At Prominent, the buzz words for 2023 were ‘recovery’ and ‘stability’ against a backdrop of turmoil and uncertainty in the world. But among the doom and gloom there was a lot to celebrate – from award wins to our biggest client acquisition ever.
Here, Managing Director Helen Rudd takes a look back over the key moments of the year and looks ahead to a year filled with anticipation and growth.
The first job for 2023 was new team photos. We hadn’t refreshed our headshots for a while and so we spent a day with the brilliant Sarah Lucy Brown who brought with her the sunshine – you can check them out on the team pages.
Spring started off strongly for Prominent when the team grew by two – there was a very welcome return for old friend Clare who re-joined us after a couple of years away and a happy hello for Ukrainian refugee Olena. You can read more about their start here.
Spring ended on an incredible high note for us as a team, when we signed contracts to provide a full PR and marketing service to Woodforde’s Brewery – the biggest client we’ve ever had on our books – a huge moment of personal pride for me.
Summer started off strongly for the creative team, planning and managing a month-long public consultation for Woodbridge Town Council on the future of the Shire Hall. The consultation was a huge success with lots of input and interaction from local people, which helped the council make some big decisions on what to do going forwards.
In July we welcomed the brilliant Scarlett to our office for a week of work experience. As a business owner it’s so rewarding to be able to give these opportunities to young people to spend time in the world of work – especially when they are as good as Scarlett. This young lady blew us away with her writing skills, understanding of strategy and her enthusiasm. At just 15 years old, we were hugely impressed. You can read her brilliant blog about developing a successful PR strategy here.
Our summer do was a celebration of what we’d achieved so far. We headed off to the Westerfield Railway for an epic buffet and Barbie themed cocktails before heading into town to meet partners and have a night of games at Wiff Waff. The night took the same direction as it always does when anything competitive is concerned – with Keira beating everyone at everything!
It was a summer of getting out and about – we enjoyed a day at the Norfolk Show supporting Woodforde’s before dancing the night away at the Cora ball.
We then celebrated our way into autumn with the news that we’d been shortlisted for four awards at the CIPR Pride Awards for our region, for work with Hey Girls and the Diocese of Ipswich and St Edmundsbury, while Keira was shortlisted in the Young Communicator of the Year category. More on that later!
One of our favourite moments of the year happened in early autumn when we entered into a partnership with Nigel Seaman and the team at Combat2Coffee. The link-up was the result of a recommendation from an old friend and we were incredibly excited to have the opportunity to promote the incredible work they are doing. This partnership is already proving so effective and is definitely one to watch in 2024!
As well as new clients, we also celebrated a milestone of working with the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich for five years. We love working with the Diocese – they certainly bring a steady stream of real feel-good stories to the team!
On a personal note, in the autumn I made one of the best decisions I’ve ever made since setting up Prominent and that was to join Vistage. My business coach and the people in my team have made such a big impact on me personally, professionally and the improvements and changes I’ve made here at Prominent are already starting to reap rewards.
September saw us become award winners – proudly taking home the Corporate and Business Communications Campaign of the Year at the CIPR Pride awards for our work on the ‘Hey 30 million’ campaign with Hey Girls. Our Account Manager Keira also picked up silver in the Young Communicator of the Year category. Both wins are incredible achievements and we are so very proud.
Winter has brought with it a period of reflection and planning. Going into 2024, we have big plans for the business and for the growth and development of the team – and we’re taking our time getting our ducks in a row.
An influx of new business enquiries means we’ll be starting the year off as we mean to go on! We’re excited to get to know our new clients well and deliver an exceptional service for them.
For me personally, I’m heading off on the holiday of a lifetime to visit my husband’s family in Thailand, so I’ll be starting the new year off at a slightly slower pace than the team, but what better way to recharge the batteries for an exciting year by spending time with family and enjoying the incredible views Thailand has to offer.
In February Prominent will be celebrating 10 years in business – and we have big plans to mark the occasion.
Statistics show only 35% of businesses make it to 10 years, so we are going to enjoy this milestone and we may even throw a party!
Fancy joining in the celebrations and making 2024 a year to remember for your business? Contact us today to learn how partnering with Prominent can help.
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