Category: News

It has been a crazy ten weeks or so. Chris Taylor, DTW Managing Director, gives his take on life running an agency in lockdown.

Firstly, my heart goes out to everyone who has suffered or lost someone they care about to Covid-19 (or anything else) over recent months.

Secondly, I’m sure most people would join me in paying tribute to the amazing work done by NHS, social care and other frontline key workers. You’ve been awesome. Thank you.

Moving into the DTW world, we closed our office on Friday 13 March. Since then the team has been working remotely – some in spare rooms, at kitchen tables and even in motorhomes on the drive.

In all honesty, we thought we’d be away for a few weeks rather than several months. But it feels like lots has changed since 13 March.

A massive thank you to our team, our clients and our partners for everything you have done to work with us over the last ten weeks. We wouldn’t be where we are today without you.

Here’s a few takeaways from agency life in lockdown.

Content is still king

Everything has been urgent and important. Almost every piece of content or campaign that was planned back in January/February now feels like it’s from a different age or another planet.

Marketing and communications activity has often been leading the way as organisations re-adjusted to the world changing around them. Digital channels became even more important and we all had to learn a whole new Covid-19 language and apply it quickly.

The engagement levels for the campaign work we’ve been doing with fresh, relevant and appropriate content have increased. Turnaround times have been remarkable. People have responded to the challenge.

Talk to people. Even better, listen to them

Staff, clients, partners. Listen and understand their challenges and work with them. Video chats may not be perfect but with technology being updated constantly, they are becoming more and more effective. We’re making huge use of them. Keep your camera on for small group discussions. Eye contact is important.

Remember that people of all ages have faced very different personal choices and challenges over the past two months. From a leadership perspective, keep in touch so you understand what the problems are before you try to provide solutions.

Leadership matters

Whether it’s with colleagues, your family, your local community, or across your professional network. Communication, honesty and quick and clear decision-making are all important.

We shared our 12-week emergency plan with the team on 26 March. It was critical in showing the way forward and keeping us focused. We’re working on the plan for the next 12 months now we’ve had a chance to take stock and work out what the ‘new normal’ might look like.

Events, dear boy, events….

I don’t often quote Lenin, and certainly not in combination with Macmillan, but 101 years ago he said “There are decades where nothing happens, and then there are weeks where decades happen.” We’ve just been through some of them.

 The pace of events and change has been phenomenal. Just from a DTW perspective, we’ve been commissioned for major new projects, some clients have increased marketing investment – recognising that it’s a good time to get noticed if others are scaling back, and others have cut their investment while they work on their own emergency plans.

Whatever your plan is or was, you have to be nimble, flexible or agile (insert your own buzzword here). But stick to your principles and values and make sure your actions reflect your words.

We’ve furloughed a couple of members of staff who couldn’t work due to much lower demand for certain services.

The human impact for many people has of course been much more profound. You can’t forget that.

Be prepared for next time

Updating our business continuity plan over the years was never a task any of us looked forward to with much relish, but I’m glad we invested time and money in doing it. Covid-19 has pushed through major organisational changes around the world that would have taken years otherwise.

Similarly, any business needs some cash reserves. Your rainy day fund (note the irony of the best British spring weather ever) is there for a reason. This has been it.

Covid-19 has challenged us like never before but this preparation and planning meant our emergency 12-week plan was implemented almost immediately. Now we truly understand the importance of business continuity and expecting the unexpected. Preparation is key.

Look after yourself

You can’t take care of others if you’re silently drowning. Much more qualified people than me have given much better advice about the importance of looking after yourself. They’re all correct. The CIPR’s mental health resources are a great place to start if you’re looking for support.

Looking back, my stress level first peaked early on the morning of 12 March when reading about hospitals in Italy being overwhelmed, as I lay in bed with a cold. I was back there a couple of times that first fortnight in particular. Support from the team, friends and family and going on a daily bike ride with my amazing kids kept me sane.

So, what happens next?

In one way, nothing has changed. We carry on providing an important and valuable service for our clients, and I’ve never been prouder of the work our team delivers.

In every other way, almost everything has changed. We’re not all going back to the office any time soon. Working from home is working fine.

More importantly right now, it’s the best way we can contribute to keeping everybody as safe and well as we can and preventing a second wave.

Thanks for reading. Stay safe everyone. See you all on the other side.

Chris

This morning I joined the first in a series of new ‘Coming out of Covid webinars’, all focused on the impact of Covid-19 on the infrastructure and construction sector.

Today’s topic was a nice easy one to start with…..“With the easing of the lockdown, what is the new normal for construction?”

Hosted by Infrastructure Intelligence (it’s worth signing up to their twice weekly newsletter if you don’t already) it was a really thought-provoking and interesting session.

We heard from Georgia Hughes from Arcadis, Hannah Vickers, Chief Executive of the Association for Consultancy and Engineering, Matt Blackwell from Costain and Mark Coates from Bentley Systems. They each talked about how their organisations are changing for the future.

My key takeaways were:

• The new normal will be very different to the old normal. The changes made in the last ten weeks that will last for ten years and more. Look forwards, not backwards. Embrace digital technology, kids occasionally joining in on Teams calls and expect the unexpected.
• What we build for the future is going to change, as well as how we build it. As a result of Covid-19, local community business hubs, business tourism and bike lanes for rural communities are all going to be in demand moving forward. Processes and finances are being turned on their head as well.
• Take staff and clients with you on the journey – communication is critical. Keep it simple, keep it regular and listen to what people say. Adopting new technology is great, but it’s the people behind it that are going to make our future a success.

Oh, and the technology worked a treat. Well done to Andy Walker and the Infrastructure Intelligence team – looking forward to the next one.

Stay safe.

Thanks for reading

Chris

We hope you’re all well and staying safe. Please read the information below on how to contact #teamDTW during this time.

Our team are working and we’re here to help our clients. But we know it’s not business as normal for anyone.

Obviously, in light of the ongoing coronavirus situation, DTW is adopting a more agile way of working to ensure our clients get the same great service until things change and we are all able to move around again.

All of our team members are working remotely. We’re fully set up to work from home and lots of us have done this on a regular basis in recent years.

If you want to get in touch with a member of the team but don’t have their contact details please email office@dtw.co.uk and we will pick up your message and come back to you right away.

Stay safe everyone. See you on the other side.

It’s time for a guest speaker! We were really pleased to welcome Emma Morton – joint winner of Teesside University’s Public Relations Student of the Year 2019 – to DTW for a week.

Emma was with us for a week’s work experience and became a real part of the team during her time at DTW. But don’t take it from us – you can watch and listen to Emma talking about her week with DTW in her own words.

We’re going to be sponsoring the Public Relations Student of the Year prize again in 2020. It’s important organisations in our industry are involved with initiatives like this. It gives students a chance to shine and learn and helps keep businesses like us on our toes. In our experience, the ideas, creativity, and passion that work experience students and graduates bring when working with us is a huge asset to DTW.

And we should know, we’re proud to say we have six Teesside graduates as part of our team. They are specialists in everything from animation and video to marketing strategy, and we’re regularly in and out of the University to chat with students and lecturers about various industry issues and opportunities.

As for Emma, we think she’s a star in the making – one we’ll be keeping an eye on.

The team at North East public relations and digital marketing agency DTW is expanding with the addition of three new members of staff to kick-off 2020.

Anthony Doyle, Rebecca Dew and Richard Johnston have all joined the team here at DTW. Based in the Tees Valley, DTW has over 30 years of experience specialising in public relations and digital marketing campaigns.

This expansion comes on the back of a series of successes in securing new clients. There has also been significant growth throughout existing projects across the UK and further afield. We are currently working for organisations like the Law Society of England and Wales, the Financial Conduct Authority and multi-national tolling and mobility solutions provider emovis. We are also proud to be working with several well known local organisations. These include Road Safety GB North East, Middlesbrough & Stockton Mind and Middlesbrough Council.

Anthony Doyle

Anthony joins the team as a Senior Strategist specialising in digital marketing, data analysis, SEO and website development. Anthony is a Teesside native who has worked around the world on a diverse range of projects. He brings a combination of strategic, technical and development expertise to DTW. Anthony will be leading on the development of the DTW’s growing digital offering to clients.

He has 20 years’ experience of working in digital marketing, having led enterprise marketing teams for major multi-national organisations. These include companies such as Frog Education and QS Unisolution, in the software and education sectors.

Rebecca Dew

Rebecca joins us as a Public Relations and Digital Engagement Specialist. Rebecca will be providing media relations, copywriting and social media content services to clients. She has a National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ) in Multimedia Journalism and a BA (Hons) in English Language and Linguistics from York St John University.

Richard Johnston

Richard joins us as the lead creative in our growing film and digital content team. Richard previously worked at the prestigious Banff Centre for Arts & Creativity in Canada. He is responsible for all aspects of filming – from storyboarding and planning, to working behind the camera and editing. Richard graduated in 2016 with a BA (Hons) First Class in Film and Television Production from Teesside University.

Strengthening our hugely talented team

Chris Taylor, Managing Director of DTW, said: “Our vision is very simple. It is about creating meaningful campaigns that are world-class, make a difference and help our clients succeed. I’m delighted to welcome Anthony, Rebecca and Richard because they will strengthen our hugely talented team. They are already making a difference to the work we are delivering for our clients.”

He added: “We’ve started 2020 with a bang. It’s important for us to invest in quality staff to ensure that we can continue to meet the growing demand from different sectors of the economy.”

DTW is ranked by PR Week as one of the top ten public sector specialist PR agencies in the UK. With these latest additions to the team, we now employ 15 people based in Guisborough, North East England. DTW is an expert digital marketing agency and public relations consultancy alongside film, social media, animation and design.

If you are interested in hearing more about how DTW can help your organisation succeed, get in touch with our team today.

The team at North East marketing agency DTW is backing local independent traders this Christmas with a touching seasonal short film encouraging people to #ShopLocal.

People have welcomed the #ShopLocal film on social media, which features a range of small retailers and businesses in Guisborough, highlighting the huge difference local customers make to small retailers in our towns and villages.

The short festive film was produced by Guisborough-based DTW’s film and digital content specialists Richard Johnston and Katie Mitchell as part of an online advent calendar the agency produced in the run up to Christmas.

They decided to go out into Guisborough to speak to businesses about why people should shop local, filming some of the town’s business owners, showing the vital contribution they make to the town’s economy.

Richard, who lives in Guisborough, said: “I’m incredibly proud of Guisborough and feel passionate about the people and businesses who make this town what it is.

“We have so many quirky shops and cafes here and I wanted to showcase the difference small independent retailers and businesses make to the town.

“They work incredibly hard all year to make a living and offer unique goods and a personal service that cannot be matched by bigger chains and superstores.

“We met so many amazing people while filming. I hope this encourages people to shop local, not just at Christmas, but throughout the year.”

Katie said she hoped the film captured the atmosphere of the high street and the genuine difference small businesses make.

“Shopping local is personal, you get to know the business owner and they get to know you,” said Katie.

“Money spent in local shops stays in the local community, it supports local jobs and local families. At DTW, we shop in Guisborough all the time. Not only is it handy, but we have a great mix of shops and services. We wouldn’t want to lose them.

“If we want to keep vibrant local high streets, we all must do our bit and hopefully this video captures that.”

The film, which has been provided to local retailers and released on social media, is picking up attention from across the region, particularly among the community in Guisborough.

DTW Managing Director Chris Taylor said: “We produce films for clients all year, but this was a great opportunity to do something for independent retailers in Guisborough, and across the region, who we feel passionately about and who provide a fabulous service throughout the year.

“At a time when people are shopping more and more online and visiting huge superstores, at DTW we appreciate what independent businesses offer and the difference they make to the local economy.

“It’s nice to give something back, and I’d like to thank Richard and Katie for a great little film. We hope it helps make a difference for a few local retailers this Christmas.”

DTW is a marketing, communications and public relations agency that works for clients including the Law Society, emovis, the Financial Conduct Authority, RSGB NE, Middlesbrough & Stockton Mind, and others across the UK and around the world by providing expert marketing and public relations consultancy alongside film, social media, animation and design.

For more information, call 01287 610404.

There is always excitement at DTW when the office Christmas lights switch on and we trade our usual playlist for something a little more festive. So, what better way to celebrate the season than to create a Christmas video celebrating our fabulous local high street.

Those who have visited DTW will know we are lucky enough to be based on the beautiful Guisborough high street, adorned with many quirky cafes and independent retailers. Inspired by this, we decided to pop into a few shops with our cameras and find out why it’s so important to shop local this Christmas.

When it comes to shopping local, we learnt that:

• Local businesses are unique and will provide unique gifts
• Shopping local is personal, you get to know the business owner and they get to know you
• Money spent in local shops stays in the local community, it supports local jobs and local families

It was great to talk to other businesses local to us, getting to know the shop owners and building further connections. However, my favourite part of the project was definitely window shopping during the film days and picking out the Christmas music when we returned to the office and began the edit!

We hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and remember to check out the unique gifts your local, independent retailers have to offer you.

It’s common knowledge that we love a good bridge here at DTW Towers.

So, we’re delighted that Sunderland’s Northern Spire bridge has been nominated in the Institution of Civil Engineers’ (ICE) international People’s Choice Award.

The People’s Choice Award is decided by public votes, so it’s time to get involved and cast your vote today. Voting closes on September 27.

The awards celebrate the best civil engineering projects of the year from across the globe that have made a positive impact for their local communities.

Northern Spire is competing against a range of impressive projects, including the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, the Shed cultural centre in New York City, the Colwyn Bay Waterfront in Wales, and a children’s surgery facility in Leeds.

We know we are biased, but we believe Northern Spire, which has dominated the Sunderland skyline since opening in August of last year, has what it takes to win.

Having provided communications and PR support to Sunderland City Council on this magnificent new bridge for three years, we appreciate the planning, effort and dedication that went into bringing this impressive structure to life by a team of more than 2,000 people.

Not only does Northern Spire look good, but innovative engineering methods were used to construct it, from building the deck in two sections on the riverbank and launching them out across the River Wear, to fabricating the massive 105m A-frame centerpiece in Belgium and sailing it to site.

We were privileged to work with such a team of skilled, experienced people on such a great project right here in the north east. We should all feel extremely proud of Northern Spire.

You can read and watch more about our wider infrastructure work here.

We’ve been doing our bit to recognise talented communicators of the future this month. We’ve sponsored the Public Relations prize at Teesside University’s annual Journalism Awards.

The joint winners of the Public Relations Student of the Year prize – Emma Morton and Ellie Dalton – will each spend a week on work experience at DTW over the next year to give them an insight into working life at a public relations and communications agency in 2019.

It was a pleasure to be invited to the awards evening at the Uni’s Love it Lounge and present Emma and Ellie with their prize. We’re looking forward to seeing them over the next few months and welcoming them to #teamDTW.

It’s important organisations in our industry are involved with initiatives like this. It gives students a chance to shine and learn and helps keep us businesses on our toes as well. In our experience, the ideas, creativity and passion that young graduates bring when working with us is a huge asset to DTW.

And we should know, we’re proud to say we have six Teesside graduates as part of our team. They are specialists in everything from animation and video to marketing strategy, and we’re regularly in and out of the University to chat to students and lecturers about various industry issues and opportunities.

Huge congrats to Emma and Ellie!!

Thanks for reading.

Lorna

We’re proud to say that DTW has again been ranked in the top ten specialist public sector public relations agencies in the UK by leading industry publication PR Week.

We have retained our position of 8^th in the 2019 league table, which was published in May 2019. It means we’ve been in the top 10 for the past five years now.

As an agency that is highly skilled and experienced in working with the public sector over a long period of time, this continues to be important recognition for the work we deliver. The public sector – in the UK and elsewhere – has changed phenomenally, but the principles of good communications and PR remain the same.

Getting the basics right

Firstly, you have to understand the communications objectives, make sure you know who your audience is and do the insight and research work. Importantly, this makes sure you understand how your audience feels about the issue you are engaging with them on.

Then it is all about clear, authentic and honest communications – whether you are seeking to generate behaviour change, inform people about new initiatives or seek the views of residents and stakeholders on a new proposal.

Once you have those elements clear, you can think about the tactics, channels and creative themes you need to use for maximum impact.

This approach is relevant for so much more than public sector bodies, and the private sector increasingly needs to adopt it where it is delivering public services.

With the majority of our work focusing on that for membership organisations and private sector led infrastructure and construction developments, our skills and knowledge of the public sector market are proving valuable to our private sector clients.

So if you’ve got a challenging project coming up that you think would benefit from our public sector approach, we’d love you to get in touch.

Thanks for reading

Chris