Category: podcasting

Blog World: Leo Laporte keynote


This is what Leo twittered before he came on stage for the keynote this morning. I have to say, he was not terribly informative, and it might have to do with that lack of prep. I suppose I appreciate the honesty! I like what he’s done in the world of tech… his radio show and podcast help a lot of people out, and there’s no question Leo has advanced podcasting in ways few have. But this keynote was nowhere near as informative as yesterday’s sessions. Oh well, can’t win them all.

One interesting piece from the keynote… podcasting is leveling off in some ways, but it’s opening up some other avenues through featuring content in webpages and newsletters. I think that’s right on… if you rely on iTunes as your only outlet for your content, then you’re seriously missing an opportunity. Think bigger and get that content out there in as many ways as you can.

Two more sessions and maybe a keynote with Mark Cuban to go…

Blog World Day 2

I’m off to hear Leo Laporte at the morning keynote (easst coast jet lag allows me to rise at an earlier hour than normal. Did you know the sun is up at 6:30? Who knew?). Looking forward to some good information at the sessions as well. I had a lot to digest last night… I suspect I’ll be spending a fair amount of time putting together some new suggestions for clients in the podcasting and social media spheres after this show. You might even see some new additions to Nineball Media’s offerings…

At Blog World

One semi-conscious early AM flight and I have arrived in Vegas for Blog World… I’m sure there will be plenty to blog about. First up is a session on video techniques. More later, including some assuredly poor quality pictures…

UPDATE…

Ok, so this pic’s not so bad… but the guy ahead of me was caught in an awkward looking position. Video session was very good…. up next is a session on ways to monetize your podcast. One panel member suggested forming a podcast consulting company. Hmmmm… not a bad idea. Not bad at all…

UPDATE again…

I just sat in on another great marketing session full of amazing tips on leveraging new media for a variety of revenue generating ideas. So far I’ve been quite impressed with the quality of the presentations. Now I’m off to either (a) enjoy Vegas, or (b) implement some of these ideas for some of my clients. My workoholic ways and commitment to clients seems to be leaning (b). Celine Dione… Penn & Teller… Carrot Top… Danny Gans… the shows must go on without me!

Zune dump


It’s been all over the Internet… Zunes for $99 on Woot. It’s a good thing from a podcasting perspective, since they support podcasts about as well as iTunes, but considering Zunes have – so far – made nary a ripple in terms of social or industry impact, I’d say the flood of Zunes entering the marketplace at bargain-basement prices won’t register too terribly much in podcasting stats. Still, you can’t sneeze at any device that makes it easier to subscribe and listen…

iTunes podcast category pages

I was just on iTunes to check in on some client podcast rankings, and it looks like the category pages are all down… it used to be that clicking on “Government and Organizations” or “Health” (for instance) would bring one to a nicely laid out page that included featured podcasts and a top 20 list for that category… some subcategories got the same treatment. Now, it just takes clickers to a verrrrry bland three window text-based page. Hopefully this is just temporary (I suspect it is)… if not, that’s a huge loss for podcasters.

UPDATE: Sigh of relief… three hours later, and some of the pages are back. I suspect the ITMS team is doing some page updating, so I suspect everything will be back up in due time.

Podcasts via WiFi iTunes Store?

I mentioned in a previous post that I hadn’t seen anything to indicate that podcasts will be available over the WiFi iTunes store… it wasn’t demonstrated at the Apple event announcing it, and the webpage makes no mention. However, at least a couple of people are suggesting that podcasts will be available on the store… Natali del Conte from Textra stated pretty emphatically on GeekBrief that podcasts are on Apple’s new WiFi iTunes Store. Here’s hoping she knows something we don’t know!

UPDATE… Natali got back via comment here on the blog and said she’s wprking to confirm it through her press contact at Apple. On This Week in iPhone with Cali, it sounds like Jobs might have mentioned podcasts, but nobody’s too sure. Mistake or not, it’s a surefire bet that podcasters would embrace the hell out of inclusion in the wifi store.

Voiceover tips

I just ran across an interesting article on voiceover tips… complete with embedded audio examples of course… I’d say I agree with most of what the author suggests. Here’s one I don’t:

Practice your voice-over technique and don’t be afraid to sound a little weird and “over the top”- everyone does it.

No… no… a thousand times no! Well, the practice part is fine… but the over the top technique is not. If you want to sound like a whacky morning DJ, follow that advice. If you want a professional sound, just be yourself. Slow down and have fun. Never worry about making a mistake… that’s what post production is for!

New media gaining on old media

An IBM study states what a lot of us already knew… new media is starting to replace old media in the hearts and minds of the public. Here are some of the findings:

  • TV is increasingly taking a back seat to the cell phone and the personal computer among consumers age 18 to 34
  • 19 percent of survey respondents reported spending six hours or more per day on personal Internet usage, versus nine percent of respondents who reported the same levels of TV viewing
  • Consumers are demonstrating their desire for both wired and wireless access to content: an average of 81 percent of consumers surveyed globally indicated they’ve watched or want to watch PC video, and an average of 42 percent indicated they’ve watched or want to watch mobile video

This trend impacts everything… media delivery, advertising, the works. If you’ve got a product or a point of view, this is the time to start strategizing a new media plan.