Category Archives: Hyndburn Council

Accrington Pals make Twitter boom on Somme anniversary

July 1st marked the 99th anniversary of one of the bloodiest days in world history, and the sacrifice of hundreds of thousands of WWI troops who laid down their lives for King and Country is being kept alive by modern technology.

The opening day of the infamous Battle of the Somme is remembered as the worst day in the history of the British Army, with 60,000 men killed or wounded. Nowhere was the impact more keenly felt that in Accrington and its surrounding district.

Among the vast number of casualties was the majority of the11th (Service) Battalion (Accrington) East Lancashire Regiment – better known as the “Accrington Pals”. Of the 720 Pals who participated, 584 were killed, injured or reported missing, sending the town of Accrington into a collective state of grief as almost everyone in the town had a friend or relative who had joined the Accrington Pals.

The recruiting ethos of the “Pals” battalions was that men were more likely to enlist if they knew they would be fighting alongside their friends and neighbours. But the catastrophic losses of the Somme Offensive and other battles led to the scrapping of the system, as towns and districts saw a whole generation of their menfolk killed or terribly injured.

Yet their sacrifice lives on, and now social media is strengthening the message that “we will remember them”. Accy Pals Tweet capture 1

Burnley-based Scott Dawson Advertising runs an Accrington Pals Twitter account (twitter.com./accrington_pals), regularly posting messages – known as “tweets” – on the popular online social networking service.

To commemorate the 99th anniversary there was a special push on Twitter, with a series of tweets recounting the days’ events and telling the stories of individual soldiers present at the first day of the Somme.

It was extremely well received by people who follow the Accrington Pals Twitter feed. Throughout the day the tweets were “retweeted” – passed on so that many more people see them – 150 times and were “favourited” 53 times, spreading the account and its commemorative tweets all over the world. Accy Pals Tweet capture 2

Accrington Pals’ historian Andrew Jackson took notice of the attention the posts were receiving, commenting “Great tweets today”. Jackson also wrote the book “Accrington’s Pals: The Full Story” which was used as a research source for a number of the tweets sent out on the day.

John Williams, who manages social media output for Scott Dawson, commented: “Although the history of the Accrington Pals is well-known locally, telling that fascinating story on social media means the experiences and events of that historic day can quickly reach new audiences worldwide.

“It also means that younger generations, who use social media all the time but might not have known much about the Accrington Pals, can find out about the incredible sacrifices their ancestors made 99 years ago and ensure their story lives on.”

Scott Dawson Advertising manages a number of different social media accounts for commercial clients and as a way to help and promote local communities.

How to market your local market…

Lancashire town pioneers a 21st century approach to promoting the much-loved traditional market

A traditional and award-winning market at the heart of a Lancashire town is embracing new ways to promote itself, while preserving that all-important personal touch.

Accrington Market Kirsty Lauder personal shopperOpened in 1869, Accrington’s Victoria Market Hall is one of the finest buildings in the town centre, home to more than 60 kiosks under its dramatically high ceiling, and with more in outdoor pavilions alongside the Market Hall.

A £2m. revamp of the historic Grade II-listed building was completed in 2010, quickly followed by it winning the coveted Britain’s Best Indoor Market Award in early 2011.

But it is people who make a market – the friendly traders, their stalls stacked high with quality fresh local produce at value-for-money prices, and their loyal customers, shunning the supermarket shelves in favour of a familiar face and caring personal service.

Accrington could boast plenty of both, and yet the younger generation were not prevalent among the bustling market’s regulars. Whether it was down to their busy working lives, the culture of out-of-town superstore shopping, or just not knowing all the market had to offer, there was, literally, a gap in the market.

What it came down to was “marketing the market” to a wider and largely untapped audience, and making its services more accessible to those with 21st century pressures on their time. Enter locally-based marketing specialists Scott Dawson Advertising, bringing a fresh and up-to-the-minute approach to promoting one of Accrington’s oldest attractions.Accrington Market online launch

It joined forces with Hyndburn Borough Council in a bold and innovative bid to combine the traditional market experience with the latest promotional tools. The result has been a pioneering pilot project – and a template that could be rolled out to other markets across the UK.

Now Accrington Market has its own website (www.accringtonmarketonline.co.uk); its own dedicated YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/user/accringtonmarket); its own Facebook page (www.facebook.com/accringtonshops); even its own Twitter feed (twitter.com/AccringtonShops).

As well as promoting the market and its various traders, the website allows customers to shop online, choosing a range of products available from its stalls, and even to benefit from a personal shopper, Kirsty Lauder. Options include a “click and collect” service, with Kirsty compiling customers’ orders ready  for pre-arranged pickup, or even free delivery within a three-mile radius in a liveried Accrington Markets refrigerated van

Kirsty (23), who works from the Market Hall, is often seen buzzing around the stalls filling customers’ orders taken online, by email or phone.

“It’s my job to oversee customers’ orders from start to finish, from the moment they come in until they end up in the customer’s hands,” said Kirsty.

“Whether customers call in to quickly collect their order at a time convenient to them, or arrange to have one of our drivers drop it off at their home or business, I can look after that. And if there’s something special that customers can’t see on the website, chances are I can hunt it out from one of the stalls if they contact me.”

There are even special online discounts for customers using the website, with a range of money-saving eCoupons which can be cashed in at the PayPal checkout.

It’s all a long way from the days when the only marketing a stallholder could rely on was his own voice bellowing “Get yer strawberries… a pound a punnet!”

Accrington Market Kirsty and vanNine months on from its official launch by Jesse McClure, star of the hit Dave TV show Storage Hunters, the online market is growing steadily, with neighbouring local authorities showing a keen interest.

Murray Dawson, MD of Scott Dawson Advertising, has kept a close eye on the pilot project, his team continually refining, improving and refreshing the model. Murray said:  “Hyndburn Council were very bold and forward thinking in adopting this approach and together we got to work developing a digital and practical solution that builds on all of the fantastic traits of our much-loved market, as well as making them available for the first time to an online audience.”

Cllr Clare Cleary, Hyndburn Council’s Cabinet Member for Markets, added: “We have a fabulous market housed in a refurbished market hall offering great local produce and goods from friendly stallholders.

“We knew that shopping habits are changing rapidly with more use of online facilities and were keen to capture this to allow more people to experience the fantastic good and services Accrington Market has to offer. We are glad we’ve taken this new approach and proud that we’ve moved with the times to make the market more accessible using the latest technology, whilst still offering the same friendly service and warm Lancashire welcome for market customers.”

 

 

‘Beer Chef’ to be toast of festival – 6th June 2015

Celebrity chef Richard Fox will be the guest star at the Accrington Food and Drink Festival on Saturday, June 6.

Richard, dubbed ‘The Beer Chef’, will front this year’s cookery stage on Accrington’s Broadway, with more than 4,000 people expected to attend the festival, which is free to enter.

A host of culinary delights, proudly produced by local farmers and independent traders, will be available for visitors to sample during the special one-day event.

And Richard, who wrote The Food and Beer Cook Book and starred in the ITV series Men Brewing Badly alongside Neil Morrissey, is set to be the star attraction as he demonstrates his cooking skills.

Mr Fox, who has a strong family affinity with Lancashire, specialises in turning leftovers into gastronomic masterpieces.

The Accrington Food and Drink Festival has a proud history of attracting TV cooking personalities with James Martin and Gizzi Erskine among those to have previously attended.

The event will also commemorate the 71st anniversary of the D-Day landings, while two historic buses will transport families from around the area for a small fee.

For more information about the festival, visit the official website

www.accringtonfoodfestival.co.uk or contact Kirsty at kirsty@scottdawson.co.uk or on 01282 426846.