The Toronto Star

The Toronto Star

Background

The Toronto Star launched an initiative where the nation’s most-read newspaper offered free digital access to post-secondary students and faculty across Canada in the months leading up to the 2019 federal election. The offer was available to two million students attending hundreds of Canadian colleges and universities, providing them with exclusive coverage from a credible source, information and analysis to help inform their decisions in the election.

The Ask

Generate awareness for The Toronto Star’s Vote 2019 student offer and encourage students to register, BlueSky implemented a social media influencer program. 

The Result

Through a carefully curated influencer list and strong, clear briefs, BlueSky’s macro-level campaign leveraged social creators who had a strong focus on student life, to reach the niche audience of post-secondary students in the key markets of Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Toronto and Halifax. For the nano-influencer campaign BlueSky put out a call to post-secondary students across Canada and several were selected to create in-feed Instagram posts. 

All influencers created engaging content that highlighted the #Vote2019 offer by authentically speaking to their student experience and integrating the offer seamlessly into their content. This resulted in an Instagram engagement rate of 11 per cent, which far exceeded the industry standard, and an 18 per cent increase in registrations during the campaign period. 

Content Development

Effective, creative content is at the core of what we do. From B2B and B2C, our expertise spans article writing and storytelling, editorial planning, key messaging, video production and more. And we help ensure that your content gets seen. We amplify your brand’s story through an integrated, custom content strategy across digital, print, social and broadcast channels. We maximize owned, earned and paid media to amplify your message, making sure it gets in front of the right audience to drive the results you want.

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Corporate Communications

An integral part of any business, your brand reputation and corporate communication sets the tone with the public, your clients, employees and stakeholders – and we make sure you get the tone right. BlueSky helps you understand what matters to your audiences – both external and internal – and develops meaningful programs that resonate. We help clients with crisis and issues management, employee and executive communications, community relations and corporate social responsibility (CSR). Whether it’s a workplace fundraiser event, an annual report, infographics, HR video or speechwriting, we help you share your message with relevant stakeholders.

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Social Media

Social media demands an always on, two-way communication, transparency, and authentic interaction. More importantly, it demands strategy. We’ve managed social communities, developed social media guidelines and created engaging, impactful content, whether a short Instagram caption or long-form executive-published posts on LinkedIn. Through social listening tools and insights, we can make sure you’re talking about what matters most to your audience, and that your online and traditional PR efforts are integrated seamlessly and effectively.

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Public Affairs & Advocacy

Our in-depth experience providing integrated government relations, public affairs and strategic communications tailored to your needs helps our clients navigate the public policy process in order to successfully achieve central objectives. We work with you to better position your priorities within the current political landscape to ensure you’re able to gain the ear of key decision-makers and reach your goals.

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Influencer Marketing

When it comes to social influencers it’s not about who has the biggest audience, but about engagement, trust and authentic connection. We leverage valued relationships with nano- to celebrity-level creators, working collaboratively to ensure they deliver quality content that resonates with your target audience and is on-point with your brand messaging. Our winning formula requires a thoughtful approach that combines the right people, the right content and the right distribution to maximize engagement and drive impact at scale. You’ll see the results in our campaign evaluations – supported by numbers that exceed industry average performance.

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Media Relations & Media Training

In an environment that is increasingly pay-to-play, earned media remains the holy grail of coverage for brand credibility. Over the years we’ve developed solid relationships with traditional and online media, and we know the elements of success for securing interest from trusted journalists at top-notch publications. We excel at crafting tailored, compelling stories that help keep your brand top-of-mind across print, broadcast and digital channels. You’ll see the results through our media measurement and reporting and assess your share of voice (SOV) among competitors.

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