Inspiring Young Minds With Our Digital Marketing Masterclass
Last month, the HookedOnMedia team partnered with Truro and Penwith College to deliver a digital marketing masterclass to a group of Creative Media students. The masterclass consisted of three bite-sized lessons on SEO, Pay-Per-Click, and Social Media Marketing, which were taught by each of our experts. We also provided the students with practical exercises to test their newly acquired skills on their own websites.
The masterclass took place at Fibre Hub in Pool, Cornwall, a modern, collaborative workspace for local tech, software and digital businesses. It was the perfect backdrop to inspire these young creatives and give them a glimpse into what working in the digital sector in Cornwall can be like.
Cornwall has the fastest-growing tech sector in the South West, and there is a rising need to retain local talent. By organising masterclasses like this, we aim to share our knowledge and skills while also showcasing that these career opportunities do exist locally.
Our marketing manager, Xavia Smith, shares her experience of post-sixth form life and how opportunities in the South West have evolved over the years:
“I distinctly remember what I thought when I finished sixth form: where can I go that will be the total opposite of Devon?! However, the opportunities in the Southwest seemed different back then. There weren’t the same openings in creative, media and film, which were my interests at the time. Now, it’s a different landscape. Not to mention the entrepreneurial spirit in Cornwall. There’s a can-do attitude for sole traders and creators in this county. I recommend any post-16-year-old trying to figure out their next steps to look at the Cornwall Chamber of Commerce’s Thirty Under Thirty winners each year. The amount of young talent that is in Cornwall is inspiring.”
Thoughts From the Day
Xavia spoke to some of the students after the session and said that the masterclass was a real eye-opener into the technical side of websites and how to market them online. “A lot of students were well aware of what practises it might take to win over an audience or gain visibility by paying for ads online, but what surprised most of them was the level of optimisation of each campaign. When Andrew unpicked the structural changes that needed addressing from page errors, I could see by their reactions that this was something they’d never considered but would use towards their future digital work.”
Andrew Thomas, who led the introduction to SEO session, explained, “It was good to share our knowledge of free SEO tools & plugins that are easily accessible to students in order to help them optimise their blogs.” Regarding whether the workshop was helpful for now or when they leave college, he continued, “It is a good foundation for both, as it provides the skills they need when trying to create some business for themselves.”
Stuart Lansdowne, Lecturer at Truro & Penwith College and the Creative Director of Black Hen, reflected on how helpful the session was for his students. He said, “Yes, I did find it relevant. I think what was eye-opening to them was to see how advertising is used across the various platforms, especially social.”
Stewart Roode added: “The day was absolutely fantastic! Witnessing the students’ enthusiasm & engagement throughout the session was inspiring. One memorable moment was when the students had an ‘aha’ moment, realising the synergy of keyword research on website ranking and paid ad visibility. It’s these moments that reaffirm our commitment to fostering digital talent in Cornwall.”
