What's the state of business right now, in October 2012? Are you battening down the financial hatches to brave further economic storms? Or do you believe that the time has come to take some forward steps with your marketing and sales?

Anthony Hilton, a former colleague and a respected City columnist on the London Evening Standard, believes the picture is far from black. He reckons we will find a way through. Indeed he reckons that the current recession is not as bad as the economic turmoil of the 1970s, when inflation raced above 20%. He can see some 'green shoots' although he accepts that some economists foresee no let up until 2015 at the earliest.

Business is both complex and biological, he says. "We underestimate complexity, and big business is complex. Business is also biological and, like plants, grows according to climatic conditions." 

And successful companies incorporate soft skills, because businesses involve "agglomerations of people".  However, he adds, too many companies are run on purely financial lines, with hard skills and with hierarchical structures. So they are in no position to "reinvent" and innovate in the swift-moving lifecycle of the digital age where products are ever-changing.

The views of Anthony Hilton are well-worth noting. He has spent more than 40 years as a financial journalist, and has worked for The Guardian, The Times (where we were colleagues), the Observer, the Sunday Times (as business correspondent in New York), and appeared on TV and radio.

He has been a leading player on the London Evening Standard since 1984 – as City Editor, Managing Director, and now a columnist. He also writes columns for PR Week and Marketing. A non-exec director of the Advisory Board of the Foundation Management Consultancy, his clients for customer-focus advice include VW and M&S. 

Simplify your marketing messages

Finding simple solutions to meet the complex needs of business is hard. Through complexity and change, organisations need clarity and added value  – clear marketing communications with a proper strategy. Spend time finding the 'simple' solutions.

Often this involves examining your core business. So, now is the time to undertake market research on your brand and how your customers, competitors, staff, prospects and stakeholders view your company. The perceptions can be surprising and help you devise completely new marketing messages.

To discuss Navigate's high-quality, in-depth, cost-effective market research services, call Gareth Gammon, 01730 235666. gareth.gammon@navigate-design.com

After the excitement of the London Olympics and Paralympics, many businesses want to pick up the inspirational baton and move forward. So they are asking how to add more value to their marketing and communications.

This requirement applies to many business areas – third sector, not-for-profit, and charity; colleges and schools; government and NGOs;  travel, leisure, and sport; and the wider corporate sector. The review needs to cover a number of considerations, such as brand identity, digital marketing, content marketing, social media and SEO, brochure design, public relations, and magazine publishing.

Here are 14 points to consider to maximise your return on your marketing and communications.

1. Make sure you have a coherent, active marketing plan

2. Review your marketing goals and targets for the next 12 months

3. Undertake some market research to discover what your customers think of your operation

4. Determine your precise position in your marketplace

5. Look at what your competitors are doing

6. Find out what your prospects, stakeholders and business partners make of you

7. Branding: How effective is your logo, name and brand (personality or identity)?

8. Make the most of your PR: Tell positive stories to the media in press releases and to your target market audience in emailers

9. Examine ways to improve the impact of your digital marketing – your website design and content

10. Review the success of your SEO and online marketing – analytics and metrics

11. Social media: Are you active? Do you have a strategy? Is your team committed?

12. Review your printed sales material: What do brochures, advertisements and fliers say about your operation, and can you revamp your brochure design, or your ads?

13. Evaluate the power of contract magazines and newsletters, in print and online, to support your B2B marketing strategy. This multi-billion marketing sector is often ignored.

14. Update your communications' crisis plan.

If you want help with this  review, please do contact me directly to arrange a time to meet for a discussion of your marketing communications. gareth.gammon@navigate-design.com 01730 235666

How schools communicate exam results can have a major influence on their branding and reputation in the local community and with potential parents.

As schools prepare to the GCSE results being distributed and shared in the next few days, Navigate has issued 10 top tips to help them prepare and safeguard the school branding:


1. Statement – Prepare your draft press statement/template in advance to save time when the results are in your inbox.


2. Message – What is the current theme for the school? and how might the results endorse this approach?


3. Pick out a student with an interesting story – Someone who has overcome adversity, or improved forecast grades dramatically – and get them along for interview.


4. Photographer – Book a professional for a couple of hours, so you don’t need to rely on staff or pupil smart phone cameras.


5. Photos (location) – Plan where photos could be taken with pupils/parents/teachers to best illustrate the message. E.G. Outside the main gates, under a logo, or in a department to reveal certain subject success.

6. Parents – Line up specific parents to add their quotes to the success story. Do you know who you would ask?


7. Website – Ensure that the statement is added to your website. Do you have access to the school's content management system?


8. Local press – Find out in advance the name and contact details for the journalists covering the story, and their deadlines.


9. Social media – Ask a member of your team to monitor Facebook and Twitter to see what is being said about the school results – depending upon the feedback, replies to be considered.

10. Datasheet – Prepare a well-designed, printed datasheet detailing the results for use at parents' evenings/open days and with the prospectus. Upload a copy to the website.



Navigate offers schools their input and help on branding and communications, either as a one-off or as part of an on-going communications' initiative. Call Gareth Gammon now, 01730 235666.

www.navigate-design.com

Now the Olympic Games are over –  boo, hoo…. didn't we do well? …roll on the Paralympics. Here come the cliche championships and we are back to the jargon words with which politicians frizzle the mind.

This week Rail Minister Theresa Villiers used at least two of the worst offenders when interviewed about First Group's victory over Virgin for the West Coast route. She said that First Group's offer was "deliverable" and that their financial projections were "robust". She may not have stooped to say the deal was "scalable" – another pet hate. And what does anyone make of "leverage" used as a verb? 

Good for Government Minister Alan Duncan, who had a memo issued in June banning words such as leverage, mainstream and going forward. Nor does he approve of access, showcase or impact used as verbs.

“It irks when nouns are used as verbs" the memo reads, "apostrophes are left off (or misplaced), compound adjectives (such as UN-led) are not hyphenated, and sentences are begun with ‘But’ or ‘However’.”

But Mr Duncan protests too much and describes himself as a 'grammar fascist' which is just as harmful to 'free' speech as jargon. That is just as bad as "to medal" which caught my ear during the Olympics. Some of us are gritting our teeth whenever we hear the term Olympic "legacy" – sounds like an ancient aunt's bequest.

Robust readers will have noticed that this blog started a sentence with 'but'. This is completely legitimate grammar, according to Fowler's 'Modern English Usage'. The words 'but; and 'and' are perfectly permissible in good English

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/9349970/Alan-Duncan-issues-memo-at-DFID-banning-jargon-words-like-going-forward.html

Saying or writing  cliches muddles the message, which gets lost in the ear of the listener or the eye of the beholder. There's no beauty in them.

My advice is to go to a Thesaurus to find good, punchy underused words. Use clear simple English which readers or listeners can understand without pausing for mental editing or queering. Neither a grammar fascist nor a jargon jingoist be.

Concern for misuse of English has become an unexpected spin-off from the London Olympic Games. The Radio 3 Breakfast programme has joked about the now popular use of the word 'medal' as a verb  by competitors and broadcasters – as in "I was thrilled to medal" or "I expect Jessica Ennis to medal in the heptathlon". 

Radio 3 presenter Petroc Trelawney mused whether there was potential confusion with 'meddle'. Would listeners get mixed up to hear that someone had 'bronzed'  – had they won a medal or applied a fake tan (or is that 'fake tanned')?

The truth is that people become very snobbish about conversational or slang use of English. One current colloquialism which annoys me is "I am sat on a chair". We wordsmiths are forever bemoaning bad English.

However, English is a highly flexible and developing language, and purists need not get sat up (sorry, het up) by such parlance. The main criteria for 'proper' use of English are:  it is understandable and it is used for the right audience. Correct English is often in the eye and mind of the beholder, and that vision can be clouded by ancient prejudices (instilled at school).

Context provides another guide for English usage. These 'misuses' of English are by athletes or broadcasters to their listeners. TV and radio are colloquial media, so let's allow them more freedom.

 Of course, you need to remain aware of your audience and their prejudices when you speak or write, especially in a business context. Even if your English makes sense, it does NOT make sense to potentially annoy your audience. Aha, there's a split infinitive, another bugbear of purists. But language is also about rhythm. The famous split infinite in 'Star Trek' – "to boldly go" – would have lost infinite rhythm and flow if the infinitive had not been split.

If in doubt, consult Fowler's Modern English Usage. For the next week, I shall  be sat sitting during the rest of the Olympics hoping that GB will gold.

For your golden content, contact Nick Keith, nick.keith@navigate-design.com

Hanging tough: a photographer at the Games dress-rehearsal captured by Julie Blackwell inside the Olympic Stadium

The Olympics are now upon us – today – at long last. After a seven-year wait since London won the right to host the 2012 Games, the lead-up has seemed interminable, whether you are pro or anti the Olympics, or neither know nor care.

The media hype and whingeing (as Simon Barnes wrote in The Times this week) have peaked just before the Games. Now we can get on with it, or get it over, according to your point view.  We have had budgeting warnings, security scares, strike threats, and even the wrong flag (and incorrect title) for North Korea (or rather the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, as it prefers to be known).

Julie Blackwell, from the Navigate office, attended Monday night's dress rehearsal for the Olympic opening ceremony and reported that we all have much to look forward to – although she and 60,000 other spectators was sworn to secrecy about the content. "The central arena was captivating," she said, "but there was so much going on elsewhere you had to keep looking around not to miss anything – magical."

What do the Olympic Games mean and do they matter?

They matter to billions of people, including me. Sport helps give countries heart and confidence; taking part puts them on the map. They say that only winning counts, but people remember plucky losers, like Eddie the Eagle.

The enthusiasm for the Olympic torch relay has surprised many people. When the torch passed along the A272 through our small West Sussex village (Rogate) on 16 July, people thronged each side of the road to get a fleeting glimpse of the cavalcade of buses, 4x4s, and police vehicles.

The excitement and community spirit were tangible. Everyone was smiling and waving flags and bunting. The uplifting of communities in times of economic trouble is extremely valuable, although this is very hard to represent in financial terms.

Indeed economists have forecast that the financial contribution to UK coffers will be small – at best a 0.2% boost to the economy. In a poll by Reuters  in July , 23 out of 27 economists thought the Olympics were unlikely to provide a long-lasting boost the UK economy.

The Government has forecast an uplift of £13 billion in the next four years to set against the £10 billion estimated cost of the Games. The Bank of England has expressed concern that holidays and absences from work during the Games could have a negative impact on production and business.

However, Patrick Foley, chief economist atLloyds Banking Group, has predicted  in the Daily Telegraph (6 July) that the UK, and especially London, could benefit by as much as £16 billion from the boost to construction, tourism and the feel good / “happiness’ factor.

Who knows? The economists do not have a gold medal track record in forecasting.

What seems certain to me is that the feel good and well-being effects count just as much as anything. The Olympic Games provide another highpoint in a year when the country has also celebrated the Queen’s diamond jubilee. I will watch the smiles, listen to the applause, and feel surges of emotion (positive and negative) in two weeks which I and billions of others will remember always.

Photoshop is a marvellous piece of everyday software, and Navigate’s design team makes full use of it.
 
Lead designer Dan Vear explains: “We couldn’t do our creative work without Photoshop. It was launched in 1988, with a new version released every year.Photoshop produces photo-realistic visuals for advertisements, brochures, flyers, magazines, newsletters, signage and livery..

The benefits include:
 
·       Best quality imagery, with sharper focus and added vibrancy
·       Facility for changing the weather, adding blue skies
·       Adapting skin and clothes to remove spots and blemishes, tidy a dress, suit or uniform
·       Adding people or props to images
·       Adding shadow and enhancing backgrounds
·       Building a photo montage
 

“The Navigate design team uses a professional version of Photoshop, and there is a slimmed down one called Elements for home use.”

The Photoshop experience
 
Camilla Bell-Davies, a work experience student at Navigate, describes her introduction to Photoshop this July:
 
“I had never discovered the wonders of Photoshop before, having always been content with disposable camera photographs and too scared to test the techie waters. However, my week at Navigate changed that completely. Now I am going to buy the full Photoshop package and will probably never be seen again!
 

The design team, Dan, Graham and Neil, took me on a complete Photoshop crash course and passed on their expert knowledge. I learnt much of what I need to know (before I read the entire instruction manual cover to cover).
 
When photoshopping, it is important to have a vision of what you want to create or you can easily confuse yourself and lose the plot.  My project is based on creating a design for a mural, using photos I have of scenery and people to go on a large wall of a building.
 

Without Photoshop I would have do it by hand and it would take ages. I had an idea and small sketch for the layout but needed to see all the photos put together to be able to project it up on a large wall and see if everything fitted and was to scale.
 

Layering and masking
 
“First, I learnt about layering and masking, the basic essentials when mashing together pictures. Getting your head around the layer system is important; each new picture you add in is created as a new layer and masking on a layer allows you to distort/crop/fade/erase parts of a picture so that it appears changed but can be returned to its original state at any minute, in case you change your mind about what you have done to it.
 

“Adding a mask allows you to do anything with the picture so that if I wanted to include a person into an empty landscape shot, I could very precisely ‘cut’ around them by fading out their background using the brush tool and add them into the landscape.
 

“Then, to add realism, I could give them a drop shadow to blend in by going into Layer options> layer style> Drop shadow. You can sharpen / soften / lighten / darken the shadow and have it from any angle…so if there are shadows already in that scenery shot, the figure can have one at the same angle.
 
“To merge two photos together so that any moves or changes apply to both (for instance a figure in a scenic shot) I learnt how to link layers and masks. To blend one photo into another I learnt how to use the Gradient tool on a mask, or use the clone tool to copy and blend or extend images.
On photoshop you can warp and manipulate photos so that they fit together in anice jigsaw, like you have pictured in your mind. To do this, go to Edit> Transform and I would recommend the ‘warp’ or ‘skew’ if you wan to change a picture’s shape/angle.
 

“These may seem like the utmost basics for any pro-photoshopper, but for those ignorant (like I was) photoshopping is a lot to get your head round. By practising these basics I hope to get better at using the programme for my own creative purposes. Thanks so much to the team for helping me out with Photoshop and being so patient answering all my technologically impaired questions!”


For great, creative designs, talk to Dan Vear, design leader, at 01730 235666.
Dan.vear@navigate-design.com

When I started graphics at my school at the beginning of Yr 10 I loved it straight away. So when we weretold that we were doing work experience I decided to try and find a graphic design placement, as this is something I would really like to do when I am older.

I am very pleased with my choice to come to Navigate. Everyone made me feel very welcome and the different jobs gave me a taste of what sort of things marketing and design businesses do.

I now know for definite that graphic design is something I want to do in the future. I loved the designing I was able to do, making my decision even easier. I will be choosing Graphic Design, English Literature & Language, History and ICT for my college courses.

My time at Navigate started with paper work and making teas and coffees but further on in the week I started doing some actual design. This was for one of the projects that the Navigate team were working on. This consisted of me putting my ideas onto paper then the following day creating them on the computer. I found this really interesting because there were programmes on the computer that I had never used or heard of before.

I was then taught how to update the Navigate website by adding stories with hyperlinks and images. I also learnt what to write in Navigate tweets, facebook and what type of pictures to upload onto pinterest.

I was also able to create my own idea for the Portsmouth Grammar School website and someone talked me through the process of making one which I found very interesting.

I read through the papers each day to see if there was any information on Navigate’s clients.

I would just like to say a big thank you to the whole of the Navigate team for an amazing experience as a taster for the start of the working world. I have thoroughly enjoyed my 2 weeks at Navigate.

Marketing student Harry Carpenter, aged 19, recounts his experiences as an intern at Navigate Design.

My connection with Navigate started when I had to organize an internship during the summer as part of my course In Marketing, Design and Communication at Nottingham Trent University 

Portsmouth is my hometown so I decided to look for a successful agency close by. Navigate was the obvious choice having done major work for some very well known companies both locally and further afield. After an interview with the Director of Communications, Nick Keith, my time with Navigate began. 

I was concerned that my three weeks at Navigate would involve the same topics I grappled with during my first year at University. These topics included the ins and outs of marketing strategy, SWOT diagrams, customer segmentation, social CRM, customer decision making processes, supply chains, the many stages of the product design process, writing business letters, press releases and advertorials but where a mistake might result in facing an angry director. 

However I soon discovered that this was not the case at all.  My time in Navigate’s office has given me an insight into the running of a successful marketing and design business.  

After the obligatory learning of tea and coffee preferences and passwords for various computers and websites, I was soon helping with more important tasks. I could feel that I was contributing to the team. My tasks included: 

•Research and categorization of possible awards the business could enter and also relevant events that could be attended by Gareth and Nick

•Management and updating of the Navigate Facebook page 

•Production of a Google+ presence for Navigate 

•Web content uploads and management 

•Conducting market research on members of the public for a new project

Having experienced the components of a marketing business first hand, a new clarity has come to some of the more confusing elements of what I know or thought I knew so far.

I have seen the value of exercises such as market research. I have also learnt the extent and importance of the Navigate’s involvement with social media, and how this is such a good tool for promotion. 

As well as learning about the business, I have discovered a confidence I never knew I had. I could handle tasks given to me on my own without somebody holding my hand. This in turn led to me feeling that I was providing some help and contributing as a real member of the team. 

My enjoyable time at Navigate has reinforced my vocation to work in Marketing. I believe the time will help me in my second year of study as I now have a bank of real experience in marketing to draw upon and apply. 

Make your website work harder for you and win business with the help of Navigate's web design and build services. Great quality websites with strong visuals, content, CMS, and a high hit-rate have become trademarks of the Navigate web design services.

Our digital services have been used to great effect recently by a wide variety of customers, such as:

The Visit USA Association
Cowplain Community School (a Business Academy)
People's Pledge
Petersfield Shakespeare Festival
Watford Community Housing
Year Abroad Insurance


Content Management Systems

Your content management system (CMS) needs to be fast, flexible and easy to use. Get the Navigate digital developers to create a CMS which is a joy to employ.

At Navigate, most of the websites we build feature a CMS, which gives users limitless control over their websites content including text, images, video, format, style and functionality.

Navigate has designed our own bespoke CMS which is simple and easy to use, with fantastic functionality.


Content

Online copywriting or content needs copywriters with the special knowledge of creating copy for the web. Navigate has a team of specialist content providers to maximize the way your website communicates with visitors.

We ensure that there is seamless integration between your SEO keywords through into your social media and  any PR we produce for you.  We excel in providing content, with a skilled team of writers and social media experts. Navigate can advise and manage the social media side of the marketing mix.


Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Navigate employs SEO specialists so that your website wins a place on the top table with the search engines, and stays there. SEO is a complex task and very much a discipline in its own right.

An effective SEO campaign is an essential element of any new website and ensures your website gets seen and read by the right people. Would you produce leaflets to send out to potential clients but just keep them in a box in your office? The same principle applies with websites and SEO.


Social media

Social media involves Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest among many others. It is essential for business to engage with and monitor social media.

With social media you can:

    -    Reach new and existing customers
    -    Keep an eye on what's being said about you



Cookie management

Last, but by no means least, new EU privacy laws covering the use of cookies on websites officially came into effect from 26 May 2012. The laws relate to information stored by websites and other electronic communications networks, about their visitors.

A study by KPMG has revealed that 95% of UK businesses were unprepared for this updated policy. Fines for failing to comply can amount £500,000. So
this development is very important for many of our clients who have websites that may include cookies.
 
Having prepared itself, Navigate has notified customers of these changes and advised them that they must take responsibility for managing cookies. While
we can help, customers must take the lead.

> Please see our news story here, which details possible solutions.

In summary, Navigate's marketing communication service can ensure that your
messages are delivered and distributed online as well as in print.