Paul Leybourne is head of sales for Greater Manchester-based Vodat International, a supplier of managed networks and IPT solutions to the UK retail market.

Vodat’s clients include Jaeger, Beaverbrooks, Fat Face, White Stuff, Karen Millen, Lush, Reiss, Dune, 99p Stores and B&M Bargains. Vodat has not lost a client in more than seven years.

Paul started working with Pixel8 in Manchester 17 months ago…

“I think truth, honesty and really engaging an agency to understand the goals and core objectives of your business are the most important things in a great client-agency working relationship.

“The more an agency understands, the more they can give. I think too many sales and marketing people keep agencies at an arm’s length out of fear. They don’t want to lose control of any aspect of the business. And I think insecurity can play a part too – if your agency is coming up with all the ideas, then what is your role?

“We see both Pixel8 and our PR agency as business partners, and that’s not just rhetoric. We have bought into Pixel8 and they have bought into our business vision.

“I think poor client-agency working involves the client being too directive and the agency just running around to their orders. But we brought Pixel8 on board for their design and marketing expertise, so we’re not going to just leave them with the donkey work. Pixel8 adds value to our company and they do a lot of the creative thinking that we just don’t have time for. They allow both me and our MD Mike Bielinski to concentrate on running the business and generating sales.”

Jamie Watson, joint managing director of Pixel8 said, “Vodat are excellent communicators and invite us to a monthly meeting which is always very productive. They are honest with us about any issues their company is facing and encourage us to really get involved with ideas and solutions.

We originally started working with Vodat’s MD Mike Bielinski then as their company expanded Paul took over the sales department. We are really pleased to have developed an excellent working relationship with both Mike and Paul.”

For more information please visit Vodat International.

The Pixel8 Design and Marketing Agency in Manchester, UK is proud to present “Powered by Smarter Pixels”, a short animated video showcase of our services.

See Powered by Smarter Pixels now on our home page at www.pixel8ltd.com

If you like our animation, please visit YouTube and click on the “Like” button to vote for us at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Kl4Dwz9lmY or tell us what you think by contacting us.

The animation was originally hand designed on storyboards by Pixel8’s creative team to showcase our top level service categories, called WOMGE…

	Web Design
	Online Marketing
	Multimedia
	Graphic Design
	Exhibition Services

Powered by Smarter Pixels also shows the high levels of creativity that Pixel8 consistently delivers.

As a small agency our clients get immediate access to our senior creative, technical and management staff. Our in-house design, development and production teams regularly deliver fast turnarounds because we’re not a 9 to 5 agency. We don’t clock off till your work is done.

Pixel8 is working smarter so your company can get all your design, branding and advertising requirements from one agency. We manage the complete process from concept to completion.

Whether you’re a small business that needs a new logo design or an international hotel chain that’s looking for creative corporate branding, call Pixel8 in Manchester because we’re Powered by Smarter Pixels!

Pixel8’s WOMGE services:

Web Design: Website design and development of SME and PLC websites, eCommerce and CMS websites, database development, blog designs, online brand guides and mobile websites

Online Marketing: Search engine optimisation, SEO copywriting, online press release distribution, social media marketing, email marketing, mobile website marketing and Smartphone applications

Multimedia: Animation, video, virtual tours, 3D page turning magazines, Adobe Director and Flash presentations and recyclable corporate PowerPoint presentations

Graphic Design: Logo design, corporate Branding, brand guide design and development, graphic designs for calendars, sales collateral, leaflets, brochures, business stationary, packaging design and product mock ups, t-shirt design and printing

Exhibition Services: Exhibition stand design, build and removal, light boxes, pop up and pull up banner, in-house large format printing for exhibition stands, vehicles and building exteriors.

If you want your advertising and marketing to work smarter in 2010 and beyond, call Pixel8 in Manchester on 0161 228 6489 – 0845 230 1336 or contact us by email today.

Having successfully redesigned the new website for Atlanta based Pregnancy & Newborn magazine, the Pixel8 design and marketing agency in Manchester, UK is very pleased to have received this recommendation:

“Pregnancy & Newborn is the leading pre- and post-natal publication in the US.  Late 2009 we undertook the challenge of refining our web channel in hopes of delivering a more engaging web presence for our readers and advertisers.

In our RFP process we received several great proposals – but a key piece we were looking for in our web designers was the ability to create something fresh for the US market.  That is why we ultimately chose Pixel8 to redesign our website – their track record demonstrated their design skills and we knew a UK based company would dare to be a little more innovative.

Throughout the Pregnancy & Newborn website redesign project it has been a great pleasure working with Pixel8.  They were able to take minimal requirements, relayed in layman’s terms, and translate them into a fabulous new web presence for us.

They understood what we were looking for – something upscale and stylish for our readers to enjoy in conjunction with their print magazine.  Pixel8 delivered an engaging, easy to navigate website for us.  In addition it has also been designed with the editors in mind and it has proven to be extremely user friendly for P&N staff.  We particularly like how easy it is to configure content for our surveys and polls, and also add articles in our Baby Buzz section.

The project proved how easy it is to work in a global environment – given that we are in Atlanta and Pixel8 are in Manchester – it was remarkably easy to communicate and get things done.

I have also been extremely impressed by how much was delivered for the fixed fee.  I feel we got great value for money and Pixel8 has continued to be very responsive throughout the launch period.

I would not hesitate to recommend Pixel8 in Manchester, and I would absolutely engage them again in work for Pregnancy & Newborn as we further enhance the website.

It’s great to have great partners who are professional and fun to work with.”

Joanna Pritchard, Ph.D.

Marketing and Insight

Pregnancy & Newborn Magazine

Manchester design and marketing agency Pixel8 has been selected to take part in a £10million high growth programme which aims to generate 2,000 jobs in the North West of England over the next three years.

The northern quarter-based agency was chosen because judges believe Pixel8 has the capability to expand by at least 20 percent a year. As part of the programme, Pixel8 will receive intensive coaching from an experienced mentor, high growth workshops and networking opportunities.

Pixel8 has already demonstrated its strong growth potential, increasing sales by over 30% during the recession of 2009 and taking on three new fulltime members of staff.  The agency is also relocating into larger offices in the northern quarter this summer.

Working with both multinational global brands and small business owners, Pixel8’s new clients include 2ergo, the Global Mobile Technology Provider, the Vertex Group of International Outsourcing Companies, and SME’s such as portrait photographer Rebeka Fiona, and the motorbike lawyers at SorryMate.com

Joint managing director, Jamie Watson said “the high growth programme offers us the chance to take an outside view of our business, considering longer term goals and how we can best work towards them”.

For more info please visit www.Pixel8ltd.com or the www.HighGrowthProgramme.co.uk

Many small business owners find that when they need to update or fix a problem on their website, that the web design company doesn’t respond, or they want an arm and a leg to fix a problem or to simply add a few new pages.

When wedding and portrait photographer Rebeka Fiona contacted Pixel8, her website needed some immediate technical support, a little clean up work and a few minor updates.

We’ll let Rebeka tell you the rest of the story……

“I needed some work doing on my website urgently and my previous web developer had left me in the lurch.  I discussed the work with Jamie Watson at Pixel8 and he gave me one of his best web developers to fix the problems, and to update the website the way that I wanted.

I have been working with this developer at Pixel8 for some time now and have already ordered three more pieces of work.  I’m a very particular person, who works in a visual industry, I know exactly how I want my website to look and work.  Working with Pixel8 is a pleasure. They always get the work done to an extremely high level and are very quick and speedy to get back with answers to any questions, which I think as a client, is crucial.

The staff at Pixel8 in Manchester are also extremely knowledgeable about their subject.  Which is wonderful as when as a client you are looking to move your business forward in a certain way, they have the expertise and ideas with which to do so.

I would recommend Pixel8 to any business without hesitation.  And in fact I have done so.

Great Work Pixel8!”

Rebeka Fiona
Photographer

www.rebekafiona.com

Sorrymate are specialist “bikers for bikers” solicitors that handle motor bike accident claims. They’re all too familiar with accidents caused by motorists who say “Sorry mate, I didn’t see you” after their car has collided with a motor bike.

Sorrymate wanted to inject some vitality into their brand, but to keep elements of their existing logo design. Pixel8 immediately understood that the client wanted the brand refreshed, and not completely changed.

Initial branding design concepts were quickly developed, and Pixel8’s logo design team created a new version of the Sorrymate logo featuring a biker’s helmet with a cracked visor. The new logo and brand design concepts were shown on storyboards to the client who was really pleased with the look and feel of their new branding.

The new logo was then applied as a stand-alone icon across all other print advertising, marketing materials and business stationary. Pixel8 also developed a credit card style SMIDSY (Sorry mate, I didn’t see you) card for bikers to carry in case of an accident.

Pixel8’s exhibition design team got to work creating a 16 panel exhibition stand for a Sorrymate exhibit at the NEC in Birmingham, this included wraparound artwork for the exhibitions’ stand counters. The exhibition graphics were printing in-house on Pixel8’s large format printers.

To complete the new branding, Pixel8’s web designers developed a new website for Sorrymate which is now live at www.sorrymate.com

To see all the final branding designs please visit the Sorrymate design portfolio.

If your company is looking at rebranding, you may find our branding questions answered blog helpful. For more information, please call Pixel8 in Manchester on 0161 228 6489 – 0845 230 1336 or contact us by email

The web design and corporate branding teams at Pixel8 in Manchester have launched a new brand and a new website for a UK business locations portal.

locations4business provides comprehensive and comparable information on all potential business locations in the UK. It’s a one-stop-shop for companies within and outside the UK looking to establish new business operations.

The website helps existing companies, start ups and investors to find the best locations for their organisation and provides detailed information required to make an initial evaluation.

Pixel8 created the brand identity, a new logo design, the website design and web development of a CMS system and an integrated database.

The new website be found at www.locations4business.com

In addition to providing web design services for the Tullis Russell Group, we also provide web hosting and website support services.

Part of this work has recently involved updating their website with additional product information and stockist information. We also carry out routine maintenance on their Linux web server including downloading and installing the latest server software updates and patches. We now also provide Google analytics consultancy.

We look forward to our continuing our web support services for Tullis Russell in 2010 and to increasing visitors to their website through our search engine optimisation (SEO) and SEO copywriting services.

The Lifestyle Blind company came back to Pixel8 to keep their recently re-designed website up to date, refreshing their website banners to maintain a constant stream of monthly offers.

With the new style, the web design team at Pixel8 designed a banner that not only looked fresh and modern, but was also functional and informative. The client needed a quick turnaround on this job so every effort was made to ensure that the artwork was delivered ontime. We look forward to further work opportunities with the Lifestyle Blinds Company in the near future.

The graphic design team at Pixel8 were asked by BDi to design artwork for their company vans as part of a ‘re-vamp’ to their corporate branding.

As BDi’s core structure was based around CCTV, Access and Guarding, it was essential that we reflected these services in the design. We got the ball rolling by taking the new style that had been developed and applied to the website design, echoing elements into the van design to ensure that the brand had consistency throughout all of their new applications.

We were delighted to be involved with BDi at this stage for this new venture and wish them every success with the new look and feel in the future.