The February 23rd meeting featured a panel of 3 local retailers, all at different stages of development in their social media marketing strategies. Each video segment is about 10:00 minutes in length (YouTube's limit). The panelists are: 

1. Michael Stevulak: Owner/President, Scooter Underground
2. Rod Phillips: Director, Buying & Marketing,
   

The last eight months since I left the security of a regular pay cheque for the excitement of building my own business have been, well... exciting. There have been some incredible highs and some moments of doubt. And along the way I have met some wonderful, inspirational people and developed some valuable relationships. 

Blogs are the foundation of any social media marketing strategy. A blog can

1. put a face on the brand
2. demonstrate thought leadership
3. improve your SEO (search engine optimization)
4. create a dialogue with your customers and prospects
5. give visitors a reason to return
6. generate subscribers (email / RSS)

I came across what appears to be a fairly new development in television advertising. It's the first time I've seen it anyway. 

For years now advertisers have promoted their website URL in TV spots, usually at the end. However, at the end of this TV spot from Honda they display their Facebook page URL http://www.facebook.com/Honda which lands you on their "Wall" page (mistake #1 - more on that later). 

I've been doing some research for a post on the best Social Media campaigns of 2009. When I starting reading about this campaign by Tony Hawk I couldn't wait to gather the rest of the campaigns, I had to get it out right away. This is brilliant. 

As a parent and a homeowner I know how important it is to have a stable home and the role a house plays in creating an environment where children can thrive. I am blessed and grateful to have a home and two healthy children so when the opportunity arose to get involved with Habitat For Humanity and help others achieve their dream of owning a home I was happy to do so. 

 Interesting survey of local business leaders conducted by Veritas Communications at the end of 2008 outlines projections for 2009. I'd say the numbers were pretty accurate, although the line between Social Media and Public Relations has become very blurred.