Rules
STEP 2: Pick Your Team or Enter Individually
Timelines
| Date | Activity |
|---|---|
| Monday, February 3, 2014 | Young Entrepreneurs, Make Your Pitch launches |
| Monday, February 3, 2014 | Video submission period opens |
| Thursday, March 27, 2014 – 5 p.m. | Mailed video submission period closes |
| Friday, March 28, 2014 – 12 p.m. | Video submission period closes |
| Tuesday, April 1, 2014 – 9 a.m. | Online voting period opens |
| Friday, April 25, 2014 – 1 p.m. | Online voting period closes |
| Tuesday, April 29, 2014 | Judging panel determines finalists and students are notified |
| Monday, May 12, 2014 | Live pitch event at Discovery at Metro Toronto Convention Centre |
| Tuesday, May 13, 2014 | Awards are presented at OCE's Discovery at Metro Toronto Convention Centre |
*All dates are subject to change at the discretion of the contest organizers.
STEP 1: Eligibility
- You are eligible for this contest if you are a Canadian citizen or landed immigrant enrolled full-time in an Ontario high school and you are returning to school in the fall of 2014 and have not previously participated in Summer Company.
- Immediate family members of employees of the Government of Ontario or Ontario Centres of Excellence are not eligible to enter this contest.
- To qualify for funding through Summer Company, winners must meet all of the Summer Company Program Guidelines.
- If you are under the age of 18 at the time of entry you must have the entry form signed by a parent or legal guardian.
STEP 2: Pick Your Team or Enter Individually
- Contest entries can be done on an individual or team basis.
- Teams may include up to four (4) students.
- Teams are required to name a team representative who will be responsible for submitting the entry form and serving as the team’s primary contact for matters related to the contest.
- You may not participate as both an individual entrant and a team entrant.
STEP 3: Create Your Account
- To enter, you must create a contest account before you can submit your entry.
STEP 4: Make Your Video
LengthCreate a video no longer than two (2) minutes in length, including credits, that presents your entrepreneurship or innovation idea.
Videos must address the following questions:
- Who will your customers be?
- What problems will it solve?
- Why will your business succeed?
Your idea must be well-presented, reasonable and have the potential of being implemented.
In order to be eligible for the competition, you must submit a written transcription of your video along with your video upload. Please double check your video transcript for grammar, spelling and punctuation as it will be posted as part of your contest entry on the website. This is an important element because it helps in the goal of making Ontario accessible for all Ontarians. By creating accessible communications, we’re helping ensure Ontario’s 1.85 million citizens living with a disability have opportunities to participate fully in everyday life.
Here is an example of a video transcript for Quinsea McKenna’s winning pitch for FUNDJA. Click here to watch the video.
FUNDJA- Quinsea McKenna – Video Transcript for Accessibility
Hi, I’m Quinsea McKenna and this is my pitch.
My business idea is Fundja. Helping fund young entrepreneurs.
Fundja is a website that gives young people a space to pitch their business ideas to their community and other interested parties asking for money to help kick start their business.
Anyone under the age of 18 is welcome to post a video and pitch their amazing idea online to the public explaining things like: what their business is, what they’ll use the money for, and what problems their business will solve.
Their goal is to collect enough micro-donations from viewers to eventually reach their funding target.
By uploading a video to Fundja people can show their personality and dedication to their business.
What’s the incentive to make a micro-donation to a person’s business? Well, every business pitch on Fundja will give back a small gift to the donator.
Let’s have a look at Fundja. Here you can find out all about how Fundja works. And here will be a list of all the projects. Then over here, is how to make a donation to the projects you are interested in. And lastly, here is where you get started with uploading your business idea.
Now lets take a look at an example business pitch. Hi, I’m Sally and I want to start my own lawn care business but I need $400 for a lawnmower and some other equipment. I’ve been lawn mowing for about three years now but it’s time to expand my business and I need your help.
If you’re tired of mowing your own lawn, then I’m your girl. For every donation I get on Fundja, I’ll be giving a 30 per cent off my service or one of my very unique t-shirts. Thank you for all your donations and helping me mow my business off the ground.
When the young entrepreneur’s target is fully reached, Fundja will collect a five per cent commission. This money will be used for marketing to help increase traffic to the website. This is a new, easy and fun way to raise capital for budding entrepreneurs. Make your viewers wanna Fundja.
For more information on the importance of accessibility, visit the Understanding Accessibility page of the Ministry of Economic Development, Employment and Infrastructure website.
Regions
For the purposes of this competition, finalists will be chosen from six (6) regions across Ontario based on the following high school regions designated by the Ministry of Education:
Barrie Region
- Bluewater District School Board
- Bruce-Grey Catholic District School Board
- Durham Catholic District School Board
- Durham District School Board
- Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board
- Peterborough Victoria Northumberland Clarington Catholic District School Board
- Simcoe County District School Board
- Simcoe Muskoka Catholic District School Board
- Trillium Lakelands District School Board
- York Catholic District School Board
- York Region District School Board
- Conseil scolaire Viamonde
- Conseil scolaire catholique centre-sud
London Region
- Avon Maitland District School Board
- District School Board of Niagara
- Grand Erie District School Board
- Greater Essex County District School Board
- Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic District School Board
- Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board
- Huron Perth Catholic District School Board
- Lambton Kent District School Board
- London District Catholic School Board
- Niagara Catholic District School Board
- St Clair Catholic District School Board
- Thames Valley District School Board
- Waterloo Catholic District School Board
- Waterloo Region District School Board
- Windsor-Essex Catholic District School Board
- Conseil scolaire Catholique Providence
- Conseil scolaire Viamonde
Ottawa Region
- Algonquin and Lakeshore Catholic District School Board
- Catholic District School Board of Eastern Ontario
- Hastings & Prince Edward District School Board
- Limestone District School Board
- Ottawa Catholic District School Board
- Ottawa-Carleton District School Board
- Renfrew County Catholic District School Board
- Renfrew County District School Board
- Upper Canada District School Board
- Conseil des écoles publiques de l'Est de l'Ontario
- Conseil scolaire de district catholique de l'Est ontarien
- Conseil scolaire de district catholique du Centre-Est de l'Ontario
Sudbury-North Bay Region
- Algoma District School Board
- District School Board of Ontario North East
- Huron-Superior Catholic District School Board
- Near North District School Board
- Nipissing-Parry Sound Catholic District School Board
- Northeastern Catholic District School Board
- Rainbow District School Board
- Sudbury Catholic District School Board
- Conseil scolaire de district du Grand Nord de l'Ontario
- Conseil scolaire de district du Nord-Est de l'Ontario
- Conseil scolaire de district catholique des Grandes Rivières
- Conseil scolaire de district catholique du Nouvel-Ontario
- Conseil scolaire de district catholique Franco-Nord
Thunder Bay Region
- Keewatin-Patricia District School Board
- Kenora Catholic District School Board
- Lakehead District School Board
- Northwest Catholic District School Board
- Rainy River District School Board
- Superior North Catholic District School Board
- Superior-Greenstone District School Board
- Thunder Bay Catholic District School Board
- Conseil scolaire de district catholique des Aurores boréales
Toronto and Area Region
- Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board
- Halton Catholic District School Board
- Halton District School Board
- Peel District School Board
- Toronto Catholic District School Board
- Toronto District School Board
- Upper Grand District School Board
- Wellington Catholic District School Board
- Conseil scolaire Viamonde
- Conseil scolaire Catholique Providence
- Conseil scolaire de district catholique Centre-Sud
Categories
For the purposes of this competition, the following six (6) categories have been created as a guide for framing your business pitch:
Technology – A product or service such as manufacturing, information management, communications and/or digital media.
Environment – A product or service with a positive impact on the environment, society and the economy through such methods as reducing greenhouse gas emissions, waste and/or the use of harmful chemicals or improving energy efficiency and water quality.
Social Enterprise – A mission-driven organization that applies market-based strategies to achieve a social or environmental purpose. A social enterprise can be incorporated as either a not-for-profit or for-profit company that operates with a business-like discipline.
Retail Goods – Selling consumer goods. This could include sales of food, gifts, clothing, accessories.
Services – Selling personal or professional services such as aesthetics, pet services, childcare, landscaping, and/or home maintenance activities.
Arts, Culture and Tourism – A product or service that enhances lifestyle such as music, media, guided tours, photography, recreation and sports.
Developing Your Video
Your video must be entirely your original work and you must grant the contest organizers* unrestricted use and reproduction rights for any purposes.
Types of videos can include:
- Live
- Screen casts
- Motion graphics/animation
- Slideshows with voiceover
What You Need To Know About Your Video Submission
- All video uploads must be accompanied by a written transcript of your video. Please double check your video transcript for grammar, spelling and punctuation as it will be posted as part of your contest entry on the website.
- All entries become the property of the contest organizers.
- Your video must not infringe upon or violate any laws or any third party rights, including, but not limited to, copyright, patent, trademark, trade secret or other proprietary rights and must not lead to any cause of action including libel, defamation, privacy violation, contract breach or tort.
- If necessary you must obtain all necessary permissions, licences, clearances, releases, waivers of moral rights and other approvals from third parties (including, but not limited to, all copyright holders and all individuals appearing in the video submission), necessary to use the video submission, in whole or in part, in any way, including without limitation, to reproduce, make derivatives, edit, modify, translate, distribute, transmit, publish, license and broadcast the video submission worldwide, by any means. Any and all such permissions, licences, clearances, releases, waivers of moral rights and approvals must be attached to the video submission.
- Your own personal safety and the safety of your cast, crew and others involved with the production of the video submission must be maintained. Do not endanger anyone during the making of your video.
- Each contestant (and, in the case of minors*, a parent or legal guardian) must consent to the use, reproduction, publication, transmission and/or broadcasting of his/her name, address, likeness, school, age, grade and/or prize information, without compensation, in any advertisement, publication or promotion, for general news or other information purposes. Winners must also consent to their photographs being taken by the contest organizers for the same purposes, without further compensation.
- Each contestant (and his/her parent or legal guardian, if applicable) irrevocably and in perpetuity grants the contest organizers, without compensation, the right to use the video submission, in whole or in part, in any way, including without limitation, to reproduce, make derivatives, edit, modify, translate, distribute, transmit, publish, license and broadcast the video submission worldwide, by any means.
- * In these rules, “minor†means a contestant less than 18 years of age.
- It is the sole responsibility of the contestant to ensure that the video is uploaded or received by mail between Monday, February 3 and 12:00 p.m. on Friday, March 28, 2014 Eastern Daylight Saving Time (5:00 p.m. on Thursday, March 27, 2014 Eastern Daylight Saving Time for mailed submissions).
STEP 5: Submit Your Video
Submit Your Video Online
Complete the steps to upload your video and written transcript. Please double check your video transcript for grammar, spelling and punctuation as it will be posted as part of your contest entry on the website.
Submissions received after the contest closing date will not be accepted.
Submit Your Video By Mail
If you are unable to upload your video or if you do not have access to broadband internet, please call 416.861.1092 x 5015 to have an entry form sent to you. Your video must be clearly labelled with your video’s title, your name, and telephone number and attached to a signed entry form.
Send your video and entry form by mail to the following address and the contest organizers will upload the video on your behalf:
c/o Ontario Centres of Excellence
156 Front Street West, Suite 200
Toronto, Ontario M5J 2L6
The contest organizers will not be responsible for damage to videos resulting from shipping or handling.
All videos and entry forms must be uploaded or received by contest organizers between Monday, February 3 and 12:00 p.m. on Friday, March 28, 2014 Eastern Daylight Saving Time. Note that mail submissions must be received and uploaded prior to the voting period. Mailed entries will not be accepted for upload after 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, March 27, 2014.
STEP 6: Promote Your Video
- Promote your video through any social media platform using the #makeyourpitch hashtag or by word of mouth to your peers.
- Your video will be judged through a combination of online public voting and a judging panel chosen by the contest organizers. Public votes will make up 40 per cent and the judging panel review will make up 60 per cent of the total score.
- Public voting will open at 9:00 a.m. on Tuesday, April 1 and close at 1:00 p.m. on Friday, April 25, 2014. Public voting is limited to one vote per person/per day.
- Judges will score your video based on the following:
- Clear and realistic description and purpose
- Meets a specific need, fills a gap, or solves a problem
- Target market clearly identified
- Creative and interesting message use of branding (e.g., company name, logo, tag lines)
- Effective use of video techniques
- Clarity and tone of message
- Supported by evidence
- Effective sales pitch
- Effective closing (Call To Action)
- The judges’ decisions on all matters relating to the contest are final, conclusive and not open to dispute.
- All finalists will be invited to pitch their business idea at the annual Discovery conference in Toronto at Metro Toronto Convention Centre on May 12 & 13, 2014.
- All finalists will receive additional support in preparation for the pitch at Discovery.
- A judging panel selected by the contest organizers will review all business pitches at Discovery to determine a winner from each contest category.
- If a finalist declines the invitation to pitch at Discovery, the prize(s) will be forfeited and awarded to another entry in accordance with these contest rules.
- Only the winning entries will be notified. Videos of the finalists will be identified on the contest website by Friday, May 2, 2014.
- Contest organizers, in their sole discretion, reserve the right to move a video from one category to another if they deem that it has been improperly designated by the contestant or if there are insufficient number of entries in another category.
- To qualify for funding through Summer Company, Regional Winners must meet all of the Summer Company Program Guidelines.
- Prizes will be awarded to all winners.
- Where a team is named as a winner, applicable prize(s) will be awarded to the team representative.
- If the contest organizers, in their sole discretion, deem that an insufficient quantity or quality of entries has been received, the contest organizers reserve the right not to award any prizes.
- *In these guidelines, “contest organizers†refers to the Government of Ontario and Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE).
- All video submissions must be respectful and courteous, and in English or French or both. You are fully responsible for everything you submit, and all videos are intended for the general public. Therefore, to protect your own privacy and the privacy of others, do not include personal information such as phone numbers, social insurance numbers, banking information, resumes or email addresses in your video. Contest organizers will not accept videos that are offensive to an individual or an organization, rude in tone, or abusive.
- Contest organizers reserve the right to refuse any video submission containing:
- Racist, hateful, sexist, homophobic, slanderous, insulting or life-threatening content
- Serious, unproven, unsupported, or inaccurate accusations against individuals or organizations
- Abusive, aggressive, coarse, explicit, vulgar, violent, obscene, or pornographic content
- Content that encourages or suggests illegal activity
- Announcements, solicitations, advertisements, or endorsements of any organizations and agencies
- Attempts to defame or defraud any individual, group or agency
- Anyone acting contrary to these rules may be temporarily or permanently excluded from the contest’s spaces, accounts and channels, where applicable.
- The contest organizers reserve the right to cancel, terminate, modify or suspend the contest for any reason, without any prior notice to any contestant.
- The contest organizers are not responsible for telephone, computer or network malfunction or error, whether technical or human in nature, communication disruption, or other forces beyond the reasonable control of the contest organizers.
- The contest organizers reserve the right to correct any typographical, printing, computer programming or operator errors.
- These rules may be changed without notice or reason including, if necessary, to comply with any applicable law. By entering this contest, contestants agree to abide by these rules and acknowledge that the contest organizers shall not be responsible for any damages, costs, demands, claims or losses of any kind, incurred by any contestant as a result of participation in this contest.
- This contest shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Ontario. These rules govern all aspects of the contest and are binding on all contestants and all other participants including parents, legal guardians and team members who sign the official entry form.
- This contest is void where prohibited by law.
STEP 7: Judging Your Video
| Judging Criteria | Components |
|---|---|
| Viability of Product, Service or Invention (30%) | |
| Creativity (30%) | |
| Persuasiveness (30%) | |
| Marketing (10%) |
Finalists
The top videos in each region will become finalists with five (5) spots reserved for exceptional entries decided by the expert judges:
| Region | Finalists |
|---|---|
| Barrie Region | 3 |
| London Region | 3 |
| Ottawa Region | 2 |
| Sudbury-North Bay Region | 1 |
| Thunder Bay Region | 1 |
| Toronto and Area Region | 3 |
| Judges’ Choice | 5 |
| Total | 18 |
Finalists will be notified by telephone and/or email by April 29, 2014
Prizes
General Information
