Need a design friend?
Imagine you had a good mate that you could call on for all your design needs. He gets you. He understands what you want. He’s got your back. You can call him up. He’s on your side. That’s exactly how we operate.
About
Let’s get pally. That’s a good word. It’s a pal and an ally.
We’ve been working with organisations of all types and sizes since 2011, as ‘design friends’. We join the team, we get stuck in, we sit in the office, make the tea, come on your corporate days out. You can text us and rely on us when something urgent comes up. Need something for the same day? If it’s possible we’ll make it happen.
We get our head into your business so we understand you and your viewpoint and use all of our skills to help you as best we can. Just like a mate would.
what we do
Website design
Attractive, responsive websites for your business or project. We use WordPress to create sites that are reliable, expandable and simple for you to update once published. We can host your site too.
SOCIAL MEDIA
From setting up branded social media channels to being strategic about what and when you post. We can help you to build your social media presence and teach your team how to manage it.
BRANDING
We can create logos and brand identities, giving you a consistent visual palette to use both on and offline. Branding is also useful for individual projects and events that require a unique look and feel.
E-learning design
From a full Learning Management System or VLE install and customisation, to individual course design using popular e-learning authoring tools, we can help to bring alive your online learning.
PHOTO & VIDEO
Multimedia content is a necessity to keep your social media feeds lively. We can capture content of your events and activities and put it together into the right formats for your various outlets. Find out more about how we capture your event.
WEBSITE MAINTENANCE
It’s not glamorous, but your website needs to be cared for on an ongoing basis. We’ll keep your software updated, your site backed up, and make sure everything is secure.
DESIGN FOR PRINT
From posters, brochures and flyers to reports, proposals, large format design and merchandising items. We can handle it all, giving everything a consistent style.
Content management
It’s a lot of work to keep generating new content for your site and social media. We can help you to make the most of what you have, find the stories happening in your organisation and present them effectively.
Email Design
If you regularly email your customers, we can set up dynamic templates and create compelling campaigns that work on desktop and mobile.
Project stories
Tweets from the Studio
Recommendations
If you are forging your own path and looking for tools to help you set up your online presence or support your business, here are the tools we use and have used for years. If you need help setting them up then get in touch.
Web Hosting:
Siteground
We have been more than happy since we took the plunge and moved al of our sites to Siteground. The hosting, especially for WordPress, is fast, reliable and their control panel is simple. If you are already hosted somewhere else, they make the switch super simple with their migration plugin.
CMS:
WordPress
There are dozens of CMS platforms out there these days. We have used a lot of them and aways come back to WordPress for its flexibility, security and endless extensibility – from ecommerce and elearning to forums, calendars and multi-lingual sites, it’s all possible.
Page Layout:
Elementor
Of the various page layout plugins available for WordPress, we have found the most flexible and easy to work with to be Elementor. There are built in templates and page layouts that are ready to go, or you can start with a blank pafge and create any layout you can imagine.
CREATIVE ASSETS:
MOTION ARRAY
Creatives need more than just photos. Motion Array has videos, music, video editing templates and presets. Plus, your subscription includes an unlimited license! No need to license each item separately. Just download what you need and create! They have freat tutorials too.
Pensions:
Penfold
If you are self-employed you need to have a pension in place. In fact, Penfold is for Directors and employees too. We have found the experience with them to be very good. The technology is easy to use and they claim a 25% Government contribution for you.
Creative software:
Adobe Creative Cloud
For everything from document design, illustration and photo editing, to video and audio editing, and a great array of mobile apps to create on the go. Adobe is the industry standard for a reason and it will save you a lot of headaches.