after this period of new found freedom? For me, it was obvious, I
wanted to stay in the same line of business, and for others there was nothing
more certain than they wanted a complete change. And most have done just that,
moving from a successful finance business to run a chain of restaurants.
Another from logistics to IT and another from property to sign manufacturing. Each
to his or her own I say. I've found my niche in marketing comms and “I’m
sticking to the knitting”.
I
was fortunate that an opportunity came my way to work with a fantastic team of
talented individuals here at Freestyle that I first met over 25 years ago. I
may have chosen to stick at what I know best, rather than spreading my entrepreneurial
wings like others, but it feels good to be back, and there’s certainly no
looking back. The only Ex factor in my business life now is the Excitement factor."
Labels: Alan Boyden, Business, Freestyle Marketing, Partnership
# posted by Freestyle PR : 09:36
Monday, 8 October 2012
Nottingham Entrepreneur Alan Boyden Joins Freestyle
The Freestyle team has welcomed Nottingham entrepreneur and founder of bcsAgency, Alan Boyden to its board of directors.
Alan will take the helm as
Managing Director, assuming the responsibilities of Freestyle’s previous
Managing Director Ed Watson who now moves up to be Chairman of the
Company.
 |
| Freestyle Directors Board (L-R) Tim Phillips, Des Buchanan and Alan Boyden |
Creative Director, Tim
Phillips and Des Buchanan, Commercial Director founded Freestyle Marketing Communications
Limited along with Ed Watson back in 1991.
“Having clocked up over 21 years at the helm, Ed deserves a break from the front line, but will remain actively involved with the agency’s clients at a more strategic level,” Des explains.
Alan will bring his extensive
management experience and impressive contact network to Freestyle, to help us
with our next stage of growth.
“The time was right for me to move on from my former agency, having come of age 18 years on from its formation as an MBO from Grey Midlands. I am looking forward to getting back to my roots in advertising, whilst helping Freestyle develop its Public Relations, Social Media and Digital Marketing skills,” Alan comments.
The team look forward to
working closely with Alan and developing the business further.
Labels: Agency, Alan Boyden, Digital, Freestyle Marketing, Managing Director, marketing, nottingham, PR, Social Media
# posted by Freestyle PR : 09:00
Thursday, 4 October 2012
Walk this way!
Congratulations to Marketing Account Manager Susannah Saywood who completed the Shine walking marathon in London on Saturday 26th September!
 | ||
| Susannah (right) and a friend after completing the Shine Marathon |
Susannah raised a fantastic £529.10 for Cancer Research UK and completed the 26.2 mile in a very respectable 8 hours 15 minutes. Susannah would like to thank everyone for their donations:
"What helped me get to the finish line was the thought of all the money I've been able to raise... all this is only achievable by your generous donations" Susannah explains.
Labels: Cancer Research UK, Freestyle Marketing, Fundraising, Leukaemia, Shine, Susannah Saywood, Walking Marathon
# posted by Freestyle PR : 17:17
Thursday, 27 September 2012
These boots are made for walking!
Freestyle Marketing Account Manager Susannah Saywood will be taking part in a sponsored night-walking marathon in London on Saturday 29th September.
 |
| Susannah will swap her dancing shoes for bright pink trainers this Saturday night! |
Raising money for Cancer Research UK, the 26.2 mile Shine walking marathon takes place in London and Manchester
every year. Susannah has been training hard in and around Nottingham since she
signed up for the event with friends back in
May.
“Cancer Research UK is looking at ways to prevent, diagnose and treat leukaemia and other blood-related diseases and I’m really proud to be supporting such a meaningful cause - it makes all the training worthwhile!” Susannah comments.
Susannah has raised a fantastic
£436.10 so far. If you would like to sponsor Susannah, please visit her Just
Giving page: https://www.justgiving.com/zannagoeswalking
Good luck Susannah!
Labels: Cancer Research UK, Charity, Freestyle Marketing, Fundraising, Leukaemia, nottingham, Shine, Susannah Saywood, Walking Marathon
# posted by Freestyle PR : 11:09
Monday, 24 September 2012
Staff News
Congratulations to Freestyle PR Manager Louise Hatton and Darren Carlin who got married on Saturday!
Labels: Freestyle Marketing, PR, Staff News
# posted by Freestyle PR : 11:05
Monday, 10 September 2012
The Tour of Britain speeds through Nottingham
A
fantastic summer of sport has been topped off nicely today with the Tour of
Britain passing right outside our office front door!
A fantastic summer of sport has been topped off nicely today with the Tour of Britain passing right outside our office front door!
The cyclists, including Mark Cavendish and Olympic champion Bradley Wiggins, set off from Nottingham Castle this morning for the second stage of the race, before making their way through Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire.
Labels: Freestyle Marketing, Nottingham Marketing Agency, Tour of Britain
# posted by Freestyle PR : 15:14
Tuesday, 4 September 2012
New Account Manager strengthens the Freestyle Marketing Team
We're pleased to announce that we are extending the Freestyle team with the appointment of Susannah Saywood as Marketing Account Manager.
With over 10
years of marketing experience in the leisure industry, Susannah will join the
13-strong team at Freestyle, working closely with Managing Director Ed Watson
to develop marketing strategies for a range of clients across B2B and B2C
sectors. Susannah’s previous roles have included working as a senior pricing
analyst for a large airline organisation and a holiday park company, as well as
a number of consumer marketing positions where she was responsible for
marketing campaigns, product launches and internal communications, amongst
other duties.
Having
previously worked in large, client based roles, Susannah is looking forward to
working with a dynamic, integrated marketing agency
“It was my love of marketing together with a desire to once again be involved in a creative environment which led me to Freestyle. Having always worked in house for large companies I welcomed the opportunity of working within a smaller company and gaining the knowledge and understanding of how the ‘other side’ works. Working for a creative agency such as Freestyle will provide me with an exciting new challenge!”
Susannah will
handle a number of client accounts developing their marketing strategies
through a range of services including direct mail, market research, public
relations, online and advertising, with the help of the knowledgeable team at
Freestyle.
Labels: Freestyle Marketing, Nottingham Marketing Agency, Susannah Saywood
# posted by Freestyle PR : 09:25
Wednesday, 1 August 2012
Just like a fine wine, we are definitely getting better with age
Freestyle
Marketing is 21 years young this year. To many this will be an admirable
achievement, especially in today’s economic climate. However, others may
be suspicious that this longevity is a sign of stagnation and something to be
wary of.
Freestyle
is a combination of people, all of different generations and each with their
own skill, from those who remember life before Photoshop, to young up and
coming pr people with a passion for all things social and online. This
combination gives us a unique outlook with the ability to look at projects from
all angles. Our experience means we know what works and what doesn’t, and
because we are constantly evolving we are also well versed in the dark arts of
social media and online pr.
So
we believe 21 years is definitely something to celebrate – and will be doing
just that for the rest of the year!
Labels: 21 years, experience, Freestyle Marketing, marketing, nottingham
# posted by Freestyle PR : 15:00
Wednesday, 25 July 2012
“Hello, this is the New York Times calling…”
Freestyle’s Art Director,
Dave Slaney has been featured in an article by the New York Times.
Dave sent his cheeky take
on Wenlock, one of the Olympic Mascots for London 2012, to American sports blog
Deadspin, back in 2010 when the mascots were first revealed to the public.
His version of the mascot, based on the Monsters Inc character Mike Wazowski, was a favourite amongst satirical designs from around world, and in March of this year New York Times sports journalist Mary Pilon contacted Dave to ask him about his design and people’s reaction to the original characters.
Dave was initially sceptical when he received the phone call: “It was a bit of a shock to be contacted by one of the biggest newspapers in the world. I thought it was someone having a laugh at first, but I thought I should go along with it until I could Google them!”
Dave has worked in Freestyle’s creative department for twenty one years but his passion for design is an enjoyable hobby as well as a career. He creates illustrations and images which are regularly featured in national magazine, newspapers and websites.
Dave is very pleased at the reaction to his Wenlock design, “It’s always nice to make people chuckle with a design. I’m really pleased that people from around the world have seen it and liked it.”
Dave sent his cheeky take
on Wenlock, one of the Olympic Mascots for London 2012, to American sports blog
Deadspin, back in 2010 when the mascots were first revealed to the public.His version of the mascot, based on the Monsters Inc character Mike Wazowski, was a favourite amongst satirical designs from around world, and in March of this year New York Times sports journalist Mary Pilon contacted Dave to ask him about his design and people’s reaction to the original characters.
Dave was initially sceptical when he received the phone call: “It was a bit of a shock to be contacted by one of the biggest newspapers in the world. I thought it was someone having a laugh at first, but I thought I should go along with it until I could Google them!”
Dave has worked in Freestyle’s creative department for twenty one years but his passion for design is an enjoyable hobby as well as a career. He creates illustrations and images which are regularly featured in national magazine, newspapers and websites.
Dave is very pleased at the reaction to his Wenlock design, “It’s always nice to make people chuckle with a design. I’m really pleased that people from around the world have seen it and liked it.”
Labels: Creative, Deadspin, Design, Freestyle Marketing, London 2012, Mascot, Monsters Inc, New York Times, Olympics, Wenlock
# posted by Freestyle PR : 14:30
Tuesday, 17 July 2012
Getting no response from your print advertising? There may be a very simple reason!
1. Engaging the Brain
The natural reaction of the human brain to advertising is to screen it out; confronted by hundreds of different messages during the course of the day, it would be impossible to live a normal life if we stop to consciously react to every ad put in front of our eyes or ears. The few advertising messages that do get through will be viewed both rationally and emotionally - even for B2B products.
2. Emotional Appeal
It's commonly thought that B2B advertising has little room for emotional appeal; business decisions are totally rational, aren't they? But all B2B decision-makers are consumers when they’re not on duty and are used to unconsciously evaluating ads both rationally and emotionally (left brain and right brain).
Successful B2B or B2C advertisements engage the potential customer - and engagement is an emotional response. Of course, many of the readers will believe they are making a logical response to an ad. But the fact is that we need to make people like us, trust in what we sell and believe it will do them good - all of which are emotional responses.The problem we face is that the person looking at the ad will probably start from a position of not paying much attention.
So we must seek to engage them by getting them interested in what we are talking about. Either by asking them an interesting open question, by intriguing them, by being funny, by focusing on the benefits that accrue to this individual, or by focusing on how the recipient feels.
3. The Question
…is not an interesting question because it does not engage. It is a closed question (yes/no answers only) and that in itself stops engagement. And it is a boring question because it leads nowhere."Would you like to double your sales?"
"What is the most effective way of doubling your sales?"
…is more engaging, because it is more specific and it opens a debate.
Engagement can be as simple as that - as long as you can keep it going through the piece - and can make the difference between a potential client simply scanning your ad or emotionally responding to it.
Labels: Ads, Advertisements, Advertising, B2B, B2C, Freestyle Marketing, Print
# posted by Freestyle PR : 11:04
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