Blab: What It Is And How To Use It

If Periscope and Google Hangout had a baby, her name would be Blab. Or, if GoToWebinar became super user-friendly, it would turn into Blab.

Those descriptions likely give you a pretty decent idea of what Blab is, but let’s dig deeper, shall we?

What is it?

Blab lets anyone host a live show online. You can have 2-4 people on air at anytime and record the whole thing for future use. During your Blab, your audience can participate by adding comments and asking questions.

How do I find Blabs to watch?

On the home page of Blab, you’ll see a list of Blabs that are currently On Air. You can also look up Blabs that are Scheduled, or you can view Replays. As Blab gets more popular (as of this writing, it’s only 6 months old!), I am pretty sure Blab will start organizing things by category or most popular.

Right now, Blabs are categorized with up to three tags (keywords), so you can do a search for Blab using keywords. You can also subscribe to the Blabbers who you really like and want to hear more from.

How do I get started?

First, create an account, which is super quick and easy – you can link your Twitter account to Blab, which is what I did.

Next, when you’re ready to Blab, click on the purple “Start a new Blab” button in the top corner of the screen. Then you’ll be prompted to add a topic, keywords, and a custom image (if you want). Finally, you can choose when to go live – now or in the future.

Finally, download it to your iPhone, so you can Blab when inspiration strikes.

And, how do I use it for marketing?

You can use Blab for just about anything, but here are five ideas to get started:

1. Podcasts: One of my friends is using it for her podcast, which is such a great idea. Because it’s live, it’s much more interactive, and you don’t have to spend gobs of time learning how to use – and then using – podcasting technology (which, frankly, is the reason I have never started a podcast).
2. Interviews: If you’ve always wanted to conduct interviews a la “Between Two Ferns” or “The Tonight Show,” here’s your chance. Find great interviewees, get creative with your questions, and get on the air.
3. Post-event wrap ups: People always continue to talk about great events after they end, so you can either keep the discussion going or use a post-event Blab to answer questions that you couldn’t get to during the event.
4. Discussions: Turn Blab into a virtual roundtable! Pick a hot topic that you get asked about all the time, and invite fellow experts to answer questions from the audience.
5. Coaching and teaching: More and more people are turning to the Internet for educational content – just look at the success of Khan Academy and Lynda (purchased by LinkedIn this year!). Use Blab to teach – whiteboard optional.

Have you used Blab yet? What do you think about it so far? Any tips you’d like to share?

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