Rocksteady

Rocksteady is a digital agency that blends online strategy, technology, creative work and marketing for businesses of all sizes. It was founded in 2015 and celebrated ten years of trading with a look back at a decade of digital projects. Its home is The Penthouse, an office suite in the Ewropa Business Centre on Triq Dun Karm in Birkirkara, in the middle of Malta.

The agency is easy to spot by its mascot, a pink rhino, and by its habit of using the word Mmwonk, the sound, so the agency jokes, that a happy rhino makes. Behind the humour is a serious offer for anyone starting or growing a company on the island. It is listed in our directories of IT companies in Malta and marketing agencies in Malta.

A short history

The agency began with two founders, Alan Cini and Ben Pace Lehner, who created the pink rhino logo and built the business from small beginnings. Between 2015 and 2017 it found its feet; from 2017 to 2018 it recognised that it could serve companies of every size; and by 2020 it had a wide range of services and long-running client relationships, which carried it to its tenth year.

Its mission is to help people discover, define and develop their visions and ambitions through the digital world. The approach is data-led and focused on the audience, so that problems are solved in a way that can be measured. The culture is flat, with the founders leading by example and supporting colleagues with their work and personal lives.

The name and the brand carry a sense of play. The team is fascinated by computer games, and it uses team-building techniques to keep employees united and the atmosphere positive. The same thinking feeds a service for other companies: employer branding, for businesses that want to be seen among the most desirable places to work.

Strategy and technology

Four themes organise the work: strategy and planning, design and delivery, launch and scale, and transform and change. In practice the strategy side means finding fresh ideas, learning what customers want and building bespoke online strategies that support growth, sales and revenue.

On the technology side, the team designs and builds web, mobile and connected-device applications, with attention to user interface design, and delivers software solutions. The services also include maintenance, server administration and hosting, so a client can keep the whole digital estate with one supplier.

New arrivals setting up a business should look at the practical groundwork too. Our UK guide to relocating to Malta, our explainer on Malta's corporate tax structure and our featured partner CLA Malta for company, tax and relocation services cover the other early steps.

The agency also works through a network of associated companies and partners, each bringing its own expertise, which lets it assemble the right mix of skills and connections for a project instead of forcing every job into one template. For a UK company testing the Maltese market, that flexibility can mean starting with a small piece of work, such as a brand refresh or a campaign, and extending the engagement as results come in.

Training for clients' own staff is available through the Brainshop, so a business that commissions a website can also learn how to run it, which echoes the free guidance on offer to people going digital for the first time.

Creative, branding and marketing

The creative team works on logos, identities, design and content, aiming to communicate a client's message to the right audience. A film and media engineer, a photographer and a videographer give it in-house production capacity for shoots and edited footage.

Marketing and media covers online campaigns and communications, and extends across the web, television, radio and print. The method is to test, iterate and improve a bespoke plan so that results and cost-efficiency keep rising.

Branding projects typically begin with a conversation about what the business wants to be known for. From there the creative team proposes names, logos and visual identity, applies them to stationery, signage and the website, and then plans the campaigns that introduce the brand to its audience. A shopping-centre rebrand, for example, took an established identity and gave it a bolder, more energetic and contemporary character.

Portfolio examples show the range: a logo and brand identity for a personalised tennis coaching service, a logo for a Mediterranean tapas restaurant, a rebrand and lifestyle campaign for a Maltese shopping centre, the brand and website for a serviced office building, a site for an independent law firm focused on international taxation, a recruitment agency, and a brand, website and online shop for a small retailer.

Remote workers who follow our digital nomad guide for Malta and need a personal brand or portfolio site can use the same services, and our tax guide for UK nationals is worth reading alongside it.

Training and the Brainshop

Rocksteady publishes a free learning hub called the Brainshop, described as its digital workshop. It carries articles on business strategy, digital marketing, creative work and technology, including pieces on starting a digital venture in Malta and on designing websites with accessibility in mind.

The agency also runs an internship programme that gives students practical experience, and several trainees have found placements after graduation. Its sister company, Broadwing Recruitment, handles HR and employment, and the Head of HR and Recruitment links the two businesses.

Companies in regulated sectors can combine this kind of content with the sector background in our overviews of financial services in Malta and the iGaming industry in Malta.

The thinking behind the Brainshop is that investing in staff skills is the cornerstone of success in a fast-moving digital economy. Training adds value when it closes skill shortages and helps people meet the demands of their jobs, and the hub offers its content free of charge from the agency's own specialists.

The team

Ben Pace Lehner and Alan Cini are the managing directors and founders. Luca Pantellaro is Head of Digital Marketing, Silvija Ciurlionyte is Head of HR and Recruitment, Maksym Sopilniak is the film and media engineer, Sean Farrugia is the UI and UX and tech lead, and Marc is the photographer and videographer.

The team calls itself the Herd and its people are multicultural and multidisciplinary. Staff work from an office with a large outdoor terrace, a gym membership in the building and a flexible working pattern. Continuous personal development and team-building are part of the working week.

Working hours are flexible, and employees can set their own schedule while working towards shared targets. The agency links this freedom to higher engagement, loyalty and better ideas. For clients, the practical result is a team that is used to managing its own time and delivering to a brief, with the founders available to guide and advise whenever a project needs a decision.

Working with Rocksteady and visiting Birkirkara

SMEs, business owners and freelancers who are going digital can ask for a quote and expect an answer within 24 hours. Prices are not published, since each project is bespoke.

The office is in Birkirkara, close to the capital described in our Valletta guide. If you are visiting from the UK for a meeting, our page on hotels in Sliema lists places to stay. Use the VisitMalta.co.uk enquiry form on this page, describe your project and timeline, and we will pass your message to Rocksteady.

The agency is also hiring from time to time, for example for WordPress developers, and it invites designers and other digital professionals to send in a portfolio. Employees benefit from a state-of-the-art office, an outdoor terrace and a gym in the building.