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Emails have gone out to invite all creative, digital and ICT practitioners and businesses in Wigan to add their details into the new Creative Wigan online directory. The directory has been borne out of the Creative Wigan initiative which started about 2 years ago with the aim of supporting the creative and digital sector in Wigan. It’s something we’ve been involved with and keen to support  from the start, and through it, we’ve met some great people, formed some good relationships and collaborated with some of the group on video, photography and web development work to deliver some of our own projects.

There’s undoubtedly plenty of talent in Wigan but, much as in the sector across the country as a whole, it’s comprised predominantly of individuals, partners and micro businesses who naturally prefer to spend their time painting, sculpting, writing, filming, developing, crafting and generally being creative. It quickly became apparent that the key issues for most people in the sector, are those of funding and of work. Whilst we can’t help with funding – which is either problematic from banks or off the agenda altogether from the public sector as the age of the grant is over – we did come up with an idea to help with the latter; finding work.

We’ve designed, developed and donated an online directory which aims to make it really easy for the businesses and public sector organisations in the borough and beyond, to source and access the creative and digital talent on their doorstep. It’s a very user friendly website which includes the directory on the home page with service providers grouped into categories such as ‘design’ and ‘film’ which can then be filtered by tags, or specific services, such as ‘graphics’ or ‘post production’. The basic contact details are all provided immediately and by clicking on these, the user is taken to a full profile with references and links.

Sadly, the Creative Wigan initiative, backed by Wigan Council and made possible through the tireless enthusiasm of  Ray Hanks and Andrew Patrick, has come to an end as the funding, unsurprisingly in the current climate, won’t be extended. Although it’s hoped that the directory at least will leave a positive legacy to help promote the sector and that the friendships and collaborations will continue.

But there is going to be one last ‘hurrah’ to the launch the directory.

It will take place on the 2nd of March, from 12 til 2, at Leigh Sports Village. Presented by Dave Guest from BBC North, confirmed speakers include; Andy Burnham MP and Shadow Minister; Winston Higham, Chief Executive of DW Sports Fitness and former Marketing Director of JJB Sports plc; Phil Clarke, Sky Sports presenter, former Wigan and Great Britain RL captain and Director of online business The Sports Office; Brian Cannon of Microdot, designer of iconic album covers for Oasis and The Verve; Will Bentley Managing Director of bd2 Wigan’s largest agency who have designed, developed and donated the site; David Molyneux, Wigan Council Deputy Leader.

This will be followed by a buffet of, obviously, pies and an opportunity to network.

All Wigan businesses and public sector organisations are welcome along with everyone from the creative and digital community. It would be handy to know if you’re planning to come though so we know how may pies to get in, please let bryony@bd2.co.uk know or email info@creativewigan.com. There’s a bit more info at www.creativewigan.com which will be the URL for the new directory when launched.

iPad and tablet conversion rates are double that of desktops, and almost twice as high as other mobile devices, according to stats that show the value of tablet users for online retailers. According to stats from Affiliate Window’s M-commerce white paper  http://blog.affiliatewindow.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/M-Commerce-The-Complete-Picture2.pdf the average conversion rate for iPad was 3.82% in August, compared to 1.9% for desktop (i.e. non-mobile). The stats cover 81.9m visits to merchants and 1.57m sales, not including In-App purchases except in cases where the customer is taken out of the app to complete the transaction.

Stats from eBay, quoted in M-commerce’s Innovation Briefing http://econsultancy.com/uk/reports/m-commerce-innovation-briefing, echo this trend, with the company stating that tablet users spend 50% more than PC users. Conversion rates are also higher for iPads compared to the tablets, not only are average order values higher [AOV of £69.94, compared to £65 for desktops], but the iPad is converting better than desktop, as well as all other mobile devices. And by some distance too. The average iPad conversion rate for August was 3.82%, with the next best 2.58% for Android. Non-mobile was way behind on 1.9%.

These stats then, would suggest that b2c online retailers should ensure their website is optimised for tablets to take full advantage of the growing number of consumers using them – ipad sales grew 183% in the quarter to June this year. It doesn’t take too great a leap in imagination to see that this consumer trend could follow suit in the b2b arena. The portability of the tablet combined with it’s intuitive and more practical usability than mobiles, added to the ability to go online, either via wifi or 3G, makes it the most convenient way for non-desk based users to reference and potentially order products whilst out of the office.

Last Friday saw the second Wigan Business Expo, and [whilst the word 'Expo' still suggests to me something that sounds like the kind of thing they hold in Brussels, Rome, Tokyo or Montreal] the event is growing into its title and also in terms of exhibitors, attendees and length. Having relocated from one stadia to another – from DW Sports to Leigh Sports Village – the new venue accommodated more exhibitors and a full day’s programme of speakers in two presentation rooms. Although actually getting to the venue wasn’t that easy though with some ill-timed roadworks causing tailbacks onto the ever-expanding Leigh Sports Village site, shortly to be added to by a large Morrisons. Unfortunately both the event and the roadworks were organised by the Council, I guess it’s a case of the left and right hand?

Despite this glitch, hats must go off to the Council for supporting local businesses and encouraging inward investment in the Borough across both public and private sectors. As last year, the event had a very positive buzz, with exhibitors and attendees networking in the various rooms and corridors of the stadium. The presentations were inevitably mixed, given that there must have been a dozen in each room through the day, both in terms of quality and attendance but there were some worthwhile ones amongst them. I’d like to think that my efforts to explain the importance of developing an ‘e-strategy’ within your business, to compliment traditional marketing and business plans, were well received and I seemed to have a reasonable audience. There was no heckling or throwing of objects at least, which is always a positive.

Given that this year’s event was bigger and better than last year, I’d hope that the Council will continue to support it, even in what are clearly difficult times for Local Authorities and their budgets. There does at least seem be a growing recognition of the importance of local business to the survival and growth of the local economy.

Thanks must go to Claire Walsh and Keith Molloy at the Council for the hard work they’ve clearly put into making the event happen.

You have to admire How Do’s knack of putting together a decent speaker line up and consequently pulling in a decent crowd. The ‘How Do Manchester Creative Business Forum’, held at the stylish Studio at The Hive yesterday was typically well attended by a healthy mix of creative industry types drawn in by a wealthier mix of creative industry leaders. The speaker list was topped by Sue Little, Chief Exec of Mccanns, the acknowledged largest agency outside London, which if translated into the famous ‘That was the week that was’ sketch with the Two Ronnies and John Cleese, puts her firmly in the John Cleese position on the left – we all look up to her. Her presentation, whilst b2c biased and inevitably Mccanns view of the world, did capture the current mood of change with its challenge everything message – “think the unthinkable and do the undoable” driven by the rise of social media and newly empowered consumers. Liane Grimshaw, former Amaze director, punchily delivered some widely known but ever relevant home truths summed up, really, as focus – focus on your team, your clients and what you’re good at. And finally there was a dry but fascinating presentation by a ‘Deputy Agent’ (disappointingly not dressed in Cowboy get up as I imagined) from the Bank of England on the overall picture of the economy which turns out to look like a lot of complex graphs cleverly vague enough to accommodate sizable margins for error and frequently caveated by global economic factors outside their control or ability to predict. Summed up, I think, as cautiously optimistic. Which I felt was the general mood of the event, coupled with the ubiquitous rhetoric about collaboration.

This joint Marketing Industry Network and Creative Lancashire Event at The Storey in Lancashire on the 11th May is set to discuss the benefits or otherwise of Agency size and how small businesses manage to work with big ones. I’ve agreed to be one of the panelists, although having never done anything quite like this before, do so with some nervous concern, mostly about the potential of making a fool of myself in front of lots of people. Plus I’m going to have to start paying attention to panelists on the telly for style tips – David Dimbleby? Michael Portillo? Ian Hislop? Simon Cowell? Perhaps The Hoff? I suppose, given that bd2 is a dozen people in Wigan but we’re currently working with several businesses with revenues in excess of $100 Billion, I’ll have something useful to contribute.

However, and I’m not sure I should reveal this before the event, I don’t think there’s any big secret; it’s all about doing a great job, being professional and looking after your customers.

For more info, or to book tickets, see http://minetwork.me/2010/12/30/big-brother-little-brother-does-size-matter/