Oh hello. No, I wasn't sleeping - I was thinking.
If you're looking for a creative, conceptual, integrated, imaginative, fast and flexible (and honest) thinker and copywriter, lucky you.
I can do and have done everything from a snappy line to a suitable tone of voice to a seamless integrated campaign.
I've written ads for TV, cinema and radio as well as plenty of press. Then there are all the web sites and online campaigns. Brand development. Brand experiences. Tone of voice and guidelines. Promotional film scripts. Football and business journalism. Tons - literally - of POS, DM and brochures (the chances are you've 'recycled' something I've worked on). Film reviews. Pitch work. Editing, planning content, ensuring compliance.
In fact, it's been quite a day.
If you want well written words, great ideas or just a good cup of tea, please drop me a line.
“Mark has the built-in ability to just 'click' into place. Whenever, whatever and with whoever, he just makes things happen quickly and pretty damn well. He's been dropped into projects I'm working on with the toughest of clients and briefs and within minutes we're in a new direction making headway.”
“Mark is one of the few freelancers who can instantly understand what’s required, challenge a brief where necessary and pick up the right tone of voice. He produces strong, relevant concepts and copy across both digital and print for a wide range of brands, from HSBC to Nokia.”
“Mark’s logical and efficient approach made a complex project far more straightforward and simple than it would otherwise have been. He very quickly absorbed a lot of information and turned it into clear, compelling copy.”
“We asked Mark to come over and work on a digital project for a well-known drinks brand - and were pleased we did. He generated strong ideas and his writing was just as impressive. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend him to anyone looking for an experienced and creative copywriter.”
“It wouldn’t be too creative to say Mark played a major role in developing our BlackBerry and Nestle Purina accounts, turning his hand to pretty much everything from tone of voice to TV ads, web sites, integrated campaigns, promo film scripts... and darts.”
“We had a lot of specific messages to get across on our new site, but we also wanted to keep it short and sweet. The writers we’d tried here in the US just didn’t seem to get that, but Mark gave us just what we were looking for, with a great tone and the right amount of humour.”
“I've been working closely with Mark on a series of projects for a global brand. When we took over the account, creative had received a
client rating of 'Unsatisfactory'. 12 months later it is now 'Outstanding' - the highest possible. I think that says a lot.”
“CoPilot Live is the leading satellite navigation software for mobile phones and a top selling iPhone app, but none of our agencies have managed to reflect that in our communications. Mark provided real differentiation, brought in a designer and helped the brand take a real step forward.”
“I've worked with Mark for nearly 10 years now and he's very, VERY, good. He has a fantastic wry/dry sense of humour that really hits the spot - and he's very smart indeed. If you can book him to help you with your copy then do book him.”
Using the ludicrously powerful Audi RS 6 to position the brand as second to none in terms of power and performance, the site contains specially commissioned footage and CAD to show the car hurtling along at speeds you can't show on TV. Every part of the site shows performance and extends this idea by being available to download, email and embed in blogs. The campaign also included online comms and touchscreens.
Rolls-Royce brand development. Experiential concept under embargo until July 2012. Details on demand.
Another 'brand halo' campaign , this one for the über-sporty R8. The car takes so long to build by hand, in clinical conditions and probably in a secret laboratory, they only make 25 a day. That's why the multi-layered, information-rich site is based on the theme of time, with a circular navigation linking to 12 stories.
Designed to communicate what BlackBerry does to a consumer audience, 'I can' worked across consumer literature, point of sale, product seeding, events display, training collateral and a series of short films. The concept's inherent flexibility allowed BlackBerry to integrate consistent, brand-led messaging into product launch activity for the BlackBerry® Curve 8300 and 8320 smartphones, and continues to serve as a foundation for future device and service releases around the world.
Mazda's integrated summer test drive campaign was aimed at generating sales leads, increasing brand awareness and amplifying the 'Defy Convention' brand positioning. Targeting audience passions in life music, food and activity, it ran across a microsite, online advertising, email and social media. This showreel gives you an idea of how it all worked.
Writing and advertising the brand spanking new online servicing site for... go on, you’ve guessed haven’t you?
I worked on reinventing the BlackBerry tone of voice across web sites, launch packs, brochures, leaflets and films to boot, such as this one that launched the first BlackBerry with built-in GPS. Rather than their usual '3D tour', we produced a journey that highlighted all the features on offer, with particular reference to the GPS.
Heineken’s brand new bottle has been given a premium, smooth and refined look that reflects the beer it contains. This launch activation was all about bringing the attributes of the inside...out, featuring press ads, launch events at outdoor bars and nightclubs, and on-pack promotions.
Having helped to establish a high quality, central creative agency to successfully pitch against roster agencies (WWAV, Y&R, Triangle), I worked on numerous online, print and integrated campaigns for Lloyds TSB, Goldfish, Scottish Widows easyMoney and More Than (as the largest online advertiser in the UK at the time, we brought in 60% of all new account openings). Anyway, Create was an entire rebranding exercise for a credit card – and these guidelines are full of nice ideas for online and print.
Electronic Arts was about the first gaming company to do 'proper' adverts, rather than the kind that use fonts dripping with blood. As well as radio, cinema and print for global markets outside the USA, I wrote a 7-minute TV 'infommercial' that went on Channel 4, with 3-minute spin-off ads for cable TV.
Vodafone offer a world of mobile office solutions, so basically you don’t need your desk any more. In fact, you can destroy it right now and honestly, nobody will mind. On average, visitors spent over 4 minutes interacting with the site. 88% of those who crushed a desk online went on to explore the rest of the site. Figures aren’t available for the number of employees prosecuted for criminal damage by employers.
This site won Best B2B Campaign NMA Effectiveness Awards 2010 for Essence, but not only for the copywriting.
An integrated multi-channel, multi-discipline campaign to support Nestlé Purina UK's biggest ever below-the-line product launch. The three month campaign included segmented direct mail sampling, sampling roadshow, online advertising, emails, microsite, online competitions, point of sale and PR. All delivered within a consistent, taste-led campaign creative. Not that I tasted it. Over 300,000 trial samples were distributed, helping the brand to notable share gains.
Co-Pilot Live is the original satellite navigation designed for smartphones. I first started working with them to bring some focus to the brand, which subsequently became the top grossing iPhone app (admittedly not all down to me). Sales have now started decline in an increasingly competitive market, and I’m back onboard helping them to bring more clarity to their messaging.
A shiny new website for a supremely talented Flash agency in Noo Yoyke.
Launch of a groundbreaking online survey tool for Canada’s fastest growing technology company. Yes, Canada’s!
