Represent

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Sales Manager at Campion Homes. We are a new build home developer based in Dunfermline in Fife, Scotland. We have been in existence for over 30 years and we are still family owned and ran. We specialise in both Affordable Homes with our Housing Association Partners and private sales.

For what projects/services did your company hire Represent?

We were looking to build our brand identity and we initially engaged with RePResent to assist us with our PR this quickly grew into a more digital marketing relationship where Campion Homes benefited from the knowledge and experience at RePResent. This allowed us to grow our social media, digital marketing and eventually reinvent our Website.

What were your goals for this project?

We were looking to increase brand awareness and to increase our following on the social media platforms. Also we wanted to optimize our website and its content for maximum coverage.

How did you select Represent?

We spoke with 3 agencies and we chose RePResent because of the experience their Managing Director had in her field.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

Initially we set out to establish what is our brand and what do we want to use our brand to promote about our business. This was established and we then moved onto digital marketing and in particular social media exposure.

Through working with RePResent we were able to train an existing member of our team to manage our social media in house.

We then moved onto our website which was completely recreated with a new developer. RePResent helped us to optimize the site and the various landing pages. We continue to work with RePResent who produce optimized blogs monthly for our site.

What was the team composition?

We have worked with various team members within RePResent and we have an account manager. The managing Director has always kept in touch and is aware of how our partnership is progressing.

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The new website has been well received and is easier for our prospective buyers to use. This has been a success. Our site is well optimized and we have follow links that we never had before. Our organic web traffic has grown and with this so has our brand.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Hannah was great to work with, very knowledgeable and really knew the business inside out. We have had various members of the team since Hannah went away on maternity leave with Judith always being available should we have a problem. A lot of the communication is via email especially since the pandemic last march.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They have been incredibly helpful by introducing us to social media marketing and fully optimizing our website.

Are there any areas for improvement?

We have grown together as we get to know each others businesses and we try very hard to be proactive and not reactive to market conditions but sometimes thats hard!

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the principal of the Chippendale International School of Furniture. We teach students all over the world how to start businesses in woodworking and fine furniture-making. I took over the company from my father in October 2019.

What challenge were you trying to address with Represent?

We needed a strong marketing team to get the message out globally about our school to get more students. It’s an incredibly important part of our business. Our website needed to be at the top of its game, and the message we convey needed to convince people to come to Scotland and take part in our program.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Represent serves as our agency for marketing, PR, and web design. We brought them on at the same time I took over the company, so that got us a lot of press at that time. We’ve also done media spots for past students who have set up a business and done well. However, our biggest project was redesigning the website in October. That’s our biggest way to get information across to potential students.

Represent has been fantastic at crisis management given that the coronavirus has shut down international travel. They’re helping us with everything from getting our message out across social media platforms to giving advice on how to communicate with our current students.

What is the team composition?

I’ve worked with Judith (Managing Director), but Grainne (Account Director) and Rebecca (Account Manager) are my main points of contact.

How did you come to work with Represent?

Previously, we had an individual handle our website, a company manage our social media, and another professional who did our PR, content, and press releases. It was incredibly inefficient, so I wanted to consolidate everything within one company. 

I enlisted the help of a friend of mine who works in PR to research companies based in the UK. We landed on 2–3 based in Edinburgh — face-to-face time was important to me — so I set up a meeting with each one. In advance, I sent them a long list of things we needed help with.

One of our challenges was that our recruitment drive failed to fill six seats in our 26-person course. Other companies looked at other formats of running the course — including our short-format courses that are less intense than our main course — but Judith took a no-nonsense approach, telling me to stop devoting time to shorter format courses and dedicate everything to our professional, flagship course. It was quite an exciting pitch to be involved in. We came out quite enthused and ending up choosing Represent for the project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in October 2019, and the partnership is ongoing.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Our SEO took a dip during the redesign but has come back strongly. We’re now hitting all sorts of KPIs, and the website is now performing stronger than our previous website. We’ve also increased our followers across our profiles on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram. Our media hits are also doing better this year. Everything is going very well.

How did Represent perform from a project management standpoint?

I don’t have a great deal of communication with Judith; I was aware of that from the initial meeting and the follow-up meeting, where Grainne and Rebecca introduced themselves at my main points of contact. however, I still have an open dialogue with Judith as needed. Judith even joined in on a conference call recently where we were making plans around the pandemic. I appreciated that; it showed us she was concerned and keen to let me know that they supported us.

Overall, the project management is very clear. Grainne and Rebecca will step in for each other as needed, and someone’s always available to answer my phone calls and identify causes if anything goes wrong. That wasn’t always the case in my experience with other companies.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Every year, we plan an exhibition to show off our students’ work. Things might be different this year, but I was impressed with the plans that Represent helped put in place. We changed our venue, and Represent even secured sponsorship for a drinks reception. They went above and beyond to find that sponsorship and to reach out to their partners and clients for ideas. It shows that Represent is more than a PR and communications company; they’ve got real business skills, too. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I’m very pleased with them at the moment. We’ve only worked together for five months, but they’re so much better than what I had before.

Any advice for potential customers?

Build a good relationship with Judith from the get-go. If she fights in your corner, there’s nothing you can’t achieve.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the fundraising and partnership manager of an agricultural society.

What challenge were you trying to address with Represent?

Represent works to promote the charitable work of the organisation, its events and its membership, including implementing the communications strategy for a 4 day annual event attracting 195,000 visitors.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Amongst many other aspects of the Society's work, Represent provides PR support for the 4 day annual event, on behalf of the organisation, its many sponsors and exhibitors while working with all stakeholders of agricultural industry and the media. In 2020, this has included a campaign to launch a new Fashion Show, where Represent led on the communications strategy for its launch, as a focus for the next annual event, working closely across the Society, with external suppliers and with the sponsors to develop a highly effective campaign.

A second example is the communications strategy for a new events space commissioned by the society. Represent's role is to support communications for a membership fundraising campaign to help pay for the building and to market it commercially as a new events space.

What is the team composition?

Judith (Managing Director) is my main point of contact. She oversees a team of about six people; two account directors, a PA administrative person, and three others who are being trained in their PR careers.

How did you come to work with Represent?

They’ve worked with the organization since before I came on the scene. I’m sure Judith’s closeness to the agricultural sector was a large factor.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in November 2017, and our engagement is ongoing.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Represent, under Judith's leadership, has helped the society to manage its communications for many years and during a recent period of modernisation and change in the organisation. Represent has helped to protect and promote the organisation and its reputation through this transition.

How did Represent perform from a project management standpoint?

Judith is outgoing, open to ideas and contributions from everyone around her. Every six weeks, our team meets with her team for a planning session. She brings superb presentations with vision and expectations for the upcoming year. We speak regularly and she’s always available.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They are fluid and flexible. The team is young and bright. Judith works hard for her clients and is good at thinking outside the box. Due to her contacts and networks, she adds a lot of value for her clients, as well as third party introductions.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, nothing comes to mind.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Take a collaborative approach and create opportunity for the agency to work across your organisation and to integrate the strategy across the business to maximise effectiveness. Appreciate its small and nimble profile which can tailor to your needs and dedicate internal resource and commitment as well, to achieving joint goals.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the former marketing manager of Hopetoun Estates, which is a stately home where people visit and hold events. The estate consists of several thousand acres that host a number of commercial enterprises.

What challenge were you trying to address with Represent?

One of our main projects was to promote our farm shop. We reared our own livestock on the estate, so we created a direct to farm shop. It was a new retail property, so we needed to tell its story.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Represent focused on brand awareness for the first project, which involved the launch of our shop. Their team used their network to get a famous chef to cook at the shop, which functioned as an endorsement.

We then realized that there was a wider scope for using Represent's skills. They continued to provide PR services. I brought them on to help with events as well as community and stakeholder engagement.

We also hold a number of events on the estate. Represent supported us with the PR before, during, and after events. They also helped with stakeholder engagement, which was relevant to land ownership and politics.

We also leased the land to a number of tenants, which required community engagement. Represent helped from a PR perspective to manage our reputation. Their team also handled any crisis management that came up.

Their team managed media outreach, so they drove content. For example, their team got media coverage of our turkeys around the holidays. They tried to get an article in the papers about the importance of locally reared turkeys. We also had the turkeys sing along to Christmas tunes and one fell in love with a peacock. At the end of the day, they worked to raise awareness about our homegrown products.

What is the team composition?

I mostly worked with Judith (Managing Director).

How did you come to work with Represent?

Represent was appointed about a month before I started. 

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between $20,000–$30,000 on their services a year.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in 201. I left the company in 2016, so I can’t speak to the status of the partnership. However, I still talk with Judith every couple of months.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

We were pleased across the board. We hadn’t done anything overtly commercial such as the farm shop but Represent ensured that it was a success. Their team helped with our brand awareness efforts by telling many great stories. They had a detailed voice and angle that translated into interesting consumer stories. Their team didn't just create sales pieces. We worked well hand-in-hand to beat the commercial objectives. They also had great contacts who came to the estate. Represent was so well-connected that their team influenced other people to endorse our brand.

How did Represent perform from a project management standpoint?

We had regular meetings, reviews, and calls. Their team reported back on coverage. If we had an event, we spoke every day. If we didn’t, we spoke every other week probably. It wasn’t formal.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Represent was understanding and thorough in their work. Their team made an effort to get to know our business, which meant that what they put out was on target. The messaging was attuned to our needs.  I totally recommend them and wouldn’t hesitate to use their services again.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I can’t think of anything.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the marketing manager of William Purves Funeral Directors. 

What challenge were you trying to address with Represent?

We needed help with PR and media relations services. 

What was the scope of their involvement?

We wanted to raise brand awareness in Edinburgh, not in every location of our 31 branches. We’re in a marketplace that’s being dominated by low-cost providers who challenge the costs of traditional funerals but at the expense of a high standard of service. We wanted to push back on those providers, and we specifically wanted to address low-cost provision versus quality. We also guarantee that our funeral providers will provide embalming, despite others saying they won’t, following the government’s advice in regards to COVID-19.

We’re an informed and equipped client that writes our own stuff. We’re tapping into Represent’s contacts and ability to place our stories, ideas, and narratives to expose them to maximum reach. We had a quite tight brief and knew exactly what we wanted. We didn’t need a full spread of PR services

What is the team composition?

I first met with Judith (Founder and Managing Director) and her colleague. That colleague left, but they were replaced by Grainne (PR Account Director) who’s every bit as good. Erin (Account Executive) also works on our account. They have a tight team that’s flexible and responsive. 

How did you come to work with Represent?

We heard of Represent through our copywriter and our design team. For this project, we invited four companies to speak with us. From those, we shortlisted two and gave them each a comprehensive brief and invited them to pitch their services to us. 

We invited both to pitch on the same day. Represent was invited in the morning, and the other agency was in the afternoon. The other agency, however, got the time wrong and showed up in the morning, much to my horror. They finished their pitch just before Judith and her team arrived, but I still asked Judith to hang back for a little while. She and her team were entirely understanding about that and willing to do that. We couldn’t really judge them on that because what happened was an accident, but they definitely handled the situation how I’d want them to handle the situation, and it made a difference in our final decision.

What is the status of this engagement?

The partnership started in August 2019 and is ongoing.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

It’s difficult to evaluate the success of our efforts. We can measure media broadcast, column coverage, and social media analytics, but we can’t measure the hearts and minds changed nor the funerals purchased as a result of Represent’s work. We’ll really know when our brand coverage increases, but so far, our news releases have been covered widely in the current COVID-19 emergency. 

How did Represent perform from a project management standpoint?

We started off with monthly meetings but have cut it down to every two months, which I prefer: I always know what we were working on and don't need more communication. However, we do appreciate the update we get every week. They rescheduled the meeting for me and changed the report structure to accommodate my preferences.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Represent is very talented and good at what they do. I look forward to where we’ll go together when the COVID-19 crisis is over.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I’m not sure I can provide a helpful answer to that right now.

Any advice for potential customers?

Don’t sit still. Constantly look around and ask what’s next.

Please describe your company and your position there.

Malting Company. Agricultural services. Vice Chairman

For what projects/services did your company hire Represent?

Simpsons Malt started working with Represent PR in [year] in order to assist with our PR, shareholder and crisis communications. As the relationship and time evolved, they also started to help with the digital aspects of our marketing, not least running our social media feeds.

What were your goals for this project?

Improve our online presence. Critically evaluate our advertising spend. Rebuild our websites

How did you select this vendor?

Found them online

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

From weekly updates on what they’ve achieved that week and what their plans are for the following week, to the scoping out of a month-by-month social media schedule, to contacting customers of ours to get information and quotes for blogs, the Represent team possess a diverse skillset that has undoubtedly helped us improve our digital presence.

What was the team composition?

Our experts within our agricultural division are now regular points of contact for many agricultural media publications which has helped to improve our brand presence and reputation. This wouldn’t have been possible without Represent PR’s extensive connections in the agricultural industry.

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Our experts within our agricultural division are now regular points of contact for many agricultural media publications which has helped to improve our brand presence and reputation. This wouldn’t have been possible without Represent PR’s extensive connections in the agricultural industry.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Very good - regular meetings and correspondance

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their agricultural connections were really helpful for us.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Better billing transparency

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CEO of a Hospitality Trust in Scotland. We provide inspirational development in the form of scholarships for the students and individuals working in our industry.

For what projects/services did your company hire Represent?

We launched a scholarship in the name of a 2 Michelin Chef who passed away in 2019. We wanted to get international reach to search for two recipients for the scholarships.

What were your goals for this project?

To cross all sectors in our hospitality and tourism industry, and also engage with Government in Scotland.

How did you select this vendor?

We know the quality of work and the compatibility with ourselves and the hospitality industry.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

Marketing, digital and social. Liaising with Government, industry and ourselves. Managing the whole marketing campaign, from start to a successful conclusion.

What was the team composition?

We working with the MD of Represent plus her account managers to organise everything.

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Huge success. Over 17,000,000 people reached. It gained huge traction within the industry and culminated in a top chefs skills test to find the winners of the scholarship.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Excellent

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They are reliable, approachable and friendly. They know how to take things on, and when to ask for approval.

Are there any areas for improvement?

None

Please describe your company and your position there.

Managing Director of a diversified agri business

For what projects/services did your company hire Represent?

On going PR support and launch of a new part of the business

What were your goals for this project?

Increase bottom line

How did you select Represent?

Been difficult in the past year as the plans had to be shelved and we had to become reactive.

Describe the project in detail.

On going PR support and launch of a new part of the business

What was the team composition?

Me, GM, 3 x represent

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Managed to trade through the past challenges and set up an online shop. We have maintained turnover during a challenging period however bottom line has halved. But this is due to circumstances.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Good, weekly meetings. plus email contact

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The team is reactive, good to work with, and understands our challenges.

Are there any areas for improvement?

understanding of cost benefit could be better. ie would be nice to get questions like what extra turnover does this need to create to be worthwhile doing?