A Bigger Voice

Part 3, Brains on Fire: Interview with Spike Jones

"Everybody wants to be a part of something bigger than themselves." 

--Spike Jones

 As a new fan of Brains on Fire and their terrific blog, I experienced how BOF taps into the human desire to belong to something bigger than oneself. I received a thank you in snail mail for recommending them on Twitter ("1st company I'd contact if I ever needed job: Brains on Fire, helping organizations build movements. Check it out.") The thank you consisted of what looked like a business card with simply a url and a code. Going to the url (youareoneofus.com--brilliant!) brings up a visual of a "treasure chest" and a request to put in the code. Once the code is input, the visitor hears an unlocking of the chest, sees a visual of gold coins in the chest, and enters into "Brains on Fire Underground." Eventually, this leads to a series of pages where I pick out a gift for myself.

The story doesn't end there. I pick out a t-shirt, with a BOF-designed logo, "Fascinate, Inspire, Reward, Engage." (FIRE, get it?) Several days later, a cardboard box arrives with my free t-shirt inside. What catches my eye is not the t-shirt, but the box. On the inside of the cardboard, employees of BOF had signed it with a nickname or their initials or a mantra. It was as if to say, "You matter enough for us to personalize the package." What a remarkable example of how to create a "true fan" and that sense of belonging.

In this third and final part of my interview with Spike, you'll learn why effective movements have a barrier for entry, how to empower your kindred spirits, and the beauty of the words, "I am a <blank>."  A wonderful quote from Spike that sums up the BOF philosophy:

"We'd much rather have 5,000 deeply passionate people who are participating than half a million that sign up and never come back. If we go for quality first, they're the ones who will be protective of the movement."

In other words, focus on the kindred spirits who will own the movement.

This final portion of our interview is less than 8 minutes long. My thanks to Spike for taking the time to share his wisdom and for the entire BOF crew for being so clear about who they are and what they stand for. It's compelling.

In addition to the Tequila Shots book, you'll want to check out BOF's manifesto, Lessons Learned in Igniting Word of Mouth Movements. It's chock full of insights on creating a movement, word of mouth or otherwise.

To contact Spike: spike [at] brainsonfire.com or find him on Twitter (@brainsonfire), LinkedIn, and Facebook.

Part 2, Brains on Fire: Interview with Spike Jones

"People ache for the human connection."

--Spike Jones, Chief Firestarter, Brains on Fire

In Part 2 of my three-part interview with Spike Jones from Brains on Fire, we cover lots of ground, from what it takes to have a strong culture to how movements live both offline and online to how building a community is an organic process. We also touch on having fun, saving the day and being profitable. Photo by brainsonfireflicker.

Two of my key take-aways as a wisdom entrepreneur:

• A traditional entrepreneur can get caught up in the goal of making money, to the detriment of growing the business. Likewise, a wisdom entrepreneur can be so enamored with their cause that engaging and empowering kindred spirits can suffer, to the detriment of building a movement. Spike reminds me that focusing on "the other" is where it's at. Whoever is in your community, find ways to tap into their passion and co-create with them.

• Defining your brand (part of the Crystallizing phase in A Bigger Voice) and staying true to it is important, whether you are a traditional entrepreneur or a wisdom entrepreneur. Fun is part of the Brains on Fire brand and you can see it throughout their work. I especially like how it comes out in how they welcome viewers to their site.

Enjoy Part 2, which is approximately 12 minutes long.

In Part 3, Spike reveals more lessons learned on building movements, including one that I found to be completely counter-intuitive. Stay tuned.

Brains on Fire: Interview With Spike Jones

Brains on Fire is a brand identity and marketing company that drew my attention with these words on their home page: "Brains on Fire helps organizations build movements." 

When was the last time you heard a for-profit company talk about building a movement? Love it. That led to a more poking around on their site, a tweet about the company, followed by a series of email exchanges between myself and Spike Jones, BOF's Chief Firestarter.

I discovered a company that not only understands the nature of communities and movements, but also knows how to create remarkable relationships with fans/kindred spirits. Nurturing your evangelists or "1000 true fans" is not something I've spent much time talking about on this blog. It's one of the reasons I got so interested in Brains on Fire. 

 

"Be famous for the people who love you and for the way you love them."

--Greg Cordell, Principal at Brains on Fire

 

It's notable that Spike found me. I tweeted about the company and then he initiated a conversation. He later asked for a snail mail address to send a thank you for the tweet. This was not just over the top. It was remarkable. And it further intrigued me. Who are these guys anyway?

I asked Spike if he'd like to be interviewed for this blog and he graciously said yes. I'll talk more about my experience with Brains on Fire, as a new fan, at the end of this three-part blog interview.

For now, enjoy Part 1, where Spike talks about Brains on Fire as a company, and what they believe in as a collective organization. Part 1 is approximately 13 minutes long. 

 

 

 

 

Photo of Spike Jones by Olivier Blanchard.

Stay tuned for Part 2, when Spike talks about the importance of offline gatherings to build connections and the use of online means to provide a reason for meeting face-to-face.

Interview with Wendel Bros, Part 4: The Nature of Community

In this last installment with the Wendel brothers, we look at the nature of community. How does it change the way we do business? How is community-building about depth instead of breadth? How do powerful emotions create a shared bond?

Throughout these interviews, I've been delighted with the rich stories that both Chris and Tim have told. It's a wonderful example of wisdom entrepreneurs using story-telling in a powerful way.  In Part 4, you won't be disappointed. The Wendels tell probably their most powerful story at the end of this interview. Photo of and by Tim Wendel

This last installment is under 17 minutes long.

My thanks again to Chris and Tim for being a part of the A Bigger Voice community. We learn by hearing each other's stories. The Wendels have given us stories that will stick with us for a long time.

Provide your comments below. Chris and Tim particularly want your ideas on where to go with their community-building efforts. Let's continue the conversation, both here and on the Wendels' blog, Buffalo Nation. 

Contact info:

Chris Wendel: www.twitter.com/ckwendel

Tim Wendel, www.timwendel.com

You can find the book, "Buffalo, Home of the Braves" at SunBear Press.

Interview with Wendel Bros, Part 3: The Community Takes Hold

This is the third installment of a four-part interview.  For me, this was the most exciting part of the interview. I could see a new stage emerging for the Wendels, from being a "firestarter" for a community with their book, Buffalo, Home of the Braves, to being facilitators for a community.  I could hear both brothers grappling with what this new role meant for them personally. It's not uncommon that when a community takes hold, the founders need to adapt their style from nurturing to letting go.

But before we get to that part, the Wendels talk about an unexpected turn of events that increases their blog traffic from under 50 hits a day to over 1000 hits a day, literally overnight. It doesn't hurt for wisdom entrepreneurs to get a lucky break every once in awhile. Enjoy Part 3 of the interview, which is just under 19 minutes long.

This story just keeps getting better and better, doesn't it?

In our last installment, the Wendels talk about the nature of community--how it plays into a new era in business as well as how it encourages us to go deeper into the topic at hand. Ultimately, communities force us to examine what we know, believe, and feel.

Interview With Wendel Bros, Part 2: The Vibe of Community

In this second installment of a four-part interview, the Wendels give us an inside look at what it feels like when you've formed a vibrant community, with a book as the catalyst. In this case, the book is "Buffalo, Home of the Braves," about an NBA team from the 1970s. Through a combination of in-person events and online blogging, you'll hear how they were able to reach a cross-section of their audience, from the 20-year olds who only heard about the basketball team from others, to the fans who were there in the stands, to witness the Braves' finest moments.

The audio is 11 minutes long. Enjoy!

If you aren't convinced after Tim's story that community should come before monetizing, nothing will convince you!

In Part 3 of our interview, I talk to Chris and Tim about the unexpected death of one of the best known players from the Braves, just after the publication of their book, and how that became an opportunity to serve and engage a larger community.

Interview With Wendel Brothers, Part 1: Finding Your Community

How can a book be the catalyst for a community? How does building a community translate into book sales (monetizing)? And when does the community go beyond the book, to create stunning results in the world? These questions are relevant not only to authors, but to wisdom entrepreneurs.

I caught up with two wisdom entrepreneurs from our pilot last year, author Tim Wendel and small business consultant, Chris Wendel. The Wendel brothers, as they were affectionately known throughout the pilot, worked with A Bigger Voice in the summer of 2008. At that time, the writing of their book, Buffalo, Home of the Braves, was largely complete (Tim's job as the author.) Chris was in the throes of adding in the visual component (read: tracking down photos from 35 years ago) and handling all the other stuff that goes into producing a book.  The Wendels also had a complementary blog with a small following of hard-core Braves fans.

In this first installment of a four-part interview, I talk with the Wendels about finding their community, and the surprises along the way. Don't miss the last few minutes where Chris tells some remarkable stories about their community members.

The audio is 12 minutes long.

In Part 2 of our interview, we talk about the vibe of community and how in-person and online community-building come together.

More information on the Wendels and links to their blog and book:

Chris Wendel works with both aspiring and established entrepreneurs through his work with the Michigan Small Business & Technology Development Center. His work utilizes the imagination, desired outcomes, and problem solving skills of his clients. To hone his own entrepreneurial skills, Chris founded SunBear Press, a publishing company that specializes in niche market books. SunBear Press recently released “Buffalo, Home of the Braves”, a story that chronicles the meteoric rise of a National Basketball Association franchise that played in Buffalo, New York in the 1970’s.

Tim Wendel is the author of seven books, including "Red Rain: A Novel" and "Buffalo, Home of the Braves." His writing has appeared in Esquire, The New York Times, GQ and USA Today, where he is on the op-ed page's board of contributors. A graduate of Johns Hopkins University, he teaches nonfiction and fiction writing there. More of his stories can be found at www.timwendel.com.

Blog, Buffalo Nation

The book, "Buffalo, Home of the Braves"

Jeremiah Owyang, Part 3: Starting and Growing a Community

"People would rather have [a] knowing they are accepted and appreciated. That's far more important than lining one's wallet...This is about the core essence of humans connecting with other humans." --Jeremiah Owyang

In this last installment of my interview with Jeremiah Owyang, we talk about the increasing influence of communities, ways to kickstart a community, and best practices on growing a community. Be sure to listen towards the end of the interview for a discussion about social capital. Jeremiah talks about a revealing experiment conducted by a major high tech company on community-building.

This last segment is under 9 minutes in duration.

 

My thanks again to Jeremiah for his generous spirit in sharing what he knows with the ABV community.  He took his own personal time (on a weekend!) to do this interview, which says a lot about his commitment and passion for this topic.

Places to connect with Jeremiah:

Blog: www.web-strategist [dot] com

Twitter: @jowyang

friendfeed

LinkedIn

Flickr

Jeremiah Owyang, Part 2: The Nature of Communities

"When you are spearheading a movement, you are relying on the groundswell that happens within the community. The community is in charge."
--Jeremiah Owyang

In this second part of a three-part interview, Jeremiah Owyang talks about the nature of communities and the role of the community manager. Most surprising take-away? You can't rely solely on online community-building. It must be supplemented with in-person connections. In Jeremiah's words:

"If you want to be a true advocate within your market or community, you really do need to connect with them in person. If you are serious about community, you should be an advocate, helping them, leading them, and that should be online and off."

Listen in as I start off asking Jeremiah about the differences between online and offline interactions. The interview is a little over 8 minutes long.

 

Look for the last installment of our interview. Jeremiah and I talk about the unpredictability of communities, social capital, and how rewarding behavior is a stronger incentive than money.

Interview with Jeremiah Owyang, Part 1

This is the first of a three-part interview with Jeremiah Owyang, a social computing analyst with Forrester who is an expert on building communities. While his clients are businesses using community-building to meet their business objectives, Jeremiah's wisdom can be directly applied by wisdom entrepreneurs who are building communities to support their social good objectives.

Jeremiah starts with his definition of community, explains how to get started in connecting with your audience online, and ends wiith a practical discussion about how to find your kindred spirits. Be sure to listen for his view of who is online these days and why it's important to look for your community online. The audio is under 12 minutes in duration. 

 

I've often told people that a thorough read of Jeremiah's blog is like getting a master's degree in social media. And what I hope you can see from this brief snippet of what he knows that it's not about the tools, it's what you do with them. His focus on community-building is a perfect match for what wisdom entrepreneurs need to know to be successful.

In Part 2 of our interview, Jeremiah talks about the need to combine online with in-person community building, the role of online community managers, and the nature of communities. Stay tuned.