I have been rather quiet of late. Partly, that has had to do with my working on my doctoral research and a developing a growing interest in the work of Alexander Wanless (more about that in future posts). But, mostly, it has been about developing my work and understanding of the Instagram platform.  Research and striving to understand the people behind social media is what I do… I have had a passion for the world of angling since long before social media began. But, I have had a joint passion for both since realising that Angling is about the most powerful force in the world of angling. A ..read more

I hear people, at the moment, worrying about the future of fishing, will the sport still be here after COVID-19? Will the trade be able to survive the current economic downturn? How will clubs survive if members do not renew their membership?  The answers, in my view, are simple and they are the same answers that I give whenever someone asks me how they can improve their social media presence…. from the future of fishing to the future of the travel industry, the stupidly simple answer is ‘Innovate, don’t procrastinate’! What do I mean: I look on with interest as different companies and organis ..read more

Coronavirus has locked the country down and forced us all to rethink our leisure time activities.  I have spoken before about the effects that too much leisure time could have on the world but, on a similar note, there is a secondary problem, one that is born out of restrictions on the kinds of leisure that we can do!  As an angler and a person who has dedicated a sizeable chunk of my life to thinking about the sticky problem of how we can combat the decline in angling which we have seen over the last decade, I am naturally concerned that the virus we are facing has the potential to badly dama ..read more

I am going to start this blog with an apology to the many sensitive types out there who will think I am taking this Coronavirus too lightly.  The fact is, yes, this virus CAN kill you, just as it could kill me, but it most likely won’t! Apology out of the way, we find ourselves amid a worldwide panic, not because of a disease so much but more the threat of a disease.  Many of us won’t catch Coronavirus, many of us will, of those who do catch it, probably only about 1 in 5 of us will become ill.  Most of us will recover from the virus.  I could list many other, far more likely, opportunities yo ..read more

Always pursuing the next big idea, I have decided to start work on a great new website!  To make it happen I need experts!  So, if you are such an angling expert, read on to find out why I have decided to launch an ‘Experts Wanted’ campaign! Dedicated to all those starting out!: Can you imagine how great it would have been to have an expert on hand that you could speak to when you were just starting out in angling?  Imagine if, when you decided to pursue a new species, there was an expert out there who could give you the benefit of their amassed knowledge and expertise? Well, that’s what my ne ..read more

Work With Me: Hew is why I need YOU to work with me! During the past two (and a bit) years of studying for my PhD, I have been so lucky to have met some amazing people from the world of angling.  One of the best opportunities I have been given has been the opportunity to serve as a trustee of the Severn Rivers Trust but, sadly, this is probably one of the few things that I cannot think of a downside to! On the whole, I have had ups and downs.  I have met some amazing people and felt my heart lift with optimism when I attended the huge gathering of tackle trade professionals held by the Angling ..read more

So, ok, it’s not too shocking that anglers love an image.  In fact, in a straw-poll conducted by me, 80% of anglers said that looking at photos was their primary motivation for using social media. Fishamo is changing to reflect that! Fishamo Many of you were very supportive of my efforts to launch as new social media platform towards the end of last year.  Fishamo.com, I hoped, would be a new kind of social media platform, like our successful Facebook group, Fishamo would bring friendly anglers together where they could talk about angling to their hearts content and the industry could reach th ..read more

Today, I decided to take down my fledgling social media platform… not because it was not working, the software, at least, was working very well thank you. However, recent conversations forced me to realise some problems with the social media model I was building.  As a result, if you go to Fishamo.com today, you will find the following message awaiting you: All great things take time, dedication and bloody mindedness to get working correctly!  Fishamo is no different!  Today, it was realised that Fishamo, as it stood, might not be fit for the purpose we hoped it might be… So, we are going back ..read more

It’s coming towards Christmas and I am spending, virtually, 100% of my time with my head down working on my research. Furthermore, on the 1st of January 2020 I will be launching Fishamo.com officially. So, I will be trying to use the days I am actually giving myself off (including Christmas Day) to add some final finishing touches and one or two features to the program before it is finally launched.  In all, I am a busy bee but I thought I would take this opportunity, probably the last opportunity I am going to have to post before the end of the year, to create a little bit of a self-serving p ..read more

Fishamo.com, I have been banging on about for a while now, is a social platform dedicated to performing one, simple task… bringing anglers together online to talk about fishing.  Whilst we have been running unofficially for a few weeks now, I intend to fully launch the service on the first of January 2020.  There won’t be any fanfare or high budget marketing though.  Fishamo is currently a one-man (me) operation conceived and created to enable anglers to connect with each other and angling companies and clubs to connect with their customers and members! How can you help Fishamo succeed in its ..read more