New Sheffield business search engine locallysheffield.co.uk

2 12 2008

Plus free a upgrade for your business if you are quick

The creators of locallysheffield.co.uk have been in touch and asked for a mention of their site on this blog. It is part of a new family of online classified directories for local UK businesses called locallycompared.com.

Their national network of sites has two million business listings, and although the Sheffield version already includes many details (information on the business/service offered, prices, opening hours, maps, events, frequently asked questions, special offers and reviews), in order to flesh out this further they are looking for people to sign up to review and rate their favourite local businesses online.

They have also said that they will give the first five Sheffield businesses who contact locallysheffield.co.uk on the back of this post a free upgrade to the £299 per year listing product with no strings attached.

There is an additional local connection in that two of the team of three that have built this website are from Sheffield. So see what you think to the site and if you are a business mention this blog when you register and you could get a premium listing for free!


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What’s on guides for Sheffield

26 10 2008

Where to find out about Sheffield events

With the annual influx of new student arrivals settling into Sheffield life, I thought it would be timely to round up some of the online what’s on guides that are out there.

If you open any national newspaper you’ll see plenty of inspiration for what is on in London. Although Sheffield does now get more coverage that it used to, thanks in part to the Millennium galleries, we still have to work harder to find out this information, relying more on local coverage and communities (both traditional and online) for listings.

This isn’t a massive problem, as often some of the best things happening spread more appropriately via word-of-mouth and through organic networking channels. So keep your ear to the ground and you may unearth some quirky and independent happenings around Sheffield.

For now though a good starting place is these websites (in no order):

Event Sheffield
eventsheffield.co.uk
This site is run by the council and Spin Sheffield and seems to include quite a comprehensive round-up of big events within 20 miles of the city. Organisers can submit their own event, as long as it is ‘expected to attract significant visitors from outside the region and be of national/international significance’. So no matter how good your themed house party is going to be, don’t be too disappointed if it doesn’t get accepted on this site. There is also some sort of SMS service for Sheffield events to your mobile, but at 50p per text I won’t be trying it.

Sheffield Telegraph
sheffieldtoday.net/telegraph (the ‘Listings’ link from sheffieldtelegraph.co.uk is broken)
An online version of the newspaper’s weekly listings supplement. Click a category to see upcoming events. It is functional but feels like a bit of a missed opportunity, as the addition of an advanced search (e.g. to allow you to search by date, postcode) would make it much more useful.

The Star
thestar.co.uk
The Telegraph’s sister newspaper offers a ‘What’s on’ guide on their website, although it appears to be a flat page of text with no search option. What may be more useful is keeping an eye on the Ten things to do today page, however this URL changes each day and I’m not sure where this is consistently linked to from. Your best bet is to subscribe to their Entertainment RSS feed, which includes a link to the day’s page.

Sheffield forum
sheffieldforum.co.uk
The old favourite; if you are reading this blog then the chances are you have also stumbled upon this successful and busy discussion site. It has specific sections for Evenings out and Other events - plus of course you can subscribe to RSS feeds of these sub-forums if you wish.

Sheffield nights
sheffieldnights.com
As you would expect, this site focuses on Sheffield’s nightlife. Run by a Hallam student, I think it has had a recent redesign and looks pretty useful, as long as their event database is kept up to date. There is also a Facebook group.

sheffield-tonight.co.uk
sheffield-tonight.co.uk
Avoid this unattractive site, which despite proclaiming to be ‘your 24/7 guide to the best entertainment all night, every night’, is in face very out of date and bereft of events. I looks like it is some sort of joint venture between The Star and radio2XS. Seems to me like they would be better taking it down, as it is damaging for both brands.

Twitter
twitter.com
It you are on Twitter, then obviously keep an eve out for stuff mentioned by the Sheffield people you are following. And occasionally twitter.com/sheffieldblog will mention things happening, as well as other local news.

Are there any more I have missed? It seems like there is an opportunity for some sort of properly localised Sheffield events website with an up-to-date database, proper search functionality and open policy on the events they allow on it.


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Categories : promotions, sheffield, websites

Sheffield City on the move video from The Full Monty

8 10 2008

Watch (some) of The Reel Monty video online - or buy the DVD

If you’ve ever searched online for a clip of City on the move, the promotional film famously featured in The Full Monty, you will have probably drawn a blank.

However, to mark the official release of the film on DVD, The Star has put parts of the video online along with interviews with the Council’s first-ever publicity officer and the film-maker.

It’s a nostalgic look at a city that was improving back then, but is almost unrecognisable compared to the Sheffield of 2008.

Read the accompanying article or go straight to the video - you have to press play to set it going. You can also buy a copy of the DVD from thereelmonty.com.

And for comparison purposes, here are the two promotional films that Creative Sheffield has made over the last couple of years to promote the city:

2008

2007


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Categories : film, history, marketing, promotions, sheffield, videos

Sheffield blog on Twitter

6 10 2008

Last week I took the plunge and gave this blog a presence on the micro-blogging site Twitter, which you can find at twitter.com/sheffieldblog.

I’ve had a personal Twitter account for a year and have been thinking about doing this for a while. In the end I decided that the additional time taken to maintain a second account would be worthwhile, as I can use it to:

  • alert non-RSS blog readers that a new post has been published
  • give a home to Sheffield-related snippets/links that may not deserve a full blog post but are still of interest
  • allow me to quickly and easily put content live while on the move
  • act as a networking tool and means of promotion
  • be a source for blog post material, as receiving tweets gives a continuing snapshot of what Sheffield Twitter-ers are up to

In due course, I will probably also use something like LoudTwitter to import tweets as posts into the main blog.

So if you are on Twitter then please hook up now!


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Sheffield on Twitter - an update

28 09 2008

Who’s new?

Back in June I did a round-up of how Sheffield people and organisations are using the micro-blogging site Twitter, which became the basis for the Sheffield Twitter users page.

I’ve had another look to see who or what else from the city has popped up in Twitter. Some of these accounts seem a bit stagnant, but then you never know when they might spring back into life…

radio2XS (Sheffield-based online radio station, set up by Jeff Cooper, formerly of Hallam FM)
http://twitter.com/radio2xs

RPG photography (award-winning Sheffield photographer; this may be a personal Twitter account)
http://twitter.com/arepeejee

Studio dust (a small, creative studio specialising in design; also on Flickr)
http://twitter.com/dustcollective

UK logo design (the design studio of Taylors graphic design, offering logo, web and print design)
http://twitter.com/designforum

Joining more dots (a Twitter account in its infancy; the website says that this company ‘looks to imaginative ways to use digital media and web services to enhance communication and collaboration, in business, education and health care’)
http://twitter.com/joiningmoredots

Plain advice (boutique marketing agency; looks quite new - the impression I get is that digital marketing is not their background)
http://twitter.com/chrisbell

Learning, teaching and assessment in higher education (again, looks like a personal Twitter account, however the accompanying blog features and interviews about innovation in learning and teaching from Hallam university)
http://twitter.com/amiddlet50


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Categories : design, digital industries, marketing, photography, promotions, sheffield, websites

Sheffield’s Grin up north comedy festival

15 09 2008

It is back and looks set to keep growing - but could do with a better website

The annual comedy festival returns next month, and it could be final one to be located solely in Sheffield. From 2009, the organisers have plans to expand it into Rotherham, Barnsley and Doncaster, which should further raise the profile of the festival in future years.

When it comes to comedy, I’m quite picky over what I enjoy, and even more picky over who I would go to see live. However, I’m looking forward to Grin up north, so decided to ask my friend - a writer for BBC Radio 4 and BBC3 and who has just returned from Edinburgh - what he recommends this year.

So, apart from the people you have probably heard of (Jimmy Carr and Dylan Moran), his picks include:

  • Jason Cook (The Lescar, Saturday 11 October) - hilarious and really moving
  • Rhod Gilbert (Memorial Hall, Sunday 12 October) - surprising that he didn’t win the main prize at Edinburgh this year
  • Rich Hall (Memorial Hall, Monday 13 October) - an all-time favourite
  • Tim Minchin (Memorial Hall, Wednesday 15 October) - one of the best shows in Edinburgh this year; a properly-done musical comedy
  • Plus Mark Steel (Memorial Hall, Wednesday 1 October) and Comedy Store Players (Oval Hall, Thursday 2 October) would be well worth seeing

Or for another person’s recommendations, you can read a Sheffield student’s picks in their (new) blog.

The Grin up north festival brochure, bundled with a recent Sheffield Telegraph, is a good guide to who is appearing, but the website needs a bit more attention. Several of the shows from last year are still promoted on there (the text links need updating on the homepage), the website browser bar title still shows 2007 (getting this right essential for good search engine optimisation) and nowhere is an at-a-glace list of all performers. And can you not book tickets online?

When comparing this to the website for the upcoming Off the Shelf reading and writing festival, I soon realised that this also wasn’t much better. Likewise, there doesn’t seem to be a basic list of all events and the only way to view what is on is by downloading a pdf of the festival brochure - again, not at all search engine or user-friendly. By all means offer a pdf download, but surely the festival listings should be on the site as a minimum?

I really want these festivals to succeed as they are an important part of the cultural life of the city, but instead of being exploited as a key marketing tool, it appears that the internet basics are not being done well at all.


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Categories : arts, comedy, festivals, marketing, promotions, sheffield, websites

Ten ways to improve Sheffield (part one)

1 07 2008

Part one of a two part post, identifying ways that the city can be improved. Here are numbers one to five (not in any order)

Sort out the traffic congestion
 Is traffic congestion in Sheffield really that bad? According to this report Sheffield traffic is in the top 10 slowest-moving in the UK. If South Yorkshire is looking to further develop its economy by attracting business investment on an international level and also ensuring that its potential as a tourist destination is fulfilled, the road infrastructure must improve. As part of this, the problem of car access around the station must also be addressed, as the good impression visitors get from Sheaf square is soon forgotten once you are embroiled in the gridlock on the way out.

Focus on the city’s digital strategy
City leaders are recognising the importance of developing Sheffield’s digital and creative industries with the development of the Digital Campus, but the strategy needs to be more wide-ranging than this. We need to work further to encourage residents, businesses and community groups to embrace the technologies on offer in order to create a digitally-literate population. In Birmingham, a Get into digital festival took place in June as part of the Digital Birmingham initiative, aiming to “help make the transition from an industrial city to a digital one by driving forward the use of these technologies in order to increase prosperity, knowledge and quality of life of its citizens.” This is definitely something to Sheffield to consider…can we afford not to?

Grow the city centre as an after-work destination
The council has been working hard at promoting Wednesday night live in the city centre. It has recognised a need for the city centre to become a viable option for post-work and evening recreation. For too long, Sheffield has become a ghost town after the shoppers and workers have gone home, with people not feeling compelled to stay in the city centre. There is potential for expanding the after-work economy, but it needs the support of Sheffield citizens, not just the local authority and businesses.

Attract more quality restaurants to the city centre
Every week in the Sheffield Telegraph I enjoy seeing what the interviewee in the Food For Thought Q&A column says in answer to the ‘What do you think of Sheffield as a place to eat out?’ question. The most positive answer seems to be that Sheffield’s restaurant scene is improving but few people have much to shout about. There are good restaurants across the region but many of these in the suburbs or out in Derbyshire, and for every highly-rated one that opens, another closes. A limited number of chain restaurants is acceptable, but Sheffield also needs more high quality restaurants in the city centre, particularly ones that stay open late to cater, for example, for the post-theatre/gig/concert crowds. Which brings me onto…

Introduce a night bus services on key routes
If the evening/night economy were to expand then would it be worth trialling a night bus service? Currently, many routes finish around 11pm, and with town pubs now generally open later than this, I think there would be a demand for buses every half hour on key services out of the city throughout the night. The impact on Sheffield taxi drivers would need to be carefully assessed, but it would certainly help the queues and scramble for cabs in the early hours of the morning when demand outstrips supply.

Parts 6-10


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Categories : arts, bands, council, development, digital industries, food, live, music, promotions, regeneration, restaurants, sheffield, technology, transport

City of Sheffield city centre walkabout (walkabout)

19 03 2008

Exploring the city centre, 1970s style

A few months ago I was given a fantastic item that had been found on eBay - a copy of the early-1970s City of Sheffield city centre walkabout walkabout book (I think the double walkabout in the title is actually a stylistic design feature on the cover).

This publication (rrp 25p) was produced by what I assume was the council marketing department in those days, the quaintly-named Sheffield City Promotions Committee. On the inside front cover, they write:

The aim of this publication is to act as a guide to visitors for a walking tour of the Central Area of Sheffield. The tour, which takes just over an hour at a leisurely walking pace, is intended to show both civic and other important buildings and landmarks, not only of yesteryear, but also some of the more modern counterparts of recent times. At the same time, it is hoped to show some of the Sheffield’s character in its local environment, brought about by the effects of ambitious building schemes and town planning since 1945 together with the clean air legislation in 1972 which led to Sheffield’s claim as being ‘the cleanest industrial city in Europe‘.

Reading the brochure I can’t help but think of the ‘City on the move’ film that opened The Full Monty, as the tone really lends itself to being read in a received pronunciation public service-style voice.

I’m sure copies of this publication from ‘yesteryear’ are quite scarce now, so I’ve pulled together my favourite quotes here:

City of Sheffield city centre walkaboutTown hall extension “This effect, together with leaded roofing are (sic) intended to blend two contrasting styles of building”

Crucible theatre “several television spectaculars have taken place here”

Shopping “Sheffield now has more departmental stores than any other city north of London”

Fargate “A quiet resting place for the weary visitor”

Chapel Walk “has more than a hint of a cosmopolitan atmosphere”

Dove and Rainbow pub “where you are more than likely to hear the chatter of journalists, reporters and other media people during weekday lunchbreaks”

Parkway “It is now possible to drive to either London or Newcastle in under three hours via the motorway network direct from that point”

Ramp near Castle Square “Castle Square’s function as a traffic roundabout can best be viewed from this point” - this view is obviously one not to miss!


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Categories : council, environment, history, promotions, pubs, sheffield, walking