work | yehialess

Hi,
I'm Yehia

Content, digital and
communications

A bit about me

Born in Egypt, I spent most of my free time as a teenager in the UK learning photography, filmmaking and design. After working on websites, social media and newsletters at a local Westminster charity, I completed internships in communications and marketing at national charities.

For the last nine years I've been using my skills and experiences to help improve the lives of people – whether they're refugees, children, older people, on lower income or otherwise failed by society.

Beyond my knowledge of all things digital and communications, I have a Masters in Human Rights Law, and I take pride in my awareness of social issues, being a people-person and putting 100% into my outputs.

As someone who's always worked in smaller charities and teams, I see myself as a jack-of-all-trades. I'm not a fan of consultants or freelancers who offer generic advice, sell a dream but do little else. I don't think that most of what I specialise in is rocket science – but with my past experiences, wide range of skills and diligent attitude, I'm well-equipped to do all that I can to help your charity maximise its online reach and impact.

What I offer

Digital

Website, social media, email, analytics, reporting

Content

Photography, filmmaking, graphic design

Comms

Branding, communications planning, messaging

Over the last nine years, I've worked on all aspects of multiple Wordpress and Drupal websites, whether to improve content (like the home page, info pages, news & blogs), the menu structure, SEO (having your website appear on Google), web hosting and domains or UX (how users get things done on your website).

I'm also experienced in building and updating websites that use Wix (like this one) or Squarespace.

Working with your charity, I can either get stuck in with making small changes or complete a full site audit and make recommendations to be actioned by myself or otherwise.

Making my first short films around the age of 12, I've continued pursuing my passion for filmmaking into adulthood, both as a hobby and for a living. As is constantly proven to us in the digital age, I'm a great believer in the power of visual storytelling.

One of my recent films, exploring discourses around mental health, was selected at an International Film Festival, and I continue to consistently write, film and edit short films in my spare time.

I've produced dozens of videos for charities, whether using my own professional visual and audio equipment, or simply using a phone (both of which can be equally effective in the right circumstance).

Whether it's an explainer video, vox pop or a more in-depth interview, I can help you create effective videos and communicate key messages to audiences online and offline.

Social media can easily be a time-consuming or under-utilised area for many smaller and medium-sized charities.

With a plethora of platforms available - and a constantly changing landscape that is punishing if you don't keep up – it can be difficult to dedicate the right amount of resources that actually deliver results.

Having extensively worked with Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter/X and Instagram, I can provide post templates, examples of good practice and help you figure out how to best use social media for your needs. I can also help you understand the pros and cons of each platform and prepare a strategy or action plan.

Analytics tools like Google Analytics (GA4), Hootsuite and Hotjar are available for free to most charities but are rarely set-up properly or used to their potential – probably because organisations don't have the time or resources.

Whether you're looking at websites, email or social media, there's likely a good amount of data available to you that could be captured and analysed – helping you better understand your audiences, what works, what doesn't and what can be improved.

In my Digital roles, I've configured complex (and simple) analytics tools and used their insights to make crucial improvements.

For your charity, I can build dashboards, spreadsheet templates and help you collect the right information, guiding you with how best to use it.

While most people spent their free time at university socialising and partying, I taught myself graphic design and how to use tools like Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign. I later honed my understanding of design principles and programs through courses, including training from University of the Arts London (UAL).

Whether for personal or professional purposes, I use Adobe Creative Suite and online, user-friendly tools like Canva on a daily basis to produce content for social media, email and website.

Whether we'd be starting from scratch or building on a library of assets, I can help your charity produce reports, social media posts, templates and more.

Communications planning can seem like a luxury or something unnecessary, so it's not uncommon for smaller charities to overlook its significance. Outputs are disseminated without much preparation, and communications aren't thought through strategically.

But key moments and opportunities for influencing your audiences shouldn't be wasted.

Beyond drafting a strategy, I can help with the creation of templates, whether calendars or project plans. I can also work with you to improve messaging and shore up the elements needed to help you plan and maximise how you communicate with and influence your key audiences.

Like many of the other aspects of communications, branding can be shrouded in secrecy or made to feel overly complicated. But it doesn't have to be.

I can work with your charity to ensure that the way the organisation looks and sounds (the visual and verbal identities) are working to their potential. Good branding isn't just about standing out from the crowd and reaching your target audiences, it's also about making sure that they feel, think and act the right way.

Using my expertise in design and comms planning, I can help you present your charity in the best way possible.

I'm a highly experienced photographer, both in personal and professional qualities. I've held freelance gigs with charities such as Key Changes where I've captured event photos and unique portraits of artists with with lived experience of mental health problems.

My photos have featured as part of competitions (including the BBC) and I've consistently used my skills and equipment to refresh image libraries and bring words and ideas to life. I was responsible for the creation of the flagship Age-positive image library, equipping me with expertise in creating consent forms and processes in addition to editing and asset library management.

Whether you have a couple of opportunities that you'd like photographed or are interested in revamping your collection of images, I can help.

How I can help

Depending on your requirements, I can help with any or all three of: ad hoc practical support, audit & advice or delivering a strategy

Option 1
Ad hoc support

Do you just need help with tweaks or a one-off project? I'll use my skills and equipment to deliver tailored outputs and improvements, whether that's to create exciting content or optimise digital channels

Day rate of £200

Option 2
Audit & advice

I'll comprehensively review your channels (e.g. website, social media, newsletter) and content (e.g. blogs, photos). I'll then create a short but practical plan tailored to your charity to help you boost impact

Flat fee of £400

Option 3
Strategy & delivery

After completing an audit and creating a plan of action (like in Option 2), I'll help you act on those suggestions, whether that's making sure you have engaging videos or emails that delivers results

Day rate of £200

Who I've worked with

Website & Email Manager

"Yehia is a highly creative, conscientious professional and a warm and collaborative person to work with. He listens, understands and works hard to deliver against a brief and is able to critically analyse, diagnose and deliver solutions to a wide range comms challenges. He brings to projects an expert eye and an artistic flair, resulting in high quality, stand-out content. I wouldn’t hesitate to commission him."

Emma Twyning, Director of Communications, Centre for Ageing Better

Content, digital and
communications