      |
Vol 2, #30, July 27, 2010 |
Facebook reaches 500 million users As of last week, 500 million people all around the world are actively using Facebook to stay connected with their friends and the people around them. eBay Canada will once again recognize and reward Canada’s most successful and entrepreneurial eBay sellers with the sixth annual eBay Canada Entrepreneur of the Year Awards, a program to find the most productive and innovative sellers among the tens of thousands of Canadians who gain income on the world's largest online marketplace. In addition to the overall Entrepreneur of the Year award, this year eBay Canada will offer an Innovator of the Year award to a Canadian who uses innovative practices to engage and attract customers and build their online business. eBay Canada will also present a Family Business of the Year award to a deserving recipient who sells on eBay with the help of family members. Winners of this year’s contest will be featured in communication to millions of Canadian eBay buyers and will receive a combination of cash and professional development to help grow their business. “We're out to discover examples of great Canadian entrepreneurial innovation and productivity," said Andrea Stairs, country manager for eBay Canada. "We know that using eBay to generate income can often be a family affair, so we want to find and recognize the very best examples of husbands and wives, aunts and uncles, brothers and sisters putting eBay to work for them. Canadians sell over a million items on eBay every month and, after 10 years in Canada, eBay has been a part of some remarkable Canadian business success stories." Last year’s Entrepreneur of the Year winner, Shaun Shienfield, turned to eBay to increase online sales of his premium pre-owned golf balls. Since then, his business has grown significantly. He fills hundreds of orders a day and has even set up a call centre to meet demand. To date, his business has helped save golfers $20-million and is the largest seller of premium pre-owned golf balls online. Launched in 2000, eBay.ca has connected millions of buyers and sellers across the country, helping them to explore worldwide online commerce opportunities. eBay has been an important enabler of small business in Canada, with total items sold numbering more than 114-mililon. The Entrepreneur of the Year Award program is open to all full- and part-time eBay sellers aged 18 years and older. Entrants will also be considered for the Innovator of the Year and the Family Business of the Year categories, if applicable. About the 2010 eBay Canada Entrepreneur of the Year awards program: A winner will receive a cash prize of $2,500 for the Entrepreneur of the Year category and $1,500 will be awarded for each of the Innovator of the Year and Family Business of the Year titles. All three winners will also enjoy $500 towards a business-related course or workshop and promotion to more than two-million eBay buyers.
New Managing Director at Tribal DDB Canada Tribal DDB Canada, the integrated digital and interactive marketing arm of DDB Canada, has appointed Marty Yaskowich as Managing Director to lead and build its Vancouver operation. "This promotion recognizes Marty's contributions to the team over the years, his proven leadership skills, and his ability to consistently deliver business solutions to a wide range of clients," said David Leonard, president and COO, DDB Canada. "Well respected by clients and his peers, Marty is a distinguished marketer and digital planner who inspires clients to explore new and exciting ways of engaging their consumers online in all digital formats." In his new role, Yaskowich will focus on further advancing the agency's client offering in digital and social media, working closely with Justin Young, managing director at Radar DDB in Vancouver. "I'm excited to be surrounded by some of the most talented people in the industry," said Yaskowich. "This position will provide me with new opportunities to further integrate digital marketing with social media, especially as the consumer experience extends from computers to smartphones, interactive touchscreens, and beyond." Marty Yaskowich has been with Tribal DDB Canada since 2005; his previous title was Business and Strategy Director. Over the years he has played a key role in developing innovative and award-winning campaigns for clients such as the Canadian Tourism Commission, BC Dairy, the University of British Columbia, and the Vancouver Convention Center. These campaigns have received recognition from Applied Arts, Digital Marketing and Forbes magazines. Yaskowich is also an accomplished speaker on emerging digital and social trends. This fall he will be teaching a continuing studies course in social media governance at the University of British Columbia. Top of Page Google Images offers nicer way to surf the web When you think about “information,” what probably comes to mind are streams of words and numbers. Google’s pretty good at organizing these types of information, but consider all the things you can’t express with words: what does it look like in the middle of a sandstorm? What are some great examples of Art Nouveau architecture? Should I consider wedding cupcakes instead of a traditional cake?
And for our advertisers, we’re launching a new ad format called Image Search Ads. These ads appear only on Google Images, and they let you include a thumbnail image alongside your lines of text. Check out our Help Center for more info on how try them out; we hope they’re a useful way to reach folks who are specifically looking for images. Kia Canada launches innovative new campaign Kia Canada Inc., a maker of quality vehicles for the young-at-heart announced today the industry-first, 'Drive Change' national marketing campaign. The campaign will focus on the evolution of the Kia brand, showcase its new world class design-led portfolio while reaching out and creating an emotional connection with Canadian consumers through its most recent commitment to social responsibility. "We have worked very closely with our marketing partners, Innocean Canada and David & Goliath to develop an innovative and compelling campaign. The campaign clearly identifies our new world class automotive design attributes while at the same time reflecting Kia Canada's ongoing commitment to help local communities" said Maria Soklis, Vice President & Chief Operating Officer (COO) Kia Canada Inc. "Drive Change will be the conduit to heightening our brand awareness by reaching out to establish an emotional connection with consumers through both traditional and social media; thus differentiating Kia from other automotive manufacturers." Kia Canada has invested in an integrated media campaign that involves the production of four television spots, prevalent on-line positioning, strategically placed bill boards, cinema presence, newspaper and magazine. Kia Canada is also revealing dedicated Facebook (www.facebook.com/kiacanada), Twitter (www.twitter.com/kiadrivechange) and You Tube (www.youtube.com/kiacanada) outlets. These channels document the step-by-step creation of the 'Drive Change' campaign and will serve to provide communication moving forward. This provides Kia with a unique and creative way to reach out to consumers. The two-initial television spots for 'Drive Change' were captured recently over two, fifteen-hour sessions through time-lapse technology. These spots document life changing improvements for two different groups through the support of volunteers, Kia Canada Inc. employees and the use of Kia vehicles - Soul and Sorento. The first television spot was captured at the Second Base Youth Shelter in Scarborough, Ontario which underwent a major basketball court restoration for the shelter residents. The court was virtually unplayable. As a result, Kia Canada completely refurbished the court and surrounding area including court surface, basketball nets, player's benches and gardens. The second television spot was filmed at the Gilder Avenue location of Toronto Community Housing. This location was also in immediate need of a grounds restoration at the complex. Improvements made were the direct result of the resident's feedback and included the implementation of a common green space sitting area, sustainable vegetable gardens and a sectioned-off disposal area with wheel chair access. Kia is inspiring and propelling change by differentiating themselves from other automotive manufacturers as a dynamic and youthful brand that is community conscious and responsible. The next phase of brand evolution will witness the launch of the 2011 MY Sportage as well as three additional vehicles over the next twelve months. Kia is emerging as one of the world's top automotive companies and recently surpassed one million sales worldwide through the first six months of 2010. Top of Page Nexalogy Environics meeting needs of SM intelligence marketOne of North America’s most innovative social media analysis companies, Nexalogy Environics, has expanded its Montréal office and added three new members to its team since joining the Environics Group of Companies in January. “We have grown to meet the needs of our clients and continue to pioneer ground-breaking software to deliver social media intelligence,” said Claude G. Th é oret, president and founding partner. “Our analysts bring diverse backgrounds in journalism, philosophy, communications and blogging, ensuring valuable human analysis in all our work.” Software development & services The pace of Nexalogy’s software development has been accelerating in recent months to deliver social media intelligence that is comprehensive, accessible and versatile. The company’s services continue to grow to meet an expanded range of client needs – from traditional strategic intelligence services to quick turnaround, tactical projects. “We offer intelligence that goes beyond monitoring, and is presented in ways that help our clients to manage or build their business. Today’s marketers don’t want to drown in data or receive only part of the picture: they need clear, relevant and meaningful reports about their brands,” said Th é oret. Partnership update “Our relationship with the Environics Group of Companies has been a great success in its first six months,” added Th é oret. “Our current client roster is already strong, and with this partnership we are seeing even more interest in our services from a wide range of partners. We’re eager to continue to help corporations, agencies, government and other organizations make better decisions using our intelligence services.” About Nexalogy Environics Nexalogy Environics was founded in 2006 and has a team of 12 people in Montréal. The firm’s past and present clients are located in the US, Canada, and Europe in several sectors: consumer products and packaged goods, mining and extraction, technology, communications and advertising, media, government, and the non-profit sector. About Environics The Environics Group is a unique family of companies dedicated to providing intelligent research, analytics and communications strategies. Member companies deliver data-driven insights and results-oriented marketing services to reach the full spectrum of audiences that matter to clients. With almost 200 staff in the United States and Canada, the Environics Group provides consulting services to leading brands and organizations in advanced technology, financial services, health sciences, association/non-profit, consumer goods, government and the sustainability and clean energy sectors. Companies in the Group include Environics Research, Environics Analytics, Environics Communications, Sequentia Environics, Free for All Marketing, Ignite Excellence, Capital-Image and Nexalogy Environics. Top of Page Google moved to better its search results by acquiring Metaweb, a San Francisco based company that maintains a open database of "things," and their relationships to one another Google moved to better its search results by acquiring Metaweb, a San Francisco based company that maintains an open database of "things," and their relationships to one another. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Metaweb's database currently includes some 12 million items, including places, notable people, companies, and movies. Queries to the Google search algorithm would return more relevant results as a result of the company's technology, the company claims. "What about 'colleges on the west coast with tuition under $30,000' or 'actors over 40 who have won at least one Oscar?' These are hard questions, and we've acquired Metaweb because we believe working together we'll be able to provide better answers," Google product management chief Jack Menzel said in a blog post. At first glance it appears that the technology would enable Google to handle more explicit queries accurately, akin to what Ask.com has attempted to do with its plain language support. Google can already handle some basic queries to a specific answer the searcher may look for -- for example the capital of a country -- but cannot go much further than that. It would also improve searches where the intention of the searcher may be difficult to ascertain from the query itself. For example, some search terms may have more than one possible result: Metaweb's technologies would help the search engine return possibly more relevant results. The openness of Metaweb's database, dubbed Freebase, means that for the first time Google would begin to rely on data that wasn't compiled or managed in-house. The search company said the two companies would keep Freebase open. "We plan to contribute to and further develop Freebase and would be delighted if other web companies use and contribute to the data," Menzel added. Google has already stepped into the open knowledge database field with its Knol product, however that product is separate from its search functions. Top of Page Due to tremendous interest and traffic associated with the launch of casino games on PlayNow.com on July 15th, BCLC servers experienced load issues causing what is technically referred to as a "data crossover". A data crossover occurs when one player logged into a website account is accidentally switched into another player's account while they are playing. This situation applied to 134 of the thousands of PlayNow.com accounts logged in. These 134 accounts could have been inadvertently accessed by any one of up to 105 players who were also online at the time. BCLC's assessment concludes that 12 of these 134 accounts had a measure of sensitive personal information viewed by another player. All impacted players have been contacted. Upon learning of this situation, BCLC took immediate action to shut down PlayNow.com, enabling a full assessment to occur. BCLC's assessment, verified by third party security experts, shows no evidence of external interference or "hacking". BCLC treats this matter with utmost seriousness. Our first priority was to notify and work with players who were impacted by this issue and address any privacy concerns. BCLC will reconcile all accounts impacted by the crossover of data as well as honour all winnings during this period to the benefit of all players involved. BCLC is developing and testing a technical solution to address the issue that led to the data crossover. PlayNow.com will be restored when a solution is implemented that meets the highest levels of player protection and receives third party approval and regulatory certification. BCLC thanks players who reported issues to our customer support centre, helping identify and quickly respond to this issue. Players who have questions about their PlayNow.com account can contact BCLC Consumer Services at 1-866-815-0222. BCLC is working with the Information and Privacy Commissioner on the situation. The Commissioner has expressed satisfaction with BCLC's response. BCLC is a provincial Crown Corporation that offers socially responsible gambling entertainment while generating income that benefits all British Columbians. Top of Page Brand partners can increase online traffic Shopatron, the leading provider of eCommerce solutions to branded consumer goods manufacturers, is pleased to introduce the Shopatron Affiliate Network, a new feature included in the company’s onBlocks site and store platform. The Shopatron Affiliate Network consists of online marketing partners, recruited and managed by Shopatron, who get paid to send targeted, purchasing customers to Shopatron’s online stores. Shopatron Affiliate Network sites range from large platform affiliates, such as the Google search engine, to small content affiliates who run a website dedicated to a subject such as camping, surfing or motherhood. These affiliates send highly-targeted visitors to Shopatron online stores looking for a product listed or mentioned on the affiliate site, resulting in incremental online sales. Through the Shopatron Affiliate Network, Shopatron clients receive free brand exposure on participating affiliate sites. Fees are paid only when that exposure turns into a completed sale. And because Shopatron client brands send their online sales to authorized retailers for fulfillment, everyone wins – customers, retailers and the brand. “We are very excited to roll out the Shopatron Affiliate Network for our clients,” said Mark Grondin, SVP of Marketing at Shopatron. “The affiliate network adds a new benefit to the partners deployed on our onBlocks site and store platform. Shopatron has always helped clients build and run online stores, but now we bring paying customers into those stores. And best of all,” he added, “with almost ten years of experience in eCommerce and online marketing, our team understands how the online ecosystem functions. Our specialists work closely with affiliates to provide the highest-quality traffic at the best possible price.” Implementing the Shopatron Affiliate Network is easy. It comes standard with every onBlocks installation. Shopatron does all the work in sourcing, filtering and organizing potential traffic sources. When a visitor makes a purchase on a Shopatron-enabled eCommerce site, the fulfiller of the order pays a small fee to the marketing partner for generating the order. All costs are communicated to the fulfillment partner in an easy to follow format when an order is placed into the Shopatron order exchange. All parties interested in Shopatron and the Shopatron Affiliate Network can get more details at: ecommerce2.shopatron.com/MerchantAffiliateNetwork |
|
