Audio is probably the cheapest way to use multimedia for your SBDC. The only real need is a headset with a microphone, which many of us already have in our possesion due to Skype and other voice over internet protocal (VOIP) programs. If not, they can be picked up between fifteen and fifty dollars at any store that sells electronics. Unlike Skype, if you are making audio recordings for a website or podcast you will need to edit them. There is free software that can do this admirably, most of them even allow you to do separate tracks and merge them into one. Thus, you can add background music or have several different people in several different locations record different parts and merge them into a single continous file. Of all the ones I have used Audacity is by far my favorite. It works on PCs & Macs and allows you to both edit & record in the same window, which makes it easy to learn, but there are many others options.
Once finished, the audio file is as easy to add to a website as an image or document or you can host it outside of your website, using sites like Odeo or Audiofarm, and link back to it.
The cost of both producing and distributing multimedia has declined greatly in the past few years thanks to the internet and the number of electronic recording devices in the United States. No longer is making an audio or video recording quite the production it was when most of us were growing up. Lets go over the different types of media and how they can be used to spread your message much more effectively.
Video: The price of high quality camcorders has dropped immensely over the last five to ten years. It used to be only the studios and television stations could afford cameras that could produce broadcast quality images now you can buy digital camcorders that shoot in HD for under one grand, here look at this google search.
What are other SBDCs doing?
Here is a Video produced by Florida’s SBDC Network.
and here is one from the PA SBDCs.
and from Oklahoma.
However there are other options, most of the SBDCs around the nation are located in universities most of which have a broadcasting program. These programs are full of kids who are eager and willing to produce anything they can. Most university’s broadcasting programs have cameras that they will lend out to students, faculty or staff and even if they do not the student are likely to have this equipment themselves. So if you would like to produce a video for your SBDC contact your school’s broadcasting department.
Cell phone cameras, while most of the videos shot with cell phones are horrible, there are some amazing videos from cell phones and even an entire movie, SMS Sugar Man. You definitely want to make sure you only use close-ups no wide scenes and the sound is often horrible due to the fact that the phone has an omnidirectional mike that pics up all sounds but all these problems can be overcome with good planning. Here is some from a video from Auburn that I believe was shot on a cell phone camera.
Well while we were planning on making this a post that included Audio, Video & Websites. The video portion went long so we are going to break it up into three parts and I will continue this topic on Monday. Let me leave you with one last idea. Creating a public relations style news story for your local news stations. Most news stations, especially in small towns, are dying for content; thus, if you can create an impressive “news” style story about your SBDC center there is a good chance they will pick it up and show it on you local news. This can also usually be done in print for your local newspaper but your chances of being successful for either decrease depending on the size of your community. Let me leave you with one last video, a video Christmas card from the Colorado SBDCs.
Intuit, the software company that brought the world Quickbooks, Turbo Tax & Quicken, runs a website for SBDC centers across the country, sbdccommunity.org. The website’s main feature is a forum where you can post and ask questions to other SBDC counselors accross the nation. It is a great resource for the SBDC community that we are not yet using to its full potential.
WWW.Census.gov is the most comprehensive site for demographics. Almost all of the pay services for demographics use census information that is open to the public on their website, www.census.gov/. It would be beneficial for any and all business counselors to learn the site and learn it well. Their American Factfinder page is an amazing tool that can give you demographics from the national level all the way down to an individual zip code and most everything in between. Today they released the latest in a series of Demographic profiles of older workers in individual states. This release is for Oregon click the links at the bottom of this post to view the pdf and to see a list of all the states that they have completed so far.
The SBDCNet will soon be hosting the SBDC National Blog. We would like to take this opportunity to invite any member of the SBDC community that would like to share his or her expertise with both the general public and the SBDC network to be a contributor. We will be making updates to the blog at the very least once a day, so there will be plenty of opportunities for anyone to get involved and contribute. We here at the SBDCNet will make posts as well by letting you know what is new on our website, useful web resources, general best practices, good research books and what is happening with the SBDC network around the country.
If interested in contributing or if you have blog post already written elsewhere that you would like added to our site as well, email us at
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with the subject line “SBDC National Blog.”
