Pursuit of Monetization (aka "how to get paid")

Week of March 25-29

Happy Friday everyone! This has been a very inspiring week, and not only that, very productive. Sometimes distraction gets the better of me, and not that I was totally focused all week, but I definitely started to get serious about laying the groundwork for how I take a content business in its infancy and begin to turn it into a content business that actually generates some revenue! More on that later in the newsletter. But for now, here’s what I’ve been up to!

AI Inside #10 - How AI Will Revolutionize the Classroom with Sal Khan

Something I’ve learned in the world of podcasting when it comes to booking amazing guests is this: All you gotta do is ASK. Seriously, the worst thing that can happen is they say no OR they say nothing at all. You lose nothing. BUT, often (and in my experience more often than not), they might surprise you and say yes.

Jeff Jarvis and I welcomed Salman Khan, Founder and CEO of Khan Academy, to join us on AI Inside this week to talk about the impact AI is having on the modern classroom, how educational norms are being challenged in the face of these new technologies, and what’s possible for learning AND for teaching when we embrace these tools as ways to deepen and enhance the pedagogical approach. Sal was incredibly gracious with his time and the interview was everything I had hoped for, and I’m super excited for his new book “Brave New Words” to come out in a few months.

Plus, Jeff and I discussed Emad Mostaque’s departure from Stability AI, the revised Tennessee ELVIS Act (during which Jeff really shifted my perspective on imitation of likeness), and reveled in some new footage that shows how technologies like OpenAI’s Sora is on the precipice of influencing Hollywood production as well as empowering aspiring filmmakers and storytellers around the world.

SUBSCRIBE: https://aiinside.show/episode/sal-khan-how-ai-will-revolutionize-the-classroom
SUPPORT: http://www.patreon.com/aiinsideshow

OnePlus Watch 2 Review: Everlasting Smartwatch

I’m dialing in my templates and my approach for these longer format product reviews on the Yellowgold Studios YouTube channel. I’m trying out a pretty cool approach where I put my script into a Google Doc and then add a Comment to every part of the script that requires a certain type of b-roll. Then I print out the list of Comments and check to be sure I have footage for everything. Then I lay out that footage on the timeline. Always looking for ways to become more efficient so I’m not constantly searching for things.

Also working with a different thumbnail approach to see if the faceless thumbnail gets more or less attention. So far, according to VidIQ, this video is trending higher faster than any of my other long-form reviews. So that’s something!

As for the OnePlus Watch 2, it absolutely delivers on its promise of battery for DAYS, even in full-Wear OS mode. It’s quite impressive. I’m not a fan of the weak haptics on the device, and the size is going to turn some people off (namely, those people with smaller wrists). But those who covet battery over all else have found their smartwatch.

SUBSCRIBE: http://www.youtube.com/@YellowgoldStudios
BUY THE ONEPLUS WATCH 2 (my affiliate link): https://amzn.to/3Txlo0w

Jason's Office Hours with Ant Pruitt: Tuesday, March 26 (OnePlus Watch 2)

What a treat it was to invite Ant Pruitt to join me for a solid hour of discussion around several topics related to our personal lives post-layoff, the challenges of making a go at this as an independent, finding the fire inside to motivate a push towards providing for our families, the technology we are relying upon to do multiple full-time jobs, his podcast Everyday People Everyday S**t, and so much more. Oh and Ant asked me to share some Cliffs Notes on my review of the OnePlus Watch 2 (which was just about to be published at the time of this recording.)

Ant is a person with an enormous heart, an incomparable work ethic, and biceps the size of St. Louis. I was grateful to spend an hour talking about whatever came up for us at the moment, and those who watched live really participated during the live stream. It became abundantly clear: We will do this again.

SUBSCRIBE: http://www.youtube.com/@YellowgoldStudios
ANT’S YOUTUBE CHANNEL: https://www.youtube.com/user/antpruitt

Android Faithful #37: Apple Gets Beepered By the DOJ

Bucking the trend that has been in place for so much of All About Android’s run at TWiT, Juan Bagnell aka SomeGadgetGuy joined us on Android Faithful this week and wouldn’t you know it, I was there too! Often he is booked when I am out, so it’s always nice to be able to ramble about Android with Juan cause he’s a rad dude!

This week, Ron Richards reviewed the Nokia T21 Tablet, I reviewed the OnePlus Watch 2, Mishaal Rahman walked us through the second Developer Preview of Android 15, and we dove into the big Apple monopoly case by the US Department of Justice and how it might impact Android from an interoperability standpoint. Bonus: My family was in Tahoe for the night so I had the rare opportunity to use my main studio for the show which was a treat for me!

Workshopping a new podcast idea. Wanna See?

I’ve started to work on some new ideas for future series. On a whim yesterday, I decided to throw together an idea that I’ve had for months. The purpose was to see how much time it would take to do it more or less effectively. And I’m pretty happy with the way it turned out. I decided to release the alpha episode to Patreon supporters on my personal Patreon. In the very beginning, I made the promise to these Founders that they would be included in the creation of my content business and they’ve helped me many times so far, including making decisions on graphic design, podcast art, logo design, and strategic decisions around the business. And I DEEPLY appreciate having them on board with me. If you feel so inclined, hop in there and be a part of this growing business! It really does help me to achieve the goals I’m setting for myself and keeps me accountable.

SUPPORT: http://www.patreon.com/jasonhowell

The money train

Calling it a money train might imply that I’m riding on it and let me assure you, dear reader, I AM NOT. But… If I want all of THIS to work, I gotta at least get a seat on the train, and I’m starting to get a better understanding of what that might look like. I’ve had some fruitful conversations with some podcast friends over the past few weeks and looked into different monetization strategies for podcasts similar to the ones I’m doing (and might someday launch as well). Once again, I’m faced with a facet of this whole industry that I’m not entirely knowledgeable about. I mean, tangentially knowledgable, but when it comes to crafting agreements and having discussions with potential sponsors and what that all looks like… well, I’ve never really been a part of those discussions in my career. So this is all very new to me.

On top of that, I’m at a point where I recognize that the value I bring to folks like you is really “the content.” That also happens to be the part of all of this that I feel most adept and comfortable at. Not that I’m opposed to learning new aspects of the business, but if I spent all of my time doing the tangential stuff that SURROUNDS content creation, I would have no time to create the things that I believe bring this business the most value. How is MY time best spent?

The problem is I don’t have a steady income stream with which to fund things like hiring help. So I have to start making some decisions: How can I make the content I have already appealing to sponsors? Or how do I grow my two Patreons with new patrons who are inspired by the work I’m doing?

Also, does it behoove me to do some upfront investment in the kind of help that can allow me to push out MORE content to build some rapid momentum? Kind of the Silicon Valley way of thinking (“We aren’t profitable yet, but we are investing millions of dollars into the company to build up the foundation, create stickiness for users, etc, in the hopes that someday we WILL be profitable.”)

Anyway, not that I’m looking to become a Silicon Valley tech company! I’m just realizing that there are many ways to do this. So what is the way I want to do this? What is sustainable? How can I do the things that bring the Yellowgold Studios brand the most value possible? That’s where I’m at right now.

In next week’s newsletter, I hope to have at least a few ideas. Wish me luck as I explore all of this with curiosity! And thank you DEEPLY for your support and interest.