A look back at 2023

With 2023 coming to an end we felt it was a great time to look back and reflect on all we’ve accomplished this year and all the stories we’ve told. 

So let’s recap on some of our favourite moments of 2023.

We moved to a new office in the NSC Campus in Mahon. This new office has given us easy access to all of our clients and it has allowed us to work more collaboratively. 

2 new members joined the Narration family. Alona Dekhtiarenko joined as Videographer and Sharan Shaju as Graphic Designer. The addition of these skill sets to the team has allowed us to grow and expand our client offerings.

We gained 12 new clients in an array of industries including hospitality, non-profit, and research.

This year we have been involved in so many creative projects that it is hard to choose our highlights but here are a few….

Our work took us across the water to work with the Brittle Bone Society at their Annual Family Conference in Hinkley, UK. We provided our content creation services along with digital interaction on the day during the conference and in the Cool Bones Session for 10-16-year-olds.

As well as the UK trip we also supported the Brittle Bone Society at their Mini Conference in Athlone back in February.

                                   Sharan, Stephen and Alona at the Brittle Bones Society Conference

We attended the Cork Chamber Digital Marketing Awards and our client Calnan Group won ‘’Best Transformation – Traditional to Digital’’. Calnan Group has been a client of Narration since January 2023, and since then we have been working with them on content creation, branding and assisting with a new website that will be launched in 2024.

We were delighted to see them win the award on the night and it was a very special moment for Jerry Calnan who founded the business 50 years ago. His speech on the night got a great reaction from the crowd, and for many it was the highlight of the night.

                          The Narration and Calnan Group teams at the Cork Chamber Digital Marketing Awards.

At Narration we like to work with organisations who are making a difference. This year we worked with some of these organisations to help share their stories. These included Diabetes Ireland and Eur-Up-Ian.We provided marketing support to Eur-Up-Ian, a campaign set up by Ian O’Brien who scaled 28 peaks in 28 days to raise awareness for Early Onset Parkinson’s Disease.

We were delighted to work with Diabetes Ireland on their latest diabetes campaign, we created a video series of personal stories with the goal of increasing awareness of diabetes. 

And to mark Narration turning 5 this year we decided to give back to the local community by creating a fun video for St. Columbus NS to help promote their open day, the video featured Deano, a labrador retriever who was trained as a community dog by the Irish Guide Dogs.

What a year it has been! 2023 has been the busiest and most successful year at Narration and we have loved every minute of it. We appreciate all our clients who have trusted us with their marketing and events in 2023 and we are looking forward to working with them again in the new year and into the future. 

Public Relations- How to use PR effectively. (Presentation (169)) (5)

Master the Art of PR with Stephen Ryan in an Exclusive Face-to-Face Workshop

Master the Art of PR with Stephen Ryan in an Exclusive Face-to-Face Workshop

Elevate your PR strategy for businesses by registering now for the SECAD Partnership CLG PR Workshop with Narration’s Managing Director, Stephen Ryan. This exclusive workshop, aimed at professionals in the Tourism & Hospitality sector, will be held at the prestigious Celtic Ross Hotel in Rosscarbery on Wednesday, May 24, from 9:30 am to 12:30 pm. Limited seats are available for this highly sought-after event, and tickets are priced at just €10. 

Stephen Ryan, our Managing Director, will lead the workshop, providing valuable insights and strategies to help businesses effectively promote their products and services through PR. With his extensive experience in the industry, he will guide participants in harnessing the power of PR to enhance brand awareness and attract more customers.

The workshop aims to equip attendees with a comprehensive understanding of PR and its significance in driving business success. Participants will be able to learn about key PR concepts, including what PR is and what makes a story newsworthy. Additionally, the workshop will cover essential skills such as creating impactful press releases and utilising photographs effectively to enhance storytelling.

Attendees will also gain insights into the role of social media in PR campaigns and the specific strategy involved in leveraging stories on trending topics. The workshop will delve into the influence of Twitter on the media landscape, highlighting ways to utilise the platform effectively.

Course Outcomes & Content:

  • Gain an understanding of what PR is.
  • Learn about some of the concepts used in public relations.
  • Be aware of what makes a story newsworthy.
  • Learn how to create an impactful press release.
  • Understand the importance of compelling photographs to enhance storytelling.
  • Explore the strategy and use of social media in PR campaigns.
  • Discover the role of Twitter and its influence on the media.
  • Learn how to leverage your story on a trending topic.

To secure a place in the workshop, interested individuals can register online at https://www.secad.ie/event/public-relations-how-to-use-pr-effectively-2/.

The registration fee for the event is €10, offering excellent value for the knowledge and networking opportunity. Attendees will have the chance to connect with like-minded professionals over tea and coffee, fostering valuable relationships within the local business community.

Nominee for the Cork Digital Marketing Awards 2022

We are delighted to have six Cork Chamber Digital Marketing Award nominations between Narration and our clients.

Stephen’s 24 Stories community is nominated for the Best Content Creation and the Best use of Digital Marketing for the Greater Good for his 24 Stories Podcast series. Have a listen to the podcast here.

Also, we are happy to share that our clients Cogan’s Toyota have been nominated in both Best use of Twitter and Best use of LinkedIn categories for Business.

The brand Experience Myrtleville which we worked closely with Paul and the Bunnyconnellan Restaurant team to bring to life has been nominated for the Best Social Media Campaign.

DexGreen Ltd is nominated for the Best Transformation and Best LinkedIn. Narration helped this telecommunication company to expand from traditional marketing to digital marketing over the past year.

Last but not least, Douglas Village Shopping Centre is nominated for the Best Use of Instagram.

Well done to all our clients and good luck to all companies who have been nominated.

#DigitalCork22

24 Stories Cork Cover Photo

What is 24 Stories?

Over the last 4 years I have been lucky enough to teach over 1,000 students in the areas of digital and traditional marketing in both CIT and UCC. These students have ranged in age from 15 to 65 and in each case there was a common ground. They loved to hear stories. Anytime I spoke about my industry experience, anytime I brought someone in from industry and anytime I brought in a live case study the students came alive.

I felt this on its own was a great way to develop continuous learning especially for those who are no longer in 3rd level education but also for businesses who are doing it on a day to day basis. This idea was backed up by many individuals who had already graduated but wanted to continue to develop their skills in marketing. A lot of them said that Cork was lacking enough events to do this.

The aim of 24 stories will be to bring people together in small classroom type environments and cover 4 key topics each month.

Balance is the key to success and I honestly believe that students & graduates can learn from individuals & businesses. The opposite also applies as in one case you have hands on experience where as the other side you have academic experience.

  • To qualify for students you will have to be currently studying at some form of third level institute.
  • A graduate is anyone who has graduated from a third level institute in the last 24 months.
  • An Individual can be anyone including sole traders or business owners who will not be sending any other employee.
  • A business will have the flexibility of changing the person who attends the events. So if someone is on holidays they can replace them with another employee

During the year members will be able to attend:

  • 8 Talks
  • 4 Workshops
  • 2 Conferences

All of the talks will take place at The Blue Suite which is above Warren Allen Coffee on Maylor Street right in the heart of Cork City. The workshops and conferences will take place at various locations.


The talks will take place at various times throughout the week to give people options. Talks will last for 2 hours with a 24 minute coffee break in between to give people a chance to network. There will be a maximum of 4 talks each month and members will get an option to pick which one they would like to attend based on a first come first served basis as each talk will only have a capacity of 24.

Across the year workshops will be announced of which you can attend a total of 4 in the year. There will be 2 conferences every year in March and September (TBC) that will be also open to the public via tickets. But remember 24 stories members will get to attend the conference for free.

Across the year we will have storytellers coming in to talk from a variety of backgrounds

  • Creativity will look at graphics, video, the spoken word, performance and much more
  • Insights will look at case studies, data, analytics and much more
  • Digital Marketing will look at Google, SEO, Social Media, Email Marketing and much more
  • Traditional Marketing will look at Print, Radio, TV, Cinema, Outdoor, PR and much more.

So you might be wondering what is the cost of all of this…. well it is:

  • €120 + VAT for Students (Currently studying at any level)
  • €240 + VAT for Graduates (Graduated from any course over the last 24 months)
  • €360 + VAT for Individuals
  • €480 +VAT for Businesses

You can register and pay via 24stories.ie/register or if you prefer, an invoice can be sent to you simply email stephen@narration.ie

If you don’t like reading all the text above you can watch the video