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Vol 1, #26, Sept. 8, 2009 |
Rogers Publishing Ltd. has acquired French-language marketing and communications trade publication AMPQ Magazine, along with its related assets, for an undisclosed price. The division of Rogers Media said the deal includes AMPQ's print magazine, a daily newsletter, related Internet website and its annual directory. The AMPQ acquisition is intended to compliment Rogers' Marketing magazine, which primarily serves English-speaking Canada, the company said. AMPQ has a circulation of about 58,500 readers, while the email newsletter has more than 15,000 subscribers. "This is an important acquisition that puts us in a leadership position in Quebec's highly influential marketing community," said Rogers Publishing senior vice-president John Milne in a release. "This acquisition further entrenches Rogers Publishing's position as a one-stop shop for marketers who want to reach a truly national audience.” Top of Page Buy a word and support international literacy efforts. Web entrepreneur Jeremy Burghall has created the Web site www.EveryWordIsForSale.com with the goal of raising $2.4 million. Burghall is donating 25 per cent of the total raised to ProLiteracy, the world's largest organization of adult literacy programs. The site consists of the entire text of the book "The Science of Getting Rich," by Wallace D. Wattles, first published 99 years ago. Each word is available for purchase as a hyperlink advertisement to the buyer's Web site. “The book inspired the idea for the Web site,” Burghall, 27, said. “I want to increase opportunities for people seeking self-improvement. ProLiteracy's international programs give budding entrepreneurs in developing countries the basic literacy and math skills they need to help their businesses succeed.” Individuals and companies can buy words for $100 each with the stipulation that they must purchase every instance of the word. The most common, and therefore most expensive, word is "the," which Burghall hopes to sell for $123,900. Supporters are encouraged to buy words related to their products or services. For example, attitudetravel.com has purchased the word "travel." “Partnerships with young entrepreneurs like Jeremy are so important to the work ProLiteracy does around the world,” said Lynne Jones, ProLiteracy's vice president for development and membership. "Many of our international partner programs offer literacy instruction that helps adults start and grow their own small businesses." Top of Page In-home marketing has new medium in Canada E-Hanger In-Home Media, providers of targeted marketing solutions via its eco friendly clothing hangers, has signed an agreement with Prairie distributors as its official distribution partner in western Canada.
With Prairie distributors and Dalex on board as exclusive distribution partners, 4 million ad supported hangers into homes across Canada can now be delivered. Top of Page Online savings products will challenge 'banking as usual' Ally announced that it is launching online savings products in Canada, offering interest rates among the highest in the country and 24-hour customer service. “Our new retail savings products will challenge the financial services industry with straightforward talk, great rates and no hidden fees,” says Mike Spero, managing director of Ally. “Customers are looking to save and grow their money efficiently, without sneaky fine print or teaser tactics. Our ally.ca website is straightforward, and our live customer contact centre is available 24 hours a day, whenever people have time to manage their money.” Ally, a product of ResMor Trust Company, will offer a variety of online savings products, including a range of Guaranteed Investment Certificates (GICs), a true 12-Month No Penalty GIC option, and high interest savings accounts - all of which are available either as traditional saving products or tax-free savings accounts. Ally online savings will offer:
Master Google provides free SEO services Sinai Marketing, an industry leader in SEO, is offering free SEO services on its newly launched affiliate Web site www.mastergoogle.com. In addition to free SEO, Master Google provides other guaranteed paid SEO packages to place your Web site on top of search engines as well as other Google marketing services such as Adwords management. Launched in August 2009, Master Google's Free SEO program, found on its Web site, means to serve startup companies looking to establish a presence online. The free SEO services include Web site optimization, keyword(s) analysis, Web site traffic reports, and weekly Web site ranking reports. According to Ali Husayni, the President of Sinai Marketing, these services provide a foundation for companies to build upon. “There is no contract, no obligation, no credit cards needed, and no gimmicks,” said Husayni. Master Google is providing free SEO services in hopes to build relationships with entrepreneurs and aid any company that is looking to compete online. “We are not doing this for capital gain,” said Husayni. “At Master Google we like to focus on building relationships. Free SEO services enable us to make contact with companies that may not be able to afford full services. This is a great way to give back, and we are proud to be able to do it.” Master Google provides deeper services and guarantees top placements on the search engines for clients with paid subscriptions. These services include site rebuilding, Web site updates, market analysis, ranking reports, and fresh Web content including updates to the Home page, press releases, and articles. “Big or small, we want to help,” said Husayni. “We do not want small companies or startups to feel outgunned. Bottom line is if a company has a passion for its product, and a willingness to work with us, we want to help build its presence online.” Top of Page Ontario Heritage Trust launches online places of worship inventoryOntario Heritage Trust is supporting the conservation of significant religious buildings across the province with the release of Ontario's Places of Worship. This new online resource includes a provincewide inventory of religious properties and compilation of research related to the stewardship and adaptive reuse of Ontario's places of worship. “The houses of worship in this province reflect the diverse cultures and faiths of Ontarians,” said The Honourable Lincoln M. Alexander, Chairman of the Ontario Heritage Trust. “This inventory documents our remarkable array of religious buildings, serving as a tool to support the conservation of significant sites that are part of Ontario's unique cultural and architectural heritage.” Ontario's Places of Worship features a web-enabled, searchable inventory of purpose-built religious buildings, as well as resources on Ontario history, architectural styles, case studies on adaptive reuse of religious sites and more. It is a publicly accessible resource to support research and decision-making related to religious properties in the province. “The Ontario government is proud to support the Ontario Heritage Trust's work in obtaining and developing a public inventory of Ontario's places of worship,” said Aileen Carroll, Minister of Culture. “The Trust's new inventory will serve as an important tool in understanding the scope of Ontario's religious heritage, while providing an opportunity for visitors to explore and identify significant elements of these important places." To date, nearly 1,500 religious buildings across the province are identified in the Ontario's Places of Worship inventory. Over the next year, as the Ontario Heritage Trust continues to add to the inventory, it is expected to house more than 5,000 records. As the inventory expands, users are encouraged to provide online feedback to assist in updating and refining information. “Inventories are a 'must have' for any municipal heritage planner, researcher, community planner or advocate. With information on places of worship from across the province compiled into one resource, this inventory will be a valuable foundation and effective tool to support our conservation management processes," said David Cuming, Senior Project Manager for Heritage and Urban Design with the City of Hamilton's Planning and Economic Development Department. The Ontario's Places of Worship project is one of the many ways the Ontario Heritage Trust is working to support heritage conservation in Ontario. The Trust is an agency of the government dedicated to identifying, preserving, protecting and promoting Ontario's built, cultural and natural heritage for the benefit of present and future generations. Top of Page Points.com helps back-to-school shoppers save money From new clothes to books to school supplies, parents and kids across America are hitting the malls in search of deals to stretch their dollars for back-to-school. Even though the recession is still making it difficult to make ends meet, many consumers have access to an underused currency that can help. Points International Ltd., the world's leading loyalty reward solutions provider and owner of Points.com, offers several easy and economical ways to save money during back-to-school by redeeming miles and points for everything you need this fall. “With the economy putting the pinch on spending, now's the time for consumers to take advantage of the nearly 14 trillion unused rewards which have been sitting idle in accounts,” said Chris Barnard, president of Points International. “The sky's the limit on what can be redeemed for loyalty points these days.” If you're hoping to pick up a pair of new shoes or a new backpack while trying to save a little extra money, rewards earned through loyalty programs are the answer. Points.com can maximize your purchasing power at minimum cost with a number of different products and services to make back-to-school shopping on the cheap a reality. Top of Page Twist Marketing lands web assignment from Carma Developers Following quickly on the heels of a move to new premises and the hiring of Sr. Account Manager January Kohli, Twist Marketing has landed a website assignment from Carma Developers. “We are building a centralized website for some of Carma’s Alberta communities including Calgary’s New Brighton, McKenzie Towne and Auburn Bay,” says Catherine Proulx, Managing Director, Twist Marketing. In short-listing, and then selecting Twist Marketing for this assignment, Carma’s Internet Marketing Manager, Yvonne Lau commented, “Twist Marketing demonstrated they had a clear understanding of our needs, the right strategic and implementation approach, and the team to execute this website project.” The new website will be launched in January 2010. Top of Page Examiner.com acquires Vancouver's NowPublic Examiner.com, the insider source for everything local, has acquired Vancouver-based NowPublic, a pioneer in user-generated content and the largest participatory news network in the world. Examiner.com, whose audience has grown more than 200 percent since the beginning of the year and now has more than 15,000 Examiners (Examiner.com's expert writers) in 109 U.S. cities, is the industry leader in creating local content, and will leverage NowPublic's innovative search and publishing technology to solidify its leadership position in providing local news and information, delivering on the long-held promise of relevant, robust hyperlocal content to both consumers and advertisers. “Every day we hear discussions about whether hyperlocal content will ever be scalable, sustainable or profitable as a business entity," said Rick Blair, CEO of Examiner.com. "Examiner.com is rapidly becoming the solution to the hyperlocal puzzle. In the last year we have created the depth of content consumers and advertisers expect. With the acquisition of NowPublic, we have the technology to further engage our community of over 17 million unique visitors per month and distribute our stories in new and innovative ways." Among the technologies Examiner.com will adopt from NowPublic are its Emmy nominated real-time mechanism for scanning online conversations, world-class open source technology Drupal, and an enhanced publishing platform for Examiner.com contributors, who are projected to grow to over 30,000 by the end of the year. "The NowPublic focus has always been on providing individuals, whether they are amateurs or professional journalists, the tools they need to quickly and easily contribute their perspectives on the issues of the day and the topics that interest them and their community," said Leonard Brody, CEO and co-founder of NowPublic. "By combining our tools and audience with Examiner.com's established, vetted, local content-generators, we are enabling Examiner.com, which has already seen incredible success, to further succeed in providing a site that attracts experts as contributors, passionate readers and the advertisers that want to reach them." In addition to the integration of NowPublic's technology, Examiner.com will also actively recruit new Examiners from NowPublic, focusing specifically on NowPublic's "professional amateur" contributors as well as its bevy of international writers, including its strong Canadian presence. NowPublic will also serve as a testing ground for new Examiner.com programs and ideas. Examiner.com and NowPublic will operate independently, retaining their unique offerings and brands. Top of Page Google Domestic Trends tracks economic sectors Google Domestic Trends tracks Google search traffic across specific sectors of the economy. The changes in the search volume of a given sector on google.com may provide useful economic insight. Google has created 23 indexes that track the major economic sectors, such as retail, auto and unemployment. Top of Page |
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