I am NOT a tech hobbyist. I am in the entertainment industry.
While the term podcast seems to be here to stay, I think it is time to kill off the term podcaster. Podcasting first grew out of the tech world and I think “podcaster” grows from our penchant for naming ourselves after our work– if we describe ourselves as programmers, it is a short jump to calling ourselves podcasters. We are not our work — our methods — our tools. We are not limited to whatever small world podcasting represents. In fact, our power and effect grows each and every day.
Unfortunately, calling ourselves podcasters belittles and demeans what we actually do, in the public eye. It places us outside the mainstream and consigns us to a virtual ghetto, where people are free to wrinkle their noses at us, since we aren’t producing mainstream television, radio or movies. This is all coming to an end, though.
As I have written in the past, our shows are gaining more and more parity with more traditional media. (See Podcast Parity, June 17, 2007) Soon, and probably sooner than even I think, audiences will not care how their entertainment is delivered. They will only care that they like it. They will start to consume from cable television, satellite, time-shifted TiVO, YouTube and other video sites, online networks like Joost and, of course, podcasts, indiscriminately, without differentiating between them. Instead of a world of network channels 2, 4 and 7 (3, 5 and 8 in the Cleveland area where I grew up) they will be presented with an endless menu of shows, from all sorts of sources, right to their television..
In all fact and appearances, we are all producers. We produce our own shows, possibly hosting them, as well. Some of us might even be producing shows for others. If this isn’t the very definition of a producer, I don’t know what is. The more business oriented among us will soon be developing complete businesses around our shows, making big decisions about sponsorship, network deals, hiring talent and making money, just like every other producer – and this is exactly how it should be.
Calling yourself a producer also changes you own mindset. It moves you from the role of tech hobbyist and places your feet firmly in the entertainment business as a whole. If you don’t already, you start to think bigger ideas and start seeing bigger horizons. If you are like me, you start to see where all this podcasting stuff might lead. You start to see that maybe traditional medium can be beat at its own game. You start to believe that maybe, one day, this thing we call podcasting has become the mainstream,
Let’s throw away the already archaic term “podcaster” and replace it with one that has served us well for over a century. Calling yourselfa producer brings a measure of seriousness and respect that, after 3 years, podcasting, and podcasters, deserve.
Ontario Convention Center
2000 Convention Center Way
Ontario, CA 91764
PodCamp is a FREE UN-CONFERENCE for people who create, enjoy or are interested in learning more about blogs, vlogs, audio podcasts, web video, content networks, new and social media. Show up, meet people, make connections it’s that simple!
PodcampSoCal will be held in the “Keynote” room at the Ontario Convention center. There is plenty of room for smaller groups to be formed. Full AV equipment will be available: Mic & projector for larger presentations.
Last Sunday, I was part of an event that provides an almost perfect case study on how organizations can capture content and then use it to promote their organization throughout the year.
The UCLA Extension Writers’ Program held their annual Writers’ Faire that gives potential students a sneak peak into the classes the program offers. This year’s event included 24 individual panel discussions in 6 rooms over 4 hours. Each panel discussion lasted about 40 minutes.
Imagine, now, that you were able to capture all of these sessions on audio or video. In my own personal case, I recorded to both my iRiver MP3 player and my iPod 5.5G using a Belkin TuneTalk Microphone attachment. It took nothing more than setting it on the table in front of us and pressing the record button. There are many other, easy choices for recording though, including DAT tape, memory card recorders or even a laptop with a microphone and free recording software.
Once you gathered these sessions, you can quickly edit them into finished podcasts, ready for distribution from your web site or through your blog’s RSS feed. This doesn’t require any special skills that can’t be gathered in about an hour’s worth of training. You trim the head and tail of the audio you recorded, removing any extraneous information. Then you add a nice intro explaining where these recordings came from and giving the link to your web site. Then you export them as MP3 files.
Now, after only about 3 hours of work, you have 24 individual podcasts – enough for a regularly scheduled, twice-monthly podcast for an entire year! Remember, this is from content you would have created anyway. The only difference is this time, you captured it. Add a few interviews or speakers recorded during the rest of the year and you could easily have a weekly show – all designed to educate your students, customers or donors and convince them to use your services – using content you have already created.
The influence of these shows grows and grows, too. Not only can you release them on your own site, but those involved can also link from their own personal web sites, spreading your message further and further. If you captured video, you can also place your shows on the various video sharing sites, like YouTube and on social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace.
I hope that this small case study has given you the impetus to insure that you capture every bit of content you are creating today. Most companies simply throw content away, letting it disappear into the past, despite the face that hundreds, thousands and even tens of thousands of people would love to see or hear it.
Do you want to learn more about how your company or organization can capture content and put it to use promoting your services or products? Write me at cip@welchwrite.com, comment on this blog post, or call the listener line at 818-804-5049
Rosanne and I were part of this panel discussion today on the UCLA Campus for the UCLA Extension Writers’ Program. We are teaching Podcasting for Writers, an online course, this session.
How do you get your film, your story, out to audiences around the world? Learn how today’s screenwriters, directors, and producers are exploring alternative venues for distributing their work, from the world of independent film to public television to YouTube. Discover how you can turn the words in your script into a reality on the screen.
Jonathan Tydor, Douglas E. Welch, Rosanne Welch (chair)
Note: Rosanne and I are speaking at this event. — Douglas
UCLA Extension Writers Faire
Date: September 9, 2007 Time: 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM Location: Writers Faire: UCLA Campus; Young Hall Courtyard Address: 405 Hilgard Avenue , Los Angeles, CA , 90095 Cross Streets: Hilgard / Westholme
Phone: (310) 825-9415
Admission: This festive event is free. Parking in Lot 2 on the UCLA campus is $8 per day. Food Services: The Bomb Shelter Restaurant on campus will be open for lunch. Numerous vending machines are in the area. Accessibility: Wheel Chair Access Website: uclaextension.edu/writers Description: The UCLA Extension Writers Faire is an annual gathering of writing-minded people ? students of all levels, more than 70 Writers? Program instructors, a handful of select Los Angeles-area graduate writing programs, and more than 15 writing-related professional and community organizations and businesses ? all celebrating what it is to write. Now in its eighth year, the whirlwind event, held on the UCLA campus Sunday, September 9, includes 24 free mini-panels and lectures, where students have the opportunity to see their favorite instructors in lively discussions about the art, craft, business, and life of writing. All participating instructors are slated to teach Writers? Program workshops this fall, so students can get a taste of their upcoming courses at the Faire completely for free.
I spent lunch today doing Lunch 2.0 down at the Santa Monica offices of ThisNext, our hosts. I met a lot of great people, working on a lot of great projects. In fact, it seemed a lot of people, including ThisNext were looking for staff. You can click through on this shot of their office white board to see who they are looking for and who to contact with your info.
I look forward to more Lunch 2.0 meetings in the future.
As I have said in the past, everyone has something to say, and nearly every company has a reason to be podcasting and engaging in other new media. Whether large or small, every business is looking for new business, more business, better business. Even more important, you want to find great clients and customers who understand what you do and why they need it. In many cases, a podcast can do exactly that. A regular podcast can help you to build your best clients by offering a little education to everyone.
When I was in Columbia, Missouri this summer, I met some great people who run a local PR company. They serve a large area of north central Missouri, in the rural lands between Kansas City and St. Louis. As with any business outside of a major metro area, they find they often have to spend a lot of time educating potential clients in order to show them the benefits of advertising and how it is done.
As we talked about ways of using new media in their business, we also discovered it could be used to build their business. Based on their extensive knowledge and work experience, I recommended that they start a regularly scheduled podcast that teaches small business owners how to work with a PR agency.
From my personal experience, most small business owners rely on the tried and true methods of yellow pages and newspaper advertising, simply re-running their advertisements week after week. They could use all benefit from the many new advertising methods and strategies that exist today – if they only knew about them.
Creating a podcast to teach the public about your business specialty not only bulds good will but gives dramatic proof of your expertise. It also teaches potential clients how you work. You are growing your own clients from those that might otherwise might not know about your services, or be too intimidated to call you directly. You might even find your company expanding beyond its traditional geographic boundaries, as people all over the world start to hear your message.
So, if you haven’t yet seen how podcasting and other new media might fit into your business plans, consider starting your own podcast to spread your knowledge, build your prestige and create the customers you always wanted.
This post echoes a lot of what I have been telling my own friends and clients over the last several months. Chris also breaks down 2 case studies for specific situations (Independent Musician and Software Company) in the article, giving you a framework to put his thoughts into action.
Yesterday, I gave you my social media toolkit (and if you’re extra clever, click that link to read the comments section, because folks made some great additions to the primary post). Jeff Pulver asked you about about social media strategies. Here are a few ways to put this together and consider a strategy around your use of social media and networks. (Note: there are TONS of ways to consider there, so these are just examples).
I wrote this email in reponse to a friend, and fellow podcaster, who announced he is giving up on Facebook. It seems relevant to re-post it here as it encapsulates a few ideas I have been mulling over lately.
(Putting on my new media consultant hat…)
I think you might be cutting off your nose to spite your face on this one. I think that there is no more important place to be, right now, than Facebook.
It’s got the juice right now and there are hordes of people there that you need to be engaging in conversation.
This doesn’t mean that you need to accept every invitation, or even check in more than once a week, but you do need to be be there.
Remember, serendipity is an important part of new media. You need to give folks every opportunity to stumble across you and you need to meet them on their own ground to do that. It is all about the AND, not the OR. You do this AND that, not this OR that. You need to be on Facebook for the same reason that video podcasts should also be placed on YouTube and other video sites. They are all vectors of interest for your work.
Sure, something bigger/better/faster will come along, but for the foreseeable future Facebook has a place in every project I am doing. Thereare simply too many people there to ignore it.
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.
MP3 player and my iPod 5.5G using a Belkin TuneTalk Microphone attachment. It took nothing more than setting it on the table in front of us and pressing the record button. There are many other, easy choices for recording though, including DAT tape, memory card recorders or even a laptop with a microphone and free recording software.
