#Creative 03/03/2016
Creating a brand and digital identity for a Manchester based design studio.
The new website is a fry cry from its predecessor, presenting a clear and cohesive message about the agency, what they do and what they've done.
Journal
Here's where we address the burning questions, it's all here in our journal.
#Culture 01/03/2016
Note to self - resilience in the creative industry
Louise attended the most recent Note to Self event in Manchester. Here's her thoughts on what the theme of the talks meant to her and what she took away from them.
#Culture 25/02/2016
3 London Fashion Week 2016 online trend setters
Fashion is fast paced and highly competitive. As a brand operating in that space, whether big or small, lessons can be learnt from companies showcasing their creative...
#Work 19/02/2016
Darkstar choose We Are Empire as digital partner
Manchester based leatherworks company Darkstar appoint We Are Empire as digital partner, who will be focusing on re-branding the company followed closely...
#Culture 08/02/2016
Super Bowl 50: What went down
Last night was game night at the Levi’s Stadium in California as the world tuned in to witness the 50th annual Super Bowl. If you’re reading this you know the deal...
#Culture 05/02/2016
Super Bowl 50: How can you create opportunities with a sensible marketing budget?
When it comes to one of the most watched sporting events on the planet, if you don't have an endless supply of money to feed into your marketing budget...
#Culture 22/01/2016
Convergence and e-commerce: what’s the deal?
Before we dig into this it’s important to say that convergence within e-commerce isn’t anything new. It’s been happening incrementally since...
#Culture 21/01/2016
The C Word...
Paul talks us through his take on media convergence - the value for a brand to completely understand it, and why it isn't another 90's office buzzword.
#Culture 16/12/2015
3 Christmas TV adverts over that last 3 years that are f*cking great!
Stuart runs us through his top 3 Christmas campaigns in the last few years.
#Culture 15/12/2015
3 things to make sure you do at Christmas with your e-commerce website
When trading online it's easy to get excited about making sales around Christmas and forget about some fundamental things. Matt talks about what you can't afford to miss during the festive season.
#Culture 14/12/2015
Scrooge has some good qualities...
Sometimes Christmas isn't all about working until the 24th of December, being sick over the photocopier at the office party and committing to 'drinking less coffee' next year. It can be a massively productive business period.
#Culture 11/12/2015
5 things successful e-commerce brands nail over the Christmas trading period
If you're a brand trading online and have ever thought, "How do I build my e-commerce business and keep customers coming back year after year?" then this article is for you.
#Creative 01/12/2015
12 FREE playful and 2 NOT SO FREE professional fonts you might want to download
A little bit of fun! A Variety of FREE and NOT SO FREE playful and professional fonts available for download. Take a look!
#Culture 04/11/2015
How fashion brands are creating their own social communities
Guest poster Emily Huggard, Lecturer at London College of Fashion, discusses how brands are leveraging their communities to thrive in the digital marketplace.
#Culture 30/10/2015
Social commerce: the basics broken down into 6 elements
Everything you need to know about Social Commerce; what it is, what it means and where you should be steering your social media activity.
#Work 22/09/2015
PossAbilities wanted to establish themselves online and provide an informational resource
Delivering a comprehensive range of people-focused services, the enterprise makes a profound difference to the lives of individuals, geared towards encouraging independence and enabling quality of life.
#Culture 14/08/2015
A graduate placement! Not a money making intern that's chained to a desk
We've decided to write an open letter to the creative community. Following some conversations around what internships and placements mean to us as a business, we thought we'd clear some things up.
#Culture 14/08/2015
5 key things to consider before embarking on a digital project
Matt Bayliss, our Technical Director, elaborates on some topics that we'd say are 'Mission Critical' before starting a digital project.
#Culture 14/08/2015
Seven reasons to collaborate with competitors
Guest poster Alexander Engzell, founder of Bonne Marque, discusses how collaboration with fellow agencies can only be a good thing.
#Culture 06/08/2015
Have what it takes? We’re on the lookout for a graduate front-end development placement
We’re on the hunt for a fresh Graduate Front-End Developer for a 3-6 month placement opportunity starting August 31st 2015. Get in touch if it sounds like you...
#Work 02/07/2015
Accountancy Anywhere take their first steps into digital
The look and feel had to position the brand as a forward-thinking provider of agile accountancy solutions. It was essential that the website's aesthetics and experience resonated with the target audience, and ultimately encouraged enquiries.
#Culture 01/01/2012
Woof, Bark, Woof, Bark, Woof, Woof, Woof, Bark... Woooooof!
Woooooooof, woof, woof, woof, bark, woof, woof, bark, bark, bark, bark, bark... Woof, wooooof, woof!
#Work 21/07/2015
Persevra required the creation of a website to support their national TV campaign
Persevra are insurance claims specialists that assist in the resolution of credible disputes.
The company have the ability to successfully represent both individuals and businesses who have had a valid insurance claim turned down.#Culture 14/07/2015
Commended for Best Use of Visual Design at the 2015 Big Chip Awards
In our first entry of the Big Chip Awards we unfortunately didn't win... But our entry for our work on Anthony Joshua's website was commended, which was pretty cool!
#Culture 14/07/2015
5 ways a startup business can accelerate growth using social media
There is a world of people out there talking about a world of things that relate to your product and brand. As a business it's a case of finding them and telling them all about what you can do for them.
#Culture 03/07/2015
What does this all actually mean? What can we learn?
Our Commercial Director Paul discusses the point of our #16bitDreams campaign, and tries to put some reason to the madness.
#Culture 25/06/2015
Jon Massey takes us back to a time when SEGA ruled the gaming world
Guest poster Jon takes us back to a time when he was a snotty nosed young whippersnapper and SEGA ruled the gaming world.
#Culture 18/06/2015
16bit graphics were eye candy for kids, but what does retro design mean?
Stuart looks at contemporary retro design, and advises on how to achieve the most authentic visual.
#Work 17/06/2015
Building Disturbing London's e-commerce store as part of their new website launch
Following the success of a short run e-commerce campaign, we were tasked with the build of the brand's e-commerce store as part of their new website launch. The development was required to provide a frictionless shopping experience across desktop and mobile.
#Culture 16/06/2015
Why is gaming so addictive, and how are developers capitalising?
Pete delves into the topic of addictive gaming, examining what makes a game impossible to put down and that's come to affect our lives.
#Culture 15/06/2015
Welcome to the first #16bitDreams event from We Are Empire!
Our aim is to find the best Mario Kart driver and Street Fighter err... Fighter in Manchester. Get involved on Thursday 25th June from 6:30pm onwards at Texture in Manchester's Northern Quarter.
#Culture 04/06/2015
Has the progression in technology made us less interactive?
Our Operations Director Drew Dinneen asks whether technology is making us less focussed on socialising in real life, and if we're raising a generation of weaklings as a result.
#Culture 03/06/2015
The power of fun: why's it important and why do we need it?
Paul writes an open letter to creative businesses about why we feel we should all be having more 'fun' at work and how we make sure it's an essential part of every day in the We Are Empire studio.
#Culture 02/06/2015
#16bitDreams is ALIVE - we celebrate all that's early nineties video gaming
We'll be investigating how areas that we work with such as user experience, technical delivery and creative execution have been affected by those little boxes that used to plug into our tube TVs.
#Culture 27/05/2015
My time in the We Are Empire studio - an intern's account
Recent design intern Claire Normansell recounts her time in the We Are Empire studio, as we say so long after a great two months.
#Work 13/03/2015
Honorable mention in 365 Best Websites Around The World 2014
AWWWARDS, Design creativity and innovation on the internet. Great to see we've been given an honourable mention.
#Technical 06/03/2015
It's your digital afterlife, it should be your choice to live for eternity
How many social networks and digital services do you hold accounts for? Ever considered what happens to all that data once your time runs out?
#Culture 04/03/2015
One month at We Are Empire and now I have a new job
After just a few weeks of her internship we're saying goodbye to Holly Sunderland as she sets off on her new career.
#Culture 28/01/2015
My journey through an unpaid internship to full-time employment
Our front end developer Lee looks back on his first chance to make his way in the digital industry, and how an unpaid internship worked out pretty well for him.
#Culture 23/01/2015
Mad Men's view of the digital industry from the 1960s
Madison Avenue's advertising agencies of the 1960s may be the subject of TV show Mad Men, but the similarities to today's digital industry are alarming.
#Creative 16/01/2015
On Web Typography: the most powerful tool for communicating with your audience
Stuart provides some insight into the book On Web Typography, and how it shapes your design voice.
#Culture 13/01/2015
Have what it takes? We're on the lookout for a design intern
We’re on the hunt for a Junior Designer for a 3 month internship opportunity starting February 3rd 2015. Get in touch if it sounds like you...
#Technical 02/12/2014
The shape of digital communications to come
Matt reflects after reaching a career milestone, and looks ahead to how the changing face of digital will look in years to come.
#Technical 25/11/2014
4 signs that you could be a front-end developer
Cats? Check. Coffee? Check. Cities? Check. Mild case of OCD? Check. Here's how you can identify whether you might be a front end dev.
#Culture 20/11/2014
We Are Empire ranked #4 in The Drum’s Digital Census 2014
Competing in the 1-25 staff category against 85 agencies across the country, we excelled in both client satisfaction, ranking #2, and peer recommendation, ranking #8.
#Creative 27/11/2014
Our Louise's journey from education into the creative industry
Our Digital Designer Louise looks back at her drastic career change, and why she just couldn't say no to becoming a designer.
#Culture 20/11/2014
Gotham pales in comparison to Nolan’s Batman
On the back of the success of Chris Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy, how has Gotham fared in the latest interpretation of the caped crusader?
#Culture 20/11/2014
We Are Empire by the buildings: a brief history
Entering our 4th year and moving into our 3rd studio, we got all nostalgic and thought it would be fun to look back on our studio history.
#Creative 20/11/2014
A creative in an ever growing, ever changing digital world
Here's a few hints and tips from our Creative Director Stuart to get you on your way as a creative in the digital industry.
#Work 22/11/2014
Rethinking Bloom Worldwide, an insight-driven strategy agency
We worked with Bloom on the first iteration of their website in the early stages of their new business. Their client roster includes the likes of Toyota, Goodwood and Museum of London, for whom they integrate social both internally and externally.
#Technical 31/08/2013
Beyond the desktop: the growth of responsive design
Breaking down exactly what responsive design is, why it's essential, and how we approach it here at We Are Empire.
#Technical 26/03/2013
Introducing Vine – shoot and share video with the world
Pete explores the new world of Vine and its bitesize video service. Could this be the next big advancement in social?