This is Mona

Coq au Vin at Pastis. Windows and patio are open on this...

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 12:29:01 -0500

Coq au Vin at Pastis. Windows and patio are open on this gorgeous sunny day.

Pretzel croissant and hot chocolate with home made marshmellow...

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 11:00:03 -0500

Pretzel croissant and hot chocolate with home made marshmellow in a bowl! Amazing blend of sweet and salty. At City Bakery.

thatssodigital: The size of the mobile market (via...

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 23:12:43 -0500

thatssodigital:

The size of the mobile market (via @LenKendall)

Attention US travellers! GateGuru aims to help you

Wed, 03 Mar 2010 15:57:27 -0500

I just discovered this new iPhone app, GateGuru. It provides listings and user-generated reviews of places to eat at 85 US airports, with plans to expand worldwide.

http://gateguruapp.com/

McKinsey: Get Ready For Sensor-Driven Business Models

Wed, 03 Mar 2010 12:49:00 -0500

A very comprehensive and insightful read on how a business model can be shaped for The Internet of Things. The report comes from McKinsey Quarterly, which you have to register to access the full extent of it. I recommend you do, it takes 1 min. RWW provides a thorough summary of the report. Essentially, McKinsey sees two categories for emerging applications: “information and analysis” and “automation and control.” McKinsey lists tracking behaviour, enhanced situational awareness and sensor-driven decision analytics applications that categorize under the “information and analysis” app.

For “automation and control” McKinsey lists use cases such as process optimization, optimized resource consumption and complex autonomous systems.

Access the full article on RWW here

Why a recession is good for service industries

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 16:59:53 -0500

As many people fumble with the dreaded word recession, I personally think that there is much gain to be had as a result of the economic downturn. Let me put this into deeper context. The digital arena, which I classify as a service industry mainly because its success is based on a positive user experience, we all play in has not only emerged as a dominant communications channel, but has evolved from a single to a multiple track platform. The explosive growth in this domain has been realized in part ever since the advent of online community. I don’t mean to be absolute when I say that these movements, if you will, have marked digital in 2008/2009. They have set the stage for the next wave of trends we are currently and soon will be witnessing for digital, such as advanced mobile communications, location based services and citizen journalism. Its a lot to handle for the likes of brands and consumers as they equally try to reconcile some purpose and relevance among the many emerging technologies. Now more than ever companies have to recalibrate to offer compelling value based on understanding user wants.

Design provides much value in this context. There is a strong opportunity to capitalize on the effects of the recession by embracing design across a multitude of functions, all towards igniting innovation and a basis for human centred offerings. There is lots of room for companies and their brands to improve the customer experience. To highlight my point, I was reading an article in Monocle on how a recession can yield positive challenges for the hotels industry. The recession has seen a great halt of hotel projects. In tandem, user desires for an unparalleled experience is unabated. Times like these call for hotel management types and designers to really consider what the customer wants. What’s the difference in the evolved desires between hotel guests and digital consumers currently? Not much. Both are looking for relevance, originality and context. Realize, the intent here is not to isolate my point to the hotel industry per se, but to highlight a universal truth that applies to the digital communications industry.

Where momentum of new technologies is rapid, agencies offering digital capabilities are gradually witnessing clients seeking them out for thought leadership, rather than for production alone. Good move. Clients need to be just as savvy as their consumers when it comes to properly adopting technologies to meet a business objective and user need. If the outcomes of a recession are placing increasing onus on behalf of the clients to get creative with their value proposition, all the better.

The Hero

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 14:38:00 -0500

The Hero:

Just came across a very clever and excellently executed interactive movie called The Hero, featuring me or anyone else I know. Upload a photo of yourself and become seamlessly integrated into a convincing-looking film. Draftfcb came up with this viral concept as a way of convincing a young and metropolitan audience to start paying a broadcast fee as part of the Swedish public-service system.

Where We Design

Mon, 01 Mar 2010 15:50:26 -0500

Where We Design :

Fantastic workspace and design environments from designers, architects, agencies and more. Inspiring!

via @karrio

Location-Based Services: Hype or Hit?

Mon, 01 Mar 2010 15:34:18 -0500

Location-Based Services: Hype or Hit? :

Interesting RWW piece on whether the future of Location Based Services will yield success or merely hype. An argument for predicted revenue growth is based on penetration beyond smartphone users and Average Revenue per User.

via: New York Times

Branding and the 'Me' Economy

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 17:08:05 -0500

Branding and the 'Me' Economy:

The rise of the personal brand augurs a future in which we all function like one-person conglomerates, calculating how every action affects our positioning. Excellent piece in NYT about the difference between self-improvement and self-branding (via @jpmaheu)

Tropicana’s “Arctic Sun” brings a little...

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 10:41:37 -0500

Tropicana’s “Arctic Sun” brings a little sunshine to a long winter in Inuvik, NWT. Touching.

Best “I’m Sorry” card. via: engineofdifference:

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 10:28:04 -0500

Best “I’m Sorry” card.

via: engineofdifference:

Onwards: Publicis Modem

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 15:30:20 -0500

Many of you know that I returned to Toronto last July after a year abroad. My move back to Toronto followed a strong desire to reconnect with a city and culture that has grown on me ever since I moved here in 2004. Shortly after I moved back I became a Canadian citizen, which sealed that sense of belonging. Moreover, I felt that Toronto well positioned me career-wise, and that the opportunities this city brings from many angles in the digital space would only push me further along that continuum.

In my early stage move back to the city I was approached by my former mentor at Critical Mass. Matthew Milan and Jon Tirmandi offered me an opportunity at Normative that was too good to pass up. To work among such top calibre folk, including Lindsay Ellerby, was a no-brainer. So I took the plunge and entered unchartered waters in terms of joining a start-up. The experiences at this start-up were immense and unparalleled in terms of what I have learned and retained as a design thinker. While the experience has been unique, I decided to part ways with the gang so that I can move onto a future opportunity that aligns with me personally and career wise. This decision took place 3 weeks ago. Normally I would have blogged about it right away, however I decided to wait until the next opportunity took shape.

Yesterday I accepted an exciting opportunity as a Digital Strategist at Publicis Modem. As it were, i’m an Ad girl at heart and a multidisciplinary thinker through practice. I’m keen on the opportunity to apply what I have learned at Normative and former digital agencies over to Publicis Modem, as the team grows with more and more top notch clients requesting thought leadership. I’m excited to be joining a team of highly creative and smart individuals, combined with a strong roster of current and prospective clients.

Matthew, Jon, Lindsay - Thank you for the experience.

Dave, Bryan and Scott - I’m thrilled to be joining the team!

Starbucks gets brewing again with social media

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 20:24:00 -0500

Starbucks gets brewing again with social media:

A great example of channeling new mediums as part of a long term engagement program

Via thatssodigital:

Via adage.

Passport photos gleaned from passport applications files of...

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 16:12:07 -0500

Passport photos gleaned from passport applications files of writers actors, poets, artists, photographers, etc. The quality is pretty gritty, but I find them interesting, not the least because they are glimpses of these people without their artistic personas showing. Just another traveller submitting to the demands of the state.

SOCIAL MEDIA AND BUSINESS MODELS

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 13:40:08 -0500

SOCIAL MEDIA AND BUSINESS MODELS:

Alex Osterwalder: A lot has been written on the value of social media for businesses (Blogs, Wikis, Twitter, Facebook, etc.) – some of it relevant, some of it hype. I will limit myself to mapping out three business model areas where social media can have an impact.

Toronto Adscapes

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 21:47:00 -0500

Toronto Adscapes:

This one is very cool!

——

Somehow missed this site in my of blogs to read daily. Nice stuff here from in and around Toronto. I especially like the The Queens. Check it out. (Via The Palmerston Group).

via/thatssodigital:

"The reasonable man adapts himself to the world, the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the..."

Sun, 21 Feb 2010 21:46:28 -0500

“The reasonable man adapts himself to the world, the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable.”

- George Bernard Shaw

In fact, here are ALL the funniest scenes from Spaceballs. TOO...

Sat, 20 Feb 2010 17:18:00 -0500

In fact, here are ALL the funniest scenes from Spaceballs. TOO FUNNY!!!

Ludicrous speed!

Asshole scene from Spaceballs. One of the funniest scenes in the...

Sat, 20 Feb 2010 17:11:54 -0500

Asshole scene from Spaceballs. One of the funniest scenes in the movie.

DARK HELMET

Who is he?

COL SANDURZ

He’s an Asshole, sir.

DARK HELMET

I know that. What’s his name?

COL SANDURZ

That is his name, sir. Asshole, Major Asshole.

DARK HELMET

And his cousin?

COL SANDURZ

He’s an Asshole, too, sir. Gunner’s-mate, 1st Class, Philip Asshole.

DARK HELMET

How many Assholes we got on this ship, anyhow?

ALL

Yo!

DARK HELMET

I knew it. I’m surrounded by Assholes. (pulls down mask) Keep firing, Assholes.