In-house Social Media Management

A tale of three companies. 

The BPc set up social media for a client in 2018 and, a few months ago, they took the task in-house. They have posted regular, informative posts to Linked-In but other social media was ignored. A few days ago, for whatever reason, there must have been a light-bulb moment and we were asked to (again) supply the login details to a newly appointed employee, which we have done, and we look forward to seeing their posts on other social media. 

In contrast, another client who took their social media house earlier this year has made amazing progress. 

Companies who respect the potential of social media and make time for it in-house will create more followers - but it doesn't stop there. Encouraging interaction with those followers will grow their presence even more. This has the main difference between those two companies (above), this year. And, although we no longer have contracts with them, we are happy to offer guidance.

The third company is a small, local business. The owner is aware of social media but has no desire to be involved with it, adding it to the tasks to be undertaken by the main employee. We offered to assist for a short period, no fee, no strings, as the employee was managing one post every week or two on Facebook and Instagram but no posts at all on their Linked-In or X accounts.

However, the owner insisted that the employee should continue, unaided, as that was part of his job. 

There are pros and cons to this. Professional assistance - FREE - would have helped set the employee on the path to improvement. However, handling social media in-house is usually the best solution, when done well. 

Where do we fit in? If you don't have the resources in-house, we can tide you over for as long as you need. whether it's a few weeks or years. Just contact us and say 'Hi' via the comments below or our contact page: thebpc.uk

Twins: The Lone Twin

Our client is raising support for The Twins Trust.

His daughter was expecting identical twin girls but one was stillborn. This post linked to (above) leads to the grandfather's perspective which, in turn, leads to his daughter's story. Ten years on, the pain of loss is still evident but the joys brought by 'the lone twin' are many.

The family will embark upon a fund-raising event to raise money for the trust, which supports many families. The Thames Path challenge covers 100k from Putney Bridge, along the towpath towards Henley. Our 'older' client has opted for the quarter challenge (approx. 28k) which is still an excellent achievement.

Ian Cummins is an author of five books. The sequel to his best seller was released last month.

And Again?

Here it is, the sequel to the best selling time travelling novel by Ian Cummins has now been published. 

My Time Again recounted the story of Graham who was transported back fifty-two years to his 18th birthday. He decides to make different choices in his second chance at life. 

And Again? is Graham's second time travel adventure, going back only a few years on a mission for the time travel inventor, as it seems that not everyone is able to 'jump' or 'leap' into a parallel universe. 

Both books are available from Amazon - paperback and e-book versions, including Kindle Unlimited -  and 50% of all proceeds are donated by the author to homeless charities.

You can follow the author's blog (including links to social media) 
https://iancumminsauthor.wordpress.com/

New Website for 'Old' Client

Our client of many years, Signcraft, has launched their new website design, the third reincarnation of their showcase to reflect ongoing upgrades within their signage services.

With an emphasis on photographs of their projects for their clients, there are scrolling images on the home page and a simple menu to find pertinent information. Under their Services page, there are image galleries will grow as new photographs are supplied plus some footage of their high tech machinery at work. Visit signcraft.co.uk to find out more about them.

Signcraft's website has been created by The BPc Ltd.

An Author's New Book Project

One of our clients is a self-published author of four books. His most popular novel has sold into the 1000s and elicited a number of requests for a sequel. He has duly obliged and has now completed the first draft, which we have received for proofing and feedback. 

So far, we feel that this is the best one yet! It is so intriguing that we are continuing to read it out of business hours. We are excited about seeing this in print and looking forward to shouting about it when it's released, later this year. 

We can't help feeling that being paid to read good books is one of our favourite jobs ever. 

Previous books by the same author are: An Accidental Salesman, The Wrong Briefcase, My Time Again and Social Murderer.

All available from Amazon, all have a 4+ star rating: 
https://www.amazon.co.uk/stores/author/B08LSRKY1Z/allbooks 

So Long and Thanks for all the Fish...

In 2007, SunSeeker Doors asked The BPc to review their website and internet standing. 

The website had massive room for improvement and their internet presence was negligible. This was a project we looked forward to undertaking. 

At the time, SunSeeker Doors was the only British company to be manufacturing and installing bi-folding doors with aluminium frames. This product was so innovative that, for the next couple of years, people were searching for 'folding sliding doors'. SunSeeker Doors also had a frameless version of the product, suitable as room dividers or external enclosures, referred to a 'frameless glass doors' or 'glass curtains'. 

As good as they were within their field, they had no experience of internet promotion and marketing. The BPc, with over ten years' internet experience at that time, was appointed for this role -public  awareness of the SunSeeker Doors company began to grow; it was usually in top spot on Google for related searches. 

Staying ahead of the market. In 2009/2010, their new product was launched - UltraSlim slide and turn doors; essentially the same benefits as bifold doors but with ultra slim frames as there was no longer any requirement to accommodate door hinges. Once more, this unique, innovative design required help  to become 'famous' as the next generation of contemporary lifestyle, as bi-folding doors were beginning to flood the UK from European manufacturers. No other company in the world offered virtually frameless slide and turn doors that confirmed to British Standards and housing regulations.

Over the years, The BPc has re-vamped the SunSeeker Doors website three times, has continuously maintained it, set up their social media, created videos plus spin-off websites for their sister company and their salespeople. We've also designed printed materials and run their ad campaigns, first on Google, then on Meta. As their virtual Marketing department, we were responsible for loads of other stuff, far too much to mention. 

When a new generation of management took over the company last year, we continued with the projects whilst working with the new (more internet-savvy) team until they were ready to take over the tasks we had been providing, bringing them in-house. 

The date of our 'parting of the ways' is almost upon us. It was a pleasure working with them and we wish SunSeeker Doors every success for the future. 

Bifold door installation from 2012: 

UltraSlim doors demo from 2013:

Title is taken from a Douglas Adams novel.

New Website for Existing Client

We designed a website for signcraft.co.uk many years ago then a better one after that, as technology and styles change. We are now embarking on another new website for the client, which is truly in vogue. 

Signcraft, signage specialists, have provided almost 400 photographs in readiness for their new website. They have also presented a visual of how their home page might look, going forward. 

We are currently working on which features are to be created for the website to look vibrant and interesting. We know that you can't wait to see the end result but, in the meantime, here are some signage images, illustrating the power of getting noticed. 

Old Photographs for a New Archive

Ugley village, on the borders of Essex and Herts, is anything but ugly! Run by the Ugley Village Hall board of volunteers, ugleyvillage.org.uk has a wealth of information which is regularly updated and added to, from their monthly farmers' markets to a potted history of the village. 

The latest website updates include an archive of more than 100 historic photographs of Ugley plus ITV and BBC documentaries, broadcast earlier this year. 

Considerable work was involved to select and resize the images for their archive page. Example of the photographs of life in Ugley are below. For more, go to: 

• Photo Archive
• Links to documentaries

 Ugley village photographs:

Any Ugley residents, past or present, are invited to contribute - please contact Ugley village via the Ugley village hall website.

January for Home Improvement

It may come as a surprise to some people that, despite the economy and freezing temperatures, many homeowners are getting their home improvement projects under way this month. 

Extensions take months, therefore continuing the project over the winter makes sense - but what about replacing patio doors on the sitting room or kitchen/diner? Yes, that happens too! Well, why not, with Christmas out of the way and - here's a fact - new doors can be fitted in half a day which is no real hardship, is it?

Our client, SunSeeker Doors, has been manufacturing doors to order and installing them for over twenty years. At that time, they launched bi-folding doors, the only British manufacturer to do so and, in 2009, they launched UltraSlim doors. Again, the first British door designer and manufacturer to offer bespoke, ultra slim aluminium frames with a revolutionary concept. 

UltraSlim has a master door which will pivot (either inwards or outwards, as the customer prefers) then each of the other doors can be moved along the guide rails, leaving a gap where required - or even several small gaps by spacing the doors. All the doors can slide towards the master door where they, too, will turn  90° to stack against the side of the gap, whether the door set comprises 2 doors or 8 doors. 

The doors have slim profiles and, with only a 19mm side frame, there is more viewing glass than most retractable door systems. SunSeeker Doors Frameless Glass Doors have more glass but may only be suitable for specific installations. 

Visit the SunSeeker Doors website for full information. Some of the January installations are shown below.