One big advantage to being young to having a significant dedicated time for education. The old saying about youth wasted on the young holds true because I’m sure we can all remember (or maybe some are still going through it) dreading going to school, doing homework or sitting through a boring lecture. However some of my best experiences in high school college and later on when I took some tech certification classes was sitting under an instructor who has a passion for what they taught and made you think.

I’ve also learned what many a college commencement speaker has said, “This is not the end of your education, it’s only the beginning.” This hold so true in the world of business. I find that as a business owner I have also become a life-long student. I’m buying new books either in print or PDF form, watching or listening to instructive podcasts like Photoshop User TV, Podcast Answer Man, etc. I’m also reading a lot of blogs many of which are written in the form of tutorials and of course I have participated in online forums. Offline I am always seeking out good seminars in the disciplines of sales, new technologies, etc. I’ve even considered going back to college to get a new major in those disciplines I wish I had studied more of. My major in college was Mass Communication with a minor in creative writing. If I could go back and had the time I would definitely consider studies in computer science and art both of which I have been “teaching myself” through self study and using the tools of my trade.

As a business person what kind of time and resources are you devoting to educational pursuits? Are you giving yourself and/or your employees time off to take classes and attend seminar to learn new techniques and learn about new things to help you stay competitive? Are you devoting a dedicated time to pursue your vocational passions or hobbies? Youth may very well be wasted on a lot of young people (I know I didn’t take advantage of some opportunities I could have) but that doesn’t mean we can’t continue to learn new things. That is one of the things that keep you young in mind and innovation. Go to the gym to stay in shape, continue learning to innovate.

One very common complaint I often hear when suggesting business people blog is that they don’t have time to blog. Today is one of those days when I really don’t have time to blog because I got a couple of projects to finish this morning, later I will be attending a GSATC networking lunch, then going to look at a potential future location for our business and finally to make a visit to a potential client out of town. Very busy day indeed. However I figured a would get a short blog out because it has been a while (in my mind anyway) since I posted anything. So how can one “blog” if they don’t “have time?” Here is a list of ideas;

• Keep it short and maybe share a schedule of your “busy day.” That alone will let others know what you are up to and involved with in your business - i.e. the paragraph above.
• Post a link to a web site or article you think would be useful for your readers - I plan on writing another longer post on this later.
• Post a photo of a new product, graphic of a new service or something your readers/viewers my find interesting to look at and a very short description.
• Consider using a service like Utterz to literally call in your message. This can be done while traveling, out for a walk or working around the house such as getting ready for the day. You can always expound on the info later. An example is the ones I have done. These messages can also be embedded into your own blog.
• Do an audio podcast like My Crazy Life - the podcaster does many of his episodes while walking in his neighborhood and not sitting in front of a computer and uploads them later in the day.

How have you blogged or seen others blog when they would have otherwise been to busy to blog?

Here is a link to a podcasting article you may find interesting:

Using Podcasting to Promote Your Business–by BNET Editorial

Looking for podcasting statistics?  Check out the 2008 Edison Arbitron Podcast Report.

Have you done some of your own research?  What have you found?

Please leave us a comment and tell us about it.  Thanks.

Here’s the question–is podcasting really an effective means of marketing your business?

Let’s look at the advantages:

• podcast listeners are usually fairly affluent
• they choose to listen to your podcast because they are interested in whatever subject matter you bring them
• they can take it with them on their iPhone or iPod
• they can listen at the gym
• they can listen at work
• they can listen at home
• over time, they get to know you because they listen to you regularly
• after a while, you are in their mind whenever the subject you podcast about comes up
• since they think about you, they talk about you to other people

I recently attended the GSATC (Greenville Spartanburg Anderson Technology Council) lunch meeting when Geno Church from Brains on Fire spoke about Word of Mouth Marketing.  His main point at this meeting is that word of mouth marketing is not about an ad campaign here and an ad campaign there.  It’s about creating a movement.  Getting people connected to your organization in such a way that they become willing, happy ambassadors for you.  It’s about creating relationships.

When you think about how a podcast works–audio files that you can subscribe to via iTunes; that you can listen to almost anywhere; that becomes a regular occurrence in the lives of your listeners–it seems that this could be a prime tool to ramp up relationship building with people that may otherwise never even find you.  No one can be everywhere all the time.  Most contact networks do not have the kind of reach that iTunes does.

Here’s the challenge:  Give it some thought–if you were going to start your own podcast, what would it be about?

Here are a few quick ideas:

• A home builder might start a Laying the Foundation podcast and talk all about quality building materials and the new ones that come out all the time for this industry.
• A plumber could start a podcast called Pipes–a podcast that introduces you to the various types of piping material available and the pros and cons of each; how to use each type; how to change out faucets and connect the new faucet to the existing pipes, etc.
• An interior designer might podcast a show called Dreamy Drapes or Coordinated Colors–episodes could feature information about how to match the sofa, easy chair, walls, floor, ceiling; understanding color theory; color clues for the interested homeowner; curtain conundrums–fabric choices, colors, purpose of drapes, etc.

Starting a podcast takes a commitment–you must be disciplined to record your podcast episodes regularly and fill them with good information in order to grow your listening audience. It’s better to not even start a podcast if you can’t commit to making it a regular habit.

Podcasting questions?  Ask us — leave a comment.  If you have a question, other people probably have that same question, too.  Leave us a comment and we will answer your question as best we can.

This morning I had the opportunity to speak to the Golden Strip Business Network of PNC in Simpsonville, SC. I spoke on RSS: Blogging and Podcasting - Distributing your message to the web and beyond. I was prepared with small speaker system for my iPod to demonstrate some podcast and a projector to show my Keynote presentation on the subject but the restaurant was not conducive to using either one.

My presentation however did go very well and those in attendance did ask a lot of questions on the topic which I Iove because it helped me focus on the subject at hand and I know they were interested in learning more. It’s also amazing that I will learn new terms I probably should have know but for some reason I missed hearing about.

It’s not entirely related to blogging and podcasting per se but I was asked by one lady, “Is that what a squeeze page is?” admitted I didn’t know that term but would look it up and blog about it. A squeeze page refers to a web page that is designed to compel visitors to “opt-in” to your web site. This is usually done through asking for e-mail addresses so they can be added to an opt-in e-mail list. I mentioned I had never heard the specific term but was familiar with a “landing page” and a squeeze page is a sort of landing page. I can see where this person was confused however because I did mention one can “subscribe” to a blog however the big difference is if you have newsreader software, use smart bookmarks or online services that read and import updates from blog you don’t have to provide an e-mail address or give personal information. Those are two different means of “subscription.” A squeeze page is “squeezing” something out of you like and e-mail address in exchange for their information.

While squeeze pages are not always a bad thing I think I really need to communicate the idea behind the totally free RSS subscription.

Another person asked if a blog was something someone else used to write on your web site. I explained that while a person can leave a comment on your blog the owner of the blog/website is the one who either does the writing or is responsible for seeing someone within their organization does it. This however did lead to a great conversation on the subject of commenting on blogs. I explained that when I was giving my presentation I was essentially “blogging” in person and when they were asking questions or sharing their thoughts they were “commenting.” Blogging can very much be a like a business network meeting or seminar except it’s online and you don’t have to be their in person all the time.

One final question I was asked was, “Do you build web sites?” I actually mentioned that in my introduction but after talking for so long about blogging and podcasting I guess the idea seemed totally separate and different. Yes, our major product is web site development however all of our site have the build in functionality for our clients to log into their web sites and post updates without touching the web site design itself.

I hope this follow up not only help those who attended the meeting this morning but also others who find the vast terminology confusing. Any other questions?