Showing posts with label chat. Show all posts
Showing posts with label chat. Show all posts

Saturday, July 14, 2007

After and Before

It's been a few days since the Home Run Derby and I'm haunted by my missed opportunity.

After watching the broadcast on my DVR, I noticed that there were in fact several random shots of the boats in McCovey Cove, some from rather close up, but they were impossible to predict.

Next time I'll have a hands free earpiece (preferably Bluetooth) connecting me to an accomplice watching TV and providing cues. That way, when Kenny Mayne chickens out and fails to rub elbows with the fans, I can still be ready for the cutaways, i.e., the "this is where Kenny wishes he was but he's too afraid to face his public for fear that they'll tell him how tired his shtick is" shots.

But I keep thinking, if that blast by Morneau would have cleared the media platform and landed near us, not only would our outstretched FanChatter.com banner have appeared live on ESPN, but the highlight would have been re-aired on every local sportscast across the country (not to mention Morneau's native Canada) as the only splash landing mustered by a disappointing field. Imagine the number of brand impressions just one water bomb would have produced. Okay, that's the last time I'll mention it.

In happier news...

The Derby and my paddling inspired our heaviest day of chatter traffic yet. Reading along from the kayak via my mobile alerts, it was gratifying to see fans who had never met in person congregating around a single event and sharing their views on everything from how annoying Chris Berman has become to how incredible Vlad's 503 ft. shot off the big glove was. Not that this is unusual on existing chat boards, but it was big for us and I was participating from McCovey Cove via SMS and other fans were trying to give me tips on getting on TV, and THAT is new and cool and only available at FanChatter.com.

Elsewhere on the network, users created more new groups, but the most activity continues to go on in the Go Twins group where fans of the team chatter together before, during, and after their games.

And TOMORROW, I get my first chance to promote the site to a radio audience. Henry Lake of KFAN had us on back in the day to promote THE SHOW TO BE NAMED LATER... and now he's nice enough to bring me back to discuss...

- What's happened since THE SHOW... went off the air.

- How FanChatter.com continues my efforts in support of the creative and connective potential of sports fans.

- Mobile and how it will revolutionize sports chat as we know it.

- My trips to McCovey Cove and the NBA Draft, as well as trading seats with Wolves first round pick Corey Brewer, all as demonstrations of ideal/once-in-a-million mobile chatter opportunities.

- And how we've only just scratched the surface of the network's potential...

My dad, a veteran of PR and promotional interviews, reminds me to (1) map out my talking points, and (2) hit them no matter what the questions are. We'll see how I do.

I'm hoping for a big boost in traffic. I'm also excited to unveil our new homepage (soon) and new features (as soon as we fine tune where we are).



And before I forget, HUGE thanks to a good friend and talented filmmaker Kevin Myers for pimping my Brewer story and FanChatter to all his boys and even a rival message board. For a good time and a lot of laughs, check out his rec league hoops mockumentary series Intramural Glory (and see if you can pick me out in the pilot episode).

After the launch, before the boom, can't wait for tomorrow.

Tuesday, July 3, 2007

Changing the Game

Something great is happening. Wait, hold on a second...

Wow, Torii is fuming. His weapon of choice: The F-bomb
Marty said less than a minute ago in Go Twins from StLP

I'm watching the Twins-Yankees game and Torii Hunter just got tossed by the plate umpire. What you see above is how I recorded the event as it happened in the Go Twins group at FanChatter.com.

But I'm not the only one doing it. Watching the game and chattering about it, I mean. That's what's happening, and that's what's great.

Last night I did the same thing, but I was all by myself. Another fan offered some postgame chatter, but TONIGHT not one but TWO FANS other than me are corresponding about a ballgame in REAL TIME using the network we've created.

That's what it's all about. Time was you went over to your buddy's house to watch a game because you liked talking (and yelling, and screaming) with him about the action as it was happening. Maybe his TV sucked and his carpet smelled, but he was funny and he cared as much as you did about the outcome.

Misery loves company. Every sports fan understands that.

I guess you could've called him up to watch over the phone but who wants to hold the line for three hours? Then came chat rooms and message boards on the internet, but you had to be... hang on...

That Scankees pitcher looks funny
Marty said less than a minute ago in Go Twins from StLP

...you had to be sitting at both your TV and your computer to participate in the discussion, and if you actually went to the game then you might as well forget it.

But striking out the side... that's not so funny (game over; Twins lose 8-0)
Marty said less than a minute ago in Go Twins from StLP


Enter FanChatter.com -- the world's first fully mobile sports fan chat network. Now fans can watch the game (or the tournament, or the race, or the fight, or whatever they want)... from wherever they are... with whomever they choose...

...and I think that's pretty cool.

So tonight saw the first virtual -- 110% spontaneous -- game watching party hosted at FanChatter. Hopefully we'll see many more, unless the Twins keep losing.

751
Marty said less than a minute ago in Bonds 756 from StLP