Digity Marketing, Wokingham

Breakfast With An Olympian...a Great Way to Start The Day!

2012-02-01T12:15:00.001Z

This morning I attended a business networking breakfast at Windsor Racecourse and it was a fantastic event. As well as a variety of food and drink to choose from, there must have been over 60 attendees and they had Ben Hunt-Davis MBE speaking.

Ben rowed for Great Britain for almost a decade, competing at six World Championships and three Olympic Games. The highlight of his sporting career came at the Sydney Olympics in 2000 when he was a member of the Men's Eight that won the Gold Medal, becoming the first British winners of the event since 1912.

His session centered around how his team focused purely on one question in the build up to the Olympic Games; "will it make the boat go faster?". This led them to question everything around them; their training regime, how they communicated with other team members, diet etc. He said they were a sociable bunch but even started asking questions of going to the pub for a regular pint on a Friday night asking himself "will it make the boat go faster?" - as a result of the answer being no, they wouldn't go and focus on other activities instead. They even opted to watch the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games on TV rather than being there to take part!

"Today is going to be a good day because I will make it good!"

It was a very inspirational presentation and I picked up a copy of his book as I'm always inspired by mentally strong characters like Ben and he certainly made me gain more focus on my goals. As pictured above, I got to have a chat with the big guy and hold his Olympic medal - which I have a feeling is the closest I will ever get to one!

Well done and thanks to the team at Windsor Racecourse! I'm looking forward to the next event already...

For details of future events like this, keep an eye on www.NetworkinginBerkshire.co.uk.

Chris Lunn, Managing Director
Digity, Marketing Consultancy

To Tweet Or Not To Tweet...That Is A Common Question!

2012-01-30T13:23:00.001Z

As someone who dedicates a fair amount of time to face-to-face networking, I am often asked by people I meet as to whether they should 'tweet' (i.e. post updates via twitter, the popular social networking website).

As a marketer I've kind of grown up with the old saying "there's no such thing as bad publicity" etched in to my brain so in that sense, if you're making some noise, then good for you! I will however caveat that with some other points to bear in mind:

Who is going to follow you? This is a key question as if you work out who you want your followers to be you can have a look at the accounts they currently follow and see if there's a theme - especially those they interact with regularly!
What have you got to say that's interesting? Why should people follow you initially and what's going to sit up and make them take an interest going forward? How can you get them to engage with your account.
How personal are you going to make it? Very often companies set-up accounts which post drab updates without much soul and simply blatant sales pitches. How can you appeal to your target audience?
How much time have you got to dedicate to this? I've seen people spend a lot of time on twitter and then get fed-up and say it's not working for them. For me, twitter works well at the beginning/end of the day when I want to catch-up on news. I use twitter for Digity as a key resource and learning tool so my accounts are fairly lean for information but that's an area of opportunity for us as we grow. At the moment I have my marketing priorities and they continue to show good returns for my company so my advice would be to focus your key time on activities which work and utilise your 'down time' for those you want to try and bring in to the equation.
How are you going to know if it's starting to make an impact for your business? There are services such as Hootsuite which enable you to post updates and track various key stats to see how your exposure and audience is growing (or not?).
Who are you going to follow, interact with and support on there and what will that say about you? The 'retweet' and 'mention' capabilities are powerful as they give you the opportunity to extend the olive branch to new contacts and show them your support. I've seen good relationships build from such actions.

So my advice is to spend time on twitter looking at similar companies to yourself and working out what they post which seems to enhance their business. Then look for people who represent your target audience and see if you can get a feel for the type of 'tweets' they are likely to acknowledge. Then you can get stuck in, try some thing, grow your followers and build up your account and it's value to your business!

Good luck and if you're on twitter, follow @digityuk

Chris Lunn, Managing Director
Digity, Marketing Consultancy

The Accessories Crowd Website Goes Live!

2012-01-25T14:58:00.002Z

I was delighted to open my email this morning and find out that The Accessories Crowd website has now gone live! This website has been created by my good friend James Bennett who has many years experience within the mobile sector and he has big plans to help people like me, enjoy their gadgets even more!

This is definitely a website to add to your favourites as if you're in to your gadgets like I am, it will definitely inspire when thinking about how to protect your devices whilst making a bit of a statement at the same time.

As a gesture to our Digity following, he is happy to extend his launch offer of 10% off your first order.
Simply enter the code: ELK when you checkout.

Visit: www.theaccessoriescrowd.com

I certainly wish James all the best with this. I've already placed my first order and am thinking about the next one as a result of dipping back in at lunch-time!

Cheers,

Chris Lunn, Managing Director
Digity, Marketing Consultancy

Apple sells 37m iphones and 15.4m ipads in Q1! Are you maximising your opportunity?

2012-01-25T14:46:00.001Z

There is lots of talk about the economic down-turn in the USA but one company which is leading the way in innovation and success is Apple. They registered $46bn in revenue over this time period and sold a tremendous amount of smart devices.

Whilst this is great for Apple shareholders, the opportunity actually extends to every business. More and more people are switching to smart phones and tablets and this is resulting in more and more visits to websites taking place from mobile devices. As a result, there are many opportunities to reach your target market which simply didn't exist before - from location based searches, general surfing, apps and of course social media.

Here's an interesting infographic which demonstrates the potential in this area:

As always, if you'd like to discuss how to maximise your marketing efforts via mobile or other means, get in touch:

Chris Lunn, Managing Director
01344 555 123 / Digity, Marketing Consultancy

Blacks Leisure Go Into Administration - What Can Be Done To Save The High Street?

2012-01-06T10:38:00.002Z

Given the economy, but more importantly the change in user habits, the High Street has today seen another one of it's major supporters face a financially tough time as Blacks Leisure go in to Administration.

This is the latest in an increasing line of major High Street brands who are trying to deal with an evolving market place rather than riding the wave and going with it. There's an old phrase; "we're going to hit the high street" and I think that phrase continues to grow in significance as each year passes as I plan my visits to the shops with military precision now - and I literally hit the places I need as quickly as possible and get out equally as fast! So what could change/evolve to help? I've got a few ideas...

Parking prices - when times are tough, money is naturally on your mind and a car parking meter is like a ticking time bomb in the back of your mind. I would have less options and look at how to reduce or subsidise the parking costs; 20 minutes, up to 2 hours, up to 4 hours and 4hrs + may have it's own scale. Instantly you take the pressure off those people who want to go to a couple of shops in an hour as they have 2 hours as standard. I'd like to see someone adopt this and look at the average stay duration to see if it makes a difference.
Rates for premises - one of the biggest appealing factors to retailers about going online is the fixed overheads they can lose as a result. At the moment it appears more money is being spent online each year which as a result, makes having a real-life shop less appealing. So as footfall dwindles (certainly throughout the year, regardless of Christmas), what are the councils doing to justify the required investment? Should rates be regarded as a marketing fee? If you think about it, you pay extra to be in the popular areas so it should definitely show a return on investment.
Virtual Personal Shoppers - I'm not sure this is the right term but what I'd like to see is more people working in the shops, less physical stock and more PCs. Personally I'd like to walk in to House of Frasier at Christmas and sit with someone who knows their store inside out and can help me find all the gifts I need. They can show me pictures, videos, reviews etc. there and then and I give them my flexible friend in exchange for them arranging for everything to be delivered to my house/office the next day. I'm not saying I wouldn't walk round and be inspired by certain things but the personal shopper element has a lot to offer. I take a punt on products online all the time but I'd be even more likely to commit to purchase if someone human was recommending the product in front of me - especially if I could take it back to a shop to return it rather than queuing at the post office. It's the same in PC World / Currys - I walk in there as I want expertise and sadly, I very rarely get the same level of information that I could find myself within a minute on YouTube.

My fear is that shops will only be able to afford to be on the High Street for 2 months of the year so how do the Government help boost footfall and more importantly, what are the retailers doing to really inspire it? Ten years ago, if there was a requirement for say a Hi-Fi and chocolates for the kids at Christmas, Dixons and Woolworths would have been your bankers. Today if you wanted a music system and some confectionery you probably don't have to go much further than your local Tesco (possibly for both) and Amazon.co.uk.

It's an on-going challenge but it's time for all retailers to look at where they are losing ground, what they can offer instead and how they can add value in different ways. The stock will be the same so how are companies maximising their personnel?

I'd love to hear your thoughts...

Chris Lunn, Managing Director
Digity, Marketing Consultancy

New Anthony Mullan Window Display Installed

2012-01-05T17:30:00.000Z

Here's a snapshot from the Anthony Mullan furniture showroom in Virginia Water after the £150,000 Giveaway window vinyls were installed.

It looks great and if you're in the market for a new kitchen, don't delay in registering for one of their exclusive £2,500 vouchers here.

Chris Lunn, Managing Director
Digity, Marketing Consultancy

Happy New Year!

2012-01-03T08:09:00.000Z

Ok so it's a new year and time to re-focus on the Blog...let's see how it goes!

Here's to a productive 2012 and despite the doom and gloom in the media there are plenty of opportunities to compete for. That's my keyword for 2012...'compete'. I won't pretend anything will be easy this year but it would be boring if it was wouldn't it ;)

Here's to continued focus, innovation, belief and activity...

In the meantime, as a freebie tip, if you haven't joined our Online Networking service yet, sign-up for free now: www.networkinginberkshire.co.uk

Chris Lunn
Digity, Marketing Consultancy

Home Counties Financial Services - New 'Useful Links' Page Completed

2011-12-20T16:54:00.000Z

As some of you may know, my parents business is Home Counties Financial Services and he wanted a more visual way to display various 'Useful Links' to refer his clients to going forward. As a result we re-designed that particular page and are very happy with the outcome (not least as we feature within the links!).

If you're an existing Digity customer and would like to implement a similar section, get in touch. If you're not an existing customer but would like the flexibility to evolve your web presence quickly, please get in touch (01344 555 123) and we can discuss the options.

Chris Lunn, Managing Director
Digity, Marketing Consultancy

Anthony Mullan furniture £150,000 Giveaway Begins!

2011-12-09T16:22:00.000Z

We have just delivered 60 vouchers to Anthony Mullan furniture which are worth £2,500 each!

The vouchers represent a £150,000 giveaway which the Kitchen and Bedroom furniture specialist are giving away to customers who register online for a voucher.

Vouchers will be sent out on a first-come, first-served, basis so if you are in the market for a bespoke and hand-crafted kitchen, act quickly!

Chris Lunn
Digity, Marketing Consultancy

Property Excellence Re-brand Complete

2011-12-06T16:36:00.000Z

We're delighted to announce the completion of the Property Excellence re-brand which consisted of a brand new logo to utilise online and offline in their advertising, printed products and apparel.

Property Excellence focus on transforming their clients homes inside and out, including Kitchens, Bathrooms, custom furnishing projects and external work including landscaping, driveways, patios, decking and fencing.

If you have any requirements, contact Simon and say hello for me! Next to come is a new-look website early in 2012!

Chris Lunn, Managing Director
Digity, Marketing Consultancy

Pets Plus (Arborfield) Christmas Range Now In Stock

2011-11-26T17:33:00.000Z

The Christmas range of Pet Toys for Cats, Dogs and other small animals is now in stock in this family run Pet Shop in Arborfield, Reading. Hurry, while stocks last, for more examples you can view their Christmas section of their website here.

Chris Lunn, Managing Director
Digity, Marketing Consultancy

LinkedIn Survey - Not impressed

2011-11-08T08:38:00.002Z

I just got duped in to partaking in the LinkedIn survey when I visited this morning. It was a 3 question survey and at the end asked me if I wanted an iPhone, MacBook air or iPad2...needless to say it was just a rouse to take me through to some game where you get involved in a questions competition by text at £3 a go!

Do LinkedIn really need to associate themselves with this type of activity? It cheapened the brand/service substantially for me as a result of this experience. Perhaps it would have been different if I said LinedIn was my favourite networking site rather than facebook!

Chris Lunn
Digity, Marketing Consultancy

New Avery & Son Website Goes Live!

2011-11-03T15:25:00.002Z

We're delighted to launch the new website for Avery and Son (plumbing and heating engineers)!
Avery and Son Limited is a well established family run company based in South Oxfordshire, servicing the Home Counties and London. With over 60 years experience, they currently look after numerous individuals, companies, private schools and letting agents. They also have close working relationships with many builders and general contractors.

Find out more about their services:

If you would like an introduction, let me know!

Chris Lunn
Digity, Marketing Consultancy

New Anthony Mullan furniture website goes live

2011-11-01T20:44:00.000Z

We're delighted to introduce the new Anthony Mullan furniture website.
It was recently given a refresh to further represent their huge array of bespoke kitchens they design, produce and fit for customers throughout the Home Counties as well as their custom bedroom and home study furniture.

With showrooms in Maidenhead, Virginia Water and Windsor their attention to detail is fantastic and they offer a ten year guarantee too!

Check out their range the next time you're thinking about updating your kitchen, bedroom or study!

Chris Lunn

Downloading eBooks To Your iPhone or iPad? Consider Kindle (Watch TV Advert here)

2011-10-29T09:28:00.000+01:00

Earlier this year I saw a Kindle advert which stated that if you're buying ebooks on your iphone/ipad you should really buy them via the Kindle store/app. Having purchased two kindles earlier in the year for our honeymoon I can vouch for this way of thinking as should you move away from Apple products in the future, you won't lose access to your paid for content (ala via iBooks). It's great the way the app syncs between your Kindle device and your iPad / iPhone so wherever you are, you should be on the right page!

Watch the TV ad here:

Let us know your views between Kindle and iBooks...

Cheers,

Chris Lunn
email: blog@lunn.mobi ¦ twitter: @chrislunn ¦ linkedin profileChris Lunn
Digity, Marketing Consultancy

Uptake Strategies Launches

2011-10-27T19:06:00.000+01:00

We're delighted to announce the launch of the new Uptake Strategies website. The new website has been launched as part of the overall re-branding of Creative Marketing Measures who are based in Windsor, Berkshire.

Chris Lunn digity

Wokingham Curry Club (Networking Group) New Website Goes Live

2011-10-21T20:53:00.000+01:00

We're pleased to announce the launch of the new Wokingham Curry Club website for the business networking group which meets in the Square Bar, Market Place on the 2nd Wednesday of every month.

Richard Knight (of the FSB and Focal Point) runs the club and wanted an online presence to provide some basic information and encourage new participants going forward.

Thankfully we were able to provide this and tie it in with Networking in Berkshire too and hopefully we can continue to grow the club, the opportunities on offer and of course, satisfy our appetites at the same time!

Chris Lunn
Digity, Marketing Consultancy

My Controller (Accounting and Tax Services, Windsor) New Website Launches

2011-10-13T07:35:00.000+01:00

We're delighted to announce the launch of the new My Controller (Accounting and Tax Services, Windsor) website.

My Controller is an innovative and expanding Accountancy and Tax practice based in Windsor, helping businesses throughout the Thames Valley. Their service can be tailored to meet the needs of your business and budget from start-ups through to large enterprises. Ultimately, they focus on establishing a successful working relationship which evolves with your business!

To find out more visit http://www.my-controller.co.uk/

Chris Lunn
Digity, Marketing Consultancy

Google Reader - A Great Way To Keep Up With All Your News

2011-09-29T09:31:00.000+01:00

I've used iGoogle for many years now and found it an ok way to keep up-to-date with news. It did the job of bringing various news sources to my online desktop but it was always tough to keep up-to-date with news in a chronological order. A couple of weeks ago I was listening to a podcast where someone mentioned Google Reader. I knew I'd seen it within the Google App on my iphone but I'd never actually used it but as soon as I did, I knew it would change the way I absorb information going forward.

A few minutes after creating my account though I was busy finding my favourite news websites and taking the RSS feed URLs from them to add in to Google Reader. Now, rather than having to trawl through various sites, I just pop in to my Reader account and can see everything aggregated in to one place. You can easily click in to certain sources if you want to segment or see all the latest ones.

I've certainly found it very useful and very easy to get up and running with.

Enjoy!

Chris Lunn
Digity, Marketing Consultancy

Having Trouble Opening Office 2007 Documents? (.docx)

2011-09-05T22:37:00.000+01:00

If you're using an old version of Microsoft Office (2003 for example) you will experience problems if someone sends you a spreadsheet or document in the new format (usually ends with an x on the end of the file name). If this is the case you can download a copy of Open Office for free which will enable you to open these going forward.

It's a good piece of software and is free compared to the many pounds you can spend on Microsoft products. Depending what you need, it's well worth a look, especially if you've got children who need an affordable solution for their project work. The other bonus is that you can save documents you create as if they are Word or Excel documents too - so there are no compatibility issues if you're using in more than one place.

Chris Lunn
digity

Welcome to the Digity Blog

2011-09-05T17:09:00.000+01:00

Hi and welcome to our digity blog. We'll keep this updated with our latest hints, tips and recommendations.

As always, if you'd like any tailored assistance with your activities then don't hesitate to get in touch (01344 555 123).

Chris Lunn, Managing Director
Digity, Marketing Consultancy