Totem Tuesday: September 10th, 2024
Hey friend—
Things are moving quickly here at Totem as rollout approaches!
And there are some things you otta know.
So, without no further gilding the lily,
I would like to personally welcome you to
the one...
the only...
🙌 TOTEM TUESDAY 🙌
(everyone's favorite weekly inbox party, est. November 2023)
Alright Tribe—you with me?
It's time to get our Vibe on, baby. 😎
Two quick updates before we get started:
1) ⬇️ Timeline Update ⬇️
Based on our takeaways from the QA Testing Tour, we made a few final design changes to the Totem Compass last month and now...
Full-scale production is officially underway! 🙌
That means we expect that shipping will begin sometime in October. In the next couple of weeks, we'll get more specific about when in October it will begin... so stay tuned. 😘
Thank you so much for your patience these last few months.
The wait will be worth it, I promise.
2) 🫶 We're Hiring 🫶
Did you hear? The Totem team is growing once again.
Totem is looking for a Marketing Manager who loves this brand, this product, and the festival community at-large.
You can check the Job Post and apply at the link above!
We are also opening up a Product Manager position very soon—product nerds, be sure to check in on Totem Tuesday over the next couple of weeks 😘
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OK! That is more than enough housekeeping, thank you very much.
Let's do this thing.
You ready?
This, dearest family, is our weekly progress report to all our favorite people.
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
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1) Burning Man testing
The 38th edition of Burning Man just came to a close last week... and we heard it was EPIC 🙌
Our team didn't go—too much to do here at HQ as we get close to product rollout. But we did have some highly-vetted beta testers with technical background (engineers, product managers, etc) out there on the Playa with Totems!
Burning Man is a really interesting and unusual setting for our tech. It's not like most festivals. Burning Man is HUGE: the camp itself spans over 3 miles across. Because of that, people typically use vehicles and bicycles to get around, rather than walking everywhere.
Burning Man also lasts a really long time. No 10-12 hour days like most festivals. Burning Man goes around the clock, 24/7, for over a week. Plus, the weather is notoriously violent and unpredictable.
This provided a great opportunity for durability testing—after all, if the Totems can survive the Playa it can probably survive anywhere! And they did indeed survive. Dust-proofing is ultra-confirmed ✅
From the valuable testing feedback, we're incorporating some new features to improve the UX and make it even simpler to use.
(two of those new features explained further down)
Check out the quote below describing a beautiful Totem experience that one of our testers had at Burning Man. Wish we could've witnessed that moment of love for ourselves 🥹
P.S. — thank you to the Tribemates who were willing to drive all the way to our office in Chattanooga to pickup their testing Totems and onboarding instructions. The dedication and love in this Tribe is so special.
2) Battery Level Indicator
One thing we heard from people at Burning Man was that they would love a way to know the current battery level of the Totem Compass at any time.
This would be useful for tracking battery levels as you charge, not to mention deciding whether you may want to save some power by muting Vibe Mode or even turning it off for awhile.
After hearing this feedback, our Product Team discussed some different options to show you the battery level of your Totem at any time. And we have a winner!
We are now implementing a new Battery Level Indicator that shows when you turn on your Totem.
Whenever you power-up, the ring around your Totem will fill up to show you the exact battery level.
Simple enough, right?
The Totem has enough battery life to go for a full fest-day at most festivals, but certain settings like Burning Man are special. This will make managing your Totem's battery much easier, and you'll know when to give it a charge via USB-C cable.
3) Peer Color Check
One of our Testers at Burning Man had some issues remembering which peer color represented which friend after a couple hours.
That makes sense. It's hard to remember things at a festival, particularly when people aren't sober or particularly well-slept.
So we've implemented a new feature to help you remember which friend is which color!
Here's how it works:
- Bring your Totems together
- Watch your Crystal color change to your light's color on your friend's Totem
- Repeat as often as necessary 🫶
You can see an image below, showing how it works. We call it the Crystal Check.
Little things like this may seem simple, but they can make a huge difference to the user experience.
Especially for a 100% screen-free and app-free product like the Totem Compass.
2 things to learn
1) How Peer Colors are Assigned
Everyone knows that the Totem Compass tracks your friends' real-time location using pretty lights, without cell-service or wifi.
Each friend receives a dedicated color on your Totem.
But how does it decide which friend gets which color?
We opted for the simplest, most scaleable solution. Each friend gets a pre-determined color based on the order you bonded with them.
Your first peer is always pink. 🩷
Your second peer is always green. 💚
Your third peer is always blue. 💙
Your fourth peer is always yellow. 💛
A few things to remember:
1) Totems don't come in hard-paired groups. You can bond with anyone, at any time.
2) You can customize your Crystal color whenever you want. Your Crystal color is not tied to your assigned color on your friend's Totems.
3) You are loved, and the world is a better place with you in it. 🫶
2) Festival Season Never Ends
It's September, which means that festival season here in the USA is sadly beginning to slow down.
Of course, there are still some big ones lying ahead in the Fall: Nocturnal Wonderland, Lost Lands, Hulaween, and EDC Orlando.
And some festivals continue year-round (particularly out in California, where Summer never really ends).
But everyone knows that festival season is now beginning to wind down...
or is it?
Something we've learned this year, since our worldwide viral explosion online, is that the festival community is extremely global. It's a community that spans cultures, languages, timezones, and yes—even hemispheres.
As festival season begins to wrap up in the Northern Hemisphere, our party-pals down in the Southern Hemisphere are just getting started.
Countries like Brazil, Australia, South Africa, and India have massive festival scenes—and their festival season goes from September to late March.
Tomorrowland Brazil is in October. Lollapalooza Mumbai is in January. Ultra Australia is in April.
Can you imagine spending New Years day at a festival in the Australian outback, sweating in the sweltering Summer sun?
On Planet Earth, festival season never truly ends. What a great place to live!
1 thing to look forward to
The original Totem Tuesday that we sent out via email last night dedicated this section to our upcoming trip to Nocturnal Wonderland.
As the fires rage in San Bernardino,
we want to dedicate this entire newsletter to:
all residents of San Bernardino, Glen Helen, the surrounding areas,
and all firefighters in CA risking their lives to keep everyone safe.
Thank you, Insomniac Events, for prioritizing safety above all else.
While we're bummed that we won't get to hang out and love on you all at Nocturnal,
we are ultimately so grateful that disaster was avoided at Insomniac's oldest (and perhaps most beloved) music festival.
We love you, Totem Tribe, and we promise this is far from the last festival the whole team will attend!
The 4 Core Values
Hey there 😊👋
Do you know the 4 core values we have here at Totem?
Love.
Unity.
Simplicity.
Beauty.
Each of them are crucial to us in their own way. They act as a filter for every major decision we make at this company.
Here's what they each mean to us.
1️⃣
Love
Life is empty without love.
We approach every aspect of our work—from product design to community engagement—with love in our hearts. We treat people with respect and never allow hate to take root, even when others treat us poorly.
2️⃣
Unity
People shine brightest when we stand together.
We believe in collaboration—not competition. A worldwide movement is only possible with allies. There is no room for divisiveness or exclusivity in our Team or in our Tribe.
3️⃣
Simplicity
Simple solutions are beautiful solutions.
We are here to reduce complexity in life, not add to it. In the language we use, the designs we create, or the plans we make—simplicity is our guiding light.
4️⃣
Beauty
Everyone deserves a beautiful life.
Life's most beautiful moments happen alongside the people we love. Everything we do at Totem, and everything we build here, is intended the world a more beautiful place and fill lives with more beautiful memories.
...
One request to you, after reading through that:
If you ever see us act in a way that doesn't appear to align with those values, please let us know. Sometimes we stray in life, and need another's perspective to see the truth.
That's what being in the Totem Tribe is all about.
Totem Team, out.
✌️
(P.S. — if this is your first Totem Tuesday, we hiiighly recommend that you go back and check out the Totem Tuesday archives. Every single decision we’ve made with the product is detailed extensively in past editions. Have fun 😘)
