Why the Sugars are Sweet

                                         

The Sugar network is a group of websites that deal with gossip, advice, fashion, etc… each with ‘Sugar’ in the name…  The content is OK, the layout and colors are simple and fun, but it is popular and fast growing because of the name.  ANYTHING ‘Sugar’ sounds cool, and makes people want to be a part of it.  

Sugar is the last name of the husband and wife founders.  I’d change my last name too if I could turn 13 websites into an empire. 

Click here for HYPERSUGAR (which updates in REAL TIME – watch it) and on the right are all the Sugar sites. 

Wii Would Like to Work Out with You

                                       

Studeo 55, Vancouver’s hot workout spot where Hollywood A-listers get their fitness on, is the first gym in North America known to incorporate Nintendo Wii into its circuit training.

The average membership at Studeo 55 is $300 – $400/month, but people will show up and likely become members just to be a part of the breakthrough concept.  It really does put the fun in working out. 

This is just one of the reasons Studeo 55 continues to stand apart from dozens of other gyms in the city. 

Sun link

Seeing Things Like a 14 Year Old

                      

George Wright promotes the blender company BlendTech by putting anything in a blender – his newest ingredient being an iPhone – and the YouTube videos gain much fanfare. 

More companies need this mindset to grow and harness the cool factor.  George has a great quote:

“Be brave. Try something. Sometimes we get a little bit stuffy and stuck, and we have a hard time seeing things from a different perspective. Spend some time with a 14-year-old.  I have a son who is 14, and they see things differently.”

 quote here: 

                 

Free Stickers! That’s all it took?

         

Moo.com, the photo based business card site just came out with sticker books, and gave away tons of books today to the first 100 people from different hot blog sites, ie:  boingboing got 100, TechCrunch got 100, and others too. 

So tens of thousands of people fell for the ol ‘free stickers’ ploy, and moo.com got a massive spike in traffic today.  It will be their biggest spike ever, but now they’re on the map.  Big time.

Oh, moo has the best tag line ever:  ‘we print things from your stuff’.   And people think my wording is too casual…

White Stripes Play a One Second Show

Watch this:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v22YwK79zNc

Newfies had reason to party when The White Stripes played one cord and then left.

This is the most brief yet powerful PR stunt in the history of grungy, freaky, husband and wife top 40. 

Find Jason Bourne with a Google Game

Matt Damon’s “The Bourne Ultimatum” comes out August 3rd, but you can help find him before then.

Universal Pictures and Google just launched The Ultimate Search for Bourne; an advergame that lets you use your Google account to track him down.

This clearly shows the future of advertising, and how cool and diverse Google is becoming.

Who would win in a fight: Jason Bourne or Carmen Sandiego?
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The World’s Largest Red Paperclip

My One Red Paperclip cousin Kyle was in Kipling this weekend to measure something for The Guinness Book of World Records.   The 4000lb, 15ft long solid steel red paperclip of Kilping is now the biggest paperclip in the world.  

The town of like 300 puts another skip in their step (after crowning Kyle’s trade escapade last summer with a house, and after turning over another bumper crop of wheat and flax) by planting this paperclip in the town park, and likely luring tourists way off the Trans Canada just to pass through the little town that could.  

You can pre-order Kyle’s book now for early August delivery.

Only Virgins Tame Unicorns

Virgin Air is coming to America.  They had a plane naming contest, and thousands of people submitted entries. 

This is great to draw awareness to the new brand, but also reveals how cool the marketing department at the British company really is.  Some of the contest winners were ‘Mach Daddy’, ‘Winner of the plane naming contest’ and ‘Unicorn Chaser’.  Very cool, because as the myth goes, only a virgin can truly bring down a unicorn.   Brilliant. 

Apu works in Coquitlam

7-Eleven turned 9 of their stores into Kwik-E-Marts for the July 27 launch of The Simpsons Movie.    Since launching this beautiful PR stunt, sales at certain US stores have doubled. 

Go for slushies at the Kwik-E-Mart at Guilford and Lansdowne in Coquitlam.