Archive of ‘Espresso Shots‘

Singapore was hot, a sweltering 35 degrees of tropic humidity. As someone from Vancouver, at the end of every day, I was ready to die. For someone from Nunavut, I imagine it unbearable. Meet Emily Ridlington, Canada’s Young Reporter for the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

Starting at the 2010 Summer Youth Olympic Games in Singapore, the IOC introduced a new program where 29 reporters between 18 and 24 travel to an Olympic event as accredited media, producing articles, photos, broadcasts, and social media pieces. With the Youth Olympics being centred on promoting skills development and expression through digital media (amongst other things), the Young Reporter program was a natural extension.

Meeting Emily was a pleasure. At 23, she had the professionalism of someone much more experienced, yet was still awed by all around her; a killer combination for any story teller. When asked about her thoughts on being a Young Reporter, she humbly replied, “I’m honoured to be here for this amazing opportunity, and while I’ve been out of school for a couple of years as a working reporter, I always appreciate new opportunities and experiences where I can continue to hone the craft, especially at an international event.”

Though young in her professional life, Emily’s no stranger to international audiences. During her days in Carleton University, she was the news editor for the online magazine, The Dinner Jacket, boasting a subscriber base of 40,000 readers across 200 countries. Even then, there was still lots to learn.

Backing the Young Reporter program were six media veterans, hailing from text, radio, television, photography, and online media. Throughout the Games, the Young Reporters would attend workshops in each discipline, followed by hands-on assignments.

With my interest in the future digital media at the Olympic Games, Emily confirmed that it was a big part of the Young Reporter experience, “We’ve been encouraged to use Twitter and Facebook, updating our viewers and readers that way. We also have one assignment that’s going to be purely social media where we’re going to continually post tweets.”

In parting, I asked Emily what she would recommend for young journalists looking to break into the field. She replied, “It’s a very unique field in that everyone comes from a different background. Some of us have formal training, some of us don’t. If you have any interest in the field and in pursuing it as a career, I think you should get involved in activities that let you learn the skills that you need. Being open, and interested and hearing people’s stories also definitely helps”

Emily’s since returned to her work at Nunavut/News North with Northern News Services in Iqaluit, Nunavut. For a look at her work during the Youth Olympics, visit the YOG Young Reporters 2010 group on Facebook.

Cousins Michael and Sam Zipursky have spent the last decade as business consultants to some of the world’s premier brands including the Financial Times, Dow Jones, and Panasonic. After spending several years in Japan with their marketing and branding firm Kankei Culture, the Zipursky cousins have returned to Vancouver to pursue their latest project: Advicetap.

If you had to describe Advicetap in one sentence, what would you say?
In 14 words, Advicetap is a community that helps Canadian marketing and creative professionals find quality gigs.

When I first visited Advicetap, the first thing I thought was, “It feels a bit like LinkedIn.” What sets Advicetap apart from LinkedIn and sites like it? ?
Two main things set Advicetap apart from other sites or social networks out there:

1. All members are pre-screened which means we look into each person that applies to make sure they do what they say they do and to maintain a level of quality. Many websites allow anyone to create an account without any kind of quality control.
2. Advicetap is for Canadian Marketing and Creative professionals. Other job and community sites don’t have a country or industry specific focus. We believe this focus provides more value to our professional members and to businesses that post their projects on our site.

It’s clear you’ve put a lot of thought into the community. How did everything begin? What inspired Advicetap?
Both of us have been in the consulting game for over a decade. We’ve built businesses and worked on them from home and abroad. In short, we felt that we’d encountered all kinds of experiences, the lows and the highs, learned many lessons and so one day we decided to start a blog where we should share our stories with others.

As that blog, Business Consulting Buzz, started to grow in traffic and readership we spoke with our readers and they told us they wanted a place where they could interact more and collaborate with other professionals like themselves. That got us thinking and lead us to develop Advicetap.

The number of consultants and freelancers is increasing and many of them are looking for quality gigs. On the flip side there’s a ton of businesses out there that need help with their marketing, getting publicity, improving their brand and understanding how to use social media – and they don’t know where to find someone qualified to help them. Advicetap really puts the two together.

You’ve mentioned consultants, freelancers, and gigs, but what about jobseekers? Is there any room for bigger companies in Advicetap?
In terms of community members the primary focus is on consultants, freelancers, and small business owners that are into the marketing and creative fields. This group of people face similar business and lifestyle issues so we’re trying to keep it focused on this group for now. If we opened it up to all “jobseekers” then it would become just another job board – we want to build something special and unique.

Going back to the screening process, what makes the perfect candidate for Advicetap?
Advicetap’s focus is on Canadian marketing and creative professionals that have a strong online presence and can prove their professional experience. If someone fits that description then they are a “perfect candidate” for the community. The screening process at Advicetap sets the community apart from most social networks and we feel this not only benefits other members but the companies that receive applications from our members.

So, let’s say I’m ready to start using Advicetap. How would I get started? What do I have to do to get the most out of my experience, from both service-provider and business sides?
Once you’ve been approved for membership to the community the best thing to do is fill in your personal profile and then jump right into to conversations, search for gigs, and build up your network with other like-minded professionals that you can connect and collaborate with.

From the business side of things, instead of spending lots of time and money trying to find ideal candidates for your next marketing or creative gig simply go to the home page of www.Advicetap.com and “Post your Project”. After we approve the project your post it will go into the community and members will have the chance to apply for the project you’ve posted.

In parting, as consultants yourselves, what tips can you offer new freelancers? Besides using Advicetap, what advice would you give someone looking to expand their professional network?
There is no substitute for getting out there and hitting the streets. Meeting new people and networking can really open up a land of new possibilities. Make sure you need to look at this as long-term. There are far to many professionals that attend networking events looking to get instant business and sell their stuff – that’s the wrong approach to take. Also, look at referrals – they are immensely powerful to build your network and business. And last but not least, there’s never a perfect time for anything, so take action now. Start your marketing campaign, contact those potential clients, and hit those events … you’ll always find ways to make improvements as you move along.

Thanks for the interview, gents!
Thank you, Jeremy. Great talking with you!

Are you a Canadian marketing or creative professional looking for gigs? Head over to AdviceTap FreshGigs!

Owen Clark has been an entrepreneur his whole life. At the tender age of 16, Owen was already manufacturing and distributing a fabric adhesive called Speed-Sew. Now, he is a serial entrepreneur, adding landlord, stock investor, and owner of a business community to the list. Owen joins us today to talk about his latest venture, ByzHub.

Owen, if you had to describe ByzHub in one or two sentences, what would you say?
ByzHub.com is a business-to-business and consumer-to-business networking site that connects people online and in person.

As a networking site, there’s a lot of competition out there. What would you say sets ByzHub apart from its peers?
Byzhub takes a different approach to the community formula, emulating real-life networking. Just like other sites, the social ties are all there, but ByzHub’s focus is on connecting consumers with businesses and business with each other like we do in person.

Can you tell us a little more about the consumer-to-business relationships?
For consumers, ByzHub has a system called “Quote Request”. Let’s say I’m looking for a lawyer. I choose a maximum distance from my location, write a description for what I’m looking for, and hit submit. Instantly, everyone who can meet my needs receives an email or a text saying there’s a new job waiting for them.

How about the business-to-business relationships? What makes ByzHub more like a real-life networking experience?
The Internet is here to stay but so is the need to meet face-to-face, and we’ve made sure to incorporate that need into Byzhub. Every month, we host meetups for our ByzHub members to mingle in person. Each meetup usually has a speaker, one from our own community. Whenever possible, we also use our members’ work spaces to host the events. For example, one of our last meetups was held in a chocolate factory, featuring an architect – both from within our community. We feel it’s a great way for people to expand their boundaries, learn about new businesses around them, and make real, long-lasting work relationships.

You have a lot of great ideas here. What inspired you to create this site? There are a lot of competing communities out there; what did you see something missing from their formula that ByzHub does better?
I have a lot of business connections I’m quite fond of. The concept of taking those connections online and making new ones through social media was exciting. However, I never found a website that was the perfect online business community – so I made one, using the best features from a number of popular sites. There are a few notable mentions: Craigslist was regional and promoted local interactions, eBay’s review system encouraged professional transactions, LinkedIn’s membership system emphasized qualified connections, and YouTube supported the viral spread of content by letting you embed content around the web.

In closing, what advice would you give someone looking to make new business connections?
It’s easier said then done, I know the fear that goes through peoples heads in regards to networking; I’ve been there. That being said, if you’re standing alone at a social or business gathering, how nice is it when someone comes up to you and says hi? Be that nice person to someone. It’s really that easy. Nike says it best: “Just Do It”. Remember, God gave you 2 ears and 1 mouth for a reason. Do twice as much listening as you do talking, and make your only objective to start a new friendship.

Ready to network? Be sure to check out ByzHub or stop by one of its upcoming meetups.