I Love You California – This Is Only A Test
Well, this is pretty cool. Blogger now lets you use Microsoft Word instead of their own online editor to compose your posts. So, let’s give it a test.
This is only a test.
Here is your top story for Tuesday, September 20, 2005.
A rare September storm swept into Northern California today dropping rain and triggering lightning strikes and thunder throughout the Bay Area. Responding quickly to the crises, the California Teachers Association immediately released a series of Television ads blaming the storm on Governor Schwarzenegger.
“The Governor continues to attack the children and hardworking people of California” the CTA proclaimed. “He’s trying to use lightning and thunder to frighten the people of this great state, but the people, the police and firefighters, the nurses, and above all the children will show the Governor that we will not be frightened.”
Asked if the CTA believed that the Governor was really behind the freakish weather the CTA responded “Where’s our money!”
In related news, last week in San Diego the Governor announced his reelection bid to an invited crowd of Republican supporters. When told of his announcement the state’s leading democrats burst out in fits of uncontrollable laughter. However, when it was pointed out that the likely Democratic contender would be Phil “dull as dirt” Angelides the mood grew decidedly somber.
“Bill will make a great governor” said State Assembly leader Fabian Nunez. “In his role as State Treasurer he has already shown the kind of leadership that Grey Davis brought to his role as State Controller.” When reminded that the name is “Phil” Angelides, not “Bill” Angelides, Assemblyman Nunez remarked “This is not a time for divisiveness. We must show the people of California that we can put politics aside and deliver on our promise to give the unions of California the kind of government they deserve.”
Asked for their reaction, the CTA responded “Does this mean we get our money?”
Tuesday, September 20, 2005
Monday, September 19, 2005
Old Man Radio - So Far
So, where was I?
Oh yeah, when last I left you I was posting more useless junk about one thing or another. Let's see, that would have been...
Last month!?
Man, has it been that long? Oh well, truth is I've been busy with my Oldmanradio podcast. I'm up to episode 7 now and things are going a lot better than I could have ever imagined.
Which is a problem.
Regular readers of this blog (alright, alright, don't laugh) may remember that I started this whole podcast thing as sort of a lark. I've always wanted to be a media mogul, you see, and this seemed like an easy way to sort of test the waters and see what kind of a radio show I could come up with. I thought I'd do an episode or two, maybe, and then be done with the whole thing. But then something funny happened...
Two things actually.
1. I found out that podcasting is a lot more fun than I thought it would be. Not that I'm any good at it, mind you. I mean I'm getting better but I don't think that Howard Stern is looking over his shoulder and worrying if that middle-aged japanese guy is gaining on him.
2. I've managed to attract an audience. Not a big audience, not thousands or millions, but an audience just the same. In fact my latest stats show that I've got 162 subscribers to my podcast, and if you've ever heard Old Man Radio then you've got to be asking yourself "162 people are subscribed to THAT!?" Well, what can I say. I certainly didn't expect it either, but now that they're out there I kinda feel this responsibility toward them.
(sigh) My subscribers.
To make matters worse, if you count the people who don't subscribe but rather download the show directly from my website then the number gets up around 200 or so, depending on the episode. Lately the trend has been up and to the right according to the little graph my web host gives me which seems to indicate that either the shows are getting better or there are people out there that have got nothing better to do than click the links on my website.
But wait, wait...I won't denigrate my audience. They are obviously a cultured and sophisticated lot who appreciate what I'm trying to do, i.e. bring them the very best podsafe music from the queit side of the net. Actually, I'm suprised at the quality of the music being offered out there nowdays and it's really lots of fun just going out there and finding it and putting it into playlists. The great thing about doing a music podcast is that no matter how lame or inept the presentation, the music still speaks for itself.
And like I said, I'm getting better. Or at least I think I'm getting better, and I love the music.
So, anyways, this is the process. First you do the podcast, and then you get a little bit of an audience, and then the real weight and responsibility of the enterprise starts hitting you, and by responsibility I mean bands start looking to you as a means of promoting them and getting their music out there. I've got to be honest, being a total novice at the music business that whole side of the equation never entered my thinking, but there it is.
And I'm not talking about the blog spam that all podcasters get. I mean if a band doesn't have any more consideration for me than to just send me a form email plugging their song or CD or whatever, then the odds are pretty slim that I'll ever play them on the podcast. I mean, at least let me know that you've listened to the podcast or something like that. Even if you don't like it you could still personalize the email a little so I don't feel like some promotional tool that you can just feed a PR release to and get your damn song played. That's the way I look at it at least, and if a band is going to just go around spamming podcasters like that then the least they could do is offer them a little payola, you know what I mean?
Hey, I'm not above taking a bribe.
But that's just a small part of the promotional side of things. Mostly, the musicians you hear from are sincere and hungry and some of their stuff is really good. When it is I play it, but always with the caveat that I'm small potatoes in the podcasting world and though I'll do what I can, what they really need to do is get some of the big boys to play their stuff. If Old Man Radio plays it I guarantee that 162 people will hear it, but if they can get the Daily Source Code or Catholic Insider or someone like that to play it, then thousands and thousands of people will hear it. Which is the honest truth, and I do tell them that, but it always makes me feel a little rude in saying it. Or at least a little too honest.
Which brings me to the next step in the whole podcasting process - promotion. That's something I've stayed away from so far because, like I said, I never really took my podcast that seriously or thought that I would keep doing it as long as I have. But I find that I really want to help these people out. That's a big part of why I'm doing what I'm doing, and so I may find myself having to promote the damn thing so that I can deliver an audience to these musicians and get their music heard. It's a responsibility that comes with the territory.
Problem is, I don't know a thing about promotion. So that's why I haven't been blogging too much lately. Instead, I've been listening to music and podcasts and trying to learn how to do promotion in a way that actually attracts an audience. And believe me, there are plenty of weird and cutesy promo's out there that I'm sure were a lot of fun to put together but don't necessarily make me or anyone I can think of want to subscribe. On the other hand there are really good promo's out there that do make you want to subscribe, but you can't just imitate what's already been done either. The promo has to be unique and snappy and entertaining, but also a good sample of what the podcast has to offer. It would be stupid of me to do a promo with a bunch of fart jokes and then have people tune in only to find that I'm basically just playing really good music.
So, that's where I'm at. I'm a micro cap podcast trying to graduate into the small cap world and not really sure what the next step is. But then again, I've got an audience of around 200 and that's a lot more than I ever imagined I'd get, so I'm making progress. Sheesh, this media business is harder than it looks.
So, where was I?
Oh yeah, when last I left you I was posting more useless junk about one thing or another. Let's see, that would have been...
Last month!?
Man, has it been that long? Oh well, truth is I've been busy with my Oldmanradio podcast. I'm up to episode 7 now and things are going a lot better than I could have ever imagined.
Which is a problem.
Regular readers of this blog (alright, alright, don't laugh) may remember that I started this whole podcast thing as sort of a lark. I've always wanted to be a media mogul, you see, and this seemed like an easy way to sort of test the waters and see what kind of a radio show I could come up with. I thought I'd do an episode or two, maybe, and then be done with the whole thing. But then something funny happened...
Two things actually.
1. I found out that podcasting is a lot more fun than I thought it would be. Not that I'm any good at it, mind you. I mean I'm getting better but I don't think that Howard Stern is looking over his shoulder and worrying if that middle-aged japanese guy is gaining on him.
2. I've managed to attract an audience. Not a big audience, not thousands or millions, but an audience just the same. In fact my latest stats show that I've got 162 subscribers to my podcast, and if you've ever heard Old Man Radio then you've got to be asking yourself "162 people are subscribed to THAT!?" Well, what can I say. I certainly didn't expect it either, but now that they're out there I kinda feel this responsibility toward them.
(sigh) My subscribers.
To make matters worse, if you count the people who don't subscribe but rather download the show directly from my website then the number gets up around 200 or so, depending on the episode. Lately the trend has been up and to the right according to the little graph my web host gives me which seems to indicate that either the shows are getting better or there are people out there that have got nothing better to do than click the links on my website.
But wait, wait...I won't denigrate my audience. They are obviously a cultured and sophisticated lot who appreciate what I'm trying to do, i.e. bring them the very best podsafe music from the queit side of the net. Actually, I'm suprised at the quality of the music being offered out there nowdays and it's really lots of fun just going out there and finding it and putting it into playlists. The great thing about doing a music podcast is that no matter how lame or inept the presentation, the music still speaks for itself.
And like I said, I'm getting better. Or at least I think I'm getting better, and I love the music.
So, anyways, this is the process. First you do the podcast, and then you get a little bit of an audience, and then the real weight and responsibility of the enterprise starts hitting you, and by responsibility I mean bands start looking to you as a means of promoting them and getting their music out there. I've got to be honest, being a total novice at the music business that whole side of the equation never entered my thinking, but there it is.
And I'm not talking about the blog spam that all podcasters get. I mean if a band doesn't have any more consideration for me than to just send me a form email plugging their song or CD or whatever, then the odds are pretty slim that I'll ever play them on the podcast. I mean, at least let me know that you've listened to the podcast or something like that. Even if you don't like it you could still personalize the email a little so I don't feel like some promotional tool that you can just feed a PR release to and get your damn song played. That's the way I look at it at least, and if a band is going to just go around spamming podcasters like that then the least they could do is offer them a little payola, you know what I mean?
Hey, I'm not above taking a bribe.
But that's just a small part of the promotional side of things. Mostly, the musicians you hear from are sincere and hungry and some of their stuff is really good. When it is I play it, but always with the caveat that I'm small potatoes in the podcasting world and though I'll do what I can, what they really need to do is get some of the big boys to play their stuff. If Old Man Radio plays it I guarantee that 162 people will hear it, but if they can get the Daily Source Code or Catholic Insider or someone like that to play it, then thousands and thousands of people will hear it. Which is the honest truth, and I do tell them that, but it always makes me feel a little rude in saying it. Or at least a little too honest.
Which brings me to the next step in the whole podcasting process - promotion. That's something I've stayed away from so far because, like I said, I never really took my podcast that seriously or thought that I would keep doing it as long as I have. But I find that I really want to help these people out. That's a big part of why I'm doing what I'm doing, and so I may find myself having to promote the damn thing so that I can deliver an audience to these musicians and get their music heard. It's a responsibility that comes with the territory.
Problem is, I don't know a thing about promotion. So that's why I haven't been blogging too much lately. Instead, I've been listening to music and podcasts and trying to learn how to do promotion in a way that actually attracts an audience. And believe me, there are plenty of weird and cutesy promo's out there that I'm sure were a lot of fun to put together but don't necessarily make me or anyone I can think of want to subscribe. On the other hand there are really good promo's out there that do make you want to subscribe, but you can't just imitate what's already been done either. The promo has to be unique and snappy and entertaining, but also a good sample of what the podcast has to offer. It would be stupid of me to do a promo with a bunch of fart jokes and then have people tune in only to find that I'm basically just playing really good music.
So, that's where I'm at. I'm a micro cap podcast trying to graduate into the small cap world and not really sure what the next step is. But then again, I've got an audience of around 200 and that's a lot more than I ever imagined I'd get, so I'm making progress. Sheesh, this media business is harder than it looks.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
