To find out a bit more about “OneWebDay.ca”:http://www.onewebday.ca/ we decided to ask Five Questions of the site’s “Ambassador” Gavin Michael Booth.
*One Degree: One Web Day Ambassador is a pretty cool gig. How did you get such an exalted title?*
Like the lady of the lake throwing a sword to Arthur… the Masters of “CIRA”:http://www.cira.ca/ passed on an email knighting me as Ambassador!
How that happened? Well in a quest to find the One Web Day Ambassador they were looking for someone who had the ability to host the daily video blogs as well as work behind the scenes to direct/edit the clips as the tour went from city to city. In addition to those two key items, they were looking for someone web savvy enough to have a firm grip on how important and how powerful a tool the Internet has become for Canadians. “FUSE Marketing Group”:http://www.fusemg.com/ and CIRA found me primarily through searching “MySpace which I actively use”:http://www.myspace.com/gavinmichaelbooth.
I am owner of Mimetic Productions in Windsor, Ontario and work primarily as a feature film and music video director… as well as shooting tour videos for several high profile musicians. I’ve always utilized the web as Mimetic’s primary way to share our finished media and promotions for our films with the world. Blogs, behind the scenes video clips, a reality show focused on Mimetic’s challenges and triumphs, etc. All this made me a good candidate for the Ambassadorship!
*One Degree: Does the title come with any particular perks?*
Well the castle visitations are pretty nice! Of course by castle I mean relaxing hotels! The hotels are necessary because I’m traveling coast to coast to coast across Canada so yeah… that’s an amazing perk! I’m seeing our great country which I haven’t seen much of in the past and it’s an amazing experience.
I’m also able to meet all sorts of Canadians and fellow artists along the way and hear some pretty fantastic stories about how the web is being utilized in their lives and work.
The opportunities that national press and the take at being an on camera personality are unquestionably the biggest perks. This helps expand my career in directions I didn’t know it could go prior to becoming a representative for CIRA / One Web Day.
*One Degree: You’re talking to a lot of everyday Canadians about the importance of the web in their lives. Have any stories stood out as particularly memorable?*
The one that stands out the most is from a military base in Edmonton. We were able to talk to soldiers and their families about how the military provides them with computers and webcams, etc. at a Family Resource Centre so they are able to keep in touch with the men and women on duty overseas or across the country at other military bases. The web definitely has a powerful effect in these families’ lives as they are separated for weeks/months and are able to SEE and talk to their loved ones without waiting 4-6 weeks for mail or only have a few brief moments of time on the phone each week. It was very uplifting and interesting to hear the impact these people felt because of the Internet.
*One Degree: Are there common themes that keep coming up when you talk to people?*
The biggest common theme is: Information… Instantly! Over and over people express the fact that they can log onto a search engine and find just about anything they are looking for within seconds.
New information about hobbies, the latest news and sports updates, research for their educational pursuits, entertainment tidbits and reviews… do it yourself construction and repair information… like-minded individuals to connect with… Information instantly from the comfort of their home or work environment.
*One Degree: One Degree readers are primarily marketers. Do you have any suggestions for how people want to be marketed to online now that you’ve crossed the country talking to everyday web users?*
My suggestion would be that marketing on the web, I feel, is the most important way to market a product/service/company these days and it’s only going to get stronger and stronger.
As broadband internet spreads its reach further everyday, multimedia content for websites starts to grow… and let’s face it… pretty soon we’ll all be watching streaming video, listening to streaming audio on our cell phones or personal electronic devices… anywhere we are as opposed to always having to pick up the latest magazine or be in front of the television for our favourite primetime sitcom… pretty much the Internet allows us to have the information that we want when we want it where it’s convenient for us.
I think the best suggestion is to make sure that your marketing campaign online is strong and is regarded as a very important aspect of your business because the Internet is here to stay and we’re only in its infancy.