Futurecamp Findings

As our first semester at humberpr comes to an end we sit here in social media class and reflect on what we have learnt. The class was all atwitter as discussions began.

It is interesting to see how far we have all come; now using social media to its maximum to help us add value wherever our PR careers take us and begin building networks that will help us in the future.

It all comes back to a quote from one of our instructors on the first day of school:
"It is okay to be a B student, but be an A+ networker"

The more I learn about social media the more I learn that it is a great platform to get me the coveted A+ grade. By engaging with coversations with people in the PR industry through Twitter, blog comments, etc. and adding value through your own opinion and knowledge in given areas it can link you with people you would otherwise never have the chance to interact with.

To check out what fellow 1C students have to say check out Caitlin's blog for some 10 second interviews.

Mow Your Lawn

I am loving this youtube video right now!




Catchy and clever Wilkinson Sword has made female grooming different and entertaining!

If you are interested in getting your grass cut click here

Not Your Average Fashion Show...

Last week I was lucky enough to see The Heart Truth Show at LG Fashion Week. It wasn't the typical fashion show that I was expecting. The show consisted of 20 dresses by 20 different designers (with they own solo shows during the week) modelled by 20 powerful Canadian women all working together for one great cause.

It was great to see a relaxed show as the women danced, even shimmied, down the runway. In a week that is driven by fashion it was refreshing to see it working towards gaining awareness of an important cause.

With Olympic Athletes, TV personalities, actors and more there was someone that everyone Canadian woman could identify with.

Joannie Rochette in a dress by Nadya Toto
(snapped by me at the end of the runway)

Art Imitates Life: What are you eating for dinner?

Leonardo Da Vinci's The Last Supper is one of the most identifyable paintings of all time and the topic of The Last Supper itself is frequently the subject of many artists.

In this morning's Globe I read an article offering an interesting new take on the famous paintings: the issue of portion size. It is commonly believed that art imitates life and it has been suggested that by chronicalling the growth in the size of the last supper itself one can see how our own eating habits have changed over time.

Check it out below for more info on the topic:



I think that while this is an interesting observation it is also interesting to note that while according to the art we are all eating more, the people themselves are not getting bigger. So while some aspects of art do imitate life body types and the ideal human form continue to be something idealised.

Think PINK: It worked for Victoria's Secret!

One of the most important tactics in a successful marketing campaign is knowing your audience. Victoria's Secret and their PINK campaign has mastered this perfectly.

PINK has abandoned traditional advertising avenues and dedicated themselves to creating awesome online presence. Considering their primary audience is high school and university aged girls this is a great area for them to explore.

Their strengths lie in creating an online presence in an area that no one like them had gone before. They were pioneers in creating a "personality" behind a clothing line. While now this is a more common occurrence PINK was tweeting before Twitter became cool and their Facebook fanpage is the number one fanpage in the fashion category.

PINK has even created PINK Nation, an online community for PINK lovers that offer them promotions and special offers so that they can purchase even more of the clothing that they love.

Even though PINK is doing such a great job of using social media there are always opportunities for growth. Since they have created such a following online it would be nice to use this to benefit others. For example they could partner with a charity such as the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation (which is already themed pink)as a means of using their popularity to support those in need.

PINK has also fully embraced the social aspect of social media. Through PINK Nation, Twitter and Facebook they have created online communities that act as a forum for people to discuss the brand.

Overall, Victoria's Secret PINK campaign has always been one step ahead of the crowd and it doesn't look like they will be slowing down anytime soon.

To learn more check out Aislin's, Neil's, Casey's, Laura's and Christiaan's blogs!

It's That Time of Year Again...

For a lot of us when we think of Tim Horton's we automatically think of several things: A Canadian icon, Timbits Hockey, timbits themselves, Boston cream donuts (or is that just a personal thing) and of course Roll Up the Rim to Win.

I know it is Springtime in Canada when the snow starts to melt, the birds start chirping, and Roll up the Rim to Win starts at Tim Horton's.

It is day two of this year's Roll up the Rim to Win contest and already social media is buzzing with action. It reached trending topic status on Twitter both with "Tim Hortons" and their #tag #rolluptherim. In addition to being the hot topic of maybe Canadian bloggers.

Canadian's become so obsessed with this time of year that it has sparked the creation and invention of new products...enter the rim roller. Apple has even made an iTouch and iPhone app to keep track of your wins and loses.

In addition, this years contest coincided perfectly with the end of the Olympics. Tim Horton's received a lot of attention and publicity and is considered the most popular/successful ad run through the Olympic coverage despite the fact that Tim Horton's sponsored the Olympics in no way and their ad does not reference the event at all.

So what does this mean for PR? Tim Horton's has created such a great brand association with roll up the rim that it basically promotes itself now. While in the past they had launced ad campaigns promoting the spring blitz there has been relatively little coverage this year. They are getting more media coverage because of their competitors (specifically McDonald's who has been giving out free coffee) that they don't really need to do too much!

UPDATE: So despite my enthusiasum for Roll Up the Win and purchasing a coffee one or more times a day for its duration I only managed to win a donut. Maybe my lack of winning has something to do with this....click here. Considering how popular Roll up the Rim is they should do a better job of explaining the odds and chances of winning...so people like me don't get their hopes up.

Personal Brand: Seeing Things Differently

Since I have blogged about the importance of personal branding here is mine for you to check out. It outlines what I plan on accomplishing and how I am going to do it.

Personal Brand Plan - Catherine Flint

View more presentations from catherineflint.