We decided it’s no different than dating. Not speed dating, although it does include some of the same elements like responding in real time and managing short attention spans. But the real, old-fashioned, “getting to know you,” courting kind of dating.

Who is the “we” and what is the “it” I’m talking about? The “we” included a roundtable of like-minds who joined me at one of the IABC 2011 World Conference early morning sessions: Amanda Brittain of Vancity; Dawneen MacKenzie of Livingston International; Steve Hogle of Edmonton Arena District; Beth Boswell of Fleishman-Hillard; Kathleen Vincent of BC Housing; Christopher Swan of Avery Dennison; Susi Maclean of Glass Tower Ltd.; and Erika Ruiz Ramos of Boehringer Ingelheim. The “it” had everything to do with best practices on how to build brand by engaging influencers. (more…)

Wow. Sometimes in life, you are privileged to share thoughts with some very forward-thinking souls. Today, I enjoyed tapping into the minds of chief communicators while moderating the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) 2011 World Conference In-Depth Session highlighting preliminary findings from the IABC Research Foundation and Marketwire Conversations with CEOs’ Study (#id4). Nearly two dozen CEOs – from companies including Playboy Enterprise, Best Buy, and DeBeers – engaged in in-depth interviews discussing the CEO’s role in corporate communication, how it affects financial performance and business success. The final full study, along with podcasts of the individual conversations, will be shared globally in the coming months via IABC and Marketwire. (more…)