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What focused communications will do

Focused communication is about connecting with your customers through storytelling, becausepeople listen to stories. To effectively command attention and capture your target audience, its crucialto communicate your services honestly, intelligently and with complete clarity to those influencing yourtarget audience. Its a bout credibility. Communication isnt simply selling a service; its about removingthe barriers to conversion by engaging with your buyers.

Public Relations (PR) is about building and managing your reputation, positioning your business sopeople believe in your brand and trust you. In today's environment, PR can exponentially add to thepower of a strong advertising campaign in a cost- effective way, so its critical to integrate it with your

sales and marketing activities to see maximum return on investment.

Brand Positioning

We are aware that Off to Work can be sub-divided into three key business channels People,Training and Events which each encompass a number of other services.

Aims & Objectives

Based on the discussions we had with Sarah Watkins and on our own observations of Off to Work scurrent business, we understand your chief aim is:

To position Off to Work as the most credible and innovative provider of staffing, training,

recruitment and events in the UK.

To achieve this aim, we see our objectives as being to:

Our PR Communications andMarketing approach

r Off to Work

People

Events staffing Recruitmentconsultancy

Platinum

staffing service Headhunting &candidatesourcingservice

TrainingAcademy

Off-the-shelf,

assessedtrainingmodules

Accreditedcourses (CIEH,BIIAB,

RIPH, HSE)

Mobile skillstraining

(bespoke &hosted at

client site)

The TrainingShop onlineshopping cart

for courses

Event School

Events

Off to Workevents

Partner events

ISES

Square Mile

Salute 2013

National Chef ofYear 2012Best of British

The WestminsterCollection events

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Build Off to Work s brand profile within the events and hospitality markets, by promotinghospitality and events staffing services, recruitment consultancy, training courses, Off to Work events and company USPs

Raise the profile of Off to Work s accredited training courses for events and hospitalityprofessionals, to increase enrolments

Grow the profile of Off to Work events and increase attendance Attract and win new clients for Off to Work Attract new talent to Off to Work s hospitality and events teams

Your target market

People Event venuesEvent organisersRecruitersJobseekers

Training Hospitality & events professionalsEmployers/employees

Students

Events Hospitality & events professionalsIndustry ambassadors & spokespeoplePartnership organisations & their members/associates

Our approach for Off to Work

Targets, plans, activities measurement is key

Exceptional results from PR and marketing occur when strategic thinking and creative execution canbe rooted to engaging customers with quality information and this is Custards niche. We are drivenby outcome not output, unlike other agencies that measure success by column inches andadvertising value equivalents . This means we focus on achieving genuine sales leads for yourbusiness, not simply volume of conversation.

We see leads as the core demonstration of Custard delivering you value for money, whether thatsclients hiring you to staff their events, delegates booking to attend Off to Work events or studentsenrolling onto your courses.

With outcome critical, we re big on setting targets. We therefore recommend that we carry out a fullaudit of all marketing materials, communication channels, social media channels, website content,website statistics and Off to Work partnerships to determine where there is potential to improve.

Maximising return on investment

Identifying ways to optimise the ROI of your content is a critical part of integrated communications.We know you are eager to distinguish between communications aimed at the recruiter andcommunications aimed at the job seeker. We agree this is essential and so our full audit will allow usto build a cohesive framework of all communications and the ways in which they can and should worktogether to maximise the number of relevant people who access your information and content.

To maximise your investment into content, we will advise and construct a strategy that will allow theOff to Work magazine, newsletters, website news feeds and social media accounts to work fluidlytogether to recycle content. We will make recommendations about the most effective c hannels for

engaging with your target audience depending on the topic and we will evaluate how effectively youare presenting advice, research, opinions and information. We will offer full editorial support and willbe available as your extended marketing and communications team.

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Getting to know you

The full audit of all Off to Work channels is part of our commitment to getting to know your brand andunderstanding what unique traits we can tap into to paint a dynamic picture of the Off to Work business in all corners of its operation.

In the initial weeks, we will spend time at your London office (and at your Birmingham and Scotlandoffices as required) meeting and interviewing key members of Off to Work staff. This is a vital part ofour strategy for connecting with the personality behind the Off to Work brand and the individualcharacters who bring it to life through their unique skill sets, career backgrounds and personalopinions.

Material collected from Custard interviews provides much of the framework for the detailed PR andmarketing plan we will create and deliver for Off to Work . We will pitch the individual profiles of yourkey team members to media channels and develop stories that promote the talent within yourbusiness.

Connecting with your target audience

Story brainstorming is about connecting ideas together. It is about having an ear to the ground withinthe wider industry and spotting the opportunities to ignite discussion of the trends and challenges thatencircle the industry Off to Work operates within.

Having a visible brand voice can be a powerful way of connectingwith your target audience, beyond the hard sell of directmarketing and we will use our strong journalism skills to positionyou as authoritative commentators on themes directly linked toyour key business channels people, training and events whichwe believe should include, but are not limited to:

Hospitality skills training and responding to industry

attitudes towards hospitality as a career Developing talent Nurturing company culture Expert events theming Experiential marketing and events Executing unforgettable events Skills mentoring, job shadowing and apprenticeships The UK qualifications landscape for hospitality and events

professionals

How we secure coverage

We have dedicated time to developing strong, personalrelationships with the editorial teams of the hospitality, tourism, leisure, conference and events tradepress, and with lifestyle and travel magazines, national press, business publications, food and travelbloggers and critics. We know what makes them tick, how they like to receive information and when.

Regular liaison with these journalists means we know what topics and special features they arerunning at any particular time. This puts us in a strong position to negotiate opportunities to securecredible editorial coverage for Off to Work , in the publications that are directly influencing your clients,future employees and event delegates.

Unforgettable events

Fulfilling the potential of Off to Work s Event School and Best of British events is a critical part of yourbrand positioning. We understand the audiences you are trying to attract and have significant

I really do appreciateeverything you have

invested inunderstanding the

brand and our businessto get the results and it

hasnt goneunnoticed.

Liz West, PR Manag er,Al ton Tow ers Resor t

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experience designing, planning and delivering an extensive number of events on behalf of Custardclients. These include large-scale speaker programmes for trade shows like Hotelympia andHospitality, speciality food and wine events, FAM trips, exhibition stands and marketing campaigns tosupport presence at shows like SquareMeal and Confex, as well as advice-led seminars andmasterclasses on subjects ranging from Google Analytics and event organisation, to food science andwedding planning.

As seasoned speakers ourselves, we know what makes a brilliant and unforgettable seminar or diningexperience. Having an eager eye for trends has afforded us a strong track record of recruiting crowd-pulling speakers with fresh and influential expertise to share. We come with armfuls of contactsspanning hospitality, leisure, tourism and retail.

Case studies

Hotelympias HOSPA Hub 2012

The UKs leading exhibition for foodservice and hospitality,Hotelympia, commissioned Custard to design from scratch afive-day programme containing 25 individual seminars,reflecting the very latest in technology and digital marketinginnovation for operators of restaurants, hotels and hospitalitybusinesses.

Securing representatives from companies including myhotelsgroup, PwC, STR Global, Caterer & Hotelkeeper, MovingFood and The Gondola Group, topics incorporated talk ofmobile phone app design, consumer behaviour in mobilepurchasing, SEO, experiential web design and emailmarketing.

Visitor numbers to Hotelympia 2012 increased 4% on theprevious show, with 33,000 attendees passing through thedoor of ExCel.

One Wimpo le S t reet Technolog y Masterc lasses

Understanding that engagement and relationship building isa major factor in event buyer behaviour, we initiated aneducation-driven campaign for leading central Londonconference and event venue One Wimpole Street, home ofthe Royal Society of Medicine.

High specification technology and an outstanding audio visual team are a leading selling point for One

Wimpole Street. To demonstrate this to their target audience of event planners and buyers, and enticethese lucrative bookers to the venue to experience the surroundings and service first-hand, weinitiated a free educational breakfast masterclass series designed to deliver tips and expert advice ontechnology related topics.

These included Google AdWords, mobile apps for the venue industry and social media optimisation.Speakers utilised the venues technology, while the masterclasses were streamed li ve over theinternet to delegates wanting to watch remotely.

As the fourth masterclass approaches, the success of the series to date can be seen in theexponential increase in venue show-rounds, the media attendance secured at every session andextensive press coverage achieved in titles directly influencing One Wimpole Streets buyers onearticle within six minutes of the event announcement going public. Bookings for the forthcoming

masterclass reached 200 delegates within 24 hours.

Petra has a brilliant can-do attitude in all tasks she

tackles. I would thoroughlyrecommend her as amarketing or design

consultant. Petra alwaysdelivers on time and with

great results.

Toby Wand, ManagingDirector,

Fresh Montgomery(Hotelym pia / IFE / Hosp itali ty

Sh o w)

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Harbour & Jones s tory l ine development

The owners of this specialist contract catering company wanted to achieve a larger profile within thefiercely competitive foodservice sector and they were eager to assert their successes to industry

peers and potential clients as a way to showcase their growth and businessvalues. As their PR agency, we worked to develop a positive story abouttheir turnover doubling to 35m in just two years, peppering this with thecoordinated release of announcements about a series high profile contractwins within the City.

In October 2011, Patrick Harbour and Nathan Jones ran as the cover storyin Caterer & Hotelkeeper, leading to a detailed three-page interview featurethat very successfully positioned the duo as hot property in the contractcatering sector.

Just a couple of months later, we then secured the front cover interviewfeature in the January 2012 edition of FSM magazine, which is a specialist

title for the contract catering sector. This ran as an exclusive, with the interview performed on site atH&J s new site, the London Stock Exchange.

Our approach: Audit, Create, Deliver

Phase 1

Audit all Off to Work marketing and communications, including social media, magazine andnewsletters.

Meet with Sarah Watkins (and other relevant staff) to discuss Custard recommendations.

Phase 2

Create, manage and implement a comprehensive 12-month PR, Communications andMarketing strategy for Off to Work , integrating your three key business channels People,Training and Events. Within this, we will incorporate strategic activities regarding editorial,media liaison, client communications such as the magazine and newsletters, press releasesand social media.

As part of PR, Communications and Marketing strategy, develop Off to Work s own eventsand detail the approach to maximising relationships with other event partners, including butnot limited to ISES, Square Mile Salute, The Westminster Collection and National Chef of theYear.

Phase 3

Deliver 12-month PR, Communications and Marketing strategy.

Create centralised Press Office and create a media pack detailing all areas of the business.

Client update meetings

To effectively implement all communications and marketing activities, share results and feedback anddiscuss future initiatives, we propose that we get together monthly. We will supplement this with afortnightly update report and/or phone conversation as required.

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Custard Services

Strategic Communications & Marketing

Short and long-term marketing and communications strategies Social media strategy, management and measurement

Newsletter strategy, content planning and distribution management Reputation management Brand identity Brand positioning Media liaison Media seeding Media monitoring Storyline development Events and experiential campaigns Direct mail and email marketing Advertising Channel integration

Editorial Services

Publication design and production Corporate and marketing literature Copy editing Interviewing Features writing Press release writing Writing for the web / SEO Research reports and whitepapers

Media tools monitoring press coverage

Media database

Fast and reliable access to journalists is critical to securing media opportunities for our clients, whichis why Custard has invested in a powerful marketing and PR service by global provider Vocus. Thisextensive, live database and information tool gives us access to the editors, staff writers andcontributors of every publication in the UK both on and offline.

With more than 150,000 UK journalists and bloggers, media outlets and publicity opportunitiesdetailed, including dates of awards, conferences and tradeshows, forward features for the varioustitles, twitter handles and LinkedIn profiles, Custard always has the latest information to hand. The

full-time media research team at Vocus makes more than 3,000 updates every day.

Press cuttings service

A fulfilling aspect of effectively engaging with the magazines, websites and blogs your customers arereading is when we secure coverage for Off to Work in features and articles. We employ a specialistdigital press cuttings service provider, Yellow News, to gain as it happens access to news coverageand opinion, both on and offline.

To enable us to supply you with cuttings of any press coverage achieved and to enable you to storeand distribute these amongst your colleagues, you are required by law to purchase a NewspaperLicensing Association (NLA) licence.

If we ever need anycomment on social

media, youll be myfirst point of contact.

Emm a Eversham, Edi tor,BigHospi ta l i ty.co .uk

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All press cuttings from national and regional titles fall under this regulation and we can provide morethorough guidance on NLA licensing as required. We are able to arrange this NLA licence on yourbehalf. Please see the proposed budget for details.

Your Custard team

Custard Communications is a healthy communicationsagency specialising in the hospitality industry. We are asmall business and that makes us nimble. We movequickly to respond to and influence industry andconsumer behaviour and we proudly deliver a big punchin everything we do.

Our client include event venues like Alton Towers andChandos House , restaurants like The Clink and Lupit a ,independent hotels like Tudor Farmhouse , hospitalityindustry suppliers like Pathfinder Energy Management and trade associations like The Westminster

Collection . Relationships are critical to us, so we alwaysstrive to provide consistently outstanding service and ourexcellent client retention record is proof of this.

Much of our business has come to us through word ofmouth recommendation.

Wed love to tell you more about the team at Custard. Tokee p this proposal succinct, weve simply included linksto our individual team profiles here, so at yourconvenience, please do explore why we have the skillsto take Off to Work forward and deliver exceptionalresults.

Petra Clayton , Managing Director (@CleverCustard)Sophie Allcock , Communications Manager (@CravingCustard)Felicity Butcher , Senior Account Manager (@LilLadyCustard)Vicki Patterson , Account Manager (@CurlyCustard)Alexandra Bertram , Account Executive (@Keen_As_Custard)

You have been amazingand again demonstrated

why we would be mad toconsider another PR

agency. Your businesswriting is exceptional andquite amazing given thelimited information you

are often provided with.

Wendy Greenhalgh,Board Director,

The Westminster Col lec t ion

http://www.custardcommunications.com/working-with-custard/the-team/http://www.custardcommunications.com/working-with-custard/the-team/http://www.custardcommunications.com/working-with-custard/the-team/sophie/http://www.custardcommunications.com/working-with-custard/the-team/sophie/http://www.custardcommunications.com/working-with-custard/the-team/felicity-butcher/http://www.custardcommunications.com/working-with-custard/the-team/felicity-butcher/http://www.custardcommunications.com/working-with-custard/the-team/vicki/http://www.custardcommunications.com/working-with-custard/the-team/vicki/http://www.custardcommunications.com/working-with-custard/the-team/alexandra-bertram/http://www.custardcommunications.com/working-with-custard/the-team/alexandra-bertram/http://www.custardcommunications.com/working-with-custard/the-team/alexandra-bertram/http://www.custardcommunications.com/working-with-custard/the-team/vicki/http://www.custardcommunications.com/working-with-custard/the-team/felicity-butcher/http://www.custardcommunications.com/working-with-custard/the-team/sophie/http://www.custardcommunications.com/working-with-custard/the-team/

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Proposed budget

To create and deliver a PR, Communications and Marketing strategy for Off to Work , we propose aminimum of three days consultancy per month .

Based on this commitment and a minimum 12-month contract, we propose a daily rate of 475.

Activity Monthly cost

PR, communications & marketing consultancy:

Creation and implementation of PR, Communications & Marketingstrategy

Event development and support

Social Media planning and integration

Editorial services, storyline development and media liaison

Management of Off to Work Press Office

Administration and meetings

1,425

Press cuttings service:

Standard press cuttings service to include up to 25 cuttings per monthbased on phrase Off to Work

AND

NLA Licence for distribution to colleagues and to print out and storecuttings supplied by Custard from national and regional press

125

All prices quoted are exclusive of VAT. Our fees are exclusive of the following disbursements andexpense items relating to the agreed strategy: accommodation; design, artwork and print; direct mail;market research; courier services; newspaper and subscription services; photography and prints;travel.