Your Marketing Mavens

Why PEI is fun, especially in the summer: Part 1

maureen — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 16:08:06 +0000

I had the pleasure of attending the Disco Cirque show at the Confederation Centre this past Friday night for the opening. I was told by my friend and date, Ms. Louise MacDonald of Abegweit Driving Scool fame, that we were to dress up as per the theme, 70’s disco, so I pulled out a dress that I had recently tried to give away and never had worn before (from one of my favorite stores, Lou Lou Clothing) and made a retro outfit out of it.My dinner companion was a bit concerned when I pulled out my headband and Peace belt on the deck of the Olde Dublin Pub, but I held off and got gussied up when I got to the theatre.

I knew that one of my favorite local musicians, Chas Guay, was performing in the band but other than that I didn’t know much about the show.

David MacKenzie, Wayne Hambly and Tim Banks did a wonderful introduction, all of them looking delightfully dapper in their disco get-ups. It was interesting to hear from Confed Centre CEO, Mr. MacKenzie, that patron-of-the-arts, Tim Banks, and his company APM, had hit the $800,000 mark for sponsorship dollars of the renowned Confederation Centre and the Charlottetown Festival. Bravo!! This generosity undoubtedly has contributed towards the Confederation Centre attracting the high calibre performers and shows that have graced Charlottetown over the past number of years. Very impressive.

The performance was outstanding. We killed ourselves laughing and were enraptured by the antics of Wade Lynch who, at one point, was dressed as Tim Burton’s character in the Rocky Horror Picture Show (whip and all), in black high heel boots and a striking bustier number. The singing and dancing had us up out of our seats, rocking out to the final numbers. Interesting that the show made mention of both Farrah Fawcett and Micheal Jackson, just a day after they both died.

The evening continued as I strolled over to a friend’s store opening, LUNA, right across on Grafton Street. Jennifer Ridgeway has expanded her store which was originally on Victoria Row, and has transformed the 2000 sqft space into a kitchy, eclectic boutique of funky goods geared towards us gals. Guys: I highly recommend you go to buy your favorite lady’s gifts here. I bought a great hat and gorgeous meditation pillow.

I also had the pleasure of running into a couple of the characters from another highly anticipated theatre show, Sketch 22, opening up on July 10th at the MacKenzie Theatre. The dashing Dennis Trainor and Andrew Sprague were out and about, and are part of a satirical comedy group who have been working together for many years, consisitently selling out shows and creating unforgettable characters. A must-see.

That was (some of) my Friday night.

Begin it now

maureen — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 00:52:14 +0000

Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth that ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now.

– often attributed to Goethe, but apparently it’s actually from W. H. Murray, in the Scottish Himalaya Expedition, 1951.

Patrolling the Seas, the HMCS Winnipeg gives chase

maureen — Tue, 26 May 2009 03:09:57 +0000

The HMCS Winnipeg is a Canadian Navy warship, based out of Esquimalt, BC. She is a member of the West Coast Fleet currently serving as part of a NATO anti-piracy operatoin in the Gulf of Aden, escorting ships though the pirate-ridden waters off the Horn of Africa. The Winnipeg has been in the media recently with stories of 7-hour night chases and capturing (and releasing) of pirates, escorting ships who are delivering food and supplies to African countries, rescuing people and patrolling dangerous waters.

From the CBS news, a live account aboard the Winnipeg of a chase and capture of a boat of Somali pirates pretending to be fishermen yet unable to link them to any particular hijacking:

International law has been in the spotlight as a result of a number of “catch and release” incidents where by the Winnipeg has to let group of pirates that they chased and captured, go after seizing their weapons and detaining them briefly.

There was a very well written editorial in the National Post today (I have the HMCS WInnipeg on my google alerts) giving a play-by-play of a chase and details of the political and legal landscape which no doubt greatly frustrates the men and women aboard the HMCS Winnipeg.

From the National Post editorial board today:

“The NATO mission to keep open one of the world’s crucial sea lanes has brought overdue attention and credit to our navy, whose quiet part in providing non-offensive operational support for the invasion of Iraq — and, perhaps more importantly, for the interdiction of al-Qaeda resupply via the Persian Gulf — remained largely thankless for political reasons.”

My brother is the Executive Officer, second in command under Captain Craig Baines. I’m looking forward to seeing Tim soon, he’ll be back in the Maritimes in early July. He and his family are moving to England this summer.

My nine year old son wrote a note to his Uncle Tim on the HMCS Winnipeg’s Guestbook today and we perused the site. We found an interesting story worth sharing here

The Real Thing…

For a sailor on a warship, there is nothing more frightening or motivating than the action alarm. It precedes every major command for the ship to assume a state of readiness for a serious task ahead. These can include but are not limited to Action Stations, Survival Stations, Force Protection State Red, and most often Rescue Stations. Ships at sea practice Man Overboard drills on a regular basis, so that the ship and her crew are ready to respond in the off chance a person should go over the side and into the water.

On March 9th 2009, HMCS WINNIPEG was steaming along in company with a US Carrier Strike Group heading towards Busan, Korea with the ships crew busily preparing to RAS with a nearby USNS Oiler. All of a sudden the Captain’s voice came over the ships broadcast with a very serious message. One of the ships in the formation had a man overboard. The Captain quickly explained that although our ship had not been tasked to respond, it was our duty to bring the ship to Rescue Stations and offer all the support we could to the other ship while it searched for, and then with great skill and luck, recovered the man.

The action alarm then sounded, and the ship sprang to life as Rescue Stations were closed up. Crew members throughout the ship moved quickly and with purpose, closing up the Casualty Clearing Team, The Rescue Boat, and personnel closed up in the Operations Room on the Infra-red Cameras normally used for weapons firings, which were then turned to look for heat signatures in the water.

With the ship closed up at Rescue Stations, the personnel on the upper decks continued to scan the water hoping to help locate their lost brother in the heavy seas. As time passed WINNNIPEG could see the other ships’ boat in the water searching near the smoke markers to find the man. Finally as the bridge was hushed in silence we heard the other ships’ boat confirm that they had found the man, that he was conscious and stable, and that they were bringing him back to the ship. A collective sigh of relief rose up from all onboard upon hearing that the man had been recovered safely and quickly.

By Maureen Kerr
Writer, researcher, blogger, consultant
Kerr Consulting
902-388-1800
@moekerr on Twitter

BDC Young Enrepreneur Award for PEI

maureen — Tue, 12 May 2009 13:43:10 +0000

In conversation over the past years, we’ve mentioned the BDC Young Entrepreneur Award and asked that you consider nominating some of your clients or friends for Young Entrepreneur of PEI. Past winners of our award include Internet Works Ltd., Smooth Cycle, Fresh Media, Cocoon Esthetics, Island Tee Times, Timeless Technology and Atlantis Health Spa.

The 2009 Young Entrepreneur Awards Gala will take place at the Fairmont Château Laurier in Ottawa on October 20, 2009. Deadline for submitting applications is June 24, 2009. Of course, we would like to get them in by the first of June!

The attached link www.bdc.ca/yea will provide additional information, nomination forms, eligibility guidelines, etc.

Winners can also win:

The Export Development Canada Export Excellence Award, presented to the winner with the most outstanding export results. This award comes with a $10,000 grant.
The Deloitte Corporate Social Responsibility Award, presented to the winner whose company stands out in terms of practices and policies promoting environmental protection, sound human resources management or community well-being.

To find out more about what the YEA can bring to you and your business, check out the videos of past winners and hear what they have to say on the website provided above.

Questions? Email us at yea@bdc.ca or call toll-free 1 888 INFO BDC . If you wish to have a nomination package mailed to you, please contact the undersigned.

Your help in seeking a nominee is greatly appreciated!

Thanking you in advance,

Janet Bruce-Hannams
YEA Coordinator

janet.bruce-hannams@bdc.ca
Business Development Bank of Canada
T 902 566-7234 F 902 566-7459 www.bdc.ca

Hashtag for #PNP - anyone interested?

maureen — Fri, 08 May 2009 13:22:16 +0000

Hashtags are a community-driven convention for adding additional context and metadata to your tweets. (from hashtags.org)

I think it would be great if anyone interested in the PNP situation on PEI would contribute on Twitter, anything that they find and want to share. I think @Bjorkygrrl may have started one and I am now following her.

There was a blog on PEIBlogs.com that caught my attention the other day (PEI Political Homepage). It listed a number of Island companies incorporated by a number of Island business owners. One firm in Charlottetown, I was shocked to read, had around 50 incorporated businesses between approximately a half dozen of the partners (50 x $200,000???). The next day the site was down.

What I have heard - just gossip, nothing substantiated - that there are criminal charges being laid and a class action lawsuit in the works.

I’m disgusted with it all frankly. From what I’ve also heard, there are old, staunch Liberals that are also disgusted with their own party and what has transpired since Ghiz got in.

Nova Scotia just had their government taken down this week, I wouldn’t at all be surprised if it happened in PEI. Can a government be impeached here? My friend last night was wondering too.

I thought that some of us on Twitter may want to share as much info as possible.

Finding my Niche

maureen — Thu, 07 May 2009 15:15:24 +0000

Recent Work:

Websites/Blogs

Jeez, I’m having fun with this. Setting up websites and blogs for clients. Sometimes it’s because the client initially paid a lot of money (with another firm) for a website but after a couple of years they became dissatisfied because they couldn’t access it, didn’t know what to do with it, or how to market it. (My question always is “You have a website, now what will you do with it?”) They hired us to re-build it and show them how they could easily change things, and “get it out there”.

Another couple of clients have started using their blogs (all of our sites come automatically with a blog, ready-to-use) and one in particular, Macromom.ca, is doing an incredible job and is getting great traffic. My Yoga instructor is having fun with hers and just added one of her sheets that she draws all of the session’s poses into the blog!! http://is.gd/xuxv

I’m a blog evangelist…. and wish every business would utilize a blog.

www.MacroMom.ca

www.YogaPEI.com

www.SEMHSE.ca

www.MillRiverLanding.com

www.GolfCourseForSale.wordpress.com

In the Press:

This has been fun lately, article marketing and spinning the PR. The more information you can get on the internet in your name, with your expertise, the better your online brand will be. Add the benefit of driving traffic to your website, then it’s a no-brainer as a marketing tool. Better than buying ads in my opinion.

I have a client who manufactures farm equipment and we wrote a story for him (http://is.gd/xurR), put some keywords in the text and anchored them back to his website and submitted it online. We did a bit of research for pertinent industry publications and associations and asked them if they wanted the article (everyone is looking for content). One very specific association said yes, and he could buy an ad next to the article for $25!! It turned into a very fruitful effort.

PEI fisherman is looking for support from other industry stakeholders to come together and market and brand PEI seafood - more info here: http://www.journalpioneer.com/index.cfm?sid=246457&sc=118

(Subsequently picked up by a dozen more publications)

Blogging:

on PEICanada.com http://is.gd/xuOn

on ProgressMedia.ca http://is.gd/xuPO

Training:

- attended an informative, engaging seminar by the BDC in partnership with Grant Thornton called “Making Money in Today’s Reality”

- attended a fun-filled, exciting conference with lots of great industry-leading speakers in Halifax called AIM - http://www.aimconference.com/

Fundraising:

My son’s Owl painting: http://is.gd/xuyi

Doc’s 2nd Annual Reunion: http://is.gd/oCKv

Add to the above: branding, logos, business cards, SEO, social networking, powerpoint presentations, domain names, brainstorming, match-making… I’ve been pretty busy.

I’m looking forward to working on new, exciting projects this month and have a few new clients lined up that will, once again, expand my knowledge and experience.

My tv commercial turned out great but I didn’t get any inquiries from it really. One from a guy that I had given a proposal to 8 months ago and the commercial jarred his memory.

I also had an ad on the Guardian website but only had one person mention that they saw it.

Blogging however…. one of the last time I blogged, 190 people viewed my website with over 1000 pageviews!! My average, without posting is around 40 visits a day but lately anytime I make a post on my blog it shoots up. Maybe that is because of the commercial. Hard to know.

My radio advertising comes out this week on CFCY and 93.1 so we’ll see what kind of feedback that gets.

**All of this advertising is thanks to the ad package I won from the Charlottetown Chamber of Commerce last year.

Next on my agenda:

- “pimping” my blog with all of the social media widgets (and doing the same for my clients)

- seminars on the benefits of blogging or something to that effect (and practicing on my Toastmaster friends before-hand!!)

If you have any ideas that you want help with regarding your website or business… CALL ME and we’ll brainstorm and come up with some ways to get your message out there!!

The last thing I’d like to mention is that 90% of my clients get 40% - 50% of the project PAID FOR by the province through their Website creation Services program or the Professional Assistance Services Program through PEIBDI so it’s totally affordable and a great way to breathe life into your marketing.

Sincerely, Your Marketing Maven - Maureen Kerr

@moekerr on Twitter!

Or you can contact me here: http://is.gd/mMxU

Social Media Blues song… funny!

maureen — Mon, 04 May 2009 14:28:57 +0000

By Scott Rodgers… great job!

My April Maven Update (even though it’s May)

maureen — Fri, 01 May 2009 22:19:55 +0000

Articles, blog posts and stories In the media last month:

- on PEICanada.com - 10 reasons to golf in PEI - article here .

- my son’s painting of an Owl selling for $225, raising money for our friend - article here; http://theguardian.pe.ca/index.cfm?sid=239225&sc=98

- PEI fisherman is looking for support from other industry stakeholders to come together and market and brand PEI seafood - more info here: http://www.journalpioneer.com/index.cfm?sid=246457&sc=118

- being a WHAM (work at home Mom) in Progress online: http://www.progressmedia.ca/article/2009/04/confessions-a-wahm

…and remarkable things I came across:

- gov’t uses the internet and social media to spread message about the swine flu through twitter and Facebook, says the CBC today.

- being reminded by an acquaintance, Melissa (who just got back from volunteering in India at a facility for people with mental disabilities ), about KIVA… http://www.kiva.org/

- lobster season on PEI;

- celebrating our friend Chrissy’s birthday on April 4th with a BIG party - Doc’s 2nd Annual Reunion and raising a lot of money for her daughter with the support of a lot of the bar and restaurant community on PEI. Lots of great pictures on the Facebook site here: , patrons, workers and owners alike. The generosity was overwhelming and the partying was cathartic;

- the Seaglass Festival website is getting remarkable traffic and is happening this summer: http://seaglassfestival.wordpress.com/

- finding out my friend owns part of a lake - the land actually beneath the water - and is selling it if anyone is interested;

- owning property in the Mill River provincial park, on the river, next to the Mill River Golf Course, would be pretty cool. I’m helping the developers with some marketing: http://millriverlanding.com/

- a whole golf course for sale if anyone would like to own a lot of land on PEI: http://golfcourseforsale.wordpress.com/

- my friend who is an inventor in PEI and is selling 1000’s of pairs of Strap Doctor… her cool video here http://strapdoctor.com/

Follow me on Twitter @moekerr

Re-doing my home page

maureen — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 01:26:15 +0000

Who we are
We are a different kind of Atlantic Canadian marketing company. Your marketing mavens appreciate the fact that yours is a unique business with unique goals and a unique budget. We will take those goals and integrate them into a marketing plan that will be attainable and sustainable, considering the amount you have budgeted. If you’re like many small business owners, while extremely adept at what you do, the thought of marketing your company might make you a little anxious.

Add to that the fact that most entrepreneurs know they should be using the Internet to market their business but have no idea how, and you have a lot ofoverwhelmed business people.
This is what it was:

Take a deep breath. We’re here to help.

We will learn all about your business, what makes it remarkable, and how you’ve been spreading the word to date. We’ll do lots of market research, work with you to develop a marketing plan (focusing on free Internet marketing strategies) and ensure that you’re on the right path to reach your goals. We’ll even train you on the technology we preach about (blogging and social networking tools). If you just want to ‘git ‘er done’, no problem. We can take the plan and implement it for you.

Read what people are saying about us here.

Google Alerts for HMCS Winnipeg

maureen — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 14:39:16 +0000

I set up a google alert for my brother’s ship. He’s the Executive Officer (second in command) and I’m very proud of him. I don’t really need a google alert with my parents on high alert. They phoned this morning to tell me he was on Canada AM.

He and his crew are doing Canada proud!!

Google News Alert for: hmcs winnipeg

Canadian ship thwarts pirates
Straits Times - Singapore
HMCS Winnipeg was deployed in the Nato led counter-piracy mission Operation Allied Protector, escorting ships in the region, when it spotted ’several small …

Canadian warship thwarts suspected Somali pirates
CP24, Canada - Toronto,Ontario,Canada
The HMCS Winnipeg is shown in this undated photo taken from the Canadian Navy website. TORONTO — Warding off suspected pirates and coming to the aid of a …

Ex-US sailor sentenced to 10 years in terror case
Metro Canda - Edmonton - Edmonton,Canada
A Canadian ship, HMCS Winnipeg, was among those in the battle group. None of the ships were attacked. Abu-Jihaad did not speak during Friday’s hearing. …

Google Blogs Alert for: hmcs winnipeg

The Torch: HMCS Winnipeg fending off pirates
By Mark, Ottawa
The Canadian warship HMCS Winnipeg has thwarted a probable pirate attack in the Arabian Sea. The ship is currently participating in a NATO led counter-piracy mission known as Operation Allied Protector. While engaging in escort duties, …
The Torch - http://toyoufromfailinghands.blogspot.com/

BitterEnd: Warship HMCS Winnipeg thwarts pirate attack in the …
By Capt. Richard J. Rodriguez
HMCS Winnipeg, currently deployed in a NATO led counter-piracy mission known as Operation Allied Protector, thwarted a pirate attack of a merchant vessel in the Arabian Sea. While engaging in naval escort duties Winnipeg observed …
BitterEnd - http://captrichardrodriguez.blogspot.com/

NetNewsledger.com - HMCS Winnipeg Twarts Pirate Attack
Net Newsledger.com, the best online news and information in Thunder Bay!
NetNewsledger.com News Feeds - http://netnewsledger.com/

Canadian warship thwarts likely pirate attack in Arabian Sea …
Yahoo Canada: 7 hours ago. The Canadian Press - TORONTO - Warding off suspected pirates and coming to the aid of a boatload of fleeing Somali refugees is all in a day’s work for the crew of HMCS Winnipeg in the Gulf of Aden. …
Freshnews.ca - http://freshnews.ca/

Canadian warship thwarts suspected pirates, helps boatload of …
TORONTO - Warding off suspected pirates and coming to the aid of a boatload of fleeing Somali refugees is all in a day’s work for the crew of HMCS Winnipeg in the Gulf of Aden. In the past 24 hours the Canadian warship has sent its Sea …
Latest News - http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/

Google Web Alert for: hmcs winnipeg

CTV.ca | HMCS Winnipeg thwarts Arabian Sea pirate attack
Apr 5, 2009 … A Canadian warship has had a busy weekend on the Arabian Sea, thwarting a pirate attack and delivering supplies to a boatload of Somali …

HMCS Winnipeg foils pirate attack | Canada | News | Winnipeg Sun
Apr 5, 2009 … OTTAWA — The Canadian warship HMCS Winnipeg has thwarted a probable pirate attack in the Arabian Sea.

Canadian Navy: HMCS WINNIPEG - Ship Home
… Command Team · Sailor Profiles · Guest Book · Image Gallery · Links. Canadian Navy Wordmark.HMCS WINNIPEG. Date Modified: 2009-03-19. Top of Page …

Government of Canada Tasks HMCS Winnipeg to NATO Fleet
Mar 27, 2009 … OTTAWA, ONTARIO–(Marketwire - March 27, 2009) - The Government of Canada today announced that Her Majesty’s Canadian Ship (HMCS) Winnipeg …

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