The poems are visual as they are literally cut and pasted onto various substrates, mostly hotel stationery and also aerogrammes, sometimes are typewritten, sometimes added onto envelopes or in passports with stamps, both inky and postal and other ephemera

Andrew jumps right in with a variety of the poems – after the usual intro music, radio station ids and blurbs – and with a tender hearted reading, rolling with some of the steps, typos and place names like a gentle dignified champ. The canonical source is https://archive.993countyfm.ca/ – archived here as unsure if the shows *expire* after a time (btw, the studio is location at: 2 – 38 Cold Storage Road beside the County Farm Centre)

Written in various forms at an Ayurvedic clinic in Nepal for the most part and also while transiting from Abu Dhabi to Rome via the Suez Canal on an ocean liner, then combined with other bits found in lost notebooks reuniting along the way – later transcribed from originals (from menus backs to coasters to notebooks) and printed out on standard paper with default typeface thinking i would work through and correct or change or whatever but instead, following the inspiration of William Burroughs, David Bowie and others, eager to make the words alive, i cut up and pasted in a way which made sense to my swirling brain – typos, digressions, hard turns, coffee stains and watermarks and all, onto the substrates, many of which were acquired at a Greek monastery shop in Mile End neighborhood of Montreal (thanks BM)

The poems explore themes of identity, geography, cartography, history… All combining to wonder “Who we really are? Who did we come from? How do we choose the way in which our societies are structured?”

I imagined hanging these up on telephone poles and grocery store bulletin boards next to lost cat posters and leaving them on bus seats and whatnot, in the meanwhile, printed some basic copies and personalized on a ferry from Newfoundland to Cape Breton, and mailed around

Later scanned, compiled with some other found items from my archive and crafted hand sewn chapbook series (letter-size cardstock in color, thank you brother Andrew for use of your printer in Vegas), folded and hand-stitched and shared with friends, mostly in Utah. Not sure if anyone read but i had fun in Marty’s yard putting ink stamps and thumb/toe prints to make each unique

Thinking about it, some of them are water colored “telegrams” made at drawing room at the Majestic hotel in Kuala Lumpur, others on Nusa Ceningan, Indonesia – now 7 or 8 “volumes” [update: 10 volumes, named thusly]

1 Arab disguise

2 Earth rambler

3 Time traveler

4 Gone to Sea

5 Hubris

6 Circumnavigation

7 Interlaken

8 Fragile 

9 Lost mostly

10 Reinvention

PS There’s also a page in this edition which is kind of dedicated to Andrew himself in a roundabout way featuring some of the artifacts he mailed to me combined into a collage as another “item, forgotten”

PS Did you catch “Starting Your Story, part 1“?

Download: “Listen Everywhere, part 2” – Social Marketing Kung-fu / workshop & spiel (1:07:02, 98.7MB, .mp3)

Notes follow:

Social Marketing kung-fu, part 2 – “listening everywhere”

Listening as a Critical Component in Social Marketing

The workshop, “Social Marketing Kung Fu, part 2” emphasized the importance of listening in social marketing. Key points include: using search tools and RSS feeds to monitor brand mentions, leveraging Twitter lists for targeted engagement, and geolocated searches for local insights.

Dave emphasized the significance of responding to both positive and negative feedback to mitigate PR issues and convert detractors into supporters. The utility of metrics like sentiment analysis and the impact of reviews on brand reputation were discussed. The session also covered the value of documenting and sharing user-generated content to foster relationships and build a community of advocates

Action Items

• [ ] Set up RSS feeds to capture mentions of your brand across various platforms.
• [ ] Use Boolean searches to filter out irrelevant results and focus on the most relevant conversations.
• [ ] Create Twitter lists to organize and prioritize the people you want to listen to and engage with.
• [ ] Leverage geolocation to find and connect with people talking about your brand in specific locations.
• [ ] Create news roundups and event recaps to amplify and document the growth of your startup.

Reasons for Listening

• The first reason for listening: learning the vocabulary people use to describe the brand and differentiate it from competitors
• The second reason: is to mitigate PR conundrums by being proactive and addressing issues before they escalate
• Importance of responding to negative reviews and comments to turn detractors into supporters
• Examples of how listening can transform negative feedback into positive interactions

The Power of Listening in Market Positioning

• Dave emphasizes the evolving nature of market positioning and the importance of understanding how people differentiate brandd
• Sentiment analysis is mentioned as a tool, but its limitations are discussed (customers are real and tactile, robots are not so much (but need love too)
• Discussion of the importance of capturing and analyzing all feedback, including positive and negative comments
• Dave shares (unofficial) insights from Hootsuite’s experience in showing how listening can help understand and address customer needs

Tools and Techniques for Effective Listening

• Practical advice on using search boxes and RSS feeds to monitor brand mentions
• Discussion on the importance of capturing all relevant data, including misspellings and synonyms
• Tools (like Social Mention and Netvibes) are recommended for aggregating and analyzing social data
• Explaination the use of Boolean filters to refine search results and remove irrelevant content

Leveraging Social Media Channels for Listening

• Importance of actively (not passively) monitoring social media channels like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram
• Tips on using Twitter lists to organize and manage conversations effectively (more signal, less noise)
• Value of geolocated searches to identify and engage with local audiences
• Use of tools like Storify to curate and share user-generated content.

Building Relationships with Supporters and Detractors

• Importance of sincerely understanding and engaging with both supporters and detractors (bringing on board)
• Examples of how Hootsuite identified and built relationships with key influencers
• Value of acknowledging and rewarding supporters to foster long-term relationships
• Importance of personalizing interactions to make customers feel valued

Measuring and Documenting Listening Efforts

• Importance of capturing and measuring data to understand the impact of listening efforts
• Tips on using tools to track and analyze social media activity
• Value of documenting successes and challenges to inform future strategies
• Ways to share insights with the team to ensure everyone is aligned with the listening strategy

Engaging with Local and International Audiences

• Importance of creating value for global customers by addressing their specific needs and concerns and especially cultural nuances
• By understanding cultural differences, then adapting the listening strategy accordingly
• Examples of how listening can lead to innovative solutions and improved customer experiences
• Value of being proactive and addressing issues before they become major problems
• Ways of gently staying connected with customers to understand their evolving needs and preferences

Building a Community of Advocates

• Importance of building a community of advocates who can help promote the brand
• Tips on identifying and engaging with key influencers to amplify the brand’s message
• Ways of creating content that resonates with the community and encourages sharing
• Ways to foster relationships with advocates to ensure long-term support

Winding Up

The session ends with a reminder of the value of listening and the impact it can have on the success of the brand while Dave concludes by summarizing the key points and emphasizing the importance of listening in social marketing and encourages participants to apply the strategies discussed and continue learning.

More:

Community Feasthouse podcast feed – All manner of discourse from media interviews to various lectures and presentations. Topics include social web fu, creative culture, podcast making, DIY publishing, community cultivating, art making and related adventures.

• RSS Feed
• Blog
• iTunes

Artifacts from Social Marketing Kung-fu – workshop / spiel Notes and riffs from original “Social Marketing Kung-fu” series at Bootup Garage, Vancouver, 2011

Holy smokes pals! hold onto your toques & trilbys – 2 Canadians scattered in Asia, talk about Amsterdam, Indonesia, Utah, driveway cars, one-way tickets, shakedowns, Grateful Dead, punk rock, Cub Scouts, science fairs, personal archaeology, drum corps, and dad life #FullOn

I hope you have a blast listening to it as there are definitely stories that rarely get shared as well as some “all-time classics” – after all I hardly hit Olympia, skipped Belize, Jamaica, transpacific ocean liners, Strait of Hormuz, and Suez –  but maybe a part 2 :)

Download: Just Japan Podcast – 226: A Life of Creativity and Adventure from Canada to Everywhere to Japan with Dave Olson

Coming to you from a leisurely bed, with an elevated leg – buckle up for some twists and turns and hopefully some laughs and possibly a bit of inspiration

Hope you all have a chance to tune in and hang out with Kevin and I for an hour and a half of sidetracks, depressions, switching countries, remixing careers, saying “heck yes” adventures, plus tracing similarities, unexpected inspirations & even some tender moments

So much packed in & still have much more to discuss as the future is going to be even weirder / The next 50 are going to put the first 50 in the dust like whoa! I savour every year despite all the rocky turns and dodgy decisions but that’s what you get for saying “yes yes yes!” to everything :) buzzing from the convo / It is long but loads to get lost in no matter what your interest. thanks so much, Kevin for giving me a chance to share these stories as “we are the stories that we share”

Host Kevin O’Shea (xtwr: @madformaple), says:

“In this episode, we get to hang out with Okayama-based Dave Olson. This inspiring Canadian shares many amazing stories, insights, and worldly experiences. From his adventures as a youth to mushroom farming in Tottori, to internet startups in Vancouver, he’s done so much. Now Dave lives in Okayama with his beautiful family and shares his experiences and thoughts on personal archeology and much more with all of us.

You’ll all want to follow Dave and see what he’s up to next!”

Handy links (to listen and subscribe):

• Apple Podcasts
  • https://podcasts.apple.com/jp/podcast/just-japan-podcast/id846476649?i=1000666413258
• Spotify podcasts
  • https://open.spotify.com/episode/6DFiGBE6uyGl3gB7vEt787?si=LPGxB-HaSLWt_ZmHNlz5mA

Thanks to all your lovely folks for sharing this around, it’s a real treat for me in amongst all the commotion going on in my life at the current 

Questions accepted (within reason :-)) and requests for supporting evidence are encouraged + I truly hope you find some sparks of goodness in my meanderings

In November 2022 I was very pleased to be a very lousy guest on the very gracious Jason Emde’s podcast (broadcast in Gifu rock city) in which writers share their “early, unripe… etc. etc.” work along with Jason’s curious questions, amusing banter and general graciousness.

Note: i riffed about Jason’s most excellent book in a Beat Sushi video dispatch “Curiously Punctuated” and we enjoy a prolific mostly-postcard-but-sometimes-passport correspondence.

We spoke for something like four hours which is a world record for me of late, yes I was a little spun out and it’s not my finest moment *but* gave me an opportunity to dig deep into the archive to find things from my legit early days. Of course about an hour makes it into the finished program but my goodness, is it a lot of action in an hour. Leaping wildly from topic to form, location to era, anecdote to musing. A bit rant-y sure so hold on to yer cap.

In this case I pulled items from: fourth grade King Tut mimeographed hand out from my (award winning :-)) science fair project at Prince Charles Elementary; newspaper editorials and chapbooks at the Orem (UT) high school; early stories at Utah Valley community college; and, the beginning of the *disgruntled with the literary establishment years* at University of Utah years.

Yes there are many digressions, rapid speaking, a few shots fired, salvos really, a bit of sweetness and a bit of tenderness as I figured out who I thought I might be when I was already completely myself.

Find it all at:

Writers Read Their Early Sh*t S2/E5 – Dave Olson (aka Uncle Weed): priorities & bad decisions

Blurb:

Jason welcomes under-qualified window-washer Dave Olson & his fantastic beard & beautiful hands for a natter about punching or hugging Dostoevsky, see-through loincloths, meeting REM, borrowing mustard from Allen Ginsberg, dodgy Greyhound stations, working out the writing life math, and how cheerleaders are people too.

There’s ropey Egyptian history, a savage polemic, the details of hippy teacher Mr Boris’s new motorized home, a few bits & Brother Bobs of Dave’s early poetry & prose, & Jason getting his Tutankhamun timeline wrong by only 3700 years. An unnerving—if not terrifying—time is guaranteed for all.

Check out Dave’s creative life archive at https://daveostory.com—much to enjoy there. Music by the outrageous DJ Max in Tokyo.

Join the early sh*t chat at https://www.facebook.com/WRTESpodcast & on Instagram @writersreadtheirearlyshit. You can also send an email to WritersReadTheirEarlyShit (at sign) gmail.com. Many thanks, wherever & whoever & however you are, for listening. 

As such, i call it “The Lonely Olympics”.

But first listen in browser or you know, all those *other podcast places*.

Breaker.news Podcast: The Games are over, but Tokyo’s problems aren’t

I was sorta the “warm-up act” for Jules Boykoff, authour of NOlympics. who has rocked the media during Tokyo 2020/1 including this riff on my pal Bob Mackin’s heavy news pod.

I had *a lot* fo say and maybe said “too much” but felt a lot of frustration being a “regular resident” on the ground in provincial Japan awaiting vaccinations and paying taxes while the IOC’s debacle continued with excuses, conundrums and constant bubble-breaking. But, nobody asked me… well, except for Bob :) .

Mostly though, I’m curious about your opinion from wherever you are.

From Bob Mackin’s podcast description from week of Aug. 8, 2021:

The Tokyo Olympics are over.

Postponed in 2020 due to the pandemic, but they happened in the pandemic anyway. 

The International Olympic Committee is claiming success, because the Games eventually opened and closed on time. But the Japanese people are stuck with the bill and more coronavirus infections than there were when the cauldron was lit in an empty stadium surrounded by protesters. 

On this edition, hear expert analysis from ex-Vancouverite Dave Olson in Okayama, Japan and Jules Boykoff,  political scientist, author and Olympics industry critic from Portland, Ore.

Plus commentary and Pacific Rim and Pacific Northwest headlines.

from Bob Mackin’s “The Breaker News” pod

More: Japan Times ran a series of articles with various names and reactions… & some very enjoyable Deep Dive podcasts

Episode 93: Week 1 at the Tokyo Olympics: Gold, Covid and Naomi Osaka

Episode 94: Week 2 at the Tokyo Olympics: A marathon in the heat

Episode 95: Theremins and gold medal wins: Farewell to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics

Get your ears on and listen to Tokyo Olympics “scene report” chat with Jody Vance on Vancouver news/talk radio 980AM from July 12th afternoon PST, July 13th 9-ish AM JST.

A few notes to go with: 

Covered a lot of ground but so much more. Looking forward to keeping you up-to-date from regular folks’ point of view as #Tokyo2020 gets underway.

Tokyo 2020, for many reasons will be a very unique iteration (understatement!) of the Olympics with very few spectators, loads of precautions and a host city in 4th state of emergency.

Importantly: truly hope events occur w/o public health consequences.

Lots of anxiety / frustration about IOC hubris & government waffling.

(I realize) it’s not unusual for Olympics to get off to a rocky start that’s for sure and once they get going, a lot of the negativity fades and good times prevail.

For record, at +/- 16% vaccination rate in Japan.

In “better news“: Since anybody watching (aside from oligarchs & bureaucrats) will be watching on TV (regardless of all the things going outside of the sports venues), fancy new technology will make sports (including a few new ones *skate, surf, rock*) look really great on TV – might as well get to know crazy tech – cameras, clouds, microphones etc. 

Hey that was fun! could talk with Jody Vance for an hour (one tech hiccup when my phone *automagically* connected to wife’s car via bluetooth – ooops :)) 

We didn’t get to riff about the extra challenges for athletes coming from Delta-heavy countries, the onerous participant waivers athletes have to sign, and IOC chief Bach’s visit to Hiroshima and other gaffes…

Any Vancouver or elsewhere media on the ground needing a high-five, hit me up. Happy to listen to any comments, questions, musings, concerns about Tokyo2020 and IOC / Olympics in general.

{possible more notes and memos will paste here}

Beyond the obvious lack of benefit (tourism impact on small business and global reputation through shiny images and/or *needed* community infrastructure) the messaging from #IOC has been demeaning, disrespectful and completely tone-deaf / Leading up with hubris and threats.

zero enthusiasm whatsoever on the ground in #Japan. Nothing but disgust, frustration, anger (& a bit of embarrassment). Japanese folks have diligently worked to keep cases down (despite government waffling) these last 18 months and appalled by new risks & hubris

Dude (Bach) is getting roasted in Japan bigtime. #IOC sparking vitriol ive never seen here before. “Sacrifice” bah!

##

Listen in embedded player above or direct mp3 if preferred: 

Description: Dave Olson, Grew up in Whalley – lived in Lynn Valley – and now living in Japan, Attended several Olympic Games and Ran a social media aggregator during the 2010 Games called True North Media House joins the show.

THEN, we head to Tokyo at 5:30 and speak to our friend Dave Olson. He’s from here, but lives in Japan and will bring us the boots on the ground perspective as the countdown to Tokyo 2020 begins in earnest. That’s straight ahead on @CKNW Afternoons. @alan_regan pic.twitter.com/zxaIpMp1EW

— Jody Vance (@jodyvance) July 12, 2021

Previous hit with Jody Vance: Talking Tokyo Olympic conundrums on CKNW Radio, Vancouver

More on The Breaker.news pod: Tokyo Olympics (+ Beijing) and IOC Hubris on theBreaker.news podcast

I was guest on JJ Walsh’sSeeking Sustainability in Japan live video streaming show (which transmits via YT, FB and several other channels using Happs.tv) from Hiroshima. And now, there is also an audio podcast version of Seeking Sustainability for your aural convenience.

ergo: “New podcast now UP from my talk last week with Dave Olson about his career as a social media visionary for Hoostsuite in Vancouver, and his current projects with house remodel and designing scrapbook style postcards to create social connections during Covid. Look forward to a future chat (when it’s not rainy) more on his house remodel project + look forward to a future chat with his arborist partner about her interesting passion for trees.”

You can listen on any podcast player you like (Episode 259) or on InboundAmbassador.com/ssl-podcasts/

&/or

• SSL on Apple Podcasts
• SSL on Spotify
• SSL on Google Podcasts
• Listen on InboundAmbassador
• video on Youtube

Pulled out a lot of stories that I’ve kept it hidden for sometime. Thanks for the space to riff out the long jams. Topics around building a holistic life in Japan, i.e. our generational house project, story making as a biz, living cheap and cheerful, possibly fermenting, and yeah my arborist/jazz singer wife Ryoko and my exceptionally adorable almost 1-year-old Ichiro Stanley.

Even a pitch for my DaveOShop at Buy Me a Coffee and mentions of loads of other creative output you’ll find in this very archive. 

theBreaker.news Podcast: Five-ring circus controversy in Japan and China

I talked about the Tokyo Olympics with Bob Mackin – who I first connected with leading up to the Vancouver 2010 Olympics when he did an article featuring Kris Krüg and I talking about citizen documentation campaign which eventually became True North Media House. This segment also explores the human rights issues about Beijing 2022 Winter Games. (off record, we talked about IOC scrambling for relevancy). 

Since then, I interviewed Bob for the Olympic Outsider, podcast (as we both headed home on the Seabus amongst revellers to Lynn Valley, North Vancouver and i also appeared on his TheBreaker.news podcast in August 2020 talking about these same subjects + baby Ichiro Stanley Thorvald. 

Anyhow, i’ve shared a lot about this topic on other channels including recent convo with Jody Vance on CKNW 980AM radio Vancouver but a few notes:

In brief, pushing ahead with Olympics in Japan call into question:
* health & safety of residents
* economic “handcuffs” & sovereignty
* fairplay for all athletes (esp from countries in crisis)
* funded junkets for dodgy operators
* rude / vague double-talk & IOC hubris
* no fun for residents who made this happen

Curious to hear your views after listening.

My riffs start at 6:00-ish mark (and consider supporting Bob “the hammer” Mackin as he holds governments to account).

May 30, 2021:  Should the Tokyo Olympics be postponed or cancelled?

Should the Beijing Winter Olympics be moved or boycotted?

The future is now for the five-ring circus. On this edition, host Bob Mackin ponders the pandemic in Japan and China’s human rights abuses. Guests Dave Olson in Okayama, Japan and Ivy Li of the Canadian Friends of Hong Kong.

Plus Pacific Rim and Pacific Northwest headlines.

theBreaker.news Podcast: Five-ring circus controversy in Japan and China

More notes (social riff round-up): 

A lot of the “IOC family” are wealthy, privileged, vaccinated and aren’t necessarily worried about the impact they have on Japan after they leave. They’re staying in hotels, not a bubble, using public transportation and surely will be going out and about.

Easy to tell them but very difficult to enforce in any way. And punishment? These wealthy/privileged folks don’t give a fck about a fine. IOC Officials roll with basically diplomatic immunity during the games

…Especially the athletes coming from countries currently in crisis. What a dilemma for them to leave their families and support networks behind in such bad situations! Then possibly bringing variants back to medical systems which are unable to handle more chaos. :(

I am less concerned about the athletes who will likely be diligent about staying in the bubble and way more concerned about the “IOC family“… 60,000 executives, fat-cats, VIPs and sponsors rolling in with no quarantine requirement or vaccination and no bubble. Stay home IOC!

Related: 

*Of course* there are lots of articles discussing the Olympic topic from various “major media expected new sources” like Japan Times, Washington Post, Asahi Shinbun blah blah blah but this one from Teen Vogue with particularly awesome so I’m gonna share this *and definitely not* gonna get carried away with a laundry list of resources. {If curious, you can check my various Twitter channels, I’ll assume you can figure that out (look in right side bar if needed) oh and follow for Olympian and author of NOlympics @JulesBoykoff and former VANOC comms guy @GraemeMenzies who wrote a treatise about modernizing the event.

Anyhow, Teen Vogue is slaying, ergo:

The Olympics Devastate Host Cities and Need a Permanent Location This op-ed argues that the impact of the Olympic Games on host cities has become too devastating to ignore.

BY EMILY BURACK
JUNE 1, 2021

The Olympics are broken. Nowhere is this clearer than in Tokyo, where polls have indicated more than 80% of Japanese citizens oppose the upcoming Summer Games and the Japanese government has declared a state of emergency. As of late May, just 3.7% of the population had received at least one dose of the vaccine and Japan is grappling with a “fourth wave” of COVID-19. There’s never been an Olympics so deeply unpopular with a host city — and so dangerous to hold — and yet by all indications, the Tokyo Games will go on as scheduled.

Even without a pandemic, the impact of the Olympics on host cities has become too devastating to ignore.

Oh listen… i talked about Tokyo Olympics and various conundrums with Jody Vance on CKNW AM Radio in Vancouver.

Wanted to share the feelings of deceit and frustration the the residents of Japan are feeling with IOC’s demands for “sacrifice”, more doctors, volunteers and threats of penalties if cancelled/delayed. Suggestions: delay until Oct or later and/or IOC “family” stay home. Also thoughts about athletes from countries in crisis. Is it fair for them to leave family to try to focus on competing. Sigh. Anyhow, was a treat to share as an erstwhile representative of my new home country. Get your ears on…

Listen above in browser (skip the creepy news bit at the beginning) and/or download archived audio via John B below. 

Note: awarded from Jay S “Bonus points for the use of the words “bromide” and “coterie”” and happy to get in namechecks of Whalley, Lynn Valley and Ichiro Stanley as well as my home city Okayama, Japan. 

UPDATE: 

Just did another audio hit on theBreaker.News with Bob Mackin about Olympics conundrums and IOC hubris in Japan. Now featuring more Dick Pound (ugh) thwarting sovereignty and lack of fun times and excitement. Seems much of the world doesn’t know the low-down in Japan and other Asian locations.

If you have questions (&/or need a guest to riff), hit me up at the “studio”.

PS check my (rather prescient) previous convo with Bob about Olympix etc last August (and our convo on the Seabus during Vancouver 2010 Olympics.

Hey whatta fun conversation! Riffing about creative projects from 1970s to current days and how all the threads connect together in the most unexpected ways. I.e.: fanzines, chapbooks, paintings, mustaches, Ayurveda, Dead tour, grain barns of mystery, goat farms, hemp #theusual

From Moss Whelan / writer, papermaker, renegade & podmaker:
“Back in the swing—talking with {Dave Olson} about writing, art, and health”

Note: Listen above in browser or via Anchor, Apple Pod, Spotify…

Backstory: Recently reconnected with this gentleman Moss Whelan as seen at Commercial Industrial Hemp Symposium, Vancouver 1996 – at the time he was hand-making hemp paper on the trade show floor under the “sails” of Canada Place.

You can see him in HempenRoad film… Anyhow… Recently we did a podcast interview for his series “Story in Mind” covering so many topics from narrative structure, time travel, mental health & loads of laughs.

He writes genre fiction and our life journey since our last meeting are laden with parallel tracks. Really worth a listen i think (hint: i “open the kimono” more than usual – yikes!)

Listen: above in browser or via Anchor, Apple Pod, Spotify… 

I was recently a guest on (my occasional co-conspirator) Bob Mackin’s excellent PC/Pacific Rim/Cascadia news podcast called “The Breaker” talking about the postponed/cancelled Tokyo 2020 Olympics as well as riffing about personal archiving project, life lessons at 50, and birth of Ichiro Stanley Thorvald Olson. 

In this 6-ish min. trimmed excerpt, i offer a few audio annotations about what i learned about myself, life as we know it etc whilst curating #daveo50, i.e.: how we really are who we are at a young age (in my case anyway), the importance of being kind, fostering and nurturing long-term relationships, that hobbies are the real thing, and the Internet is for communication not just a business construct.

Bob and I both celebrated birthdays this week so that came into the conversation as well. This episode – theBreaker.news Podcast: Socially distant birthday fun – I appeared in also featured Burnaby city councillor and punk rock legend, DOA’s Joe “Shithead” Keithley and other guests and riffs in Bob’s unique style. 

Consider listening to the whole episode and subscribing to Bob’s great podcast plus show him support especially if you live/vote in British Columbia.

Also available as: “DaveO Personal Archive Project on The Breaker on Soundcloud“

Listen also: Oly-nomics and Goodtimes w/ Hammer Bob – Olympic Outsider #24

Another curious cameo, this time with Bob “the hammer“ Mackin, renegade reporter covering politics around Vancouver/BC, as well as international affairs in the Pacific rim and the Olympics (when they are happening).

In the dispatch, I give some riffs about life in Japan, a few nuggets of wisdom about daveo50 (including the importance of DIY skills and kindness), wish Bob Mackin a happy 50th of his own (August 8th) plus share the show with punk rock politician champion Joe Keithley (DOA) and Burnaby mayor Mike Hurley who share some rock against racism.

What a glorious combination! Fire it up and hang out with us for a bit.

The Breaker News podcast at: TuneIn and/or Apple Podcasts.

Or: 

theBreaker.news Podcast: Socially distant birthday fun

For the week of Aug. 9, 2020.

Join theBreaker.news Podcast host Bob Mackin for a special birthdays edition.

He turned the big 5-0 on Aug. 8 and shares some socially distant and virtual birthday cheer with Vancouver Island political commentator Laila Yuile (who shares the same birthdate) and Dave Olson, the former Hootsuite vice-president now living in Japan (and celebrating his milestone on Aug. 16). Also, hear what was going on in B.C.’s capital 50 years ago this weekend.

Plus an interview with Burnaby Coun. Joe Keithley, who recorded a new version of one of his legendary DOA songs, “You Won’t Stand Alone,” with Mayor Mike Hurley. The anthem rocks against hate and racism.

Plus Pacific Rim and Pacific Northwest headlines and commentaries on British Columbia Day.

Download: Starting Your Story – Social Marketing Kung-fu 1 – workshop / spiel (1:07:02, 98.7MB, .mp3)

Community Feasthouse podcast feed – All manner of discourse from media interviews to various lectures and presentations. Topics include social web fu, creative culture, podcast making, DIY publishing, community cultivating, art making and related adventures.

• RSS Feed
• Blog
• iTunes

Notes:

* Some notes and lists came from attendees (i think, i mean i don’t *really* recall…)

Overview

• Most tech companies start with 2 peeps (tech + biz)
• Gotta fill-in until you add 3rd leg to tripod (marketing/community/etc)
• Don’t wait to start marketing til you have a product – build culture and posse
• Cheap and cheerful – avoid ads and trade shows, yes to speaking and media
• Grassroots FTW

Getting Started

• Document everything you Do. From Day 1 / entrepreneurs should document everything and have one place to share all of their “collective intelligence,” such as an internal wiki. Writing everything down will help you stay focused and remind you what it is you set out to achieve
• Do not plan much farther out than 6 months
• Define the role of each person in the company / This will help people focus on and take ownership over certain tasks

Naming Your Company/Product

• Coming up with a name for your company that has an available URL is not an easy task
• Define what it is your product does first
• Start playing around with words that are easy to say, spell and remember
• Ask friends or your community for feedback or ideas.  For instance, Hootsuite crowdsourced name

Describe Your Product

• Try and define your product in 3 words. For example, Hootsuite at first chose “Professional Twitter Client” as a 3 word description and now defines itself as a “Social Media Dashboard”
• Take those 3 words and expand on them to create a 100 word description
• Reach out to users and get feedback and watch what terms they are searching for.  It is important to be using the same terms and descriptions that your users/customers are

Start Listening

• Create Lists.  Start following the people who care about your product as well as watching your competitors
• By listening and asking specific questions, you will start to build relationships with your customers
• Respond and participate in the conversation
• Each community is different. For example, your customers may act differently on Facebook vs. LinkedIn. Watch this and communicate accordingly
• Define what you want to get out of each of the social media channels you are using

Media Kit

• The first page you should create on your website is a media kit page
• Make it easy for people to write about you and tell your story.
• Your kit should include artwork, logo, colors, typeface, TM with specific guidelines on how to use
• Be sure to have multiple descriptions that writers can snag to use in articles and posts such as a 100 or 500 word description
• Colorful screenshots or infographics like this one are a great resource for writers
• Keep your kit up to date and fresh

Be Loud

• Now that you have defined who you are and what you do, start telling the world
• Don’t wait until you launch.  Become an active participant in the community you are trying to reach
• If it is not on the Internet, it didn’t happen! So – Blog, Flickr, Tweet etc. starting right now
• When someone writes an article or post mentioning you or your area of expertise, COMMENT. It shows you are paying attention and care about your community and the people, who are taking the time to write about you and use your product
• Create 3-4 touch-points to an article.  For example, Dave will comment on an article, social bookmark it and add it to an RSS Feed = juicy, indexable goodness
• Hashtag everything. Topics, brands, acronyms – be creative and always remember to listen to your audience and be consistent with your message

Checklist:

Decide who you are – name, description, NOT mission statement – what your company and product names? Are they easy to say and spell? If not, refresh.

1. What’s your vocab? Establish your voice and words
2. 3 words description (later you’ll do 25 words and 100 words)
3. Listen to your (growing) audience use the words they use (Like HootSuite for bands…)
4. Document it all (not fancy) if it’s not on the internet, didn’t happen – rock the blog, flickr, youtube, twitter – photo ops! get in front of camera
5. Build a posse (Twitter lists and small tasks acknowledged with thanks)
6. Make friends with media (build email list too, get to know their specific interests) offer to give quote comments for almost anything (CBC)
7. Media Kit – make it easy to cover your story! includes:

• • brand conventions (spellings, nomenclature)
  • wordmark, logos, screenshots
  • media contact (you, not an agency)
  • exec headshots & bio
  • links to releases (more about media announcements in future session)

Bonus: Make an auto-magic media feed to amplify coverage / e.g. Recipe: Social BM > RSS >  HS > Twitter etc. as used with: @hootwatch @endlessgoodness @truenorthmedia

More:

More:

Community Feasthouse podcast feed – All manner of discourse from media interviews to various lectures and presentations. Topics include social web fu, creative culture, podcast making, DIY publishing, community cultivating, art making and related adventures.

• RSS Feed
• Blog
• iTunes

Artifacts from Social Marketing Kung-fu – workshop / spiel Notes and riffs from original “Social Marketing Kung-fu” series at Bootup Garage, Vancouver, 2011

Notes and riffs from original “Social Marketing Kung-fu” series at Bootup Garage, Vancouver, 2011

One late evening, i was happy and sad to rally up with dozens of global renegades to pay tribute to a fallen spreader of mirth and kindness. “Queer Ninja” was a early days, cannabis inspired podcaster with an infectious laugh, oddly-pro banter flow and ridiculous sense of humour and a huge heart. I never met QN in real life but spent so much time listening and exchanging messages including a few audio dispatches:

Including: Message to Queer Ninja from Uncle Weed and Dopefiend 

Stick this dispatch in your ears for laughs and musings and tender sentiments. #pioneers #dopetribe #podcast

4/20/2020 – A Tribute to Queerninja: Dopefiend Quarantined 005

Apr 19, 2020

To celebrate the international stoner’s holiday and the life of the Dopefiend.co.uk Network’s beloved Queerninja, the Dopefiend gathers together a who’s who of our little community, from The Toker, BB, Tirikite Toker and Hudsonrulez to the Psychedelic Salon’s Lorenzo Hagerty, and Son of Gonzo, the Bagginsis and Syconot to KMO, Uncle Weed, Esse B and the Gremlin of Ganja, not to mention Sancho, Cody and Nexxus, Teenage Pie, Mrs Mole and Scoobysnakks. Never before have so many DopeTribers been gathered together in one virtual room to discuss their history, shared adventures, and what Queerninja meant to them all.

More Queer Ninja greetings: 

“Message to the Highlands!” Dopefiend & Uncle Weed to Queer Ninja

Thanksgiving with Absinthe and Fungi Tea – Choogle On! #54

Purple Kush testing episode reaches new err … highs

In 2016, I presented a “Lunch and Learn” to the staff of Giftbit (formerly Kiind) about social marketing, culture building, community sparking, and start-up life – also managing events and improving copywriting and oh yeah, media relations.

In brief, I wrote out a batch of topics on paper cards, tossed them on the table and invited the assembled folks to choose. As such, the talk is spontaneous, fast-paced and offers a load of practical advice, interspersed with anecdotes from companies at which i toiled including Hootsuite, Elastic Path, Raincity Studios and various others endeavours.

Bring your own sushi for: Start-up Storytime at Giftbit Lunch and Learn (192k mp3, 1:23:13, 119MB)

Topics: 

• Living on the isle of Guam and Dave’s first experience with the internet.
• Startups and working for Hootsuite
• Localization & competitive edge
• Startup advice: Mouse & magnifier metaphor (Amplify brand, build assets, learn customer vocabulary)
• Tips on creating a media kit
• Working with the media
• International markets
• The power of the inexpensive video
• One hug at a time
• How to deal with crisis
• Customer Stories
• Different solutions for different audiences (Japan uses cash,
• Indonesia smart phone user density)
• Events not sucking
• SXSW and swag
• Fuck stats make art
• Be your own user
• Fostering a strong company culture
• Thanks for sushi

Notes:

A staff member recorded the talk, edited out some bits and glued it together, plus created this wonderful graphic art piece of me in action.

I am no longer an employee of Hootsuite and this talk was done as “me” not as “me from Hootsuite” and does not reflect official company point-of-view etc. Govern yourself accordingly.

I am on advisory board of Giftbit and own some shares. Was also compensated with sushi for the talk.

Also: yes, there are “cuss words”, several.

PS Some of the clips exist on Giftbit’s Soundcloud channel, specifically:

• Dave Olson: One Hug At A Time
• Dave Olson: Magnifying Lens
• Dave Olson: Be Your Own User

Of yeah, Giftbit is:

Giftbit is reimagining digital gift cards.

Our platform and infrastructure makes digital gift cards more cost effective, simple, and smart.

As a B2B marketplace for selling, sending, and purchasing digital gift cards, we deliver fully-branded, trackable digital gift cards that allow you to send incentives and rewards by email or by a unique link to a recipient. For all gift cards that go unclaimed, funds are returned to your account.

From time to time, I visit various classes associated with B.C.’s Simon Fraser University’s fine publishing program under the stewardship of Suzanne Norman. This time around, the class was something about personal publicity and brand building. As such, I share anecdotes gleaned from Hootsuite and dozens of other personal social and community projects from over the years of activism, media outreach and marketing.

Head to class for: Creative Social Publicity and Promotion at SFU (1:56:08, 84MB, .mp3)

More: Roundup of artifacts from Creative Social Publicity and Promotion at SFU