Our Approach

We believe that narratives have the power to create lasting change for our communities, our environment, and our collective future.

Our rigorous creative systems allow us to create the strategies, campaigns, and training which motivate individual action, stimulate organisational growth and put stories to work, for good.

We are curious, collaborative and committed to everything we do.

Our values

Passionate curiosity

Adventure and ambition capture the spirit of how we work. Our drive to evolve is insatiable, as is our desire to produce the most efficient results. This means we continually analyse and refine our services, processes and products, to ensure we’re best serving the causes we’re privileged to work for.

Creative intelligence

Creating and connecting things in unexpected, powerful and moving ways is fundamental to our business. Our team are motivated to innovate whilst being committed to prove and measure, so we build systems that produce valuable data as well as tangible results.

Enthusiastic collaboration

We are determined to empower charities to tell their stories for the greatest impact permanently, not just temporarily, through our project or campaign. To achieve this, we aim to become an extension of our client’s team to ensure our work has maximum applicability, longevity, and joy!

Inspiring narratives

Our mission is rooted in the transformational power of stories. Each of our narratives is crafted to resonate deeply, stir emotions, and inspire action. We passionately believe that stories can bring us together and spark meaningful change.

Our creative philosophy

We specialise in crafting the stories that will open hearts, minds and wallets. Our experience, curiosity and research has produced creative systems which foreground audiences, imagination, analysis and results. Once upon a time we were asked to illustrate this creative philosophy for the National Trust staff and volunteers as a part of an internal training project. Please find below the iconic voice of Sir Ian McKellen explaining how important we believe stories are to the world…

Our five pillar approach

1

Targeted

We begin and centre on: “Who do you want to do what?”. We use demographic and psychographic profiles of relevant audience segments to understand what emotional beats are needed to motivate them to fulfil our CTA. This focus on influencing audience actions to meet the campaign goals ensures that all people, processes, and productions are pulling in the same direction.

2

Justified

All of our work is grounded in research. We consult a range of academic and industry literature to ensure our understanding of the sector, audience, motivators and channels is both deep and broad. In the gap between academic findings and industry common practice, we often discover areas to innovate and creative routes to test.

3

Expansive

We always explore every version of a campaign, strategy or asset which our research suggests could work for that audience. In proposition development, we produce example creatives for every viable approach and subject them to analysis and testing. No direction is ignored, and all stimuli are welcomed.

4

Effective

Everything we do must work, and we always seek avenues to prove value and demonstrate actionability. This includes through both qualitative and quantitative testing of creative routes. Our strategies are designed for evolution and incorporation of learnings along the way, exactly as our digital campaigns evolve in response to audience actions.

5

Empowering

We are champions of not only the charities we work with, but also the power of stories themselves! Drawing on our long history of teaching and training storytelling, we aim to empower and inspire entire organisations to tell stories for greater impact far beyond the length of our contracted campaign or consultancy.

Our team

Kitty Handford

Kitty Handford

Creative Copywriter

Kitty earned her storytelling stripes at a creative design agency.

After completing her degree in English Literature, she gained experience as both a project manager and creative, working on projects ranging from campaigns, to retail design, to branding and social media management. Here, she discovered her keen eye for words that make an impact.

As Creative Copywriter at Catsnake, Kitty plays a key role in crafting compelling copy, digging into the detail of tone of voice, as well as thinking big when it comes to campaign concepts.

Kitty is proud to be a storyteller with a cause because:

Words can be incredibly powerful. It’s so motivating to be doing what I love as a copywriter, knowing that our work is inspiring positive change in the world.

Vishal Ladwa

Vishal Ladwa

Campaign Manager

Vishal earned his storytelling stripes in digital and advertising campaigns.

As a specialist in social brand growth and advertising, Vishal is passionate about getting the best results for digital campaigns, by using a myriad of techniques he‘s learned over the past 11 years working with global brands and charities. There's nothing he enjoys more than slashing CPLs, and beating industry benchmarks or KPIs.

At Catsnake, Vishal has managed all the social media and Adaptive Acquisition campaigns we‘ve run, and is fantastic at breaking down the data and sharing campaign insights.

Vishal is proud to be a storyteller with a cause because:

"Making small changes to how a campaign is released can have a huge impact, and knowing that this can help the world to be a better place gives me purpose and drive to give our clients the best possible results".

Francesca Mills

Francesca Mills

Creative Project Manager

Francesca earned her storytelling stripes in legacy fundraising.

Before joining Catsnake, Francesca worked in fundraising for over five years, where she developed a passion for tapping into the stories that create emotional connection and inspire action.

As a Creative Project Manager, she aligns schedules, tracks budgets and keeps the project wheels spinning, while endeavouring to build great relationships along the way.

Francesca is proud to be a storyteller with a cause because:

Every project that comes through the door at Catsnake is a project with purpose. I’m so proud to play even a small part in creating a better world.

Matthew McKenzie

Matthew McKenzie

Office Administrator

Matthew earned his storytelling stripes in education.

Before joining Catsnake, Matthew studied Biology and then Creative Writing, before becoming an educational content creator.

At Catsnake, Matthew puts his problem-solving and coordination skills to work on managing the office space and supporting the team with administrative processes - he is also the one to ask about those pesky IT problems.

Matthew is proud to be a storyteller with a cause because:

"It is so great to know that the work Catsnake does helps to make the world that little bit brighter. Everyone on the team is committed to supporting charities with telling their stories and they bring this energy every day."

Rowena Wyles

Rowena Wyles

Creative Director

Rowena earned her storytelling stripes in production companies and creative agencies.

Rowena has always been driven by creative work’s ability to inspire change. She has spent many years working with charities and NGOs, and loves the challenge of translating complex and nuanced issues into bold and impactful campaigns. Rowena is also a passionate documentary maker, with a particular interest in stories that explore identity, and political and social issues. As Catsnake’s Creative Director, she ensures that all our creative work resonates with its audience, with a keen eye on craft, story and emotion.

Rowena is proud to be a storyteller with a cause because:

Nothing makes me more hopeful for the future than working with clients who all know they can make the world a better place.

Kris Milovsorov

Kris Milovsorov

Chief Financial Officer

Kris earned his storytelling stripes in accounting.

Even numbers tell a story – and Kris’s stories are written in statements and invoices. Working in accounting his whole career, Kris has always had an interest in creative charity work because he loves to pay it forward. Outside Catsnake, he serves as trustee for two charities in the creative sector, Open Door and Iris Theatre, plus several other entertainment clients.

As CFO, Kris oversees the financial health of the company, monitoring all business activity and serving as our resident tax expert.

Kris is proud to be a storyteller with a cause because:

“It is great to know the work we do is making the world better. I am passionate about equality and anything we can do to address that means a great deal.”

Jo Simpson

Jo Simpson

Creative Project Manager

Jo earned her storytelling stripes in multiple languages.

Where the client meets the creative is Jo’s happy place - in any language. Fluent in French, Italian, and Dutch, she’s travelled the world seeking adventure and making friends everywhere she goes. Jo worked in Amsterdam as a Strategic Planner for advertising, communications, and non-profit agencies, bringing people together and helping them find their voice.

As Creative Project Manager, she manages multidisciplinary teams to deliver projects on budget and on brief, sharing her sense of humour and clarity with clients and colleagues alike.

Jo is proud to be a storyteller with a cause because:

“A brand is more than a logo. Stories are at the heart of everything. It's what people connect to, and it's nice to know what we do makes a difference."

Natasha Donkin

Natasha Donkin

Marketing & Client Services Executive

Natasha earned her storytelling stripes in marketing.

Raising awareness for charitable causes, especially environmental ones, has always been important to Natasha. Before Catsnake, she studied marketing and management, learning to leverage her communication skills to make an impact. At Catsnake, Natasha uses her creative flair to share thought-provoking content across our website, newsletter, blogs, and social media.

As Marketing & Client Services Executive, she analyses and improves marketing performance, supports pitches and events organisation, and serves as our sustainability representative.

Natasha is proud to be a storyteller with a cause because:

“The power of persuasion that underlies marketing and communications should be used for good. I’m delighted to work with clients that genuinely make our world a better place.”

Sarah McDonnell

Sarah McDonnell

Managing Director

Sarah earned her storytelling stripes in children’s television.

Before joining Catsnake, Sarah was Head of Production at 2 Sides TV. Her experience managing projects through from first creative idea to final broadcast makes her the ideal person to hold a bird’s eye view and keep every project under her wing. Thankfully, she has worked with wildlife, puppets, green screens and – the hardest of them all – humans, so she’s perfect at facilitating our diverse teams to work together seamlessly and produce the highest quality projects.

As Managing Director, Sarah oversees all aspects of Catsnake’s day-to-day operations, from organising resources through diaries and budgets, to maintaining relationships with our clients, and making key decisions for the entire team.

Sarah is proud to be a storyteller with a cause because:

“Every project is totally different, but they all require the same care and precision, and importantly - they all matter".

Shenley Connolly

Shenley Connolly

Head of Client Services

Shenley earned her storytelling stripes in teaching.

Nurturing connections is Shenley’s favourite subject. Prior to joining Catsnake, she taught in both primary and secondary schools before embracing various development roles in the third sector, including with JustGiving and Pilotlight. She is all about growing relationships, both at work and while volunteering - from building a soup kitchen to running marathons for charity.

As Head of Client Services, Shenley is the first point of contact for all new business. She facilitates proposals, pitches and presentations to showcase our services, and convenes regular events like the Legacy Roundtable.

Shenley is proud to be a storyteller with a cause because:

“I get to witness the impact of our collaboration with inspiring charities and the work that they do. Who wouldn’t be proud?”

Stephen Follows

Stephen Follows

Head of Innovation & Founder

Stephen earned his storytelling stripes in writing and producing.

Sharing his knowledge - as a screenwriter, producer, and film industry researcher - has guided Stephen’s career, whether he’s writing for international publications, teaching at various film schools, or pursuing innovation in third sector storytelling. He has written scripts for Radio 4, puns for The Sun, workshops for storytellers and lectures for film producers. He has also shot people in love, in the air, on the beach and on fire (although not at the same time).

At Catsnake, he is driven by a desire to understand what works and what doesn’t, constantly evolving his expertise in how to use storytelling to create positive impact.

Stephen is proud to be a storyteller with a cause because:

“I have seen how much people can do to change the world when they are unified behind the same story. I want to help find and craft the next set of narratives which make a difference.”

Edward Dark

Edward Dark

Chief Executive Officer & Founder

Ed earned his storytelling stripes in directing and visual effects.

As both a CEO and a film director, Ed is driven by vision. Before founding Catsnake, he brought the magic to movies. In the visual effects department for Harry Potter, and as the director of his own international award-winning short films, Ed honed his imagination and leadership.

Now he focuses his creative eye on our film sets and his mission for the company, overseeing business strategy and guiding the team to achieve our desired outcomes.  

Ed is proud to be a storyteller with a cause because:

"I feel immensely lucky (and privileged) to be able to use my creativity to make a positive impact on the world. It's an amazing feeling to know that our work is contributing to something bigger than ourselves."