Rob Campbell Talks Story at Word11
Word11 was a unique blogging convention (open to all platforms) held at Bathurst and Bloor in Toronto on August 27th 2011. It was created and executed by two companies, TruFinancial and Cg6. I might be wrong, but I do not think TruFinancial has a website, which makes it an odd choice to sponsor a web blogging festival. The event was preceded by an online mixer called PREFIX which was by some accounts and my own experience, slightly underwhelming.
The event was held at CSI, the Center for Social Innovation on Bathurst St just south of Lennox (one street south of Bloor) which made it a very handy location for people commuting by TTC. And there are several Green P parking lots in the area and street parking abounds. This is one of those events where people come early to beat traffic as they study how to make traffic, online.
One of the most talked about subjects was
‘How to create an online community?’ and Karim Kanji came to tell us that “…it’s not about the tools but the people.” Recently, he helped found and is now a director at Third Ocean which collaborates with big and small companies and helps them utilize online, digital and social tools to strengthen their business. Karim is also the co-founder of XConnectTO, which explores the impact of new media and technology on industry. You can follow Karim on Twitter @karimkanji The Word 11 crowd was a unique blend of amateurs and experts.
During the question and answer session I asked Karim about his penchant for Bit.ly (a Libyian domain) and whether or not he was getting the full SEO value by constantly linking to these third party website link shortners, or Tinyurls. @RobCairns informed us that the general consensus seems to be that link shorteners do not affect SEO, or if anything perhaps they amplify the value of the link because they are cached and indexed - on Bit.ly for example they yield analytical data that can be scrutinized by yourself and Google.
Suddenly it was my turn to speak. Annoyed with the layout of the room, I moved a portion of the central table under the projection screen to accommodate more people and was vindicated by the arrival of more bloggers and a large comfortable audience - the most yet in the room . I talked for forty minutes about Story Funnels to Buckstops and one of the operating principles behind the internet marketing at Page One Program. This is how we distribute messages
Several of the bloggers got together afterwards and shared their stories and questions and presented their challenges to each other over some pints at Victory Pub. The beer was tasting great and the ideas were really flowing.
Blog about your experience at WORD11 and you’ll have a chance to win one of two, 4 night/5 day Caribbean cruises for you and a guest. The cruises are provided by Absolute Tent & Event Services and It’s My Potty and are valued at more than $1,200. They include all meals (yes, room service is covered!) and also feature Las Vegas-style entertainment. To be eligible for this amazing giveaway, write a blog post about your experience at Word11, what you liked or didn’t like but be sure to include a link one or both of our generous sponsors, Absolute Tent & Event Services or It’s My Potty. If you attended the evening component you would have seen their support equipment everywhere. Even if you missed the evening sessions be sure to give us your spin on the event and you just might be heading to the Caribbean this winter. An expert panel will look at blog posts until September 10, which means you’ll have two weeks after WORD11 to get your blog entry posted. In case you’re wondering, I cannot enter this challenge.
John and Paul Kenyon’s generosity reminds us that Absolute Tent and Events Services is Toronto’s best choice for party rentals and supplies.
As eco friendly property maintenance company, The Grasscutters took the opportunity to show off their new portable solar generator / equipment trailer, that was custom designed and built by Dan Shephard at Solarline Power. This portable solar work unit ran the lights and powered the entire evening event. Here’s a bad picture of Rob Campbell with Jim Pagiamtzis the unit.
TM Mahdi 
The night activities were full of knowledge sharing - advanced tips and tricks. There was an ebike center stage in Rob Cairn’s show! It was a moment to remember and what Rob shared about Sexy Bookmarks and Back-Up Buddy. 
Word11 was about bloggers sharing secrets and helping each other.
