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WorkFast.TV

By Andrea Weinfurt

While penning their 2006 book, Naked Conversations: How Blogs are Changing the Way Businesses Talk with Customers, tech industry veterans Robert Scoble and Shel Israel rarely sat down together. Much of their collaboration and interaction came courtesy of technology that wasn’t available even 10 years earlier. While Scoble was zigzagging through the United States and Europe, Israel stayed home doing the “grunt work.”

“We went months without actually seeing each other face-to-face,” he explains. “Yet the Internet had tools that allowed us to be productive.” He says using Internet tools such as Wikipedia enabled him “to get relevant information very quickly, certainly more quickly than the old days of libraries and newspaper morgues.

“The idea that the Internet would change the future of work was born then and has now germinated,” he adds. That idea blossomed into WorkFast.TV, a new weekly Internet television show airing live Friday mornings co-hosted by Scoble and Israel and including interviews with top executives from leading technology firms.

The show is part of FastCompany.TV, which launched in March 2008 and is affiliated with Fast Company magazine. Scoble serves as the managing director of this online video network, which features coverage of bleeding edge technology trends, interviews with leading executives and business people, reviews of the latest technology products and lifestyle programming.

Israel says WorkFast will evolve with the changing business and technology landscapes. “There’s a revolution in progress,” he says. “There are so many stories about how the workplace is changing.”

WorkFast’s format is casual and conversational, and in the first few episodes it’s clear Scoble and Israel are still finding their footing as hosts. However, their industry knowledge and ability to attract top-level executives trump any jitters.

For now, Scoble and Israel are the only certainties on the show. They are toying with different regular segment ideas. Israel says, “We are thinking about something called ‘Scoble’s Shiny Objects,’ which will have Robert quickly review Office 2.0 software.”

Making the Pitch

First things first: watch the show. “See how it works and what we talk about,” Israel requests. Sending an e-mail with a relevant and informative subject line is the next step. “I get lots of e-mail for different projects, so it’s nice to know why you are writing.”

The best way to get on Israel’s nerves is to send irrelevant material. He says, “I hate misleading pitches. I hate pitches that are way off topic, followed by questions from PR people who then ask me what the show is about. I try not to waste other people’s time and I appreciate it when people respect me in the same manner.”

Israel also suggests PR professionals keep things simple. “I appreciate it if you do not wax eloquent. Tell me what you have and why you think our audience will like it. If you represent a vendor, it is very helpful to have a customer who can tell the story.”

Good ideas can come from anywhere, Israel says, and he welcomes pitches from PR professionals. He advises, “Know what the show is about. Know why your client fits in and explain why in a simple, straight manner. Also, take no for an answer. It will improve the chance that I’ll consider you later in a different situation.”

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Contact Information
www.fastcompany.tv/workfast-tv

Shel Israel, host
shelisrael1@gmail.com

Robert Scoble, host
scoble@fastcompany.com