Smart Savvy

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After all the dust has settled, only six candidates remain. Interviews for Smart Savvy’s Top Grads program kicked off this past week and students from across the lower mainland vied for their chance to interview with some of Vancouver’s hottest companies. Selected students sat down to do individual interviews with our team (think dark room, single light-bulb waving, etc). We were amazed at the talent level that was showcased, proving once again that BC is producing some of the brightest marketing minds. However much like your favorite reality TV show, some tough choices had to be made, and we had to cut down the group to six.

Without further adieu,  I present to you the Top 6 Wunderkinds of 2009.

The Record Holder - Callum Ng, a UBC Early Career Masters grad, is not only a Canadian record holder in swimming, he is also an entrepreneur, volunteer, and blogger. Callum captained the UBC Men’s swim team last year while finishing off his Masters degree, and ended up having to utilize his management and marketing skills to recruit 10 athletes to the team. Callum’s blend of enthusiasm and real world experience is top notch and we are excited to see him in the next round.

The Prodigy - Not everyone starts university at age 14, but Brian Wong has been an exception his entire life. Graduating this past semester from UBC  was just one of the many things that fills Brian’s day. He is founder of Aer Marketing, a full service marketing company that he and his partners founded in his 4th year of university. He is an experienced Tuk Tuk rider, speaks Cantonese, and loves hockey. How does he find time to fit it all in? Well, he practices the art of polyphasic sleeping.

The World Traveler - Tyrone Lingley is someone who experiences life to the fullest. This Royal Roads BComm graduate has been a university instructor in South Korea, traveled across the world, and started his own  internet marketing company. All of this experience enabled him to be an honor roll student at Royal Roads, while also serving as the Advancing Canadian Entrepreneur’s VP of consulting and the Student Representative for the RRUSA.

The Volunteer - Having an “insatiable appetite for involvements” has led Charles Voon from a tough life situation to one of Sauder’s best students. Encouraged by his mother to begin volunteering at age 7, Charles has never stopped going the extra mile. After winning the Millennium Excellence Award of Canada in 2004, Charles chose to attend UBC and has excelled throughout his time there. His significant volunteer contributions to YOUCAN and Enterprize Canada, are balanced by his impressive Co-op resume, having worked with both Procter & Gamble and Electronic Arts.

The “Make it So” - Adina Dragasanu gets things done. Just take a quick scan of her experience prior to graduating from UBC. Kraft Canada, Telus, Unilever. Besides working with some of the biggest brands in Canada, Adina also served as the UBC Marketing President in 2007 and is the Director of the Commerce Society Alumni Relations program. We have no doubt that Adina’s impressive resume will continue to build in the future.

Mr. President - Krishna Raisinghani describes himself as “not your average marketer”,  referring to his extensive finance and accounting background. The current UBC Marketing Association President has plenty of diverse experiences, including starting his own media company, winning the Gold Level Service Award for volunteerism, and interning twice with Deloitte. This mix of marketing, volunteering and business acumen enables Krishna to excel both in the classroom and in the real world.

Shouts out to UBC for having such a strong presence at this year’s Top Grads competition. Consider this a challenge to the rest of the post secondary institutions in BC.

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I have had a couple of people over the last few weeks list the most essential social media tools for marketers. Rather than launch into a long dissertation on the importance of social media, I thought I would post them to our blog. Feel free to leave your own thoughts in the comments if you have any other favs, but I have found that of the many social media memes, these are the most effective.

1) Twitter

I think we can officially all agree that Twitter has arrived. Explosive adoption rate, massive press, and celebrity followings have launched Twitter (and its new language) into widespread consciousness. As a marketer, Twitter can be an extremely effective tool. With it you can drive traffic, monitor your brand, communicate with your customers, gain clients, build relationships and promote your brand. At Smart Savvy, we have sourced leads directly from Twitter, developed relationships with local companies, and actively utilized the search functionality to monitor our brand. All this from a tool that limits you to 140 characters. If you aren’t following us yet, check us out here.

2) YouTube

YouTube , owned by Google, is not only a place for funny videos but is also among the largest search engines on the web. Companies need to have a presence there. It is important to post and organize company videos so when someone searches a topic your company will show up. These can be short videos explaining basic concepts, internal videos to promote employee culture, or a myriad of other things. Consider this as another way to get your content out on the web. You can check out more of our videos on YouTube here.

3) Blog

Blogs are a great way to communicate and interact, and are an integral part of your social media strategy. Blogs allow people to comment, engage in the conversation, and see the real people behind the company.  This is the essence of today’s social media. A one-way conversation is passive; instead blogs allow people to respond and join in dialogue. In order to avoid blog irrelevancy, you need to be interesting, insightful + topical, and most importantly, consistent.

4) LinkedIn

In the recruitment field, LinkedIn is a tremendous connector. Find thousands of resumes, comprehensive search functionality, and access to passive job seekers. Mastering LinkedIn is not easy. Knowing how to use LinkedIn well is key. Check out this article to give you a head start on some tips and tricks.

5) You

Social media is not a quick fix. Its about building an authentic community and relationships. While the web provides the tools, the people behind the brand are still the most significant component. Without a personality, no one will read, watch or interact with your content. As Seth Godin says, “Be interesting.”

An ongoing series highlighting companies in Vancouver who ‘do it best’.

Twitter is both an engaging tool and a daunting task, and doing it right is by no means easy. As it has gained mainstream popularity — with users like Obama, Ellen, and CNN — businesses, especially marketers, are feeling the push to get involved and join the burgeoning service. I don’t want to argue the merits or disadvantages of Twitter, that’s for another post, but I do want to highlight a couple of local companies that are doing it right. Vancouver is considered one of the ‘early adopter’ cities in the Twittersphere.  Here are a few of the companies that stand out.

Japadog- Using Twitter to Sell Your Product

You just have to love Japadog. As a hot dog vendor, traditionally you have to rely on flashy signs, location, and the wafting smell that is more addicting than, well… you know. However,Vancouver’s Japadog took a different approach. Following an L.A. Taco stand’s lead, Japadog now tweets specials they are running, its location, and connects with its customers by tweeting their next destination. The result?  Tons of press, informed customers, and a lot more franks being sold.

Hootsuite - Inform and Update Your Customers

For nothing else, Hootsuite deserves to be on this list because of its 20,000+ followers. Being a Twitter application however, brings this number into perspective. Twitter can be used in a variety of different ways and Hootsuite uses it to inform its customers and users on product updates, new features, and feedback. Created and run by the folks at Invoke , it’s not surprising they do it well.

MakeGood - Become a Thought Leader

Is it incestuous to write about a company you share space with? We don’t think so. MakeGood uses Twitter to carve out a niche as a thought leader in their field (social responsibility) and does a great job interacting and conversing with people across the world that are passionate on the topic. With over 1,500 followers strong, it’s a compelling topic.

Vancouver Canucks - Engage Your Customers

The Canucks are using Twitter to talk to their fans, spread breaking news, and promote events. I love how they use Twitter as a conversation starter, not as a broadcasting device. Fans can @reply and expect a response, and they can tweet their thoughts during games.

BC Business -  Spread The Word

BC Business is one of the province’s most widely read business magazines and they use Twitter to spread their content and connect with their readers. I like how John Butcher injects his insights with tweets like this, “Anyone out there use the word “skookum”? (Adj.: big, hearty, fierce.) Apparently, it’s BC and Yukon slang that comes from the Chinook slang.” You really can’t go wrong. All in all, its a pretty skookum Twitter feed.

lululemon - Connect and Inspire

Oops… this is #6, but I just couldn’t resist.  Lululemon, makers of yoga-inspired apparel for healthy living, actively uses Twitter to inspire their followers to stay well-balanced and healthly. Either join a Yoga class and “boogie woogie” or read an insightful book.  They also like to throw in the odd tweet asking their followers about their favorite lululemon item or about a new product, but why not? Their fabric is like none other.

An ongoing series highlighting companies in Vancouver who ‘do it best’.
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The internet has enabled us to do a lot of things better. Communication is faster, transparency is easier, and we have a myriad of new ways to connect with our customers. But it’s not always easy. People expect a higher level of interaction with the companies they support, and they often look to the corporate blog first to see what type of people are on the other end of the transaction. We now want to highlight The 5 Best Business Blogs in Vancouver, taking a look at  how to add value to your brand through blogging.

Invoke

Invoke does a good job of posting a mix of posts about their business and posts about culture and the city. Because they have so many different employees contributing to the blog, readers get a variety of different perspectives from the company. I’ve had them in my Google reader for a while now, and I am always impressed with the content.

Must Read: How Twitter Affects Digg

6s Marketing

6s has recently upped the content on their blog considerably, and are doing a fantastic job of it. Featuring posts on the industry (Chris Briekks is an SEO veteren), the city of Vancouver, and employee activities; 6s’ creative content is a fantastic window into who the company is. You can expect 2-3 posts a week from this team, and they are a great read, especially if you are in the internet marketing industry.

Must Read: A/B Testing + Duplicate Content Paranoia

WinExpert

We love this blog because it does exactly what a company blog is supposed to do — show passion about the industry and make a connection with the people behind it.  Blogging about  ”Winexpert products and the company, but also anything else fermenty.”  Tim’s post are highly personal and engaging. If you are a bit of a wino, you really can’t miss this one.

Must Read: Politics, Wine, Bowling & Kindergarten

Peer1

Being the large company that it is, Peer1 manages to come off as personal on their blog, focusing on community-sided topics and contests. They also keep the balance right between company announcements and posts that are just for fun.

Must Read: Happy Holidays From The Peer1 Team

VanCity (William Azaroff)

This might not count as a completely corporate blog (its hosted on a separate URL), but William Azaroff does blog about all things VanCity, and as the “head of all things online,” he has a lot to say. Arguably the best blog on this list, Azaroff writes posts that are insightful and transparent (even though he ripped off the Amazon logo…) Add it to your RSS reader now, you wont regret it.

Must Read: A Sneak Peak Of the New VanCity.com

If you think you do it better, leave a comment and we’ll update our post (that is, if you are better).