Toronto

A closing review of the session “Accelerating Small Business Growth In These Economic Times” from our Theme Sponsor for A Social Society, Bank of Montreal.

Small business owners connected with social media professionals and other entrepreneurs to learn valuable lessons about taking on the social media landscape at BMO’s ‘Accelerating Small Business Growth In These Economic Times’ Social Media Week event.

After BMO’s Deputy Chief Economist Doug Porter gave a snapshot of the state of the economy, three experts in social media took the stage to share their insights on how business owners could effectively use social media.

A few tips gleaned from the panel:

Defining success is essential to measuring it
While everyone wants to know how social media will help their business, the panelists emphasized you must identify what you want to achieve before you can actually measure it.

“Are you having success in lead generation and sales?” suggested Liz Strauss, managing partner of Inside-Out Thinking. “Or are you having success in customer service? … Defining success is probably the key point of measuring it.”

Know your customers
“You have to identify who your customer is and where you should be spending your time,” Julie Howlett, Account Director of Global Marketing Solutions at LinkedIn Canada said, of how small business owners should start developing their social media strategies.

“Connect with your customers wherever they may be, and do it in a real way,” Chris Eben, Partner at The Working Group added.

Use common sense
When it comes to communicating with customers online – even those providing negative feedback – consider how you would normally talk to them.

“A lot of appropriate social media behaviour is the same appropriate behaviour you expect from people who man your conference booth and answer your email and answer your telephone,” Strauss pointed out.

After receiving tips from the pros, a second panel of entrepreneurs offered lessons from their own experiences engaging people online.

Plan how to incorporate social media into your day
Shelley Pringle, founder of Polaris Public Relations Inc., writes a weekly blog to engage potential customers, and sets aside specific time to do so to make sure it doesn’t eat into her other work priorities.

“I’d just extend my day. Instead of being at my desk at 9:00 I’m at my desk at 6:00 and that’s kind of my writing time,” she said.

Now that the blog is up and running, she says the time commitment isn’t as daunting as she had initially anticipated.

Be persistent to achieve payoff
Jay Lebo, Founder of Gravitas Business Architects, emphasized the importance of knowing what you want to achieve with social media, and not to be discouraged by your initial attempts to gain followers.

“The benefits don’t really happen in a linear fashion,” he said. “You’re not sure if you’re doing it right and then you reach a critical mass and it really just takes off.”

You can learn a lot from each other
Asked about helpful resources for business owners to get online, Julian Brass, founder of Notable.ca, suggested looking to other businesses you admire in the social space.

“I look at companies that are doing a fantastic job and I see what they’re doing, and I think, how can I do it better?” he said.

In addition to the live event in Toronto, we livestreamed the discussion on the BMO Financial Group Facebook page. For those who couldn’t attend, check back to the BMO SmartSteps for Business Community in the coming weeks for video clips from the panels, as well as other business resources and tips.

You can also catch up on the conversation by checking out the #BMOSMBchat hashtag on Twitter, which we used during the event, and following us @BMOsmb.

Thank you to everyone who participated and came out to the event and made it such a success!

Are you a small business owner wondering about how social might help your business? Our “Social Society” Theme Sponsor BMO shares some of their thoughts on the topic.

Recognizing the opportunity to connect with Canadian entrepreneurs, and help their businesses grow, BMO is excited to host the ‘Accelerating Small Business Growth in Our Economic Times’ event on Thursday February 16, as part of Social Media Week. Featuring two panels and a networking session, the event is intended to provide practical takeaways for small business owners.

First, Sean Stanleigh, editor of The Globe and Mail’s Report on Small Business moderates a panel of social media experts including: Julie Howlett of LinkedIn Canada, Chris Eben of The Working Group and Liz Strauss of Inside-Out Thinking. Then, Ian Portsmouth, editor and associate publisher of PROFIT Magazine will moderate a panel of small business owners, sharing firsthand insight into how they’ve leveraged various social platforms and digital tools to overcome obstacles on their way to success.

With Canadians spending almost twice the amount of time online compared to the worldwide average, the Internet and social media serve as excellent platforms through which to reach engaged audiences. A comScore study released last year showed the average Canadian spends 43.5 hours a month online, well above the global average 23.1 hours. Meanwhile, about one million Canadian small businesses have a website, Google Canada said last year.

Based on such knowledge, social media serves as an ideal means through which business owners can connect with each other and potential customers to build their businesses. It also provides the opportunity to share important business resources with each other. The BMO SmartSteps® for Business Community was launched in June 2011 with such goals in mind. Anchored by a daily blog, the community provides tips, techniques and resources relevant to small business owners, across topics including start up, cash management, marketing, financing and investing, and daily operations. Predominantly written by BMO Small Business Bankers, they offer firsthand knowledge that holds real value for small business owners.

Equally powerful, blogs, Twitter, and other social media channels allow business owners to share their own stories, resources and best practices with each other. Strong communities of entrepreneurs share blog posts hosted on their own company websites, and chat back and forth through Twitter. As a result, they develop mutually beneficial relationships to help each other grow. The BMO SmartSteps for Business Community embraced such sentiment through a video series that highlights three business owners’ lessons for innovative business growth. Other business owners can easily benefit from the firsthand insights shared through them. Meanwhile, the @BMOsmb Twitter handle is thriving as a source of interaction for business owners, and a tool for sharing business tips and new ideas.

Social media provides invaluable opportunities to answer questions, provide resources, and listen to what Canadians are saying about their business needs. By getting online, small business owners can truly benefit from the insights of others, while sharing their own lessons for success. In doing so, they will also be equipped for future developments in social media to further their business development.

The best part about participating in Social Media Week is the feeling that you are living up to the expectations you had as a child of how cool the future would be. We get to do the coolest things with tech small enough to fit in the palm of our hands.

Photo by Kazi Hirok Al-Arafat, used and modified under Creative Commons License

Today’s theme is Social in the Palm of Your Hand. More and more technology is becoming part of our daily lives and the technology with which we access the world around us is continually getting smaller. From iPods, mobile apps, tablets and even microchip biotechnology – it seems less really is more. Sure, we’ve all heard for several years that this will be “the year of mobile,” but 2012 seems to be the year mobile technology is really taking off.

Today at SMWTO we check out the world of mobile connectivity, team gaming and mobile development. With the power to control the world from our fingertips, how are we using these small machines to change the world?

• Throughout Social Media Week we’ve been lucky to have Boomurang
  as a global initiative. As a mobile communication app, Boomurang uses a map based interface with viewable locations to mediate real-time collaborative global conversation. This app is an amazing way to catch and engage in conversations at an event, whether or not you can attend it.
• Gamification: Perspectives from Both Sides. A relatively new concept in the marketing world, gamification is getting a lot of attention. What does it mean? How can I use it to drive engagement with my brand? Here’s an opportunity to get unique perspectives on the practice of gamification from both advertiser and game developer.
• Happening at the Gladstone Hotel, Toronto Travel Massive hosts Getting serious about travel blogging , where a panel of representatives from the travel industry, media, PR and travel writing/blogging will examine the gritty details of travel writing in the digital age. Crossing boarders and oceans no longer means you can’t be connected, and this panel illuminates the brave new world of travel writing.

The odds are in our favour that you are reading this from your smart phone, and perhaps you were able to sign up for some of our SMWTO events through the nifty web-enabled site. Slowly but surely you’ll be able to do everything you need from the palm of your hand. As the saying goes, “there’s an app for that.”

For more fun mobile ideas follow the #SMW12 hashtag, look out for our live stream events, and check out Epilogger’s Social Media Week Toronto’s event profile to relive all the glory.

How are today’s major players in news, business and finance keeping up with the increasing pace of social media? Can enterprise-level collaboration through social media bring on change for the greater good? We seek those answers today with our theme Business and Information at Light speed.

Adapting quickly and learning to effectively provide information through social media tools puts enterprises ahead in the modern market. News outlets are learning to use Twitter to identify and track developing stories.

Digital technology is helping research and health care industries address the impact of globalization. Infectious diseases can spread easily through international travel. Web applications like Bio.diaspora have developed an easily accessed geographic information system solution that generates customized intelligence about global infectious disease threats in real-time.

Join us and Wednesday’s Theme Sponsor LinkedIn for a conversation about what it takes to move business and communications at the speed of light.

A note from Brian Church, LinkedIn Canada

Brian Church, Country Manager, LinkedIn Canada

Welcome to Social Media Week Toronto 2012. This week we come together to continue the discussion on how social media has changed the way we do business. LinkedIn is proud to sponsor Social Media Week Toronto (SMWTO) this year under the theme of “Business and Information at Light Speed.” It’s no surprise that as digital media has become so prevalent in our daily lives, our access to information is exploding, while the time we have to process it seems to be shrinking on a daily basis. How do we take advantage of digital media without being overwhelmed by it?

At LinkedIn we’re focused on making professionals more productive and successful in a digital world that is moving at light speed. Every day we see our members using the network to quickly and efficiently make connections, gain valuable business insights, showcase expertise and find new business opportunities.

The LinkedIn Canada team is looking forward to sharing and exchanging best practices this week at SMWTO on how professionals can successfully leverage social media to do business at light speed. We hope you can join us at one of our sessions or stop by the LinkedIn Success Lounge for a profile makeover and learn some tips and tricks on how you can maximize LinkedIn for you and your business.

TODAY! 10:00 am to 3:00 pm Stop by the LinkedIn Success Lounge for some one-on-one learning

TODAY! 3:30 pm to 5:00 pm What You Really Must Know To Succeed in Social Media Marketing

THURSDAY FEBRUARY 16th! 4:30 pm to 6:00 pm Accelerating Small Business Growth in our Economic Times

This year we’re hoping everyone at SMWTO will be our Valentine; we just have so much love to give! We would never refuse candy (Elizabeth), chocolate (Hayden) and/or flowers (Amanda Lynne) but we would much rather woo you with a full day of amazing programs taking a look at the Community Within.

Photo by Rafiq Phillips, used and modified under Creative Commons License

Exploring the relationships of business and the development of communities at the social level, our event hosts and partners will analyze and present ideas about the ever-changing community, both online and off. We expect to be swept off our feet with some of the thought leadership coming out of today’s sessions, and with little night programming, we will talk nerdy to you and get you all ready for a night of lovin’ with your Valentine of choice.

Corny puns aside, it’s nothing new to say that social media is deeply affecting our personal lives. The relationships we have with work and with each other, and the  connectedness we feel through engaging with our friends in social networks, are continually driving our personal and professional communities closer.

Today’s sessions present a lot of highly engaging perspectives about relationships. From combining narrative with content, to engaging employees in the hiring process and creating a sustainable digital community for your brand, this is our opportunity to really focus and explore our commitment to digital and the world it is shaping around us.

At Social Media Week we are hoping to nurture a digital community in Toronto that lasts longer than a week. Tell us what you’re up to at this year’s festival via twitter (@SMWTO, #SMWTO), and be part of the community within.

(And don’t forget the chocolates.)

Ever been out and thought to yourself, “Man, my playlist is sooo much better than this Hootie retrospective!” (Nothing against Hootie, of course!) Here’s your chance to rock out to YOUR music at the Closing Night Party and win a subscription to Rdio. We’re calling all music buffs (and bluffs) to create a ‘crowd-sourced’ playlist on Rdio for the Social Media Week Closing Party.

Haven’t heard of Rdio? Rdio is the groundbreaking digital music service with on-demand access to over 12 million songs, reinventing the way people discover and listen to music.

Follow these simple instructions and show us what you’ve got:

1. Visit www.rdio.com and select “Try Rdio for Free”
2. Enter you email address for a 7-day free trial (no credit card required)
3. Find our ‘Social Media Week Toronto’ profile and put your own mark on the closing party!

After contributing to the SMWTO playlist, you’ll be automatically entered to win a (three, six month or one year) subscription with Rdio!!

Submissions due Thursday, February 16th, 2012 at 11:59PM. Reminder: Closing Night Party is Friday, February 17th.

The fine line items / Rules and Regs.

1. Winners will be picked at random. Names will be tweeted via @SMWTO and SMWTO Facebook on February 17, 2012
2. You may contribute as many times as you want to the playlist
3. Enter you email address for a 7-day free trial (no credit card required)
4. Not all songs may be played live due to timing constraints or appropriateness
5. The prizing items include: Three 3 month, Two 6 month, One 1 year subscriptions to Rdio.

Today marks the launch of Social Media Week! Here at SMWTO, our theme for Monday is A Social Society. Together with our theme sponsor, BMO, we would like to welcome you to SMWTO! Here’s a message from BMO:

Social Media Week is finally here, and we at BMO couldn’t be more excited!

For those taking the social media world by storm – and those just getting started – there are endless opportunities this week to share and build upon your knowledge. Since social media is constantly evolving, this week helps you connect to those fully engrossed in specific areas, so we can grow our current understanding and innovate further. This type of knowledge is priceless for entrepreneurs faced with the challenging but potentially rewarding task of growing their business through social media.

As a leader in the financial social space, we’ve been connecting with Canadians over the past year through a number of online channels. That includes our BMO SmartSteps for Business online community, our @BMOsmb and @BMO Twitter handles, and our BMO Financial Group Facebook page.

Now we’re excited to strengthen that connection through this week’s series of exciting events, including our own ‘Accelerating Small Business Growth in our Economic Times’ event on Thursday. Featuring expert panelists and entrepreneurs, it promises to offer excellent tips and tactics for any small business owner to better use social media to its full potential.

Locally and internationally, we’re looking forward to discovering what others have to share about how social media is changing our world, and how we can use it in new, innovative and exciting ways. The ability to connect throughout this week not only reinforces the power of social media, but expands the opportunity to build on our current grasp of emerging trends and technologies.

A message from Eli Singer, Producer of Social Media Week Toronto and Founder of Entrinsic

Today we kick off SMWTO 2012, Canada’s largest free digital culture festival. This year marks a major shift from our first two years. We’ve more than doubled in size from 2011 – over 115 events, 150 staff and volunteers, almost 10,000 tickets sold, and parties every night. We think our new “festival” approach – as opposed to previous years’ “conference” – best captures this year’s celebratory mood.

If I could sum up one key insight for this year’s event, I’d say it’s that digital culture is now a powerful force in the mainstream. At SMWTO 2012 we’re exploring the future of digital culture while being mindful of its direction.

Huge thanks to our organizers and volunteers who’ve laboured over the past year to make this event shine. As you’re out there this week, make sure to thank your event hosts and everyone in the SMW t-shirts – these people are working hard and volunteering their time. A special thank you to team members from previous years who helped build the foundation for SMWTO.

I’d like to especially recognize my dedicated team of organizers at Entrinsic, as well as our sponsors. Without your passion, this event would never have happened.

Finally, I’m looking forward to meeting and jamming with you all this week. Have a blast, all you Future Hipsters!

A word from our content partner, Epilogger!

Call it providence or divine intelligence but it seems Social Media Week and Epilogger were made for each other. Epilogger is proud to be official content sponsor for Social Media Week Toronto 2012. Social Media Week Toronto is the epitome of social media engagement by virtue of its marrying of offline and online activity and we are all about that! People will be meeting in person, following each other, sharing their experiences through photos and tweets and we will be there every step of the way. What does that mean? It means that each session being organized by the great folks in the Toronto tech scene have the opportunity to immortalize the tweets, check-ins, blog posts and the oodles of pictures that are sure to come cascading in from Twitter, Instagram and most other popular photo sharing services. All you need to do is create an account at http://epilogger.com, add an event, plug in your hashtags or keywords and you’re off to the races. The really great thing we are passing on to you is the ability to be in two places at once. We know that you may need to choose between one session or the other and lament missing it, or worse, miss the boat on tickets! Since Epilogger also lets you subscribe to other events you can peek in on what’s happening across town from the comfort of your laptop or smartphone! If last year’s #SMWTO was any indication, we’re expecting this year to have tons of content from the twitterverse!

In the spirit of taking part in Canada’s largest free digital culture festival, we’re letting you take a test drive for free! Of course we’d love your feedback as you use the system because we’re building it for you! Tell us about your experience, suggest cool features you’d like to see or just say hi by clicking the feedback button anywhere in Epilogger. We’re listening and we’ll remember.

Be sure to check out the master event page on Epilogger at http://epilogger.com/events/social-media-week-toronto-2012 to see the entire festival as it happens. We can’t wait to see you join the site and have a blast at Social Media Week Toronto 2012!

A word from our Theme Sponsor – A Social Society, BMO. Check out their event Accelerating Small Business Growth in our Economic Times!

As a proud sponsor of Social Media Week Toronto, we at BMO understand that digital culture is ever evolving, providing ample opportunity for participation. As major brands develop their presence online, individual entrepreneurs connect with potential customers, artists showcase their work, journalists break the news, and the casual user shares a cool video with their friends.

The stats don’t lie – social media offers engaged audiences to those who choose to strategize and reach them. By the end of 2011, there were more than 800 million users on Facebook, an increase of 200 million from the previous year. Meanwhile, there were more than 100 million active Twitter users by the end of last year, collectively producing 250 million tweets per day.

Over the past year at BMO, we took a look at how people are using the internet and social media to engage with finance and business content. In May, a BMO InvestorLine study found a significant majority of online investors turn to social media platforms for information on which to base their investment decisions. The study found 40 per cent of online investors visit online financial communities or forums, 16 per cent track blogs, and 10 per cent access Facebook for investment-related input.

A subsequent study found half of Canadian businesses believe social media could increase their profitability. Though only 29 per cent of small business owners currently take advantage of social media, the survey found those that do use it to promote their brands, provide broader access to consumers and encourage referrals, among other purposes.

Equipped with this knowledge, BMO is proud to be a thought leader in providing content and sharing finance and business resources through our website, online SmartSteps communities, Twitter engagement and podcasts.

Beyond the finance world, this year’s Social Media Week schedule exemplifies social media’s vast applications from arts and culture to the environment, journalism to social change. With the opportunity to learn and share through these stimulating events, Social Media Week Toronto will surely provide new valuable insights and opportunities to connect with those in the city and around the world.

In the meantime, you can also connect with BMO SmartSteps® for Business on Twitter @BMOsmb, and visit the online community.

A word from our sponsor – MediaMiser!

People are talking about your organization, your brand, and the issues that are important to you – but you already knew that. Because your customers expect you to have a social presence, staying on top of these conversations is now a necessity.

But just being on Twitter and Facebook isn’t enough if you aren’t keeping track of the conversation, and that’s where monitoring and analysis enters the picture.

The concept is twofold, and includes social and traditional media monitoring and intelligence. By monitoring social chatter around your organization, you’re instantly alerted to potential issues or crises before they gain traction – helping you to react quickly and efficiently, if need be. Monitoring and analysis helps you manage your brand’s reputation, protect your privacy, build a community and engage your listeners.

But what does it all mean? There’s more to it than just listening to the conversation – you also need to know how to use that knowledge to better your own organization. Social and traditional media intelligence helps identify, analyze and interpret factors, people or events that positively or negatively influence your brand’s identity.

Looking at a combination of quantitative and qualitative factors such as influence rates and tonality, frequency of postings, numbers of mentions and total followers, organizations can identify how their brand is being perceived and tweak their communications efforts accordingly.

Now for the kicker: What if analyzing all that data was free of charge?

Well, for a limited time, it is! MediaMiser is giving away a social and traditional media analysis report, and attendees can enter any time before the end of Social Media Week Toronto to qualify!

The lucky winner will consult briefly with MediaMiser on a suitable topic for their free social and traditional media analysis report. The report will analyze an upcoming event, issue, or limited time frame and will measure a variety of metrics in both social media and online news.

A word from one of our Global Initiatives – Boomurang!

There could have been no better opportunity for us at Mocial.MEdia to publicly launch our Boomurang communication app than with Social Media Week and Social Media Week Toronto. With this year’s theme, Empowering Change through Collaboration, we are happy to sponsor the week-long festival by providing Boomurang as a mobile collaboration tool for event goers, speakers, organizers and sponsors. Boomurang is a great addition to the communication experience already ripe with content; and here’s why:

As a mobile communication app, Boomurang is a platform for people to engage in location-specific, real-time conversation. It’s a social experience that requires no existing network for users to be able to interact and share with each other. The experience is based on posting information to a location FEED, similar to that of stapling a flyer to a telephone pole. Once posted, the information is completely public, allowing all other users to consume and interact with. For Social Media Week, this is a great way for event goers to communicate with each other without having to create a network connection, and without having to search for the event hashtag. Because we have sponsored all Social Media Week Toronto locations, finding other SMWTO events around the city using the map interface is easy. Using TELEPORT, you can navigate the series of SMW sponsored locations, and get involved in the conversation at any event at any time. As a community app, we urge you to recognize each other for taking part in collaboration. So if you appreciate the comments of others shoot them Kudos and reward their effort. Think of it as a virtual pat on the back. The more contribution to the Boomurang world, the more valuable the experience becomes, so give Kudos, and give it often.

Our suggestion for best practices are to use Boomurang to collaborate with others at the events you are present at, or use it to virtually connect to the workshops you couldn’t attend, or those that sold out. Also, as workshops transition to evening festivities, use Boomurang to debrief on your day and share your experience with other party-goers at the designated after parties.

To share a little of our vision with you, we feel there is a need for people to be able to access real-time, location-specific information. To get a complete experience however, users need to be able to interact without the ‘network barrier’ (i.e. beyond their existing social networks). We also recognized that the ‘check-in’ experience created some concern, as people are hesitant to share where they are in the world with strangers. Designing an experience on these guidelines, Boomurang was born; a completely network free experience for people to share information with people nearby, or anywhere in the world. Users are as anonymous as they choose to be, and their locations are never known. So, if you want to know if there is a long line at that SMWTO after party, or if you want to share with others that the 2-for-1 appetizer special is on, you can do that on Boomurang.

We look forward to our involvement in the Social Media Week experience. As a festival that focuses on the evolution of communication as we know it, we are eager to learn from this community, and are particularly excited to be able to contribute to it. We also want to specifically thank the SMWTO team at Entrinsic. We will be releasing a brand new Boomurang leading up to SMWTO, so keep an eye out for that.

We welcome your feedback so please get in touch with us by following us on twitter, facebook or email. Just remember to play nice, because on Boomurang, what goes around, comes around!

You can download Boomurang here or visit the website for more information.

We have an exciting list of events this year, but unfortunately you won’t be able to attend everything – there’s just too much! But what happens when the session you are absolutely dying to see is full?

As per Social Media Week policy, we do not oversell tickets to our events. If you have registered for an event you are guaranteed your spot so long as you arrive 15 minutes before the start of your session.

For those who were unable to register for an event, or it was full before they had the chance, we do expect a 30% drop off in attendance so there is still a chance to get in on a session.

Do we have a wait list, you ask? Our wait list policy is as follows: Day-of, arrive at the desired event 30 minutes before the scheduled start time and find a SMWTO Volunteer. They can put you on a waitlist at the door and hopefully we’ll be able find you a spot. While we will make every effort to get you into the event, we DO NOT guarantee spots to everyone on the waitlist. We apologize for any inconvenience, but urge everyone to register early and often before the events you are interested in fill up.

We still have plenty of spots open for many of our events – check out the list below!

Monday

Keynote: From Like to Love – How Social has Changed the Marketing Relationship Forever – Yahoo! Canada

Sub-Saharan Africa: The Other Social Media Revolution – Journalists for Human Rights

Socially Green – Kuuala

Social Media for Social Good – My Smart Hands

#Tweetgasm: Lovefools Edition – Gladstone Hotel and @nympsam

Creating Wildfires, Focus Like a Sensei, Be Irresistible – Sensei Marketing

From Slactivist to Activist: Partners in change, one small act a time – Luttrell Communications

Tuesday

Keynote: Social Media – Personalizing The Connection Between Fan & Brand – Maple Leaf Sports Entertainment

Entrinsic Presents: Round 2, a conversation on social metrics – Entrinsic

Involving Every Employee in the Talent Acquisition Process – LinkedIn

Project Butterfly: Escaping the Net – The Palmerston Group

Customer Service is Social! Are You Ready? – Strativity Group

P2P: The New Model for Social Good – KiwiCommons

Business Wire Social Media Webinar – Business Wire

Love in the Digital Age – Narrative

Getting to Social ROI: Black & White and Lots of Gray – Critical Mass

Wednesday

Winning the Hyper-Local Games – The Location Based Marketing Association

Social Media for the Enterprise – LinkedIn

LinkedIn Success Lounge – LinkedIn

The Reality Behind “Real-Time” – Noise Digital

The Social Family – Bunch Family

#hcsmca Healthcare Social Media Canada Meet-Up – Healthcare Social Media Canada

Social Digital Coupons – Simply Good Technologies

Not Another Open Bar Event: Is Your Brand Seeing a Return on Influence – Grip Limited

Advanced Facebook Marketing - FanCrank and Pinpoint Social

Cut the Noise, Validate the Market and Gain Value from your Startup Following – StartMeUp Ryerson

Thursday

Accelerating Small Business Growth in Our Economic Times – BMO Bank of Montreal

Getting serious about travel blogging – Toronto Travel Massive

Leveraging Social Media in the B2B Sales Process – Venture Accelerator Partners

Treats & Tweets, pet-friendly event with social media installations @PawsWay Toronto – Feast Interactive Inc

Shopping, Gossip, Trends and Friends – How Women are Shaping the Social Media Landscape – Women in Wireless

An Evening on the Evolution of Democracy – Citizen Bridge

The Emerging Collaborative Lifestyle Through Social Media – Free Geek Toronto

Food and Social Media: Two key ingredients for collaboration – She’s So Savvy

Social Media Friends, Anxiety and You – amotherworld

Gamification: Perspectives from both sides – henderson bas kohn/Social Game Universe

SxSW – Pre Party – North of 41 – North of 41

Community Management Beyond Facebook and Twitter – High Road Communications

Friday

Driving the Social Conversation with GM – General Motors

Twitter TeaTime – Stocial and bNotions

Plays Well with Others: Participatory Culture for a New Age – The Labs

Social Storytelling: Creating and Curating Content Strategies That Work – Critical Mass

Storyselling: How to use great digital content to help make the sale – Strategic Storytellers

After-parties

Tuesday – Meet and Greet at the Elephant and Castle

Wednesday – After Hours Conversation at the Firkin on King

Friday – Social Media Café Toronto and Crowd Sourced Music Party

Throughout the Week

tweet2hold – Brototypes

SMWTO Coffee House – ING Direct

Boomurang – Boomurang

Guest post by Desiree Gamotin

Over the past few years, digital music services have been growing and spreading like wildfire, freaking out big record labels with their massive success rates and user following. But now, there’s a new generation of music streaming services that are using social media not only as the main tool in marketing music, but as the very foundation of its service to create more interactive listening communities. A step above our known favourites GrooveShark and 8Tracks, these sites offer a whole new user experience that is truly changing the way we share the music we love.

Image by photosteve101

Enter Turntable.fm, a free music site that sets you up with a DJ avatar that can pop in and out of virtual “listening rooms” generated by the users. Each DJ plays music for the audience in each genre-based room. The DJ’s popularity is determined by the users in the animated audience who vote on the songs by clicking on the “lame” or “awesome” buttons. (side note: Dear Facebook, yes please. Sincerely, Us.) The more fans and/or points you accumulate allow you to keep your designated DJ spot on the stage.

By combining music streaming, gaming, and chat rooms, founder Billy Chasen has created a fun, real-time way of discovering new music within a community. It’s as though you are right there in a multi-room club, bouncing from genre to genre and sharing a live music experience with a group of friends.

Though still a baby in comparison to popular music streaming sites and currently only available in the U.S, Turntable.fm is quickly gaining recognition, especially with guest celebrity DJs sneaking onto the virtual stage.

So how are music streaming leaders like Spotify, Rdio, and MOG upping the ante to stand out within the overcrowding market? By taking advantage of the social media platforms we know best, of course: Facebook and Twitter.

Though Spotify has been around for a few years now, making a Facebook account mandatory to access the site – as announced this past September – has allowed this music streaming service to integrate itself even deeper into the social media world and spread music faster. Same thing goes for Rdio, with what Rdio’s Chief Operating Officer, Carter Adamson calls a “Twitter for music” and MOG’s music buffet-style mobile-friendly service.

Whatever these services are doing, they’re doing it right. With Facebook compatibilities, vast music catalogues, and more and more features like gaming to maximize online listening, music streaming services are continuing to dominate the music industry, morphing it into a user-generated, interactive forum for all types of music lovers.

Guest post by Desiree Gamotin

Digital media box, media extender, digital media adapter, media streamer, Internet TV adapters – whatever you want to call it, they all offer relatively the same service, allowing you to stream online videos and other digital media via Internet onto your television screen.

A new generation of game changers are attempting to perfect the infamously flawed video streaming boxes: Apple TV, Boxee and Roku. But why bother with these boxes when I have my trusty computer to handle all my media viewing needs?

We’ve been forced into the era of over-sharing: everything from our trivial status updates and blog posts to our Foursquare locations to last night’s party photos. So why not more videos and more television shows in the comfort of our own living room – the original venue for sharing content with the people close to us.

What separates each digital media box is obviously its unique features. And depending on what you want from a system, each box is suitable to serve that purpose, though they’re all still essentially similar.

Image from Wikimedia Commons

Apple TV is preferred by any loyal Mac fanatic for its sleek design and familiar interface. If you find that your 14-inch laptop doesn’t fully encompass the quality of your travel photos on Flickr, blow it up on your flatscreen TV, as Apple TV allows you to use multimedia like Flickr, YouTube and Vimeo in high definition. Best of all, you could even play content from your iPhones or iPads on your TV through this digital box.

How it fails? Apple TV is the hipster version of the digital streaming box – it has great style but is limited to what it knows and loves best: iTunes. That means no buying videos from Amazon Instant Video, (available only for Roku), no music streaming from MOG or Rdio, no other streaming sources of the World Wide Web. Apple TV was designed with iTunes content in mind, so if you’re not an avid buyer of movies, TV shows and music through your iTunes, slowly back away now.

Image by William Hook

Boxee takes the cake for its major social networking component that enables users to view, rate and recommend content to friends. Since it requires a registered account, users can follow the activity of other fellow Boxee users with the option of publicly recommending movie/television content. You can also monitor your Facebook and Twitter accounts on your TV screen and play media from your own local network. Bonus points for an interface that’s pleasing to the eyes.

How it fails? Strangely enough, the one downfall potential users can’t seem to get over is Boxee’s lack of the super popular video-streaming service, Hulu Plus. For monster streamers like myself, not having Hulu on Boxee is a deal-breaker. Where else would I go to for random clips and good quality videos when YouTube isn’t there to save me?

Image by Mattnad, from Wikimedia Commons

As far as which box seems closest to attaining true digital entertainment nirvana, Roku is an Internet browsing-lover’s dream. More than 300 channels? Check. Live NHL, UFC and NBA? Check. Video playback and instant replays? Check. Having had great reviews all around, Roku is incomparable for its incredible range of media content including Hulu Plus, Amazon and Internet music services like MOG and Rdio. Plus it’s even cheaper than the others.

Where it fails? The biggest drawback for Roku is that it’s not Apple TV – in that it doesn’t play local media from iTunes nor can it stream from your iOS device of choice. As a religious Mac user, sometimes I go into panic mode when my interface looks too different from my familiar Apple apps. Roku also can’t play content protected with Apple’s DRM and that’s a huge limitation for me.

The infinite horse race for best Internet streaming boxes for TV is becoming more intense and the choices can appear overwhelming. With the advent of television shows “On Demand” and the plethora of PVR devices, we seem to be collecting more digital boxes (and remote controls) in order to build the ultimate multimedia viewing experience within our living rooms. But with great media streaming power comes great responsibility. We’re not just sitting passively on our couches watching television shows – we’re searching for them and interactively engaging in what we see even moreso than on our computers. Though boxes still have a long way to go to perfection, we may be seeing a sneak preview into the future of Connected TV.

This year’s SMWTO events are filling up in record time, but don’t despair – there are still more exciting events coming your way!

We just want to take a moment to make some formal introductions in to our 3rd round of event announcements.

If you’re still looking to host an event, our absolute deadline is Jan 30. Get in contact with us now!

SMWTO producers bring you 4 marquee events through the week

Host: Entrinsic
Pulse Check: SMWTO Official Launch Event
Monday, February 13
The official launch event of Social Media Week Toronto, Pulse Check takes a hard look at the current state of digital and the future of the web. Who is online? What are we doing with the advent of new technology and where are we headed? 10 panelists from 10 industries present a 5 minute candid POV on the status of the internet through the eyes of their industry. Included in the conversation will be representatives from the Health Care, Finance, Analytics, Family, Mobile, Arts industries and more. Join us for a raw conversation on everything digital, social and the Internet.

Moderated by Eli Singer, Social Media Week Toronto Producer and President of Entrinsic.

Host: Entrinsic
Entrinsic Presents: Inside the numbers, an analytics forecast and review
Tuesday, February 14
We are all constantly striving to make our products, our brands, and our work more relevant in the social space. A big part of the 2012 world wide strategy is to become more intelligent in our campaigns and really analyze the way we measure what we do online.

At a time when business users have easier access to metrics and on-the-fly reports than ever before – where deep analytics and metric-based reports are a drag and drop away – we all struggle to bring insight, context, and predictability to the data we receive. What do the numbers mean? And what do we do with them?

From the characteristics of global reach, to the emotional context of a tweet, join the Entrinsic Analytics team and a panel of Canada’s top metric thought leaders as we explore all areas of metrics as they share their forecasts for the 2012 socialsphere.

The session will include an hour long panel, followed by individual break out sessions where you get the chance to dive deeper into the topics presented by each of our panelists.

Moderated by Steve Harris, Entrinsic – Director of Analytics

Host: Entrinsic
Entrinsic Presents: CaseCamp
Thursday, February 16
In 2011 brands questioned What is Facebook?, in 2011 Now that I’m here, what do I do? and in 2012 we are asking How do we do this BETTER?. With the continually growing digital culture encompassing the way we look at brands and branding, it’s important to take an opportunity to learn from those around us. Join the Entrinsic team as we engage some of the top digital brands in North America into telling the war-room stories of the good, the bad and the ugly of how they got to where they are today.

Hosted by Entrinsic Founder, SMWTO producer Eli Singer.

CaseCamp is a case study-based, peer-to-peer learning unconference. Established in 2006 by Eli Singer, the event inspires and informs businesses that want to learn more about using social media to enhance their communications strategies. In a structure that is setup for learning and sharing, come hear some of the industries greatest accomplishments and hardest failures as told from behind the trenches.

Host: Entrinsic
Entrinsic Presents: Bilingual brands in the digital space
Friday, February 17
Do you know what it takes to run a bilingual brand in the digital space?

Join the Entrinsic team as we explore the ins, outs, and best practices for representing two diverse cultures in one digital community. From handling the Régie, to English/French Facebook landing pages and language barriers, our skilled panelists bring you a hot-topic session with insight into the front line of bilingual branding in the social sphere.

Three of Canada’s top community / brand managers will share their strategies and stories about managing a bilingual community in both official languages.

Panelists Include:
Amy Blackmore – Festival Director, Montreal Fringe Festival
Karine Idrissi – Community Manager, Lise Watier Cosmétiques
Richard Marginson – Community Manager, VIA Rail
Moderator: TBD

Official Parties

Entrinsic, in collaboration with various partners, shall be presenting official Social Media Week Toronto parties of each day. Details are to be confirmed, but watch out for them coming up!

Monday, Feb. 13 Theme: A Social Society

Host: Canada’s National Ballet School
Social Media: Successful Audience/Community Engagement in Arts & Culture
A panel discussion around utilising Social Media in the not-for-profit world to
create dialogue around the arts, culture and education sectors in Canada. What works well?

What drives key messages to constituent groups? What shared experiences / case studies do we have? A conversation for managers, staff involved in Social Media and industry enthusiasts.

Hosted by Canada’s National Ballet School. Light refreshments provided.

Host: Kuuala
Socially Green
Socially Green, hosted by Kuuala, is an event that brings the professionals in Toronto in Social Media and Green businesses together. Attendees are free to join each of the discussion tables presented by one of our key moderators to learn about issues facing our planet today not just environmentally but also socially due to our choices of products. Each discussion is led by one of the key presenters seeking solutions from attendees to find ways to increase awareness using Social Media to reduce the human footprint.

Beer, wine and hors d’oeuvres will be served.

Main theme of the event: Green- Everything about this event from the venue to the invitations and all the products and services offered are going to be green.

Host: Theatre Centre
Digital Storytelling and Live Performance
What are the ways that online technologies can be used in conjunction with performance? How are digital technologies expanding the potential of art forms that have initially been analog based?

From online “brains” that supplement the material an audience engages with live, to interactive performance that encourages audiences to upload their consciousness online, to cross-city tours that keep a mobile audience connected through social media tools, the parameters and potential of storytelling has expanded in exciting and unexpected ways.

Multi-platform artists involved in The Theatre Centre’s festival FreeFall ’12 – ‘Performance Without A Net’ – demonstrate, discuss, and debate their methods and artistic philosophies in this interactive event.

Tues. Feb. 14 Theme: A Social Society

Host: SM Strategy Group in partnership with VENGEO and Professional Writers Association of Canada Toronto Chapter
Lunch and Learn –> The Community Within: Digital Brand Stamping
REDEFINE ONLINE: Empowering Content Creation and Communication Freedom
Within the web, there are micro-sites for brands, organizations, events, promotions, new product launches and contests. Create your personalized do-it-yourself digital brand stamp landing or web pages for E-commerce, content sharing and internet marketing. You can customize and create media-rich html5 packages that can be added to any site or page with a link – and you don’t need to be a designer!

Host: Creative Niche
Using Social Media to Attract Your Next Star Employee
Just as companies are using social media to research potential employees, job seekers are using Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn to find out what potential employers are really like. A panel of Toronto’s leading recruiters will discuss the importance of a good employer brand, how companies can leverage social networks to become a desired employer and attract top talent.
Refreshments and networking session to follow.

Wed. Feb. 15 Theme: Business & Information at Light Speed

Host: The Remix Project
The Social Media Remix: A discussion with marketers and non-profits on using social media to grow exposure, reach, and capital fundraising
The Remix Project, Blackboard Marketing, and Liz Gallo Media bring you a panel discussion with marketers and non-profits using social media to further their organization’s goals. Moderated by Yasser Pervaiz of Blackboard Marketing this panel will investigate: “How social media can grow your exposure and capital fundraising.” “Current methods marketers and non-profits are using in the digital space.” and “What the agency world can learn from non-profits and charitable organization’s use of social media.”

Host: Fundchange, Koodonation and TELUS
Social Media, Crowdsourcing and Microvolunteering for Charities and Non-profits
Fundchange and KoodonationTM invite you to an interactive breakfast workshop on social media, crowdsourcing and crowdfunding for charities. The format will be a combination of seminar with discussion in order for you to learn from the successes of your peers.

This workshop will cover the following topics:
• Social media and its impact on fundraising and volunteer recruitment efforts
• Crowdsourcing and Crowdfunding – what are they and how can you use them
• Fundchange.com – what is it and how can you participate
• Koodonation.com – what is it and how can you take advantage of its community of micro volunteers
• Project based fundraising and micro-volunteering, as well as trends in this direction
• Options for engaging a new generation of donors or volunteers

Breakfast and refreshments included.

Speakers:
Claire Kerr – Director of Digital Philanthropy – Artez Interactive
Jennifer Robertson – Director of Communications, Koodo
Paul Dombowsky – founder of Fundchange, ceo of Ideavibes

Host: Bunch Family in partnership with Rec Room
The Social Family
Last year at SMWTO, The Social Family panel looked into the online footprint of toddlers, vanity domains as a must have for newborns and the ethics of YouTubing your kids. Now that’s old hat. In 2012, toddlers don’t understand why paper won’t click, teachers are advocating to bring smart phones into the classroom, and not only do parents have to instill good eating habits in their kids, they also need to make sure their kids are consuming a healthy media diet. But really, do parents have any authority to teach these digital natives anything anyhow? Join us for round two of the Social Family. It will be a total knockout.

Host: Socialmark
Content may be king, but without Context – no one will pay attention
In a world were there is more content being created every 48 hours, than in the entire history of mankind, it is without question that content development has become the cornerstone of activity for many individuals and organizations.

But

With all this content comes a disruptive effect – you’re now just another fish in an extremely big pond. So how do you get people to notice you, like you, trust you and even share what you’re saying to their networks?

Context

When you can go beyond just words, and connect with people on a deeper emotional level, that’s when you get noticed and that’s when you get shared. That’s why Apple has become so successful – they have mastered the art of transforming simple content, into powerful and long-lasting context for their consumers.

This session will discuss moving your content into context, how to generate better content for stronger impact, and how to get user generated content, that when done correctly can be the most powerful form of communications possible.

Host: SM Strategy Group in partnership with VENGEO and Professional Writers Association of Canada Toronto Chapter
Lunch & Learn –> Business and Information at Light Speed: Digital Content Creation
REDEFINE ONLINE: Empowering content Creation & Communication Freedom
Rich digital dialogue involves knowledge of using multi-media for creative customization of content, whether it is E-book or E-magazine publishing, or dynamic blogs with video, audio, animation and image reveals. Page authors learn how to do free-format web page design to engage and interact on every page.

Host: Ryerson University’s Digital Media Zone
Rapid Ideation Workshop and Pitch Contest at Toronto’s Hottest Start-up Incubator
A fast-paced workshop where you’ll learn a constructive and collaborative approach for coming up with viable new digital business ideas! Groups of 4-5 people will develop and then pitch their idea to a panel of digital entrepreneurs. This event is co-hosted by Ryerson University’s startup incubator, The Digital Media Zone, as well as Ryerson’s Start Me Up, which provides resources and education to business entrepreneurs. A brief overview of the Digital Media Zone is included. Light refreshments will be served.

Thurs. Feb. 16 Theme: At Your Finger tips: social in the palm of your hand

Host: CitizenBridge.org
An Evening on the Evolution of Democracy – presented by CitizenBridge.org
Ever heard the terms Gov 2.0, OpenData, OpenGov, and Democracy 2.0, but never understood their meaning, context or implication in our society?

This evening will be dedicated to exploring those questions and coming up with a few solid answers as well that could drastically change your life.

“An Evening on the Evolution of Democracy” could be your first step in a truly engaging and active conversation between you and your government.

Be part of it.

Host: BNOTIONS
Open Graph – The Unseen Juggernaut
The story of social media isn’t just about enhanced relationships between people. We relate to each other best when referencing things, be they physical objects, media or ideas. In 2008 Facebook launched its Open Graph protocol with its iconic Like button, it was the catalyst needed to kickstart the semantic web, enabling the rise of “Social Things”.

BNOTIONS will be providing an evening devoted to understanding what the Open Graph is and its potential. We will start with a presentation and then we will move into an open forum discussion.

The night will play out as follows:
1. The Open Graph for Dummies (A refresher for the rest of us)
- Welcome to the Semantic Web
- What is the purpose of the Facebook Open Graph
- The language of the Open Graph
- Introduction and brief walkthrough on how content is optimized for compatibility with the Open Graph
2. Cool Shit
- Examples of the great Open Graph uses
- Next level Open Graph uses
3. Speculation time!
- Recap of F8 announcements, specifically Verbs (Open Graph Action Words)
- Early adopters and sneak peaks
- An open discussion concerning what we will see in the Open Graph through 2012.

BNOTIONS is a technology company who has developed and published Facebook applications for many top-tier brands, including Interac, Paypal, Motorola, Quiznos and the Oprah Winfrey Network as well as an awesome list of start-ups.

Host: SM Strategy Group in partnership with VENGEO and Professional Writers Association of Canada Toronto Chapter
Lunch & Learn –> At Your Fingertips: E-Desktop Design for Dummies
It’s time to say goodbye to PDF’s and PowerPoint! With technology, moves design. And it’s never been easier to use varied text, multi-media and links to make presentations, online brochures and newsletters move with digital drag and drop page design. You’ll use images, diagrams, designs, plans and portfolios to showcase you or your organization.

Host: Professional Writers Association of Canada [PWAC] Toronto Chapter
Digital Journalism for Pay
This seminar examines digital journalism. That is, online reporting. Not personal blogging or posting party photos online, but old fashioned journalism (i.e. news and feature stories complete with interviews + research) done on the Internet.
Speakers will discuss the brave new world of online reporting, how it’s similar and dissimilar to traditional, print-based journalism. Learn about work opportunities for serious writing in this rapidly growing field.

Speakers include:
-Wilf Dinnick, president and CEO of OpenFile, an exciting venture in which professional writers put together stories online based on community input. PWAC president Craig Silverman was a founding member of this cross-country enterprise. OpenFile can be found at www.openfile.ca
-Bert Archer, writer, provocateur and development editor at Yonge Street, an online magazine about Toronto that can be seen at http://www.yongestreetmedia.ca/

Fri., Feb 17 Theme: Innovative Minds and Technology

Host: Mocial.MEdia & Boomurang
SoLoMo – The Trends in Location Based Mobile Experiences
Geo-based experiences are a growing niche in the mobile social space. It’s a particularly interesting time as we being to witness the emergence of experiences focusing on the intersection of crowdsourcing information, and location in a mobile environment. In this workshop, we focus on the the philosophies of location-based services (LBS) and discuss some predictions on the future of this crossroads.

Get involved in the LBS conversation on Boomurang at this event.

Host: The Working Group
Building “Valuable” Social into Web and Mobile Apps
A panel discussion between social media strategists, designers and developers around building true value through social features inside your web and mobile applications.

Host: SM Strategy Group in partnership with VENGEO and Professional Writers Association of Canada Toronto Chapter
Lunch & Learn –> Innovative Minds and Technology: E-Publishing made Easy
REDEFINE ONLINE: Empowering Content Creation & Communication Freedom
Learn how to create digital publications, flyers and catalogues using multi-media to publish online. Easy access to video, images and all E-docs with web links. With publication and communication tools, content and design merge innovative minds and technology.

Host: Social Media Cafe Toronto
Social Media Cafe Toronto
Toronto’s Social Media Cafe is an informal networking event for people who share an interest in social media. It’s a casual forum for you to meet new people, share experiences, and drink lots of coffee (or beers). If you enjoy meeting likeminded people who use social media– professionally, personally, artistically, or for any purpose– then this event is for you.

In the last few years, social media cafes sprung up across the UK, then moved into mainland Europe, the US, and now, it’s time to bring this successful event to Toronto. Their popularity comes from a casual environment, high energy, and a great network of interesting people.

If you would like to attend this event, join our meet up group or other social profiles.
If you would like to get involved with organizing it, please join us. And if you have any friends or colleagues who may be interested, please invite them.

Host: Social Media Group
Social Media Group Spark
Inspired by Ignite, which is a geek event in over 100 cities worldwide, Social Media Group presents Spark for Social Media Week Toronto. At Spark, SMG presenters will share their personal and professional passions, using 20 slides that auto-advance every 15 seconds for a total of just five minutes. The team at Social Media Group are pleased to present Spark as part of Social Media Week Toronto.

Come and hear members of the SMG team talk about their passions, experience and expertise about business, innovation, collaboration, community and social change. This event is perfect for short-attention spans. You’ll be inspired in no time.

Topics cover a lot of ground – from society and social to community and innovative minds and the technology that keeps us all glued to our screens.

Come out and join us. We’ll provide the coffee and make sure we have some time for discussion and Q&A with the SMG presenters.

Host: Rogers Communications
Hot, cold and everything in between: The many degrees of online customer engagement
Bringing together a mix of companies/brands who have (and continue to) use social media as a way to engage with influencers and advocates. The panel will speak to how companies: 1) use social media to change brand perception and turn non-believers into brand advocates/influencers, 2) put customers at the center of their social media efforts and 3) engage influencers and advocates via social media to benefit both brand and customer.

Throughout the Week

Host: ING DIRECT
SMWTO Coffee House by ING DIRECT
Join the ING DIRECT team daily at the SMWTO Coffee House.
Throughout SMWTO, drop by our Downtown Café to re-charge (for yourself and electronics), enjoy a coffee with new friends and continue your conversations from SMWTO events.

We’ll be serving up free coffee, WiFi and pastries throughout the week!
Our Café is located at 221 Yonge Street, in a heritage building that has been fully restored and renovated, the three-floor, open-concept retail space is the first of its kind in Toronto and demonstrates an innovative approach to banking and educating Canadians about money.

Our Café is designed to empower Canadians to make their own financial decisions, without line-ups, tellers or pens on ropes, and make banking as simple as having a conversation, on the same side of the table over a cup of coffee.

Features of the Café include:
• Free Wi-Fi and the latest technology to facilitate online and mobile banking or just to catch up on the latest local news.
• Opportunities to learn about and support local businesses and non-profits through the Saver’s Friends program. ING DIRECT will feature a different local partner each month and provide great savings on one feature product. 100% of the proceeds from these items will be given to local charities.
• A signature coffee, tea and juice experience

If you missed our previous event announcements, you can find them here: First announcement, Second announcement

Financial institutions form the backbone of the economy. Digital communications from these institutions face very unique challenges, bridging a traditionally conservative industry and cutting-edge technology. SMWTO producer Eli Singer took some time with Bank of Montreal’s Pritesh Gandhi to discuss how social media is changing the game for financial institutions.

Background
Pritesh’s past accomplishments include leading ShopATI (acquired by AMD), an e-commerce site with revenues of over $25MM US dollars annually with a 95% customer satisfaction index. He also independently developed the first internet marketing course for Seneca College. This course has become an integral part of the marketing curriculum at Seneca College.

Currently, he is Sr. Manager, Enterprise Digital Marketing & Strategy for one of Canada’s largest financial institution with over 20 people reporting to him. Recently, he led a team of 50+ to redesign BMO Bank of Montreal’s website to a leading-edge financial website which was rated in the Top 2 by Forrester Rankings.

Want to know something awesome about Pritesh? He has a Film Making Certificate from George Brown and has worked on So You Think You Can Dance Canada. Who knew?

How is social media being used by financial institutions in Canada?
When it comes to Canadians’ money and finances, a lack of communication by big banks almost always leads to customer dissatisfaction. So we make it a priority to be as open and transparent as possible. An impressive 60 per cent of Canadian retail banking customers use social media, which makes it a great place to discuss our customers’ banking experiences and hold to our promise of making money make sense.

What can other industries learn from how financial institutions are using social media?
The financial services industry in Canada and around the world has a great opportunity to use social media as a means of improving its customer experience. I believe companies like BMO show other industries that social media is not just about promotions and selling products, but also about understanding customers’ needs and engaging in conversations. Social media allows financial institutions to extend their footprint beyond the traditional sales-driven marketplace and into a setting that is more community-focused. Through this approach, social media naturally becomes a very effective customer service channel. Just be sure to tread carefully, because once questions are asked or an issue needs to be resolved, you had better have the resources in place to get your customers the answers they need.

With Social Media allowing the transfer of information at light speed, what do you see as being the next big opportunity for Social Media in relation to finance and banking?
One of the next big opportunities in social media, not just for the financial sector but for all businesses, is socially-enabled websites. From an e-marketing standpoint, a social experience brought into a branded environment is ideal. We currently do this to a degree with our BMO SmartSteps communities, where professional bloggers help start discussions around business and finance issues for Canadians.
I believe there’s a bit of a disconnect between traditional websites and social platforms for the financial industry as a whole, but a lot of businesses are quickly realizing they can integrate social elements into their sites. Do I think this type of integration will completely replace your standard bearers like Facebook and Twitter? Probably not – at least not anytime soon. But a well thought-out approach to your business’ social mix can really increase your Return on Relationships (RoR).

What are some challenges you face when integrating Social Media in a financial institution?
As a bank we’ve found trust and security are the most important things to us and our customers. Inherently, social media is about openness and communication. Our challenge then at BMO is to balance the practice of being open and transparent with the understanding that we have been entrusted with very important, and at times sensitive, information.

What are you looking forward to most for the 2012 festival?
The BMO team and I are very much looking forward to hosting new events and sharing new ideas, which influence the way participants see and value social media as a result. The programming this year looks better than ever with events not just across Toronto, but also linking up with our friends in other host cities like London and New York.

As of NOW registration for our first round of Social Media Week Events is open! We are so excited for this year’s lineup, with over 70 city-wide events, (and more to come,) SMWTO lets you choose your own adventure and lets you explore Social Media in a way you’ve never been able to before. With this year’s global theme of Empowering Change through Collaboration Toronto has helped build this event to become Canada’s largest free digital culture event.

Check out SMWTO’s full schedule and register now for the events you are dying to see. Register early and plan ahead: events are located throughout the downtown core and some have limited space, Seats fill up fast, so make sure you get your seats early

Some event details are still To Be Determined and therefore not open for registration yet, so check back often! Keep up to date on all Festival activity by following us on Twitter and signing up for the Newsletter.

Want to be part of this year’s SMWTO? It’s not too late to volunteer., be an event host, or sponsor this amazing event. Head over to our Get Involved page to find out more!

We look forward to meeting, networking, learning and partying with you throughout the week. Make sure you come by the Entrinsic office to say hi and participate in our week-long interactive art display by Brototypes.

See you at the Festival!

The SMWTO Team

We couldn’t find a team photo, so here’s our next best option. Because everyone loves rabbits!

Are you a recent grad / student looking for some hands on experience in the digital space? We’re looking to hire a Community Management Intern!

Not only will you connect with some of Canada’s coolest brands, top marketing professionals, and be a part of a global movement – you get to work with us at Entrinsic, SMWTO’s producing agency. (And trust me, that’s a job perk in itself.)

Below we’ve included a lot of detailed information on what the internship is, what we can offer and what you will get out of your time with us.

Let us know if you have any questions but apply soon!

Cheers

Amanda Lynne

Event Manager, SMWTO / Entrinsic

What am I applying for?

The official title for this position is Community Management Intern at Entrinsic. The internship will be 4 months long, from now till June 1st, 2012. Interns will receive a monthly stipend for their work.

Who will I be working for?

Entrinsic is a communications agency founded on the belief that new and emerging media are reshaping the way consumers — and by extension businesses — think, behave, and interact. We understand that a brand’s success in the social sphere relies on artfully weaving together technology and culture to create engagement. At Entrinsic, we develop and foster that engagement strategically, integrating social media touch points with a company’s overall communications to help forge a powerful and lasting connection with a brand’s customers.

From research and design through execution and analytics, we provide a full suite of services and dedicated account management at every step. The result? A robust, customized social media strategy that is tailor made for a brand and all their needs.

What would I be doing?

As part of a small team, your role will involve getting your hands BUSY and your plate FULL with a wide range of projects that may include:

• Content research
• Research / Outreach for current and potential partners
• Writing and editing blog posts for various brands
• Monitoring of social properties for multiple brands
• Creating reports and generating insights
• Contributing strategic insights for current and upcoming projects
• Being present at all internal and some client team meetings
• Providing support to other members of the team
• Other duties as required

What sort of employee are they looking for?

We don’t expect you to come to us with an extensive portfolio – this is why you are interning! We do, however, have some qualities in mind for our ideal candidate:

• A love for the word YES. You may not have performed a certain task before, but challenges excite you. You’re ready to learn and do whatever it takes to get the job done.
• Familiarity with and affinity for the social space. We don’t need an Internet superstar, but you should be comfortable working within a wide range of social platforms, with various communities. You should be familiar with industry standards and common practices.
• Comfortable with technology. We work a multitude of digital tools each and every day. You don’t need to be Bill Gates, but you should be open to learning about and playing around with new technology. Bonus points if you’re familiar with or have used any of the following tools: Microsoft Excel & Word, third party social management platforms (Hootsuite, TweetDeck), Adobe Photoshop, Final Cut Pro, WordPress, Sysomos, Powerpoint, Google/Facebook Analytics.
• A passion for social media. Social media is an integrated part of your life, running deeper than a Facebook profile. We’re looking for someone who lives and breathes digital – whether that be blogging, gaming, coding, live-Tweeting or something we haven’t even heart of yet!
• Innovative and creative thinking. Problems aren’t problems, they’re challenges – and you have the skill set to get through it, make it look easy, and make it look good.
• Strong attention to detail, ability to multitask, master of organization. Need we say more?

Where can I find more information?

If you don’t find what you’re looking for by Googling us, check out our website: www.entrinsic.com.

This internship sounds AMAZING, how do I apply?
Tell (or show) us why you want to be a part of the team! Please include a resume and show us some examples of work you’ve done in the past. Please email your application to Ashley Martin.

Guest post by Desiree Gamotin

When the underdog NFL team Denver Broncos beat Superbowl regulars Pittsburgh Steelers in a thrilling overtime win to make it to the divisional playoff round this past Sunday, Twitter exploded. The next morning Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow became the top trend on Google following six Bronco-related topics and landed a record of the second highest number of tweets per second (9,420 tweets) in Twitter history. Just about everyone tweeted from stunned sportscasters to curious non-NFL trend followers (“What’s a #Tebow?”) to random celebrities like Lady Gaga.

Whether or not you’re a huge sports fan, it’s hard to miss what people are saying about football on the Interwebs. As a newbie NFL follower myself, social media is making it easy to keep up-to-date with sports highlights and crazy miracle plays I missed.

When the use of Twitter began spreading like wildfire among the NFL players, the most successful sports league in North America got real scared. The National Football League freaked out by placing a social media ban on all the teams before the 2009 regular season – that means no tweeting before, after and during games or they are liable for a $25,000 fine.

Why the heavy policy? It makes sense – social media is a powerful thing.

For me, the topic of NFL in the Twitterverse is particularly fascinating because unlike other celebrity tweeters, NFL players have so much on the line when it comes to using social media – both on and off the field. Millions of dollars are at stake during game day for those three hours, not to mention tweeting on the sidelines is an obvious distraction for the players. NY Jets fans tore a strip off then rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez for eating a hot dog on the sidelines – imagine catching MVP candidate quarterback Aaron Rodgers on the sidelines, tweeting on his smartphone seconds before the winning touchdown. I mean, that’s just downright disrespectful to the fans. Focus, Rodgers, focus.

The social media ban during games make sense, but that doesn’t stop players from tweeting on their own time. Nowadays, NFL players are dominating social media and they are quickly starting to understand how Facebook and Twitter can be used to their advantage. There are even new applications that monitor the social media presence of every NFL team, from negative to positive. Shows like NFL Live and Pardon the Interruption use the added access to players and coaches Twitter provides and endlessly analyze tweets for clues about team dynamics and potential performance in upcoming games. Then there are some players who are more infamous for their tweets than their on field play, like New England’s wide receiver Chad Ochocinco.

Athletes willingly put themselves under the spotlight in exchange for more exposure and meaningful fan engagement. But any wrong move – a bash or reaction blown out of proportion – and they can risk losing fans and huge sponsors or suffer harsh media harassment as Rashad Mendenhall found out when he questioned the US response to the death of Bin Laden over Twitter. The players best be walking on eggshells.

So what can we take from all this Tebow hashtagging and Ochocinco following? That Twitter and Facebook are reshaping the way the media and fans interact with a League that has been around for 92 years – close to a century. Either veteran NFL fans will have to allow themselves to get sucked into the social media hype or miss out on the transformation of a glorious sport.

I couldn’t have said it better than former Cincinnati and Tennessee defensive tackle John Thorton: “The NFL is an old-school industry. Twitter has changed everything.”

If supporting a brand is supporting a lifestyle, then supporting a not-for profit is supporting a dream. The ability to focus on social media has many advantages for the not-for-profit sector especially allowing cash-conscious organizations free access to global powered marketing tools that before had never been available. Social Media for Social Good has become the coin-phrase for these efforts and SMWTO Producer Eli Singer had the opportunity to sit down with Advisory Board Member Sara Falconer to discuss her role at WWF-Canada and about the current state of social media for Canada’s not-for-profits.

Background
Sara Falconer is the online content and community manager for the global conservation organization WWF-Canada. She has a BA in Media, Information, Technoculture and Film from UWO, and an MA in Media Studies from Concordia.

Sara is in high demand as a strategist, consultant and conference speaker. She was the Community Manager for the 2011 Social Media Week in Toronto and now serves on the SMWTO Advisory Board. She teaches social media marketing, blogging and social media for social change at George Brown College.

In what little spare time she has, Sara reads comics, plays bass and is a freelance journalist with over 15 years of experience covering community news, the environment, and human rights issues.

You currently work at an international not-for-profit organization. What is different about digital messaging nationally vs. internationally? What sort of practices do you implement in your daily work to reach the audiences you target?

WWF is a large and incredibly active organization. On any given day our national communications team has to review environmental news coming in from our offices across the country and around the world, and determine our highest priorities so that we don’t overwhelm our supporters with updates. In our social media channels, I try to strike a good balance between highlighting international issues, supporting our national campaigns, and telling local stories about our conservation work. While my focus is on communication with Canadian audiences, we also have international supporters that follow news from Canada closely, and can lend their voices to our work. We also keep in touch with WWF offices in other countries, to support each other’s campaigns and to collaborate on our international campaigns, like Earth Hour.

Our focus areas are climate, water and people. As you can imagine, tracking and responding to conversations on such broad subjects – not to mention a name like WWF – is a huge undertaking. To keep on top of it all, both Hootsuite and Sysomos are indispensible to me. When I receive reports that have filtered out most of the wrestling references, it’s a good day.

How are not-for-profit organizations innovating in their use of social media? Are any industry specific?

In some ways, I think that not-for-profits have led, and continue to lead, the way for organizations in social media. As fundraisers, we know the importance of storytelling and building long-term personal connections, so it wasn’t a stretch to bring these approaches into a new medium. We might not always have huge numbers of followers, but we tend to have real and meaningful engagement with our audiences, which can be much more valuable when we want people to take action.

People often cite the example of the Red Cross’ “rogue tweet,” with good reason – it’s hard to imagine a corporation responding to a social media “crisis” with such authenticity, perspective and humour.

Not-for-profits in social media tend to talk to, support, and even share strategies with other organizations, which are technically “competition” for both fundraising dollars and attention. To me, this openness is one of our greatest strengths.

What, in your opinion, is the next big thing in social media for not-for-profits?

Now that we’ve built a solid foundation in social media, I think that we’re going to find more and more effective ways to fundraise using these tools. The bottom line will never be our only measure of success in this space, but there’s a lot more potential than in previous years to turn this online support into funds for our work. It will be interesting to see what web-based and mobile services emerge to facilitate these transactions as the public gets more comfortable with the idea of donating through social.

In your work, what is the biggest challenge that you face, and how do you overcome it?

This is going to sound a bit silly, but our biggest challenge right now is our rate of growth. We have over 96,000 Facebook fans, and 22,000 Twitter followers – that’s a LOT of conversations every day. We used to have to beg for blog posts from our conservation experts; now we can get several per day. I’m definitely not complaining! But it’s a lot of volume to manage.

WWF had enough foresight to bring me in on a full-time basis to meet these needs, over 2 years ago, and I’m currently expanding my team. We understand that you have to allocate proper resources to achieve our goals. Many organizations are still tasking their social media to overworked communicationss teams or interns to do in their “spare time” – easy to guess what will fall to the bottom of the priority list first! So I’m very lucky to have that support from the organization.

What is the one thing you are most excited for in the 2012 festival?

I’m excited to see how people bring the five sub-themes to life – I think this is such a cool concept, and a way to bring some extra creative thinking to this event in its third year.

What are three bits of advice you have for NFP attendees at this year’s festival?

• Volunteer! It’s an excellent way to make new contacts and get the behind-the-scenes scoop.
• Register EARLY! Sessions fill up super fast. Don’t miss the Artez not-for-profit session – they always offer new insights and amazing people to meet!
• Follow #SMWTO closely – you’ll find out what sessions have openings at the last minute, get words of wisdom from sessions you miss, and connect with all of the other awesome attendees.

Written by Hayden Tay

Location, location, location – that’s the latest buzzword that is on the tip of the tongue of the social media and marketing crowd. We hear so much about Location Based Marketing, but most of what we know is actually location based services. Do you know the difference between the two?

Let’s get visual. Imagine – when you come close to a store, your phone starts buzzing, alerting you of the great deals and coupons the store offers. The store is selectively promoting to you because you are near the store, thus engaging in location-based marketing. These answer the WHAT YOU DO to reach your audience – the strategies, content and value you use to market your products and services.

On the other hand, location-based services answer the HOW to reach your audience, offering the tools/platforms that capture your geographic location to provide you with a service – whether social, entertainment, information etc; think Foursquare and Facebook Places. These services are the physical / tangible platform where you check into the service, sharing your location with your friends, the Internet, and product and service providers.

A great example of how the two tie together is Groupon Now!. As a location-based service, the Groupon Now! app detects the user’s location and seeks out deals nearby. Merchants and businesses engage in location-based marketing by setting up deals and ads that get triggered and displayed when the user is nearby. Check out the video below to see how it works:

If you’re still not clear about the distinction between the two, this might help! We found this video featuring SMWTO advisory board member Asif Khan of the Location-Based Marketing Association . He gives his take on the location-based marketing VS location-based services in an interview with Marketing Magazine back in May, 2011 .

So the next time you’re checking in on Foursquare, or your favourite app, remember – you are using a location-based service. And when you take advantage of that exclusive deal for being Mayor, location-based marketing is now working its magic!

In our feature with Social Media Week Global, we mentioned that Toronto has a great startup culture; there are many innovative thinkers in the city looking to change how we live and work digitally. To help us explore this side of Toronto, Entrinsic and Social Media Week invited David Crow to join our Advisory Board. We’re excited to have his startup experiences and communities on board, and look forward to seeing what he thinks Toronto and Canada startups can bring to the table.

Background
David Crow is a creative technologist and a technical marketer whose job is to help companies understand emerging technology, business models, and design practices to better create compelling digital experiences. He is the CMO at Maintenance Assistant focused building maintenance software that technicians will actually use

David has also lead grassroots entrepreneurial community efforts in Toronto, founding StartupNorth and hosting events including DemoCamp and Founders & Funders. Previously, while he was at Microsoft, he advised emerging companies with product-market fit and go-to-market strategies, along with providing access to software, support, and visibility through BizSpark. Prior to joining Microsoft, David led product design, marketing, business development and corporate strategy for start-ups in Toronto, and Austin, TX. He received his Master’s from the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University and an undergraduate degree from the University of Waterloo. He blogs at http://davidcrow.ca/ and http://startupnorth.ca; you can follow him on Twitter at http://twitter.com/davidcrow and http://twitter.com/startupnorth

How is social media is being shaped by tech startups in Canada?

Steve Blank describes a startup as “an organization formed to search for a repeatable and scalable business model.”

Canadian tech startups are building amazing set of social media platforms including brand monitoring (Radian6, Sysomos, Lymbix, Hootsuite), content creation (ScribbleLive, Keek), user reviews (Homestars, BuzzBuzzHome), social reputation gaming (Empire Avenue), mobile sharing (Kik, Enflick) and gaming (HitGrab, Big Viking Games, Uken Games, Massive Damage) and others. These are companies that are leveraging the amazing talent available in Canada to build global companies.

What makes Canadian startups different from other countries’ startups? What are we doing differently?

Canadian startups are built in a very conservative financial environment. It requires Canadian startups to focus on finding paying customers and focus on growing revenues from the beginning. For the startups that survive those very early days, it builds very strong and operationally efficient companies that know how to generate revenue and grow. The Federal Government supports Canadian startups through unique tax incentive programs like SR&ED (Scientific Research and Experimental Development). SR&ED provides tax incentives for R&D activities including product development at startups. This program is unique to Canada, it sets us apart from other geographies. For many startups, the SR&ED dollars provide the funding and time to complete product development before they are able to focus on sales and marketing. SR&ED can make all the difference in a startups survival in Canada.

Canadian startups are building a culture of connectedness that helps them collide each other, have random connections, and find people that can help them. We have a emerging set of tools and events like StartupNorth, Sprouter, DemoCamp, GrowConf, Mesh Conference, Startup Festival, CIX and Social Media Week. The events make it easier for startups and founders to have chance collisions with others that have beneficial expertise and experience. It is important that we continue to build a culture that helps one another out, with no expectation of getting anything in return.

What are some of the tech startups in Canada that are innovative in social media? How?

Canadian startups are building great social platforms, social content and infrastructure including:

• BuzzData
• Lymbix
• HootSuite
• EmpireAvenue
• ScribbleLive
• gShiftLabs
• Wattpad
• Chango
• Unbounce
• Vidyard
• goInstant
• Enflick
• WaveAccounting
• HighScoreHouse
• Kik
• LearnHub

What is one piece of advice for tech startups attending SMWTO this year?

Events like Social Media Week represent a great opportunity to connect in person. You can start to form relationships with individuals online but we are social creatures and coming together to learn, share and celebrate is key. My advice is try to connect with people online before the event and then seek them out for lunch, a coffee or a Manhattan at one of the events. It’s about getting out there with the chance that you might have a meaningful connection.

“Fortune favors the connected entrepreneur” @jcal7 #trueuniversity via @hnshah

Guest post by Desiree Gamotin

Life can be tough to manage sometimes. We all run on tight schedules while balancing time for family and companions, interests outside of work and vacations – it’s easy to forget the little things in your household, say, when your laundry’s done or that the basement might be flooded.

But MIT Media Lab grads David Carr and John Kestner may have the solution. After dabbling with other “smart” products like their Proverbial Wallets – wallets that responded physically based on the owner’s banking information – the brilliant Supermechanical duo came up with yet another handy gadget that connects the Internet to the physical world.

Let me take a moment to introduce you to Twine – a 2.5-inch plastic square with internal and external sensors that can alert you about physical changes in the house through texts, Twitter or emails. Using Wi-Fi signals within your home, Twine creators say it is “the simplest way to get the objects in your house tweeting or emailing.”

The Spool web application makes it easy for non-programmers to tailor texts to correspond with the conditions of the house. For example, you could set English commands so that when the laundry machine stops, Twine would detect the end of the vibrations and tweet “Laundry’s done!” directly to your news feed.

According to the range of sensors (for temperature, motion, moisture, etc.) and rules that *you* type into the Spool interface, Twine can send alerts when doors are opened, when plants in the garden are getting dry or even when coffee’s finished brewing. As simple as these tasks may be, this small device can be beneficial for increasing home improvement and allowing one to focus on the more important things in their lives – like people.

With the help of Kickstarter for financial backing, Carr and Kestner have gathered nearly ten times the amount of their end goal of $35,000. If the Twine project gets completed and ready for distribution, it could potentially save a heck of a lot more money for those looking into buying a million-dollar “smart home”.

Dear SMWTO Friends,

Thank you for being a huge support of us these last few months as we gear up towards the festival in 7 short weeks.

Our office will be closed for the holidays, and will re-open January 2nd. We’ll still be posting to this blog, Twitter and Facebook throughout the holiday break, but any email queries and event submissions will be reviewed in the New Year.

We came across these videos this holiday season, and as a personal favourite to the office (ok, to Amanda Lynne) we (see: She) wanted to send you all a little present for the holidays. Below you will find all the links to the original “The Grinch Who Stole Christmas”, we hope you enjoy them as much as she does.

From all of us at SMWTO and Entrinsic, we wish you a very Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and Happy Holidays!

Sincerely,
Eli, Amanda Lynne, Hayden, Elizabeth, Desiree, Dave, Lisa, RVN, Christina and the rest of the Entrinsic gang.

Image from Dawn. Used under Creative Commons Attribution License

For anyone recently entering the social space we have four key terms to give you as a guiding mark for the immediate future of social media: Location, Mobile, Innovation, Metrics. All have been heralded as shaping the ‘next big things’ for the digital world, they encompass four unique thought points and are helping drive social media into the future. The Social Media Week Toronto team brought Asif Khan onto our Advisory Board to explore the “Location” part of the equation. Eli Singer, SMWTO producer had some questions for Asif to introduce us to location-based marketing.

Background
Asif, is a veteran tech start-up, business-development and marketing entrepreneur with more than 15 years experience. He currently works as a consultant, educator and speaker to the location-based marketing services community as founder of the Location Based Marketing Association (The LBMA).

Prior to launching The LBMA, Asif worked with companies as diverse as Limited Brands, IBM, Baxter Pharmaceuticals, Molson-Coors, Communispace, BestBuy, American Airlines, ScotiaBank, and Sears. You can listen to Asif’s weekly podcast – This Week In Location-Based Marketing every Monday.

An avid technology evangelist, Asif also holds degrees in economics and management sciences from the University of Waterloo, blogs at www.asifrkhan.com and www.streetfightmag.com can be found on Twitter at: @AsifRKhan and @TheLBMA

Every year we see more and more mobile developments. What, in your opinion, do you see going to be a marquee moment for mobile and LBM in 2012?

I think that 2012 will be the year we see a significant increase in mobile payments. While much of the talk is about NFC (near field communication) for payment, I don’t think 2012 will be the year for that. Expect to see interim solutions like PayPal, Square and others really shine.

What are the latest innovations in Canada with regard to location-based services and marketing? How does this compare globally?

Canada is rich in development capability with services like Massive Damage (location-based gaming), Shopcastr (retail product sharing), Geotoko (location-based analytics/recently acquired by Hootsuite). Canada is doing great things, but venture capital and size of market limit us from building big consumer plays like in the US or Europe. It’s a great place to start a business, and good market to build for acquisition.

The Olympics are coming up in London, and along with your event at SMWTO this year – can you speak to us a bit about LBM/LBS programs will be used during this time?

Watch for brands and merchants to engage residents and visitors alike during the games. Offers for deals, transportation and weather information will all be delivered to the consumer based on their whereabouts. Also, using location to understand who’s at a particular event during the games will help make sponsorship more measurable for the brands involved.

What do you think the future looks like with regard to location based services and marketing?

Location based marketing in the future will be a little like the old movie Minority Report. Augmented reality is all around us, recognition of our position is relative to everything else around us – but it’s not just about us, every vehicle will be viewed as always connected, sensors on the network. Every thing, object, person and place will be geo-tagged or addressable and have a geo-relationship to everything else around it.

What is the biggest barrier to effective location based marketing?

Two issues: The first is getting consumers comfortable with the idea of sharing their location with providers and other consumers. The reality is that the information is already being shared in a very passive way with our carriers for example, but we need to recognize the benefits of sharing it with others in a value exchange framework. The second is that brands, agencies and others need to understand that location-based marketing is more than just mobile, it’s about the integration between all forms of marketing (billboard, DOOH, radio, TV, etc.) that have the ability to influence people in a specific place.

What are you looking forward to most for the 2012 festival – both globally and locally?

Beyond our own events, I’m truly looking forward to the blurring of social media data and location data. Specifically being able to track where the twitter traffic is coming from will be neat!

What is one way we can utilize LBM to heighten the experience of SMWTO?

Consider using a location-based app like Sonar to help attendees at each event connect with others at those events.

Note from SMWTO

SMWTO has partnered with Boomurang to help enhance the digital conversation during the week. Here’s how they describe themselves:

Boomurang is a location based mobile app that allows you to communicate with people around you without the hassle of the check in, or the need to follow or friend people or topics. It adds the geographic context to messaging, making it simple to discover conversation and local information beyond your existing social network. Use Boomurang to easily share information with people nearby, and stay up to date on the local conversation. Just remember to play nice, because on Boomurang, what goes around, comes around.

The Boomurang iPhone app is currently available in the App store.

Additionally, Social Media Week Global will be launching a SMW app closer to the event. Keep an eye out for the news!

Guest post by Desiree Gamotin

Are the days of manually plugging in the tangled Christmas lights of the fresh-smelling pine tree no more?

With Christmas just around the corner, companies and retailers are coming up with more and more creative ways social media can be integrated into the holidays. From decorated Facebook platforms to Nordstrom’s social powered Santa to stringing Christmas light apps, what else is next?

Enter the social-media powered Christmas trees cropping up in cities like Clarke Quay in Singapore and yes, our very own Toronto.

Standing 30 feet high in Toronto’s Union Station is Canadian Tire’s Christmas Spirit Tree – Canada’s first-ever Twitter/Facebook-powered Christmas tree. In an effort to engage the web savvy public during the season, Canadian Tire joined forces with digital ad agency Tribal DDB to help generate web comments that would fuel the lights on the tree.

Each colour of the 3,000 LED lights is based on the medium where the message came from. For example, white lights flash when social networks like Facebook and Twitter circulate posts with holiday-related words; blue lights shine when people post on the Christmas tree’s website where a live video stream of the light show can also be found – useful for those tweeting and Facebooking from places like B.C., Alberta and Quebec.

On the opposite side of the world, the futuristic-looking Heineken Super Social Christmas Tree in Singapore provides a Facebook App that allows users to create greetings through photos, music and animation, virtually decorating the 48 LED screens on the large tree installation. With the revealing taking place from December 17 to 26, other events include a virtual tree choir with singers from around the world, a multimedia light show and a photo booth that displays faces as decorations on the tree.

It’s becoming a global phenomenon driven by a new version of Christmas spirit that connects family and friends via Internet with a publicly festive end result. Instead of sending a heartfelt Christmas card to mom, you could express your gratitude on a massive scale, whether on Facebook or on an 11-metre big screen tree.

Could social-media powered decorations reignite the often forgotten meaning of Christmas? Or will the glamour of high-tech ornamentation isolate those especially in the older generation?

We’re really excited to be sharing our next round of 21 programs! Check out some of these really cool events happening this festival. If you missed our first round of event announcements, you can find them here.

We’re still looking for more event partners – let us know if you are interested in participating. The final deadline for event submission is January 15th, 2012.

Note: All dates and times of sessions are subject to change

Monday, Feb. 13 Theme: A Social Society

Host: Citadel Rock Online Communities Inc.
Online Community Case Study: HEDON Household Energy Network
The HEDON Household Energy Network is the leading knowledge sharing and networking NGO for household energy solutions in developing countries. Learn from the experience of HEDON’s online community which helps over 4000 member individuals, non-profit and for-profit organizations, share their knowledge, experience and expertise on how to deliver more eco-friendly household appliances to the developing world.

Thousands of articles and hundreds of organization profiles are organized in categories and using tags, searchable by members and users. Members also use the platform to share tender and job opportunities. There are special interest groups, e-conferences, YouTube videos, and a forum that is fully integrated with email mailing lists, so that email replies are posted to the forum as they are sent on the mailing list and vice versa. At the same time, the site features a journal submission management system for their journal, which has both print and online versions, vetted and approved by its editors.

Host: My Smart Hands
From Social Media to Social Change
Re-invent the way you use social media. Expert panelists will gather to discuss the idea of benevolent media. How can social media be used to make a difference in someone else’s life? In what ways can you virtually make a change in communities all over the world? This seminar is for social media users inspired to make a difference, as well as not-for-profit, entrepreneurs, and business owners interested in incorporating their work to drive social change. Join us to learn how benevolent media can empower others and touch lives. The panel discussion will be led by keynote speaker Laura Berg, Founder of My Smart Hands.

Host: Y&R
Everyone is Someone Else
Social media allows instant, widespread communication, but only through the carefully-crafted personas we create and maintain online. How significant is the ever-present possibility that our online selves differ from our real-world selves? Everyone Is Someone Else examines the phenomenon of social media by comparing our electronic personas with our real ones and examining the consequences of increasingly personal but faceless communication. There will be guest speakers, snacks, and real-life socialization.

Host: Journalists for Human Rights
Sub-Saharan Africa and the other social media revolution
In the beginning of last year, the world saw events unfold in Egypt and other Middle Eastern countries live on twitter. This workshop is going to highlight the ongoing internet revolution taking place south of Egypt. Many people consider Sub-Saharan Africa to be extremely behind the rest of the world. Needless to say, this is certainly not the reality present in there. Along with providing more information about the types of social media revolution taking place in Africa, with the assistance of various speakers, the workshop will also provide information on the works of Journalists for Human Rights. jhr’s main purpose is providing knowledge and assistance in regards to rights media through all kinds of media forms. At the end of the workshop, there will be some time to ask questions and learn more about becoming a Digital Ambassador for jhr.

Host: VIA Rail Canada and Fairmont Royal York
Social Media ROI: Myth or Reality?
Many believe the social media industry is coming out of its awkward teenage years and into adulthood. But there is still one nagging question: How can we demonstrate the value of social media?

There are many schools of thought on the measurement, metrics, and outright existence of “return on investment” in social media programs and campaigns. You’ll hear from five different speakers, including executives from brands, agencies and industry professionals. Each will offer their unique (and perhaps controversial!) perspective on how to evaluate and demonstrate the value of social media.

Leading up to the event, there will be a series of discussions on board the “conference train” (working title). The morning of the event, invited influencers will meet on board a train travelling from Montreal to Toronto, with stops in Ottawa and Kingston. They’ll be led through a series of discussions on various social media topics, and through VIA’s on board wifi, other influencers from various locations across South Western Ontario will be able to participate. This mobile conference will arrive in Toronto just in time for the event, being held at the Fairmont Royal York, where out-of-towners will be invited to stay the evening.

Tues. Feb. 14 Theme: The Community Within

Host: Strativity Group Inc.
Increasing Engagement through Social Customer Service
Most companies are in the early or exploratory stages when it comes to using Social Media as an extension of their Customer Service capabilities. Many companies with profiles on Social Networks do not really want to talk to customers about service issues – they are worried about brand sentiment. Yet by virtue of their having a Social presence, customers expect them to be open, responsive, and engaged. Have organizations begun to look at Social Customer Service strategically, or are they simply jumping in because their competitors have made the first move? How should the Social channel be managed? What tools are being used? How do you create a consistent customer experience across the various channels? How do you measure success?

These are some of the questions that will be addressed by this panel of company representatives whose organizations are at different stages of Social Customer Service engagement.

Aligned with the Social Media Week global theme of “Empowering Change through Collaboration and Tuesday’s theme “A Community Within”, this session will try to address the real opportunity that businesses have for increasing engagement through Social Customer Service – not simply solving customer problems. It should be about creating exceptional and shareable experiences from within the customer community, and extending those experiences beyond.
This session will be of interest to people working in mid to senior level roles in Customer Service, Customer Experience, and Social Media, and interested in gaining insights into how to develop or refine a Social Customer Service strategy for their organizations.

Wed. Feb. 15 Theme: Business & Information at Light Speed

Host: BuzzData Inc
How Open Data Can Change The World
An increase in the amount of information at our fingertips has resulted in a momentous transformation in the way we live in the 21st century. We have witnessed massive breakthroughs in innovation, communication, and the speed at which we do business.

Data, the raw, unprocessed form of information, is progressively becoming accessible to the world in an unprecedented fashion. Governments, organizations, institutions of higher learning, and individuals, are better and smarter when this data is made open and accessible.

This panel will examine how Open Data can be leveraged to change the world, and explores how social media is helping pave the way to this uncharted space.

Host: Parkdale Village BIA
Parkdale Connected
The Parkdale BIA in collaboration with Social Media Week Toronto will present “Parkdale Connected” on Wednesday, February 15th, 2011 from 7 – 10pm. The event will be held in the upstairs meeting room at The Rhino Restaurant + Bar, located at 1249 Queen Street West. Members of the Parkdale community are invited to come out and learn from expert speaker (TBD) about how to use Social Media to market their business, their art, or themselves. The event will take the form of an interactive workshop and dialogue, with a live demonstration and multiple question and answer segments. Guests are invited to bring their laptops, tablets or smart phones and use our free wi-fi to practice what they learn. We also encourage those who currently use social media to share stories of their successes, failures, enthusiasm and trepidation with the group. We look forward to seeing you at Parkdale Connected.

Host: The Globe and Mail
Tweeting a Business Beat
Panel discussion on how business reporters use Twitter and other social media to report the news, connect with sources, and stay on top of the latest developments in a particular industry. Draws on the expertise of Report on Business beat reporters, and their counterparts from other media organizations.

Host: KPMG International
Social media showdown – an experimental workshop
Given the proliferation, but increasingly fragmented nature of social media, brands are struggling to engage audiences with shorter attention spans and intolerance for sales pitches. One way to stand out is by producing content that is fresh, interesting, and worthy of passing along to friends, colleagues and clients.

KPMG International invites you to join an interactive case study. Teams made up of audience members will go head-to-head testing content amplification techniques as explained by our keynote speakers [TBC]. The goal will to see which tactics generate the greatest awareness and engagement for a “social media-style” video produced by SkyFarm Entertainment. KPMG will donate $2,000 to a charity of the winning team’s choice.

The results will be presented at the end of the experiment, and we invite you to stay for a brief networking session. Beer, wine and hors d’oeuvres will be served.

Host: Agility Inc.
Monetizing Digital Content for Online Publishing
With the advent of the social web, smartphones, tablets, and the evolution of traditional media, the importance of monetizing content is more critical than ever. Content creators can no longer rely on their traditional means of physical publishing and broadcasting as they did a decade ago and many are struggling to remain viable. On the flip side, independent creators and innovative organizations are pushing the boundaries of monetization and experimenting with new and emerging options. From tradition banners and boxes to integrated creative campaigns, content publishers must find new ways to leverage established technologies and blend in new innovations to remain relevant so they can fund their future content endeavours. This panel of industry insiders will dive into the current landscape of monetization for digital content – what works, what doesn’t, and where you need to be playing in order to stay at the forefront.

Thurs. Feb. 16 Theme: At Your Finger tips: social in the palm of your hand

Host: Feast Interactive
Treats & Tweets
Enjoy a coffee, and bring your furry friend to this mixer event at various dog-friendly cafes in Toronto. We are bringing together socially conscious brands, social media professionals and consumers in one place for this social media mash-up. Share ideas for conceptualizing authenticity in communities and building a brand from the ground-up. And, explore real-time social media installations connecting like-minded people both locally and through interconnected hot-spots scattered throughout the city.

Host: Networked Insights
Making Sense of Social Data for Marketing Intelligence
Social data presents insights into audiences, marketing opportunities, competitive intelligence, stage-gate development and more. Yet, getting to those insights from unstructured social data can prove incredibly difficult. How can you unlock these insights and get in-sync with your audiences? And how do you optimize your marketing budgets to be more efficient and less wasteful? This session will showcase practical examples of how to use social data to optimize marketing strategies and budgets. The session will be valuable to Media Buyers, Advertising Executives, Media Agencies, PR Agencies, Social Media Community Managers and more. Register Today.

Host: Venture Accelerator Partners
Leveraging Social Media in the B2B Sales Process
Leveraging Social Media in the B2B Sales Process will focus on the role that Twitter and LinkedIn can play to help the sales team grow revenue. The presentation will focus on the strategies and tactics that sales people can use to close more business through research, connections, and moving relationships from on-line to off-line. Co-Founder of Venture Accelerator Partners, Mark Elliott, will discuss his experiences with Social Media – booking over 70 meetings with key contacts through social media and has helped organizations close over $100,000 in revenue from social.

Host: Cision
The Social Media Ref
Join us as the Social Media Ref moderates in-depth discussions of different social media perspectives from key Canadian influencers – bloggers, journalists and PR pros. Two 18-minute competition-style panels will take on hot social media topics, with the Social Media Ref determining one collaborative solution for each panel. Topics to be revealed by panel members 2 weeks prior to the event. Keep an eye on those twitter updates!

Host: Women in Wireless
Shopping, Gossip, Trends and Friends – How Women are Shaping the Social Media Landscape
Mommy bloggers, fashion followers, social butterflies and trend spotters all have one thing in common – they are all capitalizing social media to do what comes naturally. Providing women with a voice – and a forum – within which to opine and share, social media is not only helping women get their views heard but also get ahead. Hear from women who are leveraging social media to their advantage; find out why women are proving to be such a powerful force online; and learn how to leverage your natural abilities into the social realm.

Fri., Feb 17 Theme: Innovative Minds and Technology

Host: Majestic Media Ltd.
Social Media Development – Building Experiences on Facebook
We will to bring together the brand innovators for Facebook and talk about how to create campaigns that have social media at the core – powering genuine connections between brand and consumer. The panel will be introduced by a Facebook representative elaborating on the concept of Social by Design.

The panel will educate agencies and brands on how to execute Facebook campaign integrations that resonate with Fans. We will draw on numerous case studies including Hot Wheels, Gatorade, Sears, and HomeSense as well as feature agencies that partner with Majestic Media as their Facebook Development partner.

Host: Agility Inc.
Agility CMS Hackathon
Agility CMS Hackathon is an interactive event that is meant to increase the knowledge of the company’s partners and customers and to expose the hidden potential and magic of Agility CMS in a casual and collaborative environment.
Participants will be put into teams and will be coding something fantastic using Agility’s new solution packages. Expert staff will be present to assist and receive feedback as to better improve the product along with its API and documentation.

Judges will be awarding the best teams with awesome prizes.

The plan is to meet up, hang out, chat and have fun. If you want to come and check out what participants are coding, all you need to do is RSVP!

Agility CMS Hackathon is hosted by Agility Inc. Beer and food will be served!

Host: Uniiverse
Survive Progress Through Collaboration – The Sharing Economy Revolution (Interactive!)
Discover how social, economic, and environmental issues can be solved through collaboration and sharing at this interactive event. We want to inform social media users about a new layer to the social graph – the trust layer – , which will be the catalyst to the sharing economy revolution. Learn how you can be a part of this revolution through videos, speakers, and demonstrations. Be prepared to brainstorm on what you’d offer in the sharing economy. There will be an interactive contest and prize so please bring your smart phone! (do we even need to ask?)

Host: Stocial & bNotions
Twitter TeaTime
Event for developers in the Twitter ecosystem. There’s a lot going on in the Twitter ecosystem and we will have folks from Twitter share highlights with you – including latest developments with the platform, areas of demand within the ecosystem, and technical dives into integration opportunities for developers. We’ll also be holding a Q&A session with members of the Twitter platform team, plus time to hang out with each other.

All week long

Host: Boomurang
Boomurang App
Boomurang is a mobile communication app that allows you to access real-time, location specific information & conversation without the hassle of the check-in, or the need to follow, or friend people or topics.
The experience creates a better way to communicate with anybody about areas of interest to you. Be it nearby or anywhere, simply choose a location and tap into conversation beyond your existing social networks. Discovering information about your favourite places, or areas of interest is that simple. Easily view past or current conversation about a venue of choice, or expand to view a neighbourhood’s worth of sharing.

So if you have an extra ticket to sell and the game is about to start, or you need to tell your neighbours to keep a look out for your lost cat, use Boomurang to share the message.

Just remember to play nice, because on Boomurang, what goes around, comes around!

Image by Matthew Burpee. Used under Creative Commons License Attribution.

One of the things Toronto is quickly becoming known for is the diverse startup culture. Off the top of our heads, local hotties like Sprouter, MyCityLives, Sysomos showcase just a fraction of the amazing things coming out of Toronto. SMWTO Producer Eli Singer got a chance to pose a few questions to one of our Advisory Board members, Mark Evans about his work in digital and start up consultation as a digital marketing strategist. A key influencer in shaping Toronto’s digital culture, through linking social media with start-ups and entrepreneurship, Mark is truly an invaluable addition to both our community and Advisory Board.

Background

Mark Evans is the principal with ME Consulting, which works with start-ups and entrepreneurs to deliver digital marketing strategy and tactical execution that resonates with target audiences. Mark has worked with four startups (Blanketware, b5media, PlanetEye and Sysomos), and spent more than 10 years as an awarding-winning technology journalist with the National Post, Globe & Mail and Bloomberg News. He writes a twice-a-week online column about startups and entrepreneurship for the Globe & Mail, as well as a popular blog focused on startups, digital marketing and content marketing. Mark is also one of the co-organizers of mesh, Canada’s leading digital conference.

Toronto is home to some of Canada’s greatest young tech minds, working on creating some pretty fantastic new companies. How does social media consulting with a start up differ from working with large, established companies?

For startups, social media consulting is usually just one part of the overall sales and marketing mix. My take is startups need well-articulated messaging about what they do and why people should care if they want to effectively leverage social media. While social media services are free, it doesn’t make sense to use them unless you have a clear idea of what you want to say, the goals and how success will be measured.

What are some things you’ve learned from working in the startup space that you feel would be beneficial to large corporations?

One of the best things about startups is their flexibility and willingness to quickly make strategic and tactical changes without having to battle through bureaucracy. The Web is such a fast-moving landscape that some decisions need to be made quickly or on the fly. This is a key lesson for large companies to embrace.

What are some of the trends we are seeing come out of the startup community?

The biggest “trend” is we’re in the midst of a startup renaissance. More entrepreneurs are taking the startup plunge because the barriers to entry are lower than ever, the tools to create, distribute and promote services are accessible and affordable, and the “risk gap” between doing a startup and having a “regular” job has shrunk given the uncertain economic conditions.

As one of the co-founders of mesh, what is one of the most memorable moments you’ve had at a mesh event?
Without a doubt, the start of the first mesh stands out because we had no conference experience so it was thrilling to actually see everything come together. I think our ignorance of how much work is involved in doing a conference was a good thing, and we were lucky to have stumbled upon an amazing event planner, Sheri Moore, who played a key part in making mesh work right from the start.

What makes a presentation memorable?

I think a presentation resonates if it does one of the following: inspires, provokes, entertains or educates.

What are you looking forward to most for the 2012 SMWTO festival?

It will be interesting to see how social media has evolved and matured, and how individuals and brands are looking to take their social media efforts to the next level.
For all the startups who are going to be in attendance at SMWTO this year, can you provide any insight as to what sort of events they should see? Or what sort of events they should host?
Startups should focus on sessions that provide them with insight on how to effectively and efficiently leverage social media. The reality is startups are lean and mean operations so they need to know how to make social media happen without spending too much time on it given they have lots of other priorities.

Guest post by Desiree Gamotin

Radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology is nothing new. Electronic tags have always proven effective in a variety of ways, from transportation and automatic toll systems to banking and security to the use of “chips” to track animals in large ranches. By using radio waves to transfer data from electronic tag to reader, RFIDs can identify and track the tagged objects from a distance, and lately there has been a significant increase in the use of and interest in RFID technology—particularly within the retail market.

StarHub Online Music Store took advantage of this technology and came up with a creative and successful youth-oriented campaign. Based in Singapore, StarHub launched a promotional campaign to increase their web traffic and music downloads and at the same time engage youth—a group that comprised more than 50 percent of its customers. By fusing fashion and music, StarHub implemented RFID-generated Musical Fitting Rooms in 42 retail stores. When a garment was taken inside the fitting room, the RFID readers installed above would read the electronic tags attached to each garment. If a customer were to try on, say, hip-hop-styled clothing, the RFID readers would play tracks inside the fitting room that suited that customer’s style. With over 10,000 songs covering a variety of musical genres, this combination of music, fashion, and technology turned fitting rooms into meaningful interactions with the youth market.

Due to the decreased cost in RFID equipment as well as its increased reliability rate, other retail stores are starting to take notice, and are showing interest in creating a more engaging customer experience. One department store in Shibuya, Tokyo—a famous fashion centre in Japan—uses RFID tags on hangers to manipulate images on large screens before them. When a shopper picks up a certain item, the screen displays a model wearing the selected clothing. This type of location-based marketing using digital media can make a huge impact in retail sales since each customer experience can now be highly-targeted, more interactive and more personal—an experience specific to a moment in time. If the use of RFID technology continues to be explored through these creative outlets, who knows what is next for the future of retail and consumer experience?

In the age of rampant content consumption and sharing, journalism is experiencing myriad changes. Social media has enabled ordinary citizens to break news stories and engage worldwide readers—territory once only occupied by broadsheet and broadcast journalists. To investigate how social media has impacted journalism, the Entrinsic and Social Media Week Toronto sought out Sean Stanleigh, and we’re proud to announce him as one of our Advisory Board members for 2012.

Background
Sean Stanleigh is the editor of The Globe and Mail’s Report on Small Business (ROSB) His goal is to make ROSB the primary destination for readers in search of information on and compelling stories about Canada’s ever-growing entrepreneurial community, and social media plays a major role in his efforts. Sean has an extensive background in journalism, including a number of senior editing positions at The Globe and The Toronto Star.

Can you tell us how social media is being used by journalists in Canada? How has social media shaped the industry?

The game changer for journalists would have to be Twitter. In the not-so-distant past, the primary information sources outside the walls of a particular newsroom were reputable websites and wire services such as Canadian Press. There was a lot of choice, but other journalists were still the ones dictating the priorities. Twitter allows you to individually hand-pick experts and influencers from any field to get a steady stream of relevant information and breaking news, faster than ever before. Facebook, LinkedIn and Google+ all have their attributes for sharing and discussions, and I use all of them personally and professionally, but I find they lack the speed, functionality and immediacy of Twitter. It is now my wire service, and while Reddit is coming on strong, Twitter is still the deepest well for story ideas. Generally speaking, social media has turned journalism on its head. Reporters and editors used to value their independence from the business side of their operations, even keeping their distance from readers. Now we are all marketers, spending nearly as much time promoting our material as we do creating it, measuring our impact, constantly interacting with “customers,” and (gasp) acknowledging the existence of stories produced by the competition.

What can social journalism teach the world about social media?

Social journalism is the future. Organizations that are good at harnessing it, embracing it and, yes, figuring out a way to financially support it are the ones that will lead the profession. Social journalism is not an option—it is an imperative. But anyone can practice social journalism. A smartphone is a powerful tool: You can record text, audio and video anywhere, quickly and easily, and instantly broadcast your observations to the world, unfiltered. And that’s the key word: Unfiltered. Journalists have a threefold advantage. Many of us work under the umbrella of a trusted brand; we dedicate our working lives to perfecting the art of receiving massive amounts of information, confirming it, and prioritizing it on behalf of an audience; and we wrap it all up in a tidy contextual package. The best social journalism informs, but it filters that information for the benefit of readers. Social media is amazing but it’s also rambling, massive and messy. The way “deaths” are announced is a great example. Famous people are regularly and incorrectly reported dead, usually as an attention grabber, but the “news” gets passed around because everyone wants to say they had it before anyone else. The first question asked by every remotely reputable news organization before a retweet is “have we confirmed this?” Find the sweet spot of doing what journalists have always done—providing trusted, sourced content—while bringing social elements along for the ride (through interactive avenues such as live blogging) and you’re constructing the new template.

What do you see as being the next big opportunity for social media in relation to journalism? Or vice versa?

The two are already intertwined. In other words, the next big opportunity for social media is also the next big thing for journalism. They are both in the business of disseminating information, but the days of journalists shouting from mountaintops are long over. Conversations are key. Involving readers in the reporting process is already happening (I can’t count the number of times I have found experts and subjects for stories through social media), but stronger integration is continually evolving. At The Globe and Mail, just as an example, we encourage readers to participate in live discussions, we solicit their ideas for long-form series and act on those suggestions, we post their photos and videos, and we’ve integrated Facebook on our home page. A lot of news organizations (including The Globe) and bloggers have been experimenting with Storify, which basically enables users to curate social media. We are going to see its influence steadily increase, and if it’s not Storify that survives in the long-term, it will be something similar to it. With Storify, you can pull information on a chosen topic from any online source and compile it all in one place. The ability to assemble and add context to news stories and social media together as a unit is a powerful journalistic tool. The best early examples have strong transitions between the different types of media, verify all the information, assemble it in a start-to-finish story, continually add updates as they occur and, of course, encourage reader input.

What are you most looking forward to at the 2012 festival?

The exchange of ideas. Ideas have always been the engines that drive journalism, but for a very long time editors and reporters buried their heads in the sand when it came to technology. The need to learn about new publishing tools, for example, was something that got in the way of our real jobs: Reporting and editing. Now, if you’re a working journalist and you don’t keep on top of, and actively use, at least some of the new forms of storytelling, you’re going to find yourself out of touch in very short order. Events like Social Media Week are a great opportunity to listen to and learn from others. And naturally I’ll be live-tweeting my experiences.

What are some challenges you face when integrating social media into mass media communications?

The one big challenge is consistency. Our newsroom has about 300 staff, and a large percentage of them, if not all of them, are in some way involved in social media. It’s unrealistic to police the activity. But while it’s our job as journalists to be objective, opinion and bias inevitably creep into the conversation, and one could argue that can damage the brand. So on the one hand, senior management needs to encourage staff to participate in social media for all the reasons I’ve already outlined, while at the same time attempt to build consistency and professionalism in a world that rejects conformity. Policies and guidelines are one thing, and I think they are necessary (if for no other reason than to provide a few signposts), but there are a lot of very difficult hurdles to overcome, particularly when it comes to balancing objectivity and freedom of expression. Social media thrives on personality, so the last thing any organization should do is try to put a clamp on it.

What is one piece of advice you have for bloggers in Toronto?

Sorry, this is more than one, but I’ll keep it short. Focus on a single subject or area of interest, become a trusted voice—a brand—and don’t rant. Have an opinion (you’re the expert after all), but be measured and source your information.

According to a 2011 study done by Ipsos, 86% of Canadians aged 18 to 34 are active on social networks. Without a doubt, this demographic has a significant presence in and on social media and will be shaping the development of the technology landscape. As such, the Entrinsic team embarked on a search for an Advisory Board member to represent this key community, and we are fortunate to have found Lauren Friese, one of the leading Gen Y talent advocates in the city. A Toronto local, Lauren is a key connector for bringing a voice to young business professionals and facilitating the interaction between key brands and young talent.

Background

Lauren Friese is the founder of TalentEgg.ca, Canada’s leading online career resource for students and recent graduates.

A passionate advocate and spokesperson for Generation Y recruitment and digital media, Lauren excels at helping employers effectively brand themselves to Gen Y. She has been featured in and has contributed to dozens of publications, television and radio shows on these topics and others.

Lauren started TalentEgg in 2008, after receiving her Master’s degree at the London School of Economics, because she wanted to create a better way for students to transition from school to work in Canada. She also attended Queen’s University and has worked in consulting and financial services in the UK.

1) How is social media helping to facilitate the connection between students and employers?

Increasingly, social media is being used as a tool by employers to connect with students. Surprisingly, it’s actually been employers who have moved to social media with recruitment-related messages first, with students following. It’s not that the students haven’t been there, it’s that they don’t necessarily know or think to use social media for the purpose of job hunting. In my opinion, this is the important trend to be aware of—when it comes to job-hunting students/grads, social media is more effectively used as a tool to learn more about a company. For example, what are people who work at a company saying about it? What are consumers of that company saying about it? Once I’ve completed an internship with Company X, is there a Facebook group I can join so that I can stay in touch with my new friends?

2) How are employers and students using social media differently? Do you find there’s a disconnect?

Yes. Like I said, employers have been the first movers in terms of using social media for direct recruiting. Students aren’t there yet. That’s not to say that students aren’t on social media (of course they are!), they just aren’t necessarily taking a break from organizing their next kegger to check out Company X’s Facebook profile. For students/Gen Y in general, job hunting, like purchasing decisions, is all about trust. So while employers are, in many cases, out on social media posting jobs, etc., students are looking for referrals. The smartest companies leverage their current or past interns to spread the word about them, just like they would in real life with campus ambassadors. In terms of online job hunting, Google is number one—it’s a platform that Gen Y trusts to deliver the right information when they are looking for “summer internships” or “entry level jobs.” And when they search those things, they often find destination sites like TalentEgg (which has also been built on a platform of trust).

3) It’s common for youth to be early adopters to innovative media platforms. What do you see as being the next big thing in social media for youth in Toronto?

I am loud about the fact that I see social media as only one part of the online world. Destination sites, Search, Directories, etc., are a huge part of the web that will continue to play an increasingly important part in the online ecosystem. I see social media evolving into a tool that kind of hovers over or around the actual content on the web, enabling people/youth to share content and continue to be “smarter” about the way they find relevant information and connect with one another.

4) What is one piece of advice you have for employers at SMWTO this year? How about for students?

I think that a lot of employers jump into social media without truly understanding how students are using it, and what’s effective/not effective. For a lot of employers who can’t do it properly, it makes more sense to not do it at all. You need a certain scale to see ROI, which is why we do a lot of social media promotion/integration for our employer clients (i.e. because we can represent lots of employers and also publish lots of relevant content, we are able to attract a much larger audience). For students—I think the biggest mistakes the students and recent grads are still making are 1) not realizing how public all their information is, and not understanding that the line between their personal and professional lives is going to be blurred in the future, and that as such they have to be selective about what they share; 2) not leveraging all the readily available, free tools that can help them stand out.

We’ve been featured on the Social Media Week Global blog! In case you missed it, here’s the post.

As we lead up to Social Media Week February, we’ll be helping you get to know the organizations and people behind each of our host cities. We’ve touched base with Tokyo and Hamburg. Now this week, we’re catching up with the producers of Toronto’s third year hosting Social Media Week. Eli Singer– Producer of SMWTO and Founder & President of Entrinsic and SMWTO Event Manager for Entrinsic, Amanda Lynne Ballard. Entrinsic is a Canadian corporate social media agency founded on the belief that new and emerging media are reshaping the way consumers — and by extension businesses — think, behave, and interact.

1. What are the three most exciting things happening in social and mobile media in Toronto?
Toronto is a major hub for the cool and innovative in Canada’s digital space and globally. Here are just a few of the exciting things happening in social and mobile media in TO.

The world’s leading thinker about the impact of the digital revolution on business and society is none other than Toronto’s Don Tapscott. He is the author of 14 books, most recently Grown Up Digital: How the Net Generation is Changing Your World and with Anthony D Williams, Macrowikinomics: Rebooting Business and the World.

Many of us, including myself, have been influenced by Don Tapscott’s work. I worked for Don during the first boom– an experience that has since shaped all my work.

Secondly, we have an excellent start-up culture here with great companies like Freshbooks, Xtreme Labs, Kobo, Guardly, Sysomos, 500px, etc.

As well, Toronto is one of the largest camping cities in North America, with regular community events like the Entrinsic-run CaseCamp, the first ever social media unconference in Toronto. There is also BarCamp, DemoCamp, PodCamp, ChangeCamp, TEDxTO, and more.

2. What three things are you hoping to gain from hosting Social Media Week?
This industry is still in its early days, which offers a great opportunity for Entrinsic to be at the forefront, presenting the industry as it currently is and how the community is shaping it to be in years to come. Unlike a regular conference, we believe the depth and breadth of the week’s events can demonstrate the reach of the medium beyond the walls of marketing and technology professionals. We aim to reach as many tech-savvy minds beyond the marketing world as within this community. As well, SMWTO is a way for us to showcase Toronto’s world-class digital talent to the global community.

3. What is the most exciting and unique aspect that you see coming to SMW Toronto? Can you give us a sneak peak?
This year each day of the week is going to have a unique theme. We think this is going to help us have richer conversations and focus on more niche ideas.

In addition, one program that is particularly exciting is a panel we are setting up between Toronto and London that will be broadcast live in both cities. More details to come…

4. What makes Toronto a great city for Social Media Week?
I think we have a unique community here in Toronto. It’s large enough to be home to many of Canada’s top companies and thought leaders, but small enough you can walk into a room and see a familiar face. I think this blend helps drive our great programming and attendance.

5. What do you see for the social and digital media fields in Toronto in five years?
Five years ago Mashable listed its top social network as MySpace and noted Facebook and Bebo as hot up-and-comers. It is hard to predict where we will be in a year- let alone five.

To distill new ideas and new trends presented throughout SMWTO, we have organized the session Innovative Minds and Technology for the last day of SMWTO 2012. This showcase is our springboard to share what we have learned with the global community. From an unconference, to product demos that change the way we use Facebook, to panels on policy and governance, our day of innovation is a window into the next 12 months.

The original post can be found here.

With the face of the industry ever-changing, the SMWTO Advisory Board was picked by the Entrinsic team to represent as many aspects of social media culture as possible. One of the must-watch under 30’s in the Toronto community is Sheldon Levine, a community manager and analytics specialist. A master of the art of high content delivery for the masses, his work represents the type of thought leadership that Toronto is becoming famous for.

Background

Sheldon Levine is the community manager for Sysomos, acting as his company’s public face to connect with its many audiences around the world. Having emerged as a thought leader in the digital world, Sheldon’s engaging communication style has helped countless organizations understand how they can leverage social media to boost their businesses. Through community outreach, new media marketing and public relations, Sheldon’s work illustrates how social media monitoring and analytics lead to improved customer relationships and measurable ROI.

Sheldon is co-founder of a weekly Twitter chat, #SMmeasure (Thursdays, 12:00-1:00, EST) that focuses on the use of social media and how to measure its results. With a Masters in Professional Communication, Sheldon has taken his traditional PR training to a new level, adapting it to the goals and ends of social media while adding his own twist to wake people up to all that social media can be.

1) It’s true that we all love a good pie chart, but why do you think statistics are becoming increasingly popular amongst the general masses?

Good question. I think that people are generally wowed when they see real numbers that show something meaningful to them. It’s one thing to say “most men feel X about Y,” but when you have a real number stat like “78% of men feel X about Y” people realize what that “most” from the first example really meant. I think that’s why we’re seeing a lot more infographics these days about almost all subjects. It gives hard definitive numbers to things that just seemed very general before. Stats have always been popular amongst professionals trying to achieve real goals, but more of the general masses are seeing the power of these real numbers now too.

2) What, in your opinion, will be the thing for social media analytics in 1 year? In 5?

This is a tough one. I think that as more and more parts of a business become recorded and looked at through software, people will be able to tie social media analytics to real business objectives and KPIs in a year from now. Five years from now technology will become more advanced and we’ll be able to teach computers to do more interesting things. I think that in five years people will be looking at social media analytics from a business perspective to analyze the way people talk and discover intent behind what they’re saying. The main example people are looking for is how a social conversation will show a consumer’s intent to purchase something. It’s a hard task, but people are already interested in doing it, so I think five years is a safe bet to say when we’ll be able to do it well.

3) What are some challenges people face in measuring their social media efforts? How do you deal with conflicting data?

I think the biggest challenge that I see people facing in measuring their social media efforts today is that they don’t have a clear goal in mind that will actually show how using social media is helping their business. Getting more fans/followers is a good idea to start, but just having those isn’t necessarily going to help your business. You need to have a goal beyond just bringing people in. It can be something as simple as having a deal offered via social media, because you can actually track how many people click a link and then how many people buy and then compare that to how you would have done without that social deal. People need to have better goals.

In terms of dealing with conflicting data, I think people need to put the time in to research the data. No one wants conflicting data, but it happens. I think companies need to double check all their data and then filter out what’s really relevant to them and what isn’t.

4) Is there a key metric that you believe everyone should be measuring? If so, what is it?

I don’t think that there’s really a one-size-fits-all metric that everyone should be measuring. Again, it’s going to depend on what your goals for social media are. There are some things that people will say, like numbers of fans or followers or share of voice, but even those don’t necessarily mean anything. The number of fans/followers you have is meaningless unless you know what to do with them once you have them. Share of voice can look good sometimes, but what if your company has a greater share of voice because people are saying more bad things about you than your competition? The one thing I can see most companies striving for is good sentiment. Every company should want people to be saying good things about them as opposed to negative stuff.

5) What are you looking forward to most for the 2012 festival?

My favourite part of Social Media Week is the people. I get to see old friends that work in the space and meet a ton of new ones. They’re all interesting in their own right and usually have their own ways of looking at things. Just talking with people is one my favourite parts of any festival.

6) One question we get from event hosts is “How can I measure my own metrics separate from the festival?” Any words of advice for the event hosts this year?

This is another tough one, but I think if they plan out what they want to measure very carefully it can be done. My best piece of advice here would be to learn how to use Boolean queries to search and use that to your full advantage. Construct queries that are very specific to your event or venue so that you can see when people are talking about your specific stuff as opposed to more general talk.

Social Media Week Toronto likes to feature the best and brightest the city has to offer, and since it’s no secret that Toronto is home to some of Canada’s top mobile industry thought leaders, product developers and supporters, that’s no easy task.

This is why we want YOU at this year’s SMWTO.

As an up-and-coming industry, mobile applications are a huge trend this holiday season . Retailers are increasingly using mobile apps and tools to target consumers, and the Wall Street Journal says we may be at the advent of the Year of the Mobile Consumer. Sybasehas been discussing the idea of 2012 as the Year of the Mobile Enterprise now that mobile technology has reached market maturity. Affiniti Media tells us that 2012 will be the Year of the Mobile Internet, with smartphones set to represent the majority of installed mobile phones in the UK by early 2012. As for Canada, we’re expected to have 28 million mobile subscribers by 2012, a staggering number given our population is currently hovering around 34 million. Suffice it to say, 2012 is shaping up to be a very interesting year for the growing mobile space.

Are you…
- a mobile app developer or strategist?
- working in mobile marketing?
- a start-up that is disrupting or reinventing how we use mobile?
- an agency leading the way with some kick-ass clients?
- a brand integrating mobile technology into your marketing or product?

If you answered yes to any of the above, we definitely want you on-board. And if you’re looking for ideas to get started, check out the list below. If you have any other ideas or topics, feel free to contact us about them!

Some topics to get your brain juices flowing:
• Location-based apps and marketing
• Mobile payments and how they are changing consumer and merchant interaction
• Mobile for the enterprise, including security, internal collaboration, etc.
• Mobile marketing and tools such as QR codes that are now being effectively integrated into marketing campaigns
• Optimizing the mobile internet experience
• Mobile gaming, including multiplayer and casual gaming
• [insert your own topic here]

It’s no lie that we have an amazing advisory board. Spanning all industries, they represent some of Toronto’s best and brightest digital minds.

In the coming weeks, we’ll be spotlighting each of the 14 members of our advisory board; today we proudly present Sue Edworthy.

Background
Sue has worked in the non-profit performing arts for nearly fifteen years. She has been a director, stage manager, event coordinator and arts administrator for Toronto theatre institutions such as Theatre Passe Muraille and Luminato and is now a highly sought-after marketing and communications specialist for the arts and culture sector here in town. Sue is a former Board Member for TAPA and is now a member of their Advocacy Committee. She was the Social Media Chair/Steering Committee member for Artsvote 2010, and is currently Treasurer of the Toronto Fringe Festival. She runs Sue Edworthy Arts Planning, a freelance marketing, PR, producing and strategic planning company for Toronto’s independent arts community.

1) With your extensive background in the arts and culture industry, can you tell us a bit more about how social media is being used in by arts organizations in Canada?

Social media was very quickly embraced by the arts and culture sector, and I would venture to say by a specific demographic in that sector. It’s being used for nearly everything: Facebook groups, pages and events for performances; live tweeting from shows; blog posts about each other’s companies; promotional videos—you name it. Social media is an incredibly creative way of talking about arts and culture, from advertising a show to sharing information about the impact of arts and culture on the GDP. I find the arts and culture industry has always been extremely connected, and now that’s blossomed with the advent of social media tools. We use them to teach each other, learn from each other, and promote each other. That’s a difference between arts and culture and other industries—we can tell you about someone else’s performance or blog post, or RT, essentially telling a follower, “hey, go check out our competition’s product!” and odds are they’ll return the favour. It’s remarkable.

2) What can other industries learn from how arts and culture organizations are using social media?

I recently had a conversation with a marketer whose endless use of data discussion was exhausting. Content, clickthroughs, and analytics—all this was fine until he referred to me as a “conversion” to my face. I’m not a conversion; I’m a person who likes the product. All of this data is great to graph and I’m glad you have good stats to work with to improve product or marketing, but there are people behind those actions. Sure, the end goal is to sell tickets, sell product, et cetera, but you’re not selling it to a conversion—you are selling it to a person. You are communicating with a person.

The arts and culture world—specifically theatre, which is my specialty—is extremely good at blogging, at tweeting, at expanding their audiences by talking about more than just the product. The brand is very important, I agree—we’re fortunate enough that our brands can expand to include other topics. Too many times other types of companies get caught up in creating an incredibly restrictive social media policy where tweets, blog posts, et cetera, can be held up for days until everyone who needs to approve it has seen it and tweaked it, so that it’s gone through the committee and now it is fit for public consumption. It’s applying old methods to new ideas. There’s a freshness, an immediacy to social media that’s lost when you try to control it to that extent.

3) It’s common for the arts industry to be early adopters to innovative media platforms, what do you see as being the next big thing for Social Media in the arts in Toronto?

There’s been a wave of great promotional videos over the past while—some have the feel of trailers for the show, some are multi-part series of interviews posted pre-show. All of them are tapping into an audience in ways that weren’t possible before; the performing arts are a very you-must-be-there type of work, so I think these types of videos are a great addition to traditional marketing and media outlets. They’re obviously easily shared, easily talked about and easily re-posted on blogs, on Facebook, on Twitter. The best thing I’ve seen recently is the integrated interactive online piece Canadian Stage has created for their current production of Red. Go look—I think this one is a game changer. Rather than broadcast out information, it’s bringing the audience member in and creating a relationship. Very well done. Love it. And for me it’s not how much it cost or didn’t cost, but the idea of doing it and the execution that is exciting.

4) What are some challenges you face when integrating Social Media into the arts industry?

I could flip my answers to question two. The arts industry is very much about relationships—with other companies, with your audience. And when I say relationships, I mean real ones. Odds are quite good that a large corporation will never meet a customer, whereas odds are quite good that I do meet my customer—at least once a month at the show they’ve subscribed to. Social media data can be construed as very impersonal, very cold. It’s the reassurance to the uninitiated that it’s simply an easier way to determine whether or not what we did worked. It doesn’t make us impersonal, it doesn’t damage the relationship—in fact, it’s an excellent opportunity to create new relationships with people who may never have heard of us through more traditional methods. At the same time, because social media can be quick, easy and cheap-to-free, we have to remember that it is not the only method for us to use to reach our audiences. Although arts and culture industries may be early adopters, there is no guarantee that our audiences are. And I can’t stress enough that more arts and culture companies also need a social media policy—not a restrictive one, but a very simple “Who tweets what and when and where?” And then trust them to do it right.

5) What are you looking forward to most for the 2012 festival?

Definitely attending Theatre & Online Interactivity with Praxis Theatre. Anything I’ve said above about arts companies who really get it—well Praxis was on my mind while writing it. And of course Social Art, Social Good at the Art Gallery of Ontario. But aside from specific sessions, I’m interested in meeting people in person, finding out what they’re doing and how it applies not just to my sector but to the world at large. And then walking away with a way to keep in touch with them—through social media of course!

6) What is one piece of advice for those looking to pitch a session at SMWTO this year?

No matter what type of session you are pitching, there must be time for people to talk to each other within it. This conversation has emphasized relationships—allow time for people to build them face to face while they are in the room.

What am I applying for?
The official position title is Video Editor intern and Video Animation Intern. The internship will be 4 months long, from February 13th – June 15th, 2012. Interns will receive a monthly stipend for their work.

Who will I be working for?
Entrinsic is a communications agency founded on the belief that new and emerging media are reshaping the way consumers — and by extension businesses — think, behave, and interact. We understand that a brand’s success in the social sphere relies on artfully weaving together technology and culture to create engagement. At Entrinsic, we develop and foster that engagement strategically, integrating social media touch points with a company’s overall communications to help forge a powerful and lasting connection with a brand’s customers.

From research and design through execution and analytics, we provide a full suite of services and dedicated account management at every step. The result? A robust, customized social media strategy that is tailor made for a brand and all their needs.

What would I be doing?
Working with a small team, your role will involve getting your hands BUSY and FULL with a wide range of projects that may include:

- Assist creative team on various projects including editing,, video animations and graphics and other projects as needed
- Create web ready files
- Creative project concept exploration
- A strong background in Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Flash and front-end developing skills using CSS and HTML
- Post-production video editing using FinalCut or Avid, or other applicable software
- Photoshop compositing support; including rough composites of found elements, detailed photo silhouetting or matting, and full designs.
- Video Editors should be familiar with storyboarding, scripting, filming and editing.
- Visual research and reference gathering
- Additional graphic and video animation duties as assigned
- Contributing strategic insights for current and upcoming video projects
- Providing support to other members of the team
- Helpful if have vehicle access and evening/weekend availability
- Other duties as required

What sort of employee are they looking for?
We don’t expect you to come to us with an extensive portfolio – this is why you are interning – but we do have some qualities that we would love to see in our ideal candidate:
- A love for the word YES. You might not have done a task before, but challenges excite you and you are ready to do whatever it takes to get a task done.
- Familiarity and affinity with the social space. We don’t need you to be an internet superstar, however, you should be comfortable working with a diversity of social platforms and communities as well as industry standards and common practices.
- Proficient with FinalCut or Avid. We are looking for someone who can hit the ground running editing videos in the post-production environment and provide strategic insight into planning sessions to make the process from planning to production to post production as efficient as possible.
- Graphic design and graphic animation skills. Ideal candidate will have command and working knowledge of Photoshop, 3D modeling and animation software, Flash (animation; minimal scripting required, or another vector animation tool) and proficiency in Adobe After Effects and Illustrator
- Comfortable with technology. We work with a ton of digital tools everyday. You don’t have to be a tech wiz, but you should be open to learning and playing around with new technology. Bonus points if you are familiar with, or have used any of the following tools – Microsoft Excel & Word, 3rd party social management platforms (Hootsuite, TweetDeck), Google/Facebook Analytics
- A passion for social media. You don’t have to run your own blog, but social media is an integrated part of your life and goes deeper than just Facebook. We’re looking for someone who thrives on the digital – whether RSS, gaming, or tweeting.
- Innovative and creative thinking. Problems aren’t really problems, just roadblocks – and you have the skill set to get through it, make it look easy, and make it look good.
- Strong attention to detail, ability to multitask, master of organization. Need we say more?

Where can I find more information?
If you don’t find what you’re looking for by Googling us, check out our website: www.entrinsic.com.

This internship sounds AMAZING, how do I apply?
Tell (or show) us why you want to be a part of the team. Please include a resume or show us some examples of work you’ve done in the past.

Contact Information:
Ashley Martin ashley.martin@entrinsic.com

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