Blog Line

You may notice in the right hand corner of a my blog a new graphic “Plan to Vote”. It is actually a widget, the newest tool in GCI’s viral communications chest. I could, but I won’t, go into what the technical definition of a widget is, but simply put a widget is an interactive viral device that allows engagement and can be passed along online.

To engage with the “Plan to Vote” widget on my blog, simply click on the “Plan to Vote” button and it will indicate how many others plan to vote in the October 10th Ontario referendum that have tapped the widget so far. It will define the “First-Past-the-Post” and “Mixed-Member-Proportional” electoral systems, the two choices in the referendum, and also features a clock that counts down to the October 10 provincial referendum and general election date. You can place the “Plan to Vote” widget on your website, blog, Facebook page by clicking the “Get & Share” button at the bottom of the widget and following the directions. You can also forward to friends. It is a great way to encourage citizenship and participation in the referendum.

In the spirit of open disclosure, Elections Ontario is a GCI client and with our sister company, Grey Canada, we are working to assist them with the October 10, Ontario Referendum public education campaign.

On a personal note, democracy is important. Participation in democracy is even more important.

I spent the past long weekend with my family in Cape Breton. One of our rituals is watching old movies so on a rainy Friday afternoon I was enjoying “Key Largo” circa 1948 directed by legendary John Huston and starring Humphrey Bogart, Edward G. Robinson and Lauren Bacall. It is a classic that I hadn’t seen before and like a classic,while the film is almost 60 years old, the story still resonates. Disillusioned war veteran (Bogart) battles evil (Robinson) and in the process restores his faith in humanity and finds love (Bacall). Great content is great content and timeless.

It was reinforced to me this week when NewsCanada came to GCI to present to us some of their new offerings. As they updated us on the new NewsCanada channels available to tell our clients’ stories I kept thinking “content is king”. There now exists a myriad of channels. All are hungary for content and must be fed. At the same time, the majority of content ain’t that great (pit bull tricks on Youtube). Whoever or whatever can create great content, particularly on a consistent basis, will win the war for “hearts and minds” and client loyalty and enthusiam.