Turn Key Blog. Things we've done and the things we love.

Last Friday, the Turn Key boys donned their football boots and ventured up to Seacroft for the Lucozade Powerleague five-a-side competition.

After an eventful experience last year (for those who don’t remember, our designer Darren broke his wrist) Sean , Matt , Jac, Oliver, Oli , Scott  and Carl were more determined than ever to save face and put up a good fight. With the regional finals held at the one and only Wembley Stadium, this was a competition we really wanted to win.

Unfortunately though, the tournament didn’t go as planned. After warming up in the first game, we lost out 7-0, cue slightly embarrassed faces all round.

Our confidence wasn’t knocked though and the boys soldiered on through the second game, which was lost with a smaller goal gap of just 5-2 thanks to Matt’s excellent shot stopping and more shape on the field from the whole team.

The final game was the closest yet, Team TK’s determination grew and we missed out on a draw by just a whisker with the full time score 3-2.

Despite the fact we lost all three games, this year’s tournament was a moral victory for the TK boys! Although we lost, we improved every game and left the stadium with no broken bones and some great teamwork under our belt, maybe we just need to start training for next year’s tournament now…

This summer Turn Key has been inundated with requests from savvy students eager for work experience opportunities in the creative industry. We were more than happy to have them on board, giving an insight into the worlds of marketing, PR, design, digital and business in general!

As well as Rich , Tom and Sacha who joined us earlier in the year (click on the name to read their previous blogs) we welcomed Lauren, Hugh, Greta and Katie who impressed us with their enthusiasm to get stuck in and bolster their CVs for the future. Lauren joined our PR team for two weeks whilst Hugh, Greta and Katie spent a week each assisting in every team, getting a taste of how an integrated agency operates and what our marketing, PR, digital and design teams do on a day-to-day basis.

Here’s what they had to say about their time at Turn Key:

Lauren Coles, PR student at Leeds Metropolitan University:

“Turn Key is an agency full of genuinely talented, imaginative and creative people. They truly care about their clients and show a real sense of understanding and appreciation for them. The attention to detail and true flair for what they do makes them really stand out from the crowd.

“I have never come across such a genuine and welcoming team! Everyone is so happy to be a part of Turn Key. But can you blame them? There’s not a single person who’s not got the bubbly TK personality and to top it off the new HQ is just lovely – how many offices do you know with trees, giant beanbags and union jack chairs?”

Greta Gilman, English Literature & History student at the University of Nottingham:

“Everyone in the office is really friendly and confident. No task seems to be too much of a challenge and they take everything in their stride, this attitude definitely boosted my confidence in my own abilities when set tasks. The ideas and thoughts they have come up with over the week are really innovative and led me to think more outside the box and not be afraid in my own abilities, I felt like part of the team straight away.

“I have always thought PR would interest me but had never really given it too much thought. After working at Turn Key I am 100% sure I am going to pursue it as a career after university. I feel like I fit in really well and have enjoyed every part of it, the only problem is the time has gone too quickly and I feel like I have so much more to learn. Watch this space!”

Katie Broadbent, Graduate in French with German at the University of Nottingham

“What I found most inspiring about the TK team was the way in which they interacted with each other. The team obviously get on well and it is clear their relationships are not only work-based. The environment is relaxed, yet busy and it is obvious that there is a strong work ethic.

“I have thoroughly enjoyed the whole week and working with the TK team has been a pleasure, everyone has been very warm and welcoming and enabled me to settle in right from day one. I especially enjoyed working on Google Analytics with Jude . It was really interesting following the evolution of a website and the effects a press release or feature can have on visitor numbers to it.”

Hugh Clegg, Sixth form student from Winchester

“It is obvious that the whole TK team really enjoy what they do and work very hard on projects! My week here has narrowed my future career focus down to graphic design and the art side of advertising and promoting companies. Shadowing Carl and then Paul made me realise how much work I’m going have to do to become as professional as those two. Everyone works so fast and hard yet still with so much precision and even with a smile on their faces!”

A big thank you to our summer interns for all their hard work. If you’d like to follow some of them on Twitter, you can find them at and .

Tess, our resident foodie here at Turn Key loves eating and drinking in Leeds because of all the tucked away independent gems.

Here is a selection of her favourites…

 

The Reliance

Leeds LS2 7PN

Who can resist this place once they know about it! Huge open windows, homely mix n’ match furniture, local art and plenty of greenery… and I haven’t even mentioned the gastro delights yet!

From the much-loved specials of beer battered fish and chips, mussels and the infamous banoffee pie to exciting dishes using the best of fresh, local produce, there is something for everyone on the menu. The drinks range from ‘Reli Best’ ale, bottles of American Pale Ale, great UK ciders and an excellent wine list. To top it off, the staff are brilliant and there are board games and a quiz on a Sunday! Discover the Reliance at the far end of North Street, over the big road from Sandanista.

Laynes Espresso

,
Leeds LS1

BOYCOTT STARBUCKS!! If you want a proper coffee made with real barista skill (without your name on your cup!), then head to Laynes Espresso, perfectly placed near the train station opposite Evans cycles. This has to be the best flat white in Leeds – especially if enjoyed with one of the yummy croissants, cakes or sarnies. You can also buy the gourmet beans to take home.

La Grillade

,
Leeds
LS1 4EA

This really is a hidden gem and I almost don’t want to tell anyone about it incase it gets too busy! This is the perfect place for a special meal as everything from the food to the service and environment is just right. Tucked away in an old wine cellar down Wellington Street, it feels like a true piece of France. Make sure you visit when the three courses for £53.50 deal is on – and go for the Cote de Bouef to share (there are also cheaper deals available). The cheese selection arrives on a pop up table – so you can choose (or avoid) the stinkiest!

Fuji Hiro

,
Leeds,
LS2 8NJ

First impressions can be deceiving, as this dark windowed canteen-style Japanese restaurant will show. Relaxed and casual, this is my favourite place to go with friends. There is something for everyone on the menu and a great £15 fixed price deal including a bottle of beer. The soups are really interesting, but my favourite has to be the chicken katsu curry and a teapot of green tea. A great meal out, without spending a fortune! Find this place around the side of the Merrion Centre.

We have had a fair few questions recently about the new cookie law due to be enforced on the 26th May, so we thought it would be worth pointing out what our recommendation is and how it affects our customers.

Cookies are a type of file stored on your computer, phone or tablet and are used by most websites for things such as tracking users’ movements to social media integration. As most of our clients use Google Analytics all our sites use cookies, in this way, at the very least. What the law stipulates now is that site users must be made aware of this and give their consent for their cookies to be stored.

However there are a hundred shades of grey in terms of how people are interpreting this law and, as very few of the big companies have yet to make any changes, most smaller businesses are pretty complacent about updating their own site – especially when the addition of a clunky opt in box on the homepage could affect the end user experience and create a barrier between the customer and company/brand.

Our recommendation would be to update your website’s terms and conditions / privacy policies to include information about what cookies are and how they are used by the site in question. This, for at least the short term, should be obviously linked to from the homepage. This could be a designed graphic, if you wanted to do something personal / amusing (our approach – see www.turn–key.co) or a discreet pop up box which appears the first time someone visits your site and links them to the updated information.

As highlighted in today’s BBC article though most Government sites are also going to miss the deadline, let alone private businesses, so the general consensus seems to be that as long as you show you are making some kind of effort you will probably be ok.

Nerves were at an all-time high this lunchtime, when 6 brave team members made their way to Carpe Diem to take part in the Mega Burger Challenge. Just to recap from an earlier post, the challenge requires each individual to polish off 4 quarter pound burgers, 4 rashers of bacon, 6 onion rings all in a giant garlic and herb focaccia bun accompanied by a large bowl of fries all in just 25 minutes.

Challenger number 1: Rich – Creative Director

Challenger number 2: Paul – Designer

Challenger number 3: Samara – PR Account Manager

Challenger number 4: Tom – Designer

Challenger number 5: Derrick – Digital Account Manager

Challenger number 6: Mike – Head of Marketing

Sure there was banter, a sweepstake and lots of excitement, but not one of the contenders, myself being one of them knew just what we were letting ourselves in for!

Just to put things into perspective, we had to give Carpe Diem a week’s notice to ensure there was enough meat to go around and they had to hire extra staff for the occasion! So, with our challenger table set, we prepared ourselves for the ultimate food challenge.

Ready, set… Go!

15 minutes later….

20 minutes….

Finally at 25 minutes…

It was a close call, with Mike just bites away from entering the wall of fame, but alas, the burger won! The results were…

1st – Mike ‘Sorry, I’m just in the middle of a burger challenge; I’ll have to call you back’

2nd – Rich ‘I might aswell just lick a cow’

3rd – Derrick ’I’ve got a meat migraine’

4th – Samara ‘It tastes like the ground’

5th – Paul ‘Can I order a few sides please?’

6th – Tom ‘I wonder if they do ice cream sundaes’

We all gave it our best shot, but unfortunately the defeat was in the meat!

We’ve been biting our fingernails all week as The Drum’s Design 100 list has slowly been revealed day by day! Listing the UK’s top 100 design agencies, these rankings are compiled annually and we’re delighted to have found ourselves at number 58!

We couldn’t be prouder of this achievement which puts Turn Key well and truly on the map. We’re already excited for what next year has in store, so hold onto your hats because we’re going to be climbing the list!

Read the full list of results here:

Pinterest is possibly the most buzzed-about social media tool on the market and is set to take the online world by storm. For those of you who haven’t heard of the platform it gives users the chance to capture and organise images from the web onto their own “virtual pinboard”.

Considering that Pinterest is still an invite only platform, it’s has seen tremendous growth over the last two months. According to research company Shareaholic, Pinterest has over 4.9 million users and has driven more referral traffic in the last two months than Google+, LinkedIn and YouTube combined!

Pinterest has seen many players making use of the website with more and more American brands and even a few UK companies starting to recognise the platform’s potential. In the last week it has gained a rather well-known social media user; the CEO of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg himself! He has posted very little content so far, but if he’s interested then surely more will follow. I know that we are desperate to get signed up and are looking forward to seeing Pinterest grow and grow in popularity!

Innocent helps drinkers label their love

To celebrate yesterday’s day of love Innocent Smoothie s, renowned for its witty and imaginative packaging, got its drinkers in the mood for Valentine’s Day by offering consumers the chance to create their own ‘love label’ to wrap around their favourite smoothie bottle. After creating a heart-warming message drinkers could either print out their personalised label, or share it on and – a nice little idea to get those creative juices flowing.

Heineken celebrates Valentine’s Day with ‘The Serenade’ Facebook app

Heineken is well known for its engaging and creative social media campaigns, so it was no surprise to see them jump on the day-of-love band wagon and help internet users share the love. Heineken created the Facebook app to let consumers send personalised songs to potential partners, inviting them on a Valentine’s Day date.

They’ve also spread the word on , where millions of people from across the globe will be able to participate and create their own songs via this viral platform. Check it out

Spread the love

This year, Marmite teamed up with renowned artist Pete Fowler to create a series of e-cards for users to send to their loved ones this Valentine’s Day. After ‘liking’ the Marmite fan page fans got the chance to send three bright and quirky messages of love, these included – “I need you in my life”, “spread the love” and “let’s get together”.

This clever campaign drove people to the Facebook page and encouraged Marmite lovers to share recipes, videos and much more to win fantastic prizes – now that’s some serious social love!

With festive parties taking over your diary, and the never ending gift list keeping you up at night, Christmas is notorious for being the most expensive time of the year. Well, this year I decided to not only do my bit for charity, but to give us girls the chance to rock up to the Christmas do‘ in a new outfit, which doesn’t break the bank.

Introducing ‘The Big Girly Frock Swap’, a charity clothes swap that I’ve been organising for the past couple of month’s with a good friend of mine, to raise money for a local blind society. The charity offers social care and advice, together with access for visually and hearing impaired people who struggle with everyday tasks, such as making a cup of tea – something which we take for granted.

The event, which takes place on Sunday 11 ^th December from 3-5pm, invites people to donate three items of clothing or accessories in return for a £10 admission fee. Not only will you be doing a good deed for charity, but guests will leave with new additions to their wardrobe, and the chance to win some amazing prizes, including tickets to The Graham Norton Show, jewellery, shoes and beauty products – all very girly!

The support so far has been incredible, and we’ve already raised £712 via online donations made by people who are unable to attend the event. With the continued support, we’re hoping to hit the £1,000 mark once all of our guests have swapped their trash for treasure!

If you want to do your bit for charity, whilst cleaning some space in your wardrobe, check out our Facebook page – for further details.