Hey fam!
I got a feeling...
That tonight's gonna be a good night...
That tonight's gonna be a good, good night 🎶
Obvious, right? After all, today is...
🎉 TOTEM TUESDAY 🎉
(can't stop won't stop)
🤗
It's an action-packed week at Totem, as we prepare for the long-awaited return to SXSW in Austin next week! Totem made its debut at SXSW last year. In 2025, we're doing it bigger and better than ever 🎉
If you'll be in attendance, be sure to come see us at Booth #825, right in the middle of the SXSW Expo Center.
We can't wait to share the HEAT we've been cooking up for this year 🔥
Before we dive into our 3-2-1 for the week, we've got some very exciting news to share, both for us and for you...
💠 Welcome Eric! 💠
Tribemates near and far, we are so excited to introduce you to YOUR new best friend!
Give it up for Eric Worth—our new Product Manager and the eighth full-time member of the Totem Team 🎉
As a local to Chattanooga, Eric was a valuable part of the Totem development process long before applying for this job. He helped assemble and test some of the earliest Totem prototypes last year 🤯
Eric plays a vital role in bridging the gap between Engineering and Customer Service, to make your user experience as seamless and pain-free as possible.
Here's a quote from Eric, to you:
Hello Totem Tribe! I am so excited and honored to have stepped into the critical role of Product Manager. I am joining at a time of the utmost importance, as the 2025 festival season will soon be upon us!
I have already started reading much of the valuable feedback from you all, and I look forward to seeing how together, we can shape the future of live events. Totems are made for you, after all, and by joining the team I hope to advocate for you and enable positive changes for the Totem Compass and future products that lie ahead.
OK—let's get this party started.
This is our weekly progress report to all our favorite people.
(yes, that includes you, friend — you are seriously a real one)
Welcome to the Totem Tuesday 3-2-1.
3 things we accomplished,
2 things we learned,
1 thing coming up
Let’s go, Tribe!
😘
3 things we accomplished
⬇️
1) Shipping Updates
This Totem Tuesday is one we've been waiting a VERY long time to write 🙏
By the end of this week, every single order from 2024 will be shipped out, to Tribemates around around the world (60+ countries!).
Here's a breakdown of where we're at with rollout:
- The latest shipment of 4600 Totems will arrive in the US and subsequently ship out THIS WEEK!
- This means that all pre-order fulfillment will conclude by the end of February, in addition to all open orders placed in 2024 🎉
- All new orders will ship within 45 days of purchase. Use this timeline to plan your purchase around any upcoming festivals. We are actively working to reduce this timeline and will keep you in the loop.
If you purchased a Totem Compass in 2024, keep an eye on your email for your tracking numbers... unprecedented festival freedom is nearly yours. 😎
2) Meet Crystal, our AI Agent!
Surprise! We are actually welcoming ANOTHER new member of the Totem Team this week 🥰
Heh, sort of... our new AI Customer Service Agent, lovingly named Crystal, is officially up and running.
We have an amazing Customer Service team that many of you have met (shoutout to Kailey and Douglas) who work tirelessly to ensure your customer experience is as positive and stress-free as possible 💗
To continue our efforts in reducing troubleshooting inquiries and minimizing wait times for support, we have trained a powerful AI that is now available 24/7 to handle many of these inquiries 💪
Two important things to keep in mind:
1) We are NOT using AI to replace the genuine human connection. This is simply meant to help with troubleshooting issues that can be resolved easily. Anything more complicated than that will be escalated to our Customer Service team for 1:1 attention 🫶
2) Crystal's AI is powered by machine learning that adapts over time. Every completed inquiry serves to improve her responses for the future. We kindly request patience as Crystal learns her way around the Totem Compass.
Head to the Totem Support chat on our website to meet Crystal!
3) UX Improvements Incoming
Earlier this month, we released the biggest Software Version release in Totem's history - Version 3.7 (make sure to update your Totem Compass if you haven't yet).
This week, we made a few more exciting UX improvements based on feedback we've received from you 🫶
Here's the breakdown:
- Added a Satellite Progress Bar to the "searching for satellite" animation. This mean you will have full visibility on how close you are to being ready to navigate!
- Added an "Already Bonded" animation that occurs when you try to Bond two Totems that are already Bonded. Our ultimate goal is to reduce confusion when Bonding with large groups of friends.
These improvements will be available in our next software version release. Stay tuned for the update, delivered right to your email inbox.
2 things we learned ⬇️
1) Cashless Payments
We regularly speak with incredible businesses from all around the world that share our vision to change live events forever.
Last week, we spoke with someone about implementing cashless payment within existing Totem Compass tech.
Wild, right??
Screens and apps have an insidious way of ripping us out of the present during life's most beautiful moments. At Totem, we're constantly working to minimize the need for cell phones at music festivals, so you can actually feel real again with the people you love the most.
While we haven't yet incorporated this into our product roadmap, this could be an interesting feature for the Gen2 Totem Compass.
What do you think? Is this something you'd like to see in the future?
Let us know 😎
2) Sedex Certification
This week, we learned what it means to be SEDEX Certified—courtesy of our wonderful manufacturer.
SEDEX (Supplier Ethical Data Exchange) Certification is a review process that assesses a company's ethical business practices. This process reviews labor standards, health and safety, environmental practices, and business ethics.
It's based on the Sedex Members Ethical Trade Audit (SMETA), which is designed to help protect workers from unsafe conditions, overwork, discrimination, low pay, and forced labor.
At Totem, we believe every worker in the supply chain deserves a safe work environment, equality, and the means to support themselves. We wouldn't work with anyone who believes otherwise 🫶
We're proud to call our entire supply chain and manufacturing process SEDEX Certified. ✅
1 thing to look forward to ⬇️
1) Pre-Order Closeout ✅
Following this next Totem Compass shipment of 4600 units, we'll have achieved one of the biggest goals we've ever set as a company: fulfilling the MOUNTAIN of pre-orders we've amassed over the past year.
That's over 24,000 friend-finding compasses so far 🤯
Those of you who have stuck around through it all... we appreciate you more than we can possibly convey within this newsletter.
You are the ones who have turned this dream into a reality.
You are the ones we work tirelessly for, every single day.
Without you, we wouldn't be us.
(special shoutout to you, friend)
We hope that you will be stewards of this new era of festival connectivity, beauty, and peace of mind 🫶
Each Totem Compass, worn prominently your chest, will play a vital role in making live events safer, more immersive and more beautiful.
We can't wait to see the impact it has on your festival experience this year 🥹
Closing out this week with a quote from one of our favorite philosophers here at Totem, Alan Watts.
“This is the real secret of life -- to be completely engaged with what you are doing in the here and now. And instead of calling it work, realize it is play.”
See you next week!
✌️ + 🩷
The Totem Team
(P.S. — if this is your first Totem Tuesday, we hiiighly recommend that you go back and check out all the past Totem Tuesdays on our website. Every single decision we’ve made with the product is detailed extensively in past editions. Have fun 😘)
