As we race towards the final third of the year, it felt like a good time to review what JDG has been up to and where we’re at.
It is now coming up to seven years since JDG Media was founded by myself, and it has been an interesting journey with several ups and downs, but most importantly some great experiences.
Ultimately, the business has always revolved around myself and though I have at times tried to expand that out with the aim of becoming a full scale digital agency, the decision has been made moving forward to simply focus on my strengths and ensuring that I always sit at the centre of everything JDG does.
So what have we doing? Well, our main site Love Rugby League continues to go from strength to strength. The fast-paced and ever-changing face of journalism online represents ongoing challenges, as we now face stiff competition to gain attention on social media from fan sites that don’t need a business model to sustain.
Unfortunately, that has cost us the services of a couple of key writers, though we are hoping to adapt our model moving forward. We have a terrific working partnership with Betfred, who have been the main sponsor of the site this year, and the numbers that we have been able to provide them have been outstanding.
We have also brought on Batchelors this year, to push their Mushy Peas brand, again a sponsor of Super League generally. The Rugby Football League has also utilised our channels to push their ticket sales, and we look forward to developing a fruitful partnership with their marketing department over the coming months and years.
Back in June, we once again ran a hugely successful media campaign for State of Mind, gaining press coverage in several newspapers, on BBC and Sky Sports, as well as numerous local radio stations. We have now been working with State of Mind for five years, and it is a pleasure to be involved.
Away from rugby, our British Ice Hockey site has kicked on this year and we are now hoping to attract commercial partners ahead of the 2017/18 season that will enable us to push that forward as Love Rugby League has done over the past few years.
We are currently working with Braehead Clan to develop their new website, and that will hopefully be live before the new season.
A big part of my work currently is with Manchester Giants basketball team, effectively running their commercial, media and marketing operation. A new website and club shop, developed by JDG, was put in place earlier this summer.
The new football season – check out the Sportingbet Welcome Bonus and have a flutter – starts properly for me this weekend when Warrington Town kick-off against Rushall Olympic, and again I will be covering that in-depth for Warrington Worldwide, Warrington Guardian and the club itself.
We continue to pitch and look for new clients, and have some interesting proposals out there currently. If you would like to work with me and my small team, then please do get in touch.
Essentially, we can provide the perfect online sports solution – whether that incorporates website build, management, social media, content, PR or otherwise, just give me a shout!
