We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again — the Internet is real life, which is why having an inbox packed with unsolicited emails is just as aggravating as dinnertime sales calls. The Canadian government has heard the cries of many and taken action. Passed by Parliament in December of 2010 and expected to come into force July 1 of this year, Canada’s anti-spam legislation will have repercussions for you and your business. ...

The stage was set, with a dozen or so giant screens and #branding slapped on everything. The perfect location was chosen — Ryerson University’s Digital Media Square. The people behind the podium were all prominent players who had a hand in the massive announcement. But when Ontario premier Katherine Wynne took the stage to announce her new initiative to increase government transparency, the audience could focus on only one thing — the glaring spelling error on the podium. ...

On our recent Internet outings, we stumbled across an article titled “Seven tips to make your business appear bigger.” Aside from the title being obvious link bait, it does contain solid advice from Fleur Madden and most of the tips are useful for very small startups (aside from six and seven, six being sorely misguided and seven could be condensed to “just lie”). ...

A while back, over at Co.EXIST, Heath Shackleford penned an interesting article highlighting the problems that many non-profits run into by focusing on design without focusing on the strategy behind that design. Of course, this extends to everyone, not just non-profits. The market is always crowded and you want to stand out. So you get your accounts manager’s teenage cousin to design a new logo for you. ...

The recent controversy around Rob Ford has damaged Toronto’s brand — so much so, it may take years for it to recover. But among all the drugs, alcohol, inappropriate remarks and lessons (Failures in Public Relations 101), a few other brands have been distancing themselves from Toronto’s chief. The Toronto Argonauts distanced itself from Ford after he made lewd remarks while wearing the team’s jersey, running counter to the organization’s anti-bullying work in the city. ...