Marketing & Creative Jobs in Canada Blog - Part 25

5 Red flags job hunters shouldn’t ignore

LDP 0903 Red FlagsRed Flag photo from Shutterstock.

Job hunters spend a great deal of time researching companies, crafting cover letters and resumes, and preparing for interviews. During the process, many candidates forget that the job search is actually a two-way process.

When you are looking for the next great fit for your career, it’s important to stay objective about the companies you meet with. A job can appear perfect on paper, but there are certain behaviours you may come across that will serve as a red flag.

Here are some of the most common issues you may come across in your search: Continue reading →

3 ways emotions boost online engagement

PM0901 Communications: Emotions Trump Everything_IMG

If Martians were to land in your backyard today, and wanted to know what being “human” was like, what would you show them?

Perhaps you’d show them examples of people looking after each other: parents looking after a baby, volunteers hammering together a house for someone whose life will be changed by it; or the way we stop for someone who has tripped to ask if they’re all right; or perhaps the way an entire nation donates food and medicine to countries in need. It’s when we’re caring for one another that we’re at our best. Continue reading →

How To Take The “Work” Out Of Networking

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It’s no secret that job seekers with a strong professional network are much likely to get hired than those without. Various studies have shown that a remarkably high number of individuals are hired through networking. That network is a hidden job market – one where the best jobs go unadvertised, and the hiring manager relies on connections to help her find the right applicant.

Despite its importance, many people – like me, for example, find networking difficult at best, and disingenuous at worst. Schmoozing one’s way through meet ‘n’ greets and swapping business cards with equally desperate job seekers leaves little to be desired. Continue reading →

Creative Cultures: Mobify makes work fun

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This week, we launch a new series at Fresh Gigs called Creative Cultures. Our correspondent 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 to work in inventive and productive environments.

It’s Wednesday, and I’ve been invited to Mobify for a lunch and learn. To learn what, I’m not quite sure, but when I arrive, I’m delighted to hear that the topic has nothing to do with work at all. Instead, the Mobify staff and I are going to learn how to play Quidditch – the very game made popular in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series – as Mobify is preparing to play in an upcoming tournament.

“Fitness helps us keep sharp. People are happier, creating better products, living better lives,” says Mobify’s CEO Igor Faletski. It’s just one of the many ways he strives to ensure that his employees are proud to work where they do. Continue reading →

What Innovators Do

What Innovators Do

Consider the differences:

1. Some people see a trend and see a threat. Innovators see the same trend, and see an opportunity.

2. Some people tend to focus on past failures with sadness or disgust. Innovators look at the same failures and analyze them to figure out what to do better next time.

Continue reading →

Avoid these 3 Common Freelancing Mistakes

Avoid these 3 Common Freelancing Mistakes

The traditional workplace is gone. All hail the era of freelancers.

People are making the jump from traditional office settings to freelancing full-time in droves. The appeal of breaking away from the shackles of your desk, limited vacation time, and management, to becoming your own boss and having all the freedom freelancing provides is certainly appealing. But it’s not all flowers and sunshine—working as a freelancer full-time does come with challenges.

If you don’t freelance at the moment, or freelance part-time and are thinking of making the leap to freelancing full-time, there are a few things you need to be prepared for that new freelancers often overlook. Here are three common mistakes made by those new to freelancing, with a little help from Brennan Dunn, author of The 5 Most Common Mistakes New Freelancers Make.

Continue reading →

4 Ways to Eliminate Workday Stress

4 Ways to Eliminate Workday Stress

Feeling frazzled on a Friday? Workplace stress is a real thing—your inbox being flooded with emails, the constant deadlines, pop-up projects, meetings, and even your commute to-and-from the office all add to weight on your shoulders. It’s easy to see why your workplace might just be the perfect stress-creating environment.

In order to stay sane, and to enjoy the work you’re doing, you need to be able to flick the stress on/off switch to “off.” Here are four ways to eliminate stress at your workplace, with insights from Minda Zetlin, author of 6 Surefire Ways to Eliminate Stress During the Workday.

Continue reading →

How To Adjust To Working From Home

How To Adjust To Working From Home

If you’re making the switch from full-time employee to freelancer, or just starting to work from home more, there are a few things you should be aware of as you prepare to make the transition. As someone who has extensive experience working from home, I can attest that it’s not for everyone. It requires a lot of focus, motivation and self-discipline.

Here are a couple of things you should be mindful of as you prepare to work from home:

Continue reading →

4 Words You Need to Drop from Your Vocabulary

4 Words You Need to Drop from Your Vocabulary

At a time when written and verbal conversation has taken a tumble, it’s important that you know how to tighten up your vocabulary when it matters: on your resume, in presentations, in interviews, and in client meetings.

Eliminating certain words from your vocabulary—words that are vague, repetitive, unnecessary, or “fluffy”—helps your writing become clearer and improves your conversational skills. With that in mind, here are 4 words you need to immediately drop from your vocabulary, with a little help from Jennie Haskamp, author of 15 Words You Need to Eliminate From Your Vocabulary to Sound Smarter.

Continue reading →

InboundCon 2015 Hits Toronto October 8th – Canada’s Premier Inbound Marketing Conference

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In just a few short months from now a powerful marketing conference is hitting the streets of Toronto!

Get ready for keynotes, a full stack panel, a fireside chat and worksheets concentrating on search, social advertising, content marketing, growth hacking, landing pages, inbound marketing, conversion optimization, ppc advertising and digital marketing.

Powered by Search is excited to announce InboundCon 2015, the most actionable marketing conference of the year. This year we are going bigger and better than ever. For one day only, industry leaders and marketing experts from all around North America will come together to share their marketing secrets that you won’t find anywhere else.

The event will take place at the legendary Jane Mallett Theater in beautiful downtown Toronto, Canada. Get ready for keynotes, a full stack panel, a fireside chat and worksheets concentrating on search, social advertising, content marketing, growth hacking, landing pages, inbound marketing, conversion optimization, ppc advertising and digital marketing.

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Early bird tickets are now on sale! (Save an extra $100 by using code FreshGigsSave100) Tickets include a full day of speaker presentations, keynotes & panels with an all-inclusive breakfast, lunch and big after party!

Some of the speakers at this year’s InboundCon are:

  • Oli Gardner – Co-Founder of Unbounce
  • Sean Ellis – Founder and CEO of Qualaroo and GrowthHackers.com
  • Yoav Schwartz – Founder and CEO at Uberflip
  • Jaclyn Jordan – Senior Paid Search Strategist at WordStream
  • Jon Henshaw – Co-founder and President of Raven Internet Marketing Tools
  • Mark Sullivan – Director of Partnerships at CallRail
  • Jason Kotenko – Head of Partnerships at Zapier
  • Jon Cooper – Link builder & author of Point Blank SEO
  • Dev Basu – Founder and CEO of Powered by Search
  • Matthew Hunt – Chief Operations Officer and a Partner at Powered by Search
  • Chris Stolz – Senior Analytics Implementation Consultant at Ensighten
  • Tiffany daSilva – Digital Strategy Director at Powered by Search
  • Jon Spenceley – Community Marketing Manager at Vidyard

Continue reading →