February 4, 2012

Posts Comments

You are here: Home / Blog / Marketing

Another Hyperlocal Success in Britain

March 18, 2011 By David Leave a Comment

The Digital Journal points to another success story in hyperlocal news, called My Welshpool. The site covers local businesses, sports, and everything in-between. And it’s getting nearly 6,000 visitors a week, according to co-owner Graham Breeze:

“The success is because we are giving people just what they want and instantly and in exactly the form they want it. There’s no in-depth articles or opinion. We are getting the facts to the people wherever they are by using technology.

“The dilemma for weekly newspapers is that they are just what it says on the tin – weekly. The area is covered by excellent weekly and daily newspapers but we are able to send breaking news to people via their Facebook accounts as it happens – and they love it.”

This is very similar to what I’ve seen on my own site — and I’m curious what other hyperlocal sites are finding, too. Facebook is a fantastic way to deliver breaking news, mainly because people are on Facebook all the time. As the Technorati have learned to turn to Twitter when news breaks, most people are finding breaking news on their Facebook walls.

And what about money for the site? Breeze says the revenue is growing as the public responds.

Filed Under: Hyperlocal, Marketing, Success Stories

Why Big Media Shouldn’t Worry Your Hyperlocal Site

January 21, 2011 By David Leave a Comment

An article in The New Yorker says the AOL hyperlocal venture Patch is probably too costly to last very long. In a nutshell, author Ken Auletta says the hyperlocal sites created by Patch are not creating compelling enough content to stay in business — not without spending a lot more money to pay people to create that content.

He’s right, I think, that there’s not enough money in ad revenue to make Patch worthwhile. But that’s not an indictment of the hyperlocal concept. The thing that makes hyperlocal coverage valuable is not the national aggregation of hundreds of little-bitty audiences for national advertisers. It’s the customer service offered to local advertisers by a local media outlet operated by a local businessperson. Patch can gather local content, but until it can reach into each community and offer personal service to each business, the hyperlocal nut will remain uncracked.

Filed Under: Advertising, Hyperlocal, Marketing

Scannable Advertisers

January 21, 2011 By David 1 Comment

To build a successful hyperlocal media business, you need to know more about marketing than your clients. That allows you to come up with lots of creative marketing projects they haven’t thought about before. QR codes are one example.

What are QR Codes?

You know how everything in the grocery store is tagged with a scannable barcode that includes tons of information about a product? Now there’s a way to pack that kind of information just about anywhere. And it’s a huge opportunity for your local media outlet to stand out as a marketing expert for your business partners.

QR (“quick response”) codes are similar to standard UPC codes. You can generate codes for just about anything, and those codes are linked automatically to a website, or a phone number, or a block of text. Anyone with a code scanner — you can download free ones for your smartphone — can scan the code. Their phone will automatically open the website, or call the phone number, or display the text linked to that code.

What Does This Mean for Your Media Business and Clients?

There are endless possibilities with QR codes. ReadWriteWeb published a list of 5 ideas. Here are three other ideas:

1. For a client’s Facebook fans, create a QR code that links to a special, “secret” page that offers them 10% off their next purchase. Only by subscribing to the Facebook page can they access the discount.
2. Create a series of fliers branded with your media website’s name. On each flier, put a different QR code. Post them inside your sponsor’s businesses, and encourage your readers to collect all the codes. Put a different clue in each location and give away a prize to the person who solves the puzzle.
3. When you’re at a public event, hand out information telling people what QR codes are and how they work. Put a QR code on the handout, and link it to a page on your site that lists a special offer from an advertiser.

If anyone has successfully used QR codes in a campaign, I’d love to hear about it in the comments.

Filed Under: Marketing, Mobile

Create a Business Directory

January 20, 2011 By David 1 Comment

If you want to succeed as a local independent journalist, you have to create value for your advertisers, not just for your readers. Until you do that, you’ll never be able to generate the revenue you need to support your journalism habit.

One idea for creating that value for local businesses: set up a business directory for your community. This is a no-brainer. It creates value for businesses by increasing their visibility. It gives you a foothold toward establishing a relationship with every business in town. And it creates value for your readers, who will find information they’re looking for, all in one place.

If you use a platform like WordPress, you can find a plugin that makes it simple to add listings. Enter business names and contact information for free, and let them know you’ve done it. Promote the directory on your site. It will get your name in front of business owners, and they’ll will begin to recognize you as a leader in the local online space.

I’m about to experiment with a plugin called “Business Directory” for WordPress, and I’ll let you know how that experiment turns out.

Filed Under: Marketing

Helping Your Local Lawyers

January 18, 2011 By David Leave a Comment

Local attorneys are often community boosters and frequent media advertisers. They probably already have a budget for marketing or sponsorships or community outreach.  So tapping into that part of the business community is a good way for you to start.

But don’t offer them a traditional banner ad to replace their newspaper buy. Offer them your expertise in a new way of marketing.

Kevin O’Keefe writes about social media and the legal profession at Lexblog. He writes that social media is replacing legal directories as the way lawyers connect with clients. About old-fashioned directories, he writes:

Those directories also benefit from a lack of understanding of the power of social networks by law firm leadership and in-house counsel. It’s easier to sell legal directory services to professionals on both sides of the equation – law firms and corporate consumers of legal services – when they have yet to experience the power and value of social networks.

If you’re operating an online news operation, you’re probably miles ahead of your local lawyers in understanding how social media can improve their business. And your expertise is valuable to them. Far more valuable than the print ad your local newspaper is selling them once a month. So before you pitch a traditional ad package, consider sweetening the deal with extras like this: [Read more...]

Filed Under: Advertising, Marketing
« Older Posts