Displaying 145 - 180 of 2272 results
How about this for a pitch. A new social network - only you pay for this one. For your money, you are guaranteed the opportunity to interact with celebrities, leading business people, sport stars and top technology people. Essentially, you're buying...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Following a lengthy process and an awful lot of money, we now know Andy Coulson is guilty of conspiring to intercept voice-mail messages; he is also to be retried on the remaining charges. Rebekah Brooks has been acquitted though - and this is not...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
How much would you pay for a copy of Nik Kershaw’s album ‘The Riddle’? Should you wish to add it to your iTunes collection via Apple’s store, it would cost you about £5.50. On Amazon’s marketplace, you could pick up...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
On page one of 'The Bumper Book Of Branding' (which doesn't exist), we're told that a successful brand starts with a successful name. Y'know, something memorable, something that resonates with the audience. Crack the name and half the battle is won....
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
As the footer of this column will tell you, I’m a copywriter. And a blogger. I also dabble in journalism and podcasting. These are all quite enjoyable and satisfying things - at least from time-to-time - and I’m pretty lucky to do them...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
I am writing this blog on a train on the way back to the Big Smoke following a few days mini-break in Cornwall, Mevagissey to be exact. As usual I have found the green hues, sea air and laid-back friendly locals a tonic to my tattered nerves and eye...
Posted by: Jessica Hazel
Late last year, a picture of Cheryl Cole appeared on the internet and in various newspapers. Nothing particularly odd about that; Ms. Cole is a constant media fixture. Only this picture, which she had released herself, was of her backside, newly...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
The BBC notwithstanding, and a peppering of community outfits aside, there aren’t really any independent radio stations left in the UK. It’s all ‘networks’ - which is a rather overexcited way of saying a large corporation...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
When it comes to the minutiae of modern life, I'm prone to getting things wrong. Go to the shop, come back with the wrong size batteries; turn up for an event on the wrong day; forget to put the clocks back - all that sort of thing, hopeless. But on...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
So ridiculous, it would have been rejected as a plotline in 'The Thick Of It'. That's not (or not necessarily) my opinion, it comes from the creators of 'The Thick Of It' and it refers to the 'advertisement' placed on Twitter by Grant Shapps,...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Back in the eighties, I worked for a radio station which ran a campaign for a double glazing firm. This campaign never actually ended. Like those sofa sales, it just continued year in, year out. The ads were very straightforward, consisting of little...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Right now, the SXSW music festival is in full flow in Austin Texas. What's more, I believe Creativepool's glorious leader Mike Tomes is there, doing his funky thing. Anyway, following the event on Twitter, I noticed someone reporting a bearded fellow...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
This weekend, I learned a valuable lesson. Content isn’t king. Or at least, to be more accurate, content isn’t always king. Copy does have to be top-notch to have an impact and to inspire people to buy, sell, share, offer, sign up,...
Posted by: Ashley Morrison
Years ago, I wrote a piece for Creativepool suggesting the confused.com logo was a prime example of branding designed by a client. Looking for all the world like the worst clip-art available from the briefest Google image search, it featured a stick...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
If there's one thing HM Coalition Government don't like, it's spending money on public services. Yes, they're really very adamant that nothing more than the absolute minimum needed to keep us slaving away and stumping up our taxes, is available....
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
For all its trials, hardships, wars and woes, 2013 still managed to inject some wonderful stuff into our busy, pressured lives. So, with 2014 snapping at our heels, this would be an appropriate moment to celebrate the things which enhanced the human...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Like most people in the creative industry, I know a fair few people who operate websites. Some of those sites are superbly designed and executed, others are a bit dull, and a minority are a right royal mess. It's also notable how few make real...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
I was never keen on the National Lottery. On the night it launched, I nipped to the shop for cigarettes and was confronted with a queue which reached out of the door and off down the street. I was concerned the people had been hypnotized and summoned...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
At some point, perhaps four years ago, doorstep lending ('The Tallyman', as my grandmother would have termed it) suddenly became terribly old fashioned and parochial. Recession and financial misery inflated the market for non-bank lending at a...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
When it comes to voicing an opinion, I don't tend towards coyness (regular readers may not be surprised to learn this). For instance, I more than happy to reveal that my political views broadly fall into the left-of-centre, liberal camp . Although,...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Last week I wrote a piece for Creativepool, suggesting the role of the copywriter had become sidelined to the extent that designers were now the 'creatives'. I also wondered whether this wasn't just an attack of paranoia. Well, it wasn't. The column...
Posted by: Magnus Shaw
Many creative agencies face a growing dilemma. And as usual the dilemma is about time management and profit. In the current economic scenario, running a creative business is getting tougher by the day. To stay competitive in the market, many agencies...
Posted by: Creativepool
Have you been to a supermarket recently? If you have, did you ask the till operator whether you could take the contents of your trolley for nothing? Of course you didn’t. The very suggestion you might be entitled to free groceries would be...
Posted by: Creativepool
by Magnus Shaw. If you're going to be rumbled loading beefburgers with something other than beef, try to ensure it's not horse. Oats would be better. Or sweets. But, not cat or hamster - and definitely not horse. As Tesco has discovered, people...
Posted by: Creativepool
by John Fountain. A few months back I was helping a friend review some CVs for a copywriting position. There was the usual mix of applicants and all of them from different writing backgrounds including b2b, pharmaceutical, PR, blogging, journalism,...
Posted by: Creativepool
by Magnus Shaw. Examine the figures and social media boggles the mind. Facebook boasts over one billion users - a seventh of the entire planet; Twitter has more than 100 million users. Even music-streaming app Spotify, carries 18 million...
Posted by: Creativepool
by Magnus Shaw. Dear Santa, I'm not sure if you're aware, but Christmas is coming. Next week, apparently. With this in mind, I thought I'd better drop you a note to outline some of the stuff I'd like you to provide. I suggest you take the Harley...
Posted by: Creativepool
James Ramsden is a Creative Director at Rufus Leonard, an independent creative communications agency with over 25 years experience helping brands succeed in today’s always on world, located in the heart of London’s busy Clerkenwell...
Posted by: Creativepool
by Magnus Shaw. Here's a problem which only came to my attention this week. Actually I think it has been lingering in the back of my mind for a couple of decades, but it only came into focus a couple of days ago. Because I write columns here and...
Posted by: Creativepool
by Magnus Shaw. I'm going to write about a new piece of technology, but it will involve some intimate body stuff. I'm pre-supposing you guys are broad-minded enough to handle references to sexy-time, but I'm a card-carrying, awkward, repressed...
Posted by: Creativepool
by Magnus Shaw. I work as a copywriter and blogger. I also do something I call consultancy - advising people on their writing, marketing or branding, really. Sometimes, I produce or present radio programmes too. These are all very enjoyable and...
Posted by: Creativepool
1. 79 A.D. Billboards in Pompeii Ah! The glory of the ancient Roman empire. Olive skinned, muscular men striding the avenues, clad in togas, debating the great issues of the day. Beautiful, raven-haired maidens bearing baskets laden with the...
Posted by: Creativepool
by Magnus Shaw There is much to like about charity advertising. Freed from the constraints of pack-shots and multi-buys, agencies have the chance to show off their creative chops and tell real human stories - often quite brilliantly. One only has to...
Posted by: Creativepool
by Magnus Shaw I'm a member of a few groups on career networking site LinkedIn. Indeed, you may be reading this article via that very site. Much like Facebook, I'm probably not using every aspect of the service as there is so much going on - but I...
Posted by: Creativepool
by Jessica Hazel I didn't think I was going to like the Olympics once the opening ceremony had finished. I'm not really a sporty person you see. Like most of us creative folk, I have always favoured splashing paint about rather than swimming pool...
Posted by: Creativepool
by Magnus Shaw When a kitchen is infested with cockroaches, the little beasts do their unpalatable work quite happily while the room is dark.But turn on a light and they scatter chaotically in all directions, scared and confused. There are many...
Posted by: Creativepool
