BlogDay was created with the belief that bloggers should have one day dedicated to getting to know other bloggers from other countries and areas of interest. On that day Bloggers will recommend other blogs to their blog visitors. With the goal in mind, on this day every blogger will post a recommendation of 5 new blogs. This way, all blog readers will find themselves leaping around and discovering new, previously unknown blogs.
This blog and podcast focuses on all things natural, from the backyard to around the world. Recent posts include Creating a Garden That Attracts Wildlife, Of Mourning Cloaks and Hummingbirds and Beneficial Wild Creatures In Your Garden.
Need help being a bit more creative, check out Goosing Your Muse. News, creativity exercises, insight and more. Recent posts include 7 Ways to Help Yourself Recognize Opportunity, Writing Tips – Paul Graham, and 7 Ways to Help Yourself Recognize Opportunity.
We all need some good advice sometimes, and Dumb Little Man brings it right into your RSS feed reader. Recent posts include How to Teach Children and Learn from Them Too, 9 Ways to Have a Better Day than Yesterday, and Finding a Healthier Lifestyle – Committing to Change.
This blog (and the author’s book) apply ancient Hawaii philosophies to our modern world. Delving into this (for me) foriegn world provides an invigorating mental challenge that allows me to think in new ways.
I came across Chris Brogan’s blog through some common Twitter friends and I have been following him closely since then. Chris is all about digital community — what it is, how it can be used, what it means for all of us. As I expand my own work into this realm, Chris provides a welcome guidepost along the way.
I hope you enjoy these blogs, especially if they are new to you.
Do you blog? If so, check out BlogDay2007 and highlight 5 blogs that you find exceptional.
(Updated 8/31/07 530pm : A review of the H2, along with audio examples, can be found at Michael W. Dean’s site, StinkFight.com)
My fellow Friend in Tech member, Victor Cajiao, from the Typical Mac User podcast, mentioned he is picking up one of these units, so I started to check out the specs.
If I have the opportunity to “lay hands” on this unit at the Podcast and New Media Expo in September, I will give you a review and more information.
Lately I have been talking to many non-profit charities about how they might use podcasting, new media and social networking to boost the impact of promotions and community outreach and, eventually, fundraising. Many of these organizations have an annual event that is the cornerstone of their fundraising efforts. Since it only occurs once per year, they are very concerned with it being as large a success as possible, as so much depends on them.
As I was thinking about these projects, it struck me that rather than holding an annual event, why not make the live, face-to-face event merely one part of a year-round series of promotions. Imagine the response to the live event if you have spent the entire year promoting it, instead of just the 2 months or so prior. Why not keep your event in their sight throughout the year using photos, audio, video, webcasts and other technology?
Of course, how do you move from your traditional “annual” mindset to this new “throughout the year” mentality? It isn’t as hard as you think.
Your biggest asset in promoting next year’s event has always been the media captured at this year’s event. Did you take tons of photos? How about video? Did you interview someone? Too often, if this media is captured at all, it is not leveraged in the promotion of the event next year. Sure, you might use some photos on your web site or in a newsletter or other mailing, but most of it goes unused. Even worse, most organizations are not even thinking of capturing this information during the event, so all of this great, useful content is simply lost.
If you want to make your next event even greater than it already is, here are a few guidelines to help you use new media to enhance the effect of everything you do.
Promotion of next year’s event starts the day after the current event
The best time to plan for the future is when everything is fresh in your mind. How could you have used new media this year? What content were you able to capture? What can you do tomorrow, next week, next month to keep the energy rolling and the word spreading?
Launch a daily blog and weekly show to highlight the successes of this year’s event and help draw interest in the next
Your weblog is a focal point for all your event-related communications. It needs to be updated regularly with new content. The great thing is, it can also be used to release videos, in podcast or YouTube format, and any other media used elsewhere. Event photos, interviews, attendees comments can all be repurposed for the blog and help to keep the conversation going.
Start using any content you collected to create regular shows and gather subscribers to share your message throughout the year. If you didn’t collect enough content this year, try to contact some of the speakers or guests and interview them now. Create video slide shows of still photos, if that is all you have. Do everything you can to continue the energy and good feelings created by the live event.
Plan to collect more media content during the next event
Start planning now for photographers, videographers, audio recording engineers and bloggers to capture all the happenings of the next event. Make sure these roles get prominent attention when asking for volunteers. In some cases, you might even be able to attract a donor to be the official sponsor of the event podcast, live web stream or more.
Today there are a host of services that will allow you stream your event, live, on the Internet, so that those who cannot attend in person can still get some of the feeling and benefit of your speakers and events. Of course, these live events are then recorded and added to the collection of media you are gathering. Above all, make plans today for any live events, interviews or other media that might accompany your event. Don’t let it go to waste.
Use social media (Facebook, MySpace, discussion groups, etc) to engage in a conversation with your donors, year round
It is time for all organizations to reach out to the next generation of donors. This generation simply doesn’t respond to traditional mailers, newsletters and pledge drives. You need to meet them where they live and this means engaging in the new social media sites based on the Internet.
Dedicate someone to this new method of engagement with your donors. You won’t be disappointed. Sharing your content through your blog, podcast and other methods is sure to generate conversation and you need to be present on social media sites to take advantage of this conversation. This new generation of donors wants to feel more involved in the charities and projects. They want more frequent information. They want to engage with other donors. They want open discussion on new methods and opportunities. Social media sites, along with your input, provides that.
You can include your events in online event listings (See Upcoming.org), create groups on services (See Facebook.com) to highlight your events, photos taken by yourself and others (See Flickr.com). You can also hold discussions, contests and more on many of these sites.
Develop small, mini-events throughout the year
Using all the tools mentioned above, hold online and on-site mini-events throughout the year to keep people engaged and involved. Can you webcast an interview with an important expert? Can you podcast important sessions from a recent conference? Can you host an entertainment event online that allows you to get your message out in a subtle way? Can you hold an online panel discussion on the important issues surrounding your cause?
The goal of all of these methods is to drive donations, membership, knowledge — whatever the cause you are promoting. You are doing this work throughout the year, so that by the time you open up ticket sales or reservations for the live event, people are ready to sign up — NOW!
I think you will find that your live events will be more successful than you ever imagined, because you are not counting on the distant memories of last year’s event, or 2 short months of promotion before the event to drive interest. You have been communicating with your clients, your donors, your subscribers throughout the year. You have turned the annual live event into the grand culmination of an entire year of fun, engagement and activity.
If you would like to learn more about how your group can start to leverage the power of new media, podcasting, and social media, email me at cip@welchwrite.com, post your questions or comments below, or call my listener line at 818-804-5049 and leave your questions and comments.
Presenters: Eric Steuer, Creative Director for Creative Commons Zadi Diaz, JetSet Show/Pixelodeon John Gillilan, Vosotros Music
CC Salon is a free, casual monthly get-together focused on conversation, presentations, and performances from people or groups who are developing projects that relate to open content and/or software. Please invite your friends, colleagues, and anyone you know who might be interested in drinks and discussion. There are now CC Salons happening in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Toronto, Berlin, Beijing, Warsaw, Seoul, Brisbane, and Johannesburg.
Venue Details:LAND 366 E. 2nd St. Los Angeles, California 90012
The LIVE webcam caught this picture as I was recording Mortgages Made Simple with Rick Gundzik this week. It is amazing what the webcam catches when it fires ever 30 seconds.
While I have seen a lot of anecdotal information regarding this trend, it is always good to see some harder figures.
Much as I said in an earlier post on podcast parity, this paragraph seems to validate my thinking…
“TV and the internet are now essentially on an equal footing as entertainment sources, with consumers turning to online destinations like YouTube, MySpace, Facebook, games, or mobile entertainment.”
Audiences have more control and are increasingly savvier about filtering marketing messages, with serious repercussions for marketers, ad agencies, broadcasters, publishers and cable companies, according to a new IBM survey of consumer digital media and entertainment habits, reports MarketingCharts.
Any reader here knows that I do all I can to get those around me engaged in the new media world, whether that is through podcasting, web sites, YouTube and other online video, it doesn’t matter. I just want them to get engaged.
I do this because I hate to see wasted talent — something that surrounds me here in Los Angeles. Everywhere you turn, there is more undiscovered (and under-utilized) talent than anywhere else on the planet. Whenever I come across someone who is making something great, I try to get them to expose their work on the Internet in hopes that it might gain a bigger audience than it currently has (which is usually, nothing). I always figure that 10, 100, 1000 people seeing my work is far prefarable to an audience of 1 — myself.
Exposing your work on the Internet is nearly free, except for your time, yet I am greeted with a host of reasons why people can’t, or won’t, make it happen. They’re too busy, too tired, too scared, too unconfident, too computerphobic, etc. Even worse, nearly everyone wants a company with deep pockets offering them the proverbial “bucket of money” for their content.
There are several problems with this scenario. First, if no one knows about you and your work, how will they ever know you are worth a bucket of money? You may have the best show, script, voice, smarts on the planet, but if no one knows about it, it doesn’t matter. If your content “tree in the forest” falls and no is around to hear it, it never really happened. Scripts don’t sell themselves in a drawer. Movies don’t sell themselves in the camera. Music doesn’t sell itself in your head. You need to do something with them!
The world of selling treatments, ideas, outlines, etc is gone — if it ever really existed to begin with. Distributors today want to see completed projects, shows, podcasts, videos, scripts, etc before they ever invest a dime. Harsh? Welcome to the new media world! When nearly everyone has the tools of new media, everyone expects you to use them to present and sell your ideas. You need to be a producer and take on all the duties of that role. One big benefit of this, of course, is you also get to retain the lion’s share of any proftis you do make, as well as complete creative control. Not a bad trade-off, really.
So folks, I am pleading with you — begging even — if you have something you want to sell, share it first. I’m not saying give away the farm for free, but you’ve got to attract attention to yourself if you ever hope to make money. Farmer’s Markets don’t hide the produce under the table, only allowing you see it after you give them the money.
“Whispering in their ears” is a phrase I use at least once in every podcasting and new media talk I give. You only have to look around as you move through your day to realize how descriptive it is of today’s media world. As you walk down the street, through the mall, ride the bus or subway, you see countless people with headphones in their ears. These can be the ubiquitous white, iPod earbuds, cheap replacements from the local drugstore or even high-end headphones better suited to listening at home than on the run.
With all of these people, though, a podcaster must remember one important thing — when you send your show out into the world, in many cases you are, literally, whispering in someone’s ear. You have access to them in ways they usually only allow to the most intimate people in their lives. You are sitting next to them on the bus, cuddled up on the couch, sharing a coffee at the local hangout or walking, with them, down a busy city street or country lane.
How can or should this effect how you create your shows? If you visualize how someone might eventually consume your show, what changes would you make, what features would you add, what would you do differently?
Remember, you have intimate access to listener’s mind and body. Those who respect that intimacy will be welcomed back, again and again. Those who violate it, will be quickly banished from the listener’s MP3 player.
On today’s edition of NPR’s Talk of the Nation, director David Lynch had this to say when host, Neal Conan, asked him if he would ever consider doing TV again.
“No, I think the Internet is the new TV. The Internet — continuing stories — is total freedom. Everyone and his little brother has a television station now. You could put shows up, continue them and go in complete freedom. The Internet is getting better and better and better.”
When someone of Lynch’s stature starts talking like this, you have to believe that the Internet, which I interpret to mean YouTube, podcasting and such, is truly becoming a force in the industry — especially for less mainstream fare, like Lynch’s work.
Thanks to Chris Brogan for his Twitter on this interview.
As mentioned previously in Careers in Podcasting, I recently started producing Mortgages Made Simple for my friend, Rick Gundzik. When thinking of ways to promote the podcasts, I stumbled upon the idea of using past podcasts instead of the typical “music on hold” for Rick’s office.
I am sure others have had this idea, but I have never heard of it being put to use, or run into it in my own “on hold” adventures. This makes me think that there might be some PR possibilities in placing your podcasts on your friends, neighbors and companies “music on hold” systems. Does someone you know have an office that could benefit from your content?
For me, I am going to add this very recommendation to each new podcast project I pitch. It only makes sense to give your customers something interesting to listen to, and spread word of your podcast, to those who, theoretically are a perfect market for it.
The UCLA Extension calendar for Fall 2007 is now accepting admissions. Among the offerings is our new class, Podcasting for Writers — a 10-week online course.
If you, or someone you know, would like to join us for this class, here is the complete information.
Rosanne and I are really looking forward to the class.
Podcasting has given writers direct access to a worldwide audience and freed them from absolute dependency on television networks, radio stations, and publishers to buy and market their work. To the audience, podcasting is “what you want, where you want it, when you want it,” while to the podcast creator and producer, it is the ultimate creative freedom. This course covers the current state of this new medium; the basics of writing for it; and strategies for publicizing your podcast and expanding your readers, viewers, and listeners. Guest speakers available via audio and video podcast interviews, live interactive podcasts, and video conferences introduce you to the variety of ways you can use the medium. The course goal is to develop your own podcast based on individual professional or personal needs, interests, and goals. For technical requirements click here. Enrollment limited to 18 students. Additional technical requirements: Students need a recording device with microphone that is compatible with their computer; built-in microphones on laptops are acceptable. Students must have Apple iTunes software and access to audio recording software, such as Audacity or Apple GarageBand, to perform course exercises. High-speed Internet connection is required.
Online Course October 10 -December 12 $55 nonrefundable.
Rosanne Welch, writer/producer; WGA member whose credits include five seasons as staff writer, executive story editor, and producer on the CBS series Touched by an Angel. Ms. Welch also has written for Fox Broadcasting’s Beverly Hills, 90210; Picket Fences for CBS and David E. Kelly Productions; and is the author of The Encyclopedia of Women in Aviation and Space.
Douglas E. Welch, writer and computer consultant, whose work has been published in Wired, MacWorld, and Los Angeles Times. Mr. Welch is a member of Friends in Tech, and produced his first show, Career Opportunities, in 2004. He has written and produced over 300 individual episodes and conducts podcasting seminars for schools and businesses.
Living in Los Angeles, I know many people who work in the traditional entertainment industry, including my own wife. With my interest and work in podcasting, I often find myself talking with these people over dinner, at parties, and elsewhere. Despite the fact that all of these people are both smart and talented, I am seeing a distressing trend.
Almost universally, those working in traditional media want nothing to do whatsoever with new media. Despite they fact that most of them have projects that would be well suited to several new media applications, they quash any discussion of it. Usually they start by proclaiming how there is no money in podcasting and new media, but when I delve a little deeper, I think I see the true reason…ego.
Just as Broadway stars once avoided the movies and movie stars once avoided television, people who came to Los Angeles with the dream of making it in “the big leagues” see new media as beneath them. Their egos will simply not allow them to seek out the new opportunities, no matter what the rewards might be.
Those rewards can be great. Producing your own projects for new media allows you to deliver your message directly to the audience without the interference of networks, producers and others. Since you own the productions you make, any money that you do make, (and money is out there) belongs to you alone so you don’t have to share any more of that income than necessary. New media also allows you to pursue topics that would never be palatable to mainstream media. All these advantages and still they say no.
It is almost as if people are punishing themselves for their lack of success in traditional media by denying themselves the success they might find in new media. It is maddening to see so much talent squandered on pitch after pitch after pitch to television networks when many of these excellent projects could find some sort of home online.
It seems that, for them, struggling in the same way month after month and year after year is preferable to exploring the new opportunities that abound. They continue fighting to find a place in a diminishing market while ignoring the growing opportunities in new markets. To them, producing nothing is far, far preferable to producing something, especially if it involves new media.
A new media world is coming, and there are opportunities for everyone, if only we leave behind our old prejudices and embrace the new opportunities we are given.
Here is an excellent blog post by Chris Brogan on the “why” of podcasting and new media. I find myself trying to explain this to many people every day and Chris has some great points to share.
What compels someone to blog daily? Why should one pick up a microphone and record themselves or others for hours at a time? Who are these people who turn their cameras backwards and film themselves? And why should YOU create personal media? Understanding that the readers of [chrisbrogan.com] are mostly already in this camp, maybe I’m just reinforcing the point. But then again, perhaps you know someone who’s questioning why they should bother creating media in some form or another, and maybe this will help them understand better what they can accomplish.
I review the history of podcasting, its uses and a bit of the technology involved.
During this talk, I also showed 2 video interviews with some fellow podcasters from LA. These have been removed from this talk, but I plan on releasing them here, as well. Subscribe today to receive them automatically.
I was talking with a friend the other night about podcasting and getting word out about their music. They had been talking with others and their description of podcasting and recording seemed very complicated. Below are my thoughts on podcasting and how it can be very difficult to get started when “perfect” gets in the way. — Douglas
Voltaire said, “The perfect is the enemy of the good.” and it seems that this has never been more true. So many people are kept from exploring the amazing uses of the Internet today, all because they let perfect get in the way.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful to have perfectly recorded, beautifully mixed sound, but I think letting people hear your music is much more important. The fact is, if you have to go through this much trouble, you will never get anything on the web.
I see this happen all the time. People desperately want to get stuff out, but they end up fiddling with it again and again. Eventually, they say “This is too much trouble!” and abandon it, never realizing that it was their overwhelming desire for perfection that caused this to happen, not any technical issues. Your friend touches on this when he talks about having “tracks” and such. This isn’t a studio recording. A simple, nice stereo mix, recorded from the board or recorded through house microphones would give listeners a great feel for the club and how you actually sounds live. In the same way, I think recording you, solo, in your apartment, would also be a great idea. MTV had it right! Strip it down to the essentials. Let the listeners in and they will greatly appreciate it.
It is my personal belief that people are more interested in hearing you and your music than even the most fantastic audio production. I think they will accept less quality than they might hear from a studio recording, because a live recording simply has more heart, more of you, in it. I am not saying you should be sending out crappy stuff that is unlistenable, but first and foremost, you need to be sending something out. You need to be communicating with your audience directly, long after you pack up the gig and head home. Your fans want to listen to your music, yes, but they also want to know more about you. They want to hear the live shows, warts and all, because they are interested in you. They want to feel like they shared something, even when they couldn’t be there in person.
The fact is, yes, record at the highest quality level possible, then you will be able to use to in any other form later. Record digitally, yes, as it saves time and energy when moving it to a computer to edit. That said, do NOT let these things STOP you from doing it, though. There is a world out there who wants to hear your music and you should do everything possible to make it happen.
Does this problem sound familiar to you? Are you having trouble getting started with podcasting? It just might be perfect getting in the way.
Ever since I first heard George Carlin’s comedy album, Class Clown, a certain phrase has always stuck with me… (paraphrasing) The job of a class clown is…ATTRACTING ATTENTION TO YOURSELF! I call this “Carlin’s Law of Attraction!” Replace class clown with any other profession and you will see the universal truth of that statement. Replace class clown with “podcaster” and you can probably see where I am headed.
Podcasting offers anyone the ability to “attract attention to yourself”, your business, your cause, whatever is important to you. Sure, it can be difficult to rise above all the other folks who have already discovered podcasting, but the odds are certainly much better than they ever were in the traditional media.
Carlin’s Law of Attraction, also dictates that you want your media spread as far and wide as possible. This means posting your videos to YouTube, MySpace, Revver and any other spots where your audience might stumble across them. That said, each piece MUST have some links driving people back to your home site where they can subscribe to your content directly.
Everything depends on your ability to atttract attention to your content. Scripts and books don’t sell themselves in your drawer (or trapped in your computer), art does sell when it sits in a closet and your podcast doesn’t attract an audience if no one ever gets to see it.
Apply Carlin’s Law of Attraction to everything you do, podcasting, writing, office work, whatever, and you will find that things just start to happen for you.
What does it mean that non-technial people are starting to discover podcasting as a means of getting their message our to their customers, volunteers and patrons? It means that there is a pent-up demand for knowledge that I and other podcasters can fill.
This concept has been reinforced even more this week as two opportunities expanded into several more. First, as part of the film workshop I am doing next week, not only will I be presenting at the workshop, but several departments of the college itself are also asking for some of my time. They are ready to join Apple’s iTunes U to get their content online, but need a little more information to get them started. Additonally, I will be speaking to both their online and on-site instructors on how media, and podcasting specifically, can be used to enhance their educational offerings.
The second opportunity sprang from my relationship with a new client. As we casually discussed podcasting as I resolved a networking problem for her, she realized that she had several clients who could really benefit from having their own podcast. I sent her a proposal for producing these podcasts and we should know by the end of the month if the projects will move forward.
I hope my experiences show you how there is a great demand for information and assistance with podcasting that you can help to fulfill. Be on the lookout for these opportunities as they may come from some of the oddest places.
I have sensed a definite change in how podcasting is perceived in the last few months. Genuine interest seems to be growing in the general populace about how podcasting can enhance traditional outreach, marketing and PR programs.
I had a great discussion with one of my clients today, a PR professional. It is always amazing to see the light bulb go on above someone’s head when they “get” the full potential of podcasting. As we talked, she began to see how more and more of her clients, in wildly different areas, could make use of podcasting. Happily for me, she also saw how I could help here in developing and producing podasts for her clients.
As I mentioned a few weeks ago, I am having these conversations almost continuously now. No matter what the original discussion might be about, at some point there is time to talk about podcasting and how it can help them to achieve their goals, and the goals of their customers and clients.
We both agreed, though, that we need to find people who can start developing sponsorship and advertising deals to connect the individual podcasters with those who want to reach their audience. I find myself wishing I had more experience in this regard, as I am seeing it as one of the primary factors in taking podcasting to the next level.
PodCorps is a not-for-profit group which is seeking to capture audio content from around the world. They are having an online Town Hall Meeting, next Tuesday, June 26.
Visit Talkshoe.com for more information on how to join in.
From their web site…
PodCorps.org is an all-volunteer team of audio/video producers who record and publish important spoken-word events anywhere in the world. PodCorps.org is a new project of The Conversations Network, a 501(c)(3) non-profit. Here’s how it works:
Stringers: We are building a community and database of PodCorps.org members, their locations, skills and interests. Want to help record audio or video? Join now. It’s free.
Event Producers: Looking for a stringer to record your event? Just register on Eventful.com, add the tag “podcorps” and our matching system will find someone near you.
2008 Elections: As one example, PodCorps.org is part of the Political Speech initiative to capture, produce, publish and remix debates for the 2008 U.S. national, state and local elections.
Become a PodCorps.org Stringer
It’s easy to become a member of PodCorps.org.
Register if you’re not already a member of The Conversations Network. (It’s free!)
Participate in the PodCorps.org forums, where you can interact with other members of the team.
