Advertising Plans

In the last few weeks, we have been quiet in terms of our advertising thanks in part to the ongoing work with PR agencies we do through The Lost Project. What this has meant is we do have a backlog of images to edit and products to test, some of this will be used as part of bigger ad campaigns for 2021.

While it might seem we are slow in updating our galleries, there is a reason for this and a strategic goal that will become clear in the next few weeks.

Our editorial shoots (ongoing) are being supported by a new men’s cosmetic line (to be revealed soon) and the fantastic team at Lord and Berry, we do have some new shoots planned and will be doing some macro work with glitter and possibly even a cover shoot.

We have specific magazines and styles we are working on and that takes time to complete more so with the restrictions in place in Scotland, it can be difficult to find the right models and locations without traveling too far from our base. Our head of makeup and creative director JamesC, is working on new projects and wants to do some flat lay images to bolster the galleries which we are hoping to have done before Christmas and our main push through FB started in the new year.

Our remote team members are all working hard with our favorite indie Bollywood actor developing his own projects for the future which we are in full support of and have started working on a website for him.

Something we are really excited about is that one of the magazines we are keen to be published with has taken away deadlines which will, in turn, allow us to do more work with male models and really experiment with concepts at a low cost and showcase the work in the best possible light.

We will be adding more stock soon from Lord and Berry, Mykitco, and our favorite Brushwork cosmetics with a view to creating a brand new cover image for the JamesC website, this will combine our beauty and TV work with some other elements cut in to bring a new depth to not only JamesC’s work but also to the Lost Creative portfolio.

With a series of creative plans to deliver on for the new year, we are putting a whole host of work being finished off The Lost Creative journey is gearing up for bigger things.

Location Scouting a Lost Boy Shoot Part 1

Finding a little free time our creative director (JamesC) decided to break away from his usual duties of admin and management to do some location scouting for a 3 part story built around The Lost Boys concept, with his trusted point and shoot camera he walked along the promenade and into town to find some specific locations that would fit the brief and in doing so has settled on 3 distinct locations that will add a touch of drama to the shots (with a video being planned to add to the drama of the scene).

“The images themselves will be built around derelict buildings, waste ground, and a fractured symbolism of nature. Each model will have his own story that will hint at both the inspiration of Pans Lost Boys to the more dystopic visuals of the backdrop to fit with the ‘council estate boys’ look of the models.”

A full and detailed explanation of The Lost Boys shoots can be found by clicking here. We are really excited by the concept and the fact we have the support of fellow Creative Director Shakti Sood founder and brand manager of The Sons of Adonis and the amazing Lord and Berry makeup line, both seeing the potential of what we are working on.

Flexible Planning Strategies

We are as a team pushing forward with the creative plans to update all our websites and with the upcoming relaunch of the JamesC site, it is going to be interesting to move into 2020. With so many new and exciting options being brought into play, not just with our UK clients but our partners and affiliates in South Asia (particularly Kathmandu and Mumbai).

It is our intention to start working on new, flexible strategies for the new year, something we have always maintained from the beginning has been we need to be flexible and open to new options and look at the possibilities, hence the revamping and reopening of our creative directors artist site and plans to bring in a set of new projects that will be used as showcase work for the team.

At the moment we have a digital marketing specialist looking at our sites and will be working on a strategic marketing campaign that will push the Lost Concept harder than our current organically built following.

Our lightbulb moment and planning come in place thanks to our friends and supporters including the fantastic owner of World Fashion media news and of course the author and scriptwriter Susan Ronnie Marshall, who have both been instrumental in the promotion of our latest articles.

Naturally, we will be working to set briefs for our initial commercial projects in line with the partnership with HOD TV (submission details and parameters on request).

We intend to continue down the path we are on and look forward to all this brings.

Refreshing The Lost Concept

In the last month, we have been working really hard on the creative and more solid business elements of our work and we are really grateful to our partners for not only being in regular contact but helping with giving us a new direction and helping to define boundaries.

Over the next few weeks, we will be working with our creative director JamesC on what will be his relaunch, a new portfolio website and shop with My Beauty Brand is being constructed to showcase his work and separate him from the more lifestyle and art-based work of the Lost Project.

With all the new doors being opened up to us with our new collaborative relationships and partnerships in place with companies such as Nepal Film Production and HOD TV, whos horror and thriller distribution service we will be making good use of, we are really gearing up for the new year as the starting point of a whole new and fresh business year.

Lost Project will continue as an art, beauty and lifestyle blog with a new element of travel (which we are really happy to take on) with efforts made toward creating new work for that site around its current themes.

Lost creatives as a site is going to expand and we will have a new banner for production coming soon, with ties to our current team members here in Scotland and some more options coming to the fore with our partners overseas.

Overall, we are happy with our new direction and will continue to push boundaries with our team and media partners.

How We Plan To Move Forward Creatively

There have been some really interesting changes and updates in the background of our work that from a creative perspective have been good and bad. Our creative journey is really getting interesting and as we have a very definitive idea of what we want we have had to put somethings on the back burner to allow us the space to focus on the grander scheme.

We were approached by a New York agency that wanted to take our creative director on their books for development, a huge compliment, but not really a fit for what is planned for the Lost Project and Lost Creatives at the moment but we will look at this in the future.

From this, it becomes clear to us how we want to move forward and we are planning accordingly. As we have outlined previously there is to be a studio shoot, some location work and we are waiting for feedback from a film festival about working together as a form of a PR support network which is fantastic.

Our goals have been getting worked on for a few years and now we have started the ball rolling toward what will be a long term plan with some smaller short term projects in between to bolster the narrative. The dream won’t come true unless we work for it.

With some longstanding inspiration behind our plan (we will be revealing details in the new year), and careful research and experience backing our goals it is really about creating the narrative that we want to see in motion.

It is worth noting we are giving serious consideration to relocating the business as well, we can see from demographics across our sites where the support is coming from and who is conspicuously absent and will adjust our plans accordingly so watch this space.

Creating a Narrative

When I talk about creating a narrative what I mean is keeping the story linear. Each aspect of what the Lost Concept is has to fit smoothly with the other elements and gel. From the language, I use in The Lost Stories to the way I talk to a potential or existing client.

As the founder and creative director of the Lost Project and Lost Creatives, I do spend my time on the background work and fitting the pieces together. With shoots planned and brand campaign articles to write for PR agents its a matter of juggling my time to fit in what is feasible in a day.

Checking the stats on both our websites, we can see a real global reach to the Lost Project and the start of something similar to the Lost Creatives that is really gratifying given the short amount of time we have been working on this.

Seeing a pattern to the stats is giving us the team a more concrete sense of what we need to do and how to focus our energy on moving forward from a business and geographical stance.

We really are grateful to our audience and will be working on showcasing the other elements of the business very soon, we are looking at relocating and equipment, adding new stock for shoots and so much more is planned much of which will be put in motion in 2020.

The Lost Concept is growing and we cannot be prouder and will be increasing our marketing over the next few months to make the whole package even bigger.

Searching For a Studio

We are currently on the lookout for a natural light studio to book so we can do what will be a 2-day shoot focusing on the areas of work we will be focused on in the long term.

• Portrait and beauty.

• Character and out of the box FX for film and TV.

Our goals are simple, we want to create inhouse, a series of still images that will be portfolio based for the models and ourselves to showcase not just the skill set of the team but the potential of what we are doing.

With a series of long term plans and targets for 2020, it is really interesting to get to be able to see our hard work behind the scenes coming together, we are constantly dealing with brands and opening up new avenues that will include product placement and video of the work in action. Which we might send-off to one of the many fashion film festivals if we can find something suited to our work.

In fact, part of the plan for the studio shoot is to be behind the scenes videos that will be a showcase of the work as it’s done with our Lost Boys and Lost Girls them from The Lost Project being carried over into the work we are doing.

Naturally, we will do some outdoor shoots in and around the Lost Concept in industrial and bleak landscapes, adding a touch of dystopian drama to our work.

While we are really aiming to be making waves in 2020, we are laying the groundwork now to help with the marketing push we have planned that will integrate all of our social accounts and give a deeper insight into the creative process.

All We have is Now

When I was asked about the motivation behind The Lost Creatives, my answer was simple. All we have is now. Over the last few years, we have seen a dramatic change in the industry both from an observational standpoint and as a hands-on member of crews for film projects.

Not all have been good experiences and made me realize that the only way that would change is if I did something to rectify it and move forward.

Professionally I see my work and that of the Lost Creatives taking a more film and TV-based route geared toward something solid that can be sold, creating projects from a commercial stance may seem against the grain for some but that does not stop the artistic process contrary to the myth you can be artistic and commercial.

It is not easy to build something solid and takes time, earning credentials and getting started is a scary process but for me, that is half the fun.

Taking the stance that “all we have is now,” I plan to keep moving forward and taking creative and personal risks in business whilst supporting the arts. Each step we make will be a triumph and give more fuel to the business.

*We will give consideration to taking a team to an off-schedule London show during fashion week if we can work the marketing to suit.

Progressing forward we are now looking at additional script ideas for festival projects and editorial concepts that we will use as promotional material over the coming months and then in the new year (watch out for this one) our big marketing push. Creating a new narrative is what we are about.

The expansion will be over time and give us a more solid base to work from with a range of placements coming up which will be designed to give professional experience in the media and fashion arena.

Marketing The Lost Creatives with Web Magazines

Something we are really keen on is marketing as low cost as possible but with a maximum push. I know this might sound odd but it is possible and we are working on a few different strategies that will help that.

Featured Product: Brushwork Cosmetics (promo code Jamesc 10% off your order)

To begin with, we have given serious thought to festival entry films (short) and of course editorial work. Naturally as a makeup artist myself and the creative director of The Lost Project, principally an arts and lifestyle blog with a heavy hand toward beauty because it’s my passion, it’s actually quite enjoyable to think of the terms we need to address and how we can make this work in our favor.

Keeping the costs to a minimum to begin we are looking at magazines that allow minimal submissions (for example 1 plus images) that will allow us to push all the social accounts of those involved. There are some great options and of course, will produce something for the World Fashion Media News website who we have a long-standing relationship that will continue.

Editorial is a fantastic method and can with planning and a little effort, give a wider audience reach that will bring attention to the work we are doing and of course what we are planning.

Naturally, we will make full use of the contacts and resources we have built over time and as we always do share and talk about the different brands we are supported by through careful and strategic placement of products to help not only ourselves but the brands as a thank for sticking with us.

Our goal is to push The Lost Concept as hard as possible and of course, create a cohesive, commercial story that illustrates what we do.