“It’s almost like a movie!”
When it comes to sharing information, making recommendations and good ol’ fashioned great ideas, Hal definitely delivers!
And when Hal first started out over two years ago, who knew that the advice that was shared that long ago would yield an evolutionary solution for a person who asked a simple question? If it sounds confusing, allow me to simplify it for you with this cool story about some truly interesting advice that worked out much better than any Hal could have hoped for!
It was 2108 and as the Hal app was getting started, I had the privilege of being a Hal. The text I got was really a different kind of request, but being a bit of a geek and a curator of newer apps, the timing of this request, as it turns out, could not have been better.
The intro came up to which I responded, as all Hals do, with “How can I help you today?”
I texted the customer initially about how unique and cool their name was, since the app is encrypted and that is really the only data point we Hals have to build a rapport with (unless the customer offers up more info about themselves or their location for a specific request. The Hal app puts privacy first above all else).
After sharing some texts back and forth, it turns out that this customer just wanted a forum to experiment with in an attempt at becoming a radio personality or possibly a future podcaster. Although they certainly could have used their voice memos app to practice with, it was clear that this customer wanted something “new and cool” and ideally provided less of a one-way experience. The request came across the app about how “…someone who was only 17 years old could find an app to practice and have fun with audio stuff to become a radio jock or a podcaster someday”. As it happened, they got me as a Hal — and I had what I thought was just the thing!
Backstory: Although AnchorFM was a relatively unknown app when it emerged in 2015, I loved their novel approach, so of course, I was all in and just watched to see what the company might do to either add functionality, create a new market or — like the HBO show, Silicon Valley states — “Pivot!” This little app, which was only starting to gain traction by early 2017, was actually designed to focus on your smartphone’s microphone. The app let users record up to two minutes of audio, then publish it. And then users could reply to posts with their own audio messages. It was considered similar to SoundCloud, but nothing can be pre-recorded, no recording can be longer than two minutes and it really didn’t feature music, per se.
The story goes that one of the founders felt that starting a podcast was rather difficult on a couple of fronts, since you need to build an audience and you need really good sound quality to accomplish that, at a minimum. So he and his co-founder set out to change that whole idea and create AnchorFM. Unlike traditional radio, AnchorFM is multi-directional. It’s not a one-way broadcast. When you listen to the radio, there’s no way to interact with it. On AnchorFM, you could reply to everything you hear to start a real discussion. And so a new market was born!
OK..back to our tale: This app ended up being ideal for this would-be future radio/podcast star. They loved the idea because they were literally ‘practicing’ to either become a radio on air personality and/or start a podcast “when they had enough practice online”. AnchorFM was the perfect app to give them a new interactive audience and help them to use the app’s ability to enhance the recording quality to practice their craft. Further, it was “new and cool” and also allowed them to build an audience or at least experiment with how to do so over time.
Since they were amazed that an app like AnchorFM even existed, I was happy that another Hal customer was very satisfied with the recommendation they got from the Hal app…and I thought that would be the end of it.
But wait…there’s more.
Fast forward two years later: I get a request from a customer whose name was so unique I had to look twice: it was the same teenager from two years earlier, since the spelling of the name was unmistakable! I was stoked because the odds of any Hal getting the same customer more than once are kind of like being struck by lightning…but in this case, it was the real deal. Of course, once I confirmed the request from two years ago regarding AnchorFM, it was clear that I was speaking with the same customer over 24 months later!
I shared that I was “that Hal” that shared AnchorFM with them, which they were quite amazed to learn, since they also knew how rare it would be get the same “Hal” on any given session. I immediately asked about their aspirations to become an on air radio personality or future podcast star, and the reply I got blew me away:
Customer: “Hal …you won’t believe this one…it’s almost like a movie! When you turned me onto AnchorFM, I loved it right away and really got into it. And I stuck with it, which was fortunate, because then it pivoted from AnchorFM to Anchor, which gave me even more of a platform to grow an audience. From there, over the next 15 months or so, my little “radio station” started to grow into an actual following of more than 10,000 followers over time and quickly morphed into a podcast since the “new” Anchor app focused on creating podcasts. And is if that wasn’t enough, then Anchor started adding things like intros, outros, sound effects of all kinds and a means to create asynchronous communication with the audience I had built. Before my eyes, I was a full fledge podcaster!”
Hal (aka Me): “Wow, so what happened from that point? Did your following continue to grow once Anchor pivoted directly into the podcast market?”
Customer: “It actually got even BETTER because Anchor cut a deal with certain larger advertisers to help small time guys like me monetize their podcasts with actual sponsors who paid a little bit of money for the production. But since I started with 10,000 followers, the advertisers would pay a little more if the following continued to grow, since they would be reaching a larger audience. It also upped the overall ‘swagger’ of my podcast to have advertisers, since the really popular podcasts ALL have a sponsor. So, I got two sponsors right away at first, and then my audience tripled, which meant bigger advertisers came along and would be willing to give me even MORE money to do what I loved. It went from a hobby to a side hustle and now the money actually rivals what I make at work!
Hal (aka Me): “Are you thinking about quitting your job at this point?”
Customer: “I’m a little too timid to do that just yet, but I do have some good news: Spotify acquired Anchor in February of last year and now I am on their list on the Spotify app with exposure to literally millions of new ears! If my growth spikes enough, and it is moving in the right direction, my goal is to quit my job. And it’s all thanks to your recommendation way back when…BEFORE Anchor was the powerhouse it is today and aligned with a market leader like Spotify. You really called that one, Hal. You really called it!”
And with that, I learned how one piece of good advice to help a teenager carve out his passion in this world became a solution that yielded a force to reckon with in the podcasting industry…all because he asked Hal a single, focused question.
Although I cannot promise EVERY recommendation will turn you into a rock star in the podcasting space or give you a side hustle that will challenge your full time job in terms of income generation, I will certainly give you my best effort to complete your request, as every Hal does.
So…”How can I help you today?”
