Octagon Design and Marketing Ltd

DESIGN PRINT SUPPORT

OCTAGON DESIGN & M ARKETING LT D

Contents 1

Introduction

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dvertising funded Adult Social Care Directories and A Independent Living Guides

4-5

Advertising funded NHS staff magazines

6-7

Foundation Trust magazines and newspapers

8-9

Design, print and support services

10-11

Promotional items

12

Private sector

OCTAGON DE SIG N & M A RK ET I NG LT D

Our creative design, expert print, mailing out facilities, socio-economic profiling, and a host of additional support services, make Octagon the perfect publishing partner.

Our team believes in being efficient, friendly and helpful and will always go the extra mile for you. We aim to provide you with the very best service possible, from advertising funded staff magazines and care directories to annual reports and private sector publications. If you don’t see what you need within our condensed brochure, please contact us as we can design, print and manufacture anything you need.

If you are already one of our valued customers we would like to sincerely thank you for using our services. If you are thinking of using us for the first time, we look forward to hearing from you and hope you become one of our many satisfied customers.

Octagon Design & Marketing Ltd Britannic Chambers 8a Carlton Road Worksop Nottinghamshire S80 1PH Tel: 01909 478822 or 01909 509105 Email: info@octagon.org.uk www.octagon.org.uk

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Advertising funded Adult Social Care Directories and Independent Living At Octagon, we offer a bespoke service to produce fully advertising funded Care Directories and Independent Living Guides for County, City and Borough Councils nationwide.

Having approximately 20 years experience of producing such publications, we understand the importance of providing information in hard copy and online. The vital hard copies given out through the assessment process, social workers, hospital social workers and GP surgeries are also provided in an e-book 2

format to enable readers to access the information through the Council website.

Editorial content within the publications cover all areas of concern, interest and needs of people requiring either nursing care or extra support to stay independent. Listings of CQC accredited care providers, domiciliary providers and extra care housing are included, and other sections typically include self directed support, personal budgets and direct payments, explanations of the various types

of care available to people to match individual needs, financial considerations, safeguarding, support for carers and much more.

We source appropriate advertising, relevant to the intended readership of the directories. We are sensitive in our approach, acting in a manner which reflects positively on the Council and ourselves.

These publications are designed and printed in line with each Councils branding and requirements. Full production

What our clients say about us‌ I would recommend Octagon to other local authorities looking to find a cost effective and professional solution to providing social care information to the public. Octagon are excellent working partners who will go beyond expectations to deliver publications that meet or even exceed the standards you are expecting as a client. Most importantly, they accurately process information you provide them with and produce proofs to deadline.

Birmingham City Council

Guides schedules are provided to give clear timescales for copy, proof, amendments, print and delivery.

Care directories and Independent Living Guides are typically produced on a bi-annual basis, enabling content to be current and accurate.

The whole process results in an easy read, informative, high quality directory to answer the questions and concerns of the individual, at nil production cost to the Council.

Please feel free to contact Caroline or Richard for more information.

Email: info@octagon.org.uk Tel: 01909 478822 or 01909 509105 www.octagon.org.uk

Sheffield City Council have worked with Octagon for many years on producing public information guides for adult social care. We find the services that we get from Octagon to be very professional, reliable, and always of a high quality.

The advertising that appears in the guides is always relevant.

Octagon are very flexible and work hard to accommodate our ever changing requirements.

We would recommend them to other local authorities.

Sheffield City Council 3

Advertising funded NHS staff magazines Communicating effectively with staff and patients can be a challenge. At Octagon we know how important good communication is. We also know it can be incredibly costly.

But it needn’t be. We will work with you to design engaging, striking and cost-effective publications.

Our track record in providing bespoke public sector publications is unsurpassed.

We have a solid reputation for delivering quality products that make no compromise when it comes to high public sector standards and we guarantee all advertising will be appropriate and in line with public sector guidelines.

Combining your words with our skills, we’ll produce an advertising funded and attractive magazine, brochure or newspaper for distribution to your organisation’s staff.

Engaging with local businesses to attract advertising support is a sensitive task. It is a balancing act between funding your publication with advertising that doesn’t

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conflict with the work you do and providing the advertisers with enough exposure to potentially attract new business. But it is a formula that Octagon has perfected for approximately 20 years and we are proud to be able to provide advertising funded media to many organisations across England.

Foundation Trust status With more and more Trusts seeking to obtain Foundation Trust status, we understand the importance of engaging with members, and communicating

What our clients say about us…

with them on a regular basis to strengthen the links between hospitals and local communities.

The most effective way of reaching members is with an informative, professional and user friendly, newsletter or magazine.

Octagon provide a high quality and cost effective design, print and mailing package enabling NHS Trusts to benefit from the efficiency that derives from using one company for the full service.

See overleaf for more details.

Please feel free to contact Caroline or Richard for more information.

Email: info@octagon.org.uk Tel: 01909 478822 or 01909 509105 www.octagon.org.uk

Northampton General Hospital has been working with Octagon for over four years now, and we have always been thoroughly satisfied with their service. They produce our advertising-sponsored public magazine, and a newsletter for hospital members, both well-designed and perfect solutions for our needs.

The company seems to combine the professional and reliable service you would expect from a large organisation with the friendliness and good customer service that you often only experience with small family businesses. They’re always helpful, and very flexible - particularly in turning things round even more quickly when copy has been submitted late!

We have every confidence in Octagon and would have no hesitation in recommending them wholeheartedly to other potential clients.

Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust

You make doing Generations a pleasure instead of a chore.

Liverpool Women’s Hospital NHS Foundation Trust 5

Foundation Trust magazines and newspapers Attracting and retaining FT members isn’t an easy job. At Octagon we’re acutely aware of how important your FT membership is and how essential it is to communicate with members on a regular basis. We also know the cost can be prohibitive but it doesn’t need to be.

Our work with Foundation Trusts involves finding the most cost effective way of printing members’ magazines and the most engaging way of designing them.

Typically the publications are quarterly, which provides existing members with current and 6

relevant hospital news and is also an excellent information vehicle for attracting new Foundation Trust members.

When you also include covering letters, application forms, questionnaires, membership cards, car park surveys etc., you have a formula that will give you efficient communication with your members.

Database ‘health screening’ Before a mail out commences we perform a ‘health screen’ on your database. By running it through the National Database and also through the Bereavement Register

and Mortascreen, we can find out if you have any incorrect addresses, duplications or any deceased entries on the database.

The last thing we want to do is upset relatives by sending mail to recently deceased members.

There is no charge for running the data, but there is a small charge for amending the database.

Mail out Once the health check has been done we take the database and laser the PPI number, returns address and postal address onto the carrier sheet. Then we wrap the carrier sheet, publication and any other inserts in clear poly film

What our clients say about us…

Talking Point is looking great again and thanks to Octagon who are always really helpful and to all who work on it.

South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Good Health has arrived and it looks great again! Thank you to the team.

Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

whilst maintaining Mailsort order, and bag and tag for collection by Royal Mail. There are various Royal mail tariffs, depending on the size, quantity and geographical spread of the membership but we always strive to secure the best discounts available for you.

Socio-Economic profiling This answers a lot of the questions around the make up of your membership.

Working with your database we will access the national database and then profile each member into Socio Economic grade.

We compare the results to the Electoral Ward and produce a full break down of socio-economic profiling and averages per ward.

Socio-economic profiling is really interesting and often throws up some surprising results.

Please feel free to contact Caroline or Richard for more information.

Email: info@octagon.org.uk Tel: 01909 478822 or 01909 509105 www.octagon.org.uk

I’ve worked with Octagon for a number of years and find their design team not only incredibly helpful but always able to turnaround a brief that matches exactly our requirements. Their work on our annual report this year has been first rate – in fact, after a meeting to discuss what we were looking for we received mock-ups which were spot on.

From there, it was plain sailing with the design and layout.

Great team, great service.

Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

It’s the attention to detail that’s so impressive!

Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust 7

Design, print and support services At Octagon we understand that budgets are tight and turning a tight budget into a well-designed, professional annual report, summary, membership form or public information can be a real challenge.

Annual reports & clinical annual reports We understand that your annual report showcases your achievements over the last year and we know the design of your annual report must do those achievements justice. So, in consultation with you, we will work to deliver a fresh, clean and professional approach to the design year in, year out.

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Summary annual reports These come in all shapes and sizes and carry over the theme of the main annual report. We normally discard the heavier cover used on the annual report, and run a 150gsm paper throughout the publication so that we can achieve a lighter finished weight. As most annual summaries are mailed out we understand that this is important to ensure that postage costs are kept to a minimum.

Public information Over the years we have designed and printed a huge variety of brochures, posters, and leaflets informing the public of new and

important information. Some of these publications are printed in huge print runs - our largest to date being half a million copies.

However, we are acutely aware of budget constraints and will offer you various printing options in a quest to deliver the right feel to the campaign at the right price.

Membership application forms and special interest forms Designed and printed to suit your needs, membership application and special interest forms can be self-sealing to allow the application form to be folded, sealed and returned or if preferred, envelopes can be branded and printed.

What our clients say about us…

Just thought I’d drop you a note saying thank you again for a fabulous first edition of Bulletin.

It has gone down really well across the organisation staff are really pleased with the design and feel of their new magazine.

Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust

Alternatively, the forms can be collated into pads and glue bound at the top for use at events.

business plan summaries, posters, invitations, reply cards, surveys, leaflets and membership cards.

We are commissioned to design and publish a wide variety of publications for differing target audiences. Probably the most requested of these are clinical governance bulletins, GP newsletters, pledges booklets, bedside folders, quality reports,

We offer competitively priced printing with a professional, innovative design service.

Promotional items to support specific campaigns are becoming increasingly popular and they are detailed overleaf.

Please feel free to contact Caroline or Richard for more information.

Email: info@octagon.org.uk Tel: 01909 478822 or 01909 509105 www.octagon.org.uk

Thank you for your email.

I’m actually moving abroad because my partner has a new job - it means I am packing up the NHS and branching out into teaching English! I have loved working with Octagon over the past four years - great professionalism and customer service - I would definitely recommend you! I wish you and your team all the best for the future.

The Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust

Thank you for doing a fabulous job with Perspective. The feedback is that everyone loves it and they are bombarding me with ideas for future editions, which is great! Thanks so much again, it’s all down to you!

NHS Sheffield 9

Promotional items Promotional items are popular as a tangible support for campaigns and events and help carry your campaign message. Octagon’s full design service is on hand and each item can be designed and personalised for any campaign or event.

Mugs In a wide choice of styles these mugs look great when printed with a message or logo. Perfect for carrying the campaign into break times!

artwork and are available in most sizes and colours.

Vinyl banners Outdoor banners with inks guaranteed against fading.

Available in virtually any size, they are perfect for events.

Signs Printed directly onto 3mm rigid PVC, we are able to manufacture most sizes.

Lanyards Neck lanyard fitted with retractable yo-yo reel and strap clip, plus safety breakaway attachment.

Most colours available.

Post it notes Typically printed with 50 sheets and gummed along the top edge.

Instant 3D pop ups Instant 3D pop ups are available in a multitude of shapes and sizes.

Banner stands Printed on PVC, most sizes and colours available. The inks are guaranteed against fading for five years for indoor use and two years for outdoor use and are finished with a scuff resistant over laminate.

Ballpoint pens Most colours available.

Mouse mats These mats have printed images or

Carrier bags Most sizes and colours available.

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What our clients say about us…

I can categorically say I have never worked with a more patient and thorough company in my professional working life.

You have done an outstanding job and put up with our constant changes for the Birmingham 2011 Care Home Directory.

We are very proud of the final product and on behalf or everyone here in Adults and Communities we would like to say a massive thank you.

Birmingham City Council

Balloons Branded with your campaign message, balloons are a great help when working with children.

Magazine stands Free standing and counter top styles available. Made of polypropylene, these magazine stands are of a robust construction making them extremely durable and hard wearing.

Vinyl labels These are versatile self-adhesive labels that can be designed for any campaign or events. Most sizes and colours available.

Information cards and counter top cardholders The cardholder is manufactured in clear, high impact, durable and scratch resistant plastic and comes fully branded.

Please feel free to contact Caroline or Richard for more information.

Email: info@octagon.org.uk Tel: 01909 478822 or 01909 509105 www.octagon.org.uk

Once again a cracking Anthem. Thanks to everyone who has contributed. It looks really brilliant. Our staff look forward to reading it and the fact that we could fill each issue twice over is a measure of its success. It’s a mixture of good content and design and - thanks to Octagon and our advertisers who support the publication - we have a magazine to be proud of!

North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust

These are truly wonderful games, excellent! We value the support that you give us…

Charnwood Trading Ltd 11

Private sector Octagon covers right across the spectrum from public sector to some of the largest private sector companies in the UK, producing magazines, newspapers and promotional material for organisations who wish to communicate their services and promote their business to a new and existing market place.

What our clients say about us…

I have worked with Octagon for over seven years in different jobs, organisations and they always provide a first class service. They never fail to deliver and have helped transform the Accord Group’s new staff magazine into a vibrant read with their design. I would recommend anyone who wants to start up a magazine and wants a great professional product, to use Octagon.

Accord Group

We have worked with Octagon for three years now.

They provide a swift and good-humoured service which has livened up the look of our staff magazine and given our customer newsletter a smart and engaging appearance.

Thames Water

That is fantastic, thank you so much… I’m so excited to see the mag, it looks great!! Thank you for sorting the leaflets out for me too.

Morgan Sindall

The process was perfect for me, Octagon got everything back in a very timely fashion.

ATS Euromaster 12

“We would like to work with you to develop attractive publications that are designed specifically for your readership, whether that be staff, patients, public or FT members.”…

OCTAGON DE S IG N & M A R K E T I NG LT D Britannic Chambers, 8A Carlton Road, Worksop, Nottinghamshire S80 1PH 01909 478822 | www.octagon.org.uk | info@octagon.org.uk