Canada is known for its video game development, but if one Canadian city really shines it is Montreal.

On November 1 and 2, the city welcomed the eighth annual Montreal International Game Summit (MIGS), an industry event for professionals to learn, exchange and network with the best of the best from across the globe.

High Road has been a proud partner of MIGS since its very first event, working closely with Alliance Numérique to help promote the event internationally and grow its profile year after year.

High Road’s challenge eight years ago was to build the event’s image from the ground up, attract the attention of the industry and compete with some very high profile, large-scale and well-established events such as the Game Developers Conference. This year’s challenge was to renew our approach to generating interest, help drive more attendance, and fully integrate social media into MIGS’s communications arsenal.

One of our tactics over the years has been to bring the success of the industry to life for Montreal media. For example, the creation of 7,000 jobs in Quebec alone has a way of painting a compelling portrait for the business press! Social media activity on Facebook and Twitter before, during and after the event also got people buzzing about MIGS and helped the team engage with the developer community and grow its overall online following.

MIGS also attracts high profile industry celebrities for conferences and keynotes, and while at other shows reporters have to chase speakers after their presentations, for MIGS High Road coordinated all interview requests to ensure everyone got what they needed. When media and speakers arrived at MIGS, they were handed coordinated interview schedules, with no conflicts and clear information on where to meet up.

Overall, this year MIGS was a huge success, attracting a record number of more than 1,700 participants – up from the steady 1,500 over the past couple of years.

With 85 registered media (also an increase) and impressive coverage, the HRC team is not only celebrating a job well done but looking forward with great anticipation to next year’s edition!

Here at High Road, we all know that American Express is a brand that’s synonymous with service. Simply put, the company is committed to delivering the world’s best service experience by offering award-winning customer service and travel perks to all its Cardmembers. And what better way to demonstrate this than by creating a once-in-a-lifetime experience for some of Canada’s top bloggers? Of course it was Amex that did just that recently, giving this bloggers a firsthand look at some of the great perks and possibilities Amex provides daily to its Cardmembers – including incredible travel options, Front Of The Line access to amazing shows and concierge services that rival those of top hotels.

In fact, late last month American Express Canada hosted two major events to promote their live and unique concert series, Coldplay: Unstaged, which took place on Oct. 26. (It was the sixth such performance in the series – which has previously featured such big-name bands as Arcade Fire, Alicia Keys and Sugarland – but the first to take place outside of North America.)

For starters, Amex hosted an interactive dinner event at the Thompson Hotel in downtown Toronto on Oct. 26, where 24 local bloggers were invited to an exclusive dining experience, complete with guest speaker and concierge to the stars, Michael Fazio. As the bloggers dined with some of Amex’s top execs, they were truly treated to – and learned – the importance of top-notch service, which can be woven into every aspect of our everyday lives – a quality American Express takes pride in consistently providing for their Cardmembers. From there, the bloggers were treated to a screening of the Coldplay: Unstaged taking place LIVE in Spain that night, once again proving Amex Canada will go above and beyond to make Cardmembers feel special through unique experiences and stellar customer service.

But on top of the interactive dinner event, Amex had also sent five of Canada’s top bloggers – Lisa of Hip Urban Girl, Karen of She Does the City, Mike of Mike’s Bloggity Blog, and Tyrone and Bryan of 1 Love TO to actually attend the Unstaged: Coldplay concert in Madrid, Spain, where they could capture and share their experiences. Since Amex’s approach to service is to leave no stone unturned, the bloggers were also invited to use American Express Concierge and Personalized Travel Service to help plan their trip.

That meant the bloggers were treated to American Express’s Platinum Service from the beginning to the end, starting with the Personalized Travel Service, which booked all flights, hotel and airport transfers, to the Concierge Services, providing recommendations and creating itineraries that hit Madrid’s best restaurants, nightlife, shopping, and daytime activities. (Best part of this service, each blogger was able to work one-on-one with an Amex concierge to tailor an itinerary suited to each individual’s preferences.)

And all of this special service came before the main event: When the High Road-hosted bloggers set off on their whirlwind 48-hour trip to Madrid, where American Express Unstaged presented – in partnership with VEVO and YouTube – seven-time, Grammy award-winning rock band and international sensation Coldplay from one of Spain’s most famous arenas, Plaza de Toros de Las Ventas. The bloggers had front row seats to watch Coldplay perform live, which, in itself, was an unforgettable experience.

Our six-person crew spent two days exploring the beautiful city of Madrid, indulging in delicious tapas, traditional paella, and celebrating our luck over pitchers of sangria and Spanish Cava. Plenty of laughs were had, new friendships were formed, and all six of us were in awe at the experience of watching Coldplay rocking out in such a historic venue along with 25,000 other fans in Madrid and thousands of other fans tuning in via live-stream across the globe. Thankfully the concert is being re-broadcast on youtube.com/coldplayvevo so we can live vicariously through our experience over and over again.

Steve St. Pierre, High Road User Experience Designer, recently spoke at TEDxOttawa about what he calls “The Art of Doing.”

He said:

“Guaranteed, every single day someone has an idea that could turn their life – maybe even the world – on its head for the better, but they let it go. They let it get buried under excuses. Excuses like lack of time. Lack of resources, maybe. Lack of motivation. Who knows and who cares – there are millions of excuses. But I share the same sentiment on excuses that Ben Franklin did. He said this: ‘He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else.’ Are you gonna let Ben call you out like that?”

So what exactly is “The Art Of Doing” according to SSP?

Check it out:

If you’d like to read Steve’s full speech, please click here.