Eric Weaver of Tribal DDB, Part-Time Ninja
There are people who know social media and then there are people who know social media. Eric Weaver would fall into the latter.
A long-time veteran of the online marketing world, Eric has spent a large portion of his career “teaching (companies) how to speak to and engage their audiences by using digital tools.” He’s had some fantastic opportunities, which include webcasting former Ford CEO Jac Nasser; successfully pitching CEOs from Yahoo!, Mattel, and Taco Bell; & having work reviewed by Bill Gates, Paul Allen, and Jack Welch.
When he’s not doing his social thang, Eric can be speaking at all sorts of social media/online marketing/communication events. In fact, Eric will actually be speaking today at the PRforPeople event. It’s open to the public and just $15 at the door! SWEET!
Seriously, though, go talk to Eric while you still can, as the opportunities are slipping. He’s going to be heading north of the border in less than a month! He’s a brilliant dude who knows his stuff and he’s got a great sense of humor. You won’t regret chatting it up with him.
Tell him the Secret Gaijin sent you.
The Basics:
1.What is your name?
Eric Weaver
2. E-mail?
social@(myname).com 
3. What is your occupation/company?
Account Director/Digital Strategist for Tribal DDB (as of July 15, 2009) – www.tribalddb.ca
4. Originally from? When and how did you end up in the Greater Seattle area? (if applicable)
I grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and then became a digital tumbleweed. Have lived in NYC, Washington DC, Baltimore, Los Angeles, Cincinnati, Columbus, St. Louis, and Detroit. Moved to Seattle from Orange County, California, in 2001 after meeting my wife on Kiss.com.
5. How can people find you on the web?
One profile to rule them all! profile.ericweaver.com
Social Media:
6. Why do you like social media?
It’s a chance to truly get to know people, beyond the standard business meeting or casual conversation. Finding things in common—sometimes random things—brings us all closer together, and the world needs more of that! Social media also supercharges our existing connections, events, and experiences.
7. How do you utilize social media?
I use it to be found and to share. I’m sharing work-related thought on branddialogue.com, twitter.com/weave, and slideshare.net/weave, and personal stuff on flickr.com/photos/weave and ericweaver.com. I use Facebook for both personal and biz and probably get the most interaction there: facebook.com/earache.
8. What is one thing that mainstream population should know about social media?
It’s not a fad and it’s not going away. I constantly hear (from the older generation), “Is this a fad?” (I know, right?) I was also asked in 1988 if Prodigy was a fad, in 1994 if Internet e-mail was a fad, and now social media.
9. If people follow you on Twitter, what can they expect?
Social media and social good topics. I rarely stray into personal stuff on Twitter: it’s almost always professionally related material.
10. How would you describe the social media scene in Seattle?
HOPPIN’! This town has it goin’ on! I hear it all the time, both from transplants and visitors. Given our tech, coffee, and literacy strengths, it only makes sense that we’d embrace memes that leverage those strengths.
The other cool thing is that this town has a lot of people who want to give back, so we’re seeing an incredible blending of social good and social media here.
11. Do you have a good social media success story or “wow” moment?
I have two. The first was the AOL MIDI Jam Project, which members of my composers’ forum started in 1991. One person would upload a melody in MIDI code; 10–20 people would download the melody and add drums, bass line, maybe some strings; and then upload those as MIDI. Another 100 would download those versions and then add even more parts. People all over the country were composing together without ever having met or even spoken. And the songs were crazy-cool!
The recent death of Neda Agha-Soltan is a sad and eye-opening social media event, because after Neda was killed, someone grabbed the photo of a similar-looking woman named Neda Soltani. This has evidently resulted in the living Neda being in danger from the Basij and governmental forces because her face has unintentionally become a symbol for the current uprising. You see pictures of both women everywhere. For me, that shows the amplifying power of social media, both for good and for bad. It can spread confusion and misinformation as quickly as the good stuff. And even the best intentions can impact innocents in very bad ways, i.e., think before you post! Take nothing for granted.
12. Are there any social media events or conferences in the future you would like to let people know about? Please include dates, locations, etc.
God, there’s a lot of great events nowadays, almost too many, really. The 140 conferences (both Jeff Pulver and Parnassus versions) sound like they were really great. OMMA Social was one I absolutely hated to miss. And in my line of work (advertising/marketing), the Forrester Marketing Forum (in Florida this past spring) blew me away and set the bar VERY high with a monster list of powerful attendees and super-smart, eye-opening thinking by the folks at Forrester. Also, this August, we’ll be sponsoring a Social Media Camp (formerly PodCamp) at the University of Washington. I’ll have more about that at podcampseattle.com.
Just For Fun:
13. What are your hobbies?
Photography (I founded the Seattle Flickr meetup, which is getting close to 1700 members and something I’m incredibly proud of), karate, music composition, hiking, travel, and graphic design.
14. Favorite vacation spot? Thing to do there?
Ireland. I love the people there. And in the countryside, it’s sad, sweet, passionate, and a little raw with tons of history. I hike, meet the locals, even play along with ceili bands. It’s grand, lovely, brilliant!
15. Favorite restaurant in Seattle? Favorite food?
Metropolitan Grill, of course! I’m a Michigan boy, so big steaks, single malts, and cigars are my weakness. Also, the Tin Room Bar in Burien is my local watering hole. It’s amazing.
16. Favorite things to do in Seattle in the summer?
Take my kids kayaking on Lake Union. Hike in the Cascades. And my fave: complete detox at our lakehouse on Lake Crescent.
17. Most embarrassing CD you own?
Probably a pop-metal trash band like McAuley Schenker Group or Skid Row.
18. Any hidden talents?
I do voices and accents. It drives my wife nuts… tee hee!
19. What would you like everyone to know about you?
I believe life is incredibly, stunningly short. Many of us waste years of it, close minded to change, unconsciously paralyzed by our worries, or obsessing over absolutely stupid stuff. I try to get people to take charge and DO something, rather than just talking about it. No need for others to waste decades like I did!
Eric Weaver Links:
- Eric Weaver’s Blog
- Eric Weaver: Brand Dialogue
- Eric Weaver on Twitter
- Eric Weaver on FaceBook
- Eric Weaver on LinkedIn
- Eric Weaver on Flickr
- Eric Weaver on Delicious
- Eric Weaver’s Google Profile
- Eric Weaver on SlideShare
- Eric Weaver on Biznik
- Eric Weaver on Vimeo
- PODCAST: Eric Weaver on Customer Reference Knowledge Sharing Network
VIDEO: Eric Weaver Talks About Social Marketing (2008)
VIDEO: Eric Weaver at CES
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Eric Weaver
