Fast forward 12 years later and Matt works as LIQUONA\u2019s Creative Director, and we wanted to know how his business stands out in this bustling sector. Matt shares that what sets LIQUONA apart is the service that goes alongside the production as \u201clots of UK agencies make world class content, but few are genuinely as focused on the client’s journey to get there<\/em>.\u201d He explains they do this by \u201cgiving honest counsel and a carefully designed customer experience programme for every step of the way, making the production process easy for our clients. Our brand promise has always reflected this unique ‘double win\u2019, as we promise clients: We make you look good.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Matt\u2019s days are busy and with more than a decade of work at LIQUONA he\u2019s racked up his fair share of daily challenges, successes, sparks of creativity, and highlights whilst navigating the market. Having now stepped back from being hands on to focus on running the business, he joyfully explains he has surprisingly had even more of those moments now. When whittling these down he took the time to pass on details of this standout moment of his career:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI was filming in a remote rainforest in the DRC with a pygmy tribe to tell the story of the work done by an amazing client, \u2019Tearfund\u2019, to alleviate poverty. It took days to get there and felt like we had gone to the ends of the earth. I know how impactful and powerful stories are when captured well on camera, so that kind of work is a privilege to undertake and brings a real focus to be on the top of your game!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n During these reflections, Matt also mentions that he credits his time at the University of Exeter as playing a huge part in what set him up for starting his business. He said: \u201cI credit the quality of the staff leading my course, the calibre of fellow students and the extracurricular activities available. I was particularly inspired by lecturer Dr. Alan Peacock and his work overseas with an Exeter PhD student. They helped eight of us to organise our own teaching trip to South African township schools during a summer break. This trip resulted in myself and three others starting a small charity to bring a Zulu choir to the UK. My role in the social media promotion of this gave me practical experience and I realised that media was the sector that I wanted to work in. When later interviewed for a Blue Peter assistant producer job, the panel remembered me as the University of Exeter student from the choir project a few years earlier, which they had booked to appear on the show. I got the job!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Exeter has never really left Matt no matter where life or work has taken him, as university memories have firmly taken up residence in his mind of playing Frisbee on Exmouth beach with mates after their summer ball; summer camp with the Exeter University Officer Training Corps; gigs at the Lemmy; writing for Exepos\u00e9; and, of course, graduation. The University also shows up on his desk at work from time to time as LIQUONA has employed several Exeter alumni. Matt mentions: \u201cI love seeing Exeter on a CV – I have confidence they\u2019ll be well educated but also well rounded and resourceful individuals.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n We know entrepreneurship can be daunting so asked Matt what his advice would be to current students or recent graduates who are interested in either setting up a business or working in creative production. He shares:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cGet experience and start doing that thing at some level.<\/em> <\/em> If it\u2019s a business, get work experience at similar businesses and also start doing the business in some capacity. Start making or selling the product, or delivering the service at any level – but just get started. You will learn so much, test the waters as to whether you actually do want this, and it stands out to employers, potential partners and investors.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s the same for creative work, start doing it and building a presence on socials, showing off what you can do, even if no one is paying you for it. I\u2019m surprised when people have studied creative subjects, but only have their coursework to show for it, as this is the minimum, whereas people who have done work under their own steam stand out with a richer portfolio and show the right mindset.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Looking to the future Matt says that it is all about growth: \u201cwe are very ambitious and I believe this will be achieved by looking after our existing clients, but also growing new distinctive products and service areas. We\u2019ve just developed our own app called \u2018VizNav\u2019 to allow any client\u2019s product to be visualised on their website as an interactive content navigation tool. It\u2019s a great example of leveraging existing skills that reside in the business to develop new products.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n We cannot wait to follow along with Matt\u2019s career and all that the years ahead hold for LIQUONA! If you would like to do so too, make sure to follow their social media channels (Facebook<\/a>, LinkedIn<\/a> and Instagram<\/a>) to keep up to date with their latest developments, and take a look at their website<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Do you have some news to share? We always love to hear what our alumni are up to so do reach out to us via email at <\/em>alumni@exeter.ac.uk<\/em><\/a> as well as tag or DM us on our social channels (<\/em>Instagram<\/em><\/a>, <\/em>LinkedIn<\/em><\/a>, and <\/em>Facebook<\/em><\/a>).<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" After his time at Exeter, alumnus Matt Day (Education, 1998) switched up his skills to co-found creative production agency: LIQUONA. We caught up with him […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":435,"featured_media":493,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/sites.exeter.ac.uk\/alumni-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/151\/2024\/05\/Untitled-design-2.png\")
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