Bitcoin Forum

bitrebel:  congrats on your efforts to spread the word.  you know i'm a fan of yours right?  but i have a few suggestions the next time you appear on Alex's show.

1.  don't talk about mining.  its confusing.
2.  don't talk about the blockchain.  its even more confusing.
3.  say that bitcoin is "digital gold".  that'll definitely make them sit up.
4.  say that only a fixed number will be issued and then NO MORE.
5.  say that since its digital it can be instantaneously transported across borders w/o detection.  they'll immediately realize the implications of this.
6.  don't say anything about "cryptocurrency" or "cryptography".  this makes it sound like bitcoin is trying to hide something along the likes of Silk Road and other illegal activities.
7.  say that bitcoins are secured by "advanced mathematical algorithms" that prevent counterfeiting.  sounds impressive.
8.  try to avoid saying anything about Satoshi since an unknown character brings to mind a shady type character or hidden agenda.
9.  do explain that the decentralized or "spread out" nature of bitcoin computers makes it indestructable to gov't or Fed intervention.    they'll like that.
10.  when they ask what its denominated in say that bitcoin is a currency UNTO ITSELF and "floats" in value against other fiat currencies like the USD but bitcoin is in fact NOT a fiat currency.  you might mention that you think that bitcoin will become the gold std against which all other currencies will be measured.
11. i wouldn't recommend newbies go to forum.bitcoin.org especially with all the trolls we've been getting there recently.  the best place for them to go to learn about bitcoin is bitcoin.org which explains all the facts and has references.

love ya man.

i have to say i see it quite differently.

i think it was a very poor talk.  all she did was give a superficial historical review with a heavy slant towards the negative events over the last year including her own mishap with MyBitcoin.  she showed no understanding of the economics behind why Bitcoin was created or how it fits into the financial crisis of the last 4 years.  she even had the gall to say she understood Bitcoin better than most ppl in a previous video interview with that other supposed financial expert who's name escapes me.  David Birch.

its high time we get someone who is articulate and has a deep understanding of the corrupt financial world into which Bitcoin is trying to insert a viable solution.  

if i were to give a talk on Bitcoin i would spend 75% of the talk emphasizing the mess we're in with central banks printing money all over the world in an attempt to stop the debt deleveraging deflationary spiral.  i would throw up pictures of M2 and debt/GDP ratio and how they started their upward parabolic moves in the 1970's when we went off the gold standard.  i would then throw up a graph of the asymptotic Bitcoin issuance curve contrasting their shapes.  i would talk about how gold has always been real money backing fiat paper and how Bitcoin is digital gold.  i would put up a 100 yr graph of the declining value of the USD and overlay that on top of the Dow and debt levels.  i would throw up a non log graph of the last 100 yrs in the Dow and show how we have peaked and are in a frightening massive head and shoulders formation over the last 12 years with a projected line straight down the shoot over the next decade.  i would throw up a graph showing how Obama has doubled the national debt in just 3 yrs.  i would throw up a graph of declining housing prices and how this correlates with decreasing household wealth.  i would go over the 2007-08 crisis and how it began and why.  i would explain how Geithner, Bernanke and Hank Paulson broke the rule of law and bailed out crony banking institutions and AIG.  i would emphasize that not one banker who caused this whole mess has gone to prison.  i would explain that 0.01% of the US population owns a counterfeiting ring that only they can tap into and every USD they print devalues the other 99.99% of the populations's USD's.  i would throw up a graph showing why this very phenomenon has resulted in the tremendous wealth disparity of these ppl to the rest of us.  i would go over the European sovereign debt issue and explain that banks all over the world dumped their bad debts onto gov'ts and are pushing them into default as we speak.  

for the rest of the 25% talk i would only insert the basics of Bitcoin into key selected points staying away from the technical side and showing just why Bitcoin would solve a particular problem.

this is just off the top of my head.  sorry for the rant but listening to her made me puke.

sorry to keep throwing up my own stuff but here goes.  it does dovetail with what i recommended above as well:

if you use the word "decentralized", expect that nobody understands it. even if you explain it in a few sentences and tell them, that this means it cannot be shut down, they will not understand you. trust me ... the concept behind this word is way out of reach for these folks. good look finding a good analogy!

No, No.... keep it coming.  I need all the advice I can get.  This advice resonates heavily with the approach I am thinking of taking.  Discussing the attributes of quant/fiat money first, then introducing bitcoin, and closing with practical, real-life success stories of bitcoin.  Staying away from the technical side as much as possible.

Decentralized as in gold.

Lat year Tony Gallipi gave a great presentation on the business case for Bitcoin usage.  I'd steal from his talk as appropriate...

Expanding the Bitcoin Business Community
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hH4rH6wu25U

Ok all, if you could please comment on how this short "Bio" can be improved or altered please let me know!  I really want to present bitcoin as a credible, viable tool for small business owners and persons.  I need to send it to the printer today.  As a reminder, this is what will appear in our weekly newsletter that is placed at each person's seat before lunch.

Mark Russell is a hobbyist trader in the emerging, web currency called Bitcoin.  Mark has been involved and active with the Bitcoin markets since early 2011.  He believes Bitcoin will be the most disruptive technology his generation will see in the area of digital commerce.  

Bitcoin is a non-political, online, digital currency that is brought into existence at a fixed and predictable rate.  A limited number of them will be issued and then no more.  This means that unlike traditional currencies which are created by central banks and governments, the value of Bitcoin cannot be destroyed by inflation, nor can it be physically confiscated.  There is no entity or group of persons which have rights or title to Bitcoin; there is not a Bitcoin building nor is there a Bitcoin corporation.  Bitcoins are secured by advanced mathematical algorithms that prevent counterfeiting.  

These features mean that any business can accept payment from a customer across the globe at a zero cost without having to rely on a 3rd party payment processor.  In November of 2012, Bitcoin made headlines across the web after the world’s 20th largest website, Wordpress, began to receive Bitcoins as payment.  Several months ago Iranians began to flock to Bitcoin as the value of their currency went into total free fall.  

Bitcoins may be used to purchase anything from flat screen televisions, to music, to webhosting, or pizza.  Any person with a smartphone or computer can send and receive Bitcoin without needing to trust a 3rd party such as a bank or credit card company.  In this sense, Bitcoin is purely democratic.  This “spread out” of “decentralized” nature of Bitcoin makes it indestructible by governments or Federal banking intervention.  

In Las Vegas already, there are auto mechanics, realtors, handy men, hospitality services, and other successful business that accept Bitcoin.  Companies such as these have the option to use local exchangers or online services to convert their Bitcoin to USD.  As Bitcoin continues to be adopted, it will be seen as a currency in its own right against which all other currencies will measure their value.  At the time of this writing, 1 Bitcoin is equal to appx 23 US Dollars.  To learn more about Bitcoin or to start receiving and sending them, visit blockchain.info or coinbase.com

Several months ago Iranians began to flock to Bitcoin as the value of their currency went into total free fall.  

If you're talking to business owners I'd include a link to bitpay.com along with blockchain.info and coinbase.com

if you use the word "decentralized", expect that nobody understands it. even if you explain it in a few sentences and tell them, that this means it cannot be shut down, they will not understand you. trust me ... the concept behind this word is way out of reach for these folks. good look finding a good analogy!

Ok all, if you could please comment on how this short "Bio" can be improved or altered please let me know!  I really want to present bitcoin as a credible, viable tool for small business owners and persons.  I need to send it to the printer today.  As a reminder, this is what will appear in our weekly newsletter that is placed at each person's seat before lunch.

Mark Russell is a hobbyist trader in the emerging, web currency called Bitcoin.  Mark has been involved and active with the Bitcoin markets since early 2011.  He believes Bitcoin will be the most disruptive digital commerce technology his our generation will ever see.  in the area of digital commerce.  

Bitcoin is a non-political, online, digital currency that is brought into existence at a fixed and predictable rate.  A limited number of them will be issued and then no more.  This means that unlike traditional fiat currencies which are created by central banks and governments, the value of Bitcoin cannot be destroyed by inflation, nor can it be physically confiscated.  There is no entity or group of persons which have rights or title to Bitcoin; there is not a no Bitcoin building nor is there a Bitcoin corporation.  Bitcoins are secured by advanced mathematical algorithms that prevent counterfeiting.  

These features mean that any business can accept payment from a customer across the globe at a zero cost less than a penny without having to rely on a 3rd party payment processor.  In November of 2012, Bitcoin made headlines across the web after the world’s 20th largest website, Wordpress, began to receive Bitcoins as payment.  Several months ago Iranians For the last 4 years since it's inception, thousands of people around the world have begun to flock to Bitcoin as the value of their currencies have been debased. went into total free fall.  

Bitcoins may be used to purchase anything from flat screen televisions, to music, to webhosting, or pizza.  Any person with a smartphone or computer can send and receive Bitcoin without needing to trust a 3rd party such as a bank or credit card company.  In this sense, Bitcoin is purely democratic.  This “spread out” of or “decentralized” nature of Bitcoin makes it indestructible by governments or Federal banking intervention.  

In Las Vegas already, there are auto mechanics, realtors, handy men, hospitality services, and other successful business businesses that accept Bitcoin.  Companies such as these have the option to use local exchangers or online services to convert their Bitcoin to USD. Or, many choose to hold them as a store of value. As Bitcoin continues to be adopted, it will be seen as a currency in its own right against which all other currencies will be measured measure their value.  At the time of this writing, 1 Bitcoin is equal to appx approximately 23 US Dollars.  

To learn more about Bitcoin or to start receiving and sending them, visit blockchain.info or coinbase.com Bitcoin.org.

Decentralized as in gold. No goverment issues gold, it's just there. Governments can mine and regulate it, but they don't issue it.

These features mean that any business can accept payment from a customer across the globe at for less than a penny without having to rely on a 3rd party payment processor.

this is pretty darn good.  just inserted minor corrections, changes:

Bourne need to hide his money in a swiss bank account, but you only need to hide your asset in a mini private key, and even better a brain wallet password  :D

Bourne would've just memorized the whole private key (they're not that long, anyways).

Governments will have to ask permission the next time they want tax money from them :P

Oh yeah what a great point for a currency. Helps you avoid paying taxes! Hell why we're at it, we can avoid gambling regulation and buy drugs too!

I find the best way to introduce it to new businesses is as a new payment network.

The Bitcoin network is one that provides secure transactions anywhere in the world with (virtually) no chargeback risk. It is revolutionary because it allows anyone to create an application, wallet or tool within the network. That will in turn work with anything else in the Bitcoin network without any restriction. It uses digital tokens called Bitcoins which can't be counterfeited and get their value from their scarcity.

Another big advantage is the built in identity protection. When you are making payments through traditional payment networks the act of making payment exposes you to the risk of fraud. If I was to display my credit card number it would most certainly be compromised and my identity could be stolen. Bitcoin addresses are secured with banking level security (don't bother explaining SHA-256 unless they ask) so they can be displayed with zero risk of being compromised.

Why should they care about some digital token payment network they might wonder? The best part is they don't have to because companies such as WalletBit provide seamless integration into their business. We for example provide automatic risk free conversion to local currency for as low as 2.75%. It doesn't cost them anything to get started and they don't need any special equipment (think credit card machines, etc).

That is at least the general approach I take.

You have a difficult job to explain Bitcoin in 20 minutes. Your best strategy is not to try and "educate" them on Bitcoin, but to intrigue them enough that a half dozen or so go home and research more on their own (maybe provide some links to take home).

I like cypherdoc's suggestions.

I would avoid spening too much time on it being fraud-proof, as the risk of a merchant losing money due to fraud and chargebacks is actually very small, even for businesses that take credit cards. One merchant came on these boards asking how and why to start taking bitcoins and the replies coming in kept harping on the "no chargebacks" issue. The merchant said that in 3 or 4 years of business (a B&M with online presence), he had had 1 chargeback that cost him $30. Also, bitpay charges 2%. Credit cards are around 4%.

The fact is, for someone who is not a visionary or idealogue, there is very little reason to care about Bitcoin today.

Don't mention cheating on taxes as a selling point, as a lot of people still think that dodging taxes is morally reprehensible. Mention the anonymity and no threat of confiscation and those in the audience interested in tax issues will figure it out on their own.

The one thing that almost everyone agrees on is that the banking system and Washington are corrupt. You may want to approach your talk in the following format:

"These are the problems and consequences of our current monetary system. (use a bunch of graphs that cypherdoc listed) And this is how a group of people are trying to solve it." So you show problem, solution (bitcoin). Don't try to "sell" them on using Bitcoin, just explain why OTHER people are using it, and how it will continue to be successful as long as the rate of adoption continues to increase.

Bourne would've just memorized the whole private key (they're not that long, anyways).

So far I've been messaged by a few Vegas guys.  Do you all go to Julian's lunch mobs that he has on Wednesdays?  He also runs this site: http://bitcoinsinvegas.com/

Oh yeah what a great point for a currency. Helps you avoid paying taxes! Hell why we're at it, we can avoid gambling regulation and buy drugs too!

Perhaps you meant Napster..... I loved Napster and miss it.

Beware, WalletBit will also take a 0.89% fee for a simple deposit of BTC in a wallet hosted on their server !

I would NOT recommend doing business with them


.

If you had 20 minutes to present bitcoin to a room full of professional businesspersons, what would your MAIN POINT be?  In otherwords, what would unify your entire talk?

yes, and they contributed to jacking up my attempted pre-order of batch #2 for an Avalon b/c of a site malfunction after getting up at the crack of dawn.  seriously pissed me off.

BitPay charges 0.99%. I don't see anyone complaining about that...

The mere act of depositing bitcoins into a hosted wallet sounds a lot more like the service Blockchain.info provides for free than it sounds like the service of acting as a payment intermediary (calculating exchange rates, sending payment pages to the customer, notifying the web site when the payment is confirmed) which BitPay charges 0.99%.

Dum(b)as
BitPay charges 0.99%. I don't see anyone complaining about that...

cypherdoc
The Avalon pre-orders from Saturday can be completed and you can preserve your place in the order queue but Avalon has decided its only fair if you pay the same as everyone else paid at the time. This has nothing to do with WalletBit but I do agree its fair. Refunds have been offered to anyone who doesn't want to pay the same as everyone else and you can have an equal chance to compete for orders once they open again. If you don't like it, then you need help beyond what anyone here can offer.

i don't understand what this means.  i'm happy to pay the $1500 per Avalon if i only could.  but most ppl were getting charged $15 that morning.  some decided to consider it a deposit but most like me were confused and decided not to pay an incorrect amount for fear of losing it into a black hole which given how the order process was so screwed up is not an unreasonable action.

are you saying my order is still in the queue and available for me to reserve with a full payment?

Hi Everyone,

Well the presentation was very well received, and I ran out of time to take all of the Q/A.  One user above suggested I try a live demo, which I did.  It went off without a hitch, everyone was very impressed.

Thanks again for your great advice.  I incorporated much of it into my talk.  If you watch the video and have any suggestions or critique, I'd be grateful to hear it.  Also, I am a video editing neanderthal, sorry for the weird aspect ratio.

Here is the general outline of my talk:
I. Overview of how money is created
II. Bitcoin: A digital alternative to the monetary system
III. Overview of how Bitcoin works
IV. Live Demonstration of a Bitcoin merchant transaction
V. Q/A

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=klKGVDmJWa0

https://i.imgur.com/acL7wCv.gif

Hi Everyone,

Well the presentation was very well received, and I ran out of time to take all of the Q/A.  One user above suggested I try a live demo, which I did.  It went off without a hitch, everyone was very impressed.

Thanks again for your great advice.  I incorporated much of it into my talk.  If you watch the video and have any suggestions or critique, I'd be grateful to hear it.  Also, I am a video editing neanderthal, sorry for the weird aspect ratio.

Here is the general outline of my talk:
I. Overview of how money is created
II. Bitcoin: A digital alternative to the monetary system
III. Overview of how Bitcoin works
IV. Live Demonstration of a Bitcoin merchant transaction
V. Q/A

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=klKGVDmJWa0

Also you spent a lot of time on how banking works today, which was good, but for only a 20min presentation I think you should have dived more in depth on bitcoin from the beginning. I just say that cause they looked like older folks and they probably are very familiar with the USD and how it operates.

@yoyoceramic

Can we, please receive a copy of your presentation? PDF, PPTX, or any format of your choice?
:)

Make the first 5 minutes a live demonstration. Show, don't tell!

(Practice it beforehand to make sure it's smooth)

"Monkey see, monkey do" is one of the most powerful forces in marketing.

Also, use analogy. 99% of them will know how to use e-mail. 100% of them will know how to use cash. Probably 99% of them will not know how cash or e-mail actually work. So use familiar concepts to explain the unfamiliar idea of bitcoin.

Do not talk politics.