Category Archives: Business & Careers

Future Publishing Acquires Stake In Handpicked Media

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handpickedfutureSome very exciting news from Handpicked Media, which Frost Magazine is a part of, here it is in their own words:

Future has acquired a stake in Handpicked Media – a marketing agency for independent digital publishers – creating Handpicked Future Future plc, the international media group and leading digital business, today announces a strategic partnership with Handpicked Media.

The partnership sees Future acquire a 35% stake in Handpicked Media, which represents over 500 independent websites and blogs, reaching over 3.5 million unique users a month in the UK and six million globally. The Handpicked Future partnership provides Future with access to Handpicked’s roster of influential blogs and independent sites across a range of lifestyle channels including Fashion, Beauty and Entertainment. And in return Future will drive the effective commercialisation of those sites.

As a pioneering agency working in social media, Handpicked Media has curated a growing portfolio of influential sites across a range of lifestyle channels since it was launched in 2009 by entrepreneur Krista Madden. It manages the interaction between its community and a range of consumer brands, offering clients an array of opportunities to reach a very targeted and highly engaged audience.

Mark Wood, CEO of Future plc, says: “Handpicked has created a powerful social media proposition, curating a portfolio of leading independent sites and blogs across a range of sectors including beauty, fashion, lifestyle and entertainment. Our partnership grows Future’s digital audience in attractive new sectors and is another signal of Future’s intention to deliver greater audience engagement and diversified revenue opportunities from digital platforms.”

Handpicked Future solutions include social media strategy, blogger outreach, content creation, events and integrated campaigns for a range of brand partners including Gucci, Karen Millen, Vodafone, Nivea and Intel. Future will drive the next phase of commercialisation across the collective, with an initial focus on developing the women’s lifestyle offer, under Future Women Managing Director, Jo Morrell.

Jo says: “Future is all about digital innovation and creative content, and Handpicked Media shares that sensibility. Krista and her team have created a really powerful social platform, which Future can support, expand and commercialise. Our award-winning digital excellence offers tremendous opportunities for lifestyle, fashion and beauty brands to deeply engage their audiences through Handpicked Future. I’m thrilled to seal this partnership.”

Krista adds: “We are very excited to be working with Future to expand our audiences, while supporting and developing the talent we have. The combined expertise of the new Handpicked Future team brings innovation and a unique proposition across social and digital platforms.”

Future reaches 58 million global unique users a month online and in the last year so over five million digital editions of its products for tablet and smartphone devices.

Future is the PPA and AOP Consumer Digital Publisher of the Year and the BMA Media Company of the Year.

Win A Copy Of The Promise

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the promise book -win - competitionFrost Magazine has teamed up with our friends at Pearson — the world’s leading education publisher — to give away copies of revolutionary new self-improvement guide, The Promise.

The result of years of psychological research and insight, The Promise by respected psychologist Graham W Price is the definitive fool-proof route to a life free of negative thoughts and full of positivity . . . and that’s a promise.

The book maps out a clear and surprisingly straightforward path to achieving all the things we want from life: lasting relationships; job satisfaction; freedom from stress, anxiety, worry, regret, depression, addictions, weight problems and other self-limiting issues; and enjoying a rich and fulfilling life.

Across its 224 pages, The Promise reveals the secrets of Price’s Acceptance-Action Training (AAT), developed to significantly enhance motivation, resilience and relationships and empower people to reach their personal and professional goals.

As the title suggests, the book is a promise from the author to readers that if they follow his guidance they can banish forever the negative thoughts and feelings that limit potential, take control of their lives and determine their future. It’s a programme that’s already been proven to work with thousands of individuals from all walks of life.

The Promise is the last word in self-help books: a complete process of personal transformation presented in 13 inspiring chapters, with each unlocking more powerful techniques to grasp control of our destiny.

Easy to follow, and packed with real-life case studies illustrating the incredible things that can be accomplished, it is a compelling and persuasive guide that will appeal to anyone wanting to boost their abilities for a more fulfilling life.

We have 10 copies of The Promise by Graham W Price (Pearson, RRP £10.99) to give away. For your chance to win, follow @Frostmag on Twitter and Tweet, “I want to win The Promise with @Frostmag” or like us on Facebook. Alternatively, sign up to our newsletter.

Our review of The Promise is here.

Win A Copy Of 101 Business Ideas That Will Change The Way You Work

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Win A Copy Of 101 Business Ideas That Will Change The Way You WorkFrost Magazine has joined forces with Pearson — the world’s leading education publisher — to give away copies of new business guide, 101 Business Ideas That Will Change The Way You Work.

This illuminating title by respected business writer Antonio E. Weiss challenges long-held beliefs about good business practice to provide employers, managers and entrepreneurs with invaluable bite-sized nuggets of clever business insights.

Each idea in the 300-page book, described as a “box of chocolates for the managerial mind”, is neatly structured, giving a headline, summary and fun illustration, followed by snappy sections on ‘What You Need to Know’; ‘Why it Matters’; ‘What You Might Say About This’; ‘How This Will Change the Way You Work’ and ‘Where You Can Find Out More’.

And as each idea is covered in a few pages, 101 Business Ideas is the perfect book to dip in and out of when seeking another perspective or fresh inspiration.

The book’s author, Antonio E. Weiss, is a management writer and business consultant who has served leading public sector clients including central government and the NHS on strategy, performance improvement and capability building issues.

In writing 101 Business Ideas, Weiss has drawn upon the collective wisdom of contemporary business and social science thinkers including The New Yorker journalist Malcolm Gladwell and Israeli-American psychologist Daniel Kahnemann, winner of the 2002 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences.

It contains brilliant business tips and big ideas such as how to spot if a CEO is lying; why innovation can be overrated; why networking can make you anti-social; how biology affects your decision making; and why online procrastination actually accelerates productivity.

By telling readers what they need to know, why they need to know it and how to do it, 101 Business Ideas will ensure professionals are cannier, more effective at work and always one step ahead.

We have five copies of 101 Business Ideas That Will Change The Way You Work by Antonio E. Weiss (Pearson, RRP £12.99) to give away. For your chance to win, follow @Frostmag on Twitter and Tweet, “I want to win 101 Business Ideas with @Frostmag” or like us on Facebook. Alternatively, sign up to our newsletter.

 

Win A Copy Of Make It Fly!

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Brigitte Cobb Make it Fly!: The step by step guide to make ANY idea, project or goal take offFrost Magazine has teamed up with Pearson — the world’s leading education publisher — to give away copies of new self-help guide, Make it Fly!

If you have a personal project or professional ambition that you’d love to realise, but aren’t sure where to begin then Make it Fly!, by change specialist Brigitte Cobb , could be just what you need.

In writing the book, Cobb has combined over 15 years of personal and business development
experience helping businesses transform their organisations to design a tried-and-tested ‘make-it-happen’ model.

As such, it is the first book of its kind to offer practical step-by-step guidance on making any dream project — such as a new business venture, house extension or slimmer figure — get off the groundand soar.

Across its 192 pages, the guide uniquely goes beyond goal setting and positive thinking to show in detail how to be clear about your dream (the ‘what’), put an action plan together (the ‘how’), and “get out of your own way” and deal with personal hang-ups (the ‘who’).

Clear and comprehensive, it provides a logical building block approach to get what you want in life — however big or small the idea, ambitious or wide-reaching — showing you how to take your big dream or vision and chunk it down into realistic, achievable steps.

Make it Fly! is more than a handy guide, it’s the reader’s own personal coach. Packed with
inspirational quotes and practical exercises to complete, the emphasis is firmly on action and readers are given full support as they progress through the steps and master new skills.

We have 10 copies of Make it Fly! by Brigitte Cobb (Pearson, RRP £10.99) to give away. For
your chance to win, follow @Frostmag on Twitter and Tweet, “I want to win Make it Fly! with @Frostmag” or like us on Facebook. Alternatively, sign up to our newsletter.

Our review is here.

Seven Steps To Job Seeking Success

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madetomeasuresuitThe New Year is traditionally a time when we take stock of our lives and strive for change. For many people, that means a new job. However, with competition for that dream role at its fiercest in January, Arran Stewart, director at MyJobMatcher.com, offers jobseekers a head start with his seven top tips for success:

Make sure your CV will make the ”yes” pile

Your CV is still one of the most important tools you’ll ever have to clinch that job.  It’s your responsibility, and no one else’s, to make sure that you maximise your chances of catching the eye of employers and recruiters.

It sounds obvious, but take the time to ensure that your CV accurately reflects the required skills of the job you are applying for.  Bring out your relevant experience and relate it to the job – also craft a quick, clear and concise covering note to accompany your application.  All it takes is a little bit of effort to tweak your CV and it could be the key to opening the door to your next job.

Put yourself in the shoes of the recruiter and ask yourself what they want to see and how your CV will get them excited about you?

Tread carefully online – without a traffic cone on your head.

Most employers and recruiters will have a look at your digital footprint – sometimes before ever contacting you about your application. If you have a million selfies sporting a traffic cone on your head as your Facebook front page what conclusion do you think someone will draw?

 

It is both positive and negative that our digital footprint impacts first impressions of who people really think we are – the best candidates use this to their advantage and tailor their online profiles to the sector they are targeting.

Get your personal “in the pub” profile locked down to your mates on Facebook, don’t be a twitter twit and keep your professional profile on LinkedIn in tip top shape as. The latest industry research suggests that 50% of Fortune 100 companies hire here.

Job seeking can be a numbers game but don’t get trigger happy

You won’t simply apply for your dream job one day and get it the next.  Unquestionably, job seeking is about setting a number of good horses running and making sure you get the right ones home!

 

By all means apply for the jobs you think are best and most relevant to you, but be mindful not to simply apply for everything and anything you find as you can ultimately end up reducing your chances of finding a job.

 

You don’t want to devalue yourself by landing on every desk at the same time or, even worse, the same desk more than once.

 

Nothing puts an employer off like the smell of desperation.  Stay proud in your search; remain sensibly selective in your job applications and never devalue yourself by getting trigger happy and firing your CV out everywhere.

 Be careful of recruiter jargon and buzzwords

Like it or not, online jobs have inevitably been written by recruiters who are working in sales-driven environments and who are rightfully desperate to fill roles for their clients.  As a result of this they quite often succumb to the desire to, shall we say, “over-egg” a role as highlighted in this recent quiz in the Guardian.

The danger here is that although you may consider yourself, say, a “Marketing Manager” and not a “Growth Hacker” – you need to invest the time to understand some of the en vogue terms being used by recruiters in order to ensure that you open yourself up to the best and most relevant roles.

 

It is also sensible to mention these terms in the content of your CV – even if only in the summary.  The reason?  Well a lot of recruiters search for people online and obviously key words drive a lot of databases – and after all, if it’s a great job with the right package do you really care if you are called a “Growth Hacker”?

Let technology shorten your odds

Always let technology shorten your odds and do the leg work for you – you wouldn’t go out to get 15 separate insurance quotes in order to find the best one – so where it exists, use technology to make your job seeking simpler.

 

Remember that when you search a traditional search engine such as Google or Bing you will only find what is rated and ranked by that search engine – this is often affected by clever SEO and the amount of budget someone can spend on PPC or adwords to “get found”, so the results are invariably biased.

 

Take the time to go through to pages three and four, rather than just the top ranked page, as you normally would. Even better, let technology do all the searching for you.  Sites like MyJobMatcher.com receive hundreds of thousands of jobs from all the best job boards and then match your CV to the most relevant, eliminating bias and sending you daily alerts with relevant new job matches.

Don’t forget, it’s all about people

At the end of the day, people hire people.  Your CV will only take you so far and where applications are flying in thick and fast a quick phone call to a hirer to confirm receipt of your CV and willing to answer any immediate questions will find you elevated to the top of the list. At the very least they will be aware that you are willing and able to become their next great hire!

Don’t ever give up!

Finally, job seeking can at times be a dark and depressing place.  But, like all things in life, don’t give up – not ever, and always keep true to your motives.  In the end, perseverance, savvy and helping hand from technology will get you there – happy job seeking!

For more information on jobseeking follow @MyJobMatcher for helpful tips via Twitter.

Britain is Lagging Behind Europe in Training Women

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Only 7% of professional engineers in the UK are female and companies must take the lead in redressing the balance according to Scott Fletcher – chairman and founder of UK cloud infrastructure specialists ANS Group.

 

“Private companies are beginning to take the lead in providing skills training and they should seize the opportunity to provide more apprenticeships for women in male dominated sectors. This is particularly true in the IT industry,” said Mr Fletcher.

The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) 2013 skills survey discovered that only 7% of professional engineers in the UK were women and that this figure has only risen by 2% over the last five years.

 

This compares with 18% in Spain, 20% in Italy and 26% in Sweden.

 

The Science and Technology Commons Select Committee is currently studying the progress of female students and academics pursuing science, technology, engineering and maths careers and hearing evidence from education providers.

 

“We need to increase the flow of young talent into tech and engineering industries and attracting more women is an obvious answer. Currently a large proportion of female Stem graduates (science, technical, engineering and mathematics) are choosing careers in other industries,” said Mr Fletcher.

 

A report published earlier this year by the Institute of Physics (IOP) found that half of all the co-ed schools in the UK did not put forward a single female student to sit an A-level in physics.

 

“It seems that Britain’s schools have pigeon holed physics as a ‘boys’ subject which is a notion that needs to be eradicated immediately,” said Mr Fletcher.

 

Scott Fletcher has been a consistent campaigner for reform of the way computing skills are taught to young people.

 

“Providing on-the-job apprenticeship training is every bit as vital as finding tech and science graduates. We find time and time again that young people aren’t leaving school with the skills they need to begin a career in a tech industry.

 

“The IT industry is obviously fluid and businesses need to re-invent themselves every few years. There is no sitting back on past glories in our industry and young talent is the essential fuel for that re-invention,” said Mr Fletcher.

 

ANS Group has designed and created its own ‘Cloud Academy’ that will provide industry led training for approximately 60 apprentices in Cloud technology every year. It is hoped that the academy will see at least five new candidates joining the ANS team each month.

 

Our ANS Cloud Academy – which is based in Manchester – is part of the government’s ‘Employer Ownership of Skill Pilot’ which invites employers to develop any proposal that teaches skills, creates employment or drives economic growth.

Jura Launches Search for the World’s Best Stories

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writing competition, writing, Jura Whisky has launched a search for the world’s best stories, with the chance to win two all-expenses paid trips to the 2014 Jura Whisky Festival.

 

Jura Whisky is calling on all budding storytellers to submit a story in 1,000 characters or less. Every fortnight for ten weeks Jura Whisky will provide a different story theme for inspiration. The themes kick off this week with Travel Adventure, followed by Day Dreams, A Brush with Death, Into the Wild and Happily Ever After.

 

Art Wednesday will provide further inspiration by producing a series of videos which tell the stories of interesting, influential creatives and their work. The first two videos will feature writer Marcel Theroux and musician Nick Mulvey (previously of Portico Quartet), with more to follow.

 

From the competition entries, three stories will be chosen each week and turned into bespoke illustrations by creative agency Holler which will be posted on to jurawhisky.com.  At the end of the ten weeks, each of the 30 winning stories will be put to the public vote to find the favourite. Voting will remain open for two weeks.

 

The winner with the most votes will have a once in a lifetime opportunity to enjoy an all-expenses paid trip to Jura for the 2014 Whisky Festival to help select the new special edition festival bottling which will be launched at the 2015 Festival. Staying in the luxurious Jura Lodge, the winner will be treated to a VIP tour, taking in all of Jura’s ‘must sees’, including a speedboat trip to the Corryvreckan whirlpool, tea on the beach and a visit to Barnhill where Orwell wrote 1984.
The competition will run right through until Friday, 10 January 2014, is part of Jura Whisky’s new ‘Story Season’ campaign. The competition is open to entrants from all countries.

 

 

10 Ways to Take Stunning Portraits

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Emilia FoxIf you have ever had your portrait taken and wondered at how the photographer created such amazing images of little ol’ you, then you’ll be surprised to hear that people are actually the easiest subjects to photograph. Unlike the natural world, people are actually willing and interested in having their picture taken and that puts you the photographer, in control. All of the elements of good photography are in your hands. You choose the subject, the light, potential themes, colours, etc. Technical details are not so important, the key here is imagination. SmugMug knows a thing or two about good photography and have compiled 10 tips to help you enhance your portrait skills. Watch out David Bailey!

1. Alter Your Perspective – Some of the best portraits are the ones that break the rules. So instead of shooting your subject at eye level, try changing the angle, either get up high and shoot down on your subject or get as close to the ground as you can and shoot up. Either way you will see your subject from a different perspective which will instantly add interest.

2. Play with Eye Contact – A strong gaze will give a powerful impact to your photograph and will also create a real sense of connection between the subject and those viewing. The direction of your subject’s eyes can also give character to your image. For example, you can create a little intrigue by making your subject look off camera, at something hidden from the viewer. Alternatively, you can give your subject something to look at that is inside the frame, creating a second point of interest and a relationship between it and your primary subject. This will also help create a ‘story’ within the image.

3. Look for a Full Range of Emotions – This is a particularly good advice when taking family portraits. Do not just take pictures when a scene seems sweet. Every emotion a parent, sibling, or child display is worth capturing—fascination, tears, passion, even boredom. Interaction between family members will prompt these emotions.

4. Experiment with Lighting – The power of lighting is sometimes overlooked and there are almost unlimited possibilities when it comes to using light in portraits. For instance, side-lighting can create mood, whilst backlighting and silhouetting your subject to hide their features can be powerful. Window light is also very beautiful for taking photos indoors, but you will need a reflector to put light back onto the shadowed side of your subject’s face. You can buy a reflector or even try making your own from a large piece of white card or a white sheet.

5. Move Your Subject Out of their Comfort Zone – Head and shoulder shots and other standard pose images can be nice but will they really make your picture stand out from the crowd? Agree with your subjects to create something special and out of the box, make them jump for instance or do something with their body that might sound silly at first but might turn out to be surprising and create a unique portrait.

6. Shoot Candidly – Posed portraits can sometimes limit your creativity and also block your subject to standard expressions. Adopting a candid approach is particularly good when photographing children or really any active subject that is changing their position or pose in quick succession.

Photograph your subject in a familiar space or doing something that they enjoy. This will put them more at ease, reacting naturally to the situation that they are in. Get them to have some fun and be spontaneous. The resulting photos will be full of life.

7. Use Accessories – Your subject still need to be the main point of interest but by adding accessories to your shot such as a piece of jewellery, a hat or simply a beautiful textured fabric you will instantly create another point of interest that will help enhance your subject and add an extra layer of depth.

8. Play with Background – Once again, the person in your portrait should be the main point of interest. However, you can dramatically alter the mood in a shot when you place your subject in different contexts. For example, choose a dramatic or colourful background, or be as minimalistic as possible and make you subject stand out. Experimenting is the key.

9. Go with a Wide Angle – Shooting with a wide angle lens can help produce creative and memorable portrait shots. Often overlooked as just a landscape lens, a wide focal length can open up a whole new world of opportunities and, contrary to popular belief, you can still get a flattering portrait of your subject – you just need to shoot in a slightly different way. If you are planning to take a distorted style wide angle portrait it is crucial to make the effect look as deliberate as possible, otherwise it will simply seem as if you have used the wrong lens.

10. Share Your Photos with the Right Tools – Finally, what’s the point of taking stunning portraits if nobody sees them? You can share your portraits with your friends and family by using SmugMug. With secure photo sharing you can create an online photo album where you can store and share all of your photographs in a simple, safe and secure place.

Visit www.smugmug.com for a free 14-day trial. Membership starts at $5/month.