We were happy to welcome BlogTalkRadio veteran host, Paul Lawrence Vann to BlogTalkRadio University recently. During his 5 years on the network, he has hosted over 400 episodes of The Wealthy Speaker Show, interviewing bestselling authors, social media experts, actors, relationship gurus, creative thought leaders, and more.
On the show with us, he shared his wisdom for landing great guests & more valuable hosting tips. Tune in here.
Best-selling author Guy Kawasaki believes Google+ will ultimately win the social networking game. “This is Google, after all,” he said on BlogTalkRadio University earlier this week, noting that we shouldn’t underestimate the power of the No. 1 search engine.
Guy shared ready-to-apply tips from his book with the BTR community. Select the image above to listen to the podcast.
Guy’s chat with us was not only informative — he answered a bunch of BTR listener and host questions — but also super entertaining. At one point, he likened himself to the Pope! Listen to the full interview for a fun breakdown of this important social networking tool.
OUR BURNING GOOGLE+ QUESTIONS
Besides buying his new book (on Amazon as both softcover and ebook versions, in the iBooks store, at Barnes & Noble as both Nook and softcover versions), we asked Guy the best way our BTR community can get started on G+.
Q: Should our hosts create a personal page or a branded page?
Guy: Branded pages have limitations because the person has to follow you before you can follow that person back. Your hosts are people first, brands second. If you’re representing Boeing or Porsche or Procter & Gamble, then yes, create a brand page. But for most solo practitioners, create a personal page.
Guy: Twitter is about gaining perspective, such as how long the line is at Starbucks, there’s an earthquake in Peru, etc. And Facebook is for pre-existing friends — people you know enough to care about their baby, their cat rolling over, etc. — you’re connected by blood or history. Google+ is about passions. For instance, very few of my Facebook friends share my passion for photography, so I can share those posts on Google+, which is for finding people you don’t know yet who share a common interest with you.
Q: Can you talk about the power of Google behind G+?
Guy: No one knows search like Google. Let’s say you’re interested in SXSW but can’t go this year, so during it, you want to know what’s happening. If type SXSW into Google, you’ll see standard coverage by the New York Times, Mashable, CNet, etc. All the journalistic entities. But if you type the same keyword into Google+, you’ll see posts by people you know — insider posts that are remarkably different from, say, the Christian Science Monitor‘s posts on it. Google+ gives you more personalized results.
Q: Since many of our BTR hosts have shows on topics they’re passionate about, what’s the simplest way to grow their audience on G+?
[Guy's answer to this one was short and smart. Listen to the interview online to find out this simple-yet-powerful tip.]
Google+ is one of the most powerful ways BTR hosts can grow their listening audience.
Q: What’s the best way to use G+ for self-promotion?
Guy: I use what I call The NPR Model: NPR provides good content 365 days a year. Every so often, they run the telethons to fundraise. We tolerate them because we feel a sense of obligation. So what you should do is become a sector expert and promote good content all the time, so that when you want to promote your stuff, people won’t be offended. The community doesn’t tolerate pimping all the time.
[Listen to the full interview for a real-life example on how to market your local business.]
Q: How often should we post?
Guy: I post 10 times a day, 365 days a year. But that’s what works for me. 10 times a day is only too much if you post crap. I don’t post crap. I post between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. PT, the prime time for posting. I use tools for scheduling posts. [To find out which ones, listen in.]
Q: Should we make all our posts public?
Guy: 100% of my posts are completely public. I understand the utility of posting to a specific circle, but I’m trying to post to my followers. Every post goes to my closest 2.8 million friends.
Installing Guy-approved tools will optimize your G+ experience. Listen to our interview to find out which ones.
GUY’S TOP 3 G+ TOOLS
There are 3 tools Guy considers indispensable for optimizing your G+ experience. Listen to the complete interview to find out which ones are Guy-approved.
TALKBACK
Are you on Google+? If so, comment below with your profile so we can add you to our Circles!
And feel free to share some of your favorite G+ tips!
Visit Guy’s G+ profile and add him to your Circles.
For newbies and advanced users, with tools to optimize G+
Show of hands: How many of you started your G+ profile but couldn’t get the hang of it or find the energy for another social network?
Tech entrepreneur Guy Kawasaki will change all that.
On Tuesday 8/28 at 1PM EST, Guy will answer questions from the BTR community and turn doubters into believers.
The best-selling author of What The Plus, Google+ For The Rest of Us, Guy calls G+ the “better social network,” for anyone looking to meet others who share their interests, because it’s simpler to use.
G+ expert Guy Kawasaki will answer your questions on Tues., 8/28, at 1PM ET on BTR.
Ask Guy Your Google+ Questions!
5 ways to send us your questions:
Online: Listen live and join the chatroom.
Twitter: Follow hashtag #GuyKOnBTR during the show or visit our twebevent.
Facebook: Ask questions and chat.
G+: Use hashtag #GuyKOnBTR or add your question or comment here.
Phone: Call in, ask a question and listen to the show at 323-843-6062.
To Review: You. Guy. Tomorrow. Tuesday. 1PM ET. Ready your questions for this special show!
Guy Kawasaki shares G+ tips on BTR on Tue., 8/28, at 1 PM ET.
Isn’t it cool to live in a world where tech industry superstars can enjoy a fan base comparable to those on the red carpet?
Original Apple employee, thought leader and bestselling author Guy Kawasaki has 2.8 million followers on Google+, 1.1 million Twitter followers and a combined 300K Facebook likes. Next week, he’ll tell BlogTalkRadio University why Google+ outperforms all other social networks. Hint: It’s not just a numbers game.
To Guy, Google+ — or G+ to the initiated — is as special as Macintosh. The author of 10 books (including Enchantment, The Art of the Start, How to Drive Your Competition Crazy and The Macintosh Way), Guy felt compelled to write his latest go-to guide, What the Plus! Google+ for the Rest of Us, because he considers G+ the better social network. With simpler tools and built-in search capabilities, G+ makes it incredibly easy to connect with others based on shared interests.
On Aug. 28, Guy will talk tips with the BTR community, so we all can learn how to get the most out of this rapidly growing social network.
Guy’s new book is loaded with tips for G+ newbies.
Get in the Conversation, Get on G+
If you haven’t taken a dip in the G+ swimming pool yet, mark your calendars for Tuesday, August 28, at 1 p.m. ET, when you can test the waters and get simple, ready-to-apply tips from Guy.
Tune in to learn valuable G+ tips like:
• How to circle (follow) people
• How to perfect your profile
• How to craft effective posts
• How to respond to comments
• How to share photos
BTR hosts: Learn about a powerful marketing platform for growing your show’s followers.
BTR listeners: Find out how much fun can be had expanding your circle of friends.
QUEUE UP YOUR G+ QUESTIONS
If you listen live, you can submit questions in the BTR chatroom or call-in at 323-843-6062 to ask a question and listen! Or you can submit your questions ahead of time on social media: Use hashtag #GuyKOnBTR to submit your question on Google+ or on Twitter, or post one on our Facebook page. Or, you can comment below!
Remember, Guy’s book is aimed at newbies, so no question is too small.
This value-packed show begins at 1 p.m. ET on Tuesday, Aug. 28. Get informed and get in the G+ inner circle!
It was a pleasure to have BTR Host Lara Galloway, AKA MomBizCoach on BlogTalkRadio University this week. Lara is a business coach to mom entrepreneurs and was recently named by Forbes as one of the top 30 women entrepreneurs to follow on Twitter (She has over 20K Twitter followers:). In her interview she shares how she built her brand on BlogTalkRadio along with what she has learned from hosting her show since 2009. This is a don’t miss episode if you are using BlogTalkRadio to help promote your business, brand, book or project! Tune in here.
A great way to get started hosting your radio show on BlogTalkRadio is to do a test show. Like with anything, it really pays to practice. Doing a test show will help you to get comfortable with your studio and also educate you on what to expect when you do your first show.
We get a lot of questions from hosts on the topic of test shows so we decided to do a show all about on BlogTalkRadio University. Listen to our archived show to learn how to do a test show and also get some tips on the process while you’re at it! Tune in.
Exciting news for BlogTalkRadio hosts! Your listeners will now able to connect their BlogTalkRadio accounts to Facebook and begin automatically sharing the BTR shows they are listening to on their Facebook timeline, in addition to seeing what their Facebook friends are listening to on the network.
What It Means For You
As a host on BlogTalkRadio, your show will now gain exposure to a much wider population and be more easily discovered by new listeners, in addition to boosting engagement with your current audience. BUT for this all to happen, you need to communicate this new feature to your current listeners.
How To Get Your Listeners On Board
Let your listeners know that they can now easily share their love for BTR hosts like yourself with their Facebook community and discover new hosts from their friend’s Facebook timelines by connecting their BlogTalkRadio accounts to Facebook.
Instruct your listeners to go to BlogTalkRadio.com and click on the “Connect using Facebook” button at the top of the page and follow the prompts. You can encourage your audience to do so when you are on air, through your social networks, your blog or even by email so they can easily share your show with their Facebook network.
Read up on this FAQ we prepared and share it with your listeners so they have all the facts. Then, sit back and get ready to be discovered by a whole new audience of listeners!
Why We’re Excited
It has been amazing to read the recent successes of other companies such as Spotify, Pinterest, Vevo, Fab.com, Foodspotting that have integrated with Facebook to drive significant traffic increases and engagement with content on their site. We are very excited to be working with Facebook on this update and help our hosts get the exposure they deserve!
Need More Info?
We did a special BlogTalkRadio University show all about our new integration with Facebook. You can listen to the archived show here.
We just did a show on Planning Committee all about tips on creating an audio intro for your BlogTalkRadio show that attracted our highest number of live listeners! Apparently, the topic is one that a lot of our hosts are wondering about and we were happy to provide some info on the topic.
An audio intro is a great way to add a fun element that your listeners can identify your program with. It’s actually another opportunity for you to personalize your broadcast and show your listeners a bit more of yourself, whether it be in the music you select or the way you write the intro script.
If you choose to use our platform to create the intro, it’s also a great way to get comfortable using the studio and working with audio clips – kind of like doing your first test show. There are 3 ways to go about creating an intro and a number of tips to keep in mind that we covered on this episode of Planning Committee. Tune in here.