On a very hot summer’s evening on 27th June, over 30 businesses and a panel of experts joined The Key Digital Team to discuss “digital creativity” at our Unlock event.
Digital Creativity
This time we explored how digital tech can enable huge scope for creativity and moments for customers that really stick in the memory. The panel each had a very different background and experiences, making this one of the most fascinating discussions we’ve had at Unlock.
Our panel’s favourite examples of creativity in tech, design, business start-ups, brand and marketing were also discussed.
Networking
The evening began with networking opportunities whilst the group enjoyed delicious food prepared by Pic-Nick of Dorchester, and drinks provided by The Dorset Wine Company.

The Panel
On the Expert Panel was Lara Jane Thorpe, commercial photographer, Rob Aldous founder of KitBrix sports bags and current owner of The Poole Agency, Danny Duke, digital artist in the film industry and Jamie Homer, Head of Creative at Key Digital.

The panel and audience were asked challenging questions by host Dave McRobbie, digital strategy consultant regarding the importance of creativity in business and explored various ways of approaching design and digital marketing. The panel of experts challenged the group by asking if smart phones were now making everyone a “creative” in their business.
Human Emotion
“I agree that smart phones have their place for creating stories and culture for a business, but professional photography will always provide images that provoke emotion for a brand. Smart phones are a fantastic resource as a creative tool for capturing the mood of a situation, capturing ideas, a digital diary and as a research tool but professional photography will always bring out the human emotion in an image.”
– Lara Jane Thorpe, Commercial Photographer.


Lower barrier to entry
“A smart phone is a tool that creates a lower barrier to entry for creativity. It could just be used to capture an idea for a moodboard or composition. We’ve seen this as well in computing technology, over the last 20 years you can now get off the ground much easier as a visual effects company. When we look at technology and the way that it is used, being versatile and making it work for you is the key thing. You can be creative around the way you achieve something, rather than the task itself”.
– Danny Duke, Digital Artist, Tiny Giants.
Consistency is key
“The key takeaway for me from the evening is that it has helped me to vocalise things for me as a founder, and to get back on track with what I want to achieve with my company and brand. Consistency is key!”
– Rob Aldous, Founder KitBrix & Owner of The Poole Agency.


Agile approach
“What’s important to creativity is ideas and individuals. Everyone is creative and has a different approach. This means that everyone will have a different take on an idea, and that’s all part of the creative process. When you’ve got the right people around to execute ideas you can use creative ways to generate creative ideas, such as agile workshops.”
– Jamie Homer, Head of Creative, Key Digital.
The Discussion
For those that couldn’t make it, we hope to see you at an Unlock event in the future. If you’d like to see the discussion in its entirety – have a watch of the video below.
Digital Attention
“It is very important to create digital attention in the world of business social noise; businesses need to find a way to stand out and gain trust and credibility. Creativity is everything in brand, strategy and voice”.
– David Lakins, Managing Director, Key Digital.

Key takeaways
- Maintain original vision – revisit this often
- Build trust and empathy (not the same thing)
- Stay true to your business self / integrity
- Don’t get distracted by your competitors – paddle your own canoe
- Create relevant content for end user