UoG needed to centralise production of their campaign content and
collateral and asked me to build and lead an new in-house agency team. I had a small staffing budget so had to be flexible about roles and recruitment (we were account handlers, creatives, videographers, editors, proofreaders and production managers all rolled into one). I implemented agency-style briefing and waterfall project management processes, onboarded us with bespoke project management software, set up a framework of freelancers and agencies, oversaw the launch of the team and processes to the wider university, and trained up the new creative officers. We quickly became the guardians of the UoG voice and identity, and produced campaigns that colleagues across the university were proud to champion.

NFP acquired two Irish commercial insurance businesses, and needed to close down their websites and re-brand them fast. I undertook a huge content mapping and gathering exercise to build pages for each sector they provide services to, which types of businesses work within each sector, and which products they could put in place in those sectors. I also worked closely with the experts in each business to find out what was unique about the services they provide, and source client testimonials for each sector. 

The result was a whole new website section for the NFP Ireland website, filled with SEO-rich web content, covering everything from retail to life sciences. Delivered in under 12 weeks.

UoG’s brand was tired. The guidelines were scant, and were largely ignored. There was no brand story, just a logo and a huge neon colour palette. Market share was falling. 

My team worked with our external agency on a brand refresh… and all we kept was the logo. We conducted focus groups with stakeholders, academics and students, to find out what made UoG unique. We commissioned psychological profiling to find out why students choose us. And developed UoG’s first ever brand proposition and messaging pillars. 

We produced visual identity and TOV guidelines, as well as an explainer video for staff. And we ran roadshows and internal comms to keep colleagues engaged. We even launched drag-and-drop artwork templating so staff could self-serve simple design collateral without breaking the new brand.

After being named the UK’s most sustainable university, we ran ‘Who Cares? We Do’ for 2021 student recruitment. An external agency developed a top line concept, but my team executed the collateral, video, exhibition stands and a fully interactive digital prospectus – leading the sector by scrapping the traditional printed version. The campaign used QR codes for Insta Stories, video and podcasts, and we provided biodegradable seeded wristbands at events, which could be planted to grow wildflowers.

When it came to translating complicated cancer research into fundraising concepts, there was a problem – the creative team didn’t know how. I stepped in and conducted lab recces and interviews with leading professors, de-coded the research and gave the team the propositions and hooks they needed.

This DRTV campaign was so successful it ran and ran for Macmillan. I sourced talent, location, props, and costume. I also put together the creative team, appointed the production company, and managed the call sheet and shot lists.

Traditionally, postgraduate student recruitment involved printing five 50-page subject guides. I created a sustainable digital experience instead. I turned the proposition on its head, focusing on students’ motivations for choosing PG study, rather than just listing the courses available. 

I condensed those 250 pages into a credit card-sized z-card, with QR codes to access the rich web content. The online experience also led with the six ‘motivators’, using case studies and the students’ own images. I storyboarded a case study video for each ‘motivator’, showing those students talking about why they chose PG study at UoG.