Category Archives: Social Media

come see me at social media camp in Victoria, May 5-7

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Who likes free lunches? EVERYONE! Who likes saving money? Pretty much those very same people! Now you can attend Canada’s biggest and best purely social media conference in one of the world’s prettiest cities, save $100 on registration, and have lunch on and with me. Given the number of lunches other people have bought for me, it’s kinda the least I can do.

Kittens explain social media, they explain everything.

Kittens explain social media, they explain everything.

Yes kittens, I’m headed back to the #YYJ for another Social Media Camp, Canada’s largest social media conference, in gorgeous downtown Victoria. I know that’s a cliche, but it’s literally true and I don’t know anyone who isn’t thrilled at an excuse to go to this spectacular city.

This year I’ll be speaking on Marketing the Mystery; in other words, how to use social media to drum up interest in something when you’re not actually allowed to say what it is. I’m using the @WhatsPineApple campaign that we’re running for Steve Wozniak as my specific material here. What’s PineApple? All will be revealed by Woz at the Business Rocks conference in Manchester, April 21-22, which means I’ll finally be free to talk about it by the time Social Media Camp rolls around.

social media camp

I may or may not also be doing an informal chat-style talk on how writers can use social media to boost readership and sales. That depends on finding a room for it, or alternately on attendees buying me pints at the pub. I’m easy, and Victoria is the spiritual home of the Canadian brew pub tradition.

AND thanks to organizer Paul Holmes, I’ve got a juicy discount code for you, kittens! Regular camp tix are $699 and go up to $999 for the Rock Star pass, but a limited number of camp tickets have been made available at $599. But with this sweet, sweet discount code you get $100 off whichever package you buy, and you get a free lunch, on me. And with me. This is good news for you, as I am a restaurant snob and will take you somewhere nice, I promise. Your super-secret discount code is: Raincoaster.

Clicky, clicky, you know you want to. $200 off Canada’s best social media conference AND a free lunch with your humble editor in one of the world’s best undiscovered foodie destinations. DO EET. Guy Fawkes mask optional, we’re not formal here.

Barrett Brown Busted

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Barrett Brown Busted

Barrett Brown Busted

Well, it had to happen. Everybody’s favorite/least favorite Anon/talking head/fameball Barrett Brown once again drew the attention of law enforcement. Being a very 21st Century character, he was half-naked, seemingly baked, and on video when it all went down.

Here is that video.

Full report will be up tomorrow on the Daily Dot. You’re welcome.

EDIT: it’s up now. Barrett Brown Anonymous hacker, arested.

Vancouver Sometimes Isn’t Awesome

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Marketing iz always thrilling

Marketing iz always thrilling

One of my good friends has started a FB thread asking how many people would leave Vancouver if they could, but remain only for family reasons. Quite a lot of people say they would leave if they could. Several of the best people I know have, in fact, left; I myself left to go to Yellowknife last year. And people from outside wonder why.

Wonder no more. Read and learn.

A different friend of mine was welcomed to the board of Vancouver Is Awesome. Great. Awesome. However.

  • Lorraine Murphy Tell them to unBlock me on Twitter. They got awful touchy when I pointed out they Followed Jason Priestly and they blocked me.
    9 hours ago · “}”>Like · 1

  • Morten Rand-Hendriksen Cool. Congrats.
    9 hours ago · “}”>Like

  • Wayne Shaddow They blocked you Lorraine? See, this kind of thing worries me. Sounds like a “if you say anything against us, you’ll be blacklisted” thing. Out the window goes the ‘social’.
    9 hours ago · “}”>Like

  • Lorraine Murphy Yep, they blocked me. They were talking to someone else, and said “Sorry we don’t follow you but we only Follow accounts that list awesome events in Vancouver.” That’s when I asked how many Vancouver events Jason Priestly posts and BAM! Blocked. I get that people can have a bad day. God knows, I get that. But you’ve got to make it right. Or Jason Priestly better start posting events!
    8 hours ago · “}”>Like · 3

  • Richard Loat Awesome!
    8 hours ago · “}”>Like

  • Bob Kronbauer

    Lorraine, I blocked you (2 years ago now?) after you randomly knocked me with a few unsolicited snarky remarks. From what I remember I had no interactions with you aside from the times you felt like hurling something at me. I don’t enjoy be

    ing pecked at, so I blocked you. Please move on. It’s been a long time.

    Wayne, please don’t let it worry you. If you were standing in front of me in real life and did the same, a bunch of times, I would block you with my hand and then walk away and likely avoid having interactions with you in the future. Like blocking on Twitter. “Social” online means the same to me as social in person, and I don’t socialize by hurling snarky remarks at people before I even properly introduce myself. That’s called heckling.

    Anyway… this board of advisors is SO AWESOME and I am honoured to have you on board, Rebecca.

    You are, of course, free to Like or Dislike, but you may do so whether or not Jason Priestley ( who is by all accounts a decent guy) approves or not.

So why is this my problem?

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Bling Owl is a Hootsuite Playa

Bling Owl is a Hootsuite Playa

I remember working for Fearless City…would have been about four years ago. The website’s been offline for three years. Still, no idea why I’m getting an email like this; I certainly never signed up to pay for any pro upgrades for them. Wonder if Hootsuite sent this to every member of the team?

So, whatcha gonna do, Hootsuite, repossess my interwebz?

HootSuite Header
Organization past due on payment

The organization FearlessCity’s Organization that you are a member of is past due on payment. It will be permanently removed from HootSuite in 13 days if no action is taken.
Why is this happening?

The organization owner has incorrect or expired billing information. We have contacted the owner, FearlessCity multiple times about this issue, but it is still unresolved.

To avoid the removal of this organization and disruptions to your HootSuite service, you have several options:

1. Pay for the organization
2. Send a message to the Organization owner
3. Leave the organization
Please login to HootSuite to address this issue

If this is not addressed within 13 days the organization will be permanently removed from HootSuite along with all the Social Networks in it. You will lose access to everything in the organization

For additional help, check our helpdesk article
Login | Features | Mobile | Blog | Help Desk | HootSuite University

Please do not reply to this message; it was sent from and unmonitored email address. This message is a service email related to your use of HootSuite. For general inquiries or to request support with your HootSuite account, please visit our HootSuite Help Desk

No, I don’t think I’ll be doing that. NOW don’t you wish this had been sent from a reply-enabled email address?

Weekend Roundup: SOPA, Harper, Hipsters, Canuckistan, and Wikileaks

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Prime Minister Stephen Harper Sez Welcome to Canada's beautiful tar sands

Prime Minister Stephen Harper Sez Welcome to Canada's beautiful tar sands

And how was YOUR weekend? Canuckistan’s Glorious Ruler posed for a picture with some cuddly Alberta wildlife, while his obedient servants created a website apologizing to the world for the mortifying homunculus who sits, slavering, atop Parliament.

We messed up.

We know you look to us as one of the last great strongholds of common sense in a swirling sea of crazy on this big ol’ crazy planet of ours.

Decriminalized marijuana, same-sex marriage, our peace keeping force, universal health care, education, our stance on environment, human rights, and religious freedom made us look pretty darn awesome.

Now we’re realizing that those things that made us awesome are being taken away from us, and it’s not just us Canadians who are paying the price.

Turns out some of us thought it would be a grand idea to put this fucking guy in charge.

Well, actually, it wasn’t so much that we put him in charge as it is we failed not to.

We goofed. We took our stick off the ice. We pulled a real boner. For that we apologize.

But, hey. 2015 is just around the corner. Hopefully, we’ve learned our lesson, and we’ll do better next time.

We’d better, assuming he doesn’t pull a coup and off the Governor-General, and I wouldn’t put it past him or his alien leaders.

In related news, at least now we can live tweet the defeat of democracy as it happens:

The government of America’s hat announced it will repeal a 1938 law that prohibited citizens from publicly posting election results before all polls closed across the country. Since social-media sites feature real-time discussions, it has been nearly impossibly to enforce the rule despiteElections Canada’s hardline stance.

Someone who’s suddenly not having a great weekend is Greyhound bus driver Donald Ainsworth, who kicked 13 OccupySD protesters off his bus just for supporting Occupy. He thought he’d show them.

Then we did this:

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