Jingle Ball Rocked!

Belfast’s Odyssey Arena was rocked by almost 8,000 screaming pop fans this week as our long standing client Cool FM brought their one night pop extravaganza ‘Jingle Ball’ (sponsored by Little Big Shot Energy Drink) to town. The event included a roster of top pop talent with some of the hottest acts in the UK. Paloma Faith and headliners McBusted took to the stage to deafening screams from the assembled crowd of teens and tweens in the largest multi-act pop concert Belfast has ever seen.

Our own pop Svengali Marty Byrne was backstage throughout the event, keeping control of a media room packed full of Northern Ireland’s best showbiz reporters, photographers and bloggers. Every act called in for photos and quick-fire questions from the press pack before going on stage and Marty had his hands full liaising with the acts, artist management and the media throughout the event.

The full line up included; Leah McFall, Hometown, Neon Jungle, Elyar Fox, Fuse ODG, Sigma, Labrinth, Paloma Faith and headliners McBusted.

Cool FM brought the Jingle Ball to Belfast for the first time in 2012 and Morrow have been involved in negotiating successful media partnerships and press coverage for the event since the beginning.

A limited allocation of tickets for Jingle Ball 2015 have been released for any pop fans wanting to be among the first to secure their place at what promises to be another of Belfast’s biggest music events of next year.

Check below for some photos from the event (courtesy of Johnny Frazer photography)

Morrows Voted Best in Class in UK

It's always great to have your hard work rewarded and recognised, especially when it comes from your peers. Morrows was recognised as Best Agency Conference Organiser in the UK at the inaugural Association of British Professional Conference Organisers (ABPCO) Excellence Awards held in London last week. The award capped a great week for the company as we were also highly commended in the Marketing Agency of the Year category in the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) Ireland Marketing Excellence Awards 2014.

In London's landmark OXO Building, we were voted the best agency PCO by our industry peers for the design, delivery and marketing of the International Business Women’s Conference (IBWC) 2014 hosted by our client Women in Business NI in Belfast in May.

A particular emphasis of the ABPCO awards was the broadening of the PCO’s role to include the promotion and wider communication around such events and IBWC2014 was the perfect platform to showcase all of our skills to deliver a very successful conference for Women in Business NI.

Anyone involved in the industry will appreciate the huge amount of work and effort that goes into a conference of the scale and ambition of IBWC 2014. The fact that this recognition was awarded following a vote from industry peers makes it all the more rewarding and is further evidence that we in Northern Ireland can compete with the best.

 We received a number of ringing endorsements too from our client as well as Visit Belfast. Safe to say we couldn't be more pleased !

 Roseann Kelly, CEO of Women in Business Northern Ireland said;

“IBWC 2014 was a first for Northern Ireland, a first for Women in Business NI and a first for Morrow Communications. High levels of energy , passion and vision were required and Morrows shared this journey with us. Morrows input was a key element to the great success of IBWC and their success at the Association of British Professional Conference Organisers Excellence Awards is no surprise and very well deserved.”

 Rachael McGuickin, Director of Business Tourism, Visit Belfast, which supported the IBWC2014 conference commented;  

“Belfast is now competing with the best cities in the world to host major international conferences and events. To be successful in this market, it’s not only about first class event delivery, it’s also about coming up with innovative solutions and that’s exactly what Morrow Communications delivered for the IBWC14 in Belfast. I am thrilled that the vision, dedication and hard work of the Morrow Communications team has been recognised at the highest level in the UK. To have secured the endorsement of APBCO is an important achievement and Visit Belfast looks forward to working with Jane and her team to build on this latest success as we continue to strengthen Belfast reputation as a world-class conference destination.”

7 Things We Learned at the Digital DNA Conference

Titanic Belfast, where the Digital DNA Business Conference took place

Lots of entrepreneurs and social media lovers gathered at the Digital DNA Business Conference 6 Nov 2014 at Titanic Belfast. The conference featured speakers from global companies like Twitter and Google, but also included speakers from local businesses. In case you couldn’t make it to Digital DNA, here are seven digital tips we picked up at the conference.

1. So your brand doesn’t tweet? That doesn’t mean you’re not on Twitter.
Dennis Bree, Twitter’s UKI Sales Manager, said there is no way to stay away from the social media conversation. All brands are being talked about online, whether or not a brand has a Twitter or Facebook account. For instance, Dennis noted that 31% of Twitter users tweet about recent purchases. It’s best for brands to embrace social media and use it to their advantage.

2. If you’re confused about Google AdWords, call an expert.
The world of Google AdWords can be intimidating for a lot of marketers, including CDE Global Head of Marketing Peter Craven. He said he finds Google AdWords terrifying. If you’re confused about how to use AdWords or social media, contact an expert to help you make the most of your digital efforts. And of course, with our AdWords qualified consultant here at Morrows we’re happy to help!

3. Good social is planned but great social is agile.

There are fantastic tools to plan, schedule and manage your social media presence and a strategic approach to the social web is essential to reap the benefits. However, the best content is often those spur of the moment pics, videos or tweets that riff on something which has just happened on TV. 60% of Twitter users tweet while watching TV and this presents a great opportunity for brands to engage with those audiences.

4. It’s impossible to predict the future.
Shane Nolan, Google’s Director UK & Ireland SME, said brands shouldn’t try to predict the future because it’s impossible to know what gadget, platform or trend is going to be the next big thing. Instead of trying to guess what will be popular in the future, Shane said brands should look at trends within their customer base to better understand their customers.

5. “If you’re going to fail, fail fast.”
Shane from Google also said it’s important for companies to try new things and take risks. Employees at Google are encouraged to try new ideas, even if the plan doesn’t work out. If you try something new and it fails, get over it quickly and move on to the next idea.

6. Design your website for humans.
With the ever changing world of web design and search engine algorithms, knowing the best course of action when designing your website can be difficult. Peter from CDE Global talked about how he now believes in the simple principle of designing a website for humans. He said his website is the best lead generator for the company, so it’s crucial to make sure it is user-friendly. He no longer puts all of his emphasis on search engine optimisation.

7. Buy your sand from a quarry, not a store.
For the most random tip of the day, Peter from CDE Global shared a secret he learned from his business dealing with quarry equipment: buying sand from a quarry is cheaper than going to a big box retailer! Not a digital tip, but still a useful one.

One major learning from Digital DNA was how vast the area of digital marketing is and how important it has become in business. If you’re thinking of dipping your toe into the world of digital marketing, give us a call and our qualified and experienced consultants will be happy to talk through the options and a properly integrated approach.

What did you think of Digital DNA and who was your favourite speaker? Tweet us @morrowcomms or leave a comment below.

Profits of Boom

In some circles and for some strange reason, 'profit' is seen as a dirty word. Under the expert guidance of broadcast veteran, Jim Fitzpatrick, a new business programme for Northern Ireland called ‘The Profit Margin’ will seek to decontaminate the word and instead celebrate the pursuit of profit as the means of rebalancing the NI economy.

‘The Profit Margin’, which is made possible by sponsorship from our longstanding client First Trust Bank and the University of Ulster Business School, is a 20 minute audio programme that focuses on issues relevant to the business community in Northern Ireland. It will target anyone with an interest in local business matters whether at home or abroad. Listeners will be able to access the show on a weekly basis directly via iTunes podcast, Twitter, Facebook and email subscription starting on Friday 17th October.

Listeners can expect analysis and insight about a range of issues relevant to the local business community, as well as a more in-depth look at the business news making the headlines each week. The programme will feature analysis around key business issues from a team of experts as well a regular ‘Business of the Week’ slot.

Local start-ups and entrepreneurs should also polish up their 'Elevator Pitch' as a regular slot on the show will carry the best 30sec pitch received that week.

The programme is unashamedly 'pro business' and in the absence of regular business broadcast which offers in-depth business coverage, insight and analysis of the NI market, it is very welcome indeed.

At a time when we need to encourage more local entrepreneurs and support more businesses to grow and develop here, this show promises to be a fantastic platform to champion business issues. We will be listening every week and recommend you do to.

‘The Profit Margin’ will be available from the website www.theprofitmargin.co.uk starting on Friday 17 October. It can also be downloaded directly as a podcast from iTunes as well as through the Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Profit-Margin/274265196116309 and twitter account @TheProfitMargin

Starting up, up and away

In our business we’re lucky to work with some of Northern Ireland’s largest employers and top 100 companies, Moy Park, Asda and Dale Farm to drop a few names. We’re also lucky to be in a position to work with some of the most exciting, innovative young businesses emerging on the local start-up scene.  Invest Northern Ireland’s Propel, now calling for 2014/15 applications, is an annual programme aimed at fast tracking high growth potential, export focussed start-ups. In the past three years, we’ve helped tell the story of some of the participating entrepreneurs or ‘Propellers’ as they’re affectionately known.. from Lucy Annabella Organics, an organic beauty range developed by Colleen Harte of County Tyrone, now available in the UK, Ireland and Europe, to Plotbox, Leona McAllister’s online tool aimed at revolutionalising the way we research our family history.

The current Propel participants include, among others, Keen, a natural nut butter business based in Bangor that we're all nutty about; Indigo Ivy, a fashion label from Doagh that's putting tweed on trend; Islander Kelp, a fresh kelp producer off the coast of beautiful Rathlin Island; a luxury handmade wooden homeware business Harch Wood Couture and Little Deli, an app that hopes to make queuing for lunch a thing of the past (we're all for that!)

With such diverse talent in the mix, we’re excited to see what innovative new business ideas make it through to Propel 2014/15. And with big futures ahead, we’ll always be proud to say ‘we knew them when they were starting out!’

If you believe your business idea has what it takes to go global, check out www.investni.com/propel

Orlagh McVeigh of Harch Wood Couture, current participant on Invest NI's Propel Programme, with Invest NI's Niall Casey

It’s coming home, it’s coming home, Moy Park’s coming home…

After a rather eventful World Cup that saw England crash out in the group stages, Luis Suarez biting off more than he could chew and of course the ‘wunderbar’ Deutschland being crowned champions – one thing really stood out from the perimeters of the pitch – Moy Park.

Moy Park announced its status as an Official World Cup™ sponsor back in February and we at Morrow Communications were there every step of the way to use this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to raise the profile of the Moy Park brand amongst its customers, consumers and stakeholders and to engage its 12,000 staff in the sponsorship (it’s all in a day’s work really)…

We kicked the sponsorship off with a sustained media relations campaign which included the announcement of the sponsorship, the appointment of a World Cup co-ordinator, 'landmark' announcements as well as negotiating extensive broadcast coverage on BBC, UTV, RTE and Radio 5 Live.

We ran an on-pack competition on all Moy Park products giving away a trip to Brazil to watch a World Cup semi-final game and 2,014 exclusive Moy Park-branded World Cup footballs. The competitions received a record number of entries – nearly 34,000.

Moy Park has 12,000 staff across 16 sites (that works out at 1090 football teams, fact fans!) and an important part of our strategy was to engage staff in the sponsorship. Football fever took over at all 16 sites - with games being screened in the canteens, a ‘Flavour of Brazil’ menu being served and a 'Kickin’ Chicken Quiz' giving away hundreds of prizes to lucky staff. In addition, Teresa Robinson and husband Martin (who have both worked at Moy Park for 25 years) won a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to go to Brazil to watch England vs. Costa Rica. As well as watching the match from a corporate box, Teresa and Martin were treated to a ‘walk on the pitch’ experience and cocktail making lessons in the home of the Caipirinha.

Always delivering a ‘team’ effort at Morrows, our trusty Events team were on hand to organise three World Cup parties for Moy Park customers and stakeholders in Paris, London and Belfast (we don’t do things by ‘halves’) which included samba bands, authentic Brazilian food and drink and soccer legends Sir Geoff Hurst and David Seaman.

Alas though, all good things must come to an end – with the closing of the World Cup we shall be saying goodbye to all things Brazilian, but with a multi-million pound expansion, 628 new jobs being announced and a whole host of activities in the pipeline - it looks like Moy Park will be top of the league for a while!

Outstanding in our Fields ?

As always...but in this case we mean in the more literal sense as we face another busy week in Morrows World.

We will be taking to the fields across Northern Ireland - as we help deliver the third Bank of Ireland  Open Farm Weekend on behalf of the Ulster Farmer's Union to be held across the province between 14th/15th June. During the weekend 21 working farms will open their doors to the public to showcase our rich agricultural heritage and to highlight the quality food provenance we enjoy. Our team has not only been busy helping the farms get ready for the crowds, but  and we have also been  spreading the word to get as many people through the gates as possible over the weekend. This most recently involved taking Aoife the Irish Moilie Cow to Belfast city centre to give city folk a taste of life on the farm.  

Meanwhile as football fever kicks off in Brazil, our 'Brazilliant' World Cup Squad will also be on the field of play helping World Cup Sponsors Moy Park celebrate in true Samba style as they host World Cup parties in Belfast and London (Wembley) to coincide with some of the big matches involving the host nation and England.

As well as samba bands, authentic Brazilian food and drink we will also be joined by soccer legends Sir Geoff Hurst and David Seaman to give their insight into the live games and to take questions from the audience.

As you can see our team are already getting into the FIFA World Cup 2014 theme and are 'feeling the rhythm !'



 

Does Your Work Do the Talking ? Communication Consultants Wanted !

As one of Ireland’s largest integrated communication consultancies, at Morrow Communications we let our client work do the talking. We are currently on the lookout for some new talent to join the conversation.

Ideally, the successful candidates should have a relevant third level qualification in Public Relations, Communications or other Marketing discipline and will have three to five years top end PR/communications experience working with clients across the public and private sectors.

You should have excellent influencing and relationship management skills with the confidence and ability to competently engage with senior stakeholders internally and externally. You will be expected to demonstrate a consistent record of strategic thinking, management and results and to convince us of your instinctive flair and creativity.  You will also be able to demonstrate your skills and experience in identifying and shaping new business connections.

We are particularly interested in people with direct PR consultancy/agency experience, but will also welcome interest from those who believe they can excel in this type of challenging environment.

The Morrow Communications Ethos
We are first and foremost strategic thinkers who understand the importance and power of professional communications within our varied clients’ worlds. With a wide range of communication tools at our disposal, it’s our job to think ahead of our clients’ immediate needs to plan communication programmes with real impact.

Through our core specialisms of PR, Event Management, AV Production, Design and Digital Communications, we service an impressive client list that spans the private and public sectors throughout the island of Ireland and the UK.  Our commitment to excellence has been confirmed by being recognised as CIPR ‘Consultancy Team of the Year’ on three separate occasions in recent years.

To Apply follow the link to NIJobs and upload your CV. To illustrate your creativity, in 200 words or less, also explain why you deserve to be on our ‘must see’ list.

Closing date: Friday 20th June 2014. 

Bikes, business, welly boots...

What a week we have ahead.

One of the world’s biggest sporting events is turning Northern Ireland pink with cycle fever as we gear up for the Giro d’Italia Big Start. Swiftly followed by the International Business Women’s Conference (IBWC 2014), entrepreneurs from across the globe will gather in the city for this groundbreaking two day event. Meanwhile, our biggest agricultural forum will showcase the local thriving agri-food sector at Balmoral.  These three very different, important events are platforms for us to showcase how diverse, welcoming and vibrant a place Northern Ireland is – for sport, for tourism, for business.

The Morrows team will be dusting off our welly boots and working with our agri-food clients represented at Balmoral Show – Moy Park, Asda, Irwin’s Bakery, Glens of Antrim Potatoes, Dale Farm and Open Farm Weekend. We are also particuarly proud to this year be partnering with Women in Business NI to deliver IBWC 2014. The first event of its kind on the island of Ireland, it will bring a first class lineup of global speakers to Belfast to address hundreds of delegates as part of a programme aimed at unlocking  business potential. Women in Business NI hope its legacy will be felt for years to come, driving business growth through empowering individuals and putting the business case for gender diversity high
on the agenda of the private sector.

IBWC 2014 is about looking outwards and forwards - a vision which embodies where Northern Ireland is and should be today. Hosting world class events like those in the week ahead give out a clear message - we might be small in size, but we’re capable of big things.

The world’s watching, Northern Ireland. Let’s put on our best show…

Morrow Communications is on the lookout for more fresh talent....

If you’re genuinely interested in current affairs and the world of business, you really understand news and the media, and you’re passionate about all aspects of marketing & digital communications, we want to hear from you.

Professionalism, intuition, creativity, excellent written and verbal communication skills, energy, motivation and the ability to stand out while also being a true team player are all prerequisites. 

Our clients span every sector and specialism. From the fast paced world of retail to the top names in agri-food production: from those delivering the latest technologies to the most recent developments in energy, renewables and the environment - we represent some of the top companies, organisations and brands. We also cross all boundaries, working for clients throughout Ireland, GB and beyond.

If you have at least one year’s relevant communications experience under your belt and you honestly believe you have something special to offer, we’d be keen to hear from you.

Simply send your up-to-date CV and, to illustrate your creativity, in 150 words or less, explain why you deserve to be on our ‘must see’ list.

All responses should be sent to mail@morrowcommunications.com by Friday 16 May 2014. 

Morrow Communications on shortlist for UK CIPR Excellence Awards 2014

We're delighted to announce that we have been shortlisted for a 2014 Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) Excellence Award - the public relations profession’s most prestigious annual awards scheme for the whole of the UK.

We are on the shortlist for the Low Budget category for our submission - ‘From Famine to Feast – the Resurrection of the Irish ‘Lumper’ Potato’ - and made the cut from approximately 700 awards entries received from around the globe!

The entry, which focuses on a media relations campaign conducted on behalf of our client Glens of Antrim Potatoes, follows the story of the reintroduction of the ‘Lumper’ to the market – a famous potato which had not been commercially cultivated since the Irish Famine of the 1840s.

Two members of the PR team, Harriet Turtle and Seona McGrath, have since been put through their paces taking part in a face-to-face interview with a team of expert judges in London this week, before the winners are finally chosen and announced at the CIPR Excellence Awards black tie dinner at Old Billingsgate, London on Tuesday 17th June 2014.

Fingers crossed for the final result!

 

Google unveils Enterprise Class Tools for AdWords

Getting to grips with Adwords is sort of like painting the Golden Gate Bridge – as soon as you’ve mastered it, got your Partners certificate and are running at full speed – the brains at Google go and make some “enhancements.” The regular changes significantly change our use of the system, forcing the AdWords user to go back and relearn your job based on the new tools.

This week Google announced a raft of changes to its existing AdWords platform which they hope will enhance usability (and increase spend of course).

As anybody working in digital marketing will know, these changes aren’t always positive. The Keyword Planner tool, unleashed last year, is a marked disaster - obfuscating an already complex function. But the changes here are less drastic than previous changes such as ‘enhanced campaigns’ and industry reaction seems largely positive so far for the forthcoming roll out of the new ‘Enterprise Class Tools.’

The new tools include even more bulk actions, more customisable reporting features and most excitingly, the creation of a new ‘lab’ - allowing us to test campaign changes in draft format with live information (a leap forward from the ‘Experiments’ feature of the existing platform).

Where AdWords goes, other digital advertising platforms soon follow, so we can look out for changes "inspired by" Enterprise Class Tools to start popping up on other PPC platforms and even in the back-end of social ad tools. The changes also make the much-loved AdWords Editor platform look increasingly redundant.

In other news, Google has announced enhanced tools for targeting and marketing Apps. New features will allow App Marketers to target users based on their download history for similar or competing Apps, in app purchases and frequency of use - all using data from the user’s mobile device. These tools will only be available for android apps and devices initially but Google do intend to make the changes available for iOS apps soon.  

As always, the new tools look and sound great when delivered in that soft Californian twang with those brightly coloured icons but as always with digital marketing - the proof of the pudding will be in the analytics. 

Football fever hits Morrows!

Morrow Communications has really kicked it into the back of the net with not one but two clients ‘stepping onto the pitch’ and making ‘football associations’ this week (we’re really putting the ‘pun’ in ‘pundit’ here). 
We kicked off the week with Moy Park announcing its status as an Official World Cup™ sponsor and finished off with Dale Farm revealing their sponsorship of the Milk Cup.

The Moy Park team at Morrows will be embracing all things Brazilian this summer (carnivals, samba lessons etc. we assume) to help activate Moy Park’s sponsorship of The FIFA World Cup™. The Moy Park brand will be beamed to millions of viewers across the globe on pitch perimeter boards during matches - including those involving England, France, the Netherlands and Spain to name just a few. Moy Park will be supporting the sponsorship with a comprehensive advertising, promotional and marketing campaign. What’s more, Moy Park will be launching an on-pack promotion that will give one lucky shopper the chance to win a once-in-a-lifetime trip for two to the FIFA World Cup™ semi-finals in Brazil.

In our second soccer scoop, Northern Ireland’s largest dairy company, Dale Farm, has stepped in as lead sponsor of Northern Ireland's major international youth football tournament – now known as the 'Dale Farm Milk Cup.' The renowned competition has seen famous players such as Ryan Giggs, David Beckham and Paul Scholes compete on NI pitches at the start of their careers. First played in 1983, the tournament has attracted a wide range of entries from local county sides to leading English and Scottish premier league clubs and international teams such as Russia, China and Mexico. Following a highly successful media launch to announce the sponsorship, the wheels are well and truly in motion for the rest of the competition!

In preparation for these high profile sponsorships, Team Morrow will be getting into the spirit by practising our football chants and keepie-ups and challenging our office park neighbours to a 5-a-side tournament (suit jackets for goalposts). Keep an eye on the headlines over the coming months as the team at Morrows work with Dale Farm and Moy Park to activate both super soccer sponsorships!

Aisle be Yours...

On this grey and miserable Monday morning, we all need a little pick me up. So here's a story we fell in love with last week, as we helped our client Asda celebrate Valentine's Day ...

Aisle be Yours…

“The Secret of a happy marriage- Respect and Genuine Love”

Having launched a search to find the longest married couple in the local area, Asda Coleraine was delighted to welcome Robert and Margaret, known as Ivy, Kirkpatrick into the store to tell their story. 

As regular customers in Asda Coleraine, every Tuesday since it opened in 2005, Robert and Ivy are well known to the store’s colleagues who delighted in celebrating their love with gifts including flowers, champagne and a shopping voucher. 

Married for 62 years, and having met several years before that, Robert and Ivy have lived in the centre of Coleraine since the 1960s. However, their love story began in London, when Robert spotted Ivy working in the Maypole Grocery Store.

“My brother also worked in the store,” said Robert, “so I asked him to find out if she liked the look of me and if she was interested in a date. Luckily she was, and we had our first date at the local picture house.”  

The romance went on to blossom from that moment and today the diamond couple have nine children, 25 grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren.  Robert says, “We have a great system – Ivy does all the birthday cards and presents, and I look after Christmas!”

The couple describe their greatest adventure as an exciting trip to California around 15 years ago. Staying with friends they took in the sights around Los Angeles, San Diego and Palm Springs describing it as “a wonderful trip they’ll never forget.”

The couple were invited into Asda Coleraine on Valentine’s Day to receive their gifts from general store manager Roy Warke and community life champion Sheila Palmer. On receiving the news from Asda that they had been recognised as Coleraine’s longest married couple, Robert said he was “delighted and it was a lovely surprise.”

Roy Warke said, “It’s been wonderful to celebrate Valentine’s Day with Robert and Ivy as their love truly has stood the test of time. As regular customers to the store we’re all inspired by their story, and it’s particularly fantastic, and fitting, to hear that they met in a grocery store! We wish the couple many more happy years together.”

Finally, on the secret of such a long and happy marriage, Robert had a simple message saying, “It’s all based around respect. Respect and genuine love.”