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Category: Social Media

Not For Profit: All For Innovation

Published March 29, 2007

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Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending the CMA’s half-day Not For Profit conference in Toronto’s East end. While the presenters were from not-for-profit organizations, it was clear that their marketing tactics were harnessing advanced marketing experiences to attracted both buzz and attendance.

I walked in late due to a queue at the parking meter payment location, but heard a majority of Maureen Oxley’s presentation on UNICEF. When presenting her case-study Maureen stated that UNICEF had a big hurdle to overcome, where donors thought; “I’m a donor, I gave 17 cents last year.” For UNICEF, partnering and co-branding with a known cause – in the presented case it was the Nelson Mandela Foundation – UNICEF was able to use what it had learned from the South-East Asian Tsunami fundraising drives, and put raised funds towards a singular and directed cause.

While Maureen stated co-branding as a strategic move, what was most important for her was to “create a connection point for the kids, and for their education.” Known for the Hallows-eve charity box, it was important to link the UNICEF campaign back to Halloween. UNICEF created trick-or-treat bags, complete with reflective stripes – to not only help kids throughout the eve, but also keep them safe.

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Ice Recap: Day 1 – Non-Stick Consumers

Published March 22, 2007

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Following an enlightening day of speakers and conversations, this post covers some highlights from the many insightful ideas and presentations.

Opening the conference was award-winning science fiction author Robert J. Sawyer, telling audience members that thinking in the present actually places you behind forward thinking trends. He urged the audience to think years in advance, highlighting the emergence of digital technologies, all content streaming, and 3d and interactive experiences. Perhaps his most entertaining quote was when talking about how easy things will be in the future, he noted that “the future is a drunken slut you can take home every night.”

Following Robert’s keynote audience members were met with panel discussions highlighting professional, and traditional, media enthusiasts, as well as ‘real-world’ media users. The first panel highlighted the need to create cross-platform content providers, allowing users to access information on any platform. Noted blogger and author Shel Israel described the future teens and media consumers as advertising-resistant, likening them to a non-stick frying pan. His most prudent analogy to new media was that “rock and roll didn’t replace Opera, but it changed the world.” Shel’s optimism and forward thinking was an attitude not shared by others on the panel. Shel also stressed that companies can no longer consider their users as dumb consumers, and that this relationship must operate on transparency.

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