We are about to embark on a 7-city Recruitment Drive and we are on the look-out for fantastic Brand Ambassadors & Event Managers across the UK – we’re looking to balance the male/female ratio on our books so these interview are just for the chaps – any ladies waiting to come on board, not to worry, we’ll be in touch early next year.

Any current Mashers who want to recommend a male friend or colleague to join us, we’d be delighted to hear from you.

NEXT STEP

No need to call in about this, have a look at the interview dates below simply email chrissyd@mashmarketing.co.uk to let her know which interview slot you are able to attend (give first and second choices for time for your preferred city), and she’ll respond to let you know which slot we can confirm. We look forward to meeting you to get involved with our award winning agency!

Please have a good look at our website for info on the kind of campaigns we work on and what it takes to become a successful MASHER!

The interview dates, times and locations are as follows ::

MONDAY 5th DECEMBER :: BRISTOL : 11am, 1pm, 3pm, 5pm

TUESDAY 6th DECEMBER :: BOURNEMOUTH : 11am, 12pm, 1pm

THURSDAY 8th DECEMBER :: EDINBURGH : 9am, 11am, 1pm, 3pm

FRIDAY 9th DECEMBER :: BIRMINGHAM : 11am, 1pm, 3pm, 5pm

SATURDAY 10th DECEMBER :: MANCHESTER : 12pm, 2pm, 4pm, 6pm

MONDAY 12th DECEMBER :: LONDON : 10am, 12pm, 2pm, 4pm

TUESDAY 13th DECEMBER :: LONDON : 10am, 12pm, 2pm, 4pm

FRIDAY 16th DECEMBER :: NEWCASTLE : 12.30pm, 2.30pm, 4.30pm, 6.30pm

Please contact our UK Brand Champion Chrissy either via our dedicated Recruitment FB page or via email to get booked in.

We look forward to welcoming you on board.

(MASH would like to thank all applicants waiting to join our books for their patience)

Cheers,

Greg

Gregory Mason

Talent Director

Mash Marketing Ltd.

Our sessions are run by our Head Events Manager Tom Dyer and UK Brand Champion Christiana Dobbie and overseen by our Talent Director Gregory Mason. They are designed to create an open  ‘forum of learning’ where our key Event Managers can bring their vast array of experiences and credentials to the table, learn from eachother’s experiences and of course, become fully immersed in the ‘Mash Way’ of managing a campaign.

We are intent on building and harnessing a partnership ethos throughout the stakeholder cycle and strengthening the links in the chain from Brand Client to Agency Client to The Mash Office to the Mash Event Manager to Field Mashers. By emphasising the importance of ‘partnership’ throughout sessions like these, we believe our clients will see even greater insight and output from the Mashers who make their campaign happen for them.

The 5 hour session is broken down into the following key areas; The Stakeholders, The Briefing Day, People Management, Moogle & Staff Appraisals, Logistics, Campaign Evaluation, Photography, Budgets/Finances and Health & Safety. We use a variety of tools and presentation and discussion methods  to ensure the attendees are creatively engaged throughout the session and to facilitate an environment which enhances the personality and energy  in the room rather than supresses it.

At Mash, we pride ourselves on the mindset that our staff are a ‘ Human Resource to be developed rather than a ‘unit cost’ to be minimized’ and the Mash Event Manager Accreditation (M.E.M.A) is a leading example of investing in promotional staff to ensure they and in turn the clients are getting the absolute most out of every campaign.

For more information please contact our Talent Director, Gregory Mason :: gregm@mashmarketing.co.uk / 0207 939 7670

Alastair Watson

Alastair is a real pleasure to work together with. He has a versatility and positivity that enhances every interaction from the very first phone call, through managing the team in the field to closing off the final reports on the job. The phrase “can-do attitude” is over-used in this industry but in Alastair – it encompasses everything he does. A worthy Masher of the Month”

The Mash Team – Oct 2010.

and here is the reaction from Alastair himself…

“Oh my God that’s amazing and a complete shock! Thanks so much that really means a lot and I have to say I love working for you guys, it makes a real difference beining involved in a company that is organised, values their staff and you’re a cracking bunch as well”

Great stuff! Look out for our October winner next month.

The Fan Zone outside the National Theatre on London’s South Bank featured a full-size basketball court that gave fans the opportunity to test their skills by shooting hoops alongside NBA legends and current players. MASH worked in partnership with The Promotions Factory to place a group of female sports fans amongst the fan zone, creating a buzz about the games ahead and the coverage held by ESPN. Six brand ambassadors were at The National Theatre on the 2nd and 3rd of October and ten brand ambassadors outside the O2 Arena on the 4th October, taking planes, trains and auto-mobiles to get there thanks to the warm welcomed tube strike!

All the sights and sounds of the NBA were on show, with skills clinics, a professional ‘dunk’ team, video games, NBA team mascots and performances by LA Lakers cheerleaders The Laker Girls alongside interactive sponsor experiences and attractions, of which our girls were a huge part and really helped to get the crowds excited.

The Larry O’Brien NBA Championship Trophy was also on show, with which fans could have their pictures taken on a green screen background and have themselves superimposed next to their favourite team.

Ignite will activate the Fan Zone at the Palais Omnisports de Bercy on the 6 October 2010 with the addition of a three point court and interactive activities.

A huge well done to the ESPN teams who worked hard to create a real buzz about the matches and promote the support and involvement of ESPN with NBA’s European tour matches. An eye-catching sight for all NBA fans, old and new.

Lauren Danecek hails from Sydney, Australia and after working on Mash Australia’s first job on the Sony Ericcson World Cup Campaign on Darling Harbour – was recommended to Mash UK by our MD Down Under – Neil Burton – after she received glowing feedback!

Lauren already had grand plans to hit the UK’s glorious shores on her travels and set up base for a while – so why not keep on Mashing while she did? And Mash have been so much better for it…..Lauren having successfully completed 8 activities with glowing feedback since joining us at the end of July.

Congratulations Lauren – great to have you on board. £100 Arcadia Vouchers on their way to you!

For all UK-based Mashers planning to travel to Australia then don’t forget to let us know as we will happily recommend you to meet our Australia Office to keep the Mash Magic flowing.

First up to walk the Mashing walk of fame….

Rachel Walker joined Mash back in October 2007 and has gone on to deliver campaign after campaign with consummate professionalism and a wonderful smile on the face. Rachel always responds brilliantly to the huge variety of briefs thrown at her and has often accepted ‘last minute changes’ with complete flexibility and positivity.

Rachel is also one of our main ‘npower girls’ and has contributed to the ‘best team yet’ and we’re all looking forward to the remaining 4 Tests from the end of July.

It’s great to have you Mashing Rachel – Well done!

We are continuously hunting for ways to improve and refine the staffing process and believe that this initiative will effectively aid us in this endeavour.

Understanding the Challenge 1 > Our first person to jump at the challenge was our very own Talent Manager, Gregorious the Gentle.

We conducted a quick interview with him post activity;

What was it like being down in the trenches?

I really enjoyed it. I think I got lucky in a way with the job I was given. Being in a positive environment like John Lewis in Kingston certainly beats leafletting in the rain on a dodgy street corner!

What was the biggest surprise for you?

Many ‘Mashers’ feed back to me that working alone is the kind of job they would rather avoid and I can completely understand after this experience. I’m the kind of person who thrives on being around people; be it colleagues, peers etc so working alone was a whole new concept for me. I suppose the biggest surprise to me was how easy it was to speak to people and how many responses I got and yet how few sales I was able to conclude on! (am not bitter…honest!!)

What was the hardest part of the job?

This was a Sales Job – no question. I couldn’t have had more conversations with consumers or demonstrated the coffee machine more in the time but it was such a complex challenge convincing the shoppers to buy a machine there and then.

What insight have you gained as a result of this?

I suppose I’ve realised the importance of practicing what we preach. The need to be on-brand in terms of appearance, punctuality, product knowledge, demeanour and attitude really couldn’t be more apparent in an environment like John Lewis where ALL the employees are employed on their ability to retain absolute standards on all these alements too.

Would you do it again!?

Absolutely. I honestly got a real buzz from it and was intrigued to see and sense the various consumer responses to what was an amazing brand and coffee machine. Consumer behaviour and psychologies have always interested me and this provided great insight into the various behaviours. Who knows, next time I might actually sell a few more…

We wanted to post a recent e-mail that was received by the team from a customer that interacted with one of our Mashers on this activity.  It really highlights the strength of the face to face interaction when executed properly, and combined with an excellent product.  Here it is;

‘Hello,
I have just spoken to your customer helpline, where the helpful lady suggested I email you.  In a busy day I think it worthwhile to drop you a line with some feedback on your modo mio system, which I have recently purchased via
your John Lewis promotion.  My wife and I run a small fine art gallery in Bath.  For some time we have wanted to be able to offer clients coffee whilst they look at what we are exhibiting.  The coffee would not be supplied on any
commercial basis, and the use of any machine would be domestic in scale – but we wanted the coffee to be really good.  Space for us was a vital consideration – we don’t have much of it.  So, some months ago we started looking.  Selfridges in London have given a concession to Nespresso, and it was through that store that we learned about these capsule systems.  For a number of weeks on trips to London I had a great time visiting the store to try yet another half dozen espressos!  But we were not convinced.  It was good, but not that good, and I could not work out why.  We were then diverted by being referred to Nespresso commercial, which landed me with a huge machine for a week, and awful coffee.  We had given up, and were using cup filters, perfectly happily, until one day we walked into John Lewis in Oxford St and there was this young New Zealander at the bottom of the escalator offering me an espresso from you.  One sip and that was it.  Fantastic coffee, and an equally fantastic offer – what with the cups, coffee and machine
for £99.  Do you know that the Nespresso equivalent machine in Selfridges was £250 without anything much at all?
I asked the guy about the difference in taste we had experienced.  He told me that he is a freelance and had worked for Nespresso in the past.  He told me that the difference was that your coffee was genuine Lavazza grounds prepared for the capsule, whereas the Nespresso was a concentrate.  That makes sense to me.  Since we have had your machine we have shared the coffee with two trading partners, one who is Italian.  Both are hugely impressed and one of them immediately got me to buy her a machine online from John Lewis.  There are now two in this small street and the Italian is seriously considering (while coming in here all the time with an espresso cup!)  I would also like to say that your decision to market the capsules through Waitrose is absolutely right.  Nespresso required online
ordering in 100′s – no good at all to me.   So that’s it.  A great product well sold, both at time of purchase
and afterwards’.

The legend of Picasso is at the heart of a contemporary challenge in the advertising industry – the value and cost of ideas. There lies the problem. As an industry we are obsessed with ideas. We complain when these ideas are not accepted. We feel cheated by having to put a price tag on the enterprise of our ideas – how can I be asked to price passion and the selfless pursuit of an idea?

When we recognize we are in the business of “value creation” can we begin to shift our thinking from “‘What does it cost us to generate work and ideas a client wants?” to “What is the value of the services and materials we are creating for the client?”

Value creation forces us to decentralize the idea creation process. Instead, everyone’s job must become value creation. Value creation forces us to establish a strong personal and commercial relationship with our clients; truly understand their business as opposed to their latest brief. Value creation demands we measure and place more value on the outcome of our work.

Our latest idea is more than a campaign concept; it is value creation. Was the agency responsible for creating the Staples’ plastic Easy Button, a $4.99 gadget (that’s sold more than 1 million units since its launch in 2005) aware of that? Apparently not because they received no financial reward beyond their original fees.

Financial advisors are paid on the basis of value creation. This is accepted given their decisions have a direct and measurable impact on wealth. Digital marketing, like no other channel allows us to directly measure the value created for a brand, be it revenue or perception. This is part of the problem with digital marketing, value creation has been completely tied to quantitative metrics – sales, revenue, ROI.

If value creation is proven and measured every day, the degree of compensation then becomes a question of positioning. If clients regard an agency as just another operator on their marketing conveyor belt, value creation is not possible. Value creation requires partnership. Unfortunately most clients regard their agencies as just operators in a large conveyor belt. In response, and to extend their control and influence, agencies try to be the “jack of all trades”, operators in all realms of digital marketing. The focus is then on depth of offering as opposed to value creation. These new services are generally sold to clients at a discount – lowering overall compensation levels.

Client and agency must be willing to invest in value creation. When this occurs, the conversion of two intangibles – time and ideas – translates into a tangible and sustainable compensation model.

Brand Champion for Scotland :: Nikki Lindsay

Unbelievable as it may seem, a whole world of experiential marketing exists North of Watford in a far off ‘county’ called ‘Scotland’ and we can’t ask for a stronger ambassador for the Mash brand than Nikki Lindsay.

One of the many reasons Mash set up the Regional Recruitment model was to bring Mash closer to the people rather than existing purely in ‘far away London’ with regional campaigns being something of an after-thought. We are very proud of our local links to regional areas – Mash Campaign Managers have no option but to embrace Scotland – as they have a Talent Manager who is very proud of his homeland – to put it mildly.

Nikki has been working within the industry for many years and has completed plentiful Event Management projects for Mash and other agencies and always delivers with a real sense of dedication to the detail and cause.

Look out for her next Mash day coming soon!