GTA Prosperity Slipping

08 Apr 2011 Leave a comment

by John Amardeil in In The Media Tags: , , , , ,

Image via the Toronto Star

The Toronto Star recently reported that the GTA’s prosperity is slipping, as “Toronto’s economic success remains hampered by low productivity and long commute times compared with cities around the world.” The GTA ranked 8 out of the 24 cities studied, slipping down from 4th place just last year.

Gridlock remains one of the GTA’s top concerns, as all of us commuters can easily attest. Toronto came last among all the cities: our average round-trip commute time is 80 minutes, “worse than Los Angeles (56 minutes), Tokyo (69 minutes) and London (74 minutes).” This time is an average taken from all commuters, both drivers and transit users. Toronto has more drivers than other cities, in part because our transit system doesn’t easily link up with places outside the downtown core.

So what does this mean if you live in the GTA, whether it’s in downtown Toronto, North York, Pickering, Burlington, Brampton or Mississauga? It means that while the appeal of moving out of Toronto proper is still strong because of housing prices and spacing issues, moving out of Toronto is only becoming less appealing if you work in the GTA.

Do you live close to your place of work? What’s your commute time like?

What the New iPad 2 Means to You and Your Business

18 Mar 2011 1 Comment

by John Amardeil in Trends

”Thinner. Lighter. Faster. Face Time. Smart Covers. 10-hour Battery.” – iPad 2

As can be expected, there’s a flurry of excitement over the new iPad. It’s so much more than the old one. It’s new and light, thin and fast. If you don’t have it, you’re soo behind, you’re lead to believe.

Remember when VCRs cost $1000 and things only went down in price once or twice a year? Now new technology launches and sometimes within months it’s already decreased in value. That’s because technology is advancing so quickly; by the time a product launches, the mechanics of things has already vastly changed (remember Flash?).

So what does that mean for advertisers and marketers?

1. Embrace change
As much as you may love doing things the way you’ve been doing them, you’ve got to keep up. Otherwise, you’ll be left behind.

2. Even if you don’t understand it, do it
Whether or not you know what apps or tweets are, get social and mobile. The popularity of the iPad means that your website and blogs should look good on it, and should be quick and easy to read and navigate.

This doesn’t mean you have to have the new iPad to be on top. You just have to acknowledge its immense influence on technology and culture.

Why You Should Be On Facebook and Twitter

11 Mar 2011 Leave a comment

by John Amardeil in You Need to Know

Perhaps you think Facebook and Twitter are for young people. Or that it’s just people chatting about inane things like what they’re making for breakfast or which movie they’re watching. Sure, there’s some of that, but for the most part, if you link up with people in your field, they’re great venues for networking and sharing ideas.

But don’t just hop on board and then abandon your accounts. These social media sites beg you to engage on a somewhat regular basis. But don’t worry, you’ll be rewarded: you’ll be introduced to new people and ideas, learn about events you wouldn’t otherwise know about, and so much more.

Many people lump Facebook and Twitter together, but they’re not the same and shouldn’t be treated as such.

Facebook is a place to engage in conversation while still being able to promote yourself. While you can reach out to other people and businesses, this is more of a closed-circle than Twitter (Note: If you’re going to do business on Facebook, be sure to create both a personal profile and a professional page. That way, you’re not sharing personal information on your business page and vice versa).

Twitter provides short texts that often include clickable links that are visible to the public. You only have 140 characters per “tweet” so you have to really pack your message with punch in very few words. The most exciting feature of Twitter is that because it’s an open circle, your reach is much, much wider (think of that old shampoo commercial, “And they told 2 friends and so on, and so on…”).

If you are serious about your business, then you should get serious about Facebook and Twitter.

Check out BAM on Facebook and follow me on Twitter – @JohnAmardeil.

Online Security in an Insecure World

07 Mar 2011 Leave a comment

by John Amardeil in Strategies

Gmail lost people’s entire accounts last week (they were all recovered). Back in December, Tumblr went down (chaos ensued).

Increasingly, our lives have moved almost entirely online.  Just think about it – you’ve probably got your calendar online, banking, work for the office and then all of your own personal files and emails.

And yet, most people still don’t backup their stuff. Either consistently or at all.

There’s nothing worse than that helpless feeling that everything you’ve worked on and for is gone. So we’re protecting ourselves and our clients. Because cyberspace is just that – space. And anything can go anywhere at any time.

Creating a Viral Campaign

25 Feb 2011 2 Comments

by John Amardeil in Strategies, Trends

It should have been impossible.

Old Spice was a tired brand that only Grandpas wore. It was staid and lame and well, it seemed like the world had moved on.

But ad agency Wieden & Kennedy went and produced “The Man Your Man Could Smell Like” ads staring former NFL wide receiver Isaiah Mustafa that made the product finally relevant to a young audience. The ads’ irreverence and humour went not only viral, but views of the video topped those of Barack Obama’s presidential victory speech and Susan Boyle’s performances.

 

It just goes to show that you’ve got to be tapped in to your target market. Wieden & Kennedy smartly advertised to women even though they were trying to sell a men’s product, figuring that women often buy bath products for their boyfriends and husbands.

At BAM, we spend a great deal of time honing in on our clients’ products and figuring out who’s likely to buy them. We look at not just their ages and locations, but their interests and buying habits. We also tap into the way people think and what excites them. We want to create successful campaigns that get people texting their friends and forwarding links about upcoming communities/opportunities! Going viral is always an amazing success.

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