Bulletin to ThinkTech Hosts - Week of March 5, 2023

Dear ThinkTech Hosts:

Host Bulletin, Week of March 5, 2023

Distinguished Guest Nominations Are Open

Click here to nominate a guest from one of your February shows to be selected a Distinguished Guest! Only the first 10 nominations will make the ballot. Nominations close on March 7 and voting will begin on the 10th. Distinguished Guest Election results will be posted in our email advisories on the 20th. The winning candidate will be profiled in a short video for our livestreams and social media.  Last month's winner was Wesley L. Boykin, nominated by host Stephanie Dalton of "The State of the State of Hawaii".

Confirm Guests

All guests should be confirmed, and all the information called for by your Show Information Form should be provided by 10:00 pm the night before the show. Make sure your guests know they cannot invite an additional guest to join the program without first emailing us at shows@thinktechhawaii.com by the 10 pm deadline. We and your guests really do need sufficient time to review what you are submitting so we can properly prepare for your show. 

Spelling

Triple check your show information before submitting it to us -- especially the title, tagline, locations, and guest names and affiliations. When appropriate, consider using diacritical marks for Hawaiian words, e.g., Mānoa, Oʻahu and ʻohana. You can check these out on wehewehe.org.

Audio Equipment

Please consider getting an external headset or earphones with a mic. These greatly improve audio quality. The internal microphone of your laptop/computer is more susceptible to audio issues such as noise and echo. Viewers need clear sound to hear your show. Equipment suggestions: https://thinktechhawaii.com/equipment-suggestions-2/.

Promotion Tip

Help us help you! Help us help you! Remember to tag and mention ThinkTech Hawaii in your social media posts so we can share them with our viewers and followers. Type the “@” symbol and then start typing our page's name:
Facebook - @ThinkTechHawaii
Instagram - @ThinkTechNews
LinkedIn - @ThinkTech-Hawaii

Please regularly review past Host Bulletins and other resources \- it leads to better shows.

Questions, contact hayley@thinktechhawaii.com.

Bulletin to ThinkTech Hosts - Week of February 26, 2023

Dear ThinkTech Hosts:

Host Bulletin, Week of February 26, 2023

Point-Counterpoint Hawai'i

We're starting a monthly series of live open forum webinars discussing public issues in Hawaii. The first program is on Saturday, March 4th from 12 to 1 pm and will address Public Safety in Hawaii. Please spread the word, register for the program (here or on thinktechhawaii.com) and actively participate by sending in questions and comments.  It’s an opportunity for everyone to express their views, and for us to achieve greater public involvement and awareness for the months and years to come.

The Bigger Picture

Our mission is to raise public awareness, and to do that we need the public to watch your shows. Think about the bigger picture. Ask yourself "Why should Hawai'i care?" as you plan your episodes. We've added this question to the Show Information Form, because people should watch the content you put so much work into sharing. We want to boost interest in your shows.

Microphones

Audio is the most important aspect of production. People watch shows without video (e.g., multitasking, overhearing from somewhere else), but most don't watch video without sound. It's important to invest in a quality microphone so you can communicate better. See our equipment recommendations at https://thinktechhawaii.com/equipment-suggestions-2/ and/or contact us at shows@thinktechhawaii.com if you have any questions.

Commentaries

Want to express your opinion on a community issue? Write up a commentary on something you care about and send it to us at shows@thinktechhawaii.com and we'll publish it in the ThinkTech Weekly, and if you like we’ll also record a video of it with you or animate it and include it in our entr'acte and on demand. For an example, see this commentary from host Cynthia Lee Sinclair: https://youtu.be/aHwaoFlRCsU.

Promotion Tip

Participate in online communities like forums and groups related to your shows. They can help you promote your content and connect with potential viewers and guests.  When you engage with them, don’t be shy; talk up ThinkTech and your show.

Please regularly review past Host Bulletins and other resources at https://thinktechhosts.blogspot.com - it leads to better shows. See our equipment suggestions at https://thinktechhawaii.com/equipment-suggestions-2/.

Questions, contact hayley@thinktechhawaii.com.

Bulletin to ThinkTech Hosts - Week of February 19, 2023

Dear ThinkTech Hosts:

Host Bulletin, Week of February 19, 2023

Deadlines

Reminder: all graphics, permission forms, and show information (including your guests' info) should be submitted by 10:00 pm HST the night before your show at the latest. Last-minute submissions and guests are a problem because they create significant burdens for our staff. We and your guests really do need sufficient time to review what you are submitting and to prepare for your show.

Dates

Reminder: Don't identify the date during your show unless the date is essential to the content. Usually, you should make your shows dateless. For example, don’t say that it’s Valentine's Day when  you know the show will be played later. Don’t make references to the day of the week or the date of the month in your intros and closings.  Your show will be played the following day, and it will confuse viewers if you give them some other day.

Relevance

Please try to stay on your subject and on the takeaway message of your shows; that’s much better than wandering off from one free association to another.  Of course, you can and should drill down on details, examples, comparisons and anecdotes that come to mind; that enriches the conversation.  But viewers like it best if you generally stay in and around the topic and within sight of your chosen subject.

Introductions

Get to the heart of the matter as soon as possible. People will watch your show expecting the discussion to cover the subject in your title. They will lose interest quickly if you make them wait too long for that.  Don’t spend a lot of time introducing your guests; get to the crux of the discussion early in the show, and weave their bios into the conversation as you go. Don’t start out with a general question like “Tell us about yourself”. Try a more focused question like “How did you get into real estate development?”

Promotion Tip

Your views will depend in large part on how well you describe your show in your show information, especially in the keywords.  Put yourself in the shoes of the person who will be searching for your show on YouTube or thinktechhawaii.com, and take a moment to choose words and short phrases they are mostly likely to search for.  This is very important for initial and encore viewership.

Please regularly review past Host Bulletins and other resources - it leads to better shows. See our equipment suggestions at https://thinktechhawaii.com/equipment-suggestions-2/.

Questions, contact hayley@thinktechhawaii.com.