The Drum is the leading Marketing, PR, Design and Advertising journal outside London.

Following winning the Drum's DADI Digital Agency of the Year in 2007, parent company the Carnyx Group commissioned us to redesign The Drum's website and deploy a content management system to let them mainatain it easier. I was involved in the planning and strategy, and latterly the SEO. In September 2008 (about 6 months fter launch) the site reached half a million page views a month. Compare this to the 35,000 it was getting that time the previous year and the site's success is clear.

• Strategy
• Planning
• IA
• Creative Direction
• SEO

• Design: Steve

AEGON is one of the world's largest life insurance and pensions companies.

Whilst visual striking and different, AEGON's brand identity has proven difficult to transfer to online use. After my successful designs for AEGON Scottish Equitable and AEGON UK websites I was tasked with writing new digital guidelines. I provided the strategy and associated XHTML/CSS frameworks to ensure consistency is met, and development is made easier and quicker to achieve.

• Online brand development
• Strategy
• Planning
• Design
• Written guidelines
• XHTML/CSS

Drew Norloch was a catering company based in Edinburgh with exclusive access to the Royal Botanic Gardens and other great venues in Edinburgh.

This was our first pitch at Line, and started a run of about 8 successes. Anders Drew was the company's lead chef and they wanted to position their offer around him and his talents, whilst highlighting the beauty of their available venues.

• Strategy
• Art Direction
• Design
• XHTML/CSS
• SEO

• Photography: Phill
• Copywriting: Simon

Corus are the massive, Dutch steel manufacturer.

Their Space campaign was to raise awareness of the unique possibilities steel provides in creative packaging design.

• Design
• HTML

Filmhouse is Scotland's leading independent cinema, and home to the Edinburgh International Film Festival.

This is one of my favourites. We were given a sitemap by the client, but I realised that it should be centred more around what the user wants from the website when they visit - which is usually today's or tomorrow's films. The Filmhouse have seasons and other groupings of films, and the interface was planned around navigating these too, to keep the user engaged with the site. The site changes colour each month through a simple 3 form field in the CMS.

• Strategy
• Planning
• IA
• Creative Direction
• Design
• XHTML/CSS

• Developer: Ben
• Design: Steve

Line are a digital agency I am/was Creative Director of.

As an agency, designing your own identity and website has got to be the hardest task you'll ever face. I know I agonised over the naming and then the logo and branding of Line for a long time, always second doubting myself. The latest website concentrates on our work, which is what visitors are really coming to see. We wanted to show the sectors we work in at the same time as our capabilities. I design an interactive cross-referencing navigation to show the relationships.

• Strategy
• IA
• Identity
• Design
• Brand
• Long copy
• XHTML/CSS
• SEO

• Developer: Matt

English National Opera is the more radical of the two largest opera houses in the UK.

Ben and I put together this unfortunately fairly short-lived site which had a bespoke CMS. Clare from the London office conceived the visual campaign which was all about opposing emotions.

• Strategy
• Planning
• IA
• Design
• HTML

• Developer: Ben
• Concept: Clare

CCL Compliance provide financial services regulation consultancy and training in London, Dubai and Qatar.

We have produced six websites and an email marketing system for CCL in the 4 years we've worked together. The main consulting website was the first project and, with only a logo, they needed some brand development to give them a recognisable and appropriate identity. My visual approach centred on order and replication in everything they do.

• Strategy
• Planning
• Branding
• IA
• Art Direction
• Design
• XHTML/CSS

• Photographer: Colin
• Copywriter: Alan

Glasgow School of Art is the best art and design college in the UK. (I may be biased.)

I studied in Mackintosh's 'masterwork', and the college gave me my first job bck in the Graphics Department after graduating. I literally "fell" in to doing the Art School's first website after a throw-away comment to my boss one day (thanks John, I owe you my career). It was my first website, launched the same year as Netscape 1.1, and it was live for 7 years. Nominated for a Scottish Design Award back in 1998.

• Strategy
• IA
• Art Direction
• Design
• HTML
• QTVR

Everyone knows Drambuie - whether from flaming shots or that dusty bottle at the back of your parents' drinks cabinet.

I used to love working on the Drambuie account. They were always willing to try new and different things - some of the stuff we were doing was pretty cutting edge for the start of the new millennium. But when they wanted to plough tens of thousands of pounds in to selling online I just realised it would be a waste of their money at that time. I brokered a deal with the fledgling lastorders.com about 'white labeling' (before the term and approach was common) their service and facility. Lastorders thought the idea was so good they rolled it out for other brewers and distillers, and Drambuie saved a fortune.

• Strategy
• Planning
• IA
• Art direction
• Design
• HTML
• Online brand guidelines

Capricorn is the new exploration comapny of Cairn Energy plc.

I was really disappointed not to win this pitch - Nicola, Cairn's Head of Marketing is lovely and you can tell she really knows her onions, so I was eager to work with her. Ultimately though, I think we lacked the experience with this size of client, and they took a 'safer' choice of agency.

• IA
• Design direction
• Written proposal

• Designer: Steve

Photography commission for book jacket design for celebrity gardener Monty Don. Unfortunately never used in publication.

• Concept
• Photography

Customer extranet for the UK's largest independent housebuilder.

Miller Homes' Marketing Director, Philip (probably the best marketer I've ever worked with) realised that their company's customers experienced a 'rollercoaster' of emotions during the house buying process, and challenged us to come up with a solution to ease the down parts of the cycle. Having been disregarding half of the data about plot status for the main website we realised this could be used to let the buyers know how the build of their new home was progressing. We added to this a helpful guide to the house buying process based around their stage of completion.

• Strategy
• Planning
• Art direction
• Design
• HTML

• Developer: Ben
• Project manager: Dirk

Fender Sturrock were the largest marketer of credit cards between about 2000 and 2005.

As a company they had nothing except a logo when they came to us wanting a new website. Learning what they did, how they did it, and what their differentiators were I rolled it all up in to a series of 6 short animations which told their story immediately on a rolling opening. I even did the Flash myself, which is extremely uncommon!

• Concept
• Copywriting
• Design
• Flash
• HTML

Homepage redesign for Bank of Scotland, part of HBOS.

Bank of Scotland has three divisions: Personal, Business, and Corporate banking, each with their own identity. A previous agency had been unable to successfully appease all stakeholders in the homepage redesign, and my Corporate banking client suggested we take a look. It was a challenge to successfully sell the ideas we had to all divisions plus the Halifax team, but one I enjoyed. Our resulting design was an elegant Flash based solution which gave each equal weight to each, and endured for well over four years.

• Account management
• Creative direction

• Design: Brian
• Flash: Andy

AEGON is one of the world's largest life insurance and pensions companies.

Following Line winning the pitch to be appointed as AEGON's lead digital agency, our first job was to redesign the comapny's corporate UK website. This involved developing the new online brand style further whilst keeping it recognisably AEGON. The project is shortlsited for Best Online Branding at the 2008 Online Finance Awards.

• Online brand development
• Information architecture
• Design

BestCardForYou was an impartial credit card comparison website when transfering your balance was a hot topic.

Our first project at Line, it was something we really wanted to make an impression with. Ben, Ross and I devised the strategy which included BestPick, a then unique automated selection engine for which we commissioned an actuary to devise the core calculation. I was also responsible for the brand identity, visual look, and front-end build.

• Strategy
• Planning
• IA
• Identity
• Branding
• Art Direction
• Design
• XHTML/CSS

• Developer: Ben
• Illustrator: Simon
• Copywriters: milknosugar

The Edinburgh International Film Festival is the longest continuously running film festival in the world.

This was the project which really put Line on people's radar, a fantastic commission which everyone wanted. My thanks go out to Richard Baker (now VP of International Marketing at The Weinstein Company) for believing in us and giving us a go when no-one else was brave enough - it meant a lot, and made Line really happen. 2005 had a brilliantly flexible campaign identity by 300million.

• Online strategy
• Information architecture
• Design direction
• Design
• XHTML/CSS
• SEO

• Co-designer: Steve
• Campaign identity: 300million

Eden Scott are Edinburgh and Glasgow based recruitment consultants.

These are unsuccessful pitch designs for the company. A very typical brief where a company had no brand elements other than their logo. I based one approach round the Garden of Eden and the forbidden fruit of a new job, and the other a bit safer around finding the right candidate or the right new role.

• Creative direction
• Design

IKEA needs no introduction.

We design, build, and send email marketing for IKEA Edinburgh, based around their IKEA FAMILY reward membership scheme. As you'd expect, IKEA brand guidelines are very tight, and the brief was to develop a framework style for reuse.

• Creative Direction
• Design
• HTML

• Designers: Steve, Alex, Robbie

I don't do identities very often, but enjoy it when I do if not rushed by deadlines or budgets.

• Identity design

Genesis are Glasgow and Dublin based management strategy consultants.

Another unsuccessful pitch, but one which met the brief spot on. In the end the incumbent won with an approach which was apparently way off the brief, but that the client liked. I guess you always have an unfair advantage when you're the incumbent agency.

• Creative direction
• Proposal

• Design: Steve

Aquamarine Power is a young wave and tidal power technology company.

They invented and developed Oyster, their wave power machine, and they now have Neptune, their tidal power technology. Line were asked to assist with the company's marketing. I commissioned Mick from Various, the nicest man in Scottish Design and one of the most talented designers I know, to produce Aquamarine's identity. This is the second version of the website we produced for them.

• Planning
• IA
• Creative Direction

• Design: Steve
• Identity: Mick

Boudiche is a designer lingerie boutique, with stores in Edinburgh and Glasgow.

I really admired what Clare and Fiona were doing, and how hard they were working at setting up their new business, so I slowly chipped away at them to allow us to do their website properly. It's been a fantastic success for them, driven by their brilliant PR and some kick-ass search engine optimisation from me! (Example 1, example 2, example 3.) I have honestly never seen Steve work so hard on a project - I wonder why...

• Strategy
• Brand development
• Creative Direction
• XHTML/CSS
• SEO

• Design: Steve

Craig & Rose manufacture paint, and are best known as the original supplier for the Forth Rail bridge.

The company make paint under a number of their own brands, including 1829 and Opulence, as well as for Crayola, Kelly Hoppen and Cath Kidston. The challenge was to give equal weighting to each brand whilst raising awareness of Craig & Rose as the manufacturer on this e-commerce website.

• Strategy
• Planning
• Creative Direction
• Design
• XHTML/CSS
• SEO

• Developer: Ben

The now defunct DA Group plc created virtual characters for corporate applications.

Navyblue won the pitch to redesign DA Group's identity. These designs were extensions of that work which were never used.

• Design

Miller Homes is the UK's largest independent housebuilder.

Seven years old and still going strong, this is probably the project I'm proudest of. It's a great example of what digital can do to help a business - taking existing data and using it to make the user's life easier. At a time when no-one else was doing this, we devised and developed a system to profile house hunters and keep them updated with plot availability and pricing using email and SMS messages. A truly joined-up approach, and one which won 14 awards including Revolution's Best Use of Email in 2004.

• Strategy
• Planning
• IA
• Design
• HTML

• Developer: Ben
• Project manager: Dirk

SexToys.co.uk are one of the leading retailers of adult products online in the UK.

How random is this?! I can't even remember how we, ahem, came to pitch for this job site. In hindsight, I'm not actually sure they were serious about commissioning someone, but we had a laugh doing it anyway - and they gave Ross a plastic pussy!!

• Design

BDG McColl, part of the WPP Group, are commercial architects, interior designers and space planners.

A fairly small project for the Edinburgh based company, but one which nicely shows off the impressiveness of their work for big name clients.

• Creative direction
• Production management

• Design: Steve

Dixons Group, now DSG International, owned Dixons, Currys, PC World and The Link.

This was the online version of 1999/2000 Dixons Group Annual Report. Not particularly interesting web design, but I've done dozens of annual reports and investor relations microsites and just wanted to demonstrate my experience in this area.

• Web design
• HTML

Scottish Equitable was rebranded AEGON Scottish Equitable in April 2006.

I have worked with Scottish Equitable for over eight and a half years; first commissioned by a beautiful and talented young marketer called Alison Ritchie (now Alison Massey - yes, my wife!). This project was to redesign their massive public and adviser facing websites, and included a massive information architecture process, as well as the development of their new online brand.

• Planning
• Information architecture
• Creative direction
• Production management

• Design: Steve

The Edinburgh International Film Festival is the longest continuously running film festival in the world.

This was our fourth redesign of the EIFF website (the Festival changes campaign identity each year). Since first starting working with the EIFF team in 2005, we've extended the website's functionality each year. It now includes a CMS, interactive news stories, online recruitment application process, press centre with image download libraries, and online delegate registration, as well as online ticket sales. I'm going to miss working with Kate - she was the first client I told I was having to leave Line.

• Strategy
• Planning
• IA
• Design
• XHTML/CSS

• Campaign identity: O Street

Dawson International's companies make the worlds' most luxurious cashemere.

A suite of websites for Dawson and their sub-brands. I loved the simplicity of these designs - most companies seem to want to put anything and everything on the homepage these days. Fiona's another great client I've enjoyed working with for a number of years. These designs are still in use 8 years later.

• Design
• HTML

• Design: Stuart

Pauline Masson were a high end opticians based in Princes Square, Glasgow.

This was my first ever commercial commission, way back in the days when I was still a student. I created an identity for the opticians based around iris flowers, which they used for a couple of years. These images were the first stage, in the second the still lives were much more involved environments telling a story.

• Creative concept
• Brand identity
• Photography

Scottish Widows Investment Partnership is one of the UK's leading financial institutions.

Unsuccessful pitch for SWIP - we were again up against all the Scottish digital big boys, and the decision was made on the compatibility of the proposed CMS products with existing LloydsTSB Group systems. My design for the Fund information page, which you can see a part of here, I still think is spot on - all the information on one page (which no-one seems to be doing), but laid out in a clearly digestible fashion with obvious sign-posts.

• Information architecture
• Creative direction
• Design
• Written proposal

Response are a Glasgow based customer contact management company.

More than just simply call centre operators, Response's strength is their business and brand awareness for their clients. They select employees who fit their client's tone, voice, and approach, and since everything is so one-on-one personal, it really is their people who are their differentiator. This comes through in their own brand identity, designed by Contagious.

• Strategy
• Creative direction

• Designer: Alex
• Branding: Contagious

Semi-Chem are large Scottish, price conscious high street retailer of cosmetics and household goods.

Another unsuccessful pitch, but one we always had an outside chance of winning - they considered our technical solution wasn't tried and tested enough for large front-line retailing. I like doing e-commerce web design - it takes interface design to the next level, but with a very specific objective in mind.

• Design

The National Galleries of Scotland are Edinburgh's flagship art galleries.

Another unsuccessful pitch which went to the incumbent, and another bitter disappointment for me at the time. We worked extremely hard to win the pitch which, to us, would have been a massive budget and something which we have enabled us to do what we were best at - good, clean, information design backed up by solid technical development.

• Strategy
• Planning
• IA
• Creative Direction
• Proposal writing

• Design: Steve

Principal & Prosper are Independent Financial Advisers based in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen.

Unlike the majority of financial advisers these days, P&P are truly independent. At a time when the distinction was less clear, this site went out to set the record straight and show the firm's differentiators. Playing on the ampersand in the company's name I proposed the Impartial & Independent approach with a series of Flash animations to explain their approach.

• Strategy
• IA
• Brand development
• Creative Direction
• Design
• Flash
• XHTML/CSS

• Copywriter: Simon

Todds Murray is one of Scotland's leading law firms.

I came up with the creative approach for this website which centred around the company's logo and it morphing in to illustrations demonstrating their services and sectors. I'm not a great fan of the design which looks very dated now, but think that it brought their identity to life in a restrained, but slightly quirky fashion.

• Creative direction

• Design and Flash: Ross
• Illustrator: John

The Optical Express Group own a number of companies, including the Dental Clinic and Cosmetic Clinic

These designs were one route of a successful pitch to design the new site for the Cosmetic Clinic. We were up against the best three digital agencies in Scotland, so it was even more satisfying to win.

• Creative Direction
• Design

Tennent's is Scotland's favourite lager. Wunderbar! was their 2006 World Cup inspired marketing campaign.

Not normally Line's bag, this was a fully interactive Flash-based website, based around a virtual Teutonic biergarten. The interface centred around a parallax scrolling 'vista' which had different characters you could interact with. In all there were 13 different elements, from games to email based sweepstakes. My favourite was the Big Hans' betting game which was a fully operational wager system with automated updates and emails fed by Opta data.

• Strategy
• Planning
• Online creative direction
• Design

• Flash: Ali
• Developer: Ally
• Designer: Steve
• Campaign concept: Newhaven