Category: Projects
Will You Be Our Social Media Valentine?
In the last few years, as social media has become even further entwined in our lives, the way we celebrate and express love on Valentine’s Day has shifted. We share Valentine’s wishes, showcase our gifts, express our feelings and put it all out there for the world to see on the social network(s) of our choosing. Expressing love and sharing kindness amongst friends and family is never a bad thing but isn’t it about time that our valentines wishes were updated from the classic “I ch-ch-choose you”? To help get the ball rolling, Blab put together some fun, social-media inspired Valentine’s messages that are sure to make you swoon. Feel free to share, text, save, gram, tweet, like, or snapchat them, just promise us that you’ll put down your phone and spend some quality time with your Valentine today!
St. Clair Features Blab’s Business Babe Spotlights
Super excited to be featured in an article recently published by the St Clair College Media Plex highlighting Blab’s Business Babe Spotlights on social media! A few months ago I decided to start using my audience on social media to help promote women who are running their own businesses in Windsor-Essex. I’m a big supporter of all things local and often find myself out and about exploring our wonderful city and making new connections with business owners. In my travels I’ve learned about countless incredible businesses that are run by women. Being a female entrepreneur myself, I knew all too well that it can be a struggle to build up a support network so I thought, why not have Blab step in to help these women promote their businesses while offering encouragement and positive reinforcement in an often stressful career path? I got lucky in the friends and family department. I’ve always been surrounded by support in all forms but not every woman has the same opportunities I did. Since I’m a firm believer that we rise by lifting others, that became my inspiration for the campaign which is still running today. Each week Blab features a new women-owned business in Windsor-Essex by showcasing what they do and how they make our community a better place. If you’d like to get involved, please feel free to reach out via email or social media to nominate a woman-owned business that you think deserves a feature! Better yet, go out and support these women. Whether it’s purchasing something from them, promoting them to your networks or offering support as a mentor, it’s amazing what a big difference you can make with such a little gesture of faith.
Big thanks to Ryan Jones for the kind words and the opportunity to chat about woman-owned small businesses in Windsor. You can check out the full article here: http://themediaplex.com/put-your-money-where-your-heart-is/
Blab Launches Business Babes Windsor
Entrepreneurship can be incredibly difficult. It can be stressful, tiring, exhausting, scary and often times, it can isolate you from friends and family who just don’t understand what you’re going through. It’s for this reason that I decided to start a small Facebook community where female entrepreneurs in the Windsor area can connect, network, educate and inspire each other on a regular basis. Members can share their entrepreneurship story, reach out for insight, promote events/promotions, ask questions, share inspiration, motivate others and just enjoy connecting with other women who understand their mindset and goals.
Business Babes Windsor is in its infancy right now, but it would be great to see more female entrepreneurs join up. Being a mentor is such a valuable experience and I’m a big advocate of helping others succeed. In my opinion, we rise by lifting others and this group makes that possible. Whether you’ve been an entrepreneur for years, you just started a business or you’re curious about what it all entails, this group offers the perfect casual backdrop for conversation and education at any level.
Supporting local is incredibly important to me so encouraging others to explore entrepreneurship by providing them with the tools, network and support they need is the best way to give back to Windsor. Small, independent businesses are what make every city unique and vibrant. Plus, at the end of the day, the world could use more dreamers and doers!
Blab Delivers Free Windsor Goodies To Deserving Windsorites
Last week Blab was out and about around Windsor with Rose City Sport & Social Club giving out lots of free goodies and smiles to complete strangers. We’d been working together on this campaign for over a month and from May 2nd-6th we were finally ready to hit the streets! Myself and two RCSSC team members set out to a variety of locations each day to surprise an unsuspecting individual with a Play Pack full of Windsor goodies that were provided by generous local businesses. The Play Packs included coffee from March 21st Bean & Leaf Cafe downtown, tickets to the Windsor Spits home opener game, passes for Urban Surf, a fresh rose from The Bourbon Rose Florist, tickets to see a MasterWorks performance from The Capitol Theatre, a John Max gift card, a cupcake from Sweet Revenge Bake Shop, EPIC Winery Passes from Tourism Windsor-Essex, Steam Whistle swag and a voucher for a free sign-up with Rose City Sport & Social Club all stuffed into a branded bag and tied up with balloons. How amazing is that?!
We called ourselves the Day Makers and I can honestly say, we did a fantastic job of making people’s days a little brighter. Seeing people surprised, smiling and happy made all the hard work worth while. CBC even joined us to surprise a teacher who was nominated at Sandwich West Public School! Although the whole experience was amazing, the highlight for me was when the team and I were walking down the street and spotted a young girl giving her Subway lunch to a homeless man. We just had to pass on the kindness so we caught her at the street light and made sure she knew that what she did for that man did not go unnoticed. She was on top of the world!
In a city that can be so full of uncertainty and negativity, it was nice to go out and spread some happiness. After five full days of adventure, photos, smiles, excitement and genuine happiness, I can honestly say the campaign was a success but we couldn’t have done it without all the donations from our amazing business sponsors so thank you very much for your kindness. A big thank you also goes out to Rose City Sport & Social Club for spreading the love. I’m a firm believer that together we can lift up this city one surprise/smile/good deed at a time!
-Katie
Monday Motivation: A Series
There’s just something special about a new year! It’s a fresh start, a different outlook and a chance to do things differently. As we embark on what is sure to be an incredible year, I’m taking the time to lay out goals and really reflect on how Blab can grow in 2016. That being said, I think that sometimes motivation can be hard to come by when you’re a busy entrepreneur that’s trying to find balance in your life. It’s because of this that I’ve decided to start a weekly blog series that’s designed to spread positivity and help you to start each week with a fresh new outlook.
As someone who carries their phone around 24/7, I know first hand that it can sometimes feel more like a burden than a convenience. I’m constantly checking emails, getting notifications, listening to voicemails and fiddling around with one thing or another no matter where I am or what time it is. I don’t even want to know how many hours each day I spend looking at that screen and frankly, I could do without that information! Since I spend so much time looking at my phone screen, I decided to use that valuable real estate as a place to display my weekly mantra so that every single time I check it, I’m reminded of what I’m focusing on over the next seven days. The best part about these mantras is that their all customized by me and for me. On Monday morning each week, I take a look through my favourite wallpaper app (appropriately named Wallpapers) and choose a quote I feel will best sum up my weekly goal/vibe. Sometimes it’s silly, other times it’s business related or poetic. Either way, it guides me through each week and ensures I keep my head in the game so no matter how busy, frustrated, upset or stressed out I become, I can always keep myself on track.
So far I’ve really come to appreciate how much this simple process helps me stay focused and I’m looking forward to sharing my weekly mantra with you on the blog each Monday. But don’t just take my word for it, try it yourself! Build up a stash of good quote wallpapers (or make your own) and every Monday morning, before you dive head first into your busy schedule, choose one that you want to guide you through the week and then spend the next seven days owning it!
Check out my past mantras from January below and share some of your favourite motivational quotes/sayings in the comments. Have you started embracing weekly mantras on your smart phone? Share it with us on social via our Facebook Page or Twitter account.
Boost Your City Celebrates First Successful Event
The first-ever two day Boost Your City event was a whirlwind of creative ideas, strategic execution and a whole lot of fun! Day one was fast-paced and incredibly productive with our web development, photography, graphic design and marketing teams brainstorming, strategizing and delegating tasks. The Sweet Revenge girls contributed to the final outcome through mini meetings and sessions with each individual team. By the end of the day, everyone involved had a firm grasp on the direction and began executing individual elements. Day two was a lot more task-oriented, focused and efficient with team members editing, sculpting and finalizing elements. Each team was responsible for rationalizing and reviewing their aspect of the project as part of a group presentation. The Sweet Revenge girls were given an overview of everything the group accomplished over the course of the event and were later provided with a full booklet outlining all strategies, recommendations, and necessary information.
Our team of volunteers was unstoppable! A combination of St Clair College students and industry professionals made up our web development, graphic design, marketing and photography teams. They all demonstrated impressive time management skills, produced inspiring content and kept their cool all while working seamlessly together in a group! We couldn’t have accomplished anything without them and we owe them a big thank you for their time, dedication, insight, skills and contributions to the event.
All of our volunteers worked so well together and it was great seeing each of them contribute their unique skill set and ideas to the final product. We all had a great time despite the strict deadline and could not be happier with the outcome! The Sweet Revenge team was involved throughout the whole process and was able to work with each group to help sculpt the end result. They left with a rolodex full of professional contacts, new branding, print materials, a fully functioning website, custom icons and a full marketing and promotions strategy to help them plan for the future.
On behalf of the whole crew, we wish Saskia and the Sweet Revenge team nothing but the best! Your passion is so evident in everything that you produce and your delicious sweets were no exception. We’re so lucky to have had the opportunity to work with such a talented and motivated young entrepreneur whose passion and positive outlook are contagious. All we ask is that you don’t forget about us little people when you get your own baking show on TLC!
First Boost Your City Business Chosen
We’ve finally chosen the first ever Boost Your City business and we’re incredibly excited to get this project started! We’d like to send a big congratulations out to Saskia Scott and the whole team at Sweet Revenge Bakery in Olde Riverside. Young, fun and motivated to the max, Saskia sees big potential for her bakery to expand in size to start taking on my orders and expanding services. We can’t wait to learn more about her inspiration and her goals so we can give Sweet Revenge the boost it needs to succeed! Stay tuned to our social channels for event teasers and post-event updates as we progress!
Boost Your City Announces Partnership & Launches Applications
We’re very excited to announce that our project, Boost Your City, is officially launching today! We’re also very happy to share our partnership with St Clair College School of Media Art and Design and Genesis Entrepreneurship & Innovation Centre! The first ever Boost Your City event will be held on Saturday June 13th & Sunday June 14th 2015 and it will take place from 9am-4pm both days at the St Clair College Centre for the Arts downtown campus. As a partner, St Clair College and the Genesis Centre will also be generously providing food and beverages for the hard working team of industry professionals and students during this two day project.
Part of the team will include junior positions and we’re excited to announce that these positions will be filled with qualified second year St Clair College students. These students will have the opportunity to work alongside industry professionals in their field of study and will gain valuable real-life working experience they can highlight on their resumes.
Boost Your City is now accepting business and team member applications so small businesses, students and industry professionals who are interested in getting involved can learn more by visiting the website at www.boostyourcity.com and fill out a business application here or a team member application here.
Let’s do this Windsor! We’re counting down the days until we can Boost Your City!
New Community Project Needs Your Support
We’re incredibly excited to announce that we’ll be at the next Windsor Soup event on Sunday March 22nd in the hopes of getting funding for a cool community project we’ve been working on! Come out to the Walkerville Brewery at 6pm and for $5 you’ll get soup, salad, bread and a vote to support one of the four projects pitching at the event (hopefully ours).
If you’ve never heard of Windsor Soup, it’s a group that works together to offer micro grants for social change through public dinners that give people the opportunity to celebrate projects in Windsor. Whatever funds are raised throughout the night are generously matched by The P. and L. Odette Charitable Foundation and donated to the winner to help get their project off the ground. Initiatives like this help make our community so much richer and directly support the people and projects behind the scenes that make Windsor-Essex a better place to live, work and play. It’s a great way to bring the community together for the greater good and we’d love to see you there!
For more information check out the Facebook event page here
Blab Media Rocks WIFF 2014
Well it’s official, we had a absolute blast being part of the engagement team at the 2014 Windsor International Film Festival! Experiencing the festival from the inside after having attended for so many years as patrons, gave us a very unique and different perspective on the festival as a whole. We had a great time preparing and executing special film activities with our team of volunteers, interacting with attendees, making new friends, and in general, doing our part to lend to the overall festival experience.
9 days, 111 films and 12 special activities later, we already can’t wait for next year! Thank you to everyone who made us feel welcome, embraced our ideas and had fun with us along the way. May WIFF 2015 be even bigger and better!