I was reading an article about the Swerdlick family from Plymouth Minn. Here Father Dave and his two daughters Hannah and Zoe (ages 10ish-12) produce Kid Friday. The show is the three of them talking tech. Let’s face it kids love new stuff. I was at a McDonald’s the day after Christmas and overheard a child say to her father, “Do you know what I want for next Christmas?” When the father groaned and said, “Let’s not talk about next Christmas.” The child then said, “OK, do you know what I want for my birthday?” Kids love new stuff.
Consequently, Kid Friday has been downloaded or streamed online by hundreds of thousands of kids worldwide.
The fun part is if you look at the iTunes standings, the show is beating shows produced by Nickelodeon, Universal Studios, and Disney.
Not too shabby for a guy who was looking for something the whole family could enjoy. Mom is typically “in the studio” when recording takes place for moral support.
They’ve been sent some free stuff from people like Mattel. As Dave put it, “When Mattel calls you up and says they’ve noticed you, well, that’s certainly something.”
So if you think you can never make it on the charts on iTunes, Dave and the girls are proving you wrong.
Cutting Out the Background Noise
Maybe you bought a condenser microphone for the clarity and you now notice that this mic picks up EVERYTHING. Well here is a tool that can help you cut out the background noise. I’ve seen different varieties of this type of solution. This is the first one I’ve seen for $99. Please note: I have not used this item. I only post this for your awareness.
Here is the description: The Primacoustic VoxGuard is a high-performance ambient noise attenuator designed to mount on a microphone stand & surround a recording microphone to help control the sound from entering the microphone by minimizing the reflections in the room. Made from lightweight, high-impact ABS plastic with a high-density open-cell acoustic foam liner, VoxGuard fits onto a mic stand using the mic clip to hold it in place.
Sick Your Audience on Your Next Guest
One host is in Kansas, the other host is in Liverpool England. The one thing they have in common is a skype connection, a love of soccer/football, and a team (Everton). The podcast is called the falltonians.
They wanted an “A list” soccer player Landon Donovan to come on the show. They didn't have to beg to get him to come on. Why? Their loyal (global) audience sent messages to Donovan via Twitter until he agreed.
That strategy paid off and landed the Fallowtonians a world-exclusive interview. That episode has gotten more than 14,000 hits since its release in late December. The high volume far exceeded the average of 2,000 downloads. Quotes from the interview also made their way into Liverpool newspaper headlines as well as a story in the New York Post.
Once again, a podcast is a great way to establish a global audience that when united in the effort can make things happen.
