Rebuilding After The Fire

The fires that ate up part of Queen West was devastating to watch. What was more crushing was seeing the businesses and home owners, fellow citizens, who lost to the flames.

Duke's Cycle was one of them. A family-owned business dating back to 1914.

Yet, even though their business was so quickly taken away...they managed to start the rebuilding just as quickly. Not even knowing them, I admire how positive they have been through the whole ordeal, how they have graciously thanked and acknowledged their supports and community and how they recognize that staying in touch is important.

With little money but a passion for what they do, I hope to see them on their feet soon. I know I will definitely keep in touch with their progress and hope to visit the store soon.

Photo from aardvark.

Direct to Consumer - aka D to C

"Lunar Eclipse" * Please Read Below!
Originally uploaded by bovinacowboy

It must be the lunar eclipse tonight because it seems as though many of the feeds I received today are on the same wave length in some shape or form - Direct to Consumer (DtoC).

It started off with The Client Side post on Get Out of Media, Get into Marketing where Michael highlights the Radiohead's DtoC strategy for their latest (and very good) disc In Rainbows.

Second was the Freakonomics post, Free Books on the Internet: HarperCollins, Oprah, and Yale Join the Fray, which speaks to whether or not free books will translate into higher book sales...how about higher speaker tour sales?

Thirdly, for go time consuming focus groups or expensive third party polls (not always), and try out Google Docs Spreadsheets where you can ask questions to those who have an email and the response will be gathered in a nice spreadsheet. You can also monitor it via a gadget on your iGoogle page.

Direct to Consumer

It must be the lunar eclipse tonight because it seems as though many of the feeds I received today are on the same wave length in some shape or form - Direct to Consumer (DtoC).

It started off with The Client Side post on Get Out of Media, Get into Marketing where Michael highlights the Radiohead's DtoC strategy for their latest (and very good) disc In Rainbows.

Second was the Freakonomics post, Free Books on the Internet: HarperCollins, Oprah, and Yale Join the Fray, which speaks to whether or not free books will translate into higher book sales...how about higher speaker tour sales?

Thirdly, for go time consuming focus groups or expensive third party polls (not always), and try out Google Docs Spreadsheets where you can ask questions to those who have an email and the response will be gathered in a nice spreadsheet. You can also monitor it via a gadget on your iGoogle page.

Photo from bovinacowboy.

Social Media Invades Real Life

So much to do, so little time. Check up some of these great networking events, most of them marketing, many related to social media...some just great events.

Feb 21 - AMA Toronto - Sponsorship Under the Gun? (Verity)
Feb 23-24 - Podcamp Toronto 2 (Ryerson)
Feb 26 - Third Tuesday with Michael McDerment (Fionn McCool's Irish Pub)
Feb 28 - March 5 - Toronto Human Rights Film Festival (AGO)


Photo from photopia

Happy Family Day - digital style

So today is Family Day (here in Ontario) and unlike most holidays, this first for me is spent at home, alone, on the computer.

With no history to this holiday, there is no big supper like Christmas, Thanksgiving or Easter, no cottage or camping trips like Victoria Day or Canada Day...and definitely no fireworks.

Instead, the day is spent working for the most part of upcoming projects - so I can be more relaxed when I actually do see my family and friends.

However, in an effort to make something of this family day while trying to get stuff done - I turn to my digital networks to save the day.

- Email - a simple "what's up?", "When are you good for java?" that is often hard to remember to send when busy at work or at home after a long day in front of the computer.
- Text Messaging - just to see what my pals are up to.
- Facebook - to connect to friends and family and catch-up with what they have going on (even if it is just viewing their pictures)
- RSS - Catch up on my reader, since I consider community like family.
- A phone call - yup, I said it...my cell phone will be on all day today

PS. Check out these other ideas on how to spend the day.

Viva Las Vegas, Viva the internet

My girls and I were planning a dirty thirty trip to Vegas to celebrate my best pal's birthday.

She wants to go to Vegas, so Vegas we shall go...pink sequence tshirts, mornings at the pool, a trip down Route 66 and perhaps a little bit of blackjack.

But first things first, we had to plan the travel. ergh.

We knew the date we wanted to go, we heard some stories of traveling from Buffalo vs. Toronto, where to stay while we were there and where to go to party...almost everyone we spoke to who had visited the desert had some advice for us.

With that in hand, the internet at our fingertips and some old school conference calling - we were able to compare prices in minutes. Viva the internet!

I found Retailmenot.com - a site that houses user-generated coupon codes - that really are legitimate. Farecast which predicts if flight prices will go up or down (it told us to buy now). And of course, the expedia's, hotwire's and kayak's of the world.

We had the plans finalized in less than an hour.

The funny part of this exercise is that one of my girlfriend's landed up checking with her bank credit card rewards program and was able to get the exact same pricing we found on the web - wasn't promoted, marketed...was just there...so she booked it.

Vegas baby!

The sound of a brand - but not on the web?

I don't tend to like sound when I visit a site - but I often wonder why companies who have a branded sound or chime, don't use it (sparingly) on their website.

For example, and who I think can get away with it:

- NBC - ding, Ding, ding
- McDonald's - Bah, dah, ba, bah, bah
- Playstation - ziiuuuum

EA Sports was the only one that I found that used it when I launched the site - a familiar sound to anyone who knows their games.

Part Deux - My Other Playground - A call for HELP!

Okay, ok..this is a call out for help.

Since July of last year, I have been trying to build my squidoo lens - Toronto Food, Bevies and Restaurant schtuff. And now, after seven months, I want your help...please.

I want the lens to help food lovers or even just simply those that like to eat out in Toronto - the essential 'food type' links that are required to eat in hogtown.

I think I have covered most of my bases...but suspect not. Especially since I have a different method of deciding where and what to eat from others and how to go about satisfying that craving (of course, I do, we all do).

So, I hope I am not asking for too much - if you can please take 30 seconds out of your busy scheds and look at my lens and let me know what I am missing, what should be brought up higher or, what I am doing well. Your thoughts mean a lot to me...so much so that we should go for some java, gelato or anything else really.

muchos gracias.