28 CREATIVE
BIG DESIGNS ON CREATIVITY companies communicate during the difficult times.”
He adds: “We have met some amazing people and heard amazing stories. We have been fortunate to work with great quality businesses.
“We have a great team of people, mostly younger than me, and they bring different eyes to projects. I feel the business is just getting started. We want to stick to our values and good story-telling and we will be fine. Be humble, enjoy what we do and look after people.”
Lancaster based Hotfoot Design is a small independent agency with an in-house team of under 20 people - mostly designers, developers and marketers - though it also brings in freelance specialists for some projects when needed.
Guy Cookson-Rabouhi, marketing director and partner, says: “There is a lot of talent here. Thanks to the internet and travel, the cultural gap between the big cities and the rest of the country is now much closer.
Bigtank on location
Rob Hallam has a clear picture when it comes to the work video engagement specialist Bigtank does. “We tell people’s stories,” he explains.
The Lancashire based studio is telling those stories to a global audience for an impressive list of clients that includes Mercedes-Benz Trucks, the Department for International Trade, GA Petfood Partners, the NHS and Manchester Metropolitan University.
Founded by Rob back in 2005, Bigtank has a nine-strong team that includes an animation division and has achieving a £1m turnover in the near future firmly in its sites.
Rob’s media career began when he took a pay cut from his job as an estate agent manager to become a runner with Granada TV. He was spurred on by his brother’s growing career in the industry.
Rob says: “He was making films and travelling the world, I was selling houses in Radcliffe.” He went on to join an independent production company in Manchester before setting up on his own.
Covid was something of a turning point for the operation, which had made major investments in its studio, as businesses looked for new ways to talk to people and get their messages out during lockdown.
Bigtank’s equipment and its production expertise were in great demand and managing director Rob explains: “We did a lot of work helping
“There is no reason why creative and digital businesses in Lancashire can’t compete on the national and international stage. I think we are living proof of that.”
Hotfoot works with a broad spectrum of clients, from iconic brands like Rolls-Royce and large organisations like the NHS through to growing SMEs and start-ups.
Guy says: “We work with clients in many different parts of the world - for example, at the moment we are undertaking brand, website and marketing projects for an arts organisation in Ohio, a genetics company in Sweden, and a global charity based in London, as well as many clients in our region.
“And although our clients are all very different, what they all have in common is ambition.”
Hotfoot has an office in London as well as its Lancaster base. Guy says: “We are a Lancashire- based business with a presence in London, but for many of our clients our location is not important. What matters is our proven ability to create great work.”
When it comes to recruitment not being headquartered in a major
DON’T JUDGE. NOT EVERYONE’S GOT A GREAT BRAND, OK?
We all try not to. But we just can’t help it sometimes. I’m talking about rushing to judgement because of poor or dated branding.
We’ve all been there. At a networking event, we meet a lovely person in the queue for the coffee. We get talking and then keep the conversation going as we move together into the centre of the room.
This person seems so professional, with a real personal dynamism. The company they work for, or are starting-up, sounds fascinating. Really going places. Definitely one to watch and stay in touch with, and so you suggest you do. And then, they pull it out. Their business card. And suddenly, the positive image they had built-up, in that short conversation, falls away a little.
It might be that the logo just seems a little dated. Or that the iconography doesn’t really
judge a company based on the quality of their stationery. But, the truth is, we all do it. It comes down to the seventh P of the marketing mix: Physical Evidence, defined as the tangible and intangible elements that customers use to evaluate a product or service. And in business that evaluation inevitably starts with brand.
Laura Weldon
match the offer. Or even that the card itself, just seems a little, well, cheap? But suddenly that person who came across so well is now just a little… undermined?
It’s not their fault normally and sometimes they even acknowledge it: “Sorry, yes, that’s the old branding.” But you both know an apology is not a good starting point in business.
It can seem silly and counterintuitive to
A brand should provide wings for the sales process, whatever that is. Not hinder it, as some do. If you feel you’re struggling to get things off the ground right now, perhaps a brand refresh could be what you need to help you take flight?
Laura Weldon creative director, Studio LWD
www.studiolwd.co.uk email:
hello@studiolwd.co.uk call: 01253 892031
Rob Hallam
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