ThePodcastSisters

3 Podcasting Tips from Grammar Girl

I was privileged yesterday to listen to a session held by Mignon Fogarty. Mignon is better known as Grammar Girl, the incredibly successful female podcaster who gives quick tips on how to improve your day to day writing.

Mignon was asked during the session what advice would she give someone who is thinking of podcasting. Here are her 3 tips

1. Start! Don't be frightened.. just start, you can evolve over time but don't wait for perfection...just take those first steps.
2. Produce your show on a consistent basis.
3. Keep your format consistent - it helps build loyalty with the listeners.

I love the fact that Mignon concentrates on Start! For many non geeks, it can appear frightening, you can be scared of making a hash of it....but in a sense if you are not frightened as a small business owner, than in general you are probably not pushing yourself far enough. Each day I try and feel just a little frightened...because then I know I am pushing my comfort zone.       

Want a Photo next to Your URL?

Mark Ecclestone has just shared over at Facebook a way of putting your photo next to your URL.

Interesting way of building your brand awareness.

Mark is also a superb photographer - check out his blog The Green Fingered Photographer for some wonderful nature shots. Mark has also launched a 2008 Calendar and free photos to use as  your blog headers on his website, I notice...another example of how people are using blogs to showcase their talent.

Show # 20 - Corporate Podcasting

In this week's audio show, we share strategies we teach our clients to support them in enhancing employee engagement, embedding training and development, effective project management and leading change programmes all using corporate podcasts.

Get ready to take notes so that you too can use corporate podcasting as a medium to enhance your communication plan.

Join us over at the Podcast Sisters Facebook group to discuss this week's show and also do give us feedback and share ideas for future shows that will deliver value to YOU. You can also send us an email to podcast.sisters@googlemail.com.

If you want to know more the strategies we shared on the show and how to apply them in your business, contact Krishna De or Anna Farmery

REMEMBER SUBSCRIPTION TO THE PODCAST SISTERS IS FREE! 

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Can you speak your business in 30 Seconds or less?

Many small businesses fail because they try and be all things to all people....you know the feeling, you don't want to shut down a potential revenue stream. The problem is that you lose focus on what your business actually is and how to explain it to others.

Having a clear idea of what your business is and being able to explain that in 30 seconds is important for networking and meeting clients alike.

If you are struggling to focus your goals then try Ann Convery - Speak Your Business in 30 Seconds Or Less. This is not an affiliate program or anything...it is just a great download that I keep on my iPod and whenever I am losing my sense of direction I play it! It may help you...

New Books in Our Bookstore

I have updated The Podcast Sisters bookstore with 6 more books that are worth taking a look at...

The Long Tail which is a great read to understand sales revenue
The World is Flat which is looks at how the business world has changed and how globalisation has changed the business rules.
3 Books on Podcasting:- Business Podcasting, How to Everything with Podcasting and Podcasting for Profit.
New Rules of Marketing and PR (I interview David Meerman Scott on The Engaging Brand podcast for a quick insight into his ideas). This book helps you understand how marketing has changed from selling the product to joining the conversation.

How to make money podcasting...

... was the question a journalist asked me today. Karen Coleman is a friend who has a radio show on Newstalk, one of the national radio shows in Ireland and I was speaking to her about whether she would like to join us at PodCamp Ireland next week as I know she had expressed an interest some time ago to start podcasting and blogging.

Like many people in business, they often think about how they can spend time creating a podcast which then turns into immediate profit. Karen was concerned that podcasting would not be a financially interesting option for her.

How to monetise and profit from podcasting is a conversation that Paul Colligan and I have had a number of times and Paul is great at getting you to think about developing a strategy for your podcast.

If you are in a situation where you are just getting started podcasting, if you do not have a specific brand or great reputation with a solid following (ideally having build your list) then to be frank, it's highly unlikely that you will be able to monetise your podcast immediately. Podcasting however, just as blogging, is a great way to build your reputation, express your expertise and build your personal brand, from which many opportunties will flow as we have covered on recent shows.

This week I had the opportunity to speak to Leesa Barnes, who I first got to know of via my good friend Andy Wibbels when Leesa was a coach. Leesa is now an author - her new book "Podcasting for Profit" will be formally launched next week and we recorded a podcast for The PodCast Sisters - we'll broadcast it when I'm here left on my own and Heather and Anna are off on their foreign tour!

We had a great conversation and covered a lot of great tips and strategies about profitable podcasting.

However if you can not wait for the show, you can mouse over to get a couple of chapters of Leesa's book and if you do so before the 25 September 2007, she will invite you to a live 75 minute teleclass about podcasting for profit. Leesa has declared the 25 September podcasting for profit day so if you are wondering how you can take your podcast to the next level, do make sure you join her.

The Future of the Web

We will be recording the next Podcast Sisters audio show on Sunday night and will e discussing how we see the web progressing over the next couple of years and how we are building that into our plans for our businesses. If you have a thought, an idea then let us know as a comment and we will share with all the listeners!

Entrepreneur Success Stories and Tips

As a business owner I understand the trials and tribulations of starting your own business. It is exciting, it is exhilarating, it is also tiring and draining. So each month we will ask for articles to inspire other people to keep going, to follow their dream and also to share tips on how to turn a dream into a successful business venture. Here is our first blog carnival. I have included a personal story of mine, of how learning to cope with pressure has helped me in the business world,

Millionaire Mommy Next Door presents How I Became a Millionaire While Working In My Pajamas posted at Millionaire Mommy Next Door, saying, "From minimum wage to millionaire, here's the story of my entrepreneurial journey."

Anna Farmery presents Trust is the Key to Pressure at The Engaging Brand, saying "Coping with pressure is all about trust"

Sagar Satapathy presents The Woman Entrepreneurs Toolbox: 100 Networking Resources, Guides and Links posted at Bootstrapper.

Ben Yoskovitz presents 3 Tips To Startup Success posted at Instigator Blog, saying, "3 tips for success when starting a company - related to your competition, getting help and knowing your customers."

Fiona Lohrenz presents Tips for Starting a Day Care posted at Child Care Only.

Doris Chua presents H.O.W. Feature - Gayla McCord posted at A Meeting Place for All Home Office Women.

Sam presents Starting a Home-Based Business. Mommy Millionaire Did It All posted at Surfer Sam and Friends, saying, "For real-world information about building a product and a business, Mommy Millionaire takes the prize. This book is the roadmap to success for anyone who's ever had a dream of going into business."

Millionaire Mommy Next Door presents The Powerful (and Addictive) Nature of Giving posted at Millionaire Mommy Next Door, saying, "I've come up with an idea that has me covered in goosebumps every time I think about it.  And that's a feeling I want to pass on."

MabelandHarry presents Successful Careers are Made, Not Given at MabelandHarry

That concludes this edition.  Submit your blog article to the next edition of entrepreneur success stories using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Google Launches Presentation Tool

The Google Blog has launched the much awaited presentation tool. Again this is a free tool which will help with small business but also allows you to store your documents on line which means that there is no risk of loss of data.
I am presenting later this week and have done it on line using Google Docs. This will save me taking my laptop as I will just access it from the computer based at the client. I will then share the presentation with the client instead of emailing or uploading the work...easy, simple, straightforward...I hope! This is what Google say

"... a web-based platform for creating, sharing, storing, and publishing documents; it now includes capabilities for word processing, spreadsheets, and presentations.

• Create and keep presentations in one place on the web that's accessible anytime, from any Internet connected computer.
• Manage, update and share presentations with colleagues by sending them a simple email invitation.
• Edit together online and in real time, or contribute at different times to the same presentation on the web.
• Present and control slide shows for all viewers over the web, with no special setup required. Chat with viewers in real-time via integrated chat.
• Import existing presentations to get started quickly.
• Quickly publish presentations to the general public or individuals of their choice

Show # 019 - Productivity Tools

In this week's audio show, the Podcast Sisters Anna, Heather and Krishna discuss the tools that they use to improve their productivity as small business owners. Time is a scarce resource and managing your time is so critical, that knowing which on line tools can help will hopefully help you achieve even greater success.

Here are the sites we reference during the show:

Google Calendar - For managing your calendar on line

Skype - Reducing the cost of your telephone bill

Google Picasa - For managing your photo's on line

iCal - For managing your calendar on line (Mac Based)

Facebook - For managing your contact list

Ziggs - Managing Your Online Relationships and Reputation

Mediamax - For uploading large files

Flikr - For managing your photos on line

You Send It - For uploading large files

Slideshare - For sharing powerpoint presentations

iStockPhoto - For finding photography for presentations etc

Podcamp Ireland

Podcamp UK

Do come and join us over at the Podcast Sisters Facebook group to discuss tonight's shows and also ideas for future shows that will deliver value to YOU. Remember get your questions into us at podcast.sisters@googlemail.com.

If you want to know more about us here are our profiles and the groups that we have for our companies
Anna Farmery
Heather Gorringe
Krishna De

REMEMBER SUBSCRIPTION IS FREE! 

1) To listen now on line without any downloads then click on the Blubrry image below

blubrry.com

2) Or to subscribe in iTunes      

3) Or if you use a different podcatcher then here are the feed details

What's this?
or copy the address in the field below to your podcast software: