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2013-05-24 21:58:45 (1 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

I thought this post could be helpful for those of you who optimize your YouTube videos for search. This is pretty long but it's all based on things I've personally tested and some of the stuff is working really well. This post is still in progress but I'd love to hear your thoughts. 

#youtube   #youtubeseo  

2013-05-24 18:33:04 (3 comments, 0 reshares, 2 +1s)

Had a great time shooting at Sholz Garden yesterday for #hilahstexaskitchen . We got some great Austin history and learned about the influence of German cuisine on Texas food. We also ate a schnitzel covered in queso and salsa. The ultimate Texas fusion food. 

2013-05-24 16:08:48 (2 comments, 2 reshares, 2 +1s)

NEW BLOG POST: This is an experiment. Check out this in-progress chapter from my upcoming book. Leave a comment and let me know what questions you have about SEO for YouTube. Your questions and feedback will be incorporated back into the chapter. Plus, I'll answer any questions you have. Just leave a comment. Thanks a million!

#youtube   #youtubeseo  

2013-05-23 23:09:16 (2 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

If you are a fan of Indie animation, my crazy friend +Craig Staggs is almost single-handedly making an animated feature length western comedy. Check out this bad-ass background painting. I want one on black velvet. 

2013-05-22 16:43:04 (5 comments, 0 reshares, 5 +1s)

Check out +Hilah Johnson getting her Chicken Recipes featured in GLAMOUR!

2013-05-21 17:42:57 (0 comments, 1 reshares, 3 +1s)

NEW EPISODE: Chicken Satay!

#recipes   #paleorecipes  

2013-05-17 19:47:16 (0 comments, 1 reshares, 9 +1s)

Cthulhu pie; now you can eye HIS soul! His tasty tasty soul... (via +Jeremy Haun)

2013-05-16 18:29:28 (0 comments, 1 reshares, 6 +1s)

I made meatloaf for breakfast! S'pretty dang wonderful. 

#breakfast   #recipe

2013-05-16 16:22:26 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 1 +1s)

Moon River Bar & Grill. 

2013-05-16 16:21:08 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 1 +1s)

Another shot from the night of the Paranormal Investigation. A Barbed Wire fence next to a legit Civil War Cemetery.

2013-05-16 16:17:29 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 2 +1s)

We went on a real paranormal investigation with +Alejandro Dominguez - The Dead Explorer.  Here's a shot from outside the bar. 

I was the camera operator and used the infrared for the first time. It was a lot of fun. Got legitimately freaked out a couple of times. Stay tuned to The Dead Explorer to see the episode. 

2013-05-09 15:05:37 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

2013-05-09 14:08:59 (9 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

The new Version of Pixelmator is now available. And it looks really sweet.

I've played with Pixelmator off and on even though I've been a hardcore daily Photoshop user for over 10 years. This is a really impressive app and they've continued to improve it and add new features on a regular basis. 

I gotta admit that I'm not totally onboard with Adobe Creative Cloud yet, so I'm keeping my eye on alternatives. Pixelmator is getting really close to giving Photoshop an actual run for it's money (for what I need to use it for anyway). The major thing it's missing for me at the moment is layer styles - which are scheduled for sometime in 2013.  It's definitely worth a look at only $14.99. And that's a one time purchase.

2013-05-08 19:49:54 (3 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

I bought Scapple a few days ago and have been using it like crazy. It's a very simple "mind mapping" app from the people who make the excellent writting app Scrivener. It's very simple and that's what I love about it. Most mind mapping things I've tried have had too many features and are too tech-y for my tastes. Scapple just gets out of the way. And if you use Scrivener you can drag Scapple notes directly into Scrivner. Highly recommended!

2013-05-03 16:03:32 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 0 +1s)

Has anybody noticed that #youtube  seems to have reverted to the old channel design? I'm sure it's only temporary but kind of cool to see the way everything used to look.

2013-05-02 20:25:28 (0 comments, 12 reshares, 2 +1s)

PUPPY VIDEO: I just found this video of our foster puppies in the backyard, crying to get inside. They were so small they could barely climb the step leading inside. We ended up keeping Banjo (the black and white one) and found a great home for his sister. We're going to get them together for a play date soon. 

(And if the backyard looks a little post-apocalyptic, don't worry, it was under construction and we have a deck instead of concrete rubble.)

2013-05-01 19:33:37 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

Thanks to huge translation help from Carlos we now have our first episode with English AND Spanish Captions. I have to say the YouTube captioning and translation setup is very impressive.

If you publish videos to YouTube on a regular basis I highly recommend you take advantage of the captioning feature. I use Fiverr to get transcriptions of each episode and then just upload it as a text file. YouTube's system does a pretty amazing job of getting it synced up correctly. Adding captions is HUGE when it comes to optimizing your videos for search engines. 

After you have your video captioned you can access the translation feature. There are some paid options for having your videos translated - but they are pretty expensive. You also have the option of sending it to a translator of your choice. As long as they have a gmail account, you can just add their email address and they... more »

2013-04-30 15:33:43 (3 comments, 1 reshares, 8 +1s)

NEW EPISODE: Enchiladas Banderas! 

About the Recipe: This is one of my recent favorite episodes. These Vegetarian Enchiladas are spicy, delicious, refreshing and filling. It gets its name because it features the colors of the Mexican flag (Bandera). 

Behind the Scenes: We are seriously behind schedule on everything right now. We shot this on Sunday and edited it yesterday. It was a fun shoot that came at the end of a long weekend of re-shoots for our upcoming Cooking With Kids project. 

I first tasted these enchiladas about two years ago which was also the first time I met Carlos. As soon as I ate them, I really wanted to get him on the show to demonstrate the recipe. It took awhile but we finally got our schedules together and here it is.

This shoot was followed by an interview with a potential editing intern and then a few hours on ourde... more »

2013-04-30 15:12:53 (1 comments, 0 reshares, 4 +1s)

Incredible Chilaquiles (and fried eggs) made with leftover red sauce from the Enchiladas Bandera episode of +Hilah Cooking!

2013-04-25 15:59:02 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 2 +1s)

NEW EPISODE: Homemade Mexican Pizza!

2013-04-24 15:02:22 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 1 +1s)

NEW EPISODE of +Yoga WithAdriene: Pigeon Pose. The Yoga With Adriene channel is growing fast and the feedback has been incredible. Thanks to everybody for your support of this project. This episode continues our Foundations of Yoga series, but we will be branching out into different types of content very soon (including more advanced sequences).

So if you're interested in #yoga  please subscribe on YouTube and stay tuned!

2013-04-23 17:59:29 (3 comments, 0 reshares, 2 +1s)

NEW BLOG POST: Thoughts on directing for Web Series. Non-Fiction Edition. Exploring why "television style" production doesn't work for web series.

2013-04-18 21:53:34 (0 comments, 6 reshares, 3 +1s)

LEARN TO COOK! Now available in both print and Kindle editions. 

2013-04-10 16:56:04 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 1 +1s)

Breaking down PLANK POSE today! Give it a try! #foundationsofyoga   #strong   #mindful  

2013-04-04 18:32:05 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

NEW EPISODE: Gorditas (a.k.a. Little Fatties!) 

#recipes   #tastemade   #hilahcooking  

2013-04-02 20:58:49 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 5 +1s)

NEW EPISODE: Homemade Corn Tortillas!

#texmex   #recipe   #tastemade  

2013-03-28 16:19:34 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

NEW EPISODE: Learn how to make Chicken Flautas and Guacamole with this easy video recipe. Featuring special guest star +Average Betty! Whoo!

#tastemade   #texmex   #recipe   #youtube  

2013-03-25 17:08:00 (1 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

2013-03-17 17:11:58 (0 comments, 1 reshares, 6 +1s)

NEW VLOG: Hilah's take on Texas food, heavy on the hot sauce! More vlogs coming up soon. We are _almost_back on schedule!

2013-03-15 17:44:54 (5 comments, 1 reshares, 3 +1s)

NEW BLOG POST: Talking about video gear... super-geeky.

2013-03-15 17:43:01 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

NEW BLOG POST: Before embarking on our first travel shoot, I decided to put together a lightweight run-and-gun video kit. This is what I ended up with. 

I'd love to hear your thoughts about what I'm missing, what I should get rid of, etc. I'd also love to know what YOU use to produce your videos. 

2013-02-28 17:01:39 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

New Blog Post! This one is for the +Austin Food Blogger Alliance 2013 City Guide. Other bloggers took on subjects like bbq and tapas. I figured out the best places in town for sticking a beer in your margarita. I gotta be me. Hey!

#atxcityguide   #austintexas   #austinfoodbloggers   #sxsw2013  

2013-02-21 19:59:01 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

NEW BLOG POST: Updates on our recent adventures plus, the first public announcement of the new show title!

2013-02-21 15:20:01 (1 comments, 2 reshares, 4 +1s)

NEW EPISODE The "hell-with-it" sequel to the "healthy" Turkey Burger episode.

JALAPEÑO BACON CHEESEBURGER!!!

2013-02-21 02:37:11 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 2 +1s)

Why I Like the "Hilah Cooking" Show

A quick admission: Hilah Cooking is not the only Web cooking show I watch. Some other ones I watch teach Jewish, Japanese, or pan-Asian cooking. Some are general shows. They ... vary. A lot of the following stresses why I often am dissatisfied with the others and why I always enjoy your show.

I just finished watching one of your fellow Web Chefs and was left perplexed and dissatisfied. That inspired me to ponder why I like your show best among the cooking shows on the Web. Chris and Hilah combine to create an entertaining, informative, relaxed presentation of appetizing recipes that are easy to follow and fun to watch.

I won't identify your competitors, because their names are irrelevant. However, some are great and some are awful. Most are erratic. There are some cooking shows where the cooks exhibit more complex skills... more »

2013-02-15 14:10:29 (2 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

NEW BLOG POST: I produced a no-budget video campaign a few months ago for +Laurel Kinney of Trophy Boutique. Here's a quick case study about what we did and how the campaign worked.

tl;dr: The videos are bringing in new clients and she's now ranked #1 in both Google and YouTube.

Also, check out the guest appearance by +Hilah Johnson

2013-02-14 18:02:12 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

NEW EPISODE: Vodka Cherry Limeade for Valentine's Day!

2013-02-12 21:29:34 (0 comments, 1 reshares, 2 +1s)

NEW EPISODE: How To Cook Salmon!

2013-02-07 18:23:40 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

NEW EPISODE: Chocolate Truffles - perfect for Valentine's Day and surprisingly easy to make. Also, scroll down for some other great Valentine's Day recipe ideas!

2013-02-05 17:25:57 (5 comments, 1 reshares, 5 +1s)

My thoughts on the new #YouTube  Channel Layout. 

2013-02-05 17:10:01 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

NEW BLOG POST: My thoughts on the new #YouTube Channel Layout. 

tldr: I think it's pretty awesome has amazing potential and you should start geting ready for it now. 

2013-01-24 18:13:55 (1 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

Oh Mah Gaw... I AM AMAZING. :P

But seriously, after breaking many, many eggs, I think I've finally got this egg white omelet thing down. 

Sheesh. 

2013-01-23 20:02:01 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 3 +1s)

NEW BLOG POST: Yesterday we released our 200th video on #youtube . Here's a little reflection and looking forward to what we have planned for 2013.   

#webseries  

2012-12-18 21:53:32 (0 comments, 0 reshares, 2 +1s)

Coconut Cream Pie! It's white and therefore appropriate for winter holiday desserts.

Like a tasty glacier. 

You planning on trying any new desserts for Christmas or anything?

2012-12-11 17:31:02 (1 comments, 0 reshares, 6 +1s)

From my perspective, YouTube is where the real action and opportunity is right now for independent video creators. I wouldn't have said this a year ago and I will probably feel differently next year. But right now, it's pretty exciting. 

I wrote this awhile ago reflecting on our experiences with the YouTube Next program. I'll revise it sometime in the near future, but this is all still pretty solid advice. I'd love to hear your feedback on it. Let me know what I'm missing. 

2012-12-11 18:09:57 (1 comments, 0 reshares, 2 +1s)

LAUNCHING A PRODUCT - WEEK 1

One week ago we launched the big 2012 product for +Hilah Cooking. The product is a print version of the Learn To Cook book.

I thought our launch was pretty cool and went pretty awesome. There were a few hiccups, but for the most part we have met our goals so far. I think what we did serves as a pretty good case study for people who are interested in launching a project.

I love talking about this stuff and I'll be happy to answer any questions except for specific revenue details. I will say that the project is in profit and continues to sell well. Even though we did a launch, this book will continue to be a core part of what we're doing for the forseeable future. It's a really great book and I couldn't be more proud of it.

So here's a timeline of what we did. 

First up, we had been teasing the book... more »

2012-12-11 16:54:49 (3 comments, 1 reshares, 5 +1s)

This category should be used to post links, video clips or other things related to projects you're working on. We'd love to know what you're up to.

However, we want to keep this group focused on feedback, brainstorming and education as opposed to promotion. The people in this community are probably not the audience for your project. So, instead of just posting a link or video, give us some background and let us know what kind of feedback you'd like.

If you post it in a different category, it will be deleted.

2012-12-11 16:39:03 (0 comments, 1 reshares, 3 +1s)

How To Monetize a Web Series

The #2 question I get from readers of my blog is "How do I make money with my web series?" I'm working on a longer much more detailed post about this but thought I would put the framework here for feedback and discussion before I flesh out the details. I'm curious if there's anything I'm missing.

1. Third Party Ad Revenue

This is the first and easiest way to get an income stream going, however it's going to be a tiny trickle until you have a lot of views on a regular basis. On YouTube, monetization is available for everybody now. You just turn on the monetization option. However, I wouldn't recommend this until you are getting thousands of views on a regular basis. The amount you'll make is based on CPM (cost per thousand). The CPM will vary greatly depending on your niche and where your videos... more »

2012-12-11 16:49:29 (1 comments, 1 reshares, 3 +1s)

Hi, I am Christopher Sharpe and I produce the web series +Hilah Cooking  and +YogaWith Adriene.  I live in Austin, TX where I'm one of the co-founders of the Transmedia Austin group. 

After many years spent in the indie film world, I changed courses in 2009 and went full-speed-ahead into internet video. 

I started this community because I want to talk to people who are doing the same thing. This industry is moving so fast it's almost impossible to keep up. Let's share knowledge and combine brainpower and see what we can make happen. 

I'm keeping this community private for now and will not be approving new members haphazardly. I want to keep a high signal-to-noise ratio here. I'm going to be sharing some deep behind-the-scenes stats and other things here and I hope you'll feel comfortable doing the same. 

Before posting please takenote ... more »

2012-12-09 16:09:42 (3 comments, 0 reshares, 7 +1s)

I'm excited to have found this group. I noticed a few people looking for ideas about how to grow their YouTube channel. I'm no expert, but we did go through the YouTube Next program last year.

I wrote this blog post sharing some of the things we learned from the program. A lot of this is covered in the Creators Playbook, but there may be a few things here that are hopefully new and helpful. Let me know if you have any questions!