Stokesley based branding agency, Better is celebrating after winning another top industry award.

The agency – set up in 2008 by Mark Easby, Declan Metcalfe and Peter Jones – won the Internet and ICT category at the nebusiness Awards which were sponsored by Business Link and The Evening Gazette. (more…)

We’re pleased, and very proud, to announce we’ve been shortlisted for the ‘ICT and Internet Award’ in the North East Business Awards.

We got the call today from the sponsors of the category to give us the good news and now we’re all excited and looking forward to the Awards Dinner on 25th March at Teesside University. (more…)

Click to view Project Slideshow

Project Details:

Brand Development, Marketing Campaign Design, Marketing Literature, Direct Mail, Website Design and Development, Social Media Support.

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TyneTwestival will be hosted on the 25th March 2010

On Thursday 25 March 2010, people in hundreds of cities around the world, including Newcastle will come together offline to rally around the important cause of Education by hosting local events to have fun and create awareness.  Twestival™ (or Twitter Festival) uses social media for social good.

All of the local events are organized 100% by volunteers and 100% of all ticket sales and donations go direct to projects. Follow @tynetwestival on Twitter or visit http://newcastle.twestival.com for updates.

About Concern Worldwide.

Concern Worldwide was founded in 1968 to meet the needs of people living in extreme poverty, for whom every day is a fight for survival. Concern is a non-governmental, international, humanitarian organization dedicated to the reduction of suffering and working towards the ultimate elimination of poverty. Their mission is to help people living in extreme poverty achieve major improvements in their lives – improvements they can sustain without ongoing support. Concern meets the needs of these people in a caring and personalized manner, respecting their human and cultural dignity. They are committed to reaching the most vulnerable, even in the most difficult of circumstances.

Concern’s work is informed by a vision for change and their education programs target the poorest people in the poorest countries in the world, with particular emphasis on reaching out-of-school children such as girls, orphans, street children, working children, children affected by conflict, children affected by HIV and AIDS, and children with disabilities. Concern’s education programs currently reach over 700,000 people in 25 countries across the regions of Africa,  Asia, and the Caribbean.  Please follow @concern on Twitter to get a glimpse of their staff tweeting from around the world; including their efforts on the ground in Haiti. (more…)

We’re proud to be involved and supporting the Entrepreneurs Forum North East Youth Conference called ‘Use Your Loaf’. As an agency, and as individuals, we’re committed to supporting the Forum’s agenda for promoting enterprise and entrepreneurship across the North East.

More information on the ‘Use Your Loaf’ North East Youth Conference:

Enterprise
 and entrepreneurship are high on the agenda, both for schools and the region’s future economic prosperity.

There’s no doubt that the best way to find out what it’s all about — the peaks and pitfalls, the tears and triumphs, the challenges and successes and above all the immense satisfaction of achievement — is to hear straight from the horse’s mouth. Many entrepreneurs claim not to know much! But that belies the fact that they take all opportunities to absorb knowledge and learning from experience and those around them. And whether they’re conscious of it or not, they are experts at applying that knowledge.

So the combination of wisdom, passion, vision, drive, dedication and determination shared by our speakers makes them great role models and ideally placed to inspire a generation.

Use Your Loaf will be a partnership between the key organisations involved in enterprise education across the North East including Enterprise UK, Enterprise Learning Partnerships, Young Enterprise, the Prince’s Trust, Young Chambers, education business partnerships and we’ll celebrate the excellent ideas and commitment of students who have taken part in the many activities and competitions.

Use Your Loaf sits alongside a wide range of activities and resources developed by the Entrepreneurs’ Forum through the Ifwecanyoucan campaign to support enterprise in schools, colleges and universities.
For the last seven years,
the Entrepreneurs’ Forum has worked tirelessly to nurture and promote entrepreneurship in the region.

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Better are proud to be supporting the Entrepreneurs Forum’s Change to Change event which will take place in the North East at the Civic Centre, Newcastle on 22nd February.

The Change to Change event is your Chance to Change your life. An inspirational and informative conference, funded by One North East, for those looking to escape the world of employment and create their own job or venture – whether through necessity or choice.

Lots of the best things that happen in life, happen by chance. But you’ve got to embrace opportunities as they come along and make the most of them. So if you can find a way to increase the likelihood of the chance encounters that could make a real difference to you, then why wouldn’t you jump at it.

Chance to Change is the perfect opportunity to think about what makes you tick and where your passions, ambitions and opportunities lie. Chance to take stock.

Chance to make the most of your skills
Change the way you think about your career.

Chance to speak to people who’ve already done it
Change your thoughts on what you’re capable of.

Chance to do something you’ve always wanted to
Change your life to fit you and your priorities.

Chance to work through the barriers
Change your view on what it takes to start a business.

Chance to make the right connections
Change the rules – make your own.

For more information please visit the Chance to Change website.

Hi all,

Just a reminder that Tyne Tees Twestival will be held this coming Monday.  The team here at Twestival Towers are really excited and have been a bit hectic of late, hence the direct mailing!  Thanks to everyone who has bought a ticket already, and I hope you will encourage others to do the same!

It’s on Monday at 7pm at Hoults Yard within the Boiler House – I just realized that I’ve been calling it the Boiler Room….oops!  The photo comes from PJ White’s Flickr account – worth a look! You’ll find a map on our blog page – thanks Google!

If you can not get a ticket before the event, send us a Tweet so we know you are coming along (and will buy more booze/food). You can donate on the door as Better Brand Agency will be manning it along with a big donation box.

So…the all important question – what does your £10 DONATION for each ticket get you?…
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As most of you have heard, Twestival is back and Better Brand Agency is happy to announce Tyne and Tees Twestivals will be taking place in early September.

Details of headline sponsor and corporate sponsors opportunities will be announced shortly, as will some of the ideas we’ve got to make this year, bigger and better. So keep an eye on the Twitter accounts @TyneTwestival and@TeesTwestival and local media for more news.

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Vantis, the UK accounting, tax and business recovery and advisory group, proudly announced at an award ceremony last week that the inaugural Tees Valley Vantis Corporate Challenge raised a grand total of £30,000 for two local charities.

This is the first year that Vantis, which has offices based in 17 locations across the UK, including Darlington, Hartlepool and Middlesbrough, has run the Corporate Challenge in the Tees Valley region. The Challenge was launched in February of this year to an amazing reception from local businesses, with over 50 Tees Valley companies signing up and pledging their support. Teams then spent three months raising as much money as possible for Zoe’s Place Baby Hospice and Hartlepool & District Hospice, using their initial £50 starter cash from Vantis – the only condition was that the fundraising activities had to be done both ethically and legally.

In his speech at the awards ceremony, which was held at mima (Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art), Martin Barber, Client Partner at Vantis in Tees Valley, thanked all the Challengers involved for their dedicated fundraising efforts.

He explained: “Collectively, the two hospices need to raise £6 per minute to continue offering their invaluable services, which are free of charge to all patients and their families. As a result of the companies here tonight generously giving their time and resources, they have directly contributed to the local community, by supporting two highly regarded charities and the work they do – something we should all be very proud of.”

The fundraising activities undertaken by the Challengers included bungee jumping, canoeing, cake baking, knitting and hiking. One brave lady, Vantis employee Tracy Sykes, even shaved off all her hair, raising over £3,000 for the charities.

At the award ceremony, companies gathered to be in with a chance of winning one of three top awards being presented: Most Money Raised, Most Innovative Idea and a special Education award to recognise schools and colleges that participated in the Vantis Corporate Challenge.

The award for the Most Money Raised was presented to Jane West and Mike Clarke from Teesside Shopping Park, whose team managed to raise a staggering £3,610.37. The judges commented on how the  team of two had maintained momentum throughout the three month challenge period, by running a number of interesting fundraising initiatives that included an on-site cake baking event, tombola, sponsored walk and a bungee jump event.

Meanwhile, the Most Innovative Idea award was picked up by a five-strong team from Archers Law. Partner Alastair Smith and his team set themselves the tough challenge of canoeing up the east coast from Teesside to Newcastle. Covering a distance of over 200 miles in a 12 hour stint, the team helped to raise over £1,000.

Alastair Smith, Partner at Archers Law, commented, “We all worked very hard on this task and got very wet in the process – but we had a lot of fun at the same time. We are delighted with the amount of money we managed to raise, and the award will sit proudly in our reception area for all to see.”

The final award – for Education – was presented to Nunthorpe School, whose team showed amazing dedication. In addition to hosting a variety of fundraising ideas including a sponsored bike ride, raffle, sponsored fast and a ‘beat the goalie’ event. Teacher, Will Bailey, who accepted the award, was also paid to dress as a woman for a day, helping to raise over £2,500 in all.

The total funds raised by Tees Valley Vantis Corporate Challenge, which already amount to over £30,000, will be donated equally between the Hartlepool & District Hospice and Zoe’s Place Baby Hospice.

Zoe’s Place Event Coordinator, Rachel Bareham, commented: “The Vantis Corporate Challenge awards have tonight recognised the laudable way in which these Tees Valley businesspeople have worked together to benefit the community. Challengers have not only demonstrated a great attitude and team spirit, but also helped to raise a significant sum of money to support those in need. This would not have been possible without the team at Vantis, who instigated and managed this great initiative. We are very grateful to you all.”

Meanwhile Tracy Woodall, Chief Executive of Hartlepool & District Hospice, said:
“In its inaugural year, the Tees Valley Vantis Corporate Challenge has raised an amazing amount of money, which has only been made possible by the tremendous hard work put in by Vantis and each of the companies involved. The great thing about this is that, together, we have all been able to make a big difference and positively affect the lives of local people.”

Finally, Martin Barber concluded, “This has been a fantastic first year for the Vantis Corporate Challenge in Tees Valley. We have been overwhelmed by the incredible response we have received from local businesses, and by the creativity of the Challengers in their fundraising initiatives. I am delighted and encouraged to see that many of the companies who competed in this year’s event have already registered for the next Challenge – in 2010.”

Vantis Corporate Challenge Press Image

Pictured L to R: Rachel Bareham, Zoes Place, Alastair Smith, Archers Law, Mike Clarke, Teesside Park Far back left Martin Barber, Vantis Centre Jane West, Teesside Park, Will Bailey, Nunthorpe School, Far back right, Sue Fox, Zoes Place, Tracy Woodall Hartlepool & District Hospice, Carole Sennett, Hartlepool & District Hospice.

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For further information about the Vantis Corporate Challenge, please contact Ray Priestman, Location Director for the North East, on Tel: 01642 221331.

Media Contact: For further information, please contact Max Freer at We Do Marketing, on Mobile: 07712 488943 or Office: 01642 322544.

About Vantis:
Vantis plc is the AIM listed UK top 13 accounting, business and tax advisory group that specialises in helping growing businesses. Vantis Group Ltd, a Vantis plc group company, is regulated by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales for a range of investment business activities.

The Vantis group offers a range of specialist skills, including Accountancy, Taxation, Business Advice, Corporate Finance, Asset Finance, Forensic Accounting & Dispute Resolution, Business Recovery & Personal Insolvency Services, Restructuring & Turnaround Services, Outsourcing, Management Consultancy, Company Secretarial, Customs Duty Recovery & Advisory Services, Independent Financial Advice, High Net Worth Services and Sports Advisory Services & Solutions.  The Vantis group now has over 1,000 staff operating from 17 locations throughout England.   For more information about Vantis, visit: http://www.vantisplc.com

For further information about Zoë’s Place visit: http://www.zoesplace.org/middlesbrough
For further information about Hartlepool and District Hospice visit: http://www.hartlepoolhospice.co.uk