One of the artefacts produced for Meetdraw 13 (there was also a fantastic group of final year Interactive Media Production students from Bournemouth University showing off their pretty awe-inspiring digital innovations too: @timofetimo, @tomrpi, @mrfirthy, @joewheats, @dj10dj100 and @andytouch) was a startling graphical representation of the creative economy of Bournemouth, Dorset and Poole.  Based on some recently conducted research, brought to life by four excellent final year BA(Hons) Graphic Design Students from Arts University College at Bournemouth (@jessgibbs_ @stephjaneh @joshharker @krowedesign) and kindly given a physical form by Dorset Digital Print.  This infographic shows the size, sector, location and age of 100 agencies and the picture it paints is an exciting one.

For a start it shows 100 agencies.  100 agencies that between them employ over 1000 people.  That’s an average of 10 employees per agency – twice the national average (research done by The Design Council suggests that the average agency size is just 5 staff).  And even after the figures are adjusted to remove the top 10 employers, the average size is still around 7.  To me that suggests a strong sector based down here.

Another indicator of a buoyant creative economy is the signs of its growth.  The infographic shows that starting way back in 1961, the number of agencies appears to have grown exponentially year-on-year.  Talented designers and passionate entrepreneurs are all seeing an opportunity and starting small agencies and the fact that these agencies are still around suggests there’s work for all of them.

Its good work too.  Although the infographic doesn’t show this, the region is rich with award-winning agencies.  And I’ve said it before, success breeds success.  We should be proud to live / work / study in an area that has this much going for it and we should celebrate it more don’t you think?

First off and conveniently held over the course of the first weekend, the 3^rd & 4^th March, is Bar Camp Bournemouth 4.  As the name suggests, this is the 4^th time 100 geeks (their words!) and folks interested in all aspects of the digital world, hardware and software, will descend upon Bournemouth University to stage an ‘unconference’ – a specifically unstructured event where the attendees decide what happens when they get there.  Anyone can hold a talk and rest assured they’ll be plenty taking place.  The three previous events have all be massive successes and this years looks to be the best yet with a key sponsor being the Mozilla Developer Network.

Mid-way through the month, on the 15^th, Dorset Digital will be holding their informal monthly event at Tom Browns (that’s a pub not an individual) in Dorchester from 8pm.  The longest-running of all the digital-related networks in Dorset, expect much of the talk to be either around what took place at #BCBomo4 and when the next one will be or high-speed broadband across rural Dorset and the brilliant opportunities that this will bring .

And then not quite at the end of the month but near enough, on the Wednesday 21^st March, Meetdraw 13 will take place at The Sherbet Lounge on Old Christchurch Road, Bournemouth from 7pm.  As with all of the previous Meetdraw events, it will be a casual affair where the worlds of creative and digital, work and university will collide and enjoy a drink or two and a chat.  For the past three months, some statistics about the size and shape of the creative economy across the region have been being collected and this will (fingers-crossed) be the grand unveiling of the results.  How many creative businesses did you say there were?  150?  Blimey…

Then on into April and it’s the return of B&W Meet, the student-initiated (but not just for students) friendly meet-up.  There’s no date in the diary for this as yet but the previous two events have been great and there’s no doubt the next one will be well-worth attending for anyone and everyone interested in ‘the web’.

Networks are the lifeblood of any successful and buoyant creative and digital business community – just look at Soho, Shoreditch, Bristol and Brighton.  They not only provide a forum for friends and like-minded souls to meet-up and talk, share ideas and discuss future collaborations.  But they offer a route to just find who all of the other businesses with shared interests are in your area are and find out what they’re up to.  There’s no getting away from the fact that there is strength in numbers too and strong networks draw attention to an area attracting new business and new talent.

We’re lucky to have four and each one has its purpose.  But they all need supporting and nurturing, so please don’t take them for granted.  If you work at a creative or digital business, regardless of what job you have or discipline you work in, you’ll find something of interest at anyone of these events and we all benefit from their existence

Ever wondered what keeps ensuring so many of the 150+ agencies located across Bournemouth, Dorset and Poole manage to keep winning awards?

Well, wonder no more because March 21^st  sees the great Student Takeover return to Meetdraw.  Over a drink or two (or if the Christmas Meetball was any indication, over several more than that) in the relaxed surroundings of The Sherbert Lounge, the students of both Arts University College and Bournemouth University want to show their future friends, colleagues and potential employers; exactly how bloody talented they are.

This is NOT a recruitment fair – but if you are an agency and you’re thinking of recruiting some fresh blood, the timing couldn’t be better – and nor is it an end of year exhibition.  This is a celebration of everything that is great about the creative economy around here – two great uni’s, loads of brilliant agencies and some excellent work being done by all.  In keeping with all previous Meetdraw’s this will be a fully interactive celebratory event and a chance to have a drink and a chat with your mates and other like-minded souls.

Over the next few weeks we’ll be telling you a little more about what’s going to be happening, just make sure you put 21^st March in your diary – this will be one date you don’t want to miss!

We started the year in a period of transition, the founding Butchers were ready to stand down and we needed to pass the running onto a new team of Butchers.

Having worked incredibly hard and been very successful in creating Meetdraw it was time for the guys to stand back and earn a well deserved rest.

So in quarter one we assembled a team of new Butchers from across the digital spectrum to guide Meetdraw forward.

Fantastic Free Events

It has been an exciting year with three regular quarterly Meetdraw evening events, all free and each with a different theme and venue.

First we were the Dorset link for Twestival back in March at 1812 Cocktail Bar.

Then to celebrate summer we went to the Cumberland Hotel for a Beach and Pool Party.

For the end of summer/back to school event we tied in with Silicon Beach Conference and went to Aruba for free beer in the sunshine.

The Fabulous Finalle

Our forth event we took a risk and went big organising The Lonely Christmas Turkey at The Print Room. For this event we took a risk and asked our supporters to pay in return for a more formal evening with drinks, dinner, raffle and entertainment provided.

All events have proved successful with in excess of 100 attendees – our finale at The Print Room attracted over a 120 paying guests – our tweet board, over 330 tweets that went out to an audience of over 12,000 and we generated a large number of hangovers!

We’ve achieved a lot in or 3rd year

For the first time this year we also leant our brand to Silicon Beech and teamed up to hold the first ever digital conference in Bournemouth – which was an amazing success – with some excellent speakers, great venue and lovely cupcakes.

So what have we achieved:-

-        Successfully passed on the running of Meetdraw to a new team of Butchers

-        Ran our four quarterly events very successfully

-        Supported a Digital Conference attracting huge publicity and interest in and out of the Region

-        And hopefully connected and entertained a large number of digital enthusiasts in Dorset

All this is built around our core principles of building, supporting and connecting the digital creative industries in Dorset.

2012 – Better than ever in our 4th year?

So what for 2012 – well probably more of the same with some differences! Last year we have evolved the formula and tried some new things – this coming year we will adopt the best of 2011 and continue to try new things. And we will listen to feedback and criticism and provide you with the sort of organisation you want offering the events and services you enjoy and like.

We also want to help connect members of the herd with jobs at good local agencies, so we’ve launched the #meetjobs page check it out and let us know your thoughts.

As you are no doubt aware Meetdraw is a not for profit organisation and everyone who helps make it happen does it for fun and no material rewards. So a big thank you to the Butchers and everyone who has helped make it possible in 2011 – from you the members, through to the sponsors, venues and companies that have lent time and resource to making it happen.

Taking place in Plymouth in November, Extended Play Bootcamp is a unique opportunity for the South West’s most promising and established digital companies, to come together over a period of two days to explore and create new products and services that will be leading the interactive, digital and games industries of the future. The two-day residential will feature exclusive mentoring by some of the country’s leading technologists, entrepreneurs and investors providing established and emerging companies with knowledge to enhance their businesses, allowing them to successfully compete in the games industry around the world.

Mentors from Eidos, Adobe and Sony are being complimented by the some of the most successful indie games development studios in the UK, all sharing the tip and tricks you need to make your business the next big hit (don’t worry if you’re not a games development company or have no desire to be a games development company, innovative digital agencies with a desire to grow are just as welcome, if not more so)!

If you are interested in Extended Play Bootcamp and feel your company could benefit by being involved, please register your interest on the website and you will be contacted with further details – http://www.explay.co.uk/bootcamp.php or email korash@explay.co.uk

Have a sneaky drink with Adobe…

… and Skype and Virgin Media, and Ogilvy. All on us!

The Meetdraw X1 wagon rolls into to town on the 28th September at 7pm.

Conveniently sandwiched between The Meetdraw Presents conference event on the 28-29th, this is your chance to nobble the speakers and ask them how and why they did what they did – FOR FREE.

So you can go behind the scenes and chat to the people from Demand Media, Grape Digital and Made by Many. ALL FOR ABOSULTELY NOTHING,

NADA, ZERO, NIC.

If you’d rather have a drink then go to a conference, then this event is right up your street. Click here to register yourself for a backstage pass or find out who else has one

Along with the usual herd of digital animals, Meetdraw is the right place to network and celebrate Bournemouth & Poole as one of the leading hubs for the digital and creative industry. If you’re a Meetdraw novice, there’ll be folks on-hand to steer you in the right direction – towards a new contact, a new supplier or just towards the bar.

Event details:

Venue: Aruba Bar & Restaurant, Pier Approach, Bournemouth BH2 5AA

Tel. 01202 554 211

Time: From 7:30pm onwards

Admission: FREE

For more information on the Meetdraw conference click here

To find out who else has got a Backstage Pass click here

If you’re not aware of The Digital Hub or what services the University can offer you – and there are a lot (don’t forget Bournemouth University is internationally renowned for the work it does across the digital media sphere) – then you should definitely take advantage of an event they’re hosting next Tuesday: http://bit.ly/nG0EUc

For one day only, only the 19^th July, they’re throwing their doors wide open on and inviting local (regional, national?) creative businesses in to have a look around, play on a few things and generally find out a bit more.

And what’s more they’ve secured a terrific keynote speaker in the form of Tiffany St James http://bit.ly/pkfyFI – herself a previous Bournemouth University graduate, but now a much sought after Digital Strategist.  Tiffany’s services are currently retained by The Government, Microsoft, Channel 4 and The Guardian, but she somehow seems to have found the time to give a talk in Bournemouth – which in and of itself, should be well-worth the ticket price alone.

Oh, did I mention this whole event is FREE courtesy of Dr Phillip Alford of The Digital Hub?

Check it out here and book your ticket: http://bit.ly/nG0EUc

Registration Closed at 210 attendees!

Sorry for those of you hoping to register for tonights event but we have taken as many pre registrations as we can allow. To those south coast creatives who still want to attend, please just turn up on the night! Its still free and you will still be able to get in… we’re nice like that!

If you were hoping to get your prime cuts out at the Pool Party event of the year then feel free to get in your meaty costumes and take a dip! We have the largest outdoor pool in town at the Cumberland Hotel as the fantastic venue.

Any questions please @mention or DM @raddougall or @tomwittlin on twitter

An update from the MeetdrawX team…
We now have over 100 south coast creatives signed up to get their prime cuts out at the Pool Party event of the year! We have the largest outdoor pool in town at the Cumberland Hotel as the fantastic venue, however this does mean we have a, all be it high, limit on numbers! Boooo I hear you say, but it doesn’t have to be so, get yourself on the list at meetdraw.com/register and you too can party in the sun with some of Dorset’s top chops.

Discounted Rooms at the Cumberland

For those of you Coming from further afield and those who are planning to get marinated we’ve negotiated a special room rate especially for you all!

You can stay at the Cumberland, one of Bournemouth’s premier three star hotels for just £56.50 per person, per night including full English breakfast! What’s more if your staying on you own, they will upgrade you to a double room for no extra cost!

All you need to do is call Lisa or Brian on 01202 298350 and tell them your attending the Pool Party event of the year!

Any questions please @mention or DM @raddougall or @tomwittlin on twitter

…be honest, why would you not want to stay here…

The conference is a collaboration between Cyprus Well (www.cypruswell.com), Media Futures (www.mediafuturesconference.com), the Creative Industries iNet (www.creativeindustriesi.net) and Bournemouth Borough Council.  More details will be forthcoming over the coming weeks but on 14^th May a one-day Book Hack Day is taking place at the Free Word Centre in London and a limited number of spaces have been reserved for SW-based businesses.  Not only that, to support South West businesses (and yes Bournemouth IS in the South West) to take part in this event, Cyprus Well, supported by the Creative Industries iNet and South West Screen are offering up to £50 towards the cost of travel for five attendees.

Book Hackday is an event which will help innovate the form of the book.  ebook apps are scratching the surface of what both books and technology are capable of.  What if you could develop something that represents the next step in the evolution of the book?

The event is the first to bring together designers and developers with publishing professionals, under a shared and united agenda: to co-create something that takes books forward.

The structure of Book Hackday offers something for everyone with sessions covering the development of new ideas, along with ‘lightning talks’ from key thinkers and do-ers.  It will be a thought-provoking day that will conclude with prototypes that demonstrate the potential book futures concepts and the results from Book Hackday will be showcased at the Conference in October.

Get involved

Send your name, business and email address by Tuesday 10 May to tguiry@cypruswell.org and you will be put down for one of the reserved places for South West businesses and individuals, subject to availability.

This is a great opportunity for Meetdraw attendees to get involved in what promises to be high-profile and innovative conference that could have a game-changing impact on an industry in turmoil.  Plus you’ll get to network with some truly innovative ‘folk in the smoke’.