Teamwork

I’m writing this 2 days before the general election so by the time you read it we may well have a hung Parliament. Will it be Gordon and Nick, Nick and Dave or Dave, Nick and Gordon?

One thing is for sure, if we do have a coalition government it won’t all be plain sailing as there is bound to be some political tension within the new team.

If they want a lesson in how to work together to achieve a common objective then they could do worse than to model themselves on Rubecka, Laura and Sherice aka the “Alan Sugar Babes” aka the winners of The Pitch London 2010.

One of two teams from The Marketers Forum they beat five others to the coveted title. They had just one day to develop a marketing solution for the Roof Gardens in Kensington. Their brief was to turn this Virgin Limited Edition venue, very popular during the summer months, into an all year round success.

Their answer was to embrace the vagaries of the British climate with their “We Love Winter” campaign. Their presentation impressed the panel of judges, including the General Manager of the Roof Gardens and senior marketers from the BBC and Tesco, who thought their idea was not only innovative but also do-able.

Many thanks to Christy Traore, the BPP Business School, Roof Gardens Kensington, GLR study centres and, last but not least, the CIM student teams for making it such a successful day.

Winners of The Pitch London 2010

The results from The Pitch London 2010 are in. Seven teams competed for the title, and the winners were three diploma students from The Marketer’s Forum. We’d like to congratulate The Alan Sugar Babes - Rubecka Anwar, Laura McCracken and Sherice Harris who wowed the judges with their ‘We Love Winter’ campaign.

The contest saw London marketers pitching their ideas in response to a ‘live’ brief from The Roof Garden. The other two finalists were Megan, Sally and Stelios from BPP Business School; and The Marketing Firecrackers from The Marketers Forum.

Quentin Crowe (right) from The Marketers' Forum commented “We are of course thrilled that the two teams entered by the Marketers' Forum did so well. This competition is a really exciting and useful way for students to showcase their knowledge and skills. The bar has been set!”

The Pitch London was held for the first time in March where each team pulled of ‘the pitch of their career’. The day was a big success and a great CV boost for all who took part. Christy Traore, Director of CIM Programmes at BPP Business School developed The Pitch and is already working on next years’ competition; keep a look out for details.

Images © BPP Business School for photography.

Across London, fellow marketers voluntarily run regular Meet with Drinks networking events. Informal and friendly, these gatherings are a great opportunity to meet other marketers in the Capital and share experiences. Why not come along yourself or bring a friend? And now this Meet with Drinks group has a presence on LinkedIn too, so you can keep in touch between events or follow up on conversations you’ve had.

Some of you may be using LinkedIn already, but if you’re not, it’s well worth checking out. LinkedIn is a professional networking tool which connects you with people and groups who could help your career. Over 65 million professionals use LinkedIn to build connections and exchange opinions with peers, friends and colleagues. It opens up opportunities to look for jobs, build your career and join groups of interest. Have a look at our hints below to get started.

How has your career developed to reach your current position?

I began my career in marketing seven years ago when I started in the role of Marketing Assistant at Mouchel. In 2006, I was promoted to Sales & Marketing Manager for the Environment Division where I was responsible for the planning, co-ordination and delivery of marketing communications, and business development activities. After a series of promotions, I am now Head of Marketing in Mouchel’s Regulated Industries’ sector.

Tell about your current role at Mouchel.

I manage a team of six and we work with our Water, Environment and Rail business areas. I am responsible for planning a joined-up approach to integrated marketing, and implementing innovative solutions to optimise brand exposure and develop the business. A key part of my role is developing client relationships through managing knowledge and information about them. I constantly measure whether client relationships are developing in order to continually improve our performance and to leverage further opportunities.

One of the major projects that I was involved in last year was Shark Tank, which was based on BBC Two's Dragons' Den. It was a great success and brought together budding engineering entrepreneurs with investment opportunities as the finalists were invited to pitch to a panel of expert judges, including Richard Farleigh, Dragon’s Den panellist. My role at Mouchel is very varied and I enjoy the challenges it produces.

How important are key accounts to the business?

At Mouchel we rely on the continued business of key accounts so we need to look after them. Some of our major key accounts are with water utility companies and these therefore have a significant influence on our business. For these organisations and for other key accounts, we plan and put together a framework to predict what they might want over the next five years. This keeps us focussed on their developments and shows them how important they are to Mouchel as a key account.

Do you have a different approach for key accounts?

We have a focussed approach and ensure that we have a dedicated team that is available to really concentrate on their needs. A key account will have a Key Account Director and Key Account Manager available to them, whereas a smaller client will have a Project Manager. However, Mouchel realises that smaller accounts may become key accounts in the future so all are treated with a huge level of professionalism.

What are the benefits of networking and close working relationships?

On a professional level, networking within Mouchel is vital as I can learn a lot from different departments that are relevant to my role. Mouchel is such a large organisation with many different business sectors and departments so I can network with my colleagues to learn about areas apart from marketing, which ultimately add value to my clients. Networking also helps my personal development as I believe it’s important to keep my knowledge up-to-date so that I can attempt to cross-sell different Mouchel services to my existing clients.

How has your role as volunteer for the West London and Heathrow branch helped you build relationships with other marketers and develop your career?

Although I have had a lot of marketing experience in my career so far, it has been in one company. My role as Team Leader and volunteer for the West London and Heathrow branch of the Institute enables me to network externally with other members who all have different experiences and opinions from a wide range of other industries and markets. This provides me with a lot of insights which I can use in my role, and lets me understand the challenges and opportunities that other marketers in different companies face.

What upcoming events on relationship building would you recommend to members?

We are currently planning our events for the rest of the year within the West London and Heathrow area and hope to ensure that we have a good line up of interesting speakers and topics ranging from Effectively positioning yourself in the marketplace to “How To” events which are always very informative and practical guides to various topics. Keep an eye on the GLR website to see what’s coming up.

What does the future hold for you?

My next aim is to get more involved in digital marketing and as a result, take Mouchel to the next level of communications. A lot of our communications are offline and I want to develop this to have more of a balance between on and offline communications.

The Women in Marketing events aim to educate and inspire women in the profession. After five years of annual events, organiser Ade Onilude (right) has added a new dimension by creating the Women in Marketing Awards.

The Awards will recognise excellence in marketing by women and for women in the Greater London region. Don’t worry there’s even a category to honour men that successfully market to women, and you can nominate a colleague or friend for an award. It’s a great opportunity for you to showcase your work to your peers in the region. Have a look at the Women In Marketing Awards website for a full list of categories and to download the awards brochure. What’s more they’re free to enter. The deadline for entries is Monday 6 September 2010 and the ceremony will be held in November at the glamorous May Fair Hotel, London. So what are waiting for? Get cracking on your entry!

Women in Marketing Event The launch of the Women in Marketing Awards was announced at this year’s sell-out Women in Marketing Digital event. Over 150 delegates attended to hear insights and words of wisdom from key women at Google, O2 and The Future Laboratory. The topics focussed on during this event were the future of search including how Google is a useful marketing tool, and how women influence the web and buying behaviour. Also covered was information about mobile marketing and how new technologies are available. From this, attendees discovered how smart technology can target individuals with specific offers, and how this opens up huge opportunities for marketers. There was also a demonstration of the JWTwitterclock, which tracks and monitors how many times a brand is mentioned on the online social networking site Twitter. Have a look at the gallery to get a feel for the event, and if you attended, try and spot yourself! And thank you to Harry Dutton for being the official photographer for the event. Pearls of wisdom from the speakers Sarah Speake, Director of Technology, Google “The future of search is driven by consumers.” Tracy Isacke, Head of New Business Development, O2 “Mobile marketing can be more targeted. Roaming details can track you to your location and send you special offers of direct relevance. People need to opt in for this to happen.” Tiffany Arntson, Head of Future Poll, The Future Laboratory “There are 36.2m female blogs in the US alone, and the UK pattern is growing in the same direction.”

Don’t miss next year’s Women in Marketing event. We’ll keep you posted.

Did you know that round a third of London members are part of the CPD scheme and either on their way to becoming Chartered or already there? Time is flying past quickly so make sure you don’t forget this years’ CPD deadline - 31 July.

Strive to reach Chartered Marketer status CPD provides an effective way to keep your knowledge up-to-date and proves that you’re committed to ongoing development. Once you achieve Chartered Marketer status you’ll be recognised as a highly experienced marketer by employers and your profession. One of the conditions is that you need to submit 35 hours of CPD records for a minimum of two consecutive years. Once you become a Chartered Marketer, you need to keep up with your annual CPD requirement of 35 hours, but you’ll only need to submit your records if you’re randomly selected as one of the 10% for audit.

How to submit your record of CPD activity The CPD online portal is the easiest way to complete and return your CPD details, using your usual membership login. Or, you can return by post the CPD record card which you received with your original membership pack. For help with this you can refer to your Membership User Guide or on the Institute’s website.

CPD helps you on your way to become a Fellow Becoming a Fellow of The Chartered Institute of Marketing is a huge achievement and takes a lot of dedication. It’s a position that recognises the status of our most senior marketers. Perhaps you’ve already reached this milestone and should consider applying to be a Fellow as you progress through your marketing career. To become a Fellow you need meet the following criteria: You can be elected to Fellowship after a period of membership, or elected when joining, providing you meet the current membership (MCIM) criteria. Either way, you will need a strong marketing background of around 15 years and, for a minimum period of five years, have held a senior role. You must have a proven record of expertise, CPD, experience and success in marketing. Congratulations to the following Chartered Institute of Marketing members who have become Fellows since January 2009 Mr Mehbub Datoo FCIM Mr Richard Evans FCIM Mr Simon P Foster FCIM Mr Mark Hollyoake FCIM Mr David J Horchover FCIM Mr Georges Knell FCIM Mrs Susan Leeson FCIM Mr Jonathan D Peake DipM FCIM Miss Georgina E Swain FCIM Mr Andrew J Whalley DipM FCIM Mr Kingsley Wheaton FCIM

11 June 2010 - The Fellows Dinner This years’ annual black tie dinner is on Friday 11 June 2010 at Moor Hall. The evening is a prestigious event where Fellows are wined, dined and have plenty of opportunities to meet and socialise. If you’re a Fellow, look out for your invite in the post!

Visit the Institute’s website to find out more about levels of membership. If you think your membership to the Institute has expired, you can contact Membership services who will be able to help you re-apply.

It’s not much fun, but studying for your exams and assessments is just one of those things you have to do. Exam and assignment week arrives in June so you need to focus on studying the syllabus content and brushing up on your exam and assignment technique.

Studying for exams and assignments shouldn’t be all slog. Set yourself a realistic study timetable and stick to it. When you reach a milestone like the end of a chapter, even the half way mark, reward yourself. Try out new techniques as you go, there’s no need to get unnecessarily bogged down. Learning isn’t a punishment. And don’t forget to talk about what you’re doing. Meet up with some people in your class, or just chat with a colleague at work. Going over ideas verbally can make them more concrete and more likely to stick in your mind. A positive rather than punitive approach makes it much easier to study regularly and retain more.

Here is the new Small Business Ambassador for the Greater London region, Andrew Miller! He took up this role earlier this year and is keen for those of you in small businesses to join the Small Business market interest group or join him at this event.

Marketing Excellence for Small Businesses 08:00-10:00, Friday 14 May, Mail Media Centre, Holborn £10 plus FREE breakfast! This small businesses breakfast briefing is hosted by Z-CARD Ltd, who are finalists in The Chartered Institute of Marketing Awards SME category. They’ll share their challenges, knowledge, and experience in their great success story. In addition you will hear practical marketing advice from Mark Batchelor, Managing Director of Markman OTW; a Royal Mail perspective from Tim Rivett, Head of Market Development and an optional tour of the Mail Media Centre Infobank - a great marketing resource available FREE for businesses.

This event is well worth getting out of bed early for! Find out more and book or call The Chartered Institute of Marketing on 01628 427340.

Andrew’s looking for your help to make sure this group provides you with engaging, useful communications, events and opportunities. He’s looking for your current interests in marketing so he can shape the themes of events, and for volunteers who want to get involved by providing content for articles or speaking at events. You can either email Andrew with your ideas, or come and meet him and other small business marketers in person at the event later this week.

If you’re interested in finding out more about LinkedIn, enter this prize draw for a chance to win a place at the event In the Spotlight: LinkedIn, Get your business connected. You’ll discover how LinkedIn has revolutionised business networking, and the best ways to use it in your business. You’ll be given top tips to get the most from LinkedIn, by understanding how and when people are using it, and the value of peer recommendation.

This event will be held in the evening of Wednesday 16 June and is worth £80. Plus you can also claim 2 CPD hours. Enter the prize draw today!

A series of In the Spotlight Briefing events will be running in London this summer, each on a highly topical aspect of social media. Discounted rates are available for CIM members and each session is accredited for 2 hours CPD.

In the spotlight: Facebook
In the spotlight: YouTube
In the spotlight: LinkedIn
In the spotlight: Blogging
In the spotlight: Twitter

Anyone committed to their marketing career will know that the professional qualification they gained many years ago may eventually reach its sell by date. Keeping your marketing skills and knowledge up-to-date will help you protect your current job, and grab those new opportunities when they arise. So the Chartered Institute of Marketing’s CAM Digital Marketing qualifications may be of interest, especially as each subject leads to an Award in its own right.

So what’s all the excitement about? Our own Regional Director, Philip Preston, is leading the way by studying for it. Jon Twomey from the Student Support Group (SSG), the latest centre to become accredited to provide this qualification, takes us through it.

This qualification will provide you with knowledge underpinning the principles of digital marketing and skills to undertake digital marketing planning. The qualification covers Search Engine Optimisation, Pay Per Click, types of online advertising, email marketing, viral marketing, online PR, affiliate marketing and social media. It also looks at digital metrics, legislation, regulation and codes of practice. You will have the opportunity to gain skills and knowledge to understand the fundamental planning concepts for an online organisation as well as key factors in implementation, measurement and evaluation of successful campaigns.

What is CAM? The Communication Advertising and Marketing (CAM) Education Foundation Limited offers Diplomas tailored to the marketing communication needs of modern business.

How are CAM and CIM related? Well, in 2000 the CAM Foundation formed an alliance with The Chartered Institute of Marketing and since then CAM qualifications have been managed and awarded by the Institute. All students studying for a CAM qualification must retain membership of the Institute for the duration of their studies

The CAM Foundation offers two new digital qualifications:

• CAM Diploma in Digital Marketing - SSG 2010 with immediate start possible
• CAM Diploma in Managing Digital Media - SSG from Autumn 2010

Who are these qualifications for? These new qualifications are designed for those wanting to work in marketing or marketing professionals who want specialist knowledge and understanding in digital marketing.

What prior Chartered Institute of Marketing (or CAM) qualifications would earn me exemption from which new CAM Diploma in Digital Marketing Units?

• Students who have completed The Chartered Institute of Marketing Professional qualification level 4 and above (Professional Diploma or Post Graduate Diploma) are exempted from the Marketing & Consumer Behaviour (M&CB) double unit of the new Diploma in Digital Marketing, so only need to complete Digital Marketing Planning (DMP) & Digital Marketing Essentials (DME).
• Students who completed the old eMarketing Award (since 2006), are exempted from doing the DMP unit of the new Diploma in Digital Marketing, so only need to complete DME & M&CB.
• All graduates of the CAM Diploma in Marketing Communication need only take the DME & DMP units to complete their qualification.

We interviewed North London Committee Member Howard Whisker, before a surprise presentation to honour his achievement of 40 years voluntary work with the Institute.

Howard has been a member since 1970 and has the hat-trick of accreditations, MCIM, DipM and Chartered Marketer. In 2002, Howard was awarded the prestigious President’s Award for Branch Officers who have given distinguished service to the branch in a major position. The Institute doesn’t give out many of these Awards so Howard is one of the few chosen to receive it. Howard is now a marketing consultant on marketing issues, as well as being available to advise on passing Chartered Institute of Marketing exams and obtaining CPD. He is also a trustee and director of a large pension scheme.

Howard, how did you get involved in marketing?

My background is in retail, where I worked for Eastern Electricity for over 30 years and it’s through them that I first got involved in their marketing operations.

How did you get involved with The Chartered Institute of Marketing?

As my marketing horizons opened, I was invited to a Chartered Institute of Marketing Annual General Meeting by a friend and the next thing I knew I was being asked to join the Committee! Of course the Institute was a smaller organisation in those days but the branch and regional structure still existed then.

What was the best Institute event you’ve ever attended?

Believe it or not, it was probably a presentation made by Skoda at the end of the last decade…of all the great marketing brands! They most likely faced some of the greatest marketing challenges in trying to change the perception of their brand, but they had great success in overcoming those barriers with that product launch and marketing campaign.

One of the most exciting aspects of many of the events I have attended has been following the particular products or brands after the Institute’s event and seeing how they fair. I remember going to a talk with George Davies who headed Next as they looked to establish themselves on the high street in the 1980s. I then enjoyed following their fortunes with particular interest.

You’ve been involved with The Chartered Institute of Marketing for 40 years, what have you learned?

Probably the greatest tools I’ve developed have been business and marketing skills in relation to running businesses. Specifically there are many marketing tools and techniques that I have experienced and learned about over the time as the nature of marketing has changed massively, especially in the last ten years with the digital revolution.

Can you offer a message for those thinking of getting involved with the Institute?

To use another great marketing line, Just do it! I’ve learnt so much and met so many wonderful and interesting people. My greatest advice is that you get so much more back if you get involved and utilise your membership. I guess that would apply to any membership but I’ve particularly found that true with The Chartered Institute of Marketing.

Members views on relationship building

We asked London members about relationship building. It sparked a lot of interesting replies and different takes on the subject. Have a look and see what you think, we’d love to receive your feedback, so please send your comments to The Editor and we’ll post them on the London marketer’s blog.

What does relationship building mean to your organisation?

“The whole organisation is built on relationship building. As a professional services organisation linking with our customers and other stakeholders is right at the heart of the organisation. It means understanding needs, anticipating needs, understanding how all parties can benefit from working together.” Maria Cenalmor, Internal Communications Manager, Professional Services organisation

“Regular and considered two-way customer communication.” Stewart Simpson, Product Manager, London Mint Office

“Creating a win-win environment for everyone - internal and external clients, and the company.” Bhavesh Negandhi, Senior Account Manager, Matrix Data Ltd

“Continued dialogue with our customers and other stakeholders.” Lucinda Highley, Director, Business & Relationship Management, Fitch Ratings

Top five ways London marketers build relationships

We asked London members how you build relationships with your customers and clients. These are the top 5 techniques:

1. Email marketing
2. Newsletters
3. Networking
4. Key account management
5. Direct mail

The least popular approaches were loyalty schemes and sales promotions. Let us know which ones you use and we’ll post them on the London marketer’s blog.

Marketing Excellence Awards

You may have seen coverage in The Marketer of The Chartered Institute of Marketing’s national Marketing Excellence Awards. The winners were officially announced at the presentation evening held this spring in London, with Hugh Dennis, star of Mock the Week hosting the ceremony.

Here in the Greater London region, you’re a talented lot, so not surprisingly London members feature strongly among the winners. Congratulations go to…

Category	Company name	Project title
Financial services: Insurance and Other services	Base One	PayPal, Unwelcome campaign
FMCG	Miles Calcraft Briginshaw Duffy	Hovis relaunch
Hotels and Leisure	Natural History Museum	Darwin exhibition
Media	JCDecaux	StreetTalk
Not for Profit	McCann Erickson	Skcin & computertan.com - using communications to change behaviour
Professional Services	Ernst & Young	Opportunities in adversity
Retail	McCann Erickson	The Co-operative story about being good with food again
Technology/Telecoms	Saatchi & Saatchi	T-Mobile: Life's for Sharing

Well done to all the winners of this year's Awards - look out for details of next year’s exciting awards.

Congratulations on your chocolate prize Robin Birn!

The prize draw survey from the March issue of the GLR News was a big hit, and hardly surprising with such a great chocolate prize on offer! The lucky winner was Robin Birn who was delighted with his hamper of Green & Black’s treats. Pavlina Draganova of Munier-BBN was the runner up, bagging herself a selection of Cadbury’s delights.

If you didn’t win, why not try again in this issue’s survey. You won’t win chocolate but you could win a free place at the In the Spotlight: LinkedIn event being held in London in June. Try your luck today.

Alliances and partnerships help Media Trust

The importance of forging alliances and partnerships comes as no surprise to marketers. Most organisations rely on an ever-more intricate network of suppliers, channel partners and affiliates to get their product to market. But in the charity sector partnerships have a special role and unique rewards which transcend commercial or financial benefit. Media Trust’s mission is about building partnerships between the communications industry and the incredible charities, communities and voluntary organisations that so often form the glue that binds our society.

Media Trust’s relationship with I Spy Marketing is a great example. I Spy specialise in natural search optimisation, analytics, conversion and usability, paid search, digital strategy and social media, and have worked with a number of charities through our Media Matching programme. Nick Jones, I Spy Marketing’s managing director, himself with ten years experience on online advertising, says the partnerships are crucially important. “Relationships in marketing are of crucial importance to I Spy. One of our four key business values is ‘love working together’, internally and externally this is something we strive to live and breathe.”

I Spy are building great partnerships with a number of charities they have met through Media Trust, including Cultural Co-operation, Solidarity Sports and Healthy Planet and Nick says they’re helping them “achieve great things in the online arena”.

Media Trust’s experience is that companies working pro-bono with charities and communities, or simply allowing their staff the freedom to volunteer, benefit in a huge number of ways. The opportunity for staff development is almost a given: working on new and diverse projects in sometimes quite different environments. Charities and communities have quite specific challenges. Aside from the often limited financial and human resources, the marketing challenge is quite specific. Charities have a value or mission to which they are ethically and culturally committed; and the latent enthusiasm that often exists in their supporter group is an enormous resource waiting to be exploited. There are many private sector companies who would love to have such emphatic stakeholder support, and unlocking this potential in charities is an exciting challenge to marketers and one that often produces lessons that can be applied back in the office.

If the impact of such partnerships on the private sector is huge, the impact on the charities and communities they work with is immeasurable. Even the smallest input and produce the most incredible results. Sean Mendez from Solidarity Sport says the support he received was “absolutely brilliant. Our charity will grow and improve thanks to this”.

Givingworldonline, a charity dedicated to linking up businesses that have unwanted surplus with charities and people they help, also worked with Media Trust and were matched with Paula Manning from Carillion to develop an online and offline marketing strategy to drive traffic to their site. “She was fantastic” says Givingworldonline resources director Sujata Bhalla, “She wrote all of the copy that we needed for our website before it went live and helped us create an integrated marketing plan which we implemented and continue to work on and develop. We’ve been receiving excellent feedback about the site.”

Images © BPP Business School for photography.

Prostate Cancer Tour Rides in London 2010

Building on the success of the 2009 Prostate Cancer Charity Tour Rides, The Prostate Cancer Charity are delighted to reveal the dates and locations for the 2010 rides. The Tour Ride, a partnership between The Tour of Britain and The Prostate Cancer Charity, provides a unique opportunity for riders of all ages to experience the exact start, finish and route of the race whilst helping the charity.

All rides have been designed to create a memorable day out, whether you are a seasoned rider looking for an extreme challenge or just prefer a leisurely spin with the family. The Tour of Britain race will be televised on ITV4 giving riders the opportunity to see how the professionals tackle the course themselves.

If you’d rather not take part you can support four middle-aged club cyclists, including Sharp Managing Director Paul Molyneux, who are going to take on one of the biggest endurance challenges in the world of cycling. They will compete in the Race Across America (RAAM) and attempt to ride from one coast of America to the other (West to East) in under seven days to raise money for the Prostate Cancer Charity. You can donate by texting RAAM to 70700 – see their website for full terms and conditions.

Paralympic World Cup and London 2012 ticket registration with 50% discount

Relationship building is important to one of our charity partners ParalympicsGB, who support British athletes through each Paralympic Games. Now the flag has dropped on Vancouver, all eyes turn to London. London members who are sports fans are invited to ‘sign up’ and register their interest in London 2012. The process allows fans to identify which Paralympic sports they are interested in to make sure they are in the best position to apply for tickets when they go on sale.

The partners and suppliers of the Paralympic World Cup have been working closely over the last six years, building relationships to ensure the best environment for the event and to make sure it gets bigger and better every year. ParalympicsGB highly value the relationships through the BT Paralympic World Cup and with their 2012 partners to help support British athletes so they can perform to the best of their ability and receive the recognition they deserve for their achievements.

Image © Action Images.