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Posts tagged ‘Social Media’

26
Oct

How Desperate Decisions Can Destroy Your Business

girl_maineOne of the most powerful skills you can master is decision making, especially when it comes to your career. Many books have been written supporting the fact that impulse decisions, that is going over the facts and then deciding rapidly and affirmatively, is a good way to proceed. The argument is that even if you spend hours going over the pros and cons, ultimately the best path is the one you initially lean towards. We all know people who can decide quick and move on, who don’t second guess themselves. One of the things we hear more often is that to get better at decisions, just make more of them.

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26
Oct

Portland Pecha Kucha Video Presentations

A few weeks back I hosted the Portland Pecha Kucha Night featuring 10 creative presenters. Each person had 20 slides, 20 seconds each to tell their story. It was a great night and lots of fun, now we have the presentations from the night up on YouTube so you can check them out. Visit the page below and then click on the videos down the right side. Lots of great perspectives from many different creative careers, hope you find them as inspiring as the audience did that night.

Watch the videos here

pecha_kucha_maine_portland

Ian Page/Portland Rockumentarian
John Swan/Painter
Marcia Feller/Retail Display Techniques
Kathleen Kelly/Cyanotype Photograms
Michael Shaughnessy/Sculptor
Erin Curren/Portland Playback Theater
Thomas Hillman/Brand Designer
Luke “Lukaduke” Fuller/Painter
John Stass/Furniture Maker
Greg Daly/Diorama

pk-lynn-october-program2

Bonus clip:

This one is actually from the previous Pecha Kucha but I liked it and thought I would include it here. It is from Dave Poole, who I have had as a guest on my Creative Cow Podcast…very talented guy!

21
Oct

When is it Time to Stop Networking?

think1When is it time to stop networking? When it no longer is working for you. Networking, meaning in person, runs a spectrum from uneasy to comfy. You may attend a regular networking event for the first time and you may be a little apprehensive. Lots of people you don’t know, the location is unfamiliar, you have to make fairly cold introductions. But you get to know people and it becomes easier. In fact perhaps you attend the meet or function on a regular basis. You have now gone to it for months and you know everyone. You have made a lot of great connections, gotten new clients, but now it’s more like meeting with your friends.

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13
Oct

Social Media Leading Not Learning – How to be a World Class Chef of Content

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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?

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5
Oct

Embrace Your Ego and Become a Rockstar for Your Business

model-shot

It’s funny, I almost think everything I learned about egos I learned from doing fashion photography. I mean the whole industry is rich with egos, both in front of the camera and behind the camera. But that’s half the fun. It’s talent mixed in with a lot of posturing. Sometimes it’s about attitude, sometimes it’s about confidence. Often both. But how does that apply to your business? Well a lot of it can directly apply, especially there days where “you are your business”.

Everyone has an ego. Some are humble about it and some want to shout everything from the rooftops. Some have alter-egos. Superheros for example. That is when you have a plain, more generic, ego or identity and then you have one that is really out there, powerful for the world to see. If you start to examine people who have really achieved a lot in their career, you start to see a lot of egos on display. These could be business people, sports figures, entertainers, notable web people and so on. In fact you may see some who have more ego than talent, they are driven to the spotlight so relentlessly that the spotlight becomes the mission.

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1
Oct

An Evening of Creativity – Pecha Kucha Night Maine – October 8th

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I’ve been involved in the creative arts community for many years, so I am especially excited about Pecha Kucha Night in Portland, Maine on October 8th. If you are not familair with Pecha Kucha you can read up about it on the official website or on the Maine website. I will be hosting that night and we have 10 very talented, creative and dynamic creative aritsts who will be presenting. The hook is each person has 20 slides and 6 minutes and 40 seconds to tell their story.

You can sign up for the event via Facebook right here and join the fan page
Pecha Kucha Maine

Purchase Tickets

Here is the concept:

Pecha Kucha Night, devised by Astrid Klein and Mark Dytham (Klein Dytham architecture), was conceived in 2003 as a place for young designers to meet, network, and show their work in public.

But as we all know, give a mike to a designer (especially an architect) and you’ll be trapped for hours. The key to Pecha Kucha Night is its patented system for avoiding this fate. Each presenter is allowed 20 images, each shown for 20 seconds each – giving 6 minutes 40 seconds of fame before the next presenter is up. This keeps presentations concise, the interest level up, and gives more people the chance to show.

Pecha Kucha (which is Japanese for the sound of conversation) has tapped into a demand for a forum in which creative work can be easily and informally shown, without having to rent a gallery or chat up a magazine editor. This is a demand that seems to be global – as Pecha Kucha Night, without any pushing, has spread virally to over 100 cities across the world.

The event will be held at Space on Congress St. in downtown Portland, I encourage you to get there early for mingling beforehand, as it does tend to be a who’s who of creative people in Portland. If you can make it, I look forward to seeing you (come over and say hi) for what will be a really fun and inspiring night.

October 8th Presenters

Ian Page/Portland Rockumentarian
John Swan/Painter
Marcia Feller/Retail Display Techniques
Kathleen Kelly/Cyanotype Photograms
Michael Shaughnessy/Sculptor
Erin Curren/Portland Playback Theater
Thomas Hillman/Brand Designer
Luke “Lukaduke” Fuller/Painter
John Stass/Furniture Maker
Greg Daly/Diorama

Franklin McMahon (MC)

crowd
photo by Samuel Cousins

pk-lynn-october-program

29
Sep

Media Artist Secrets TV #6 – Connect and Rattle Cages

Connect and Rattle Cages – This episode we discuss making connections by rattling cages, checking in with previous contacts for new projects and clients – hosted by Franklin McMahon

This video is partially based on this blog post - How to Grow Your Business by Becoming a Cage Rattler

Watch the show in HD on YouTube or on Facebook

NEW! – Subscribe to “Media Artist Secrets TV” in iTunes

This show is all about the business of being creative, advancing your creative career and ramping up your empire. Each episode will feature creative career development advice and inspiration, cool guests, new thoughts and ideas. Join the conversation by leaving a comment, let me know what you think.

Thanks for checking it out.

http://www.FranklinMcMahon.com
http://www.fmstudio.com
http://www.Facebook.com/FranklinMcMahon
http://www.Twitter.com/FranklinMcMahon

29
Sep

How Podcasts Can Take Your Brand Around The World

pod_modelI’ve been speaking at events a lot about podcasts and it has me thinking more and more about the advantages. I mean I have always know the amazing benefits a podcast can do for your business or brand, I have been involved in producing podcasts for 4 or 5 years now, but even with the changing landscape, it still makes a lot of sense. Much of this has to do with iTunes, which is a huge content delivery system (over 150,000 free audio and video podcasts available) that goes out to over 20 countries, meaning that the show you produce hits other territories almost immediately.

It’s definitely worth thinking about a global audience.

I did a podcast about two girls from Maine (Rumor Girls) and people in the US were very interested. People in the UK? Fascinated. I did one of the first enhanced podcasts (Podmodel) back in 2005, it was one of my very first shows, which featured a series of stills of my fashion photography along with audio. Italy and France went wild for the model pictures, stats went through the roof. Who knew? Tracking the analytics, it’s fascinating and surprising to see which shows become bigger hits in which countries. Sometimes I can predict, sometimes I cannot. But what happened 4 years ago is I started thinking about the global audience for my productions. I always produced shows and thought about my city seeing it, then my state. Then around the country. Then I started thinking, what foreign country would be most interested?

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25
Sep

How to Grow Your Business by Becoming a Cage Rattler

girl_thinkingCage Rattle Tuesday! Actually it doesn’t have to be a Tuesday, but a great business technique is to plan one day a week to check in with some of your contacts, rattle their cages. Why? Because most of the opportunities that happen will come from keeping yourself on the minds of others. If you are like most entrepreneurs and creative producers, you network in person, make connections on the web, add peeps to your address book and have stacks of business cards. If you initially follow up with people, you may leave it as a “let’s keep in touch, I am sure there are some things we can collaborate on”. Perhaps then the weeks go by, maybe months, and there is no contact. The other person has dropped off your radar and you have dropped off theirs. But try to reboot the connection.

You could come up with a list, nothing fancy, just a list of people you want to revisit. I have a few categories in my management software named “brewing” and “connect”. Brewing is for projects and people that are more simmering, we may not have an immediate plan to collaborate, but down the line there may be some stuff. I also have a connect category, which are people I have met online or in person. Initially there may be no immediate reason to be in contact, but I do like to check in with them periodically to see what they are up to.

If you mark on your calendar to once a week go through your contacts and just rattle a few cages, you may be quite amazed at the response. You could hear “oh I was thinking about contacting you recently” or “I wanted to get your advice on something”, often they will be glad you are back on their radar. You may hear of a new project they have coming up that you both could collaborate on. If nothing else you’ll get a scope of their current projects.

Everyone is usually working on so many different things that if you don’t talk to someone for a whole month, you miss a ton of developments. Developments that could, or should, include you.

Are you a cage rattler?

24
Sep

Podcast Production and Marketing

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_marketing_maine

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 8) 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

23
Sep

10 Secrets to Developing Your Personal Brand Online and In Person

Here are the slides from my presentation “10 Secrets to Developing Your Personal Brand Online and In Person” which I gave at this month’s Time Warner Maine Web Marketing Seminar 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/franklinmcmahonhttp://www.facebook.com/franklinmcmahon

branding

10 Secrets to Developing Your Personal Brand Online and In Person – Presentation Transcript

10 Secrets to Developing Your Personal Brand Online and In Person • Franklin McMahon frank@fmstudio.com www.fmstudio.com www.FranklinMcMahon.com

Best Face Forward • Clear headshot on all your networks, professional or pro- casual • You are the brand, think of your headshot as a logo • Try to avoid switching it, even if you are bored with it • Look happy and inviting

Convey What You Do Quickly • Good Twitter Bio: Internet Marketing Consultant who loves helping startups succeed • Bad Twitter Bio: Web lover, juice drinker, margarita fan, Red Sox • List your actual location in Twitter, not foreign country, won’t come up in local search • Facebook: Add links, bio and info to sidebar

Have A Party • Networking is great, but pivot the crowd towards you • When you go to a network event, you must seek and search to connect • When you host an event, everyone is waiting to talk to you • Businesses love for you to bring a group in to mingle

Make Your Audience the Stars • Post questions that encourage responses on your blog, social networks • People involved in the conversation will stick with you longer • Interview people who inspire you • The best thing you can do for anyone is to move the spotlight towards them

Be Vocal • Generic is boring • Convey your opinions and get conversations started • Opinions make you stand out, especially in person • Covering items everyone else is blends you in

Always Be Moving • Your company is a virtual vehicle, travel • Momentum is key as is steering • If your social networks are static, so is your message • Post comments, connect with new people, produce blog content • You are either still air, windy or a tornado

Act Big, Think Big, Attract Big • Avoid terms like freelance, part- time, self-employed • Start using terms like my company, my team, my office, my studio • Build an empire, don’t dabble in an industry • Convey this confidence in person at events and on-line

Position Yourself as an Expert • Provide advice in the form of articles, video • Become the go-to person in your industry, build trust, become an authority • Providing free content will give back to community, help others • Offering your expert advice and opinions develops you and your brand

Win Over People in the Middle • Some will love you, some will really not like you • The fence sitters, the undecided, are the people to work on • The people in the middle are the largest potential audience and potential clients

Work Your Networks • Competition – be dramatically different online to stand out, focus on the unique • Create a digital legacy of content • Cross promote • See them all as your audience, don’t classify certain networks as friends or clients • Brand using your actual name

10 Secrets to Developing Your Personal Brand Online and In Person • Franklin McMahon frank@fmstudio.com www.fmstudio.com www.FranklinMcMahon.com twitter.com/franklinmcmahon facebook.com/franklinmcmahon

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

23
Sep

Using the Power of Social Media for Business

Here are the slides from my presentation “Using the Power of Social Media for Business” which I gave at this month’s Social Media Breakfast 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/franklinmcmahonhttp://www.facebook.com/franklinmcmahon
power
Using the Power of Social Media for Business – Presentation Transcript

Using the Power of Social Media for Business • Franklin McMahon frank@fmstudio.com www.fmstudio.com www.FranklinMcMahon.com

Twitter • Mix of promotion and conversation • Broadcast info about your brand, field questions from potential clients • Others can Re-Tweet and help you promote • You help others as well • Great source of info depending on who you follow

Twitter • Takes most interaction of any network to be effective • The more you Tweet and put into it, the more you get out of it • Best network to make new connections • Being active on Twitter, interacting, will gain you more followers

LinkedIn • Geared mostly towards professionals and business people • Recommendations on your profile are very helpful • Join groups based on your interests • Post questions to your contacts on the network and answer other’s questions

LinkedIn • Professional digital resume • Live element with stream of updates is not as high as other networks, most content is more static • You can craft your profile to be impressive and others will see it • The more connections you can create the more opportunities

Facebook • Currently the most aggressive at being developed, Facebook is in it to win it • Recent stream of new features such as real-time updating of the news feed and ability to tag friends in your status update have kept Facebook improving • Multimedia options with pictures, audio and video • Profile can be public or private

Facebook • Improved Pages now allow businesses to get the message out about their brand • Easiest network to tell a visual story with images and video right on your page or profile • Live chat is immediate • Facebook is not just for friends, it is a key business and branding resource

Blogs • Complete control over crafting the story of your company • Audio and video easily embedded • Comments allow conversations between you and potential clients • Best for search engines • A chance to be less official and offer an inside view

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

Podcasts • 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

Which to Use When? • Blog or Podcast – Position yourself as an expert • Twitter – Field questions on your industry • Twitter – Send out special offers or announce events • Facebook or Podcasts – Audio and video clips – compelling • Facebook – Connect your Blog RSS and Twitter stream

Strategy • If your social networks are static, so is your message • You are either still air, windy or a tornado • Promote your links to your social networks everywhere • Offering your expert advice develops you and your brand • Home turf: Start a blog or podcast for best branding

Work Your Networks • Competition – be dramatically different online to stand out, focus on the unique • Create a digital legacy of content • Cross promote • See them all as your audience, don’t classify certain networks as friends or clients • Dive in and work it!

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

21
Sep

Business Cards – It’s Better To Receive Than To Give

card_girlA lot of you reading this network, you go to functions, perhaps you give speeches, you make connections on a weekly basis. Business cards still continue to be a pivotal part of what you do. You may think giving out your card is the most important aspect, but I feel that getting business cards is sometimes more essential. When you give your business card to someone you’ve just talked to, what are the chances that they will contact you?

It’s up in the air.

Some will immediately send a note within 24 hours. Some will add it to a pile of cards on their desk that they may never get around to. Your continued conversation with this person is left to chance.

Let’s look at it the other way. You ask for a business card from them. Now your continued connection jumps in theory to 100%. You have control over the next step because you now have their contact info. You don’t have to wonder if the connection will continue. Of course this all depends on you, dropping a friendly note to them, conveying that it was good to meet, adding your signature in the email so they can check out your site and ensure they have all of your contact info.

Of course passing out business cards is important. Everywhere you go you should have a small stack ready. But start to think about collecting and processing cards. Perhaps make it a goal to get a business card or contact info from everyone.You can write down their info or at least their email if they don’t have a card. Then followup that night or the next business day with a friendly note.

How do you currently handle the business card scenario? Do you give them? Do you get them?

Do you collect them from everyone and focus on processing them in a timely manner?

16
Sep

Redefining The Success Of Your Creative Career

guyLook we all want to be successful. We all want to feel like we have achieved what we set out to do. The problem arises when we benchmark our success against others. Instead of creating our own goals and celebrating the success of achieving them, we look at other’s careers and measure ourselves against them. Of course our career path never aligns with anyone else, so that’s when disappointment starts to move in. After that comes resentment, instead of celebrating your own career path you may look to someone else who is seemingly doing better and then get very grumpy. This can then cause you to give up.

For example, let’s say you are a singer. You work to craft your songs, play live around the city, promote, etc. You have all the elements in place. But then you notice your nemesis, another local singer, who seems to be playing bigger clubs, who gets a bit more press coverage, who is aligning with some talented producers. If you examine your career through your own eyes, you can get a lot of joy out of the progress you have made. However if you look at your career through this other person, it does not measure up.

Unfortunately it can then multiply. You look at 5 other artists, or 10 or more. Seriously, it can start to become a major bummer!

Redefining success means to shift the focus of calculating and measuring career steps on yourself if it is directed towards others. You have no control over other’s career paths and it makes little sense to constantly measure yourself against them. Healthy competition is fun sometimes, but obsessive angst and focus on where others are going can completely deflate any and all progress you make on a weekly basis.

How do you measure success? Is it based on your goals? Or is it based more on what others are doing?

Are you driven by your own actions or through competition?