Walkabout In The UK

JOhn, have you been forgetting the meds again? ^_^
 

This has been an interesting diversion for the last 30 mins, reading all about Rock and Roll.

Knowing where the tipping point is the important thing I think John. You want to do it, and like to do it, but as soon as it 'needs' to be done, then it can be a struggle.

I can see, as Andy has mentioned, there are many areas where the whole process can contain even more useful material, but then I am also aware of when someone's time is money. At that point the fun stops and work begins.

I'm trying to keep the process fun as I think the listeners 'feel' the vibe. The next development has to be a more organised delivery system, but keeping the same high standards. Ie NOT the Trailwise video clips on uTube etc. IMHO that is!

The subject matter is massive, the interest high and the escapism delightful. I would even go so far to say that magazines are beginning to take second place to blogging/podcasters. Of course the natural next step is for sponsors/advertisers to then get involved and that is where each individual will have to make a choice to accept it or not, as it will impact on how they feel they present themselves to the world?

So get ready bloggers. I wouldn't be suprised if you start to get approached very soon, (some have obviously) by people with money.

If you do, will you, why would you, and of course how much? ;-))

Interesting times .....
 

Bob - sell my soul for £££££? Surely not,we're all in it for the love and fame
;-)
Not too sure I'd agree about the short time frame - it's bang for bucks with marketing and I know how many visitors this site gets. I certainly wouldn't pay for advertising exposure on here!
But talking about that perhaps I should post a pic of myself and use the tags naked nude etc etc and get those hits up.
Eeer then again maybe not today

Hows that Darren for better medication?
;-)
 

John,
pmsl, I've been discussing this with Bob via email this afternoon. And I think from talking with Bob (and I'm sure he will correct me on this if I'm wrong, which I most likely will be), it's not the page hits/views that count but (and say this in hushed tones and dramatic music) the "SPHERE OF INFLUENCE".

Unfortunately I don't have the emails at home to refer to, so I won't dig my hole any bigger. But will add another comment from work (one day I MAY actually do what I'm paid to during the day ;) )
 

Sounds suspiciously like 6 degrees of seperation

After a buzzword infested course earlier this week no way I even want to think about that today!
 

I know that my posting above sounds mickey taking but it isn't. I think I can see thepoint Bob was making.
The easiest way to think of it is (and this just came to me in the shower), trade magazines. They don't have circulation figures to match the news stand magazines. In fact they may have very limited print runs indeed. However they are being read by the people that decide what to put on the shelf of their store/shop/site. So by grabbing their attention you can influence what people buy. And it's how trade shows work as well.
I maybe wrong in the above (Bob please correct me).
And yes podcasts and blogs can be like that, but I think they are more a hybrid and don't fit easily into either school of thought, ie page hits or "spheres of influence" (which sounds very dilbert-ish).
Anyway Bob made a prediction (I'll let him post it if he wants), and it will probably be me as I am such a whore when it comes to money. Just look at what my current employer does to me before I take my shilling from them ;)
 

http://www.podcastingnews.com/2007/02/14/business-week-calls-podcasting-the-next-big-ad-medium/

http://www.podcastingnews.com/2007/02/13/podcast-advertising-market-to-be-400-million-by-2011/

Certainly seems as though the Americans are expecting big returns from podccasting.
 

I bet if you all wore 'I'm an Outdoor Blogger' T-Shirts at the NEC, you would be suprised at the number of trade readers you might already have.

As Darren rightly says (amasingly) it is the knock-on effect of that influence. How much it is worth, even if you want to 'sell it' I have no idea.

But I can assure all of you reading this, I know of at least a dozen key players in the industry who regularly check out the chit chat on your blogs!!!!

Yeah - okay - they get bored at work too ;-)
 

Bob, see I was paying attention ;)

So we bloggers aren't the only ones that have no life then? ^__^

At current rates Aktoman's media empire will be bigger than the Fox Network sometime around the middle of next week I believe.
 

Glad to see this topic has struck such a cord & that it's not just me wondering out loud about what to do with my own format, and where blogging might go as it develops. And develop it must, or stagnate and disappear (After all this is the internet we're talking about here!)

Darren/Bob - the trade mags is an interesting metaphor to work with. But as to the trade itself keeping an eye, yep perhaps they are as bored as some of us during their work day, and getting paid to "monitor the market" sounds just the part-time job for me.

George - cheers for the links. Slightly suspicious of the advertising element, but ever since the finances related to Google & YourTube rolled around the money markets there's always someone looking for the next development opportuinty. Or lets just call it profit. Then again anyone remember the tech bubble. Heeheehee
 

The thing about user-generated-content is that it relies on the user to generate the content for the company making the business. The next stage in the business model is for the company (google/blogger, google/youtube, or whoever) to pay a share of the advertising revenue that the user generates for the host. Below a certain number of click-throughs, the money is used to pay for the hosting (and 'losses' on non-profitable sites). YouTube then becomes the media version of eBay.

And then there is the issue of copyright, libel and slander to take into account.

Get rid of the spammers and virus-peddlers, and YouTube could use the bandwidth freed up on the Net to increase the resolution/quality of their hosted clips. Now, that's a radical thought: reclaim the Net!
 

Reclaim the net? I'm old enough to remember bulletin boards!

I understand pay to click, but there is direct and indirect income. The innovative models on the internet are unique in being the first real divergance from established business models for quite a few years. It allows extremely low cost start up, limited overheads and potentially worldwide volume turnover. As such there's no rule books except basic business practice and even some of may now be questionable.
But isn't this getting away from the main point - we blog coz we enjoy it, and the £/$ thing is not part of the driver. Well at least not yet.
 

Aye, we blog cos we enjoy it, and someone else gets the advertising revenue from our enjoyment.

Talent shines through, and a blogger lands a book deal from the established media. I fail to see that as a breakthrough. The established media is just hoping that the blogger can sell books to her readership. Good for her.

That is not using the possibilities of the new media in a new way, but is a backward step into real life.

When wireless Net really takes off, and have access to portable readers, then, and only then will the death-nell of the old media ring. Except that they will continue to hold us in their thrall...don't believe me, just ask yourself who owns MySpace?
 

Portable readers? hhmmm, we'll have to disagree on that one.
A books is very tactile and easy to use. No overheads (well just the bookmark) and no hidden costs Every electronic book format I've ever seen has failed to address that core requirement.
 

And no book I ever read included Internet access, or multimedia content. The future is coming. Maybe not tomorrow, or the next day, but someday soon.
 

now thats just nostalgia