Though many successful local agencies have grown rapidly there are now numerous roles where there simply aren’t sufficient locally based skills. This problem has been made worse as large organisations like the BBC, who have re-located large digital departments into the area, have recruited lots of extra staff from the talent pool.

There isn’t a day goes by where I don’t see another hugely successful local company desperately looking for people to help to sustain the growth of their business or hear about someone who has more work than they can handle. As a service industry we’re totally dependent on having access to talented people and given the massive rise in demand for digital solutions, there simply aren’t enough people in the area with the right skills looking for work.

It’s a good time to be a PHP Developer, Project Manager, SEO Executive, Account Manager (the list goes on) as there are lots of roles to choose from. Vanilla Storm’s most recent recruit relocated from Denmark to join the company (and no, he didn’t watch The Killing, or Borgen!).

On 20th February Manchester Digital will host its annual Talent Day where students from Universities and Colleges from around the region will come to Manchester Town Hall to find out what careers might be available to them in the area. If they’re not sufficiently convinced, they’ll probably just drift away when they graduate, never to return. The following day we come together for a skills conference to review and discuss what else we can do to solve this skills shortage.

If, like me, you want to see our industry grow and retain as much talent in the region as possible, you’ll sign your company up to attend this hugely important event. Even if you’re not recruiting right now, or even looking to take on a graduate, the few hours you’ll spend will be hugely rewarding as you promote your company to people who may well, in a few years’ time when they have even more experience, apply for a role you’re advertising.

So what are you waiting for?

http://www.manchesterdigital.com/events/skills-summit-talentday

Don’t worry if you’re not a member of Manchester Digital – please just join (it’ll probably be cheaper to the event this way too!). Any money raised from events like this go towards funding resources to make initiatives like this even possible.

Just post it in your accounts under CSR, because we all need to work together and collectively take responsibility for growing our industry – no one else is going to do it for us!

Ideally we’re looking for someone with experience in a similar role or a senior developer looking for a new challenge. The successful candidate will be an excellent problem solver and will have proven experience in building e-commerce websites using PHP. They will be enthusiastic and motivated with excellent leadership skills.

If this is of interest you can find out more on our recruitment page.

It’s a dog waste bin with an ad from Pets at Home. I wasn’t sure about it at first. I mean who wants to associate their brand with, well you know . . . .  But then I thought that it’s actually very clever. It gets straight to the target audience and at a time when they’re no doubt at the end of a muddy walk. The products they’re advertising are dog grooming products.  Quite a creative use of product placement.

Vanilla Storm will be closing for the Christmas holidays on Friday 21 December 2012.  We will be closed during Christmas week and will re-open on Wednesday 2 January 2013.

Should you need to contact us urgently over the holidays please email help@vanillastorm.co.uk.

We would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a very merry Christmas and a happy and prosperous New Year.

We’re currently seeking a PHP Developer to join our team in Piccadilly Gardens, Manchester.

Interested? Further details and information on how to apply can be found on our recruitment page.

Strictly no agencies, consultants, jobs banks or digital recruitment sites.

Monday 4 June – Closed
Tuesday 5 June – Closed

We’ll be back again at 9.00 on Wednesday 6 June.

Should you need to contact us urgently during the holidays please either leave a message at 0161 212 1460 or email help@vanillastorm.co.uk and someone will come back to you. Any non-urgent messages will be dealt with on our return.

Enjoy the holiday!

An exciting opportunity has arisen and we’re looking for a capable and highly proficient Digital Account Manager to join our team in Piccadilly Gardens, Manchester.

Full details can be found on our recruitment page.

All of our recruitment is carried out by our in-house team. Strictly no agencies, consultants or jobs banks.

SAScon (short for Search, Analytics and Social Media Conference) is a not for profit event that was created by members of the local digital community. The founders include one of our Directors, Richard Hudson, along with Simon Wharton (PushON), Richard Gregory (Latitude), Peter Young (MediaCom) and Peter Cobley (Home James). The event is also supported by industry bodies Manchester Digital and SEMPO.

Richard explains the thinking behind the event. “This originally came about as we wanted to organise a world class conference in Manchester that brought together the best speakers, yet was affordable so that everyone could come along. We also wanted to make sure that every attendee took something away from the event – whether that be learning something new, making new contacts, getting more business etc and that the talks weren’t just a series of pitches.”

“Even the most experienced digital professional needs to keep their knowledge up to date  and SAScon is an excellent way to do this. But it’s not just for techies, anyone running an online business or e-commerce site will learn something to help them move their site forward or grow their sales.”

The event takes place at The Hive in Manchester on 17th and 18th May 2012. More information can be found at www.sascon.co.uk and there are still a few tickets available.

Vanilla Storm customers can receive a discount on SAScon ticket prices by emailing info@vanillastorm.co.uk.

Piccadilly House
49 Piccadilly
Manchester
M1 2AP

Tel: 0161 212 1460

The telephones are now switched on and Courtney is ready to take your call.

Thank you for your patience.

Pictured: Courtney Allan, Superstar

Please make a note of our new address :

Vanilla Storm
Piccadilly House
49 Piccadilly
Manchester
M1 2AP

We’re hoping the phones will be switched on by 11.00 this morning. Until then should you need to contact us urgently please either telephone 0161 282 4525 and leave a message or email help@vanillastorm.co.uk.

Your web and email service will not be affected by the move.

Nearly there!

Pictured: Courtney Allan, Office Assistant, Model, Life Saver

Please note that your web and email services will not be disrupted by the move. Our servers are located off premises and so there will be no disruptions.

Between now and Monday should you need to contact us urgently please email help@vanillastorm.co.uk or leave a message on our voice mail at 0161 282 4525 and we will respond. Any non-urgent enquiries will be dealt with after the move.

More updates to follow.

Pictured: Courtney Allan, Office Assistant, Chief Removal Consultant and all round good sport.

Exciting news!  Vanilla Storm is moving next week.  We’re packing up our offices in Heaton Chapel and moving to Piccadilly Gardens.

We will be contacting clients today with new contact details and timings but for now here’s what you need to know:

Packing Day: Friday 20 April 2012 (closing at 4.00pm)
Date of Move: Monday 23 April 2012 (opening at around 11.00am, fingers and everything crossed)
New Address as of Monday 23 April: Vanilla Storm, Piccadilly House, 49 Piccadilly, Manchester, M1 2AP (woop!)
New Telephone No. as of Monday 23 April: 0161 212 1460 (working from Monday 23rd at 11.00)

Will this Affect my Website?

No. Our servers our located off premises and there will be no disruption to your website or email service.

Contacting Vanilla Storm During the Move

We’re hoping to keep any communication disruptions to an absolute minimum. However, please be aware that we will be closing early this Friday (20 April) to allow us time to pack up the computers. We’re hoping to be back online again by 11.00am on Monday 23rd but do please bear with us.

During the move should you need to contact us urgently please email help@vanillastorm.co.uk.

We look forward to welcoming you to our swanky new home.

The office will be closed over the Easter weekend on the following days:

6 April (Good Friday) – Closed
9 April (Easter Monday) – Closed

We’ll be back again at 9.00 on Tuesday 10 April.

Should you need to contact us urgently during the holidays please either leave a message at 0161 282 4525 or email help@vanillastorm.co.uk and someone will come back to you. Any non-urgent messages will be dealt with on our return.

Enjoy the holiday!

Adopting a good marketing plan and setting time aside each week to work on this can help further your business and bring in a steady stream of work.

Here are our top 20 useful marketing tips for small businesses.

1. Marketing Plan

   Writing a marketing plan may sound like an obvious step but many people miss this out. A good marketing plan will help you to establish your goals, work out strategies and monitor and evaluate the success of your campaigns.

   If you’ve never written a marketing plan before this may seem daunting but there are number of guides and templates that can help you get started.

   The Business Link website offers lots of advice on this subject:

   We use the SOSTAC® framework to help with our planning:

   The Chartered Institute of Marketing website provides a number of guides and toolkits that are free to download:

2. Purpose and Audience

   With any marketing campaign think carefully about your purpose and audience. Ask yourself the following questions: What are you trying to achieve? Are you trying to sell a specific product or service, create awareness of a brand or maybe increase subscribers or readership? Try to be as specific as possible. Pinning down the purpose can help determine the best marketing tools.

   Think carefully about your audience. Who are your customers? Try to segment them into different groups. Rather than sending out blanket campaigns target specific groups with tailored communications.

3. Promote your Website Address

   Make sure your website address is included in all literature. This includes your email signature, business cards, flyers, brochures, signage and packaging.

   If you own a bricks and mortar store include a postcard with your web address to encourage your store customers to shop online and consider providing a money-off incentive.

4. Press Packs

   Put together an online press pack and make it as easy as possible for media companies to access it. This may include PDF versions of press releases, downloadable images in a variety of resolutions, lookbooks, newsletters, video content, along with background information about the company and useful contacts.

5. QR Codes

   QR codes or Quick Response codes are cropping up everywhere; in magazines, in printed ads and on billboards. The codes contain information such as web addresses, messages, email addresses etc. and are a quick way for potential customers to grab information about your company as they are scanned and read by mobile phones.

   Consider adding a QR code to your literature. There are a number of free QR code generators. Just type ‘QR code generator’ into Google.

   Learn More about QR codes on Mashable.

6. Email Newsletters

   Email newsletters are a great way to remain in contact with your customers and to forward interesting news, special offers, promotions etc. Try to target specific customer groups with tailored content, rather than sending out blanket ‘one size fits all’ mailings.

   Tip – When you’re writing email newsletters think carefully about your calls to action and your landing pages. If you direct users to a page on your website then make sure that the page contains useful and pertinent information.

   Most good email newsletter suppliers provide access to statistics documenting open and click through rates etc. Monitor your campaigns carefully. Experiment a little and find out what works for your subscribers.

   There are a number of companies offering relatively inexpensive email newsletter software. Our favourite is MailChimp which is free for the first 2,000 subscribers provided you don’t exceed their sending limit.

   Make sure you are familiar with data protection issues before you begin sending email newsletters. Further details can be found on the Information Commissioner’s website.

7. Networking

   Consider joining a networking group. Though this may seem a little daunting at first, networking events provide a great opportunity to speak to a number of businesses in a short space of time.

   Make sure you take plenty of business cards and any relevant marketing literature. When someone hands you a card jot their details on the back so that you can recall conversations after the event.

   Don’t oversell. Networking is all about getting to know people, building up relationships and recommendations.

   Remember to follow up with pertinent contacts after the event.

   We can personally recommend the following networks:

   • Simply Networking
   • The Business Network
8. Update Your Website

   Make sure your website is up-to-date and provides relevant information about your company and its activities. Not only will this encourage repeat visitors but search engines rate websites with regularly updated content more highly than static sites.

9. Blog Posts

   Update your blog regularly. Blogs provide a great opportunity to connect with your customers. Think carefully about what would add value. For example, if your company is an online shop selling beauty products, then write about beauty regimes, how to achieve different looks and think about adding videos showing how to apply different products. If you’re an events company provide tips and checklists on running successful events. Find out what your customers need to know and provide the answers.

   Write about what you know and demonstrate your expertise. Establish yourself as an expert in your field.

   Enable comments and invite readers to provide feedback and enter into discussions.

10. Guest Blogging

    Identify well-respected bloggers in your industry and offer to write a guest blog post. Write about what you know well and find popular blogs that complement your services. In return ask for a link back to your own website.

    This is a great way to establish yourself as an expert in your field and to make yourself known to a wider audience. It will also provide valuable links back to your own website

11. SEO

    Optimise your website content for the search engines. Many people assume that Search Engine Optimisation is something complex and technical. It’s not. However, it can be time consuming .

    Following a few common sense steps can significantly improve your search engine ranking. Most content management systems (CMS) will allow you to optimise your content down to a meta tag level.

    If you’re not confident in doing this yourself or you don’t have the time or resources then consider employing a professional company to do this for you.

12. Ads

    A good understanding of your audience will throw up a surprising number of opportunities. Where do your customers go? What are they like? What do they read? What do they watch? Where do they live? How do they travel?

    Ads need not be expensive. Many trade publications and websites will offer reasonably priced options. Always check on readership and distribution and work out exactly what you’re paying for. For example, some websites charge per length of time, some charge based on the number of clicks your ads receive and some on the number of impressions (the number of times your ad is displayed.)

    Be creative. Consider a variety of options. Consider trade publications, billboards, public transport, local press etc. as well as online options such as Pay Per Click, social media ads, affiliates, online magazines, directories, blogs and websites.

13. Local Press

    Journalists at local newspapers are always looking for newsworthy stories. The word ‘newsworthy’ is key here. Think carefully about what will make a good story and familiarise yourself with the publication to work out what type of stories they publish.

    Always send new releases to named contacts and follow up.

14. Social Media

    Treat social media like any other form of marketing. i.e. work out which (if any) social media platforms your customers / potential customers are using. There’s no point in spending hours updating your Facebook page if your customers don’t use Facebook.

    Define your purpose. What are you trying to achieve? Try to be specific and tailor your content accordingly.

    Don’t just jump in. Do your research and plan carefully. Think about putting together a social media strategy and ensure that all members of staff adhere to this.

    Useful Articles:

    7 Steps For a Successful Social Media Strategy by Social Media Examiner

    6 Steps in Developing a Social Media Strategy by Click Z

    Creating a social media strategy for B2B organisations by eConsultancy

    Why your best social media strategy might be not having one by eConsultancy

    10 reasons you need a social media strategy by Smart Insights

    Quick Guide on Social Media Marketing by Smart Insights

15. Online Magazines and Blogs

    When preparing press releases and press packs, don’t forget online publications and blogs. One significant advantage online publications have over printed press is that reactions can be immediate. If visitors see something they like they can click through to your website straight away.

    Get to know the prominent online writers and bloggers in your field.

16. Utilising Existing Customers

    This sounds obvious but don’t forget your existing customers. Many companies spend all their time trying to attract new business but forget about their existing clients.

    For B2B companies, schedule in regular catch ups to see how you can help. Keep clients informed of updates and new services.

    For B2C companies segmentation is key. Where possible send out tailored content that is relevant to them.

    Blogs and social media are a great way to interact with your customers.

17. Trust

    People work with people they trust. There are a number of ways to establish this in your marketing activities and particularly on your website.

    • For B2B companies consider adding a testimonials page to your website. Ask your clients for a short paragraph on their experience with your company. Potential clients are more likely to trust what other people say about you than what you say about yourself.
    • Case studies are a great way to outline how you have helped a particular company and the benefits they have received as a result.
    • An online portfolio will act as a 24/7 showcase of your work to allow potential clients to work out whether you’re a good fit.
    • Displaying the logos of professional trade bodies and industry associations will also help establish you within your sector.
    • If you sell online, customer reviews are a great way to encourage people to purchase from your website. Research has shown that even slightly negative reviews can have a positive impact as it establishes honesty. Also, what one customer didn’t like about a product may not be relevant to another customer and will not necessarily dissuade them from buying.
    • Displaying credit card symbols and security logos can also help reassure online shoppers and it is important to ensure that your terms and conditions, delivery and returns policies are easily accessible on your website.

18. Content, Content, Content

    There’s a reason that people say ‘content is king’. Providing good quality, up-to-date content can demonstrate your skills and knowledge and establish you as an expert in your field. At the same time you can provide a value-add service and promote your company to a wider audience.

    Consider creating content in different forms and sharing via social networks.

    • Blog posts and news articles
    • Micro blogging via Twitter
    • Email newsletters
    • Video content can be shared via YouTube and Vimeo
    • Images via sites such as Flickr and Pinterest.
    • Online magazines can be produced and shared via sites such as Issuu
    • Presentations can be shared via Slideshare.
    • Webinars are a useful way of presenting and demonstrating information to groups of people. There’s lots of software that can be used for this purpose. Go To Meeting works well and seems to be quite popular.
    • eBooks are becoming increasingly popular and there are a number of formats to consider. For example, Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing allows you to self-publish your books and make them available on Kindle, iPad, iPhone, Android, Blackberry, Mac, and PC.

19. Offsite SEO or Link Building

    Google states that your website’s ranking is partially based the sites linking to your site and that the ‘quantity, quality, and relevance of links count towards your rating’.

    There are a number of ways to build up your inbound links. However, these methods shouldn’t be abused or overused. Google recommends that before embarking on link exchanges etc. that website owners ask themselves the question, ‘Is this going to be beneficial for my page’s visitors?’

    Popular link building methods include:

    • Creating reciprocal links with other companies. i.e. you link to them and they link back to you.
    • Submitting your site to relevant directories.
    • Guest blogging and linking back to your website.
    • Obtaining links back to your website via bloggers and other online writers linking back to your website.
    • Leaving comments on blog posts. However, your comments should be meaningful and insightful and should not be blatant attempts at advertising your company. ‘Nice Article, thanks’ won’t cut it.
    • Submitting press releases or articles to online PR and news sites.
    • Linking back to your website through social media sites.
    • Providing share icons on your website will help visitors to share your content on their own networks. Add This has a useful toolbar for this purpose.

    Remember, whatever methods you use provide relevant, quality content. People are far more likely to link back to you and share your content if you provide interesting and useful information.

20. Monitoring

    Whatever marketing activities you engage in it is important to monitor and manage progress. This will enable you to establish what works and what doesn’t and will help you to determine new targets and goals. If you’re investing in marketing, whether through time or money, it is important to be able to track your successes and areas for improvement.

    The following are useful tracking tools:

    • Google Analytics provides comprehensive web stats
    • Add This helps you track how your content is shared on social networks
    • MailChimp – If you manage your email newsletters via MailChimp you will have access to useful statistics for each campaign.
    • Hootsuite Social Analytics enables you to analyse your social campaigns.
    • Google Alerts enables you to monitor words and phrases and their use across the internet.
    • Google’s Keyword Research Tool provides data on the popularity of keywords and phrases, along with the level of competition.

Christmas goes too quickly doesn’t it? All of a sudden we’re back in the midst of it and those cosy days spent curled up watching box sets and eating speciality cheeses are quickly forgotten. The bells signal the start of the New Year and all those plans consigned to the ‘After Christmas’ list suddenly become a priority.

There’s a positive side too of course. January is the month for plans, resolutions and new beginnings. We start a new diary, flip over the page on our notebooks and think about the year ahead. It’s also a time to reflect on the previous year, take stock and move forward.

In 2011 Vanilla Storm turned seven. We got to work with some pretty exciting clients, providing them with a range of digital services and helped them to move their businesses forward.

Here are just a few of our highlights.

Women’s fashion store Sugarhill Boutique went live.

Alex Monroe’s award winning website underwent a redesign and their new Advent Calendar went live in December. New features were added to the site including bar code integration with Royal Mail.

Women’s retailer Cove launched their online shop.

Lazy Oaf underwent a redesign . . .

as did Stolen Thunder.

The new Intech Solutions website went live.

And Prodigy RED underwent a significant redesign and redevelopment with the addition of a number of enhanced functions.

And there were many, many more besides. See our portfolio for more examples of our work.

In other news, Richard Hudson was elected onto Manchester Digital’s Board and was re-elected into the council. He’s been working on a number of projects including the launch of their new website, development of the new MD Roster, Big Chip Awards and SASCON.

Did I mention we turned seven? Seven! I wonder what that is in web years? And just before the close of the year our own website underwent a bit of an overhaul as we dusted it down, redesigned, redeveloped and revamped it.

All in all 2011 was very kind to us.

So we now turn our attention to 2012 and put together our plans and goals for the coming year.

If you need help with your digital strategy for 2012 please don’t hesitate to get in touch. We would be very happy to help.

All good wishes for the year ahead!

Vanilla Storm will close for the holidays on Friday 23 December at 5.30. The office will be closed for Christmas week and will re-open again on Tuesday 3 January 2012 at 9.00.

Should you need to contact us urgently during this time please email help@vanillastorm.co.uk and we will respond to your query.

We would like to wish all of our clients a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year.

Well don’t they look grand.

We’re the proud sponsors of Shaw Cubs Under 8s. The junior football team was formed at the beginning of the season and are part of the North Wilts FA Minor League.

It looks as though their new training kit brought them luck as they stormed to victory last Sunday with a 3 goal win. Come on you cubs!

So, we changed our website. In fact we’ve changed just about everything – the logo, the design, the structure, the content.

It’s been a long time coming but we’re thrilled with the results and have received lots of positive feedback. We feel that the new site better represents our offering and what we’re all about.

A few new features:

• Slideshow on the home page to promote our main services
• Mini slider on the home page to showcase our latest work
• New search facility to enable visitors to search across all pages and blog posts
• Easy to follow portfolio split into projects and industries

One of my favourite things is something you probably won’t get to see. It’s our 404 error page.

Welcome! Come in and look around. Make yourself at home.

Vanilla Storm is an established web agency with an exciting and expanding portfolio of work and a diverse client base. We currently have a vacancy for a web designer with a minimum of 3 years experience to work on a number of web and ecommerce projects.

The successful candidate will demonstrate considerable visual flair and an excellent understanding of user focused design.

Responsibilities include:

• Creating and interpreting design briefs
• Creating original website and online shop layouts in Photoshop
• Creating web pages using standards compliant XHTML / CSS
• Liaising with clients at each stage of the design process
• Creating a variety of design elements for websites, online shops and other web applications

Essential Criteria:

• A minimum of 3 years experience in a related field
• A good knowledge of XHTML and CSS
• Experience of building web sites to W3C standards
• A good awareness of usability and accessibility issues
• Excellent Photoshop skills
• A good working knowledge of Dreamweaver
• Excellent written and oral communication skills
• Excellent attention to detail
• The ability to carry out website testing across various browsers and platforms to ensure that sites are displaying and functioning correctly.

The role is based in Heaton Chapel which is a ten minute train ride from both Manchester Piccadilly and Stockport train stations.

Salary: Depending on skills and experience

Closing Date: Monday 24 October 2011

How to Apply

If you are interested in applying for this position, please email Jenny Hudson at jobs [at] vanillastorm [dot] co [dot] uk to request a full job description. (Please request this first before sending your CV. We will send further instructions with the job description.)

All of our recruitment is carried out by our in-house team. Strictly no agencies, consultants or jobs banks.

Update

This position is now closed and successful applicants have been invited for interview. Thank you to everyone who applied.

Interesting interview with Shutl’s founder and CEO, Tom Allason.

Shutl provides a fast delivery service for online retailers, allowing delivery of goods in around 90 minutes. 90 minutes!

Interview via Spreading Jam.

After going through the recruitment process numerous times over the last few years I’ve read over 1,000 applications. In addition to some truly creative and inspiring applications I have seen a number of mistakes that appear time and time again, regardless of the position advertised. I have therefore put together some top tips for applying for a job in digital, whether you’re entering the industry for the first time or just looking for a new challenge.

Read the Instructions

It sounds like common sense doesn’t it but I’ve lost count of the number of people who don’t do this. Recruitment ads explain how to apply. Some companies will ask you to submit an application form, some prefer a CV. Our ads tend to be fairly short and succinct and therefore we ask people to send an email in the first instance to request the full job description. How do you know whether the job is for you and whether you have the relevant skills if you don’t read the full job description and person specification?

The next step in our process is to submit a covering letter and CV. We make this as easy as possible by stating clearly what we’re looking for in the covering letter. Despite this we still receive a significant number of CVs without a covering letter. We like to be as fair as possible and always go back to people to prompt them to send the covering letter. However, it immediately raises questions. Can this person follow simple instructions? Do they have the necessary attention to detail that the job requires? Are they interested in the job or just firing off random applications?

Punctuation and Grammar

Check your grammar, spelling and punctuation carefully in all written communications. Another seemingly obvious point but you’d be surprised. This is a real bug bear for me and I know I’m not the only one. Careless dashed off emails with little or no punctuation, the use of a lower case ‘i’ when referring to yourself give the impression that you’re careless, have no attention to detail and can’t really be bothered. It’s the fastest route to the ‘No’ file.

The Covering Letter

If an employer asks for a covering letter treat it as a gift. This is your opportunity to sell yourself and show why you’re the right person for the job. Again, go back to the instructions and find out what the company is looking for in the letter. If they just ask for a covering or supporting letter then go back to the ad and job description. Pull out the requirements and demonstrate how you meet the specification. Provide examples.

If there are some areas where you feel you don’t have the relevant experience, talk about similar experiences and how these skills are transferable.

Don’t Begin with a Negative

Don’t begin your covering letter with a negative. ‘Although I don’t have a degree . . .’, ‘I have been unemployed for x amount of years . . . .’ immediately creates the wrong impression. Start with a positive and focus on your abilities and achievements.

Address the Relevant Person

Most ads will provide a contact name. Make sure you address the contact using their correct name and title. Don’t use ‘Dear Sir / Madam’ when a name has been provided. At best it looks careless and at worst it appears rude.

Desired Criteria

Many jobs will have a section where they refer to ‘desired’ skills or experience as opposed to ‘required’ skills / experience. If you have the relevant desired skills and experience make sure you include examples. This will make you stand out from the competition.

Keep it Short

When writing covering letters there is a tendency to cram in every skill you have and every bit of work experience. However, your application will be much more effective if you write succinctly and if you are selective.

Unless this is your very first job and you have recently left school the employer doesn’t need to know about your first paper round and how asking for tips at Christmas demonstrates your people skills and persuasive technique.

Unless otherwise stated an A4 sheet or a little over should be sufficient. It’s extremely time consuming reading through job applications and the employer will thank you for being concise.

Enthusiasm and Passion

Potential employers like to see enthusiasm. If you’re applying for a digital position refer to relevant hobbies and personal projects. When we’re looking for a web designer or developer we would expect the candidate to have some sort of online portfolio of their work. This need not be an all singing all dancing website. There are a number of applications that can be used to showcase your work. Consider setting up a blog or a Tumblr or set up a profile on Deviant Art or Dribble.

The CV

Remember the 800 applications I referred to earlier? How do you ensure that you stand out and make the shortlist?

• Keep referring back to the job description / person specification and ensure that your CV is tailored to these requirements. Provide a different CV for each job you are applying for. Avoid sending out blanket responses. This suggests that you’re not particularly interested in the company and that you’re looking for anything available.
• Formatting is important, especially if you’re applying for a job within the creative sector. Keep your font simple and easy to read.
• Keep colours to a minimum using them to highlight and enhance your work.
• Keep it simple. Write in short paragraphs and bullet points rather than long winded passages. Be concise and selective.
• Use subheadings and split your CV into relevant sections making it easier for the employer to find information.
• Don’t leave gaps in your work experience or education.
• Be creative, especially if you’re applying for a creative position. I’ve seen some fantastic examples of CVs recently. Take a look these for inspiration.
• Refer to examples of your work. If you’re a web designer or developer include links to projects you have worked on and make it clear what your involvement was.Make sure that any online portfolio or showcase is up to date and includes your most recent work.
• If you’re sending your CV electronically make sure it is saved in a format that is easily accessible such as Word. Pay attention to your file name. I have received CVs that refer to other positions within the file name. This is off-putting and immediately suggests a lack of interest in the company and a lack of thought / attention to detail.

Applying Straight from School / Uni

If you’re applying for a position straight from school or university it will be more difficult to provide examples of relevant experience. Therefore consider including the following:

• Include examples of work experience where you used skills similar to those referred to in the job description. They may not be directly related to the position but could be transferrable.
• Consider including examples of part time work or holiday work. However, make sure that this is relevant to the job description. E.g. If the role calls for good customer services skills you might want to refer to working part time in a department store serving the public etc.
• If you’re looking for a design or development role and don’t have examples of commercial projects, refer to personal projects you have undertaken. You may also wish to consider undertaking some free work for local charities to build up your portfolio.
• Include examples of awards or achievements.

And Finally

Check everything carefully before hitting the send button. If you have time leave it for a day, sleep on it and then read through it again before sending it.

We had a good response to our ads and we’re delighted with the quality of applicants. We’re currently working our way through the shortlist and will be in touch with everyone who has been selected for interview tomorrow (25 August).

This position is now closed.

The office is very quiet this week and certainly less tuneful. Our project and community coordinator, Torrill Bainbridge (pictured left), is taking part in a coast to coast bike ride.

The four day cycle ride started yesterday in Whitehaven and will end on Thursday in Sunderland.

Torrill will be raising money for Bone Cancer in memory of her grandfather.  If you would like donate please visit Torrill’s Just Giving page at www.justgiving.com/torrillbainbridge.

You can follow Torrill’s Coast to Coast Adventure at www.facebook.com/c2c.2011.

Good luck Torrill. We’re all rooting for you!

We’re situated in Heaton Chapel which is about a 10 minute train ride from Manchester Piccadilly or a 5 minute train ride from Stockport.

It is important to note that this is not a development position and you will not be required to code or programme.

We’re looking for someone with a good knowledge of websites and ecommerce solutions from a user perspective. You should have a good understanding of web, usability and accessibility issues and excellent written and oral communication skills.

Duties and Responsibilities include:

1. Answering the telephone and providing first line support to Vanilla Storm clients.
2. Assisting clients with queries on email, hosting, managing online shops and content managed systems.
3. Providing first line support on bugs and where appropriate referring issues to the development team.
4. Monitoring, managing and tracking bugs and updates.
5. Ensuring that the company’s tracking system is up to date.
6. Creating user friendly client instructions.
7. Carrying out training on Vanilla Storm systems.
8. Carrying out testing on Vanilla Storm systems and providing clear records and documentation.
9. Carrying out usability and accessibility testing on Vanilla Storm systems.

A full job description and person specification can be obtained from Jenny Hudson at jobs [at] vanillastorm [dot] co [dot] uk.

Interested?

Here’s how to apply:

1. In the first instance please request a job description from Jenny Hudson by emailing jobs [at] vanillastorm [dot] co [dot] uk.
2. Please send a copy of your CV along with a covering letter / email outlining your skills and experience and the reasons you feel you would be suitable for the position.

We look forward to receiving your applications.

Salary: £18k to £20k
Closing Date: Tuesday 23 August 2011
Interviews: Week commencing 29 August 2011

[Note to Agencies: We do not use recruitment agencies or consultants. We prefer to handle the recruitment process internally. This won't change and so please do not contact us. Not even to check how things are going. You know who you are!]