Author Archives: Steve Mays

BusinessWeek: Don’t quit your day job, podcasters

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Good article in Business Week about how difficult it is to make a living as a podcaster. Seems I am one of about 35,000 daily listeners to Keith and the Girl:

“Keith Malley and Chemda Khalili, the couple behind Keith and the Girl, an engaging, sometimes raunchy Howard Stern-like podcast, have cultivated a devoted online audience. (Six fans have already had Keith and the Girl tattoos done.) The show, which has 35,000 daily listeners, is just one part of the brand. Just as important to fans are the online forums and MySpace.com (NWS ) pages where they gather to talk about the show and their lives. As a result of this devotion, the audience last year was willing to snap up about $80,000 worth of T-shirts, key chains, and other merchandise.”

Some would argue that $80K ain’t bad for just shooting the shit for an hour a day. But, as a regular listener, sounds to me like they’re working damned hard and earning every penny.

Clyde Lear: Mac Guy

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Learfield CEO Clyde Lear proudly displays his new MacBook Pro. Clyde insists it’s for his lovely wife Sue. If that’s true –and we hope it is– Clyde will soon be trekking back to the Apple Store in St. Louis. I think it would be nearly impossible share a MacBook.

For now, we’ll add Clyde to our gallery of Mac Sliders. Someone call Cupertino, we’re gonna need more Kool Aid.

Riding the Email Short Bus (NRN)

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Email from Bill to Mary and 5 others on their project team:

“The meeting has been moved back to 10 a.m. on Friday”

Mary replies, “I’ll bring donuts,” and –of course- hits the REPLY ALL button.

Team member Mike cleverly chimes in (with REPLY ALL): “Make my chocolate!”

To which team member Betty responds, “I’m on a diet.” Again, REPLY ALL.

Team member smays (screaming at the top of his lungs!) REPLY ALL:

“I don’t have time to be part of your witty banter. My in-box if filled to overflowing. Chat amongst yourselves if you have the time (and it appears you do), but don’t include me with your clueless REPLY ALL to every dumb-ass email that comes your way. I’m sorry, I just don’t care. And –believe it or not– the only people that do, are the other morons keeping this inane ping-pong match going.”

NRNAnd while I’m on the subject, you don’t need to thank me every time I send you an email. I know you are grateful. I won’t think less of you if I don’t get a “Thanks!” reply to… every… email… I send. In fact, my opinion of you will jump up a few notches.

Let’s try this. If you see “NTN” (No Thanks Necessary) or “NRN” (No Reply Necessary) in the subject line of the email I send to you… you don’t have to thank me or reply. You just saved us both a few precious seconds.

I would open the comments on this post but I know many of you would not be able to resist saying, “Thanks!”

justin.tv

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justin.tvEvery so often, someone takes a run at putting their life online. Not just a blog, but “live video 24/7.” justin.tv has been live for 14 days, 12 hours and 18 minutes and justin vows to “wearth the camera until the day he dies.” These things always feel very stunt-like but I sort of understand the compulsion to put it all “out there.”

Yes, such efforts remind us how mundane our lives really are but so what. Isn’t this just the logical extention of reality shows (The Truman Show)? And if your life were really rich and full, you would not be reading this blog post about justin.tv. This is called the “My Life Isn’t As Interesting As I Think It Is Paradox.” [Thanks, Jason]

By the time you need a blog, it’s too late

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One of my blogging sermonettes is the importance of having an established blog (and readership) before you need it. Once the shit has hit the fan, you can’t run down the hall to the IT department and shout, “Quick! We need a blog!”

If you have a credible blog in place, you can respond to and comment on topics as they arise. A good example of this is “Your Pet’s Best Friend,” a blog written by my old Kennett buddy Dr. T. Everett Mobley.

Like vets all across the country, his clients are concerned about contaminated pet food. He’s been posting short updates with links to other websites and just generally letting his readers know what’s happening.

Everett is not our vet but I know him and trust him and I’ll be checking his blog to get his take on this situation. As far as I know, none of the Jeff City vets have blogs. Missed opportunity.

Apple TV and the economics of television

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“Over time, niche content will change the economics of television. Millions of Americans will add one or more Internet-connected set-top boxes to their living rooms. Once they do, look out. As they discover there is niche HD video content that matches their precise interests, the existing TV networks will see their viewers erode even more. Further, brand marketers will see they don’t need media to reach people in their living rooms. They too will produce their own content that will be distributed over the Internet for consumption on TVs.” — Steve Rubel on Apple TV:

For example: I’d love to watch a weekly 10 minute tour of the Prairie Garden Trust by Dr. Henry Domke. Just Henry walking and talking, sharing his love and fascination with the flora and fauna. Okay on a video iPod…great on Apple TV.

iTunes adds Major League Baseball video highlights

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On Friday, Apple announced they’ll be offering Major League Baseball video highlights for the 2007 season on the iTunes Store. MLB video on iTunes will include a daily 25 minute MLB.com Daily Rewind highlight show and two weekly Games of the Week, featuring full versions of the best games from the National and American Leagues.

Customers will be able to download individual episodes of MLB.com Daily Rewind and each Game of the Week for $1.99, or purchase a Multi-Pass for a month of Daily Rewind shows for $7.99 or a Season Pass for every Game of the Week at just $19.99. [Podcasting News]

I’m not a baseball fan but I do love highlights (of almost any sport). And I’ll probably invest $1.99 just to see how these look on the Apple TV. (“I just don’t know what you’d watch on that Apple TV thing.”)

Regular readers know the company I work for has the multi-media marketing rights for 32 college athletic programs. I sure hope somebody is working on something similar for our schools.

Blog lemonade

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VirginaThe “West Virginia” printed on the shirts players wore after winning the NIT title with a 78-73 victory over Clemson on Thursday night is missing the last “i” in “Virginia.” WVU sports information director Shelly Poe said the NIT printed the shirts.

Embarrassing? Maybe a little for the NIT. But certainly not for West Virginia. Their accomplishment is in no way diminished. But it will get a little ink for a day or two.

If I were the Resident Blogger for West Virginia Athletics, I would be having some fun with this.

  • Invite fans to send in videos of themselves wearing the T-shirt and explaining the misspelling.
  • Post an explanation loaded with typos.
  • Have a fake professor (with British accent) explain how the spelling on the shirt is –in fact– the original, “correct” spelling of “Virgina”

Blogging lemonade.

Disclosure: The company I work for handles multi-media marketing for Clemson.

“Citizens” against satellite radio; Who’s got HD?

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Mark Ramsey (Hear 2.0): “C3SR – the consumer group that was created to oppose the merger between XM and Sirius – is in fact supported by the NAB.”

Also at Hear 2.0: “…the average consumer is more likely to die by accidental drug overdose or by hanging, strangulating, or suffocating themselves than they are to own an HD radio.”

I’d love to hear from any smays.com readers who have HD radios. How’s it sound? What are you listening to? Use Comment link below.

iPods help doctors recognize heart problems

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Doctors can greatly improve their stethoscope skills and therefore their ability to diagnose heart problems by listening repeatedly to heartbeats on their iPods. Previous research has shown that the average rate of correct heart sound identification by physicians is 40 percent.

In a new study, 149 general internists listened 400 times to five common heart murmurs during a 90-minute session with iPods. After the session, the average score improved to 80 percent.