Producing content has been a common theme I have discussed here before. Production of content is important, not so much in what you produce, but the fact that you actually do produce. Your audience is hungry for info from you. They are circling your world, looking for your next idea, tutorial, blog post, video, really anything. They are not too picky.

Of course a strategy needs to be in place. So you may be reading books, attending training, webinars, really soaking in a lot of info designed to get you prepped for getting yourself out there. But what if all you do is absorb the knowledge and not put it to use? What if you focus primarily on learning and never really have time to put things in action, or to produce content to get out there?

I mention this because I once fell into that trap. I love to learn, but after a while, that was all I was doing. Reading, researching, reading more, rinse, repeat. The thing I forgot to do was put all I had learned to use.

Think of yourself as a chef. You learn to cook, you learn recipes, you research, you taste test (yum!), you have a quest for knowledge and work to be a better chef as you progress. But what if you never actually cooked? Never served meals to people? Never had a dinner party with your cuisine as the star?

 As silly as it sounds, some people run their marketing and social networks the same way. They hit every seminar, they read every book, they love to learn more, they have a quest to learn. But their blog has not been updated in weeks. The videos they planned don’t show, their YouTube channel has some tumbleweeds blowing through. The content they wanted to get out there weekly never happens because they are focused on learning how to produce content.

It’s no great secret that you learn by doing, and that repetition is the mother of skill. The key is to do it. Whatever you do, your audience grows by absorbing the content you produce. It’s pretty simple. Yes you can jump on the social networks, but here you are producing cheese and crackers. You are getting others primed, giving them a taste before they move on to your actual meals, your blog, your website, your videos, your book, your show, your vlog, your podcast, etc.

So…are you reading blog posts or creating them? Are you watching video shows or creating them?

Trust me, producing content is time-consuming, but if you want to build an empire, you really should have often-released compelling content that keeps steering people back to you. Otherwise they will easily drive elsewhere.

Start to think about it. Are you providing a resource, are you producing content as often as you intended to? Can you dial back on learning and ramp up the production of stuff?

Try closing the web browser and opening up a word processor. Clicking off a video and launching a webcam. Why should other people have all the spotlight?

Looking at content is easy, producing content is hard. But if you want to grow your career, and expand your brand, try to produce more content. Your audience is waiting.

Here are the slides for a presentation I gave this week at Social Media FTW Conference in Portland, Maine

(I currently speak on creative marketing, social media, creative career development, new media production, podcasting, photography, on-line video production, web technologies and on-line marketing. If you have an event coming up and would like me to cover these or related topics, drop me an email at frank@fmstudio.com)

http://www.franklinmcmahon.com
http://www.fmstudio.com

http://www.twitter.com/franklinmcmahon
http://www.facebook.com/franklinmcmahon

Podcast Production and Marketing – Presentation Transcript

Podcast Production and Marketing • Franklin McMahon frank@fmstudio.com www.fmstudio.com www.FranklinMcMahon.com twitter.com @franklinmcmahon facebook.com/franklinmcmahon

Podcast Highlights • Media Artist Secrets • Rumor Girls • Creative Cow • Women of YouTube • ShowGirls • Secrets of Second Life • Mary and Karla Show

• Featured on ABC-TV in Boston (Chronicle), BBC News (The Money Programme) Wired (Wired.com). • Sirius satellite radio and Computer Arts Magazine / Podcast Awards – Media Artist Secrets, ShowGirls • Franklin featured in Podcasting books: • “Podcasting Pocket Guide” by Kirk McElhearn (O’Reilly) • “Promoting Your Podcast” by Jason Van Orden • “Tricks of the Podcasting Masters” by Rob Walch (QUE)

• I produce my own productions as well as podcasts for clients – I develop show ideas and work with companies to extend their brand through podcasting • Podcast sponsors – Shell, Splenda, Marie Claire, BBC America, Tylenol PM, Sony Pictures, McDonalds, Covergirl

• Rumor Girls 5th most downloaded Podcast of 2006 • 1) ABC World News 2) Keith and The Girl 3) X-Play 4) CNN The Grist 5) Rumor Girls 6) ESApod 7) ICONS Democracy Now! 9) Diggnation 10) TED Talks • Most popular podcasts I produce are Rumor Girls, Women of YouTube, Creative Cow and Media Artist Secrets • Also produced Rumor Girls Uncut, Rumor Girls HD, Rumor Girls Diaries

• Podcasting is a huge market untapped by many, it is an incredible way to get your message and your brand out to thousands or millions for a very low cost

• Podcasts are the TV shows of New Media – You are the star and this is your show – best way to take your brand and business message to the masses

Podcasts • Inexpensive way to reach thousands or millions • Reach is 20+ countries via iTunes, audio or video • Best success for my clients, always outperforms YouTube, web video • Most shows I produce over time attain millions of views • Shows can be portable, more intimate

PODCAST Briefly… PRODUCTION

Pick Show Topic • What are you passionate about? • What are others passionate about? • How crowded is the market for your topic? • What show would you love to see?

Hosts • Someone to steer, someone to paddle • Add in comic relief • Avoid serious coverage of just facts • Keep it loose, fun • If it’s an information show, stay on topic (news, tech, etc.)

Production • Decide on audio or video • Don’t get bogged down with equipment choices • Some shows are shot with a small point and shoot camera, some with a full HD camcorder • It takes about 5-7 shows to get into the groove

PODCAST Here we go… MARKETING

Take aim at profitability

Take aim at profitability • Your podcast is making as much as you want it to now, no more no less • Deal with money – be comfy with it • Don’t handle revenue or sales – delegate it

Take aim at profitability • Most hosts or creators are not the sales force • Everyone wants to know how to make money at podcasting – it needs to be a mission • Making a profit helps you grow the show

Promote what separates you

Promote what separates you • Tech news, Photoshop tutorials, etc. – much more competition • Be unique • Stress your strength • Promote everywhere

Promote what separates you • How many elements does your show contain that can’t be found elsewhere? • Your strength is you – can’t get “you” on other shows • Focus on the talent as what makes the show unique

Promote what separates you • Make them love you or hate you • Windows vs. Macs – passionate fans • Don’t make it so everyone will love it • You want a show that people are passionate about or really can’t stand

Be a rock star

Be a rock star • Confidence • Have the big vision • No talent needed..just drive • Be tenacious

Be a rock star • Face forward – market everything with your image • A lot of life is luck – a visual identity will provide recognition and more encounters • Get a professional photographer – not your cousin Fred – for promo pics

Be a rock star • Humble is boring • Secret of getting anything you want in life – ASK – ask for help when promoting • Audio is very intimate – video is personal – fans are dedicated • Remember how close you are to your fans

Create a community

Create a community • It’s a family – not a show • Community will ride you though ups and downs, stats, income, etc. • A large community can be steered – a small one you are not usually steering • Your fans will spread the word

Create a community • A large fan base provides momentum you can’t get with a small group • 100 fans vs. 500,000 fans – the higher number lets you take more chances • Start a movement and rally the fans

Content before marketing

Content before marketing • Stats are like waves – keep the waves rocking – there will be ups and downs • Don’t let production weight you down • Low res is better than no res • Blog is not the best website for every show – think different

Don’t make a show, build a brand

Don’t make a show, build a brand • Do several shows – different formats – different demographics • Niche or go wide, middle ground is boring • Create a new market – a new industry – be first – be best

Don’t make a show, build a brand • Know who your market is • Positioning yourself as an expert is the best thing you can do – become the go-to person • Focus on your passion

Don’t make a show, build a brand • Podcasting is a level playing field – much like the web • Don’t always talk all about yourself unless the show is all about you • Keep on topic

Game plan

Game plan • Have a plan, what you want out of the show • No goals – no show in a year • Create benchmarks – measure your success and track it – have goals for the show • Roadmap of your empire – visualize the future of your show in a year

Game plan • Don’t just assume that if stats are up then your mission is accomplished • Define success – is it attention or money, pick one

Delegate what you are not good at

Delegate what you are not good at • Get a designer • Unless you are a graphic designer, do not do your logo • Did Charles Gibson do the ABC news logo?

Delegate what you are not good at • You are judged on your website, images, everything • Some may not even get to the show if the site is lame • You may have 30 seconds to win them over if they visit your website

Smart interacting

Smart interacting • Message board vs. emails • Once they are in your world, work hard to keep them

The Wrap…

The Wrap… • Take aim at profitability • Promote what separates you • Be a rock star • Create a community

The Wrap… • Content before marketing • Don’t make a show, build a brand • Game plan • Delegate what you are not good at • Smart interacting

Franklin McMahon • New Media Producer • Studio page – www.fmstudio.com Media Artist Secrets Blog and TV Show – www.franklinmcmahon.com • Questions? 207.772.5724 frank@fmstudio.com • twitter.com @franklinmcmahon facebook.com/franklinmcmahon facebookmaine.com twittermaine.com linkedinmaine.com

Franklin is founder of Franklin McMahon Studio and is a New Media Producer specializing in creative marketing, social Franklin McMahon media, on-line video, podcasts, multimedia, writing and photography. With a client list that includes Adobe, FOX, Time Warner, McDonalds, Covergirl and HP, his range of work spans many industries. His on-line podcasts have produced millions of downloads in over 20 countries and he has been • New Media Producer featured on Wired.com, ABC Boston and BBC America. His podcast Rumor Girls ran weekly on Sirius Satellite Radio and specializing in creative the video version was the 5th most downloaded podcast of marketing and production, the year in 2006 according to Yahoo News. As an international photographer, his photo work has been seen in ads and audio and video, podcasts, magazines for clients such as Microsoft, and his coverage of photography, on-line video and the industry as a writer can be read in publications such as social media MovieMaker, Millimeter, DV, Res and Computer Arts Projects. Locally he has developed several Maine-based social organizations such as Portland Media Artists and Facebook Maine. His website and podcast Media Artist Secrets features • Studio page – career advice for content producers specializing in creative industries and social media. www.fmstudio.com • Media Artist Secrets Blog and TV Show – www.franklinmcmahon.com

These days you are the brand. It doesn’t matter too much if you are working for a company or working for yourself, part of the recognition of your brand, is well, you. With so much to think about, updating your website, current business cards, social media updating, it’s all too easy to forget to include a good picture of yourself in all of these things. As a photographer it’s a pet peeve of mine, when people don’t promote with a good headshot. They will grab a quick webcam shot or use a pic that was taken at a function and crop everyone else out. Or worse they use a headshot from a decade ago, never bothering to update it.

Ideally the image should be of you smiling, looking relaxed and approachable. And you should update it often. Subconsciously when people first discover you, especially online, they are sizing you up. If you are advancing your career and building your business, you want a shot that is friendly, but still professional. It can be casual, but professionally shot as casual is a good idea.

Take a look at the shots you have now that you use. The one on your business card (always great branding to put your mug on your card), the one on your website, the one on your social networks. Is it old? Is it just a snapshot that looks good? Did you grab it this AM with your webcam?

Is it time to crank it up a notch or two into something that means business?

Rich Brooks, Chrystie Corns and Jaica Kinsman have created a Fall conference centered on social media education for small business owners, professional marketers and enterprise level executives. Sure to be a regional who’s who of social media (and that’s just the attendees!) come and join us for a fun and educational day with a terrific lineup of speakers. I will be speaking about Podcasting with my fellow pod-bud Fred Abaroa. We’ll show you how to get into the podcast market, promoting and producing your own shows. It will be a fun time, click on the link above for info about registering.

Web Profit: Using the Internet to Market Your Business – September 22 – Topic: SOCIAL MEDIA

Time Warner Cable is hosting a seminar focused on developing your businesss using the latest web technologies. You’ll learn about Twitter, Facebook and other tools, as well as have a chance to mingle and network with many local business people. I’ll be speaking on Social Media, what is currently the best on-line roads to take and what is coming up next. Admission is free, click the link above for more info on reserving your space.

Hope you can attend at least one of these events…looking forward to seeing everyone!

(I currently speak on social media, creative career development, new media production, podcasting, photography, on-line video production, web technologies and on-line marketing. If you have an event coming up and would like me to cover these or related topics, drop me an email at frank@fmstudio.com)

http://www.fmstudio.com
http://www.twitter.com/franklinmcmahon
http://www.facebook.com/franklinmcmahon

Facebook continues to add more features that make usability better and better. Clearly influenced from Twitter the two latest features this week are Facebook Lite and Facebook Tagging.

Facebook Lite

Facebook Lite is a stripped down version of the website that runs fast and eliminates a lot of the current clutter. The first thing you will notice missing are apps, you won’t see any applications or games/quizzes clogging up your timeline. I use the “Hide” feature seemingly daily on my timeline to filter this stuff out, but now in the new Lite version there are gone. Also noticications now appear in the Lite version on the bottom of your screen, keep an eye out for them because at first you may miss them as they pop up. Highlights are gone in the Lite verion, these were all the photos, videos and notes that were most viewed in your network.

The new Lite version was originally built for foreign countries where high speed broadband was less likely to be found. But the interface was so fast and furious that it was introduced this week on a wider scale, including here in the States, as an alternative option.

Below you can see several screen shots. The first is the “old” Facebook timeline, followed by the new Lite timeline. The third shot is the new Lite profile screen, which features bigger buttons and a much cleaner interface:

Facebook Tagging

Another very cool feature rolled out this week is Facebook Tagging. Very similar to Twitter, you can now tag people as you post a status update. You can see this in the screenshot above. It is done by using the “@” symbol before their name. You can also tag groups and pages. What is cool is that when you start to type in a name or group, Facebook automatically pops up suggestions to make it easier. The person you tagged will be notified (same as Photo Tagging works now) and also if someone is reading your status update they can click on the person’s name to go direct to their profile.

Facebook Tagging is available now for some and will roll out for everyone in the coming week or two, so keep an eye out for this powerful new feature.

If you would like to try out Facebook Lite, just go to http://lite.facebook.com

Facebook has been focused and agressive on improvng their service and these two great options are very welcome. I already love the new Lite version after using it for only a day or so and will be putting it through the paces in the coming week. Give it a try!

http://www.facebook.com/franklinmcmahon

Let’s take Twitter for example. What do you send out to share when you are on Twitter? A new article on Mashable? A link to a post on 12 favorite designer tips by someone else? Are you spending a lot of time promoting other people’s work and websites? Or are you sending out your own content, a new blog post, new video, audio clip, photo work, an interview that was done with you, a new project you are working on? Your thoughts, your art, your work? What original content was created this week that could not have happened without you?

As your following grows, you begin to peak people’s interest in you more and more, they will start to search on content that involves you. They will go to your website, check out your social networks, start investigating. They start to like you, they want more, so what can you provide them? 

Take a look at anyone who has been successful in branding themselves on the web. They almost always have a large selection of archived and weekly new content that they are dishing out. It keeps people coming back. It ensures that people are sending around their links.

Conversations happen all the time on the web and when you become vocal people will become intrigued with you and look for more about you. Ideally it is good to have a body of work that is constantly being added to so people can get to know you better.

When you build your following people will start to like you. As you grow bigger, people will start to like you and a lot will start to dislike you. Once you start getting anti-fans, you know you are making it. If everyone pretty much universally likes you online, work to become bigger and/or more vocal.

Now I know, creating content is time consuming. But it should be done if you want to grow your presence online. And it does not have to be perfect, it just needs to be developed and released on an ongoing basis. You only need to look at the people you admire and respect online to see how they are building a following. They will often have a lot of clients, business and connections online, because their volume of content has drawn people in. Instead of working at trying to make contacts and potential clients on social networks, searching for connections, they build their own network of content and info, then people come to them.

Conversations are nice to have online. But conversations about you and your work are even better.

What have you sent out to the web this week that brings people into your brand?

1. State Your Real Location

Where do you live? On Twitter it’s fun to put something like “Everywhere” as your location or a foreign country. Unfortunately you are excluding yourself from local clients who may be searching. I myself often search for talent by using Twitter apps for the iPhone, some have a “nearby” search which shows people in my area. But some never add their actual real location so I never see them. There are numerous online tools for search and if your location is not indicated on either Facebook or Twitter, you may not be noticed. Having the same real location listed on Twitter and Facebook lets local people find you easier.

2. Beef Up Your Profile

This can take only about 15 minutes, but really spend some time adding all your web links, email, business info on Facebook. Often I get a friend request and after looking at their sidebar and their info tab I quite literally have no idea what they do. Both the Facebook sidebar as well as the info tab allow links, so add in all your websites, portfolios, contact info and what you do for a living. Fill out your About Me section with your bio. Make it as extensive as you can. Facebook recently updated their search engine to make it more expansive, so having keywords and relevant info in your profile is a good idea. Twitter currently has less room for a detailed profile, but use that limited space to get right to the point about what you do. Ensure that both networks tell the same story via your info and bio.

3. Intermingle Your Networks

Post your Facebook profile on Twitter, add your Twitter address to your Facebook contact info. Tango back and forth between the networks and share your info, it’s always handy to have your Twitter fans follow you to your Facebook page and your Facebook fans hook up with you on Twitter. Once you realize the serendipity between the two you can work towards moving fans and connections from one to the other. Instead of posting a link to images or videos on external sites, post your content on your Facebook page and then link to them via Twitter. Draw people in. Facebook has various controls to maintain security, so make sure if you start linking to your Facebook page you check your settings to open the privacy a bit so people can check in.

4. Promote In Unison

I am seeing more and more Twitter addresses on business cards but less Facebook URLs. Promote them both equally. Facebook has advanced resources for telling stories through images, video and text notes, so use your page as a showcase to involve people. Try to make sure that your Twitter friends are also your Facebook friends and vice versa. If your personal Facebook profile starts to ramp up to be more geared to your business, break out and develop a Facebook Page to host your content. The great thing about social networks is you can be discovered fairly easily. If you promote them both and develop content, those who do discover you can quickly get a taste for what you do. Try to have your Twitter and Facebook link in everything, from your email signature to your website.

Give these tips a try, expand your story, write up a beefier profile, intermingle between networks and then get the word out, make sure if people know you, they know how to find you on social networks.

http://facebook.franklinmcmahon.com
http://twitter.franklinmcmahon.com

(If you have a web domain, set up subdomains like the above that forward to your social network pages, there is often no extra cost to do this)

http://www.FranklinMcMahon.com
Media Artist Secrets Blog / TV Show

1. You Use Twitter as Your Only Marketing Avenue

Twitter is a resource in your toolbox just like any other network, but keep an eye on where your demographic is. Are they actually on Twitter? Are the decision makers who may be hiring you on the service? Often the larger clients who you really need to connect with are not on Twitter. They could be too busy or perhaps their company is not up to speed on the tool. Don’t use Twitter in place of an actual marketing plan. It needs to be part of a group of initiatives you have in play, using it as a singular avenue to reach your audience probably does not make much sense.

2. You Level Off the Networking

After you get rolling with Twitter you will begin to connect with old friends and new as well as potential clients. It’s fun to chat throughout the day and see what everyone is up to, but still keep focused on expanding your network. Instead of just adding new people hoping they will follow back, start responding to new users. Begin conversations. You cannot directly message someone who is not following you, however if you are following someone you can certainly strike up a conversation. Simply reply to their posts. Your response will show up in their mentions. Twitter is an amazing sea of possibilities, remember to explore that aspect daily, as opposed to just connecting and reconnecting with the same users day after day.

3. You Learn It Then Fade

I attend and host a lot of professional and casual networking events and I am amazed at the amount of people who, when I ask if they are on Twitter, reply with “Sorta..”. They’ve heard about it and signed up, added a few peeps, but then did nothing else with it. Twitter can be a powerful marketing tool but it’s only as powerful as you make it. It does take time to invest in it and like anything else the payoff is more down the road as your network grows. Stick with it. Spend some time with it each day and start to work it. Reply to people, add new friends, pose a question to everyone. You’ll start to see things happen and build. Everything happens in cycles and Twitter is in a high cycle right now of popularity, so now is the time to take advantage of it.

4. You Use It as a Productivity Pause Button

I turned off the notifications that let me know when someone new is following me (BTW if you want me to follow you and I am not, leave a comment or email me). I found that if I needed to check e-mail I would also get new Twitter notifications, to which I would stop what I was doing and explore to see who this new person was. This lead to a path of distraction from projects that I was taking far too often. I also used to keep Twitter up all the time on my second monitor, just to keep an eye on things. Again this was a constant distraction that while it was fun to monitor, it constantly pulled me away from the main tasks at hand. I used to think multitasking was a great skill to have, I now see it as a way to drag down the progress of the entire day, expanding and pushing my work day later and later. I now exit email, exit Twitter and Facebook, let the answering machine field calls, etc. This is hard for people to do, and indeed it is just as hard for me. And for anyone who loves Twitter, the thought of turning it off can be sacrilegious. However I find now when I do make time for Twitter I enjoy it much more because I don’t feel the subconscious guilt of being pulled away from things. Again this won’t work for a lot of people, but turning off Twitter for a few hours and crafting something like a new blog post can be amazingly refreshing. Most of this blog is about producing content for an expanding audience to ramp up your career, so use Twitter to advance that career but don’t let it pull you too hard away from actually building your empire. Humans are hardwired to seek out new things and to want attention. Twitter fits both of these needs almost perfectly, but always remember you have bigger fish to fry.

5. You Actually Don’t Use Twitter

Now I am not talking about someone who has signed up and has not really worked it too hard, I am addressing those who are against Twitter on principal. They may see it as a waste of time, or discount it, thinking that it’s a bunch of people chatting about what they had for breakfast. Or perhaps they just don’t understand it yet. Having been on Twitter for several years I have seen it change and evolve and as much as I talk about using it in moderation and not using it in place of real marketing, I still think it’s a great tool than can be very powerful in hooking you up with connections across the globe. I have gained fans, clients, speaking engagements, big projects, new friends and much more with the tool and I can’t recommend it highly enough. Like any tool or network, you have to put some work into it to get something out of it. If you are reading this now you are probably pretty hip and may be on Twitter already, in that case become a mentor to a newbie, tell a friend about Twitter, get them on and guide them through it. I do this often and it’s rewarding to see how far people go with it. If you are not on Twitter, ask someone who is on it that you know, learn the ropes from them. If you have a Twitter account but never did anything with it, fire it back up and work it. The biggest Twitter marketing mistake is to not use Twitter to extend your network, fan base, promotional avenues and social grid. In the social networking realm as of right now, Twitter is at or near the epicenter. Now is the time to not only jump on board, but to work the tool to your advantage.