Digital DNA Show Guide

T I TA N I C BEL FAS T 15 October, 20 1 5

Trading in Ireland?

Anne Chapman, Jeweller.

StonechatJewellers .ie

Register your business as .ie

www. d ig ita ld n a . o r g . u k

The official web address for the island of Ireland.

Protect your brand reputation and tell your customers that your business is local.

• 32 County Domain – Proves true connection to Ireland • Safety – One of the world’s safest web addresses

visit www.iedr.ie

# D i g i t al D N A

01946-IEDR-TellWorldIrish-Ad-Proof#01-HiRes.indd 1

14/07/2015 09:56

DIGITAL DNA AWARDS RECOGNISING SUCCESS…

I N A S S O C I AT ION W I T H

7 APRIL, 2016 T I TA N I C B E L FA S T 2

www. d ig ita ld n a . o r g . u k www.digitaldna.org.uk

WELCOME Welcome to Digital DNA 2015.

We have put a lot of effort into creating a conference that will have direct benefits for Northern Ireland businesses. We plan to take you on a journey of discovery where you’ll hear from global thought leaders and meet businesses from Northern Ireland who understand the role of digital technology and have embraced its power to help their businesses grow locally and internationally.

Engaging key note speeches, interactive workshops and networking opportunities with global thought leaders are just some of the great activities available at Digital DNA 2015. The programme of events is designed to fulfil our core objective - to engage, inspire and empower your business to grow.

Digital DNA began life three years ago as a topic of a conversation with a good friend over a pint (or two) of Guinness. With very different backgrounds in business and technology and a passion for where we were brought up we wanted to explore if we could do something that could help local businesses grow beyond Northern Ireland and have a direct positive impact on our economy.

Three years later, we’ve staged numerous events and we are proud to have empowered many local businesses to grow by understanding how technology can impact their company.

It’s been a fantastic journey so far and one that we’re thrilled to be continuing with this year’s series of events.

I look forward to hearing how your experiences today will have an impact on your business in the future. Thank you for you continued support and enjoy your day.

Gareth Quinn Gareth Quinn Digital DNA founder

3 www.digitaldna.org.uk

WELCOME (CONTINUED) Turning a chat into a conference to help fuel growth for your business.

Three years ago, I was the friend having a drink with Gareth when we talked about what could be done to help businesses in Northern Ireland embrace technology to grow.

With backgrounds in technology and a passion for bringing money into Northern Ireland, we brought Digital DNA to life in a pub based not too far from here.

Digital DNA was born with the simple aim of helping businesses like you grow and expand by embracing the power of digital technology.

My day job is at Google, where I head up Customer Solutions and Innovations for EMEA. It’s an exciting and rewarding role that affords me the opportunity to work with a great mix of businesses including start-ups, SMEs and the world’s biggest digital brands.

It’s this experience that I hope I have bought to Digital DNA. Whether you’re a start-up based in a shed in Saintfield, a growing company with lofty ambitions in an office in Omagh or you have already started to trade globally, Digital DNA will offer inspirational, workable and realistic solutions to help your business grow here in Northern Ireland and across the world.

We’ve got a fantastic programme of events this year and I’m very excited to welcome you to the event.

Ryan Owens

Ryan Owens Digital DNA co-founder Head of Customer Solutions and Innovations EMEA Google

4 www.digitaldna.org.uk

OUR SPONSORS

Trading in Ireland?

Anne Chapman, Jeweller.

StonechatJewellers .ie

Register your business as .ie The official web address for the island of Ireland.

Protect your brand reputation and tell your customers that your business is local.

• 32 County Domain – Proves true connection to Ireland • Safety – One of the world’s safest web addresses

visit www.iedr.ie

01946-IEDR-TellWorldIrish-Ad-Proof#01-HiRes.indd 1

14/07/2015 09:56

5 www.digitaldna.org.uk

PARTNERS

LOCAL MEDIA PARTNERS

6 www.digitaldna.org.uk

Proud sponsor of DNA Digital 2015

fly from the suburbs fly from the city

6 flights daily to London Heathrow and Gatwick Flights From Belfast City Airport Flexible Fares Award winning service Mobile boarding cards Gold Circle Frequent Flyer Programme

7 www.digitaldna.org.uk

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS KATE MARSHALL

MICHAEL O’HARA

HOST

CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER, GSMA

Kate is a highly experienced Facilitator, Coach and Mentor to Executives, Boards and Leadership teams in Ireland, UK and North America. Kates’ experience as a Business Leader through various senior executive and Director roles with focus on growth has enabled her to support, challenge, develop and implement strategies that deliver results for her clients. Her passion is building “Business Athletes” – taking executives and teams to the top of their game to deliver sustainable growth.

Kate is a Vistage Chair and Speaker working locally and globally with organisations. She is an experienced conference facilitator and key note Speaker on Leadership and achieving business and personal success.

JANE WHITE SENIOR AGENCY SALES LEAD, TWITTER Jane is a founding member of the Twitter Sales Team and in fact helped build it from the ground up. As an epic digital strategist Jane has the readily available expertise for identifying and executing creative social concepts and strategic solutions for a range of clients including Cancer Research UK, Bose & Britvic and many more.

This one isn’t shy of creativity nor innovation as a team leader Jane has harnessed the world of digital technology to execute international campaigns for Twitter’s Promoted Products.

As Chief Marketing Officer for the GSMA, Michael O’Hara leads GSMAs’ global marketing and communications initiatives, including programme development and marketing for Mobile World Congress, the world’s leading B2B trade show in Barcelona, Spain.

Michael holds a degree in electrical and electronic engineering from the Queens University of Belfast, but subsequently realised that marketing is way more fun.

JEREMIAH GROSSMAN FOUNDER AND INTERIM CEO, WHITEHAT SECURITY Innovator. Inventor. Protector of the Web. Jeremiah Grossman is the founder and interim CEO of WhiteHat Security. Again at the helm of the company he founded 12 years ago, Jeremiah possesses a unique combination of technology savvy, customer advocacy and personal passion to lead WhiteHat into the future.

A world-renowned web security expert, sough-after speaker and influential blogger, Jeremiah brings a literal lifetime of information security experience, both homegrown and from his days as Yahoo!’s information security engineer, to the role. The ultimate “WhiteHat,” Jeremiah is also founder of the Web Application Security Consortium and the mind behind Aviator, WhiteHat’s next generation secure web browser. In his spare time, Jeremiah practices Brazilian Jiu jitsu and has earned a black belt.

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KEVIN McELROY

ELEANOR McEVOY

CO-FOUNDER AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE, PUBLISHD

CHIEF EXECUTIVE, BUDGET ENERGY

Leaving Deloitte nearly one year to the day Kevin McElroy, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Publishd had an idea. As Business Analyst within Deloitte, Kevin first embarked upon an era of new digital technology. In an explosion of the type and number of digital channels and networks available to small businesses, Kevin envisioned a digital future where merchants and customers can be brought even closer together. Just a year in the making, Kevin and the team at Publishd, have created a social commerce platform that will enable you to build, grow and sell branded deals directly to digital audiences across social media, web and email without using third party sites and the nice charges that come with them.

Eleanor is a successful Entrepreneur, finalist in the 2013 EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Emerging Category and UTV Business Eye Business Personality of the Year.

Budget Energy, the same electricity only cheaper, is Northern Ireland’s only independent supplier of retail, pre-paid electricity, providing the customer with a real alternative to the traditional monopoly, with excellent customer service and a cost effective approach offering the customer real time savings.

OPAL PERRY INTERIM MANAGING DIRECTOR, ALLSTATE Opal joined the Allstate Northern Ireland Executive leadership team in September 2014 as Chief Operating Officer of the International Technology and Strategic Ventures organization at Allstate Insurance. She is the senior operations leader in Northern Ireland and also leads the integration of the Allstate parent company’s global technology workforce across the United States, Northern Ireland and India. With a B.S. in Computer Engineering with a double major in Engineering and Public Policy, plus MBA degrees she has over 20 years of expertise in building and growing global technology organisations across a variety of software engineering disciplines including software development and technology infrastructure.

ANDREW WELD-MOORE GLOBAL MARKETING SOLUTIONS MANAGER, FACEBOOK Andrew Weld-Moore is manager of the Nordic Global Marketing Solutions team based at Facebook’s EMEA headquarters in Dublin and oversees general management responsibilities while serving as a cross functional liaison; working with product, engineering, sales, business development, marketing and finance to drive Facebook’s most important strategic priorities within the region. Prior to that he worked for ten years in the Irish & UK Radio business.

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KEYNOTE SPEAKERS (CONTINUED) DR. ABDALLA KABLAN FOUNDER, SCHEDUIT Dr Abdalla Kablan is an entrepreneur and academic specialising in machine intelligence and computational Finance. He is the founder of Scheduit - a business oriented social network that uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to match relevant business professionals with each other. He is also the co-founder and CTO of Hippo Data, a newly developed big data predictions engine which utilises proprietary pattern recognition and machine intelligence tools to analyse social, economic, and financial events using both social media and market data. Furthermore, Abdalla is a lecturer and researcher of Computational Finance at the University of Malta, and a member of the board of directors at the Malta Stock Exchange.

GRANT LEBOFF CHIEF EXECUTIVE, STICKY MARKETING CLUB

ALAN CLARKE FOUNDER AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE, STATSPORTS Alan Clarke is the founder and chief executive of STATSports, a provider of performance monitoring and analysis systems in the elite sports industry. Alan founded STATSports in 2007 along with his business partner, Sean O’Connor. He completed a mechanical engineering degree in Dundalk Institute of Technology and worked in senior roles within the music industry before forming STATSports. STATSports work with 80 per cent of the English Premier League as well as Barcelona, Juventus and Athletic Bilbao. They also have a number of international teams including Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, England, Wales and Poland. STATSports also count a host of rugby teams including the IRFU, RFU, Ulster, Connacht and Leicester. STATSports opened its US headquarters in 2015 and has already signed more than 20 teams across the NFL, NBA and MLS including Cincinnati Bengals, Chicago Bulls and LA Galaxy.

Grant Leboff is an industry mastermind when it comes to creating Sales & Marketing Strategies that will ‘stick’ by your business. As one of the UK’s leading Sales and Marketing experts, Leboff’s main focus is to address the massive changes that are taking place in a world that is constantly being introduced to new technologies and an evolving World Wide Web.

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AFTER PARTY SPEAKERS LORI CHEEK

FOUNDER AND CEO, CHEEKD Lori Cheek-- Architect turned Entrepreneur, Founder and CEO of Cheekd— a mobile dating app that makes missed connections obsolete. Lori, a Shark Tank Veteran, was recently listed as “The Digital Dating Disruptor” and “One of the Top 10 CEOs to Watch.” A University of Kentucky Architectural Graduate, Lori is no longer building structures. She’s now building relationships.

MARK SHAYLER DIRECTOR, APE Mark Shayler has been working on developing better products and improving business since 1989. He works with clients like Coca Cola, Proctor and Gamble, Samsung, Colgate, Mars, RS Components and some really small clients too. Mark has used design to save his clients over £100 million. He designs product, packaging, and services. He forecasts environmental and packaging trends, and works on innovation. Mark is author of “Do Disrupt: Change the status quo or become it” and is a founding partner of the Do Lectures.

PAUL CURRIE COMEDIAN Performed at the Edinburgh fringe with College- 1991 & 1993. Started street performing and teaching circus 1999. Street performer at Edinburgh Fringe 2002 & 2005. Started Stand Up comedy in 2004, Auntie Annies, Belfast. Won the Derry/ Londonderry “Big Tickle Comedy Festival” Newcomer award 2005. “The Sticky Bivouac (1st version)” @ C Venues, Edinburgh Fringe 2009. “The Comedy Zone” @ Pleasance, Edinburgh Fringe 2011. Nominated “BEST SHOW” for “The Sticky Bivouac” Leicester Comedy Festival 2013. “The Sticky Bivouac” @ Pleasance, Edinburgh Fringe 2013. “KISS THE DUCK!” (NEW SHOW) @ Belly Laughs Comedy Fest Belfast 2013.

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SCHEDULE The Agenda for Digital Business includes two elements, the workshops & the conference. Choose one workshop session to attend from the morning programme and one in the afternoon.

MORNING CONFERENCE 8:00am – 8:45am 8:45am – 8:50am 8:50am – 9:20am 9:20am – 9:40am 9:40am – 10.00am 10:00am – 10:20am 10:20am – 10:45am 10:45am – 11:00am 11:00am – 11:20am 11:20am – 11:40am

Registration & Breakfast Introduction from Host A very different type of welcome...

Jane White, Twitter Michael O’Hara, GSMA Jeremiah Grossman, WhiteHat Security Tea & Coffee Networking Break Publishd | Product Launch Opal Perry, Allstate Eleanor McEvoy, Budget Energy

MORNING WORKSHOPS 11:40am – 12:40pm 11:40am – 12:40pm 11:40am – 12:40pm

Continually Innovating in the Digital Age SEO & PPC… The Ultimate Tag Team Digital Transformation for the third sector

AFTERNOON CONFERENCE 12:40pm – 1:40pm 1:40pm – 2:00pm

Lunch Andrew Weld-Moore, Facebook

AFTERNOON WORKSHOPS 2:20pm – 3:20pm 2:20pm – 3:20pm 2:20pm – 3:20pm

Is your business embracing the mobile revolution?

Genetics of Tomorrow’s Digital Team BIG Data and Lessons Learnt from Retail

LATE AFTERNOON CONFERENCE 3:20pm – 3:40pm 3:40pm – 4:20pm 4:20pm – 4:40pm 4:40pm – 5:00pm

Tea & Coffee Networking Break Grant Leboff, Sticky Marketing Club & Vistage Speaker Alan Clarke, Statsports Trams depart for the After Party...

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THE LEADING MEDIA OUTLET FOR THE LATEST NEWS, EVENTS AND JOBS FROM NORTHERN IRELAND’S TECHNOLOGY AND BUSINESS INDUSTRIES

IT’S TIME TO JOIN TO FIND OUT MORE

WWW.SYNCNI.COM INFO@SYNCNI.COM @SYNCNI

028 90820 941 13

www.digitaldna.org.uk

BELFAST SHIP ON A DIGITAL VOYAGE Well look at what we have here, it’s only the world’s largest Titanic visitor experience, Titanic Belfast. Utilising innovative design, interpretation and technology, this attraction tells the story of the Titanic, from her conception in Belfast in the early 1900s, through her construction and launch, to her famous maiden voyage and tragic end. Since opening in 2012, it has welcomed over 2.5 million visitors from over 145 countries. Wow! Having interviewed Claire McCabe, Digital Marketing Executive at Titanic Belfast we were a little taken aback when she mentioned that Belfast and Northern Ireland are expecting to welcome approximately 1.9 million visitors and deliver £552 million to the economy, which in itself is a huge opportunity! However, for Titanic Belfast this means holding central position on the global tourism map whatever the season or competition. According to Claire, they hope to secure this position through product investment and development to keep attracting new and repeat visitors from domestic, national and international markets.

When asked about their digital strategy Claire informed us that “At Titanic Belfast, we are aware that the digital landscape is constantly evolving and as a 5-Star visitor attraction, we must harness and evolve with it to grow our business”. Digital innovation is a key part of their strategy to attract new and repeat

visitors from a domestic, national and international market. Taking advantage of all things digital, they have harnessed technology in their galleries, touch points throughout the building and online engagement to create a consistent and seamless user experience.

With an increase in mobile usage and social media Titanic Belfast have secured greater engagement with audiences through user-generated content. It has enabled them to improve communications with customers and to disseminate key messages to a world-wide audience that is not feasible offline.

According to Claire, their strategy has been very effective, not only has it improved communication with known customers, it has developed new customer bases from both domestic and international markets.

Working closely with Loud Mouth Media, Titanic Belfast have implemented strategic campaigns, which have provided high level conversions for the business.

Like all digital marketing, their strategy is constantly evolving but they are looking forward to embracing future trends and further innovation.

“The opportunities digital marketing brings should not be underestimated!”

Claire McCabe, Digital Marketing Executive, Titanic Belfast.

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 Mobile 

Landline



Digital Services WorkPal

w w w. b a r c l a y c o m m s . c o m www.digitaldna.org.uk

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Exhibitors

ESCA

Ex hib ito rs

LATOR

STAGE

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OLYMPIC SUITE

Exhibitors

Ex hib ito rs MALE TOILET

14

Main EE

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STAGE

FEMALE TOILET

1 4

17

BRITANNIC SUITE

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1

5 36

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6

Stage EE

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EXHIBITORS ATHENA COLLEGE OF IRELAND

BIG DATA BREAKOUTS

ATHENA College of Ireland is a Premier live online Further Education College providing students with an alternative pathway to Education and Training.

Students can study in real time, while interacting with Tutors and fellow students alike from any location using any smart device. Our courses are recorded for student convenience and ease of access.

Big Data Breakouts is the hub for all things Big Data in Northern Ireland - conferences, events, news and jobs. Big Data Breakouts is curated by local technology company Analytics Engines who specialise in end-toend Big Data platform solutions across various sectors & industries to allow rapid transformation of data into valuable business insights.

BELFAST MET

BNL PRODUCTIONS

Grow your Business with a Higher Level Apprenticeship in Digital Marketing through Belfast Met. How you could benefit as an Employer?

Develop a pipeline of young, motivated staff equipped with the skills required of modern marketers and much more. Visit our stand today to find out more benefits to your business.

BNL is a multimedia production company specialising in film production, event management, design, app development and other creative services to bring your vision to life.

BUSINESS FIRST NETWORK BARCLAY COMMUNICATIONS Established since 1997, Barclay Communications is a leading provider of business mobile, landline and digital solutions. We are also known for developing WorkPal, our award-winning software solution for mobile workflow management, reporting, tracking and invoicing.

Business First Network is a leading commercial UK membership organisation. By bringing together a network of like-minded business owners both locally and nationally Business First Network has been able to create a unique suite of benefits that provides peace of mind and protection for its members and their businesses in key risk areas such as Tax investigation, Employment disputes, Workplace Pension requirements and Red Tape. With 100s of members joining every month we are creating a Robust, Sustainable, and Effective Commercial Business Membership Organisation for the 21st Century.

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CO3

INTACT SOFTWARE

Established in 1985, Chief Officers 3rd Sector (CO3) is a leading membership-based organisation that focuses on supporting, developing and connecting Third Sector leaders in Northern Ireland. We have a growing membership base of just under 400 Third Sector leaders.

Intact Software develops accounting, business management & ERP software for the wholesale, distribution, supply chain & service industries. Intact iQ, our latest product, might be known as an all-in-one business management solution but not every business requires the complete set of functionality.

The key point is that all Intact iQ elements work seamlessly together because they share the same master database and application design. Modules include Financials, Distribution, Analytics, eCommerce Webshop, Mobile Warehouse, Trade Counter, Integration Services, Sales Rep App, Job & Project Costing Management and more.

CREATIVE SPACES Creative Spaces has evolved as a direct result of the value that writable walls both moving and static add to the innovative process in the workplace and at events.

INVEST NI

Invest Northern Ireland is a dynamic, forward-looking organisation with highly experienced and motivated staff committed to improving the performance of Northern Ireland businesses. We have a customerfocused approach and deliver quality business support.

Our role is to grow the local economy by helping businesses to compete internationally, and by attracting new investment to Northern Ireland. We are particularly interested in businesses that have the ability to grow and export their goods and services outside Northern Ireland. If you want to improve your business or start one, Invest NI is keen to hear from you.

DATACTICS Datactics, a market leader in data quality and matching software, is ideally positioned to meet the specific data requirements of firms operating in the financial sector as they prepare for emerging regulations. We provide sophisticated tools to help financial institutions get their data in order and quickly respond to new standards. We offer agile data quality and powerful matching software for reference, entity and instrument data.

ENTERPRISE NI

Enterprise Northern Ireland (ENI) is the representative body for the network of Local Enterprise Agencies across Northern Ireland, and is at the heart of a dynamic, high profile network of enterprise support providers. ENI is dedicated to supporting pre-entrepreneurial start-ups and early-stage business ventures and since its establishment in 2000, has enabled thousands of entrepreneurs to set up, develop and grow their businesses. We are committed to encouraging business start-up and supporting growth, and are a major player in the delivery of small business support interventions and start-up finance.

LOUD MOUTH MEDIA Loud Mouth Media is a leading Digital Advertising Agency with offices located in Belfast and Dublin. Specialising in Pay Per Click advertising, we provide a fully managed service across several platforms including AdWords, Bing and Social Media. Since launching in 2011, we have experienced remarkable growth to become one of the Top Ten SEM agencies in the UK (Source: Google). We’re PPC experts who strive to generate the best results for our clients by making the most of their advertising budgets, no matter how large or small.

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NICVA

PUBLISHD

NICVA, the Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action, is a membership and representative umbrella body for the voluntary and community sector in Northern Ireland. With around a thousand members - that range from household name charities to grass roots community groups - we lobby and campaign to advance the interests of the people and communities that our members support. We offer a wide range of practical services, products and support to our members to help them do what they do best - find innovative solutions for social challenges.

A Social Commerce platform, Publishd enables small businesses to convert their digital audiences into customers.

Using Publishd, businesses can easily build and sell branded deals, gifts and vouchers to their network via social media, email and web. A simple SaaS solution, enabling big business for small businesses.

SEARCH SCIENTIST LTD POLEMIC DIGITAL Polemic Digital is an expert SEO and digital strategy consultancy based in Belfast Northern Ireland. Founded in 2014 by industry veteran Barry Adams, Polemic Digital delivers world-class SEO and digital marketing services to clients around the UK, Ireland, Europe, and the USA. In its short history Polemic Digital has established itself as the leader in SEO in Northern Ireland, counting many of NI’s largest brands among its clients, and has already received numerous industry awards and accolades.

AdWords | SEO | Social Get your Free 5 Minute Website Health Check

SIMPLICITY ACCOUNTING Outsourced accounting and finance solutions for creative, tech, digital, and start-up businesses.

THE FOUNDRY BELFAST The Foundry is Belfast’s newest co-working space, a vibrant and creative environment for start-ups, entrepreneurs and independent professionals.

The Foundry is based in the City East Business Centre, which also provides a range of serviced office rentals, a free business advice service, seminars and networking events.

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Simple Social Commerce Publishd is a simple social commerce solution that helps businesses turn their digital audience into paying customers.

Easily build and sell branded deals, vouchers and gifts online to start generating revenue from your digital audience.

Start your free trial today

fb.com/publishdco www.digitaldna.org.uk

www.publishd.co

@publishdco

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UKTI

WOMEN IN BUSINESS

UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) helps UK-based companies succeed in the global economy. We also help overseas companies bring their high-quality investment to the UK’s dynamic economy. UKTI offers expertise and contacts through its extensive network of specialists in the UK, and in British embassies and other diplomatic offices around the world. We provide companies with the tools they require to be competitive on the world stage.

Women in Business is the largest and fastest growing business network for female entrepreneurs and business leaders in Northern Ireland. With over 2,000 members WIB aims to equip women with the skills they need to start, and grow, their own business or develop their careers, rising into senior manager and leadership positions. By positively impacting all its members, WIB aspires to Create a New Economy; whereby all females in Northern Ireland significantly contribute to the economic success of our society.

VISTAGE INTERNATIONAL UK LTD

XPAND INTERNATIONAL

Vistage helps CEOs and MDs develop their skills and grow and improve their businesses by bringing together successful senior executives into private advisory groups, guided by expert coaches, our Vistage Chairs. 19,000 members globally also have access to expert speakers and our international network of business leaders.

11 Countries - 15 Cities - 9 Languages - 30 Professionals Helping businesses reduce the risk; Secure funding for moving into new markets.

Professional Managed Services International Projects Securing Business Funding Applications to Support Global Business Development

PARTNERS ARMAGH CITY, BANBRIDGE AND CRAIGAVON BOROUGH COUNCILS Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council is the second largest local authority in Northern Ireland, with more than 204,000 residents and almost 8,000 businesses. The Borough brings together the strengths of Armagh’s unique tourism and heritage function, Banbridge’s key strategic location on the Belfast to Dublin Economic Corridor and Craigavon’s strong sub-regional function and reputation for manufacturing and excellence and creativity. The legacy Councils of Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough

Council led on the first Digital Development Programme in the South East region, positively impacting on over 800 businesses, enabling them to grow via the digital platform. The new Council strategy puts business growth as its top priority. The digital sector has been identified as a key area for growth. We are proud to be at the forefront of digital business support, and look forward to launching a suite of exciting programmes in 2015/16, including Social Media for SME’s, Digital Marketing for SME’s and Digital Teen.

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BESPOKE NORTHERN IRELAND

Bespoke Northern Ireland is a Business Tourism company, providing both local and international clients with tailor made experiences. As a Destination Management Company (DMC) our services and products are boutique and unique. We look after our clients like no one else and we love the creative challenge of designing your perfect Incentive Itinerary, Conference, Meeting or Event.

FOOD NI Food NI provides a single promotional voice for Northern Ireland’s food and drink. We work to enhance the reputation of Northern Ireland’s food and drink through the Taste of Ulster and Our Food So Good messages. We are a company limited by guarantee, formed voluntarily by a consortium of food sector representatives, to develop a positive identity for high quality food from Northern Ireland.

Our Board consists of representatives from across the entire supply chain. Visit our website nigoodfood.com, become a fan on Facebook or follow us on Twitter @Food_NI.

CIPR The CIPR is the voice of the public relations profession, a champion of its interests and a respected partner to the broader communications community. Our world-class foundations aid people’s understanding of the public relations profession. We provide CIPR members with education, up-to-the-minute research and a code of conduct to enhance their professionalism.

GROW NI The largest ever representative group of local business organisations and individual companies to come together in Northern Ireland to call for the devolution of power on corporation tax to the NI Assembly.

HOSPITALITY ULSTER

FEDERATION OF SMALL BUSINESSES The Federation of Small Businesses is the UK’s largest campaigning pressure group promoting and protecting the interests of the self-employed and owners of small firms.

Formed in 1974, it now has around 200,000 members across 33 regions and 188 branches.

Hospitality Ulster is the representative body of the Hospitality Industry in Northern Ireland, an industry that sustains 60,000 jobs and contributes in excess of £1bm annually to the Northern Ireland economy.

Our Remit: • Safeguard and protect our members businesses.

Our Role is to provide: • A strong voice for our industry and a champion for our members.

• Practical support for our members business today and the development of our industry for tomorrow.

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INSTITUTE OF HOSPITALITY

NILGA

The Institute of Hospitality is the professional body for individual managers and aspiring managers working and studying in the hospitality, leisure and tourism (HLT) industry. The Institute has been in existence since the 1930s when it began in the UK.

The Northern Ireland Local Government Association (NILGA) represents the collective interests of elected members in local councils and facilitates the development of the sector.

NILGA seeks to promote, strengthen and represent the local government sector as part of the Local Government Group of Associations in the UK.

MANUFACTURING NI

MNI is a campaigning organisation which works with member companies, workforce representatives, policymakers and regulators to challenge and encourage change in areas which impact on the cost of doing business with a specific interest in industrial rates, energy and labour. Their ambition is to create the most competitive region in Europe in which to start, sustain and grow a manufacturing business, thus creating wealth and work.

MBA ASSOCIATION OF IRELAND The MBA Association of Ireland (MBAAI) is the 2000-strong representative body for graduates holding the degree of Masters in Business Administration (MBA) living and working in Ireland. Its mission is to improve the practice of management through continuous learning, to which end it organizes around 20 events throughout Ireland each year. 80% of members are MBA graduates of less than 10 years standing; the average age group is 35 - 40 years, and members occupy middle and senior management positions within industry and commerce in Ireland.

NORTHERN IRELAND HOTELS FEDERATION The Northern Ireland Hotels Federation is the representative body for hotels, guesthouses and other accommodation providers in Northern Ireland. It is a not-for-profit limited company representing the hotel and guesthouse sectors in Northern Ireland; it’s main roles are identifying and reviewing issues affecting the hospitality industry and lobbying governments and the NI Assembly on the economic and employment opportunities of tourism.

PURPLE DOT Based in Dungannon, Purple Dot is a dynamic business consultancy that offers a wide range of business support services aimed at helping your business make more money and spend less. We believe that the people involved in any business are your most important asset. Our staff are passionate about making a difference in your business and take onboard your unique problems as their own. We have a range of specialism’s including Sales Improvement, Business Planning, Digital Marketing, Leadership, Bookkeeping and Financial Planning.

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TOURISM NI

SENTINUS Sentinus is the home of STEM outreach in Northern Ireland, engaging more than 70,000 young people during 2014 – 2015 in programmes designed to excite and enthuse them about Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths, support their development and enhance their life skills. With a focus on handson engagement, these programmes can form a very important part of Careers Education and have a significant impact on how young people view STEM subjects and careers in the area. Through a wide range of structured, hands-on interventions, Sentinus supports the development of skills and learning in STEM at all levels, to assist young peoples to make informed careers decisions and prepare for the workplace.

STARTACUS It’s a community of startups, entrepreneurs, creatives, dreamers, innovators and self starters - all sorts of people with ideas and businesses all doing their own thing. It’s a place to learn, share and connect with the people, places and services that will help bring ideas to life. It’s a place filled with the information, support and inspiration to help make starting, sustaining or growing a business as easy as possible.

Tourism NI is responsible for the development of tourism and the marketing of Northern Ireland as a tourist destination to domestic tourists, from within Northern Ireland, and to visitors from the Republic of Ireland. We are a non-departmental public body of the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment and we work closely with other tourism bodies to help develop the visitor economy here and to market Northern Ireland to incoming visitors.

VISIT BELFAST Visit Belfast is a public private sector partnership funded and supported by Belfast City Council, Northern Ireland Tourist Board and the private sector. It is the official tourism marketing agency for the Belfast City Region, dedicated to promoting Belfast as a city break, conference and cruise ship destination. It is also responsible for the operation of three gateway tourist information centres.

YOUNG ENTERPRISE NI THE SALES INSTITUTE The SII is a network for Sales Directors from blue chip progressive companies. We will help you learn from and network with other Sales Directors so as to understand the driving forces and innovation within the Sales Arena so that you can create the most relevant and competent Sales Organisation.

Young Enterprise Northern Ireland is a charity developing the entrepreneurial skills and aspirations of young people aged 4 to 25 to prepare them for the new economy.

We develop the skills of young people to ensure they leave education prepared for life and work.

26 www.digitaldna.org.uk

3 WAYS TO SUPPORT NEXT GENERATION ENTREPRENEURS YOUNG ENTERPRISE is a charity developing the entrepreneurial skills and aspirations of young people aged 4-25 preparing them for the new economy

1 VOLUNTEER: give an hour or more of your time to get involved in your local area

2 FUNDRAISE: organise a fundraising event, supporting NI’s leading business charity

3 SUPPORT: Make Young Enterprise a part of your CSR policy, develop your future workforce

Get involved today Contact Jan Gilliland at Young Enterprise Email Jan@yeni.co.uk www.digitaldna.org.uk

Call 028 9032 7003 27 Charity No. XR21328

Trading in Ireland?

Anne Chapman, Jeweller.

StonechatJewellers .ie

Register your business as .ie The official web address for the island of Ireland.

Protect your brand reputation and tell your customers that your business is local.

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28 visit www.iedr.ie www.digitaldna.org.uk

GOING GLOBAL? GO DIGITAL! As previous delegates of Digital DNA in year one and speaker in year two, the global manufacturing giants at CDE Global are perfectly placed to know what we are about and have kindly agreed to share their digital journey with us. Located in, Cookstown, County Tyrone, CDE Global has achieved an extensive geographical reach through the power of new digital technologies.

According to Peter Craven, Head of Marketing at CDE Global, “Digital is a huge opportunity for anyone looking to expand their business whether that is across the world or in the local market” Having participated in the Digital Business Events, CDE Global attained the information and confidence required to take action and implement their digital strategy.

Whilst such a strategy captured huge success, Peter proclaimed that their digital journey has made its way through trial and error. However, it was Digital DNA that convinced CDE Global that errors were OK and an essential part of the process.

Operating within a very traditional industry, CDE Global in most recent years have realised the potential digital has to offer businesses with ambition for significant growth. Despite once relying upon traditional forms of communication such as trade magazines, the birth of their website has been the “single biggest lead generation tool”, it has allowed them to develop social relationships with consumers and other key stakeholders.

CDE Global has also found great success with video production. With over 3000 hits a week on their YouTube channel, they produce regular, short and informative videos that allow potential customers to quickly and easily see how their equipment works and begin to understand the value that it can add for their business. With such digital and social platforms proving a huge hit for this global company, Peter pre warns the businesses of Northern Ireland embracing, or seeking to embrace, the digital world that the generated content must be exciting! “Sterilised content is ‘boring’ and the key to making it interesting is having an opinion on the issues that the industry is facing”.

“It’s only by making the errors that we’re now enjoying success from the strategy we’ve deployed” Peter Craven, Head of Marketing, CDE Global

29 www.digitaldna.org.uk

JOINING FORCES TO EMBRACE TECHNOLOGY Reminiscing on last year’s Digital Business Event, we thought it would be a great idea to catch up with our good friend Alan McMurray at Total Hockey. Since last year’s event Alan and the Team at Total Hockey have been busy setting the digital bar high for local SMEs. It came as no surprise to Digital DNA when it was announced that Total Hockey had been awarded Retail Website of the Year and shortlisted and commended for Retail Social Media of the Year at this year’s DANI Awards!

Despite their glory, the humbled business man told Digital DNA that:

“For Total Hockey to win was not about vanity it was about the recognition and validation of the level of success a local small to medium sized business from Northern Ireland can have” Total Hockey are a true inspiration to the local businesses of Northern Ireland, having successfully harnessed digital technology to increase customers, drive sales, cut costs and grow their brand internationally – even as far as the USA and Japan!

As a family run business founded in 2001 they operate as the biggest hockey specialist shop in

the UK and are fast becoming one of the world’s largest online field hockey outlets. As a result of their business taking an online and digital route to market through websites and social media platforms they export worldwide from their little shop in the neat little town of Banbridge.

Who ever said that the recession was a bad thing for business?

It was the recession that brought Total Hockey to the realisation that an online strategy was crucial for the survival of their future business. Working closely alongside Export Technologies their online presence began in 2008. In later years they embarked upon their social media journey with expert advice from Des Mulholland at The Retail Consultant in 2012. It was the Des that developed such a compelling retail and social media strategy that penetrated their global reach and now generates up to 50% of their total business.

Dedicated to helping other local businesses grow and expand by embracing technology, Alan McMurray assured us that

“Digital is for everyone, it is never too late to create your digital presence and you are never too old to learn.

The most encouraging thing is that everything is changing and developing so much so that everyone is still learning!”

Alan McMurray, Total Hockey

30 www.digitaldna.org.uk

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