McConkey Associates Introduction

Whatever the medium,
we make sure it’s well done.
McCONKEY associates


“Before anything else, preparation
is the key to success ”
Alexander Graham Bell


Experienced Professional Experts.
Strategic Brand, Marketing & Creative Specialists.
At McConkey Associates we are specialists and experienced professionals who do the work to get you the results.
We work with you as a customer, not a client - an experienced extension to your team.
A client relationship can suggest that the consultant is in charge, whereas the customer designation approach we offer recognises the more modern model of the customer being in control. It also highlights all aspects of required customer service - satisfaction, loyalty, transparency, reporting, confidentiality and referrals to peers.
“We provide cost-effective strategic brand and business solutions. Our tailored remuneration structure offers value and is agreed in advance for the duration of the project to ensure there are no surprises. We create strategic creative brand solutions for our clients that deliver results; we work hard and believe we can make most things doable on budgets where others can’t. We apply the same attention to detail to every task regardless of size.”
We offer a responsive communication process that is tailored to your needs. We adopt to our customer’s favourite mode of communication, you decide what works best professionally for you.
We operate in Ireland but have International experience of the GB, US, German, French & Spanish Markets.
We are a skilled and experienced team. Collectively & individually, we have received Creative and Effectiveness awards from National and International trade bodies and associations:
• Institute of Advertising Practitioners in Ireland (IAPI)
• Effectiveness (AdFX) Awards
• National Newspapers Awards
• Institute of Creative Advertising and Design (ICAD)
• Kinsale Sharks
• Epica
• Marketing Society UK
• IPA
McCONKEY associates


Our Approach: STOP. LOOK. ASK. THINK.
STOP.
What’s the rush? Perhaps there is a rush but let’s define it. If speed is important perhaps it’s part of the message. If speed is arbitrary, don’t let it rule. As the carpentry teacher used to say “Measure twice, cut once”.
LOOK.
Look at competitors’ products, look for your competitive advantage, look at their promotion and advertising. Also – and this is the one people forget – look at who else is after the consumer’s money. You’re trying to sell them a car, someone else is trying to sell them a holiday, right now they’re planning on using that money for their kid’s college fees. Thinking this way helps you empathise with your target and understand what they want out of life – not just what you’re trying to sell them.
ASK.
Ask questions. Ask consumers, ask stockists, ask competitor customers, ask rejectors, ask about ingredients, ask about history, ask about new product development, ask about previous advertising. Ask research. Even the act of thinking of questions to ask stirs up fertile mud from the mind’s swamp.
THINK.
Thinking is highly under-rated. Thinking, jotting ideas down. Taking the time to think. Putting ideas aside while you do something else, then coming back to them. Giving them the sleepover test.
It may seem indulgent chewing over ideas and research, but a lot of thinking leads to a lot of great ideas entering the memory for the long term and that leads to a lot of profit.
At McConkey Associates no matter the size of the challenge or task, with our approach, you can be assured our experience and experts will give each task the attention to detail it deserves. No task is too small and our experts will ensure excellence in execution is delivered at every touchpoint cost efficiently.


Deliver results rather than recommendations.
PowerPoint presentations are not business results. Having the skills and experience to execute is what will deliver results.
We believe the world today doesn’t just need another consultant, but to assist in your business and marketing challenges you do need specialists, experts and professionals with experience and expertise that can do the job.
At McConkey Associates with our professional strategic brand, marketing and creativity we will provide solutions while producing results, at a predictable cost that offers collaboration, transparency and quantifiable value to your business.
1. Analysis
5. Analysis
4. Implementation
2. Confirmation
3. Creativity
McCONKEY associates


“If I had an hour to solve a problem and my life depended on the solution, I would spend the first 55 minutes determining the proper question to ask ... for once I know the proper question, I could solve the problem in less than 5 minutes”
McCONKEY associates
Albert Einstein




Services
A full service Irish, brand, marketing & communications service:
• Founded 2007
• Brand Consultancy / Audits
• Marketing Strategy
• Digital: Display, SEO, Adwords
• Advertising: Media, Creative, Production
• Graphic Design
• Brand Identity
• Sponsorship
• Research
• Procurement & Procurement Audits
• Marketing Investment
• New Product Development
“We are spending more time absorbing media every year. The quality of your message or product is just as important as the delivery!” Louis McConkey
Over experts have 30 year’s global experience working with international, local businesses and SME’s -
• We provide added value to your marketing & brand team.
• We understand the importance of nurturing a brand but have a practical approach
when it comes to the commercial reality of your business.
• We are the catalyst that ensures a seamless realisation of both the brandʼs potential and clientʼs vision.
• Our reputation is one of delivering excellence from start to finish, with a track record of growing brand awareness, loyalty & market share.
• We provide global thinking for local brands giving you well executed strategies that deliver stronger value propositions.


Our People
Louis McConkey - Business Expert
30 years experience - Board Director with Grey Helme MediaCom, The Helme Partnership / TBWA, Arks / Euro RSCG & Brian Cronin Associates. Has advised major Companies in Ireland and abroad. Formal Business Education including Mass Communications at Leicester University, Postgrad qualifications at CDVEC Rathmines and the University of Illinois @ Urbana-Champaign.
Shane Whelan - Brand Expert
Former Board Director of Havas (Young EURO RSCG), one of Ireland’s largest agencies,
with over 20 years’ experience. Managed all of Bulmers’ activity in Ireland and Magners internationally for 16 years - seconded client side in the US and GB. Consultant and brand mentor to Waterford based artist Jean Curran, The Vertigo Project, London, Paris & New York.
Denis Goodbody - Communications Expert
Communications Strategic Director, Writer & Broadcaster. Multi Award Winner, McConnells, DDFH&B, QMP Publicis & The Helme Partnership as Creative Director before owing his own Creative Marketing Services Company. Masterminded the communications campaign for the Euro Changeover.
Lesley Wallace - Media & Digital Expert
Lesley has worked in the Marketing industry for over 20 years, as a media planner and buyer. She has handled accounts such as Eagle Star (now Zurich), the OHM Group, Beamish & Crawford, Punch and Universal Films. Lesley has a BA Honours from Manchester University and a Diploma in Advertising from the DIT.
Maeve Kelly - Public Relations Expert
Maeve is an communications professional with 20 years’ experience in public relations. She holds a BA in Public Administration and a Graduate Diploma in Business Studies. She heads up the PR function at McConkey Associates independently or with third party suppliers depending on the task and the customer requirement.
Ian McConkey - IT, Web and eCommerce Expert.
Ian McConkey is Creative ServicesDirector. He oversees the art direction and production of all our studio output. He has worked in the Advertising and Design industry for over 30 years and has extensive experience of the production techniques for both traditional and new media.




What we believe makes a brand great
• Defines a compelling purpose, a big idea that stands out from the crowd, that goes beyond the product or industry, and really matters to people.
• Reflects the customer, builds an image and reputation in the mind of the customer that has personal relevance, even if it alienates others.
• Anchors customers around something familiar and important, whilst all else in the market, or in their personal world, continues to change.
• Engages customers in achieving the big idea, delivered in a style through which people say “that works for me”.
“A brand is a living entity - and it is enriched or undermined cumulatively over time, the product of a thousand small gestures”
Disney’s former CEO, Michael Eisner
McCONKEY associates


Please contact Louis McConkey or Shane Whelan if you have any queries, need clarification or wish to discuss further at your convenience.
We’d be delighted to arrange a coffee and have a chat.
McCONKEY associates
Advertising & Marketing 15d Gilford Road Dublin 4
Ireland D04 RD63
e: [email protected] t: +353 1 232 0239
f: +353 1 481 1539
w: mcconkey.media