Brainstorming with BBC Children in Need

I had an interesting visit to the BBC Children in Need (CiN) offices at Bridge House, MediaCityUK today. The afternoon was to develop and brainstorm ideas for the social media and online content to be produced to promote this year's CiN campaign. Myself and 7 others were chosen to from the University of Salford to help the social media team.

We were welcomed in the building by reception and went through a tight security procedure and checks before we could go any further. Once we'd done this, it was on with the visitors lanyard and into the office to meet Peter and Nick, the CiN social media team. The offices have a friendly and comfortable feel, with a giant Pudsey bear made from a bush and photographs from all the previous programmes all over one wall. Also, headshots and names of the team were near the front of the office to let everyone know who each person was, which I thought was a nice touch.

The brainstorming session kicked off with us discussing what content we see and interact with on social media. We came to the conclusion that most content is very short in length, if a video, and is mainly humorous. Then we split into pairs and discussed what content we would think CiN should produce and what we would like to see. For example, a Snapchat lens where you can wear Pudsey Bear's ears and more content on Instagram and Snapchat which the younger generation mainly use.

After that, we looked at videos from last year's CiN and discussed what we would change and how to develop the format of the videos to fit social media and make them engaging for 'social media scrollers'.

We finished the afternoon with a short question and answer session with Peter and Nick about how they get into their roles and what they enjoy the most. It was fascinating to hear their journey into television and how we, as students, can get involved more.

Overall, I think it was a really successful and insightful afternoon. Especially since the group covered the age range that the BBC are looking to engage with more, it was a perfect opportunity for us to give them feedback and idea. Also, it's not every day you get to support and work with the BBC. Thank you to Peter and Nick for having us!

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