Browsing Tag

PR

Spark Sessions

With Marketing Director Jenny Jovanovic (Crazy Style Love)

Spark Sessions Marketing Director Jenny Jovanovic (Crazy Style Love)

The blogging world has become very saturated, so it was worthwhile spending the weekend at the second annual Spark Sessions conference to learn how to differentiate myself.

The opening keynotes by Andrew Sardone, Editor at Globe Style Advisor and Vanessa Craft, Beauty Director at ELLE Canada launched the event by describing bloggers as entrepreneurs. Vanessa inspired bloggers to become idea entrepreneurs and leverage our blogs to influence how readers think and behave. “Blogging is storytelling with a megaphone,” she said. Think about the power that comes with being a blogger and consider your future legacy.

Winnie Chan explored various legal issues that are relevant to blogging like CASL, disclaimer policies and copyright infringement. Though it was interesting to hear a lawyer’s perspective about what we do on WordPress, I would’ve preferred to see more visual examples of do’s and don’ts. Likewise, Maxine McDonald from Langton PR helped us understand which information is fundamental to include in media kits, but she didn’t show any examples of media kits she likes.

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November 17, 2014 by

Third Tuesday: Gini Dietrich

Hot On The Street - Gini Dietrich and Sarah Prince

This month’s Third Tuesday may have been scheduled on a Monday evening, but it was as informative, inspiring and engaging as always. Third Tuesday was generously sponsored by Rogers and Cision Canada and hosted by Thornley Fallis at The Pilot. So far, I’ve only gone when the guest speaker is an author – Mitch Joel, Nora Young and last night, the lovely Gini Dietrich.

While sharing her insights about astroturfing, whisper campaigns and media manipulation, Gini subtly promoted her PR firm, book and blog. It was especially interesting to hear Gini’s perspective as a blogger because I initially learned about her through a Behind The Brand interview on Hot On The Street! I had to laugh when Gini told a story about meeting blog commenters at a conference and referred to them as “Spin Sucks crazies.” Don’t worry, she was just kidding. Most bloggers are thrilled to meet their loyal readers in person!

Gini began her presentation with a simple overview of how Miley Cyrus’ career is a good case study for PR pros. Kicking off a presentation with slides about Miley is a sure fire way to excite an audience, but I wonder how much longer speakers can get away with it. When Toronto has a new mayor (fingers crossed!) and Ellen’s Oscars selfie is ancient history, presenters will need to find a new pop culture reference. When I pay to see a major thought leader, I want to hear their opinion about current events, not yesterday’s news. Marketers are increasingly encouraged to explore real-time marketing, memes and news-jacking and I think keynote speakers should take the same approach when preparing presentations.

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April 8, 2014 by

Behind The Scenes: The Extra Plate

Save the Children is an international NGO committed to advocating for children’s rights and supporting children in developing countries. When Save the Children Canada’s PR manager Kirsten Walkom tweeted that she needed an extra set of hands for a video shoot, I responded immediately and spent the day with their production team a few days later.

Many local celebrities donated their time to appear on camera, including fashion designers Adrian Wu and Jessica Jensen, nutritionist Joy McCarthy and Kiss 92.5’s Devo Brown. It was fun to hang out with them in between takes in Liberty Village.

Devo Brown (Kiss 92.5)

Devo Brown (Kiss 92.5)

Running into Madiha Aziz, a fellow volunteer and competitor at QMAC 2013, was a nice surprise! She says that helping out on set proved to be a good learning experience. “Before arriving on set, I did not know how much the impact of each dollar donated is to the children of Syria. I felt very blessed to get the chance to assist with the production of this video because it will create the much-needed awareness of the critical situation in Syria.”

Madiha Aziz and Wayne Smith (Toronto Argonauts)

Madiha Aziz and Wayne Smith (Toronto Argonauts)

Director Ian Barnett’s final product looks great, as it effectively captures stories about children’s fears to inspire viewers to support Save the Children. One key takeaway from the video is that donating only $40 to the charity can go a long way. Check out the video for The Extra Plate below and share your childhood fears on Twitter for a chance to win a prize!

[youtuber youtube=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uyd4XFmiYE’]

November 7, 2013 by

Kardashian Khaos in Las Vegas

Kris Jenner

There’s a chance you’ll see me in the background of Keeping Up With The Kardashians, so I might as well admit I went to see Kris Jenner at Kardashian Khaos. The reality TV family’s celebrity lifestyle boutique is located at The Mirage, my home away home on the Strip.

The excitement following Kanye West’s grand proposal hasn’t worn off yet. Kris looked positively radiant and I don’t think it’s just because some eager viewers paid $150 for a photograph with her. Las Vegas is the perfect place to experiment with bold prints and Kris fit in seamlessly.

Klassic Kris

While the series transitions from documenting Kim’s pregnancy to her momager’s separation, it will be interesting to see which side of Kris surfaces the most. Though she seemed friendly from afar, Kris can come across as stubborn and impatient. As an executive producer, Kris has an enormous opportunity to choose how she presents her personality and I’m intrigued as to how the Kardashians and their team will support her mission to garner more attention.

Publicist Jonathan Cheban’s surprise appearance was a treat for tourists like myself who planned to see only one TV personality on Saturday. He was very relaxed and wore the Royal Triumph python leather pocket black t-shirt he posted a photo of on Instagram. It looked like partying at Kim’s birthday bash at TAO took a toll on Jonathan because he looked tired, but that did not stop him from enthusiastically engaging with fans. Minutes after he escaped the crowd, Jonathan called someone and I’ve been curious who was on the other end ever since.

Jonathan Cheban

Keeping Up With The Kardashians airs Sunday nights on E!

October 27, 2013 by

Behind the Brand: Fossil

It’s one thing to shop at Fossil and follow them on on Facebook or Twitter.

It’s quite another to learn more about the accessories brand from an insider.

Lori-2

Name: Lori Petteplace

Position: PR & Marketing Manager

Employer: Fossil

Education: Psychology, McMaster University

In 140 characters or less, describe your role at Fossil:

Out-of-box promoting and event planning to increase brand awareness, sales & desire of the brand while crediting 1 of our wholesale partners

How does Fossil foster creativity at the office?

Fossil has their finger on the creative pulse for their employees. We have an open and engaged idea environment, where ‘answers are in the room’ round-table discussions are common. We sincerely and actively pursue placing people in roles that suit their personality, creativity, talents, desires and ambitions.

Fossil works with many brands, but its partnership with Michael Kors seems to be the most well known. Why do you think Michael Kors watches are so highly coveted in particular?

Michael Kors has taken aspirational ‘Jet Set’ lifestyle and presented it to the fashion-conscious individual at attainable price points. Further, he provides a head-to-toe look emphasizing not only his apparel but also his finishing accessories – the statement watch, stacked jewellery, a handbag and footwear.

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May 15, 2013 by