Viper Autumn Training Courses

This Autumn we have the broadest range of day courses and residential training yet.

02/09 >> Introduction to Marketing - webinar

10/09 >> Digital Marketing & Media

15/09 >> Managing Communications

17/09 >> Introduction to Marketing

23/09 >> Countryside Project Management

24/09 >> Digital PR

30/09 >> Countryside Engagement

12/10 >> Social Marketing

13/10 >> Digital Marketing & Media

15/10 >> Marketing Communications

20/10 >> Social Marketing - webinar

21/10 >> Customer Relationship Management

22/10 >> Creative Results from Design

The course details and booking forms are available at www.vipertraining.info and each course is designed specifically for certain market sectors and job types. From countryside and public sector to sales, marketing and business development there's sure to be a course to help you in your role of communicating with customers whatever type they might be, internal and external.

If you have a specific training need that you don't see in the list please do get in touch because we are able to create bespoke and in-house training sessions focused on a particular challenge you are facing. Such sessions can be 'lecture-style', seminar or workshop or facilitated team meetings. Tell us your challenge and we'll come up with a proposal to solve it.

We look forward to seeing you on one of our training sessions very soon.

Web Censorship Mash-Up

An excellent example of self-policing on the web with Harvard University website http://www.herdict.org/web/

This is a great example of a ‘mash up’ allowing web users to post potentially censored sites around the world. Trends and live status reports add to the currency and relevance of this ground breaking site.

If we are based in the UK, Europe or USA it’s very easy to forget that our web access is generally as open and freely available as anywhere in the world. Many web users are not so fortunate and reports and statistics show that it’s a political minefield of claims, counterclaims and mystery. Perhaps cover-ups, perhaps conspiracy theory, but whatever the causes the advent of true social networking and development of social technologies means that services like Herdict are likely to gain in popularity as the power of self policing on the internet expands globally.

What do you think?

Viper Leads New Digital Marketing Programme

The world of digital communications feels as if it's accelerating every year. First we had websites and email and then as bandwidth increased we saw video and online social networking through technology described as web 2.0. This all feels as though it's been here forever but if you look at the dates of some of the well established services and websites you'll see we are only talking about a decade and a half since the most basic of online marketing and communications. What is on the horizon and what will take us through the next fifteen years? Well, if you are part of the Cambridge Marketing College's Digital Marketing Programme you may well find out and position yourself at the cutting edge of the next wave of opportunity. Having said that it's not all about the technology. In fact it's quite the reverse! You shouldn't be doing all of this unless there is a clear value and benefit in doing so. Technology is a tool to achieving your goals not an end in itself and this is an important considering in the starting of any digital strategy. But more of that in the programme itself. For now, please have a look at the Digital Marketing Programme website and if you need any further information about it or how applicable it would be for you, please let us know.

Viper's Neil Wilkins will be one of the two experienced Lead Tutors on this programme.

Special Insight into Rural Partners

If you're a rural organisation we've got vital information that could help you. Viper has gained a very special insight into how your partners are using your website. What are they actually looking for? What are their top priorities? What are they using the web for generally?

We would like to share this intelligence with you to improve your communication plan. We'll show you how we got the results and reveal what we found. Audience profile information is crucial for improving your communications but can be expensive to come by when you're in the rural sector. The process Viper uses is a very effective way of gaining a huge return on your investment. The research helps to answer the all-important question of 'what's in it for me?' by involving them in the process.

Please get in touch if you'd like to find out more.

Viper on a Bike

A more detailed look at the great connection Viper Marketing & Communications Group has with mountain bikes 

Zambia; The Final Post

The Family Hardcastle have returned! Actually we've been back for a few weeks now. Just a quick Blog to say thanks foryour interest and for helping us with our volunteering adventure in Zambia on the Bookbus.

The most common question we have been asked has been whether Zambia was everything we expected or hoped for?

We expected a challenge and we certainly got one; long hot, dusty days with no shade, noisy night with dogs barking and bats squeaking (yes, they really squeaked all night!) early mornings with weak coffee, awful toilets, small tents, tepid showers and bugs including a close encounter with a scorpion!

What we didn't expect was this; smiling, welcoming warmth of the Zambian people, the delight in the children's faces from a simple pop-up book, our children Tom and Anna to work so incredibly hard both at school and duties back at camp and all of us to be in bed by 8.30pm!

What had we hoped for? We hoped that Tom and Anna would realise how lucky they are living in this western society with all its luxuries. We hoped to inspire some children and give them more opportunities.

What did we find? The classes were 45 children plus, the children's 'hobbies' were washing plates and many had lost parents to Aids, yet they didn't stop smiling, singing and dancing.

We've all decided 'no more boring holidays'. We want to achieve something on our breaks now. 

Jim

3G Coverage

The UK maps of 3G coverage were publish by Ofcom, the government's telecom watchdog. Third generation mobile broadband has been seen as one way of bringing faster internet access to rural areas. Millions have signed up for mobile broadband deals, with over 2m new connections between February 2008 and February 2009.

But the maps reveal that map rural areas have poor or non-existent 3G coverage, effectively making them mobile broadband "not-spots".

The 3G coverage maps were published alongside Ofcom's second phase of its mobile sector assessment. It reveals that consumers are increasingly giving up landlines in favour of their mobile phones. All communications from and for rural based audiences will need to take this into account.