Official Google Canada Blog: October 2015

Kooky or spooky: Halloween's Hottest Trends on YouTube

Monday, October 26, 2015

Halloween is a just few days away, which means it’s officially crunch time to finish your costume. If you’ve waited until the last minute to pick a Halloween outfit, you’re not alone. Fifty per cent of costume and decoration searches in Canada happen within 5 days of Halloween.

YouTube is the ultimate Halloween destination from pumpkin carving tips to decorations and clever ideas on what to do with your leftover Halloween candy... and of course costume ideas. And with costumes like Harley Quinn, Minions, Donald Trump, Star Wars, Max Max and Left Shark topping the search charts on Google in Canada this year, expect a lot superheroes, cartoons and pop culture icons trick-or-treating at your door.

Tune into some of your favourite Canadian YouTube channels for tutorials featuring 2015’s most popular costumes, plus last minute costumes you can throw together in mere minutes to make this October 31st the spookiest yet.
The Sorry Girls: Harley Quinn Friends Kelsey and Becky started their YouTube channel while attending university together five years ago. Since then The Sorry Girls have become a destination for DIY and the latest style in home and fashion. This Halloween, they have tutorials for two of the year’s most searched Halloween costumes, Harley Quinn and Furiosa from Mad Max. Find out how you can channel the thrill and chaos of fury road and one of this year’s biggest blockbuster hits. Procrastinator Tip: Don’t have much time to put together a costume before Saturday? You can also check out The Sorry Girls’ quick and easy last minute costume ideas, mainly made up of items from around your house!
LaurDIY: Baymax Canada’s DIY darling LaurDIY has a ton of costume tutorials up her sleeve for her fans including the adorable Baymax, a top searched costume this year. The Toronto native started her channel from her dorm room in 2012, and has been spreading glitter and joy to fans ever since - all 2.5 million of them!
Chelsimadonna: Josie and the Pussycats Looking for a group costume with your friends this Halloween? Newfoundlander Chelsi is kicking it ‘old school’ this year with a Josie and the Pussycats group costume tutorial. As a singer herself, needless to say, Chelsi pulls off this look! CutePolish: Halloween Nail Art Dressing up not your thing? Sandi of CutePolish - the #1 nail art channel on YouTube - has the ultimate playlist for Halloween nail art. From skeletons to candy corn, this Windsor, Ontario creative has nail art designs for you, whether you’re looking for something spooky or sweet. We hope these YouTubers' tutorials can help make this Halloween your best yet. Use their tricks and share some of your own to make the most of this weekend, and have a happy Halloween! Posted by Jenn Kaiser, Communications Manager, YouTube Canada.

Buffer Festival: Tune in to meet your favourite YouTube stars live - in person or online!

Thursday, October 22, 2015

Editor’s Note: Today’s guest blog post is from our friends at Buffer Festival 2015. Ten years have now passed since the first YouTube video was uploaded - an 18-second clip about how cool elephants are shot at the San Diego Zoo. Today YouTube has grown to become the biggest video platform on the web, and fans have turned creators into the biggest names in entertainment. As long as most of us can remember, celebrities have existed in a separate world; fans can admire from afar, but any meaningful interaction is strictly off-limits. For the third year, Buffer Festival shows us how celebrity criteria has changed in the past decade and the value of meaningful, authentic engagement. This weekend, many of the most acclaimed YouTube creators will be in Toronto for Buffer Festival. Fans will have a chance to meet the YouTubers whose lives they have been following online and speak to them in person, taking selfies and recording videos along the way. For the first time this year, we’ll also be livestreaming the red carpet of our Gala Premiere. Starting at 9 p.m. ET on Friday, October 23, tune into Much.com or YouTube to catch the red carpet live, as well as premiere videos from some of YouTube’s most notable personalities such as Shay Carl, Jus Reign, Matthew Santoro, Toby Turner and more!

Festival attendees will get the chance to see their favourite YouTubers’ work in theatres throughout the city. From comedy sketches to the world of beauty and DIY, this year’s screenings offer something for everyone from the gamer to the fashionista. For aspiring YouTube Creators, we’re excited to announce Creator Day, a chance for emerging creators to learn from the professionals, with successful YouTubers, industry professionals and YouTube experts offering guidance on a variety of topics relevant to their trade, such as videography, editing, and monetizing content.

Last year, thousands of fans came out to meet their favourite YouTube stars and get a first glance at their new videos. The breakout success of Buffer Festival and its creators demonstrates loud and clear just how much Canada loves YouTube and the creators who delight us, make us think and make us laugh. To see your YouTube idols live, you can purchase tickets for Buffer Festival this weekend at BufferFestival.com/Tickets. Posted by the Organizers of Buffer Festival.

Planning Election Day with Google in 4 easy Steps

Sunday, October 18, 2015

Here’s a timely phrase that’s on the mind of a lot of Canadians this year: how to vote.

This election day, Google has the answer to this important question and a whole lot more! From the ballot box to watching live results, here’s what you need to know to participate in your democracy on October 19th.

Step 1: Make sure you know how and where to vote—and who’s on your ballot!

For the first time ever in Canada, simple searches for [how do i vote], [register to vote] and [my election candidates] will confirm what you need to bring to the polls, and will show you who is running in your riding on Monday.

Step 2: Pledge to Vote

You’ve found all the information you need for Monday, but have you pledged to vote yet? Visit our interactive tool and make your pledge to vote today. And don’t forget to challenge your friends and remind them how important it is to head to the polls!

Go to CBCNews.ca/pledge and share why you are turning out to vote.

Step 3: Track the results

After the polls close on Monday, you can track all the real-time election results by searching [election results]. If you use Google Now, you’ll get updates on the winners straight from the app to your smartphone!

Step 4: Watch election night coverage

Tune in to the latest live news coverage from Canadian broadcasters at YouTube.com/elxn42.

Throughout the election, Canadians have turned to YouTube as a source of news, commentary and insight. We’ve tuned into YouTube to watch our leaders debate live, and for the latest election trending videos.

Starting at 5PM on October 19th, tune into the YouTube Canada Elections Hub at youtube.com/elxn42 for live election coverage from Canadians news organizations such as Global News, CBC, RadioCanada and Vice News.

All set Canada? Happy Voting!

Posted by Kate Sokolov, Program Manager, Politics & Elections Google

How Canada searched the #Elxn42 Campaign

Friday, October 16, 2015

As voting day fast approaches, let’s take a step back to look at the issues, stories and leaders Canadians searched over the 78 day election.

Leader Searches

At the outset of the election we looked at the most searched federal leader in each of Canada’s 338 ridings. In the month of July, Stephen Harper was the most searched federal leader in 56% of Canada’s ridings. The number didn’t change much after the campaign got underway, when Stephen Harper remained the most searched leader in 54% of ridings. Justin Trudeau was the top searched leader in 33% of ridings and Thomas Mulcair was the top search in 10% of ridings.

We just ran the numbers for October and have seen a different pattern emerge as the election continues. In October, Justin Trudeau has become the top searched leader in 50% of Canadian ridings, Stephen Harper in 45% of ridings, and Thomas Mulcair in 3%.

A riding-by-riding breakdown of search interest for the federal leaders over the course of the campaign.

#MansbridgeBump

In early September CBC’s Peter Mansbridge sat down with each of the federal leaders. And, with each interview came a jump in searches as Canadians went online to learn more about the various party leaders

Issues

In terms of the issues that have generated the most search interest over the course of the campaign, the refugee crisis and niqab saw the largest spike in searches along with several issues associated with Canada’s economy.

The refugee crisis generated strong search activity across the country. To see what was the top searched issue in your riding, explore this interactive map.

#ComeTogether

The only real competition for Canadian search attention during the campaign was Canada’s own Toronto Blue Jays. So with two big October showdowns looming on the calendar, we took a look at how interest in the Jays compared with interest in our democracy. Looks like a dead heat!

Issues aside, Canadians are clearly passionate about participating in their democracy and making an informed decision come voting day. The top question Canadians searched about the election: When is the election? The answer is, of course, Monday October 19th.

Mark your calendar… and see you at the polls!

Posted by Aaron Brindle, Google Canada

Official Canada Blog

Kooky or spooky: Halloween's Hottest Trends on YouTube

Buffer Festival: Tune in to meet your favourite YouTube stars live - in person or online!

Planning Election Day with Google in 4 easy Steps

How Canada searched the #Elxn42 Campaign

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