Brady Media Group

Alright, I’ll admit it.
I’m 45.
And re-inventing my career at this point?
Re-creating the definition of how a journalist creates compelling content and earns his pay?
Re-defining objectivity and perspective?
Well, yes.

But I’m certainly not the only one.
Or the oldest.
According to a study published this summer by the Kauffmann Foundation, I’m not even old enough yet to fit the demographic with the highest rate of entrepreneurial activity!

Turns out, the guys betwen 55 and 64 have been the most active entrepreneurs over the last decade, and this study indicates that trend will grow due to the recession, an increasing life span and the shrinking tenure offered by corporate America.

So 45 is the new 35?
Regardless, I am going the direction of a remarkable number of men my age, and older. Re-inventing the concept of career path when most of my peers are hitting that pinnacle of attractive salary, tenure and office size.

My move was driven by several things, actually.
A thirst for control, a dissatisfaction with the state of my current industry and a passion to build something unique as a legacy. Not uncommon factors in entrepreneurial start-ups, I’m told.

In a recent NYTimes article by Mickey Meece, analysts say entrepreneurship is on the rise this year. The author cites LegalZoom, the online legal document service, as a barometer. The number of new businesses it helped to form was up 10 percent in the first half of the year, compared with the period a year earlier.

“We were surprised,” says Brian Liu, co-founder and chairman of LegalZoom. “We expected there to be a drastic downtick.”

LegalZoom’s top five areas of incorporation were real estate, consulting, Internet (including electronic commerce), retail, and construction and contractors.

No journalists in the bunch.
As for my venture, I am really interested in re-designing the business model and the notion of how journalism is crafted and served up to the public. Why do all businesses abdicate their journalism needs – or leave it in the hands of the often-cavalier, old-media entities – instead of creating their own content?

I am a disciple of David Meerman Scott and his compelling treatise on the rise and impact of organic media – The New Rules of Marketing and PR.

In it, he forecasts and future in which smart agencies, companies, consultants and non-profits will take charge of their own media footprint by crafting organic text, audio and video media for the public to access directly in an increasingly on-demand, digital media environment.

So that’s what I aim to do. Create an agency of journalists (some laid off, some who took a leap of faith like me…) who are available to create great media campaigns – in-house digital newsrooms, in effect – for clients who recognize the power of organic media.

Am I aware that starting a business in the worst downturn in decades is akin to setting out during a hurricane to paddle a canoe across Lake Ponchartrain?
Well, yes. I know the statistics.
Only two-thirds of new small businesses survive at least two years, according to the Small Business Administration. That survival rate plummets to 44 percent at four years, and to 31 percent at seven.

But to continue to quote Mickey Meece, in a report released this summer on innovation, Ernst & Young wrote, “Experience shows that entrepreneurs should not give up on start-ups in a down economy.”

Many companies with billion-dollar market capitalizations were started during a recession, the report said, including Starbucks, Intuit and PetSmart. Now there’s some encouragement!

Research from Kauffman in June found that more than half of the companies on the Fortune 500 list in 2009 and nearly half of the companies on the Inc. magazine 2008 list were founded during a recession or bear market. Hope springs eternal!

So there you go.
I’m still 45.
Still plying the treacherous lake in a Hurricane.
A journalist leading other journalists-for-hire.
Call it a mid-life crisis of a guy in his 40’s.

But as an entrepreneur, I’m in good company.

We’re now up to 15.5 million blogs. And 1.5 million blog posts per day.
That’s only in English. There are many more in other languages. But by any count, it’s a lotta typing. Lots of people with an opinion, attitude, remark or observation.. who want to share.

The diversity and even obscurity are amazing. Grandmothers are blogging about dentures and healthcare. Bulldog owners are blogging about the hardships of breeding the animals (sorry about that mental picture). And of course sports zealots are blogging with obsessive abandon about their particular team, player or scandal. Pick a topic… any topic.

Want to read the rantings of a birdwatcher who also discusses old books and old buildings? Try http://thequacksoflife.blogspot.com.

Would you prefer a forum to read and comment on substandard TV sports commentators or anchors? How about http://awfulannouncing.blogspot.com/

Or you might prefer the real estate musings and advice of Donald Trump. In that case, try http://www.trumpuniversity.com/blog/index.cfm

My point is, blogging has now become ubiquitous. You would be hard-pressed to find a topic or perspective NOT addressed by the brewing blogosphere of arm-chair advocates or house-bound commentators.

And we might finally be at a plateau, according to a recent BlogSpotting article posted by Heather Green. She offers the possibility that everyone who wants to blog – is already blogging. The data complied by blogging directory www.Technorati.com suggests that the rapid growth of the blogosphere is now tapering off. And, as with any media forum, only the best content now rises to the top.

Still, if you are exploring the possibility of blogging to expand your brand or corporate marketing reach, how do you step out in confidence?

Derick Schaefer, founder and principal owner of Dallas-based Orangecast Social Media, has some ideas. “It’s a vehicle to showcase products and solutions for companies.”
Derick sat in on our Media Mix podcast recently to describe how he’s turned blogging into a profitable enterprise for his online marketing agency, and for his clients.
“One of our clients is in the school science supply business,” he says. “They have more than 600 SKU’s, including a lot of science lab products, like frogs for dissection or caterpillars that will turn into butterflies. One challenge was finding a way to list the company’s inventory in a way that end users found attractive. So we came up with a blog called Gadget Science to help connect children with science… and lab supplies.”

Schaefer joined us this month at Dunn Brothers Coffee in Addison for a podcast ranging from his business partner’s wildly successful sports blog, Midwest Sports Fans, to his preferred methodology behind a successful blog.

“A good blog opens the door,” he says. “It gets the conversation started. If you look at our post on the butterfly life cycle, for instance, we cover the most common questions that kids ask, we help parents get involved and we describe the stuff you might need for this kind of study… painted lady caterpillars, butterfly nets, pins for mounting, and even instruction for how to feed the caterpillars. All this information transforms a basic product database into a solution for parents and teachers who want to make science interesting for grade-schoolers.”

Orangecast offers blogging strategies, blog design and even continuous blog management for companies ranging from small business owners to attorneys to hedge fund companies, all of whom recognize the importance of extending their brand into the Web 2.0 arena of blogging.

“This is really a way of connecting with your clients or your user base. For Gadget Science, the owners of the supply company are all ex-educators, they’re teachers. They’re experts in their industry, and this is a way of putting their personality and their know-how together in a way that a teacher might explain a scientific topic to a class or even a parent. We’re using the blog to solve a problem.”

I asked Schaefer about the basic principles for any small business owner considering a blog.
“First,” he says, “keep it simple. If you can’t right it out on a napkin, don’t put it on the internet. Second, consider the legal aspects. Do you need to concern yourself with liability issues or copyrights? Are you willing to have it syndicated? And what about a privacy policy? These issues matter when you’re publishing material on the internet.” Lastly, Schaefer says ROI is the bottom line. “We need to see a return on the investment. For every hour I put in on this blog, what am I getting out of it? Is it making my phone ring? Does it compliment my meet-and-greet, those hand-shakes and the networking?”

Schaefer says one post a week is sufficient for most blogs, and a single post may be only a few hundred words.
“Give yourself a time-frame and then measure the results. I would recommend a six-month time frame to get started.”

Jeff Brady of Brady Media Group, Ted Price and Derick Shaefer of OrangeCast Social Media discuss blogs and blogging.

Tweeting is fun.
LinkedIn connections are powerful.
But I think the future of on-line, digital communication is all about video. Granted, I’m biased because my entire career in journalism has been in TV newsrooms. But let’s look at the numbers:

Skype has 481 million registered users.
And Youtube is now the 3rd-most popular website, passing MSN this month with 85.1 million US visitors in July.
Wow. That’s a lotta eyeballs on-line.

And a recent study by Ipsos MediaCT found that in the last 30 days – during July & August 2009 – 26% of those people with internet access have streamed a full-length TV show and 14% have streamed a full-length movie. And that’s twice as many as in September 2008. Blame Hulu.com. Have you checked it out yet? It’s a digital video website that provides high-quality film and video online without the hiccups and jerky, grainy viewing.

Yes, the ubiquitous TV screen is still by far the dominant video-watching platform. But online content is gaining ground.

It’s inevitable.
We are video-centric society. Researchers have long known that we learn best by watching. We consume information better by observing it than by reading it.
Tell me how to swing a golf club and I kinda get the idea, but show me how it’s done by Tiger Woods on a golf course and I’ll pick it up much more quickly.

So what does this mean for you and me? The small business owner, start-up, local non-profit or freelancer? Well, I would argue that we ALL need to consider using video to tell the world what we have to offer. It’s a global platform unlike any other. Online and on-demand.

Share your expertize or personality or know-how with the entire world using a tiny video-camera and a little practice. Or hire a media coach like one of us at Brady Media Group. We’ve all spent our careers creating quality content for TV newsrooms. Now we’re doing much the same for our clients. Consider a podcast on your industry. Or a short video clip highlighting your product or service. Or maybe just a white paper that explains a problem you clients have – and how you solve it for them. Above all, create something useful.

Would it do any good? Well you might want to ask John Tuggle, a guitar teacher in Athens, Georgia. He was struggling to make a living by teaching music and by selling his instructional book on-line. Not much luck.

Then, on a lark, he decided to try video. He taped a few short video clips on “How to Play Guitar” and posted them. Pretty soon, the Gibson Guitar company found him on YouTube and offered to make Tuggle one of their ‘recommended’ instructors. Suddenly, business picked up. He started selling more books. Now he teaches about 40 students from all over the world using Skype video-conferencing and has 10 more on a waiting list. Here’s the whole story:
http://searchengineland.com/a-small-business-marketing-success-story-john-tuggle-guitar-teacher-13746

So the question remains: What can you show the world using video that might grow your business? Be honest. Be passionate. Be brief. Two minutes is the max. Show something useful. Sove a problem.
Then create an account on-line. Post your video. And see what happens. If you need help, send me an e-mail @ jeff@bradymediagroup.com.

We’re the content guys. And we’re here to help.