Summary of Entrepreneurship Project (IST 195)

            Overall, I have faith that sitesandsounds.com will be successful. The reason for which I believe this is because although social media sites are being created right and left, sitesandsounds.com is unique. It focuses on something different than the general norm. It focuses on music, singer-songwriters, composers, and aspiring recording artists. The site will begin by attracting a specific audience, but with time, other people who may not necessarily be musicians themselves will be attracted to the site simply to discover new artists and music.

            Sitesandsounds.com has many key aspects which will help the website flourish and be successful. For one, members have control over who can and cannot view their material. Second, there are built-in recording program capabilities that will allow artists to record and create high-quality music without spending too much time, effort, and money on a professional recording program or recording studio session. Also, by providing artists with the ability to copyright their music, artists will be more likely to join because they know their personal work and creations will be safe. Third, the Quick Response codes will help artists generate a following and thus create more interest and traffic for the website. Furthermore, sitesandsounds.com will be able to generate revenue by allowing artists to sell their music on the website, so long as they agree to give a certain percent of the income to the website. Lastly, sitesandsounds.com will have the ability to reach many audiences – not just singer-songwriters and musicians – by creating links and partnerships with already successful and thriving websites such as Facebook and Pandora. All of these elements rolled into one will help sitesandsounds.com gain success and recognition.

            Based off of the feedback and commentaries I received with respect to the creation of sitesandsounds.com, I am confident that my idea is achievable and has true potential for success. Many people like the uniqueness of the social media site, and how it wasn’t just another version of Facebook or Twitter, etc. My idea is promotable and marketable, it can reach many audiences, and it can generate revenue. Lastly, however, it is important to note that none of this could be made possible if it weren’t for the technology we have today.

Blogs that I commented on:

·      http://malcolm-carayol.blogspot.com/

·      http://istentrepreneur.blogspot.com/2011/09/week-1-social-media.html?showComment=1320086477153#c894381394818198321

·      http://matttallmanist195.blogspot.com/2011/09/week-1-social-media-matt-tallman.html#comments

Week 7 Blog Post (IST 195)

            Many other existing social networks, such as Facebook, are now letting individuals to post the music they are listening to on their Facebook and allow their friends to listen in as well. Although Facebook covers many other things instead of concentrating on one element (such as music), creating some sort of relationship with sitesandsounds.com would greatly benefit both companies.

            Sitesandsounds.com is just one example of the countless social networks out there on the web, but if it were to reach out and connect with other networks, its popularity and overall success would greatly increase. For example, if Facebook were to also provide a link to sitesandsounds.com on their new music sharing feature, people on Facebook who enjoy a particular genre or artist could be led directly to the sitesandsounds page that correlates with that artist or genre. Furthermore, websites such as Pandora could do the same thing, increasing the amount of traffic going to and from sitesandsounds.com.

            Even thought sitesandsounds.com only concentrates on the music aspect of social media, expanding to other networks would help the website gain a large fan base, even from people who are not necessarily artists or musicians but enjoy listening to and discovering the music and songs of others. If sitesandsounds.com manages to build relationships with other online networks, it will gain attention quickly and effectively and be overall successful.

IST 195 - Blog Post 6 (Professional Blogger Review)

This week, I decided to focus on the work of a professional blogger. The blog, titled The Pixar Blog, is owned by blogger Mike Bastoli, who posts daily and weekend information regarding Pixar Animation Studios. The Pixar Blog is an independent news site not endorsed by Pixar Animation Studios or the Walt Disney Company, and the opinions expressed are solely those of author Mike Bastoli. Nevertheless, The Pixar Blog posts reliable information that is trusted by many true Pixar fans.

            Although The Pixar Blog is not related to my blog about sitesandsounds.com, it does many things that should be taken into account when trying to build a successful blog. First of all, the blog concerns a subject that many people are interested it, so it is very likely that it will gain a huge fan base and following. It knows its audience. Second of all, the posts are short and concise, but they are also informative. They get straight to the point without rambling on about random information that doesn’t interest anyone. Thirdly, the information is reliable, because much of the information is pulled from a Pixar-owed website, pixartimes.com. There are also links provided on the blog that can take viewers to other Pixar-related sites. Moreover, The Pixar Blog is also present among social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook, expanding its fan base. Lastly, the blog is visually appealing, with easy-to-read text and good images to keep its viewers engaged.

            Overall, The Pixar Blog does a successful job at pulling people in and keeping them interested in the blog. If my blog about sitesandsounds.com were to add visuals and links and expand to social media sites, it would get a much better fan base and following, and sitesandsounds.com would thus get more attention as a result of that. If a blog is boring, irrelevant, or uninformative, it will not survive long and eventually cease to exist.

Blog Post 5 - IST 195

            As part of sitesandsounds.com, an online recording program will be available to members of the website. Although many singer-songwriters will already have recording programs on their computer such as Garageband, Audacity or ProTools, the sitesndsounds recording program will allow members to directly record and upload their original songs to the website in one simple step. Much like Facebook and its video recording capabilities, sitesandsounds.com will give its artists the ability to record their music right on the website.

            Instead of making a WAV file when recording music on sitesandsounds.com, it will automatically be converted into into an MP3 file. An MP3 file will take all of the frequencies from the recording and compress it. Then, when the sitesandsounds recording program is done compressing the recording and converting it into an MP3 file, all the person has to do is post it to their main page, and any of their followers and friends will have the opportunity to listen to it automatically. 

Lastly, artists who use the sitesandsounds recording program will have the option to make their audio clip downloadable for free by any of their followers and friends if they so wish. If they choose to do this, there will be a small "download" icon next to the MP3 for people to click. However, artists will also have the opportunity to sell their music on sitesandsounds.com, but 15% of the proceeds will go towards sitesandsounds.com since it has allowed the artist to advertise his or her music on the site.

           

IST 195 - Blog Post 4

            Another important aspect of a website like sitesandsounds.com is how the artists using the website will be discovered by people who don’t use the website. A person may walk into a store, pick up a CD of some artist that he or she has never heard of, and then put it back down because he or she doesn’t know much information about that artist. Sitesandsounds.com wants to help people discover new artists easily and efficiently, which is why we will be using quick response codes.

Artists who are members of sitesandsounds.com and also sell CDs of their recorded music in various stores will now have the opportunity to make their listeners aware of their sitesandsounds page through the use of quick response codes. If a person picks up the CD of a certain artist in a store and wishes to know more about that artist, all he or she has to do is look for QR code on the back of the CD. If there a QR code present, that person can use his or her smart phone to scan the QR code and automatically be brought to the artist’s sitesandsounds page. This allows the person to find out more information about the artist and check out more of that artist’s music and songs. Should the person like the artist’s work, he or she can ask to subscribe to the artist’sitesandsound page.

            Finally, artists who have a sitesandsounds page will have the opportunity to actually have QR codes on their page. The reason for this is that if a person happens to come across that artist’s sitesandsounds page and really enjoys his or her work, a QR code will allow the person viewing the page to scan the QR code with his or her smart phone and be brought to any additional website that the artist has.

Week 3 Post (IST 195)

                As mentioned in the previous week’s post, sitesandsounds.com will provide its users with the opportunity to copyright their original songs and compositions if they so choose. Sitesandsounds.com will strongly urge their users to copyright their music so that it cannot be copied, stolen, or used by anyone else.

                Although stealing another person’s original music does not fall directly under the issue of identity theft, they can both be associated with one another. If a person were to steal music and lyrics that you yourself wrote and then profited from it, they are in a sense committing identity theft.  Even though identity theft deals with issues such as stolen credit card and social security numbers, stealing another person’s creation (be it a story, painting, , song, etc.) is equally as bad and dangerous. A person’s career may depend on their personal creations, and if someone steals that from them, it could potentially cause harm to or destroy their career.

                Lastly, 18-29 year olds account for almost 30% of all identity theft complaints, and that is the prime age for budding new artists. To ensure that their identity is protected, sitesandsound.com will continuously reiterate the importance of copyrighting any music that is uploaded to a person’s profile on the site. Better be safe than sorry!

Week 2 Blog Post (IST 195)

            When creating a social networking site like sitesandsounds.com, it is important to consider the different aspects of privacy. Much like Facebook, Twitter, and other social media outlets, sitesandsounds.com will allow people to share personal information about themselves, their music interests, their original songs, and the locations of their future gigs. In order to prevent this personal information from being available to everyone and from getting into the wrong hands, sitesandsounds.com will have comprehensive privacy settings, which will allow users to customize their privacy to their own liking.

            Those who join sitesandsounds.com will have the ability to set up their profile to their liking, much like a blog – they can choose their own fonts, backgrounds, colors, layout, etc., but most importantly, they will have the option of choosing who gets to view their profile and what each person specifically gets to see on and related to their profile. People will be able to request to view other’s profiles if they are a friend, family member, or simply just someone interested in that person’s music. That person then gets to accept or deny the person upon their choosing. On the other hand, sitesandsounds.com will have general groups pertaining to certain music genres, events, industries, or artists that any member can join in order to find people with common interests or even possible job opportunities.

            A significant component of this website will be the ability to copyright original songs and music. Members of sitesandsounds.com can pay an inexpensive annual fee to the website, which will allow them to officially copyright their own music so that they do not have to deal with others stealing their ideas, melodies, lyrics, and overall compositions. Being a social networking site geared towards singer-songwriters, it is crucial that sitesandsounds.com gives its members and users the ability to copyright their own music.