Ok, I admit that I'm a bit of a techno gadget enthusiast. [The fact that I'm just about bursting out of my office certainly confirms it 
] However, when I recently read a blog post about the Livescribe 'Echo' Pen – I knew that this piece of technology was going to help me enormously in my business.
Yesterday, I recorded a brief video about how I used the pen to mindmap ideas for a video blog post, which is one of the ways that I'll be using this technology. It not only records what you write on paper (that is easily accessible on your computer – see the pdf of my mindmap below), it also records audio.
Anyway, watch the video and see what you think.
Here's a pdf of the mindmap: Mindmapping
Here's the video I created using the Mindmap framework
So what do you think? Can you see a use for this pen in your business? Perhaps you already have one and are using this already? As always, I'd love to hear your feedback.
If you found this video helpful, please share it with your friends and colleagues by pressing the 'Like' button below. I really appreciate it!
Till next time, have an awesome day!
Related posts
- Hate selling? 5 simple steps to follow when the product you are promoting is you
- Social Media Etiquette: Are you developing (or destroying) your online reputation and relationships?
- Get More Clients: How to build a website that engages your audience
- Want to build a 6-Figure Business? Stop charging by the hour!
- Hate selling? How to sell authentically if the product is you - Audio
While that was a great video about mind-mapping, I failed to see how the Livescribe was any better than a regular pen? I think the Livescribe is great, but the benefit is in the linking of key points to the associated audio, which you didn't show. Even digitizing handwriting isn't a big deal, a basic pen(cil) and scanner will do the same thing.
Did I miss something?
Hi Richard,
Brilliant point. One of the things I didn’t mention in my video was that I write notes/suggestions in my sessions with clients, which I later send through to them. It can be quite time consuming to scan and upload (just the set up of my office). The audio, I’d imagine will also be helpful for them to understand my note/mindmaps etc and anything else we typically develop during our sessions. Uploading is simple and won’t require me to scan etc.
You brought up some valid points – if it weren’t for the audio and the way I’ll be using this with my clients, a scanner would certainly be efficient.
I’ve only had the pen for a few days so am sure I’ll find many other ways that it can be leveraged. I’m hoping that other people will share how they are using this pen as well.
Appreciate your comments Richard!
Best,
Annemarie
Hi Annemarie
I’ d like to jump in with a couple of suggestions for you and Richard.
You are right in that a big part of the value is being able to capture notes/audio and then use this later either as content shared back with the client, or as input into more thorough work you might do for them. Livescribe CEO Jim Marggraff has a YouTube video where he talks about using the pen in a mind mapping scenario to build layers of notes and audio so that over distinct time periods you can build a comprehensive and rich outcome.
The key point I’d like to raise though is the ease of sharing.
With the Livescribe Smartpen you can share content as a Pencast, you can share it directly to Evernote, with MyScript you can quickly convert your hand written notes into text, and now you can even share content to an iPhone or iPad.
Personally, I’ve found the Pencast feature to be really valuable. In your situation Annemarie it means rather than sharing back an audio file you can share your notes and audio and this plays like a YouTube video. Pencasts can also be embedded into blog posts or shared into Facebook. As a business coach you can use Pencasts to build a library of content that might comprise short sessions on key points of what you do or how you help clients.
I hope this helps you understand the power of the Livescribe Smartpen
Cheers Mr Smartpen (@smartpen)
Hi Mr Smartpen,
I’ve been checking out some of the videos on Youtube, which have provided some great ideas for me. And, yes, I love the idea that you can share content to an iPhone and iPad as well.
Thanks for stopping by and sharing – it’s much appreciated.
Best regards
Annemarie
Thank you Annemarie that was very helpful and I love the way you visualised the use of the livescribe pen. One question that I may have missed is how is the actual audio quality when you use the Livescribe Pen?
thanks again,
Michele
Hi Michele – glad it was useful for you. The quality of the audio is excellent. In fact, if I were to do an interview with someone, I would upload the audio directly from my Livescribe pen without any editing necessary.
Are you thinking of investing in one for your business?
Cheers,
Annemarie