Here’s what a few of my previous clients have to say:
Headkeeper’s Cottage,
Wildcat Gate,
Jedburghwww.euvue.co.uk
www.exploretheborders.com
Over the past 12 years the internet has progressed from novelty to necessity: improving the way we learn, changing the way we communicate with one another and transforming the way we do business.
Nowhere have these changes been felt more than in the media sector. The decline of traditional print mediums has and continues to be in direct correlation with the rise of the web.
When we approached Dave Foster with a brief to create a website that would capture the best traditions of newspaper and magazine journalism online we asked for something innovative in terms of format; a site with exceptional inbuilt functionality that would engage cleanly and simply with the intended audience.
He delivered in spades and the results have been exceptional.
Our news and lifestyles magazine for the North East – euvue.co.uk – is now in its third year and is achieving monthly unique visits of almost 300,000 and page reads approaching 675,000.
He has since pushed the boundaries further to design another winning online format – exlporetheborders.com – that is now working to promote tourism in Northumberland and the Scottish Borders. It has had a wonderful response from the tourism sector.
Dave clearly has excellent web design skills but just as importantly understands the business of creating effective communications that are relevant to their intended audience.
We also like working with him. He slotted easily into our development team, sharing ideas and ready to offer helpful advice as the websites were taking shape.
I have had no hesitation in recommending his work to others and I know we shall be using his skills again in the future.
David Pike
Editor – euvue.co.uk
exploretheborders.com
For someone with limited technical knowledge like myself, Dave Foster has been fantastic.
He’s down to earth, speaks in non techie terms and provides great customer service.
He listens to what I want from and for my site, and he understands both the technical and marketing aspects of a website.
My site’s now up and running, with the look and feel I want – I have some work to do on the marketing side, but everything’s set up behind the scenes to make it work.
If you want a good website that works, without having to get to grips with the technology and somewhere friendly to go to get issues fixed, then I highly recommend Dave Foster and PressThis”
Julie Johnson – The Reel Leader
PressThis is a great option for people who have never had a website before and are looking to host one.
The site Dave created for me is simple to use yet extremely powerful – the service gives you every tool you require to build upon your website.
It uses basic templates so you won’t be limited in design. The templates can be customized with your own header image and you can choose your own font colour, sidebar widgets and plugins.
The posting box is easy to use and can be used in either text or HTML mode. There are buttons and fields that allow you to change fonts, increase font size, bold text, change text colours and many other standard formatting options. The posting box also has a spell check and a preview. You can easily add links and images as well as tags and keywords, which Dave patiently spent considerable time training me to use.
Dave even provided me with a WordPress 123 ‘Quick Start Guide’ that he has written especially for beginners, it is very good giving you the basics in three easy steps and if you need help the technical support is excellent.
I have never edited a website before but with Dave’s help I have be able to create a professional and customised website for my business – Julia Renaissance Costumes at www.tudortalkandcatwalk.com. I have received over 5000 unique visits a day and we constantly have visitors and enquiries from all over the world.
Dave’s PressThis service and his hosting company WordPress Park is very easy to use for beginners and gives very professional results I cannot recommend it too highly.
Julia Soares-McCormick
Julia Renaissance Costumes
Nissan has been using the services of Dave Foster since the car plant was established in Sunderland in 1984.
Throughout the past 20+ years, Dave has built up an excellent relationship with Nissan, based on the consistent and reliable delivery of high quality, professional work, no matter how large or small the assignment.”
David Swerdlow – NMUK Public Relations Department
We were looking for an alternative method of informing the public and clients about our company and its services, when we approached Dave Foster about an animated ‘PhotoMotion’ production.
Since then we have worked closely with Dave.
He gives a personal service we couldn’t get elsewhere, he is also very innovative, which we encourage at Helmcare.
Pat Hemsley – Managing Director, Helmcare Services, Newcastle upon Tyne.
To relive, through your old films, captured at important times of your life, but reviewed and presented professionally, is both joyful and extremely emotional.
Your treatment of our original 8mm films really is magic and has made ordinary events in our lives extraordinary.
Thank you.
Terry and Sheila Reed, Consett, County Durham.
We are delighted with this new promo-DVD from Dave. Whilst our band is very successful, in that we perform not only in England but all over Europe and the Far East, promotion and advertising are still necessary.
For years we have looked for a medium which would demonstrate all aspects of our shows. We needed something accessible and affordable. At our level we do not have the time or resources to produce a “studio” video.
Sometimes a frantic all action video is not appropriate and we looked for a presentation which would reproduce sound of the highest quality with moving images and reflective periods.
This has done it all, in a very cost effective way we can post a disc to agents and promoters all over the world and they can instantly see and hear the band.
There are great movie shots of the full stage show as well as precise and detailed cameo’s of individual elements. A further bonus is that any and all of the material/soundtrack can be updated quickly and simply.
A great job!
Phil Murray – The Doonans
Gibbon
Kart Racing
Whitley Bay
Tyne & WearFor the Attention of: Mr. D. Foster
Dear Dave,
Thank you very much for the DVD disc and CD disc we received last week.
We were very impressed with both discs and intend to use the promotional material to help secure more advertising and sponsorship for the team.
We were very surprised by the finished article, as it appeared that the still photos just come to life on the monitor. The quality of the output as well as the packaging is in keeping with the high standard that we are trying to portray in the team.
Gibbon Kart Racing intend to update the material next year with the new racing class that we have moved into and you will be our first choice.
Yours Sincerely,
Garry GibbonDriver: Christopher Gibbon
Owner & Chief Mechanic – Garry Gibbon
The production of an animated PhotoMotion DVD by Dave Foster for the Great North Air Ambulance has proven to be a great asset to the Charity in providing us with a brief yet informative modern means of illustrating our role.
The short yet effective message is ideal in promoting the Charity to potential business partners as well as interested social groups.
The contents have been thoughtfully and carefully crafted together, ensuring the message is delivered briefly yet effectively.
The Charity would like to thank Dave, without whose help and professionalism this opportunity would not have been realised.
Grahame Pickering
Great North Air Ambulance
Having seen examples of Dave Foster’s work in the past, I was expecting the Nativity DVD to be of a very high quality and I was not disappointed. In fact, with the skilful intertwining of video clips and still photos, complemented by the aptly chosen background music, this DVD surpasses previous products. It is simply a visual and aural treat.
I have yet to hear anything but eulogies from any staff and parents who have seen it, and I know that any parent or grandparent who sees it will wish to own it – especially at the very reasonable asking price.
This is a fantastic technique with awesome potential, not just from the school’s perspective, but in a myriad of other settings. Thank you for the work done so far and we’re looking forward to future opportunities to work together.
Yours sincerely,
Ted Young, Headteacher
St.Patrick’s R.C. Primary School, Consett, County Durham
Hi Dave,
On behalf of Elaine, Ian, Nancy and myself, this is just a short note to say a big thank you for the time and effort you put into our presentation over the last 2 weeks.
I am delighted to tell you that everything went brilliantly yesterday and that ‘our’ presentation, by content, construction and visually, we consider (and we have been told by others) was by far and away the best!
(Enhanced of course, by the brilliant ‘still’ and motion still shots taken by Ian and myself)!
Needless to say, this was further enhanced by the fact that the ‘Non-Food Gang’ delivered it brilliantly as well.
Elaine will pick up the catalogues and the camera card from you as soon as possible (maybe tomorrow morning).
Thanks again…. your creativity, craft, hard work and on occasions patience with our demands, was much appreciated.
Regards,
Tony.
Tony White – Senior Sales Development Manager (Non Food Division)
North Eastern and Cumbrian Co-operative
Having experienced almost forty years as a photo-journalist and thirty as a radio presenter producer, I like a few more realised the full potential of the internet and how it could be used as an application for both.
How to get the best possible results from it was more than slightly beyond me.
Having known Dave Foster, through meeting him on various photographic assignments, I asked could he recommend anyone with the knowledge that would enable me to fulfil various thoughts that I hand relating to the production of webpages and design which could if possible also incorporate an audio output that could reach a world wide audience.
Not only did he take on the task but he advised the best way to achieve traffic and visits, and offered great web design.
As I would be producing entertainment style pages I wanted something vibrant and colourful with images that would attract a readership, not only did he provide exactly what I had asked for but he bettered my thoughts by giving me moving banners that showed different aspects of the entertainment world.
He also provided vibrant banners from various sources that could be used on a page on which I could present a recorded radio show(blog) which I wanted to ‘broadcast’ each week. From the technical side he took on the task of coaching me as to how I could load up, understand and be in complete charge of proceedings myself. His explanations were concise and comprehensive with a large amount of patience thrown in as I was a complete novice…he achieved this in only a few hours.
Both applications that I had envisaged have now been up and running for almost two years with visits to both totally around three quarters of a million.
Needless to say I am more than happy with that and would recommend Dave to anyone who wants a professional, vibrant website.
Brian Clough
Entertainments Editor
www.euvue.co.uk
We commissioned Dave to create a Family history DVD of the Burns Clan.
The result being an excellent, good quality DVD admired by all who have seen it.
Thank you so much.
Norma and Eric Burns, Lanchester, County Durham – former Newcastle Journal and Sunday Sun Picture Editor.
Dave,
Awesome Idea!
I thought the DVDs were great.
Next year all promotion and marketing is coming back in-house, so I will have full control.
This would be great for my corporate promotions.
Thanks for letting me see them.
Keep in touch.
cheers,
Tony
Tony Neville
General Manager
Sunderland Health and Racquet Club
Doxford Park
I utilise the services of Dave Foster for all our regional photographic needs. The service provided is of a consistently high standard, reliable and responsive to our business needs and deadlines.
Recently Dave produced a video of a high-profile music festival we sponsored. The final product was excellent, well filmed, exciting and innovative. This will enable us to promote the festival to internal and external audiences in a simple and cost effective way.
I always find Dave to have an extremely creative approach to all the work he undertakes on our behalf. Due to his own wealth of experience he is acutely aware of media requirements and tailors his services to whatever media outlet we are targeting at the time.
The experience, professionalism and realistic advice available from Dave Foster is second to non and I would have no hesitation in recommending him for any multimedia work.
Maureen Dixon
Regional PR & Sponsorship Manager (North)
Orange
