Author: V

Overly sentimental, heel-loathing introvert, problem solver and lover of the night.

I’m going to meet Baby Harry

Baby Harry has been home and doing well at home. My brother and sister-in-law have been keeping home away from people because he’s very much considered immunocompromised and it’s just too risky to be mixing and mingling with his condition at this point in time.

That being said, one of the after affects of him laying on his back in the hospital for so many months is that his skull isn’t properly forming. His brain is developing faster than his skull so he has to get fitted for one of those baby helmets.

My brother said it’s something like this:

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#NotHarryJustAnExample

Anyways, they have to take him to a specialist to get fitted for this helmet and it needs to happen sooner, rather than later, since babies develop so quickly and so much in their first year of life. My brother and sister-in-law have actually arranged it so they can see the specialist here.

Since I’m fully vaccinated for COVID, work from home and have no life, HARRY IS COMING TO VISIT. It’s safe for him to come and visit!

They’re going to stay with me for one night, take him to get fitted the next morning and then go home. My brother’s unsure right now if they’ll have to come back to pick-it-up, or if the helmet can be taken to their town and their doctor in their town can watch it go on to make it works properly. So, depending on how that happens, Harry might need to come back!

I’m excited to meet my nephew for the first time! I’m excited to have guests. I’m happy that they feel they can safely bring him here to stay and I won’t be putting him at risk. I’m just happy I’ll get to spend some time with the kid.

It’ll be a quick visit, but I’ll soak up every minute of it.

Sleepy Vee

I worked from 8:00 am to 11:15 pm yesterday and I am tired.

There’s a well known company in the digital technology world, known largely known only by acronym, that’s been following the digital footprint I’m leaving for my company around the web since January. It’s like they woke up and just decided they were going to follow my strategy and ‘one-up’ it all the way through. If I pay for logo placement in third, they’re coming along a month later and paying for logo placement in second. Needless to say, it’s become quite tedious to try and differentiate ourselves when they seem hellbent on keeping us in the same breath.

Everyone’s always told me that they don’t market because they’re so big that they don’t need to. They control [X] amount of the market space, so why waste their dollars on marketing? Well, this year they’ve seemingly changed their minds. Their marketing strategy is to stalk my company’s LinkedIn and then do exactly what we’ve done.

Everyone’s always told me that they don’t attend shows and conventions because they’re so big that they don’t need to. They control [X] amount of the market space, so why waste their dollars on conventions? Well, this year they’ve seemingly change their minds. They seem to be attending no more, and no less, then the exact amount of shows I’ve signed the Texas crew up to attend.

Coincidence? I don’t work for them so I cannot speak to what they’re doing at this stage. I can speculate that they’re watching my company’s LinkedIn page and mirroring what my company is doing. I can also say that it’s really pissing me off.

When I took on this position last year I realized pretty quickly that I mass advertising wasn’t going to do me any good. With ‘Acronym Only’ company controlling such a giant share of the market, I decided that my best approach was not going to be casting a wide need, but rather, a targeted net. Instead of doing nation wide campaigns, or international campaigns, I’ve been specifically targeting sections of the population in certain states and regions of specific countries around the world. This has allowed my company’s profile to multiply five-fold in just a year’s time because people are seeing that one of our strongest suits is not being a multi-national corporation. (I say that in the figurative sense of the term, as my company is by all legal perspectives both a corporation and multi-national)

The problem that I think ‘Acronym Only’ company has is that they’re so big and they have so many people on staff and they have so much money to work with that they’ve lost touch with their ability to really reach people on an individual scale. I have exploited that. It was always my goal to exploit that.

When you call ‘Acronym Only’, you’re directed to a call centre from one of more than a dozen countries where a 10 minute long answering machine will help direct you to the right support person. You have a better chance of winning the lottery then talking to the same support person twice. When you call my company, you get the support team at my company. They’ll tell you their names, office phone and email address so that if your issue persists, you can contact them again. People need that. Despite the trend of massive conglomerates who can automate literally every aspect of their business they don’t want to do these days, people need to know that a company cares.

Well, this year ‘Acronym Only’ has decided to try and prove that they care. The way that they are trying to prove they care is by one-upping everything my company, and I, are doing.

I honestly don’t think its my personal strategy they’re trying to steal. I just think that they’re so big and have so many staff that they really don’t understand how to connect with people on a personal level anymore. I think they found a company they thought appeared to be doing it well, and they’re mimicking that. Which is sad and pathetic, really.

It’s making for some long ass days for me, though.

Trying to stay on top of a multi-billion dollar company wasn’t something I wove into my marketing strategy for the year. Reassessing takes more time than proper planning and execution did.

I think it goes to show, though… money can’t buy you everything. A good strategy is about making the best use of the tools available to you. It’s not about how much money you have to spend.

True Story

This morning I spent nearly an hour searching google for where to buy rocks. Why do I need rocks? That’s a good question. Where can you buy rocks? Equally a great question. If I still lived on the coast, I’d walk outside and pick some up off the beach. I don’t live on the coast anymore. Since the mountains are federally protected lands (National Park), I’m not technically allowed to just go and take them. I probably could and get away with it… but my mom raised me better than that.

Protected ecosystems are protected for a reason. Those bugs that would inevitably be living under the rocks don’t need me wandering in there and stripping them of their home.

How ridiculous do I sound right now?

I need rocks, people.

Rocks.

Real rocks. Not the fake rocks from Etsy or Michaels.

You know what comes up when you google rocks? Not where to buy them.

Okay, update – as I was writing this post, I was googling where to buy rocks on my phone and I can buy landscaping stones at Home Depot. I’m not a huge fan of them, though. They’re all shaved down to be symmetrical in shape/size. I want a real rock as is, all of its imprecations and all.

Okay, update part two – this post is ridiculous. The reason I’d feel better taking them from a beach is because 1) Beaches aren’t federally protected lands and 2) When they wash ashore, they often are stacked on top of one another. So I could remove the rocks from the top and not disrupt creatures living underneath. Even as I explain this, though, it is just so ridiculous.

Peace of mind

I went to the grocery store today and just wandered. It was so nice to just walk up and down every aisle and glance at what’s the same, what’s new, what looks good and what doesn’t. I didn’t get scared. I didn’t have an anxiety attack. I just shopped for groceries like a normal person.

It has been months since I’ve been in a grocery store.

Now that I’ve had my second vaccination, I feel much safer in doing such. That peace of mind, I can’t even begin to explain how much that helps me, how much that means to me.

It’s the small things in life.

Job thoughts.

Do you ever meet someone and think ‘damn, you’ve got so much potential’? It always seems like the people who have the most potential are the ones who are the most against changing, improving and getting better. Whether it self esteem or something else, for whatever reason, they just don’t think they can succeed.

Maybe you are that person.

I know I was for many years.

I became so complacent in the position I was in. In the stage of life I was in. I told myself that was what I deserved and, even though I didn’t like it, I accepted it. I told myself that people like me weren’t meant for more in life.

Now that I realize what I’m capable of, what I can accomplish, what it’s like to feel valued… I look back on that person that I was and… while I am not ashamed, I am angry at myself. I stayed still for years. I was treated like shit at work for years.

There are some people in my life these days that are just… still. They don’t move. They won’t move. Every time I try to tell them how great they are and how much potential they have and how they just need to step out, I get excuses. Different excuses every time. There’s always a different reason as to why they cannot. And I get, I do. I was there for sooooo many years. But, now that I realize how wrong I was, I don’t want to see other people making those mistakes.

You cannot achieve anything in life if you don’t try. I should know. There are posts on this very blog where I talk about how I wouldn’t try, I didn’t want to try and I wasn’t going to try.

Change is worthwhile. Even when it sucks. Actually, when change sucks, that’s probably when you’re accomplishing the most growth.

Just..

I know it’s hard when someone is seemingly bossing you around, trying to push you into a place you’re not comfortable with. Just know that it comes from a good place. Take that from someone who ignored those people for YEARS and now has become one of them.

It’s okay to want more for yourself.

It’s okay to chase more for yourself.

You might not be able to make a change tomorrow, but as long as you’re working toward something, progress will do wonders for your mood and well-being. And to be clear, I’m not advocating for anyone to up and quit their job. I just think it’s important to make a plan. A reasonable plan. Something for you to look forward to. Something for you to work towards. Something that’s realistic and able for you to accomplish. Six months? A year? Two years? Five years? Give yourself something to work for.

I have a plan in place. Just knowing there’s a plan helps me immensely.

For whomever needs to hear this

Seeking open lines of communication is not too much to ask for.

Seeking honesty and transparency is not too much to ask for.

Seeking fair treatment is not too much to ask for.

Seeking kindness is not too much to ask for.

Seeking time is not too much to ask for.

Know who you are, what you desire and what you deserve. Expect what you deserve from people. Don’t hope for it. Expect it. Be surprised by those who don’t give you what you deserve, not those who do.

Instagram giveaways are more valuable for them then they will ever be for you

I’ve noticed a new trend on Instagram in which, instead of doing giveaways with a singular influncer, brands are now doing giveaways with a handful of influencers all together. I can only assume this was the brain child of a manager at a common management agency they all share. Nevertheless, this idea, from the business perspective, is actually genius.

Influencers who do solely internet based influencing for their career have managers. Instead of reaching out to a brand and asking if they can have free shit, their manager will do that. Their manager will email a marketing representative at said brand and say ‘Hey, I’ve got [Influencer Name] with [X] followers. They’ll shout you out to said followers if you give them free stuff. They’ll provided target, specific content for your brand if you give them something to give away’.

Let’s use Peloton, for an example. (Using Peloton because I’ve seen several groups of influencers giving away a peloton lately)

Here’s some basic Marketing related math for you.

  • Peloton sponsors an influencer that we’ll call Jill. They give her one bike for herself and one bike to give away to one of her 500,000 followers. Jill tells her 500,000 followers to follow Peloton in order to be entered to win.
  • Jill has a potential to reach 12-18 percent of those followers on an average post, but typically with giveaways you can reach 25 to 30 percent. If we guestimate that she reaches the smallest percentage of followers with her post, 12 percent of 500,000 is 60,000 followers.
  • If we factor in that of those 60,000 followers reached, about 10 percent of them will actively follow Peloton, which is 6,000 new followers for Peloton. 6,000 new followers for the price of two bikes means that these bikes have already paid for themselves.
  • Now, if we factor in that of those 6,000 new followers got, roughly 2% of them are actually inclined to just go buy the Peloton themselves and have the spare change to do so, there’s roughly 120 people who could potential purchase the bike outright after seeing the giveaway.
  • Considering they have already made their money back with the followers earned, even if only one of those 120 people purchase a Peloton after seeing Jill’s sponsored post, that’s pocket change for Peloton. That’s profit. Measurable profit. Imagine if ten people bought them? 20?

When I say that Jill’s post has the potential to reach 12-18 percent of followers and that 10 percent of them will actively act on seeing the post to follow Peloton, these numbers aren’t pulled from thin air. They’re basic guestimates used in the industry for ROI calculations.

Where the management company comes in is that they’ve realized a way to increase the value to the brand and the influencer, whilst minimizing the work for everyone. How do they do that? Instead of one influencer giving away one bike, five influencers are now giving away one bike. Not each, total. This means Peloton is giving away one bike, and instead of having access to just Jill’s followers, they now have access to Jill’s followers, Jen’s followers, Sarah’s followers and so on and so forth.

Instead of Jill propping up Peloton, Jill is now propping up Peloton and each her four friends. Jills four friends are also doing the same thing for her.

If Jill, Jen, Sarah and the rest of them all have half a million followers, for example, Peloton has multiplied the math of their original outcomes five-fold. In the process, each of these influencers are also seeing their own follower count growing, for the Peloton sponsored content that’s 1/5th as valuable as it was before.

As an Instagram user, your chance of winning has gone from 1 in 500,000 to 1 in 2.5 million. As an Instagram user, you’ve gone from having to follow one extra user, to having to follow 5 extra users. As an Instagram user, you’re doing the work for them. They’re posting a 15 second story to Instagram and offering you 1/5th the chance you had before. In the process, they’re improving their stats for future advertisers. What are you doing? Filling your Instagram feed with annoying influencers in hopes of being the 1 in 2.5 million people who wins a $2,000 bike?

Peloton has millions of dollars to set aside each year for giveaways. Millions. Paying $2,500 (or however much it costs for the bike with shoes and whatnot) to give away one bike, that gives their brand the potential to reach 2.5 million people is PENNIES. Literal pennies.

Long story short: Influencers get the followers. The brand gets followers and sales. Instagram users get… to follow five extra, potentially annoying accounts, for 1/5th the chance at a prize they would’ve had in previous years.

If you’re someone who doesn’t care who you follow on Instagram, please don’t @ me. I’m not saying that having to follow five people is arduous work. I’m merely suggesting that a management company has created a model in which brands and influencers invest absolutely nothing in people and people invest everything in brands and influencers. That’s what drives the influencer industry – they influencers and brands do as little work as possible and users pay for it with their social media currency, their time, their attention and their dollars.

No words.

The fact that the remains of 215 children were found in a mass grave site that no one knew about and there are people in this country who are trying to draw excuses for that shows that we’ve got bigger problems with racism in this country than anyone is willing to admit to.

The fact that the remains of 215 children were found in a mass grave site proves that present day Canadians have NO IDEA the extent of the horrors Indigenous Communities have lived through at the hands of white people. 215 children died and were buried together in a giant hole. Think about that. There’s no records. No one knows when this happened, or how this happened. 215 children died and no one was held accountable for that.

At what point in time will our country stop propping up these ‘white saviours’ of the past and start to realize that cultural genocide is not something we should be celebrating? These people don’t deserve to have schools, churches, roads and infrastructure named after them. These people deserve to be looked back upon with disgrace. These 215 children deserve justice.

At what point do we stop turning a blind eye to the deep, dark and disgusting history Canada created?

How many people died? How many more mass grave sites are around this country? How many unlabeled grave sites are around this world representing the Indigenous children who were ripped from their home and adopted out without the permission of their parents, without record of where they were sent or who they were sent to live with? We, the present generation, may not have done this. But we, the present generation, shouldn’t be turning a blind eye to this.

No one, and I mean that in its entirety, no one on this planet can make excuse for the fact that human remains of 215 children were buried in a mass grave site near a former residential school. That is un-fucking-believable to me. The fact that there are people in positions of political power in this country who don’t see anything wrong with the history of residential schools is doing so, so, so much harm.

White people in Canada spent the better part of the 20th century doing irreparable harm.

Saturday Morning

Shout out to the neighbour’s roofing crew who started replacing the roof at six-o-clock this morning. You know what’s not quiet? Replacing a roof. You know what’s not conducive to sleep? Listening to a roof being replaced, shingles being torn off and ten men shouting barbaric things at one another(that are not, and will never be funny) at six am.

Am I short on patience today? Sure am.

#FirstWorldProblems