Remote working in the sports and outdoors industry. Why we believe it’s a non-negotiable.

When starting up at Noise we decided to be a remote-first creative agency.

‘The world is our office, we are digital nomads, MacBook pro, Starbucks ‘mocha choca two shot frappachino…’

… yeah, yeah… we have heard all the cliché’s before, but here at Noise we truly believe there are so many benefits to being a remote studio other than being able to work in your pyjamas and save money on your commute.

At Noise we are a group of outdoor and sport enthusiasts, passionate about our chosen game. Sometimes it’s sunny, warm and sweaty, sometimes it’s light pow, cold air and windy snow capped peaks, sometimes it’s sitting out back waiting for the next set to roll in to float you back to the beach. Wherever our chosen sport takes us, the internet, our team and the good vibes are a constant!

Here are our top reasons why we believe when working in the sports and outdoor space, remote working is a non-negotiable.

1. We live and breathe the sports we are working on. You can’t replace real experience.

At Noise, we are a group of sport enthusiasts that specialise in creating inspiring and innovative design, from brand campaigns, mobile and web UX UI to photo and video production. The important thing is that sport inspires us, and we truly live and breathe the sports we are often working on.

In the sports world, you can’t replace real experience, as a team of athletes and designers, digital strategists and producers, we know how important it is to understand the sport and activity you are designing for. A boutique design agency from Los Angeles might be great for a luxury hotel booking website, but you wouldn’t choose them to build an avalanche risk mobile app or gamified running experience. It’s hard to design sports and outdoor products if your team is not active and pursuing their sports, and remote working allows us to do that!

2. We are our audience.

Experiencing the game, the sport, or the activity you are designing for is important but perhaps not as crucial as truly understanding the audience.

Knowing your audience means understanding them as ‘humans’ and experiences they share. This means going beyond generic category definitions ‘Millennials love experiences’ or ‘Gen Z loves social media.’ Understanding experiences means to look deeper for ways to shape and tell a story, and it is through experience that we are able to cut through the layers and get to something richer.

As well as being ‘sporty’s’ ourselves, our friends, family and the people we surround ourselves with also ‘get it’. This means we have a huge wealth of knowledge and insight to draw upon. We understand the fitness, sport and outdoor market as well as the different regions or conditions it’s played in (mountains, oceans, courts, stadiums). Being remote allows us to continue to experience new sports or get our heads back into old ones. Understanding the nuances of a sport is impossible without going there and fully immersing yourself in it.

At Noise we are also a team spread across different continents, cultures, conditions and timezones, which to some may seem challenging but to us only enriches the conversations, opinions, brainstorms and vibes in our ‘office’. This breadth of cultural understanding, the different languages we speak and plethora of opinions expands the types of projects we work on and the clients we work with.

Bringing all this together means that when a brand campaign or digital product makes its way to launch in the real world, it’s more likely to be authentic to the brand, resonate with the brand customers, solve a real challenge or problem and therefore the people you are targeting are actually going to want to engage with it!

Understanding an audience = Happy customers = More engagement = Growth = Happy shareholders!

3) Inspiration comes from the outdoors and new experiences.

‘Being outside in the elements not only refreshes my brain but often you are problem solving. What is the best route to ski down this face? What speed do I need to get over that jump? It’s these experiences that spark creativity, strategic thinking and new ideas!’

- Sophie, Brand Strategist

They say that sitting at a desk all day can dull brain power and stifle creativity. Dr. James Levine, of the Mayo Clinic-Arizona State University Obesity Solutions Initiative has studied this to such an extent he believes that we lose about two hours of life for every hour we sit and ‘sitting can be more dangerous than smoking or HIV’. We are not sure we believe that to the same level, but we do believe that sitting on your butt all week is one of the worst ways to stifle the flow of creativity.

Most importantly the whole Noise team is onboard and behind this. New experiences, movement and getting outside is one of our biggest motivators and inspirations for the whole team at Noise!

4) Work should and can be fun.

An overused quote but because it’s a bloody good one is from every outdoor enthusiasts’ favourite entrepreneur Yvon Choinard,

‘We run a flexible workplace, and we have ever since we were a blacksmith shop that shut down whenever the waves were six feet, hot and glassy. Our policy has always allowed employees to work flexible hours, as long as the work gets done with no negative impacts on others. A serious surfer doesn’t plan to go surfing next Tuesday at two o’clock. You go surfing when there are waves and the tide and wind are right.’

– Yvon Chouinard, Patagonia Founder, Let My People Go Surfing

Everyone at Noise lives by the same values towards one unified goal: get more people outdoors, more active, more often. And the same goes for our team! Having fun outside of work allows you to have more fun at work! Sharing that epic wave you got barrelled in this morning, or the summit you peaked at the weekend, that overall shared stoke feeling opens up conversation, connection with each other and ultimately trust. When you are sharing experiences regardless of whether they are remote or not, you create a stronger, more unified team all working to the same goals!

‘For me, remote working is not so much about how you work but also about how you live. It may sound corny but it leads to a state of mind where all the aspects of your life hold equal importance; work, exercise, getting outside, seeing friends, practicing your hobbies. The idea of working 9–5 is outdated and unrealistic, especially in a creative job role. People should be encouraged to work when they feel most inspired, energised and focused.’

- Georgia, Brand Designer and Strategist

5) Increased Productivity.

Working on something you are not passionate about or care about can totally drain your batteries. But when you are having fun, doing something you love, you release those happy endorphins… not only making you feel great, but it boosts your motivation and energy levels. This means increased productivity at work, something every CEO or CFO is always happy to hear!

Flexible hours also make us more productive. We all have different body clocks. Some of us like to exercise in the morning, some in the evening. Some of us like to eat a big meal early, some later. Some of us feel more energised and concentrated in the morning, some late at night. Working around when you feel the most energised reduces procrastination, increases concentration and boosts productivity.

Planning for free time has always been key to making our life work, to be efficient enough in order to have as much fun as possible. We love spending time outside and doing our sports, but also designing and building awesome products and brands. When you plan your day to make time for the things you love doing that inspires you, you become more productive. At Noise we use lots of processes to ensure we are spending and planning our time well, from time management tools such as Toggl, to well thought out briefs, roadmaps and internal methods. Skipping out on our morning surf or evening hike is an absolute no go!

‘The best thing about remote work is that you save time. What you do with that extra time you have will depend only on you! We are so conditioned to the 9–5 grind, that at first it is difficult to understand it and exploit it to the fullest. Then you start to see work as one more activity in your day, which you can divide into a few hours in the morning, a few hours in the afternoon and a few hours at night, or whatever you like, and in between those moments, do any other type of activity. It keeps you feeling fresh, motivated and inspired!’

– Felipe, Senior Designer

To sum up, here at Noise we are not your traditional agency, our passion for sport and the outdoors means that remote working for us is a non-negotiable. Remote working allows us to stay inspired, create chaos as well as well thought out design. Create clear concepts and design striking visuals. Remote working and Noise go hand in hand.

Noise Studio is an international creative agency working at the intersection of digital and branding. We create unexpected design solutions for some of the most exciting names in sports, outdoors and sustainability.

🖥️ www.noisestudio.co | 💌 hello@noisestudio.co