The staff of FreshGigs.ca would just like to wish everyone – readers and contributors alike, a very happy New Year!
Thank you so much for being part of the FreshGigs.ca experience. We really hope your 2016 is amazing. Keep warm, stay safe and be good.
(And if you can’t be good, be good at it!)
😉
Picture of A person using a computer/technology from Shutterstock.What does the online discovery journey of a new user/customer or user look like? You’ll usually find the answer to this question in any Digital-Marketing-101, but for those of us who find ourselves fully immersed in the world of online strategy, it’s always important keep yourself in the shoes of the end-user.
The online experience (for most people) looks something like this:
Land on website > Browse content > Share and/or make an actionable decision > The end.
Well, sort of. The journey from discovery to purchase is far more complex, and often happens over an extended period of time. Continue reading
Five Things Friday is a departure from the interviews and features we typically post. Part conversation, Part Proust Questionnaire – but with just five questions, Five Things Friday (hashtag alert! #5TF) shows the lighter (and sometimes sillier) side of our interviewees. We’ll be talking to everyone we can get our grubby little hands on; it’s our way of introducing you to the communications, marketing and creative cognoscenti who rock their respective industries. This week, Joanne M. Brathwaite quizzes media and communications maven, Dayo Kefentse.
I have always enjoyed writing and working words because I realized from an early age that words, particularly those placed in public platforms, can be a powerful way to bring volume to your voice. When I was 17 years old I wrote an opinion piece protesting a decision about a radio station. I mailed it to The Toronto Star, and it was later published.
The experience of seeing it in black and white in the Opinion section of the daily paper gave me a boost of confidence that I think has influenced me to this day. I believed then and believe now that I could not only express my thoughts to do a wide audience, but I could also help tell other people’s stories, too. I continued to interview family members, friends, entertainers and anyone who was willing to share as a way to ensure their words were recorded, documented and put away for writing projects. Continue reading
In our Creative Cultures series, contributor Crystal Henrickson spends a day inside companies to learn how hiring, onboarding and company culture play a role in employee happiness. From startups to design firms and all in-between, we’re pulling back the curtain on what it’s like to work in inventive and productive environments.
You wouldn’t normally think of heading out of the metropolis region of a big city to find a digital marketing agency at the creative forefront for many of today’s big brands. But that’s where I found myself, visiting Jelly Marketing located in BC’s Fraser Valley region.
“I’m Jelly’s biggest fan,” enthuses Sarah Clark, Project Manager. “Everyday is different… I love how collaborative we are and how closely we’re able to work together. We feed off of each other’s energy.” Teammate Amaan Fazal, Social Media Coordinator, finds the office to be a warm and welcoming place where everyone is open to trying new things. People support you and push you to be better. “I feel like I’m surrounded by my biggest cheerleaders everyday.” Continue reading
Image of woman hiking in the mountains from Shutterstock.Have you ever noticed that certain people always seem to have an “edge”? They might not be the smartest, the richest or any of those things we associate with success…and yet, they always seem to do well for themselves. What is it about them? What give them that edge?
While we may not have had the lucky breaks nor the trust fund to propel us into the societal/social stratosphere, we’re not imprisoned by our social standing. And I think everyone – if they choose to work at it – can achieve a competitive edge.
Here’s how: Continue reading
Image of coffee cup and notebook from Shutterstock.Being a marketer today means having to do a lot of writing – and not just of the email variety. Today’s marketer has to be comfortable writing (and editing) web copy, social media messages, ads and reports.
Here are 3 tools you can start using to help you be a more productive, confident writer.
Grammarly is a program that checks any writing that you do on the web. To start, simply install the extension in Chrome. The tool will then check your writing for common grammatical errors as you type, up to 10 times more than what Microsoft Office typically finds.
Most modern browsers already have spell check built in; what makes Grammarly so helpful is that it will catch more than just misspelled words. It will help you find the perfect word with context-optimized synonym suggestions.
Grammarly is a great resource for me as I write a lot of social media messages on behalf of brands. While typos are to be expected (we are human after all), as a marketer you want to be sure that your messaging is concise and error-free. Continue reading
Image of woman running outdoors in the morning from Shutterstock.Of course you’ve heard the saying, the early bird gets the worm and thought, “Who wants to catch a worm anyway?” as you hit the snooze button. It turns out there may be more than worms out there if you get up early and start your day. Many studies show that being up early and starting your day can increase productivity; additionally many uber-successful people claim that getting up before the sunrise is what helps contribute to their success. As a former early bird I tend to agree.
So maybe you want to change your night owl ways but don’t yet have a plan on how to make that transition, well here are some ideas (I picked out the ones that work for me!) on what to do and what not to do from Entrepreneur.com. Continue reading
Five Things Friday is a departure from the interviews and features we typically post. Part conversation, Part Proust Questionnaire – but with just five questions, Five Things Friday (hashtag alert! #5TF) shows the lighter (and sometimes sillier) side of our interviewees. We’ll be talking to everyone we can get our grubby little hands on; it’s our way of introducing you to the communications, marketing and creative cognoscenti who rock their respective industries. This week, Joanne M. Brathwaite chats via Google Hangout with entrepreneur Evan Carmichael.
My first business idea was when I was five years old. I convinced my 3-year-old little sister to make paintings with me and go sell them door-to-door. We sold one to our next-door neighbor for ten cents, I think. But this is interesting: I had a whole bunch of ideas growing up, but I never thought I was going to be an entrepreneur, mostly because of my environment; I didn’t have entrepreneurs in my family – my parents had normal, safe jobs (although, they did always encourage me to do whatever I wanted).
So I had lemonade stands…I once tried to turn raisins into grapes and tried to sell them (not realizing it goes the other way around!). I tried selling baseball cards at garage sales and I’d make more money than anyone in my family. Then there were a bunch of ideas that I tried that never really took off. Continue reading
In our Creative Cultures series, contributor Crystal Henrickson spends a day inside companies to learn how hiring, onboarding and company culture play a role in employee happiness. From startups to design firms and all in-between, we’re pulling back the curtain on what it’s like to work in inventive and productive environments.
When April Yau graduated from BCIT, she knew exactly where she wanted to work. During a marketing management class, her teacher led the class through a comparison of 6S with another company to explore differences in company culture. “I found out about how they give back to the community, the cool clients they have, all of the innovative campaigns that they run and especially how family-centric they are. I thought, ‘That’s exactly where I want to be,’ because they work hard and they play hard.” Fast forward three years, and today April is loving her gig as a 6S Senior Account Manager.
Family, means everything to 6S. It’s a place where a win or learn, rather than win or lose ethos prevails. Filled with passion and grit, the 6S team strikes a balance between getting serious work done and not taking themselves too seriously, attracting people just like April to the company. Continue reading
Photo of Student sitting at desk from Shutterstock.Picture it: You’ve just graduated from one of the top schools in your field, where you spent years studying your butt off. And then, the real world hits. Maybe you couldn’t afford to stay in the city like you’d wanted, or the job of your dreams didn’t pan out. Regardless of what you planned, nothing turned out the way you hoped.
What can you do when you’ve worked hard and your circumstances make your education seem useless? Use your imagination, and make your education work for you! Continue reading