ShesConnected Conference Program guide 2011

2011

ProgramGuide

Connecting Brands and Canada’s Most In� uential Digitally Connected Women

Conference2011

P R E S E N T E D B Y

SEPTEMBER 29 - 30, 2011 SHERATON CENTRE TORONTO HOTEL TORONTO, ON CANADA

www.shesconnectedconference.com @SCConference #SCCTO

.

Media Sponsor

Always a Perfect Fit

Party Sponsors

Bronze Sponsors

Title Sponsor Gold Sponsor Silver Sponsors

2nd Annual

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She’sConnected 3

.

Media Sponsor

Always a Perfect Fit

Party Sponsors

Bronze Sponsors

Title Sponsor Gold Sponsor Silver Sponsors

.com

Donna Marie AntoniadisMark GrindelandMargaret AntkowskiDuri Al-AjramiIan BarrElizabeth Clark-LuzzaLouise ClementsShannon CowanLaurie Dillon-SchalkLeigh FeleskyMinnow HamiltonTerri McBayErin O’NeillDenise ShorttRebecca Shropshire

Linda AntoniadisTheresa DostalerHeather HamiltonSara HodgeStephanie HolmesChristy LavertyDiana MancusoTamara McPhersonKatia MillarJulia Rosien

Sponsors AdvisorsAgency & Experts

Digital WomenFriends and Supporters

Special thanks to our sponsors, advisors, friends and supporters!

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Welcome to the 2nd Annual ShesConnected Conference

This is the second year we’ve brought together the most digitally influential women in Canada with brands who want to connect with them, all in one conference. We are thrilled that you could join us.

Every year, the conference gets bigger, bolder and better.We want to recognize and thank all our digital women

for your support. It’s your creativity, expertise and energy in the social space that gives us all a reason to be here. From the pre-conference Twitter parties to the large number of applicants who applied to attend this conference, we are energized by your participation and the knowledge that you bring to this conference. Thank you!

We’ve also had overwhelming support from our sponsors. Huge thanks to all of you – big and small – your contributions are much appreciated. Special call out to Ford, our title sponsor, for helping to make this event happen and to our media sponsor, Marketing magazine, for helping us get the word out. Also a special thanks to our advisors who have kept us on track. We’ve enjoyed working with all of you, every step of the way.

It’s an honour to be here with you. Let’s kick off this conference and let the learning begin!

Best, Donna Marie antoniaDis

Co-founder & CEO

[email protected]

@donnaantoniadis

4 ShesConnected

1:00 PM - 1:15 PM Welcome Welcome and Introduction

1:15 PM - 2:30 PM KeynotE Keynote: Sheryl Connelly, Futurist, Ford Motor Company

2:30 PM - 3:30 PM SeSSionS Breakout Session with Ford Motor Company: This is an interactive session with our title

sponsor. You will have the opportunity to learn about Ford’s social media priorities, upcoming

programs and events. Learn how you can engage with Ford and be a part of their social media

presence.

3:30 PM - 4:00 PM BreaK Afternoon Break

4:00 PM - 4:45 PM SeSSionS Brands & Digital Women: Ice Breaker: This is an interactive session for attendees,

sponsors and speakers to connect with each other.

4:45 PM - 5:00 PM Wrap-up Closing Comments for Day One

5:00 PM - 6:00 PM reception Networking Reception in Exhibit Hall

7:00 PM - 9:00 PM party Conference Party at Town Shoes on Bloor Street

agenda overviewthursday, September 29, 2011

Friday, September 30, 2011

8:00 AM - 8:45 AM BreaKFaSt Breakfast & Networking

8:45 AM - 9:00 AM Welcome Day One: Recap

9:00 AM - 9:45 AM Keynote Keynote: Elisa Camhort Page, co-founder of Blogher

9:45 AM - 10:30 AM panel What Brands Want from Bloggers and Digital Women. This panel session will discuss the

importance of social media for the brands, how brands are building their social media

capabilities and what they are looking for from you.

10:30 AM - 11:00 AM BreaK Morning Break

11:00 AM - 11:45 AM panel Product Reviews vs. Blog Tours vs. Brand Ambassador Programs: Case studies from both

the brands and bloggers. What works, what doesn’t and what can be improved.

11:45 AM - 1:00 PM luncH Lunch

1:00 PM - 1:45 PM panel Social Media Rock Stars: Veteran, new and rising stars share their experiences.

1:45 PM - 2:30 PM panel What is a Blogger Worth? A discussion with some leading bloggers about their worth to

brands, types of pitches they like and the ones they ignore.

2:30 PM - 3:00 PM BreaK Afternoon Break

3:00 PM - 3:45 PM panel Rate Cards, Guidelines & Disclosure: What is the average price for ads, reviews, giveaways

and posts? Should there be guidelines that new and veteran bloggers can follow? What

should dictate the price of each tactic?

3:45 PM - 4:45 PM panel The 10 Rules of the Road, Putting It All Together: Our panel of brands & bloggers will discuss

how to make it all work and highlight the key take-aways from the conference.

4:45 PM - 5:00 PM Wrap-up Closing Remarks & Announce dates for our 2012 events

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ShesConnected 5

Q: Why does Ford see social media as an important avenue for connecting with Canadians?We see social media as a great way to engage in one-on-one conversations, and our goal is to be engaging and responsive to anyone who reaches out to Ford through social media channels. We love the feedback we receive and often take this back to our product folks.

Q: What are Ford Canada’s initiatives to connect with Canadian women through social media?Women bloggers are an important segment

and we have done a tremendous job getting our vehicles into the hands of Canadian women who write about parenting, lifestyle, fashion and the environment. It’s interesting to hear the different perspectives that each segment shares with their audience. They provide us with unique feedback on many aspects, which we take back to our product guys.

Q: Why did you decide to become the title sponsor of Canada’s premier brand and blogger conference, She’sConnected?We see the ShesConnected Conference as a celebration of the contributions that women

bloggers make. At Ford, we appreciate the time and effort that Canadian women put into their blogs as well as the insights that they share with their communities.

We have exciting products and technology to share, and I think the conference attendees will be surprised at what Ford is doing. Take for example, our Active Park Assist technology that enables your car to parallel park itself! Not to mention our focus on delivering best-in-class fuel efficient vehicles, and of course our leading safety innovations, such as rear-inflatable seat belts and our MyKey technology to help parents manage their teens’ driving behaviour.

Q: What three things does Ford Canada focus on when it comes to your social media approach?We’re focused on being approachable, helpful and ultimately human. Our social media strategy is based around a simple philosophy, we want to communicate and treat people the way that we want to be treated ourselves.

Global brands turn to women and social media AmmAr KAhn, Social media manager, Ford motor Company interviewed byDonnA mArie AntoniADiS, Co-founder & Ceo, ShesConnected

Ford has had winning success in the social media space. The company has more than 780,000 fans on Facebook, 53,000 followers on LinkedIn, and 76,000 followers on Twitter. Plus, they were one of the first to have a Google+ account and revealed the

highly anticipated, reinvented 2011 Ford Explorer on Facebook.What is Ford Canada’s social strategy and what makes the brand

unique when it comes to social? We sat down with Ammar Kahn, Social Media Manager, Ford Canada, to find out and speak to him about Ford’s support of the ShesConnected Conference.

‘ Social media is a part of almost everything we do’

Ammar Kahn, Social Media Manager, Ford Motor Company

continued on p.7

6 ShesConnected

How to find women bloggers

Bloggers are a powerful influence online and women represent one of the most important consumer demographics. Put them together and you have the Holy Grail for brands trying to reach women and moms online. What are the most effective ways to partner with women bloggers to generate brand affinity and loyalty, and drive purchase behaviour?

Brands have used multiple approaches to reach and engage this powerful group of women. Each approach has its benefits and quite frankly some downsides. One of the biggest challenges for brands and their agencies is the lack of a comprehensive source for identifying who to reach out to.

ShesConnected saw this challenge as a great opportunity. Over the last four years they have compiled a comprehensive database of more than 400,000 bloggers. What is impressive is the level of detail they have captured. They can segment their database topic or interest, have engagement metrics, and understand the reach of the women bloggers in their database.

ShesConnected will be launching their Powerlist in December to help women bloggers become more visible to brands. Brands looking to work with women bloggers can use the ShesConnected blogger directory to find bloggers or work with ShesConnected to indentify and recruit the right bloggers for their brand.

Work with meFour key tactics to work with bloggers and connect with their readers BY LenA ALmeiDA

Thinking of working with bloggers to increase your social media reach? There are several ways that you can promote your brand – both

traditional and innovative – that will allow you to gain access to a loyal and diverse audience. For the purpose of this article, let’s discuss the four traditional ways that brands connect with bloggers.SponSored poSt: The most straight-forward way to have your latest press information relayed is to simply compensate the blogger for posting it on her site. Sponsored posts can incorporate guided content, embedded links and must include a disclosure somewhere in the post identifying it as a paid advertisement.review/Giveaway: Likely the most popular way to connect with bloggers, the review/giveaway rewards both the blogger and her readers. In lieu of payment, the blogger receives a free product to review and, with the chance to win a product for themselves, reader engagement and traffic to the post are increased exponentially – especially if the feature is promoted across other social media platforms.BloG tour/panel: Channelling the popularity of the review/giveaway, blog tours organize several blogs of a similar theme and provide guided content, embedded links, scheduled post dates and

optional giveaways for each participating site. The main purpose is to have your content amplified by many bloggers working together at the same time, with the same message – which can serve to boost your Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Brand amBaSSadorShip: The highest level of trust between a brand and blogger, a brand ambassador is an extension of the brand’s marketing department and is contracted to blog for a specified time period (normally 6 - 12 months). Ambassadors generally receive product and monetary compensation, have an ad identifying themselves as an ambassador on their blogs and may represent the company at promotional events.

The traditional routes taken by brands to engage bloggers have proven to be successful and satisfying for both parties. However, we’re starting to think outside the blog; every day, brands and bloggers find increasingly creative ways to work together. From the newly hip “real shopper media” to providing consultation services, event planning and introducing companies to social networks, brands are connecting with digital women in new and refreshing ways as part of a sound online marketing strategy.

lena almeida is the community manager for

ShesConnected

ShesConnected 7

No longer a review blogger

Once upon a time, I set up my little blog. I talked about the products I liked, the ones I could live without, and was content with offering my

two cents to anyone and everyone. But then I noticed that other bloggers

were reviewing much cooler (and pricier) products received – gasp – for free! And I asked, “Why not me?” So I began pitching companies and worked tirelessly to secure products and post honest, detailed features. And for the most part, it was a wonderful fit. There is something really satisfying about having your voice heard, and for many bloggers and brands, it’s a mutually beneficial relationship built on the exchange of products for press. In fact, many of my favourite sites are such “review blogs.”

And shortly after establishing oneself as a serious reviewer, better products – and better-known brands – come knocking at your door. It’s a pretty sweet deal.

But eventually, I found myself wanting more... and different. I wanted a more intimate connection with brands and a stronger emphasis on partnerships. I wanted to manage all facets of the social media relationship from both unique perspectives. Quite simply, I was ready to graduate from being a review blogger to a

brand ambassador.I’m not alone. The current wave

of community managers, social media consultants and advisors are made up of my peers – former reviewers who are looking to channel their social influence and expertise into amplifying a brand’s online strategy. It’s a promotion of sorts; a step in the right direction. And there’s one thing we all have in common: we enjoyed the awesome opportunity to meet with the brands we represent – to connect with them face-to-face and cultivate a relationship that extends far beyond a one-time review. We have become an extension of their marketing, a voice for the company, a trusted partner.

The ShesConnected Conference facilitates these partnerships by being the only conference that brings together digital women and brands in a truly interactive forum, with a mission of finding better ways for them to work together in order to socially amplify sponsor messaging while building great relationships with the women who make this possible. This fall, a group of “graduating class” bloggers will attend the conference with the hopes of making such a match.

Boy meets girl? I like “brand meets blogger.”

LenA ALmeiDA, Community manager, ShesConnected

I think one thing that sets us apart as being leaders in this space is that social media is part of almost everything we do. If you see Ford at a car show or our displays at a festival you’ll notice that we have hashtags, Foursquare check-ins and technology in place to help people share their experiences with their friends.

Q: How does Ford Canada’s social media strategy fit in with the global brand strategy?To some extent social media is borderless. When we put out a video, run an event or send a tweet it can easily be amplified and responded to by individuals in other

countries. On a global level Ford is one of the leading brands in the world when it comes to thought leadership in this space.

We were one of the first brands on Google Plus and revealed our Ford Explorer last year globally on Facebook with seamless local involvement when it came to real-time communication with customers. Canada works as part of the global team, and we help and learn from each other. However, local teams are empowered to act quickly and define their own regional voices.

Q: Based on your experience, what would you recommend to brands when it comes to social media?

I’d recommend that brands work out a proper resourcing model as they get into social media. It can’t be thought of as a campaign-based communications tool. Brands need to think of it as an ongoing 52-week program. One of the worst things a brand can do is build up a community via a campaign but then be unable to respond back to the individuals forming the community because resources for community management were not in place.

It’s also crucial to empower your social media teams to be responsive. Social media moves quickly and a brand’s involvement should be looked at as a learning opportunity rather than a risk.

from p.5

8 ShesConnected

Starting and continuing online conversations

Linda antoniadis, Community director, shesConnected

One of the biggest mistakes companies make is to use social media as a simple marketing tactic rather than a strategic tool that can be used to enhance customer relationship management

(CRM). Companies invest untold sums building elaborate CRM systems to help them understand their customers in an attempt to build better relationships and, ultimately, loyalty. However, many miss out on the ability to leverage social media as critical part of that system.

One of the most important aspects of a relationship is having an ongoing dialogue or conversation. If you think about some of the best conversations you have ever had, they probably have some common characteristics. Usually it is about a topic that was interesting to you; you learned something; there was give and take; questions, answers, banter back and forth. And often times humour and laughter was involved. You were probably entertained and engaged. You probably felt like there was a healthy respect for everyone in the discussion and listening was always an important part of the conversation.

Social media has given us a global platform to engage in conversations with people we would never meet in person. We can search for topics of interest, explore other points of view, debate, engage, learn and best of all create new relationships that didn’t exist before. This has been

one of the big reasons social media has grown at such an exponential rate. And we are just at the beginning of what will be possible.

Companies have always pursued the masses, and now the masses are engaged in conversations 24/7, 365 days a year. Smart companies see that social media allows them to facilitate, engage in and manage conversations. But few have the skills and business processes needed. Instead, they use social media as an extension of old and ineffective marketing. The message of “buy me,” or “look at what we are doing” is still nothing more than part of their marketing campaign.

So what is an advertiser to do when the campaign or promotion is over? They need to develop a whole new way of thinking. They need to think of relationships which are built on trust and respect. They need to build the skills and processes that enable effective conversations.To do that, they need to build a roadmap and rules of engagement for all parts of their company. This means integrating conversational elements to marketing, customer care and product development. It means capturing relevant information from conversations and forwarding that information to the right place so it can be acted upon. Ultimately in means having the technology, processes and know-how.

ShesConnected 9

Community Management Services Mark GrindeLand, Co-founder & Chairman, shesConnected

How do you keep up with all of the conversations across social media that may be relevant to your company or business? Usually the answer is community

management. But ask five executives in your company what community management is and you’ll probably get five different answers.

Community management will help your company:EnsurE AlignmEnt of strAtEgy: Help communicate the future direction of the company across social media.gEnErAtE And sourcE contEnt: Create, source and edit material to educate users on the products and services.Build rElAtionships: Build strong relationships with the top customers, welcome new customers and non-customers to the community, and recruit/manage those who volunteer to help test and evangelize your products and servicesmAnAgE EvEnts/ActivitiEs: Plan and execute events and fun activities to drive community engagement and earned media.drivE rEcruitmEnt: Persuade more people to become brand evangelists.mAnAgE modErAtion: Remove bad content and encourage good behaviour by initiating and engaging in conversations.Work Across thE BusinEss: Integrate the community with the overall business.

There are many different models companies use to harness the power of communities across social media. The model that is right for your company depends on a number of variables. These include but are not limited to the following:➦ How important is social media viewed in the organization?➦ How long has your company been using social media as part of your overall business strategy? In other words, how

mature is social media in your company?➦ Is there an executive owner for Social Media?➦ Is there a real budget dedicated to Social Media?➦ How have you organized social media in your organization? Does it report or belong to a business function or group? Typically we see marketing taking responsibility at a high level. Many times it is assigned to public relations, or part of the digital marketing group.➦ How integrated is social media across customer care, product development, competitive intelligence, legal, product groups and marketing?➦ How does the culture of your company influence social media?

Answers to these questions will help you navigate the complexities of community management and lead you to developing the right model for your company. Should community management be run internally, outsourced, or some hybrid of the two?

ShesConnected helps identify and build the right community management model customized to your organization. Through a range of packages and options we cover all your needs for creating, connecting, engaging and building communities. We help you integrate social media across the organization, leverage your marketing investments and deliver efficiency and cost savings by effectively building social media into your business processes.

From preparing a social media strategy based on your company’s needs, to outsourcing parts of that strategy, to training individuals how to use social media tools and then reporting on this investment, we cover what’s needed to get your company started and continue to be more effective with social media.

10 ShesConnected

Going social with the Royal Canadian Mint

CaroLyn Gardner, Project Manager social Media, royal Canadian Mint

In the spring of 2009, and to the surprise of many even today, the Royal Canadian Mint expanded its online presence to include social media. This decision was somewhat bold for a federal Canadian Crown

Corporation, but the rationale and motivation were clear – social media networks and conversations were gaining popularity and the Mint wanted to participate.

The Mint began its transition into social media by building a foundation of trust both internally and externally. To achieve this goal, posts and tweets echoed messages that were already being delivered through the Mint’s traditional communication channels like press releases, customer emails and printed brochures. As trust evolved, so too did the style of messaging.

Today the Mint proactively engages with customers, stakeholders and prospects by sharing interesting stories, experiences and photos. By expanding its brand to social networks, the Mint leads a steady flow of conversations involving coins, coin-related events and industry trends. With an average Klout Score that hovers around 60, the Mint’s messaging is consistently spread throughout an influential network driving further discussion and debate. Without doubt, social media has opened a whole new level of dialogue that is encouraged and monitored by the Mint 24/7.

In terms of reach and amplification, Vancouver 2010 proved to be a significant catalyst for the Mint. As the proud

manufacturer of the Vancouver 2010 athlete medals, coupled with an open invitation for people to visit its pavilion in Vancouver, the Mint ensured it had a very active social media presence throughout the Winter Games. These efforts saw the Mint’s Facebook connections double and its Twitter followers increase tenfold.

By taking social media seriously, the Mint has a steady flow of posts and tweets that generate excitement about new products, share important information about the hobby of coin collecting, answer questions and much more. The Mint also uses social media networks to drive people to its boutiques in Ottawa, Winnipeg and Vancouver as well as its newest retail venue – a kiosk in Toronto’s CN Tower. With a focus on social media engagement in both English and French, the Mint is actively listening and responding to an ever-growing base of fans and followers. Today the Mint has almost 4,000 highly engaged Facebook fans and 4,000 enthusiastic Twitter followers.

WEBsitE (En): mint.ca

WEBsitE (fr): monnaie.ca

fAcEBook (En): facebook.com/royalcanadianmint

fAcEBook (fr): fr-fr.facebook.com/monnaieroyalecanadienne

tWittEr (En): twitter.com/canadianmint

tWittEr (fr): twitter.com/monnaieroyale

ShesConnected 11

In 2004, Chicken Farmers of Canada (CFC) faced a tremendous challenge: British Columbia was hit with an avian influenza outbreak, threatening the

poultry industry throughout the country for months before subsiding, thanks to the combined efforts of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, governments and industry partners.

Understandably, there were questions about food safety–in the first 90 days of that crisis, CFC responded to more than 10,000 media calls from around the globe, answering each individually, honestly and quickly.

The organization and its partners in other “feather” commodities were praised for the speed of their responses, their availability and their ability to get the message across that this wasn’t a human health issue – and that the products people were eating were safe. Consumers kept

the faith, and chicken consumption was maintained at its high levels – important for Canada’s No. 1 meat.

Tough job, especially when you remember that in 2004, there was no Facebook, no YouTube and no Twitter.

Today, people get news so quickly that information, and especially

misinformation, can spread before anyone’s had a chance to really look at it and ask the right questions. An issue can become a crisis quicker than ever before.

Since 2009, CFC’s social media strategy has engaged consumers by joining conversations as a credible, honest source of information about the chicken they eat. Not only are they creating valuable

relationships, they’re creating a frontline of support for when the going gets tough.

Events like the ShesConnected Conference give CFC a valuable chance to meet core consumers and really find out what they want. CFC also saw great success with pre-event promotions, like Twitter parties – to the extent where they even trended in Canada.

Brands need to connect with the people who use them. They need to engage people and keep them talking. You want people to like you; you want people to feel good about buying your product. You want people to trust you.

What brands often forget is that they also need that trust. When the feathers hit the fan, brands need to have a base of people who will know the truth and will help set the record straight. A good support base can keep you in check if you’re wrong.

Stand by Your Chicken: Social media creates loyalty brands can count on Lisa BishoP-sPenCer, Manager of Communications, Chicken Farmers of Canada

“It is not so much our friends’ help that helps us as the confident knowledge that they will help us.” –Epicurus

An issue can become a crisis quicker than ever before

12 ShesConnected

There is rarely a night that you can’t find a good party on Twitter and that is largely due to the

efforts of Amy Lupold Bair, or @resourcefulmom to her Twitter friends.

Back in the summer of 2008, Lupold Bair was new to Twitter, but it didn’t take her long to be a Twitter trailblazer.

She says it was as BlogHer 2008 approached and she was getting invitations for BlogHer at-home parties when she created the concept of Twitter parties.

“I found brands willing to donate prizes even though giveaways didn’t exist on Twitter at that time. I found bloggers who agreed to be panelists to discuss blogging for an hour,” says Lupold Bair.

She remembers fondly the tag at that very first Twitter party was #RMLP for “Resourceful Mommy Launch Party.”

“We were the No. 1 trending topic worldwide for the entire night,” adds Lupold Bair.

Twitter parties have evolved since then, more people are

hosting parties, more people are joining and more brands are seeing the value in the Twitter party. Lupold Bair soon created Resourceful Mommy Media and quickly became a Twitter party and social media leader in the United States.

Canadian-only Twitter parties weren’t far behind thanks in large part to ShesConnected, bringing Canadian brands and Twitter followers together.

Lupold Bair says it is a great opportunity for brands. “Twitter parties allow them

to interact with a large group simultaneously, share messaging, and gather feedback.”

So what is next for Twitter parties? Lupold Bair says she expects to see Twitter itself get into the Twitter party game.

“As the platform evolves, I think we’ll see changes to the events. In 2009 we hosted a Twitter party that included a live fashion show. One day soon that live component will be the norm.”

How to get high on KloutSara Chi, Principal of infoSara Consulting

You want to be an influencer. You look up to and follow those influencers. So what is it that you do everyday online that can help increase your own Klout score – to eventually be among the highest-

ranked? First, for those not familiar with Klout or who

haven’t joined yet, Klout is a social influence metre where your interactions in the social media space are taken into account to end up with an influence score. Klout gathers data from all your linked accounts and does this on a daily basis.

A very important feature is that you score on the topics you are most influential about. So if you tweet or share content about certain issues over and over again, Klout takes this and perceives that you are either an expert or an avid follower of that subject. You can connect all your activities on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Foursquare, YouTube, Instagram, Tumblr, Blogger and Flicker to Klout. It’s a great way to integrate these social media channels into one place and also a great opportunity to build up your own brand.

I’d like to specifically point out Foursquare here. The reason being that in a recent Foursquare research report, it was discovered that more than 65% of active Foursquare users post tips. These tips have a ready audience with each tip being acted on at least once. Furthermore, 80% of active users have “done” tips. What this means is that you can never underestimate the importance of tips as a venue. You may actually alter the consumer-buying behaviour.

I also like Twylah, a content-marketing tool that extracts maximum value from your tweets and lets you own your brand. You can get discovered beyond Twitter with built-in SEO as well as give your audience what they want. With Twylah, you can promote your topical tweets all at the same time.

We all know Klout is not the only tool to measure influence nor it is flawless. However it’s the one being used most widely for now.

So, how to get high on Klout? Re-tweet and share great content, try to respond to people who have questions, and most importantly, always thank people who have helped you in any shape of forms.

Are you reAdy to pArty?Grab a tea, or maybe a nice glass of wine, put your feet up, it’s time to party – a Twitter Party that is By ChriSTy LaverTy

ShesConnected 13

Brands and blogs

Over the past few years, blogs have become increasingly important to marketers. The number of blogs and bloggers has continued to grow, with Facebook and Twitter helping them to engage

with new audiences. Social media has helped some bloggers become brands unto themselves, such as Perez Hilton, creating new opportunities for advertisers.

Brands are increasingly anxious to reach certain segments of the blogosphere – especially mommy bloggers. Mommy bloggers talk about brands, and they will talk to them. According to Technorati, 55% of mommy bloggers say they have been approached by a brand. This poses some serious issues for both the marketer and the blogger, which will need to be addressed in order to ensure that there is a successful partnership:Transparency: Brands and bloggers need to ensure that their relationship is completely transparent to the audience. promoTion: Journalists never promote, objectivity is the hallmark of traditional journalism, and marketers and audiences will need to feel comfortable with a direct promotion of a brand. conversaTion and communiTy: Brands will need to value a conversation and community the way they value content in traditional media. engagemenT: Bloggers will need to ensure that they provide a highly engaged audience for marketers.

Brands and bloggers who work together to create a balance of community, conversation and promotion together will have a big advantage. There is little doubt that blogs will continue to play a significant role in the future of the web and mobile.

LouiSe CLemenTS SvP, social media and digital innovation, macLaren mcCann

14 ShesConnected

The night I saw Elmo and the heart of Twitter

By heaTher hamiLTon@tjzmommy @zacksdreamwww.tjzmommy.blogspot.com

W hen my son Zack was in the hospital this past March I tweeted about it from his bed at Sick Kids in Toronto. While he slept

in my arms, I would update my friends on Twitter as to how he was doing… something they were used to hearing with our multiple hospital trips. These were the same women who celebrated with me on Twitter when Zack walked at 3 years old, only a few months before!

This hospital stay was different than the rest, and I wonder if I really knew that at the time. I was so scared for his life and really mad that he was declining so quickly. I felt like shouting it to the world… that’s where Twitter came in.

While some people might wonder why I chose to be so public during that difficult time, I saw it as a way to rally the wonderful women and mothers that I had met on Twitter to pray for my sick little boy. Rally they did.

On March 9, at 9 p.m., I took a break from my vigil at Zack’s bedside in Critical Care, I went on Twitter and saw little Elmo Twibbons (895 recorded to date; twibbon.com/join/elmo) on the avatars of my followers and tweeps! Not only has social media been a way to express my

feelings about the loss of my son, it has even connected me with other moms who have lost their children.

As we started our fundraising efforts to create a pediatric hospital room in Zack’s honour, again, Twitter was there to support me. As soon as we had a website to accept donations, my Twitter family embraced our mission and spread the word… like wildfire!

People were compelled to read my blog, learn about my amazing son and add an Elmo to their avatars in a sign of support.

Several businesses found our story on Twitter and donated proceeds from their sales or auction prizes for Zack’s Dream Room.

Women I met on Twitter, who are now treasured friends, hosted family fundraisers, online auctions and Twitter parties to help us raise over $41,000 in Zack’s honour!

I could never express my gratitude to the people who have supported me during the emotions of the past six months. Twitter has been an outlet for me and a way for me to find not only a safe escape but a group of people who are eager to help lift me up when I need it. And to tell the truth, those little Elmos still have the power to make me smile.