Heart and Stroke Foundation Launches Calendar Lottery
Whether you’re ready or not, Christmas is coming. It’s is my absolutely most favourite holiday in the world, and I think I have more Christmas cheer than Elf and the Grinch (after his heart explodes) times ten. I love the music, holiday parties, and the atmosphere in the malls (not the lineups). But more than that I love buying gifts for people. So last week Kevin and I were sitting around talking about what we each wanted for Christmas. Last year I got him Xbox Kinect; he’s used it approximately three times. Before that I got him Rock Band (he claimed … Continue reading
Why Relaxing is a Challenge for Me
One thing I love about the startup community in Toronto is that many of the entrepreneurs I’ve met have become close friends outside of our day jobs (if you can call a startup a day job). We go for drinks, hang out at birthday parties, and even go on pirate boat cruises. And yes, that’s exactly as fun as it sounds. So it didn’t surprise me when my friend and entrepreneur Andrea Lown asked me to join her on a spa getaway last week. Lown is the co-founder of Smart Bride Boutique, an online wedding classifieds site that lets brides … Continue reading
On Being Overrated
There will always be haters. Whether it’s someone criticizing your startup, commenting negatively on your writing, or simply not liking you for whatever reason, there will always be haters. In the last few years I’ve put both myself and our company out there in the community and online, and inevitably not everyone will love us both. I’m fine with that. In fact one of my favourite quotes is from investor Dave McClure, who says “you can’t iterate around indifference.” I’d rather you hate me than you’re indifferent about me, because at least I’m evoking some sort of emotion or reaction. … Continue reading
How I’m Rent frock Repeat-ing my way to great summer style
It annoys me to no end when I read American fashion magazines and either can’t find the items they feature, or I can’t enter their contests because they’re open to American residents only. So imagine my frustration when I discovered that two of my favourite recent startup finds, Birchbox and Rent the Runway, don’t deliver to Canada. Luckily I’ve found two perfect replacements – Loose Button’s Luxe Box is a box of luxury beauty samples delivered monthly, similar to Birchbox. And I can attest that it’s beautiful – I’m a subscriber and I recently gave three-month subscriptions to two girlfriends … Continue reading
What happens if you get Retweeted by Oprah
I know a lot of people who think Twitter is stupid. Some are family members, some are friends I’ve known since I was in elementary school, and some are entrepreneurs who say they don’t have time for Twitter and to talk about what they ate for lunch. Well I now have the perfect response to the question “What the heck is Twitter, and why should I use it?” Answer: “It’s the only place where an average person can become best friends with Oprah.” (Thanks to the always amazing @philmoreira for making a visual representation of my friendship with Oprah) Yes, … Continue reading
How to Win an Online Contest: a Sauza Case Study
You’ve either done it yourself or know someone who has. No, I’m not talking about watching Jersey Shore – I’m talking about entering an online contest. Some contests are harmless and involve no outside effort. Fill out your name, e-mail address, and subscribe to 19 newsletters, and you’re entered to win. But I’m not talking about those contests, rather I’m tackling a new and increasingly common trend: the vote-driven online contest. A few friends have entered these contests in the past year – Casie Stewart’s winning bid at the Virgin America Provocateur title comes to mind – and more than … Continue reading
My Twitter battle vs. the other Erin Bury
Quick update: since writing this post several friends and Twitter followers have claimed the names of their inactive placeholders. Congrats to @guygal, @kat, @bretton and so many more! Glad I could help. I’ve probably said it a million times at events. “Hi, I’m Erin Underscore Bury on Twitter.” Nope, underscore isn’t my middle name (that’s Aileen, or Alien as the boys in my grade 2 class liked to say). It’s just the pesky character I had to put in the middle of my Twitter username. I thought signing up in November 2008 was early enough that I would I be … Continue reading
Erin Bury
Technology journalist, Financial Post columnist, former Managing Editor at BetaKit.com, and one of Marketing Magazine's 30 Under 30.
