Mobile marketing coming to North America

What China, Japan and Korea have been using it since 2006 is entering North America right now and will soon become the mainstream of marketing. Mobile marketing is a way of promoting a product or service via specific ads delivered straight to your mobile phone.

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Creating a Successful Brand Identity

The process of creating a successful brand identity requires research, gathering information, strategic analysis, creative design and skilled project management. While the amount of time and resources spent on each stage will vary for each client, the process itself should remain the same.

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Elements of a Successful Brand Identity

A brand is the perception formed in the audience’s mind about a company, person or idea. This perception is the culmination of the logo, visuals, identity program, messages, products and actions. The designer doesn’t make a brand. Only the audience can do this. The designer’s role is to create one of the most important aspects of the brand—the logo or brand identity system. A logo can’t make a bad product or company better, but a well-designed identity will help position a product or company to realize its full potential.

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Newsletter points to ponder

Newsletters are a popular way to keep in touch with people, from current and prospective clients to members of associations to friends and family. Before launching one, whether it’s electronic or print, take some time to think about why you want to send a newsletter, who is going to read it, how you’re going to send it—oh yes, and how you’re going to keep it on schedule!

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Designers share Web site advice

If you’ve been thinking about setting up a website for your business but don’t know where to start, talk to a graphic designer or two for some guidelines. HPCA designers agree that having a “flat” site is important, taking as few clicks as possible to get to the content. “People don’t want to have to click down and down and down to get information,” says Craig.

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HPCA opens 22nd season

Oakville, Ontario — The Halton-Peel Communications Association (HPCA) is set to launch its 22nd season with a fall line-up that includes Digital Storytelling with Donna Papacosta on Thursday, Seotember 15. This and most HPCA events are open to guests, and are held at the e-Spot (www.e-spot.ca) in Oakville.

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Outsourcing the Design Headache

"I hate doing flyers. I'd like to have an idea for a product flyer and a few days later have a sample for me to approve. That would be great...Is that possible?" Yes it is. For many companies the answer is outsourcing.

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However You Watch TV, Content is Still King

Screens are everywhere - in the food court, on the GO Train, in the palms of our hands. And because of this, Steve Rayment of TVO says we're going to be talking less about traditional "TV" hardware and more about "content." With 23 years of experience in the TV biz, Steve was able to give us an insider's view of the industry at our meeting November 10. He started with a look back to the mid-1980s, when specialty TV was born. Movie channels launched first, then TSN and MuchMusic, but all were suffering with low adoption rates.

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Wizards of the web Rob Clark and Kyle McKeown unmask web analytics

In the right hands, passion can magically alter a necessary but dull topic into something relevant and fascinating. How could we otherwise explain a researcher's life commitment to the study of an obscure insect only found in an equally obscure corner of the globe?

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Workplace Wellness for the Home Office

For many of us, having the flexibility of working from home is wonderful. We have the freedom to start and stop when we want. Take breaks at our leisure. Even grab a snack when the mood strikes. But after a while, there are parts of the job that seem to grate on us.

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Meeting Report, New Members, Share Your Thoughts...

Mark your calendars for another don't-miss event the evening of Wednesday, May 26. This one features our social media expert Rob Clark, who will help us understand web analytics, and Rob's colleague Kyle McKeown, who will talk about inbound marketing and search engine optimization.

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Business Benefits of Improv – spontaneous communication

You may have laughed a lot while watching the TV show “Whose Line is it, Anyway?” (The original BBC radio version moved to TV in 1988 and then to US TV in 1998. ) Watching it on TV is NOTHING like actually doing it. You can watch someone ride a bicycle but actually riding a bicycle is beyond description. It’s the same with improvisation.

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What’s Your Behaviour Style?

Who knew that I would have the same behaviour style as the famous Donna Papacosta, and some other guy named Donald Trump?

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Coffee talk—how to build business while sipping java

If the thought of “working a room” is nerve-wracking, break up your networking goals into smaller, attainable steps. Basically, networking for business is getting to know people so you can help each other. I suggest the best way to accomplish this is by meeting people one-on-one over a nice hot coffee.

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How to get free publicity for your business

Having your business featured by newspapers, magazines, TV or radio gives you valuable exposure that money cannot buy. Some people get this attention because they know how to create and make the most of media opportunities. Here are five techniques to use for your own business.

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