Post image for The Triberr MacGyver: Interview with Dino Dogan

The Triberr MacGyver: Interview with Dino Dogan

by Christian Hollingsworth on April 25, 2011

in Interviews

Dino Dogan shares technology, creativity and marketing advice on his blog, DIY Blogger Net, and is lead man of the Triberr service. Here he talks about Triberr, why he enjoys blogging & passions.

When did you first become “internet” involved?

Im a Network Engineer by profession. I was teaching Internet related technologies for over 7 years and have over a decade experience in Enterprise networks, IP, Information Security, and a host of other technologies way to obscure for polite audience.

So, I could say that I’ve been involved with the technical side of the Internet since the mid 90s. I’ve been actively blogging for about 4 years now.

Tell us a little about Triberr.

Triberr is not only the reach multiplier, but also the great equalizer. It allows small and medium size bloggers to band together, form tribes, and share in each other’s audience.

One thing I never understood about automated follower gathering tools made for Twitter is that they allow you to gain thousands of followers over night only so that you can then ignore those followers. What’s the point?

With Triberr, bloggers can come together and share in each other’s audience. They can keep that audience small and engaged. And they can enjoy the transfer of trust that happens as one trustworthy blogger makes a recommendation to read someone else’s post. That someone else is the member of your tribe.

How does Triberr generate traffic?

We don’t worry about traffic. We don’t care about traffic. What we care about is enabling bloggers to expand their reach. And they can do that by inviting others to join their tribe. This is an incredible win-win-win situation. Triberr grows, your tribe grows, everyone’s audience grows, and the audience itself gets exposed to quality bloggers that you love and trust.

And they never miss a post because the reciprocal sharing of the Twitter stream is automagicated icon smile The Triberr MacGyver: Interview with Dino Dogan

What are some of your passions?

Dogs. Motorcycles. Guitars. Books. Fitness. Teaching. Writing. People. History. Buddhism. Philosophy. Psychology. Neuroscience. Evolution. I could keep going but I guess I better stop icon smile The Triberr MacGyver: Interview with Dino Dogan

Why do you enjoy blogging?

I don’t believe in borders in real life. They are made up and enforced through military power.

It’s a great way to share information and connect with people. I love the fact that the locales are no longer relevant.

I don’t believe in borders in real life. They are made up and enforced through military power. The Internet has obliterated the physical limitations governments impose on their citizens by blocking access to other peoples and cultures. But not online.

How can social media be used in a more powerful way?

1% of superstar bloggers get 99% of attention.

SM has run into a serious problem. There are way too many voices that are NOT being heard.

1% of superstar bloggers get 99% of attention. And attention = traffic, book deals, affiliate sales, speaking engagement, money, opportunities, etc.

The content produced by these 1 percenters is safe and boring. Not only that, its often lifted from smaller, more innovative blogs. And whilst the change in wording might satisfy Copyscape’s standards for originality, it doesn’t fool a real live human.

Triberr is my way of rebelling against safe and boring. Triberr gives a fighting chance to the blogger with an original and disruptive voice to be heard not only over the noise of the blogosphere, but over the drowning onslaught brought on by the lucky few.

What can a blogger do to be better?

If everyone could quit being such a calculated pansy and say whats really on their mind, that would go a long way in the right direction. If everyone could stop echoing what everyone else is saying, that would be pretty good too. If everyone could remove self interest from social interactions and detach themselves from some imagined outcome, we could all just relax, enjoy each other’s company and elevate each other.

Where’s your favorite place in the world?

Oh damn. That’s a good question. I didn’t see that coming. I went to Bisbee, AZ recently. I had an awesome tofu taco, met with some amazing artists, and the whole town really spoke to me. The architecture and the atmosphere was amazing. So I don’t know about my favorite place in the world, but when you said favorite place, Bisbee was the first thing that popped into my head, so I’ll go with that icon smile The Triberr MacGyver: Interview with Dino Dogan

Who else is involved in Triberr?

First off, there wouldn’t be Triberr without Dan Cristo. He is the co-founder, the lead developer, and all around ninja responsible for the amazingly fast development of the platform.

Brankica Underwood was there with us practicably from day one. She is our Facebook manager and is responsible for starting the brush fire on the blogosphere and getting the word out from the get go.

Last, but most certainly NOT least, is our Triberr community. There isn’t a day that goes by without at least 10 emails from existing members suggestion improvements, reporting problems, letting me know when someone talks about us, and on and on…

I have NEVER seen a community so responsive and engaged. Companies pay good money for the type of feedback that we get. I LOVE The Triberr community.

How long has Triberr been around?

We launched our pre-beta in early March of 2011, and went full beta few weeks later. The growth of the platform and our userbase, along with the amazing coverage we’ve gotten so far within the blogosphere, makes us seam as if we’ve been around forever. But at the time of this writing, its been barely 2 months icon smile The Triberr MacGyver: Interview with Dino Dogan

me on bike 300x201 The Triberr MacGyver: Interview with Dino DoganAbout Dino

Seven years of my professional career (Network Engineering) was spent in corporate training which I’ve used as a real-life lab to test many learning theories, delivery methods, teaching principals and knowledge-transfer peculiarities.

These findings were later used when developing a critical look at the way adults learn, seek and receive information, communicate (both internally and externally) and apply learned info.

DIY Blogger NET is my sandbox where I can share information business folks would find useful if only they knew it existed.



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{ 33 comments… read them below or add one }

Eugene April 25, 2011 at 12:39 pm

Ok Seriously…can I go anywhere online without seeing Dino’s face??? :)

You better stay out of porn Dino!

Seriously though…Triberr is an amazing platform and I’ve discovered some amazing people through it that I didn’t know existed before. And the community really is amazing and giving. Love it! Great job!

Reply

Christian
Twitter:
April 26, 2011 at 8:41 am

We don’t want no Triberr/Dino porno…

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Dino Dogan
Twitter:
April 26, 2011 at 1:26 pm

Porn, ey? hmmmm (hand on chin) lol

Thnx for the interview and for asking awesome questions, Christian. I had fun answering them and I love your other interview series as well. Its a great way to get to know bloggers. Great job :-)

Have you thought about doing it as a podcast?

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Christian
Twitter:
April 26, 2011 at 1:37 pm

Thank you for the thoughts Dino. I think the interviews are a whole lot of fun. Blogging personalities are so varied.

I HAVE in fact thought of doing them as a Podcast. I’m just trying to clear out a few other items in my schedule to allow some time to accomplish that task. It’d be awesome.

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Yomar June 8, 2011 at 6:44 am

Perhaps we can all team up and do a podcast. I talked to Dino about it and it’d be great to have him, Dan, and myself on a regular series.. but I know we’re all too busy to keep that up, even on a monthly basis.. So it’d be great to have other fellow bloggers come in too.

I actually haven’t seen many podcasts with rotating cast members. I have been over at MundaneChatter.com and it’s been great fun.. But I’d like to speak more about our flavors of geeky stuff, not just digital entertainment and news (which is fun, but mostly over-done, IMHO).

Eugene, you’re invited too.. I love RealityBurst.com, dude! It’s interesting how we all share so many similarities (let’s face it: everyone is a social media “expert” or “guru” these days) yet we have some striking differences. That’s what makes the blogosphere so SEKSY! =oD
Yomar recently posted..Would You Rather Live In A House Alone On The Hills A Lesson In People SkillsMy Profile

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Christian
Twitter:
June 8, 2011 at 10:54 am

If you have some thoughts, I’d be happy to hear via email. As for my schedule, I’m pretty much swamped for the next month or so – and will be freed up into the summer.

At the moment I can’t take on anything that’s going to be too labor intensive, but would sure be available for a bit if needed.

Excited to see where you take this Yomar. I think it could be great. :D

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Janet
Twitter:
April 26, 2011 at 7:47 pm

Christian, aloha. This is a terrific interview. Aside from the “sound bites” on Triberr, what I like best about it is that I have been working extensively with Dino in an attempt to draw him out of his shell. It seems to be working, don’t you think?

Thx for asking the questions that allowed Dino to explain more of his thinking and the why behind Triberr.

Have already posted this in my tribes in Triberr. Off to share with the world. Aloha, you two. Janet

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Christian
Twitter:
April 26, 2011 at 10:02 pm

Dino sure is a quiet individual. It’s wonderful that people such as yourself are working on him. ;) [dino jest at its finest]

What I love about Dino is that he’s a straight shooter. He tell it how it is. There’s nothing secretive, hidden or “behind the scenes” about him. Through his blog he shares fantastic insights that are simply – truth. Most of which, we’ve all been too afraid to say anyway!

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Constantin Gabor April 27, 2011 at 1:38 am

Dino is The MAN!

He’s knows his stuff and he’s very personal with his followers. Always replied to my emails and tweets.

Thanks for the interview!

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Christian
Twitter:
April 27, 2011 at 8:26 am

He sure is. A real person always makes a fantastic blogger.

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Jack
Twitter:
April 27, 2011 at 10:35 am

Hah, can’t stop laughing at the image of Shy Dino. ;)

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Benny April 29, 2011 at 9:20 am

“Triberr is my way of rebelling against safe and boring. ”

Great line by Dino. He always speaks the truth and whatever is on his mind.

Great interview. Big fan of Triberr so always enjoy reading about it!

Reply

Christian
Twitter:
April 29, 2011 at 10:53 am

Thank you for stopping by and leaving some comments Benny. Great to have you over here. Been checking out your blog -and love what you produce.

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Dino Dogan
Twitter:
April 29, 2011 at 11:14 am

Hey Benny…thnx for the kind words. Looked at your blog…I second Christian’s comment…great stuff :-)

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Brad April 29, 2011 at 10:33 pm

Just found Triberr recently and still learning the ropes. The platform is easy to use. Now I just need some creative, unadulterated, and unique writers writers with opinions to join my tribes.

If only Hunter S. Thompson was around, he’d get my first invite.

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Christian
Twitter:
April 30, 2011 at 7:40 am

What I love about Triberr is how easy it is to use, manage and connect with other bloggers. Within minutes you can have everything ironed out and running smoothly. You’re right though – the tricky part is finding a few people you trust and are ready to become a tribe with.

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Stan Faryna
Twitter:
April 30, 2011 at 1:20 am

“If everyone could remove self interest from social interactions and detach themselves from some imagined outcome, we could all just relax, enjoy each other’s company and elevate each other.”

Too long for a tweet or I’d tweet it daily. But that doesn’t mean it ain’t relevant.

Stan

My Mad Max goes to Bollywood novel starts here: http://stanfaryna.wordpress.com/2011/04/28/and-dogs-fed-upon-fatted-cats/

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Christian
Twitter:
April 30, 2011 at 7:43 am

Love those thoughts Stan. Don’t stare at the outcome too long – it will burn your eyes. Certainly relevant for this discussion.

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Dean Carlton May 7, 2011 at 5:05 pm

I said it before, and Dino kindly quoted / tweeted me (thx Dino!):
“Worrying about the next big deal will not change the outcome – it will only spoil the journey.”

We have to build trust from the core of our blogging interaction – trust must be EARNED, based on a platform of integrity, honesty and being true to who you are. Too many people are copying others, or jumping on the trendiest bandwagon, pretending to be a ‘guru’.

Trust is earned when you are AUTHENTIC and PASSIONATE about a subject that you really know and care about. When people hear your true VOICE, then they start to trust you! Revenue may follow, but you need to put the good karma out there first.

Great interview Christian.

And its never easy working with these quiet, shy, retiring types that hide from the public glare! ;-)

Reply

Yomar June 8, 2011 at 12:24 pm

Dean pretty much read my mind there. There will always be copycats and pretenders but now, more than ever, the REAL people will rise to the top, slowly but surely. Good bye fly-by-night gimmick purveyors, liars, and posers! ;o)
Yomar recently posted..Would You Rather Live In A House Alone On The Hills A Lesson In People SkillsMy Profile

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Stacey Herbert April 30, 2011 at 4:57 am

I really love what you say here:

“If everyone could remove self interest from social interactions and detach themselves from some imagined outcome, we could all just relax, enjoy each other’s company and elevate each other.”

Great interview guys

Reply

Christian
Twitter:
April 30, 2011 at 7:46 am

Thanks for stopping by Stacey. He shared some fantastic thoughts. Was certainly lucky to have him over here.

Why, in your opinion, do you think there are so many expectations and imagined outcomes when it comes to blogging and the internet?

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Yomar June 8, 2011 at 12:35 pm

I know the question was for Stacey but I feel the issue is far greater. Businesses tend to be short-sighted. Some do it out of desperation, which is rooted in lack of authenticity, research, and contingency planning. I think smaller businesses and the self-employed alike tend to sell aggressively because they do not temper expectations.

It’s much easier to be relaxed when you don’t have to worry about paying a mortgage, fixing the car, paying exorbitant vet bills, etc. Thus, the urgency here is in balancing residual with active income so that you can carve out the time for much-needed human interaction, and not just the mere pleasantries and formalities most seem to engage in.

It’s amazing what little things do for your soul, whether you introduce your Twitter followers to each other, send an e-mail out to someone who commented on your blog, or invite an online friend for a cup of coffee (or a beer, as appropriate). It’s this “high touch” that is leveling the playing field. All the old-money businesses out there will do well to fear us REAL people. ;o)
Yomar recently posted..Would You Rather Live In A House Alone On The Hills A Lesson In People SkillsMy Profile

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Christian
Twitter:
June 8, 2011 at 2:48 pm

If I take the time to value another person’s time and energy – that’s when I feel the deepest reward.

In my opinion, time is the most valuable of items we have in this life. We never achieve more – and time is what we live with. The currency by which we pay. When you dedicate your time to another; that’s the highest form of gratitude, I feel.

So, as you mention – it’s those little things that really count, and start adding up. When you take someone out for dinner, when you help someone, etc…

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Janet
Twitter:
April 30, 2011 at 6:11 pm

Christian, aloha. Thought you might be interested in this excerpt from a post by Mack Collier on using twitter effectively. To me, this speaks to what we are doing with Triberr.

“6 – Wrap as much amazing shared content around YOUR content as possible. Want to share your newest blog post on Twitter? Fine, but it will get more exposure and traffic if you also share 10 posts from other writers that same day. I’ve tested this as well, whenever I share other people’s content and mix MY post in with their posts, I get far more traffic.”

Best wishes for a terrific weekend. Aloha. Janet
Janet recently posted..About the Four Letter Word Beginning with F by Janet Callaway The Natural NetworkerMy Profile

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Christian
Twitter:
May 1, 2011 at 11:40 am

Oooh, I love that Janet. Thanks for sharing. That’s a fantastic way to look at Triberr; and I’m a firm believer that’s true. When you surround yourself with good; life always goes better.

Have a great weekend!

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Yomar June 8, 2011 at 9:26 am

Janet is on the money, as usual!

Not only is this a great networking and relationship-building tool, but people will return the favor if they’re genuine enough. I like to work in as many links into my content to provide context and supporting material. The few times I skimp out is when I really feel the urge to get my content out ASAP (I get excited, what can I say).

Some of the more technically-inclined online marketers (especially SEO folks) think that you’re giving up link juice this way but that view is very short-sighted. This is a way of building up credibility and making yourself more selfless. Ultimately, we’re all selling something and being selfish at times, but helping others with their efforts is a win-win situation through and through!
Yomar recently posted..Would You Rather Live In A House Alone On The Hills A Lesson In People SkillsMy Profile

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Christian
Twitter:
June 8, 2011 at 10:57 am

Such a refreshing thought Yomar. I think it’s short sighted too, to not share with others links. It almost seems like a dumb thing NOT to do in my opinion.

When you’re sharing links within your posts to other content, often trackbacks are given; but what’s most important is the value. You’ve shared value with another – and they’ll recognize and appreciate.

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syed abidi May 9, 2011 at 10:18 am

I have worked with Dino, he is one of his kind very much in fittness and book reading. great job on Triberr!!!!

syed

Reply

Dino Dogan
Twitter:
May 16, 2011 at 1:01 am

SYED!!! Wud up buddy? Awesome seeing you here :-) thnx for chiming in.
Dino Dogan recently posted..3 Ways in Which Meditative Practices Can Help You Grow Your BusinessMy Profile

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Yomar June 8, 2011 at 9:29 am

Dino rocks. One powerful statement he made that really resonated with me is this:

“I am here for you, Yomar.”

It’s simple and, for some, may seem like a mere Hallmark card.. but he was so genuine when he said it. The man is growing busier and busier these days yet he carves out time for everyone. It’s awe-inspiring!

One more Dino Dogan quote.. I’ll paraphrase:

“We (Triberr) aim to bring more traffic to the the rest of the blogosphere, because we all know the 1% controlling 80% of the traffic isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.”

Preach it, @Dino_Dogan, preach it!

I heart you all. <3

(Sorry, Christian's blog is just such a feel-good place.. Is it wrong to ask for a group hug now??)
Yomar recently posted..Would You Rather Live In A House Alone On The Hills A Lesson In People SkillsMy Profile

Reply

Christian
Twitter:
June 8, 2011 at 11:00 am

Group hug. Group hug.

***Yomar, Dino and Christian dive in for a feel-good group hug. They’re relived – knowing they have others to face this world with.***

Reply

Yomar June 8, 2011 at 12:14 pm

Can I get a w00t? No?.. Too soon? LOL

You guys rock (all comment peeps inclusive)!! 8) Yomar recently posted..Would You Rather Live In A House Alone On The Hills A Lesson In People SkillsMy Profile

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