“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.

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.

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.

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.

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:

• A few hours of consulting work to help a lawyer understand social media marketing, and establish his or her presence on Facebook.
• A series of short podcasts on legal issues that they can post to their website or social network pages.
• Special sponsorships of court-related content, mentioned prominently when you post news stories or other information to your own social network pages.

Your value is in the added value you offer, above and beyond what any traditional media outlet is able to provide. Be ready to offer that added value from the start to differentiate yourself from other media.

Title: Augmented Reality Reunion

Description: For all those class reunions in your hometown (there must be at least 3 or 4 a year, right?) an augmented reality application that allows you to hold up your phone and look through the camera. The phone identifies the person you’re looking and displays information about them, which they have provided to reunion organizers. Not only their names, but their spouse’s name, the number of kids they have, and anything else you ask them to provide before they show up.

Potential Sponsor: The local country club or bar & grill that is known as the go-to place for class reunions.

You can already do a lot of this stuff through iPhone applications like Yelp. This isn’t much different — you just have to be able to identify people by 1) their faces or 2) a barcode on their nametag, perhaps? So come on — someone build this, already! I have a sponsor I want to pitch. (And if you know an application that would do this, let me know in the comments.)

If you’re a local media company, part of your job is to maximize the success of your client partners on their terms, whatever those are: Foot traffic, awareness, the ring of the cash register, etc. It’s not simply to stock more items in more categories and pitch them harder.

It constantly amazes me that so many of our digital assets are built to sell to our clients and so few are built to educate them and deepen our relationship with them.

Ramsey suggests building a website that specifically caters to your clients. Give them case studies that highlight success stories. Give them tips for how to best use your resources to promote themselves. Post a Q&A section that answers your clients’ questions about marketing. He has tons of other ideas, and you should go read the post here.

Anyone out there do this kind of thing already? If so, I’d love to hear about it.

“The irony is that while there have never been more ways to reach consumers, it’s never been harder to connect with consumers.” – Brad Jakeman, chief creative officer at Activision

I don’t think this is quite true. It’s easier to connect with consumers than ever, because now we have social media tools that allow us to do it. In reality, advertisers were never really “connecting” with consumers before. It’s just that they defined almost anything — someone viewing their commercial or driving past a billboard — as a connection.

For an example, take a look at a page I’ve set up for a little hobby website of mine, RepublicTigerSports.com.  (I cover local sports exclusively focused on my hometown.)  The season is just starting, and last night was a good example of what an actively engaged Facebook audience looks like.  In about 6 hours, here’s what people posted to the page, out of the 1,300 fans:

• 3 user-generated wall posts
• 14 comments on my posts
• 12 clicks on the “like” button

That’s about a 2.5% participation rate — but keep in mind, I’m only talking about a single 6-hour period.  Most traditional websites are lucky to get participation of around 5-10% over a much longer period of time.  I could never get that kind of comment rate if I merely posted sports updates to my website.

The point of the example is that a Facebook is a great way to engage people.  And engagement is more important than building up a huge number of fans.  That’s because engagement — getting people to take action, even if it’s just clicking a “like” button — is a sign that you are building a relationship with your followers.  And that’s the point of pouring time and energy into social media in the first place.

Great explanation from Newt Barrett on the difference between the old world of advertising and today’s world of content … Read More >> ]]> http://www.journamarketing.com/2010/08/content-marketing-converts-even-the-toughest-business-buyers/feed/ 0