Author: Elizabeth Willis

Managing Teams – LinkedIn Learning

Posted on by Elizabeth Willis

On 18 August 2023, I successfully completed LinkedIn Learning’s ‘Managing Teams’ course. The short, online classes cover the key principles of people management, providing practical techniques for driving performance by inspiring and motivating your team. 

The emphasis on trust, accountability and clear communication as a manager strongly resonated with me. These principles mirror the key elements of the most successful teams I have been part of, and I have highly valued working under managers with these qualities.

Studying this course has given me a well-rounded foundation for leading successful teams in a professional setting. I’m looking forward to opportunities to apply my skills and knowledge in future!

Leadership Foundations – LinkedIn Learning

Posted on by Elizabeth Willis

On 2 August 2023, I successfully completed LinkedIn Learning’s ‘Leadership Foundations’ short course. This comprehensive programme covered essential skills including influencing teams, motivational leadership, effective communication, empathy and resilience, and agile response to change.

By studying the course, I have strengthened my leadership capabilities and unlocked new levels of confidence and professionalism as a manager. I feel more empowered to inspire teams and tackle future challenges with a strategic and empathetic approach. 

RHS Flower Show Tatton Park 2023

Posted on by Elizabeth Willis

To finish off 2023’s show season, I visited RHS Flower Show Tatton Park – the RHS’s northern show. The show is located within the picturesque grounds of Tatton Park, on the outskirts of Knutsford Village in Cheshire. After such changeable weather, I was lucky to attend on a beautiful, sunny day!

As with the other three shows, it was my responsibility to collate and record all our branded touchpoints at the show, from the entrance gates to flags, trade stands to catering venues. Our new RHS brand looked fantastic on site, particularly the vibrant green show medals for the award-winning gardens. 

I collated the images into a comprehensive presentation to share with our shows, brand and design teams. Our feedback will be used to improve and refine the show next year to give our visitors the best experience and strengthen the identity and recognition of the RHS Brand.

It was a huge privilege to be able to attend all four RHS Shows this year. I am now looking forward to visiting the rest of the RHS Gardens, including Harlow Carr at the end of August.

RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival 2023

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In the second week of July, I attended two days of RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival. I’d been to the show with my family several years ago, so it was exciting to visit again and see how it has changed. 

Of all the RHS Shows, Hampton Court is my favourite. The festival atmosphere is more relaxed, and I found the show gardens full on inspiration for my garden at home. This year’s RHS Horticultural Hero was Carol Klein; she designed a stunning garden with views over the palace. Having watched her prepare on BBC Gardener’s World, it was a huge privilege to be able to see her garden almost empty, first thing in the morning on Press Day!

Before the show opening to the public, we ran a photoshoot with a group of professional models, to capture the essence of the show. In the weeks prior, I’d liaised with our model agency contacts to source and hire the models for the shoot. I created and shared a wardrobe brief, agenda and logistical information with my colleagues and the models, to make sure the photoshoot ran to schedule.

On the first official day of the festival, I was part of a small team assisting our photographer with capturing members of the general public enjoying the show. We scouted willing members of the public to be photographed, making sure we obtained everyone’s consent with model release forms.

While on site, I was also responsible for capturing and recording all our branded touchpoints at the show. Using my images, I created a comprehensive presentation to share with our shows, brand and design teams, gathering feedback and areas for improvement for each department.

Manchester Flower Festival 2023

Posted on by Elizabeth Willis

During the Spring Bank Holiday, I had the priviledge of representing the RHS at the annual Manchester Flower Festival. 

Over the weekend, our main focus was promoting tickets to RHS Flower Show Tatton Park and encouraging visitors to explore the beautiful RHS Garden Bridgewater in Salford. Our stand was a collaborative effort with Northern Flower, a local florist based in the Northern Quarter of Manchester. Their stunning floral displays were, inspired by the history of the city and in celebration of the LGBTQIA+ community.

The flower festival was a huge success for the RHS, with hundreds of people taking photos in front of our flower wall. We handed out over 400 packs of free sunflower seeds to children… or anyone who wanted some!

It was also lovely to hear from so many RHS Members about their love for Bridgewater and Tatton, and the RHS’s increasing presence in the North. I felt very proud to work for a charity which does so much for the local community!

RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2023

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This year, I had the privilege of being part of the team working at RHS Chelsea Flower Show – the world’s most famous flower show! As a member of the Brand Team, it was extremely rewarding to see our new brand come to life at the show. 

Preparation for the Chelsea starts months in advance. I worked closely with our design studio and RHS Shows teams to create all the RHS-branded touchpoints, and it was wonderful to see the success of our collective efforts. The vision for the new RHS brand was to infuse it with more vibrancy, youthfulness and excitement – which our bright purple assets certainly achieved. It was especially exciting to receive praise from our department director and the RHS Council.

Our core focus at the showground was leading two photoshoots. I organised our professional photoshoot on Monday, coordinating with model agencies to hire two fantastic models who embodied the RHS brand. On Tuesday, our dedicated small team scouted members of the public to capture enjoying the show. Both shoots were a huge success; we captured an extensive variety of on-brand images, which will be key in promoting future RHS Chelsea Flower Shows in 2024 and beyond.

My two days at Chelsea were hugely enjoyable and professionally fulfilling. Seeing our brand flourish at such an iconic event, after many months of hard work, was a truly unforgettable experience! 

RHS Malvern Spring Festival 2023

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To kick off the 2023 show season, I had the opportunity to visit RHS Malvern Spring Festival in the Midlands. It was my first time at the show, and I was impressed by its size and popularity, as well as its beautiful location at the foot of the Malvern Hills.

I spent a day at the showground conducting an extensive branding review. The festival is unique at the RHS; it has been run in partnership with the Three Counties since 1985. As part of the new RHS brand, Malvern Festival was given its own identity – the vibrant blue from the main brand, combined with its own unique master pattern and a rhododendron botanical. It was fantastic to see how impactful the new brand was onsite, and how cohesively all the assets worked together. 

Following the show, I created a brand review to present back to the Brand and Shows Marketing teams. After collating our feedback, we’ll be sharing this presentation with the RHS Shows and Three Counties departments, recommending our improvements for 2024.  

Winter lifestyle shoot at RHS Garden Bridgewater

Posted on by Elizabeth Willis

In January 2023, I had the amazing opportunity to visit RHS Garden Bridgewater for the first time, on set for a winter lifestyle photoshoot. 

I organised the shoot, working with model agencies to hire two sets of professional models for the day — two friends and a family with two daughters. The aim of the shoot was to capture people enjoying the garden during its “off-season”, showcasing it as a great choice for a winter day out. We were extremely lucky with the weather – after a rainy start, the sun blazed through the clouds and shone all afternoon. 

First, we asked the two friends to explore the beautiful colours and textures of the walled Paradise Garden, one of the highlights of Bridgewater. In the afternoon, we went over to the Woodland Play area with the family, which the children absolutely loved. We were even visited by an inquisitive robin — no doubt used to the gardeners digging up tasty worms!

The models were fantastic, and we almost took too many images for our photographer to edit. The final photos looked brilliant in our winter campaigns and social posts, and played their part in Bridgewater reaching a huge milestone in May 2023: on the garden’s second birthday, they welcomed their 1 millionth visitor!

Photoshoot at RHS Glow 2022

Posted on by Elizabeth Willis

In November 2022, I organised my first photoshoot on behalf of the RHS brand team. 

In preparation, I created a survey which I shared with local RHS Members and garden visitors, collecting volunteers to model in the shoot. We selected a family of four and two couples/a group of friends – two target audiences for our Glow campaigns. 

Capturing RHS Glow comes with its own unique set of challenges. As our photographer explained to me, even hundreds of years of camera development can’t always replicate what millions of years of evolution have done for our eyes! 

On the day of our photoshoot, the event was already open, which meant setting up shots around a stream of visitors. Whilst the misty weather created a gorgeous atmosphere in the garden, it did pose some technical challenges for our photographer. It was also our first time shooting with younger children — who were not used to standing very still in front of the camera with a slow shutter speed! 

However, great teamwork helped us overcome these difficulties and the shoot was both a huge success and a great learning opportunity. We captured some amazing photographs to use in marketing the event for 2023, but also took away some key ideas for future shoots. For example, for shoots we think might be more challenging, we’ll hire professional models who have more experience on set. And when working with families and younger children, it’s helpful to have a secret pack of Haribo to hand…

FRA Student Guidebook 2022

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As part of our marketing efforts to encourage our applicants to enrol with us, we created a Student Guidebook for offer holders aged 18+. It contains useful and fun information including apps to help with their studies, local lunch spots and travel tips. To create the guide for 2022, I edited and updated a previous version written by one of our students when she was at the Academy.

Once the content was up-to-date, I redesigned the layout of the guidebook using Adobe InDesign. The Guidebook was then sent out to everyone who holds an offer to study for an undergraduate degree or Level 4 diploma at the FRA in September.