Influencer Marketing 101 w/ Casie Stewart – Incite Creative

A couple weeks ago I sat down with Stacey from Toronto based production studio Incite Creative Media, to have a candid chat about influencer marketing and how it really works. It works well with small business software as well! I think there are a lot of misconceptions about this whole new world of social media/influencer/brand partnerships so I shared some things I’ve learned over the years. Stacey asked me a few more questions than you’ll find in this video so please LMK if you want to see more. I love talking about this stuff and think that’s the only way to build a better industry. If you have any questions I’d love to know! Comments are open! Ever wondered where to start with Influencer Marketing? Well today we’ve got you covered with 6 insights from Toronto blogger + influencer Casie Stewart. From where to find them, to what you can expect to pay – it’s all here. Enjoy friends! – Incite Creative Media We shot this at my fav local spot in the Junction Triangle (where I live), Drake Commissary. They have amazing food and the entire atmosphere is trés chic. Very Drake. I highly recommend the tomato salad, miso cauliflower, sweet potato walnut loaf, and the Sterling Road Tiramisu.    

This is not a sponsored video ?

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#MillionHours + #TelusCelebrates + New iPhone!

Last week I attended an event at Telus HQ in Toronto to celebrate how they’re creating change in communities across Canada. Telus is unleashing the power of the internet and mobilizing people around the world to donate an hour of their time to collectively donate a MILLION HOURS this year for Canada 150. As a company, Telus is working with partners and local business leaders to make the future friendly. They’re collectively dealing with crisis, addressing social issues, and building a brighter future for Canadians. They’ve created Telus community boards for community giving with 13 boards across Canada and 5 globally. In 2016, Telus gave out $6M in charitable grants & 600 projects in Canada. Earlier this year, Telus made a donation in my name a charity of my choice. I picked SKETCH, a Toronto arts-based charity that helps youth and the donation went towards their new Media Arts program. I’m planning to get involved with the program!       One cool project supported by the Telus Media Fund last year was CUT OFF a documentary by VICE. It was shot by Sean’s company OCCUPIED VR! You can see his business partner J Lee with Chris Mooresby beside the camera, behind Justin Trudeau below. Watch the doc on VICE here. IN OTHER NEWS… I was totally caught off guard when a very cool person on the Telus team asked me about my iPhone and then surprised me with A NEW PHONE. I’m now on the new iPhone 8 Plus and will be testing out new features and sharing my thoughts on it soon. If you’d like to get involved with the Telus #MillionHours initiative, check out this link and sign up! Here’s to making the future friendly!

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Best Buy Life and Tech Show 2017

Earlier this month I attended the Best Buy #LifeandTech event at YD Square. This is my second year attending and honestly, it feels like Christmas for tech lovers! I got to test out and bring home some of the coolest tech around. You can find everything mentioned in this post at BestBuy.ca. I’ve been working with Best Buy Canada for the last couple years and it makes ME SO HAPPY. I love being invited to test out the latest wearable tech, smart home gadgets, and overall life-enhancing products. Here’s a few of my favourite things from the Best Buy Life and Tech show! SMART HOME SECURITY: One of my ultimate favs is this Ring Wi-Fi Video Doorbell Pro. I haven’t set it up yet but I can’t wait to creep anyone who comes to my door or walks past. Since moving into a house with a front door (from a high-rise condo) I get so freaked out when I’m home alone and someone knocks on the door. Who does that! Unexpected! Gah! I get all packages delivered to the office so it’s extra weird if someone sends something to the house. I feel that this new burglar alarm will give me peace of mind and make me feel much safer. I like that I can see everything in real-time too, so if there was a burglar, I would be able to have an instant description of them! With the new Ring, you are able to monitor hour home with audio and video from anywhere. The rep I chatted with was from Minnesota and he showed me his backyard while we were chatting in YD Square. He’s able to record video, sound an alarm, or say something to an intruder if he see’s someone suspicious around. So cool! Imagine yelling ‘HEY…

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Best Buy Appliances Dinner at Baro w/ Celebrity Chef David Rocco

This week I had a totally amazing dinner on Wednesday night with about 100 other media people from around the city. We were ushered up to the 3rd floor of Baro, King West, and greeted by an amazing tablescape and cocktail bar. I was happy to see Ryan Emberley, friend and amazing photographer who I credit for the great photos! The dinner was hosted by Chef David Rocco and Baro Executive Chef Steve Gonzalez presented by Best Buy Canada to showcase their new appliances. We are hoping to renovate our kitchen, so checking out new appliances is something I do now. Yay, adulting!  The chefs used the most pimped out badass appliances I can only dream of having! LG’s 4-Door French Door Refrigerator with Ice & Water, Samsung Smooth Top Induction stove, Bosch Built-In Dishwasher, and a few other smaller kitchen appliances for making the meal. They all cater to the new trends of being energy efficient, compact, stylish, and connected. I wrote about Best Buy Smart Home earlier this year here. It was great to see a bunch of friends. I’ve been really hibernating this summer so it was nice to be out of the house and share laughs over a great dinner. I sat with Gunnarolla and Gracie. We were all invited into the kitchen to help David Rocco and it was amazing. He is so nice and fun. He was prepping some cheese to put into the risotto when he cut a piece and handed it to me on the end of a sharp knife. I was totally swooning at that moment! Dolce Vita! David Rocco Interview Time! What is one ingredient you always have in the kitchen? Always have two olive oils on hand. One for drizzling and one for cooking. One litre of olive oil is made up of 1,375…

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Heard of Frank & Oak? Skip the Dishes? Well, Meet Futurpreneur!

Heard of Frank & Oak? Skip the Dishes? They’re both companies who’ve achieved success through Futurpreneur Canada (formerly CYBF).  A week ago today I spent the day with Futurpreneur team and other media exploring how they operate and some local companies they’ve helped build. Futurpreneur is a national non-profit organization dedicated to growing the economy through entrepreneurs. We started the day at Whole Life Balance, King West, for an aerial yoga class. I’ve done silks a few times so was totally into it. AERIAL SILKS YOGA SPIN! Upside down! Aerial silks class w/ @Futurpreneur. So fun. Want one of these at home. #MediaMatters #yoga pic.twitter.com/VkEhGLztc2 — CASiE STEWART ☀️ (@casiestewart) August 15, 2017   Our next stop was lunch at Freshii in Liberty Village where we chatted with the location owner who is now on her 2nd Futurpreneur business. It was really rad to hear about her experience and working with a mentor. I saw beside her mentor who was so cool! After lunch, we spent some time at House of VR on Queen, another Fururpreneur success story. I HIGHLY recommend stopping by here if you haven’t yet. You can plan a bunch of VR games and try out some experiences. I’ve tried so many cool ones working w/ Sean and Occupied VR. It’s totally a whole new world!  Futurpreneur’s target demo is pretty wide so if you’re 18-39 (Gen X, Y, or Z!) with a great idea you might want to check out their free resources used by over 90k people. They also offer bootcamps and webinars and have a success rate of 50-60% within five years for new businesses. Pop by futurpreneur.ca and take a look around. There’s no time like NOW to make your business dreams a reality! I’ve been working on my own project lately and can’t wait to share it with you soon. This post…

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Amazing Use of VR: #AllConnected by @Telus

Sean sent me this today and I couldn’t’ help but tear a but a bit watching it. I love how Telus uses VR to bring this family together. It’s up there as one of the best uses of VR I’ve seen so far. It’s truly amazing what technology can do to bring people closer together. I’ve been working with Telus as a partner since 2009 and over the years I’ve joined forces to do some great things in our community. I really love how working with Telus feels more like working with friends or family, not just a large mobile phone carrier. I’ve been able to build relationships with people that work there and other #TeamTelus members. They’re committed to making a difference across the country in communities, with technology, and for the environment. On World Environment Day last month, I attended Telus Talks: Our Planet. Our Future at the Toronto HQ where a panel (including Roberta Bondar! Fan girl!). Telus announced they’ve made a commitment to a long time partner, Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC), to “provide funding and technology over the next three years to continue protecting Canada’s landscapes and species-at-risk in all 10 provinces.” Stop by the Telus blog to read more about how they’re Creating a Friendly Future, making waves in healthcare, and making a commitment to helping Canadian youth.   THANK YOU TELUS!  

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Testing the Surface Pro 4 from MicrosoftStore.ca

I don’t get jealous often, but it’s time to come clean! ?? For the last year or so, I’ve watched two of my colleagues at 1188 Films use and rave about, their Surface Pro devices. They use it as a tablet on set, a computer in the office, and a notepad in meetings. While here I am lugging around multiples devices… It does seem that the interactive screen is becoming increasingly utilized and well-regarded in a business context thanks to it being compact, mobile, easy to use, fast, and highly accessible. I wanted to take one for a test drive, so when I got an email from the Microsoftstore.ca team to do just that, I was totally game! As you know, I spend a lot of time on my computer.  I shift from being a blogger to working as a director with 1188 Films Inc. and doing a variety of other client-related tasks throughout the day (aka. emails galore). I’ve only had the device for a couple of days, but it’s seriously impacted my productivity. The  Surface Pro 4 is both computer and tablet, so it saves me lugging around 2 devices. It’s also small and light, so it’s easy to carry in a purse or backpack. Lately, I‘ve been lugging around both my iPad Pro and MacBook Pro which makes my purse kinda (super) heavy. As a girl on-the-go, I found the Surface Pro to be super portable, and versatile. It’s like powerful little studio all in one device. The fact that the device converts from computer to tablet is a solid feature for creatives like myself.  I’m able to work on a document in computer mode, present something in a meeting in studio mode, and give directions on set in tablet mode. All in one device. You can also work on a bunch of things at…

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If you wanted to be a filmmaker, you’d be one.

I started watching a show on Amazon Video last night called I love D*ck starring  Kevin Bacon (as Dick) and Kathryn Hahn (Transparent, Bad Moms). She looks like an old friend of mine and it’s shot really well. It’s smart and beautiful. Creative. Sexy. Title is a quote from the show. A few of the songs are written and performed by Lhasa de Sela and I knew right away was her voice. I love her music, my two favourite songs are La Frontera and J’arrive a La Ville. She won a Juno in Canada in 1997. I feel like maybe I should stop this show and watch it with Sean but I’ve already got GLOW, Master of None, and OITNB on hold. FYI searching the hashtag might bring you up some interesting results.  “A married couple’s relationship is put to the test when both the husband and wife fall for the same male professor.” imdb

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At Home w/ My Biggest Fan: Dyson Pure Cool Link

When this was delivered Sean said ‘look, it’s your biggest fan!‘ ?  I don’t do product reviews often but when a piece of really cool tech comes along I’m happy to test it out and share my thoughts. A few people asked about the fan when it arrived early spring so scroll down for my fav features. tl;dr: This fancy fan is the best one I’ve ever owned. It’s quiet and you can monitor your home air quality from the iPhone app. Also, at high speed, you can be just like Beyonce! Since I was a kid I’ve been prone to seasonal allergies. They usually kick in around the worst times like March Break or Back to School. A member of the PR team from Dyson saw my tweets about allergies and offered I try the Dyson Pure Cool Link Tower. This fan has no blades and is easy to clean, plus it removes 99.97% of allergens and pollutants as small as 0.3 microns. Allergies can actually be made worse by indoor dust and pollens. I received the fan in the spring and used it in the living room for the last couple months. It’s great for cleaning the air of smells (when cooking), making the house feel fresh, and cleaning toxins out of the air. You don’t even want to know how much dirt is in the air or carpets. I can’t 100% say it was just the fan but I hardly had any reactions this spring. I found the fan really helped with the air quality in our house. It’ll be nice to see how the app tracks and monitors our air quality. COOL THINGS ABOUT THIS FAN: It has wifi! I downloaded the app and have been monitoring the air quality in my workspace. I also have smart lights up in here, helloooo future! Set it, forget…

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Watch Sean Rip It Round the Track! #FordFathersDay

Wednesday this week I took Sean to a track with Ford Canada to giver in the Ford RS and Mustang GT. I’ve driven on tracks with Ford a few times so know just how fun it is. It really helped me learn to handle a vehicle and be a more confident driver. Ford invited me to bring a dad in my life in celebrations of Fathers Day. Sean works really hard and I knew this would make him feel great! I only went one lap and let him take a few extra just to see the smile on his face. WATCH THIS Our options to drive were Ford Mustang GT Convertible, Ford Mustang GT Fastback, and the Focus RS. The Focus RS is REALLY FAST. You’ll see Sean say it’s amazing in the video. ? One of my fav things of the day was doing a ‘hot lap’ with professional drivers Darryl Timers (Ford of Canada’s Performance Driver since 2013). Our vehicles were fully stocked with GoPro’s to catch our reactions. I also woer my Snapchat specs while driving so hit play below to see a first person view of me on the track. Wore my @Spectacles on the track. Cool experience. Really teaches you to handle a vehicle! TY @FordCanada! #FordFathersDay #FordMustang pic.twitter.com/2zgweeqXLC — CASiE STEWART (@casiestewart) June 14, 2017 THANK YOU Ford and the team from National PR for a memorable experience with a fav dad in my life. We’ll continue to talk about this day for a loooooong time! Don’t forget to say hi & love you to the dads/uncles/granddads/brothers and dad friends in your life this weekend!

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