Finally taking this thing seriously

A few months ago I said I was going to take some time off, figure out what it is I really wanted to accomplish with blogging, podcasting, videocasting and so on. After years of messing around and tinkering I've finally got things figured out and will be bringing several new businesses and blogs online over the next few weeks. It's ok, I can talk about them now because I have already put the wheels in motion.

This blog, digitalthom.com, will refocus on digital media; podcasting, videos and music. I will move all of my personal items off this blog and over to thomallen.com which will act as my personal website.

My personal website, thomallen.com will have content about me; hobbies, interests, my family and the things they are doing. I hope to post a lot of photos and videos as we are out and about.

I will be porting all my current NASCAR entries and future entries to a new racing network I've put together. Using blogs and forums, my plan is to build a great racing community. I had been thinking about this type of site for some time. A comment made to me by a read explaining they knew nothing about NASCAR and what I was saying didn't make sense, caused me to accelerate putting the finishing touches on the site. So one of the things this new site will do is have an area dedicated to helping readers become racing fans

As most of you know I produce a Jazz music podcast. I've been doing it for nearly a year and I have enjoyed it very much. The show spotlights indie bands and their music. I wanted to find a way to get more of their music in listeners hands, and I am pretty sure I have. This is one new site I won't give too many details until its complete and online. But, if you're an indie band, of any type music, you will want to participate, send an email to indie @ digitalthom . com for more information.

A new site I have brought online is mobileCIO.com. This site has been the longest in the planning stage. I think it will have the biggest impact. There's a critical need for executive level IT direction in a lot of companies. mobileCIO fills that role by acting as a companies CIO/CTO either short or long term. Visit the site for more information.

And finally my real estate site, onehothome.com. I've been a licensed Realtor for about 15 years. My current website will undergo a face lift and add a lot of new media content such as podcasts, and videos. Adding market data, lice maps, virtual home shows, extensive searching, how-to's, interviews and a shopping area, will make this the one stop place for real estate needs.

So there, I've spilled the beans and have laid out a course of action. There are a few more business ideas to bring together including a new podcast. I'll be busy but it will be well worth it. Thanks for listening. Now back to the regularly scheduled programming.

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The Jazz Show #23

Visit the website, jazz.thepodcastnetwork.com or stream it below.

[audio:http://jazz.thepodcastnetwork.com/audio/tpn_thejazzshow_20070329_23.mp3]

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Would you be the one Gene Simmons calls?

Today I was watching a re-run of Gene Simmons Family Jewels. Nothing real interesting, except that unlike Ozzie Osborne, Gene isn't falling all over himself and speaking in tongues. But, there was a part in the show where Genes family makes him go on a vacation. The first thing Gene does is call a business partner and tells him "I want to meet the most influential people in X city; the Mayor, business leaders, the real estate guru. Make it happen."

It occurred to me after he said this, would I be the on Genes business partner called? If not, why?

If you're in business for yourself, word of mouth is probably your best marketing tool. But are you visible enough to be THE one who is called? I asked myself that question and it's an astounding NO. But why? I imagine the answer is varied based on your capacity to handle new customers or your desired growth.

Think about where you are or where you want to be and decide if you want to be the one Gene Simmons calls when he is looking for the product or service you provide.

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Utah Blogger Dinner

Just found out, yes just a minute ago, there is a geek dinner in Draper, Utah. You find out more on Robert Merrill's Utah Tech Job site. I'm going to attend, first time I've done something like this. Should be interesting.

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Twitter vs. Blogging, what’s going on?

If you are a Twitter user, then you probably understand what all the hype is about. If you're a blogger who doesn't tweet, you probably also understand.

I've been tweeting some over the past few weeks. I have a few friends, mainly people who's blogs I read, I also subscribe to their tweets.

Tweeting is kind of as you go thoughts, links, what's on your mind. Blogging isn't really designed for that. Blogging takes some thought, organization, and more time. Tweets are fast and can get a point or thought across without all the formality of blogging.

I've seen Twitter used in a couple of ways. Some just through out random thoughts or actions as they are doing them. Some pass on tinyurl.com links to cool sites or even their own blog posts. Half the time I forget to tweet about what I'm doing. Mainly because I don't think anyone who sees my twits gives a crap about what I'm doing.

So you're basically left with two types of tweets, ones that are random thoughts which most people won't care about, or ones that have something of value that someone wants to share with an audience. But isn't that what RSS is supposed to accomplish? Yes, but only for blog posts.

Here is an example of what I'm talking about. Chris Pirillo sends (used to) links through twitter to his and other vids on the net. Chris Brogan is also very good at sending links to very cool content.

I don't think this was the original intent of Twitter. However, I think making quick twits has value just like a blog post can. It's all in what you deliver.

Join me as a friend on Twitter.

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