Each of the 20 pieces up for auction was created by one of Toronto’s most recognizable and esteemed industry leaders, including High Road’s own CEO, Mia Wedgbury, who did a Twitter-view on the topic a few weeks ago.

Most of the participants—including Mia—aren’t visual artists, so creating these pieces was a daunting task for people who tend to face every day with a sense of fearlessness. And on top of displaying their work, each artist had to make an Oscar-style speech about their piece in under 60 seconds, in an effort to increase bids.

The art ranged from vacation photography to sketches to watercolours to collages, each based on the theme “Eureka!”. Mia’s piece was titled “Eureka! Reinvented”, and combined her passion for snowboarding with her passion for her career.

By the end of the night, $20,000 was raised for the charity. It was an interesting exercise with fascinating results – kudos to Trina Boos of adLounge for coming up with the idea! Check out what others had to say on the live Twitter feed by searching with the hastag #artunexpected.

More and more, Online Editorial Outreach (OEO) programs are being implemented as extensions of traditional media relations programs. In doing this, companies should leverage the opportunity to feature their websites as strategic resources for additional information. Still, the most valuable component of the OEO program, Link Love, is often the most neglected.

“Link love is posting a link to sites or blogs, usually unsolicited, that you enjoy, admire, or find useful.

Example: If you find blogossary.com useful, consider spreading some link love.” – Blogossary.com

The following are some tips to create online buzz and maximize direct-to-consumer, third-party advocacy – a.k.a. link love:

• If you’ve got it, flaunt it. If you’re launching a website, promoting a contest or sharing a YouTube video, make sure your link is front and centre.


• Keep it simple. Don’t bury key links in wordy e-mails. Inviting bloggers to click through your link for more information increases the likelihood they will ask the same of their readers.


• Offer value. Keep your note simple and messaging light. After all, your audience will see all of your key messages once they click through.


• Handle with care. Be prepared to see your pitch posted word-for-word, with credit given to you, your company and your client. With this in mind, don’t include anything in your pitch that you wouldn’t want to see online.


• Follow-up not required. If bloggers are interested, they will (1) post your news right away or (2) contact you for additional information. If a blogger is unresponsive, they’re not interested.

Lee Odden over at Online Marketing Blog has put together an invaluable resource of social media tips and corporate best practices coming from top social media experts.

Some quick takeaways:

“Start small with the people who are most passionate about building relationships with customers.”

“Don?t cede control completely to your consumers. They don?t want it. Meet them halfway. Partner with them. Work with them.”

“I?ve always thought of social media as online PR if you really want to whittle it down to what it is.”

Check it out.

Many online newspapers now accept article comments in some form – something that was unheard of even a few years ago. While giving readers the opportunity to comment on articles can help to boost newspaper traffic, what was once touted as a great way to give readers a voice has quickly shown its potential to devolve into a murky place where anyone with an Internet connection can spout ad hominem attacks, deliver tirades seemingly devoid of critical thought and engage in downright intellectually dishonest discourse. Power to the people.

Admittedly, most comment threads are forums where people of different opinions can participate in lively, yet civil debates on the issues of the day. If you read the same Canadian and U.S. newspapers I do however (read: the major dailies) all it takes is one or two particularly nasty posts for a thread to go sour.

So where does PR fit into all of this? Are comment threads simply new arenas for PR to reach influencers? It would be a bit naïve to suggest that this isn’t already happening, but it raises key issues about the ability of public relations to deliver in the new online world. Article comments are potentially one more outlet where PR pros will need to monitor mentions and reputations.

More importantly, these forums are further evidence that one-way media is dead and the power of news editors to shape the agenda is diminishing.

What do you think?

The amazing treats from Eat My Words are the BEST Toronto has to offer. Having ordered cupcakes for birthdays and work functions several times before, I wondered why I hadn’t come upon this divine shop in my search for the best combination of flour, eggs, icing and all that is delicious. It turns out, that my online search for “cupcakes + Toronto” yielded a plethora of options, but none so amazing as this outfit which supports the Stephen Lewis Foundation.

Eat My Words is clearly a great operation and the women running it have the marketing savvy to get Beyonce eating their scrumptious goodies. Everything about their branding is impeccable – but I doubt I would have found them online without knowing the name of their company. And while I am absolutely certain that well-deserved word-of-mouth must be attracting clientele in droves, this reminds me to never underestimate the power of search and the Search Engine Results Page (SERP).

As information gatherers we know that it is rare to click beyond the first page of an online search, so it is critical for companies to be listed with prominence on the SERP. This is often done through Search Engine Optimization (creating a push-pull of references across the Web to help drive traffic to your website) and paid advertisement with a search engine to help promote your brand and increase your online presence.

Whatever your approach, keep it simple. Identify the key words your customers actually type into the search box and ensure those key words are used throughout your marketing materials, press releases, and website.

I promise you a smart online strategy can reap big rewards .... or I’ll eat my words.

The survey results took me back to my time at Carleton University when I studied journalism. Armed with a Hi-8 video camera, another student and I decided to make a documentary that examined how the “World Wide Web” would affect television journalism. I’m sure if I could find a VCR to watch this groundbreaking exposé again, we would find it quaint in retrospect.

Back then, the media were still calling the Internet the “Information Superhighway ”. While I don’t think we had the vision to imagine the mechanics of YouTube, Facebook or Twitter , our documentary concluded that the Internet would make the news more democratic; new “prosumer ” technology such as DVD camcorders would make it more accessible for consumers to tell their own stories and the Internet would make the nightly newscast more interactive.

Ten years later, social networking sites have made consumers their own broadcasters. Cell phones with advanced photo and video capabilities have made the user the paparazzi. The ethical standards and editorial filters of traditional journalism are ignored online. As a result, individuals most now think of their online identity or persona in the same way a marketer would manage their corporate brand.

Like it or not, it’s the same for companies. Businesses are finally beginning to realize that if you are not online someone else is in control of the message. Are you happy with the results people get back when they input your name in a search engine? Are you effectively monitoring what bloggers are saying about you? Are you reviewing and looking to implement social media analytical tools to measure and manage your online identity?

If not, why not?