Michelle Finkler\'s writing samples from The Inlander.

1. the
Inlander
MAY 2011 | Vol. 25, No. 5
Inland
knowledge for newspapers
Mailed Monday, April 25, from Sterling, Ill.
Inform post office if it arrives after May 9.
schurz communications improves mobile strategy training
By Adolfo Mendez “We have a Mo- find a page that lets them know early adopters
editor bile BEATS strat- where they can connect with the During the economic recession, “We had eight people
egy—mobile media company on any one of its Oslund said Schurz remained com- participate in the Inland
Media companies are looking to Browsers, mobile 15 Twitter accounts, nine Facebook mitted to delivering news and in- Webinar, ‘Alternative Story
play in the mobile space without Email, mobile pages and a handful of mobile ap- formation to readers when, where Forms.’ We were glad to see the
going through expensive, time- Apps, mobile Text, plications. and how they wanted it. “We’re in presenter was as excited as
consuming trial and error. and a mobile So- Keeping costs down is critical, the middle of a near-Depression, some of us are about changing
Take, for example, the Misha- cial strategy,” said but Oslund said he isn’t necessarily and we’re at this crazy point of time the way we report the news. The
Kerry oslund
waka, Ind.-based Schurz Commu- Kerry Oslund, concerned about finding one busi- where everything we do has to have Inland Webinar was informative,
nications Inc., which publishes 11 vice president of ness partner that can meet all his an immediate ROI,” he said. contained lots of good ideas and
dailies and eight weeklies across digital media at Schurz Communi- mobile needs. “Just because you’re And while the ROI for media confirmed to our reporters what
the country. The company, which cations. “That’s what Schurz is incredible at SMS doesn’t mean companies that adopted mobile we as editors have been telling
has 10 TV stations, owns or oper- talking about when we’re talking you’re incredible at app building,” platforms early was spotty, Schurz them for a while.”
ates 16 radio stations and several about mobile.” he said. “We use different partners, was making plans to expand its — Mick Kearns, news editor,
other media properties, takes a big- At the South Bend (Ind.) Tribune but if some do multiple aspects Prince George Citizen, Prince
picture perspective on mobile. website, for example, readers can great, we’ll consider that.” scHurz: continued on pAge 10 George, British Columbia
How to navigate through the mobile publishing space
May 5 | Webinar
Improve Your
Newspaper Website
By Michelle Finkler someone is baffled by the rate frankly, I’m not even sure I want nal barriers to entry. with Better Web Design
AssociAte editor things are changing, we should to play in this space.’ Well, obvi- “I was at a conference about a Media sites are among the most
all sympathize with that because ously, I think that’s a terrible mis- year ago, and one of the questions cluttered and dysfunctional sites
Do you remember the mobile it really is incredible.” take, and I want to show you why was: ‘What does the average pub- on the Web, and it’s time to shake
things up. This Inland Webinar will
phone game Snake by Nokia, The pace of change can make that’s a myth,” Wagner said. lisher expect that mobile develop- help you find your own way in-
where you had to control a long, entering the mobile space appear He said it’s no longer the case ment will cost them internally?’” stead of just following the crowd.
thin 8-bit graphic that moved overwhelming for a newspaper, that going mobile is expensive he said. “In other words, ‘What How can newspapers build audi-
around your tiny screen? he said during a recent Inland thanks to developments during would it cost to deploy apps on ence and develop content for the
Web through better design? This
“That was about 10 years ago,” Webinar. the past six to eight Inland Webinar will challenge you
said Paul Wagner, CEO of Port- Wagner often hears publishers months that have MoBile: continued on pAge 11 to change some core approaches
land, Ore.-based Forkfly, a Web say, “‘This is so complex, there eliminated the origi- you are taking to your website.
startup that offers mobile coupons is so much happening in such a Get ahead of the competition
with a better perspective on what
for local businesses, among short period of time, and the makes websites work and what is
other services. “So when cost is so prohibitive that, holding newspapers back.
WIth BIll OsteNDOrf, presIDeNt,
CreatIve CIrCle MeDIa sOlutIONs,
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the pace of innovation can make entering the mobile space appear overwhelming for a newspaper, says paul Wagner, ceo of portland, ore.-based Forkfly. But thanks to a about best-practice approaches
number of recent developments, the original barriers to entry—such as expensive costs—have been eliminated, he said. IMAgES SuPPlIEd being taken by some media com-
panies to leverage the power of
social media to benefit their edi-
INlaND MeMBer surveY NeW BusINess DevelOpMeNt MONetIzING press releases torial and business operations.
Inland needs your input for Inland invites entries to the A Florida paper rethinks WIth NICk GruDIN, strateGIC
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2. Ideas
Mobile: Recent innovations have eliminated original barriers to entry
ConTInued froM PAge 1 Web developer on your team, have
that person play around with it for
Android and iPhone only?’ Their a couple days, and they’re going to
answer was roughly $250,000. So get it. They’re going to understand
you can see why people would steer what it all means and what the ca-
clear or go with a pre-baked solu- pabilities are.”
tion. The bottom line is this has Cost is one advantage to using a
changed dramatically.” mobile app framework provider,
Prices have dropped to only hun- Wagner said. In addition to the plat-
dreds from thousands of dollars. form itself being free—or “free-
But at the same time, publishers mium” since there are upsells for
face more choices. some features—it’s more cost-ef-
With the fragmented mobile fective than hiring Web developers
market—think iPhone, Android, for each operating system.
Blackberry, Windows and Symbian Another advantage is that Tita-
OS (used by Nokia)—some pub- nium is capable of creating native
lishers think they need to have a builds for iPhone, Android, Black-
presence on all of them, Wagner berry, iPad, etc., meaning changes
said. However, developing for mul- If you have a Web developer on staff, your newspaper can basically go mobile now with the help of mobile application can be made quickly and pushed
tiple platforms is complex, expen- framework products such as redwood City, Calif.-based Sencha’s Sencha Touch, says Paul Wagner, Ceo of Portland, ore.-based out to the various platforms in real
sive and impractical, he said. forkfly. Image supplIed time from one code base, instead of
“If you want to cover all the ma- contacting the various developers
jor players in the mobile space, Media app functionality across various locations when a Tools to build your app individually and getting charged by
you’d have to hire system engineers single location-aware app could ac- the hour to fix the problem, he said.
to manage mobile site content,” he Wagner said what’s key in creat- complish all of this,” he said. Wagner said if newspapers have Since Titanium uses one code base,
said. “You’re going to have to hire ing an app is great design, thinking Additionally, Wagner said it’s a Web developer on staff, they can your changes are uniform across a
Android developers. You’re going through the process and serving up not necessary to develop separate basically go mobile now with the number of platforms, he said.
to have to hire iPhone developers a media-rich experience—not a applications for every niche, like help of mobile application frame- Disadvantages involved in using
who know Objective C, which is a fragmented one. news, sports, weather, etc. work products such as Mountain a product like Titanium include a
coding language. You’d have to “Fragmentation is not limited to “All [the app] needs to do is de- View, Calif.-based Appcelerator’s couple months of lag time behind
hire Windows mobile developers. the operating systems and the de- termine a location, serve up the Titanium and Redwood City, current app development, he said.
You get where I’m going with this. vices on which they operate,” he appropriate branding and content, Calif.-based Sencha’s Sencha For example, Wagner said Titanium
It’s daunting, and it’s expensive. said. “There is something happen- and it needs to do what mobile does Touch. didn’t support push notifications
Even if you have a massive budget, ing in the mobile space called ‘me- best: Deliver hyper-targeted con- “If you download the Forkfly ap- until the company was able to fig-
it still doesn’t make sense.” dia fragmentation.’ There are now tent wherever I am,” he said. “One plication, it’s built using Titanium,” ure out how to integrate it into the
When Forkfly launched two and over 400,000 applications on of the fears of this strategy is that, Wagner said. “While you might framework. Forkfly could have fig-
a half years ago, Wagner said the iTunes. There are over 200,000 on ‘Oh my goodness, people are too look at the application and think that ured it out on its own, but that
company only had to build for the the Android Market. What does this simple; they aren’t going to get it. we hired developers for Android, would have required hiring native
iPhone because there were no oth- result in?” We’re going to deploy an applica- iPhone—which, by the way, we app developers, he said.
er devices that supported the type Fragmentation, Wagner said. tion that offers all this functional- once did—it’s built with Titanium. Whatever route you choose for
of technology that Forkfly offered, “Consumers demand true unifor- ity, and it’s going to overwhelm Forgive me for saying this, but we your newspaper’s mobile strategy,
such as location awareness and mity in the mobile space,” he said. our reader base, and that’s going blew a lot of money trying to build Wagner said it’s important to get
serving up a media-rich experience. “The fragmentation that’s now hap- to spell doom for our mobile strat- our own, and then we figured out into this space—despite how over-
Fortunately, that’s changed, and pening in media in the application egy. News, weather, sports inte- that—thanks to a number of recent whelming it may seem.
there are new carriers and operating environment has really led to a lot grated into one app?’ I’m telling innovations—we could take a dif- “Mobile will be the single largest
systems to consider, he said. of confusion. The applications that you, it can be done extraordinarily ferent approach. So can you.” disruption in the history of the pub-
“If you’re looking to build an tend to flourish the most are the well.” Wagner said your Web develop- lishing industry,” he said. “A lot of
app, I would strongly suggest start- ones that offer the most utility As an example, Wagner said on ers on staff could build a mobile people said the Web was massive-
ing with Android,” he said. “If any- across the widest geographic the Facebook app, users can per- application over a weekend. In de- ly disruptive; mobile takes it to the
thing, it just means you will be area.” form various tasks, such as update veloping Forkfly’s mobile applica- next level. In fact, there are soci-
carried on more devices. For example, Wagner said an your status and location, view pho- tion using Titanium, Wagner said ologists saying this may be the
“A lot of people say, ‘Let’s de- advantage of Google is that you tos and videos, send emails, share the company took its existing web- single largest social disruption in
velop for iPhone; that’s the priori- don’t have to download different photos, find local events, chat, site and wrapped it in what is called all of human history.
ty.’ Android devices are now out- apps for use in different locations, check into a location and tag your a “native shell,” which pushes con- “I would love to say that things
selling iPhone. Part of it is the iP- such a Google Portland or Google friends, and get local coupons. tent out to the different operating are going to get better or less com-
hone exists in a closed universe. Seattle app. For media companies “If Facebook would have systems, such as iPhone, Android, plicated, but in fact, it’s quite the
What that means is it’s designed for that have newspapers in various launched separate apps for each etc. There were some bugs to work opposite. Mobile is not just about
one device. Android now is in- geographic locations, they would one of theses functions, would Fa- out, but Wagner said the point is, phones; mobile is a revolution that
stalled with a number of mobile better serve mobile users by devel- cebook even have a presence in the the barriers to entry are gone. will power virtually everything in
carriers but goes beyond mobile oping one application for all prop- mobile space?” he asked. “I would “What’s the cost?” Wagner your wireless, digitally intercon-
devices. For example, the Barnes erties that serves up appropriate dare say no, but my point is that asked. “Titanium is free. It’s what’s nected life. Newspapers need to be
& Noble Nook runs Android OS content through geo-targeting. things you might find complex, called an open-source framework, a part of that.”
and can actually run Android ap- “Part of my point is that it makes your readers have already become and you can download it right now,
plications all within the e-reader.” little sense to deploy multiple apps acclimated to.” give it to your development staff or Contact: Paul Wagner, paul@forkfly.com
MAY 2011 | InlandPress.org | The Inlander PAGE 11

3. Ideas
Improve your Twitter strategy with these Web-based tools
By Michelle Finkler
AssocIATE EdITor
Whether you’re a Twitter novice or enthusiast, there’s always room
for improvement when it comes to making the most of the microblogging
site. But have you always wondered just how valuable Twitter can re-
ally be to your media company?
Twitter is a powerful way to attract and engage followers, according
to Paul Wagner, CEO of Portland, Ore.-based Forkfly. You can evaluate
and improve your media company’s Twitter presence with the following
Web-based tools, Wagner said.
Twitalyzer
Website: Twitalyzer.com Friend or Follow is a free way to find out who you’ve followed who hasn’t followed you back.
Cost: Freemium
What it does: Gauges the overall impact of your Twitter account. Friend
Twitalyzer rates your Twitter account’s
engagement, generosity in retweeting
These Twitalyzer ratings tie together, he
said, affecting your score in other metrics.
of information that you have to filter
through yourself,” he said. “What happens or Follow
other users’ tweets and other metrics, such So if your generosity drops, so does your with Facebook are a couple things. Let’s
as which tweets have been the most suc- velocity or the speed in which your mes- say I post a really long message to Face- Website: FriendorFollow.com
cessful, Wagner said. sage is pushed into the stream, he said. book. When I say ‘really long,’ I mean Cost: Free
“Engagement simply means, ‘What are “What this means in essence is that our more than 140 characters. What happens
What it does: shows who
we doing to create a dialogue?’” he said. message may sit there for some time before is because my Facebook feed is linked to
“If we post a tweet and someone responds someone picks up on it and rebroadcasts Twitter, my message is cut short [on Twit- you’ve followed who hasn’t
to it, are we saying thank you? Are we giv- it,” he said. “You’re at a big advantage as ter]. Since Facebook posts tend to be a bit followed you back.
ing feedback?” a news organization because the type of longer, they don’t translate well to Twitter.
Wagner said a newspaper’s generosity content you’re putting out there is going to You’ve got to compress to get your mes- Friend or Follow is a quick and
rating on Twitalyzer should be in a very be relevant and worthy of being shared in sage across on Twitter. If you don’t get easy way to find out who hasn’t
high percentile, meaning you are retweet- real-time. If you’re putting out something your message across, you won’t get picked followed you back so you can un-
ing fellow tweeps’ posts, he said. that says, ‘Freeway closed between exits up and retweeted.” follow them, Wagner said.
“Let’s say you have someone who is 23 and 25,’ that’s something people are Another service, Twitter Grader (Twit- “It’s very simple,” he said. “If
regularly retweeting your message,” Wag- going to pick up on.” terGrader.com), is similar to Twitalyzer they’re not following you back—
ner said. “Twitalyzer will show who your Wagner also warned against linking your but free and much more simplistic in eval- unless it’s a valuable source of
top followers are—the ones who love your Facebook page to your Twitter account uating your feed on Twitter, Wagner said. information that you might want
content and share it with their friends. since, as a media company, you’re trying It shows the number of updates, the number to rebroadcast in your own chan-
What would be generous of our [Forkfly] to accomplish two different goals with each of tweeps you’re following, the number of nel—they’re completely worthless
feed to do is anytime they have something platform. followers you have and your rank out of to you. I’m not sure who you
to say that is of interest, to rebroadcast it “Twitter is a constant flow—a stream of the roughly 9.5 million active Twitter us- might want to follow in your area.
to our 9,300 Portland followers.” consciousness. This is a constant barrage ers. Maybe it’s the mayor of your
Twitalyzer is a Web- town, and he hasn’t followed you
based tool that back. Don’t delete the guy or girl.
rates your Twitter That’s probably a bad idea since
feed’s overall they’re a useful source. But if it’s
impact. Twitalyzer the guy from the bike shop down
is a freemium the street, and he has not followed
service with you back, delete him and be done
subscriptions
starting at $4.99 per with it.”
month.
Continued on next page
PAGE 12 The Inlander | InlandPress.org | JUNE 2011

4. Ideas
Continued from previous page
Tweet Adder
Website: TweetAdder.com
Cost: Prices start at $55
What it does: Allows you to search
for local, active Twitter users, so you roughly an hour because it doesn’t want to
do this too quickly or that could alert Twit-
can follow them and get followers in ter that something is amiss. So the 300 get
return. added. What’s the next step? The next step
is to wait. You wait roughly a week. If they
Wagner said media companies can beef have not followed you back within a week,
up their Twitter feeds and the feeds of their they are not going to follow you back.”
local advertisers by using Tweet Adder. The next step is to unfollow, Wagner
“We have social media feeds all over said. Of the tweeps that you’ve followed
the country with sizes ranging from 3,000 during the past week, Twitter Adder will
to 12,000,” Wagner said. “What we’ve show who has not followed you back so
started to do there is take local merchant you can delete them.
content and rebroadcast it. What we can Tweet Adder allows you to search by location and activity, so your newspaper can find active “Statistically, roughly 15 to 20 percent
do that merchants can’t and what we can tweeps in your area. of those that you follow will follow you
do that they don’t know about is use soft- back with each batch,” Wagner said. “So,
ware like this to quickly ramp up Twitter In the markets that Wagner has been weeks and you decide to add 400 followers if 20 percent is the number, I’ve just add-
efforts. Still, Twitter is only as good as the working with, he said they were able to get that day, you may get banished for the pe- ed 60 new followers over a two-day period.
nature of your feed and the number of fol- 2,000 to 3,000 new followers in the period riod of a week. That’s for your first of- You’re going to do this every day. You’re
lowers who decide to opt in.” of a month. Results may vary, however, fense. If you do it again, you’re gone. They going to cycle through this—add, unfol-
Wagner said it’s easy to acquire a lot of since you still have to make sure that will get rid of your feed.” low, add, unfollow.”
junk followers, but finding quality follow- you’re putting great content on that feed, To be safe and not draw attention from Twitter Adder can also be used to man-
ers can be challenging. Tweet Adder, how- he said. Also, the process of using Tweet Twitter, Wagner said Forkfly has found age your feed and send delayed tweets, like
ever, allows you to search by location and Adder to build followers is gradual since success in the following steps: Make sure HootSuite allows, though Wagner said
activity, such as searching specifically for following too many tweeps at once will you’ve posted quality content to the feed what Twitter Adder is best at is managing
Twitter users in the Portland area who have trigger a red flag with Twitter, he said. at least daily, find all the local followers multiple feeds, searching by parameters
tweeted during the past five days, he “Twitter is very careful about spam, and active on Twitter during the past five days and adding local followers.
said. I don’t just mean sending out a bunch of and add roughly 300 new followers using “This is about finding qualified people
“That’s a wonderful search parameter,” junk messages,” he said. “What they’re Tweet Adder. that you want to follow in your commu-
Wagner said. “What Twitter will tell you really looking for is are you adding too “How do you add a follower?” Wagner nity only,” he said. “It’s easy to build a
is that they have two billion users world- many followers at a time, and if so, why asked. “You’ve done this search, they’ve follower base on Twitter that will do you
wide, but what they don’t tell you is that are you? And if you are adding too many given you this list and you click ‘Add Fol- absolutely no good because the bottom line
most of them are dead or not using the followers at a time, what’s the nature of lowers.’ ‘How many would you like to is, if you’re just adding random people
system. You want to make sure you’re us- your content? So they’ve got this crazy add?’ 300. This is who you’re fol- from around the country, they don’t care
ing the active base, which is what this algorithm, and if you go in there and lowing. You’ve followed 300 about your content.”
system is really great at doing.” you’ve got one tweet over the last three people over a period of
Twitter Counter
Website: TwitterCounter.com
Cost: Freemium
What it does: Projects your Twitter feed’s growth in followers.
Wagner said Twitter Counter is a great way to see
how your Twitter feed is trending with regard to
attracting followers.
“What this will do is give me some rapid stats on they try to delete spam followers, which is why you’ll
my growth,” Wagner said. “So every once in a while, see that drop-off.”
you’ll see that we dropped a few followers. Twitter
will do a scan of their entire database of users, and Contact: Paul Wagner, paul@forkfly.com
JUNE 2011 | InlandPress.org | The Inlander PAGE 13

5. Ideas
What are best practices for social media use by media companies?
By Michelle Finkler
AssocIATE EdITor Breaking news
Setting a successful social media When stepping up your newspaper’s
policy at your media company is social media efforts, Henry M. Lopez,
really about setting expectations, professional digital development and
said Henry M. Lopez, professional projects manager for The Santa Fe (N.M.)
digital development and projects New Mexican, said a good place to start
manager for The Santa Fe (N.M.) is breaking news.
New Mexican. And setting clear Lopez said media companies should
social media expectations, in turn, set goals for breaking news, which can
sets your employees up for success include:
rather than failure. • Sending out text message alerts
“When you read about people • Posting an alert on your newspaper’s
losing their jobs because of what website, Facebook page and Twitter
happened on their Facebook page feeds
or Twitter accounts, what you find • Sending out an e-mail blast
in those stories is there was usu-
Lopez said news organizations should
ally no policy in place; they just
get specific about when to alert the
pissed somebody off,” he said dur-
public of a breaking story.
ing the recent 2011 Mobile and
“Report what you know when you
Social Networking Boot Camp.
know it,” he said. “If you have to make
“Value your employees and help
that call [to verify information], make
them avoid confusion. Let them
the call. Find out if there really was a
know what you’re expecting and The frequency in which you should update a breaking news story differs from platform to platform, said
shooting at city hall.” Henry M. Lopez, professional digital development and projects manager for The santa Fe (N.M.) New
let them know what to expect of
After verifying the information and Mexican. on Twitter, media companies can send out lots of updates, while Facebook users are more
you.”
posting the initial news alert onto the sensitive to the number of updates posted, he said.
Setting a clear policy legitimizes
various platforms, Lopez said to request
the medium and lets employees
information from readers. For example, if Additionally, Lopez said newspapers tra updates if it’s not significant. Don’t
know you’re serious about social
there’s a shooting at city hall, newspa- should be mindful of the acceptable fre- send out four email alerts every two
media, Lopez said. But policies
pers should ask, “Do you know anything quency of breaking news updates, which hours, but on Twitter, you can send out a
aren’t meant to be a heavy-handed,
about that?” Media companies also varies from platform to platform. Ulti- lot of updates. Your Facebook customers
restrictive list of don’ts.
should ask readers to send in photos tak- mately, determining whether a piece of are a little more sensitive to the number
“When I talk to people about this,
en with their phones (while safely out of information is worthy of an update is a of status updates that you’re sending
sometimes they feel like they’re
harm’s way, of course), he said. Lopez also judgment call, he said. out. If you’re going to make my phone
goons,” he said. “You get problems
emphasized thanking readers for submit- “Not every piece of breaking news is buzz with an alert, it’d better be worth
when policies are written to be re-
ting comments, information and photos. the same,” he said. “Don’t throw out ex- it.”
strictive. Some policies say, ‘Don’t
ever talk about what happened in
meetings. Don’t ever talk about months, get people together. We all • Can I post content or links onto
your boss. Don’t ever talk about know social media is evolving. “Don’t hand the rules down like Charlton my personal site?
co-workers. Don’t ever talk about Guess what? So are the problems Heston with the Ten Commandments. • Can I operate a paying blog dur-
anything. And don’t you dare link that come up. Elaborate on them. ing my free time?
That’s not the value in social media.”
stuff that’s on our website onto Put together a committee with peo- • When can I quote a Facebook
your personal blog.’ Those policies ple from throughout the organiza- Henry M. Lopez, The santa Fe (N.M.) New Mexican status update?
are out there. When I talk to folks, tion. Don’t hand the rules down like As an example of a media com-
it seems like companies don’t know Charlton Heston with the Ten Com- pany with a good social media
how to talk about social media. In- mandments. That’s not the value in “You make your decision, but I countered is in regard to replying policy, Lopez cited NPR.
stead of being restrictive, talk about social media. don’t want people using their per- to user comments. A lot of times, “NPR is so good in thinking
the best practices and the best ways “I’m not here to tell you what’s sonal accounts when they’re using staff members don’t reply to com- through issues like this and policies
to use social media.” right and what’s wrong but to en- the company account,” he said. ments because there’s no expecta- and community management,” he
Lopez said policies should en- courage you to have the conversa- “For instance, my personal Henry tion to do so and no guidance for said. “While I don’t necessarily
courage participation in social me- tion and give you some ideas about M. Lopez Facebook account could that, he said. Another question recommend you take everything
dia in all newspaper departments, questions that you want to answer control The Santa Fe New Mexi- companies need to address is re- from them word for word, I would
regardless of whether staff is in ad- and ask through that process to get can’s Facebook page, but I actu- garding whether or not reporters review their social media policy,
vertising, circulation or editorial. everyone on the same page.” ally want those to be two different should friend sources. which is available online (visit
It’s also important to keep social With social media, Lopez said things. People will put [personal “Have that conversation with http://n.pr/c5BvwE). It’s a very en-
media rules short, meaning policies bosses tend to worry about what accounts] on their Hootsuites or your team and you’ll come up with couraging policy. It’s constructive
should be contained to a four- or employees are saying about them, their Tweetdecks, and on occasion, some really interesting ideas that and proactive and a good place to
five-paragraph document, Lopez while employees have totally dif- you’ll get an off-color comment go back and forth,” he said. “Per- start to influence your conversa-
said. Rules should be clear and to ferent questions that managers may that was actually meant for some- sonally, I think it’s a bad practice; tions.”
the point, he added. not be ready for. One question Lo- body’s personal audience that went other folks don’t.”
“Review [the policy] from time pez has encountered is, “Do I use out to the professional audience.” Other potential questions in- Contact: Henry M. Lopez,
to time,” Lopez said. “Every six personal accounts for work?” Another question Lopez has en- clude: hlopez@sfnewmexican.com
JUNE 2011 | InlandPress.org | The Inlander PAGE 15

6. the
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Attorneys explain why it could happen Mike Blinder will reveal how
search marketing works and how
By Michelle Finkler you can easily deploy a local
ASSOCIATE EDITOR
“Small newspapers need to be
concerned. There are going to
For more, see page 21. search solution that will assist in
garnering significant new online
be unions that will come after revenue from new business cate-
If you think unions only tar- different newspapers than we gories.
get large newspapers, think would historically think.” WITH MIKE BLINDER, PRESIDENT, THE
again.
“The old view that unions
Newspaper companies could
potentially see an increase in
Analyzing ‘key metrics’ can BLINDER GROUP, NEW PORT RICHEY, FLA.
March 12 | Webinar
were always interested in big
companies is not true,” said
Bill Schurgin, partner at Sey-
union activity if the Employ-
ee Free Choice Act becomes
law, Schurgin said during a re-
boost financial performance Newspaper Executive’s
Guide to the Production
farth Shaw LLP in Chicago. EFCA: CONTINUED ON PAGE 14 By Adolfo Mendez their worries, their concerns— Waste Cycle
EDITOR anything that you can do to help Here is a complete yet concise ex-
Union election win rate them to survive, because they are planation of where waste occurs
More than 50 percent of workers at U.S. companies have in the production cycle. It is ex-
In the good and bad times, pub- key to your survival.” plained in laymen’s terms, with
voted in favor of unions every year since 2005.
lishers should make cultivating Garry, who entered the news- logical courses of action to initi-
a close relationship with their top paper industry in 1978, is a for- ate the conversations at your own
10 advertisers a priority—meet- mer chief financial analyst at the organization, which will lead you
down the road to reduced waste
ing with each of them once a Cleveland Plain Dealer and a for- at your facility.
month or once a quarter, accord- mer publisher with Hirt Media. WITH TIM GARRY, PRESIDENT, NEWSPAPER
ing to newspaper industry veter- During a recent Inland Press We- AND PRINTING CONSULTANTS,
MYPRESSREPORTS.COM, MT. GILEAD, OHIO
an Tim Garry . binar, he discussed several key fi-
“Your top 10 advertisers are nancial and operating metrics March 17 | Webinar
pretty tough to replace,” said Gar- newspaper executives need to Selling More Strategically
ry founder and CEO of MyPress-
, monitor if they’re to improve
to Integrate Web, Print
Reports.com, a company that pro- their company’s financial per-
Learn how to better control the
vides newspapers with Web-based formance. sales process by building relation-
financial management software. “Key metrics has become a ships and trust quicker. Find out
“Your top 10 advertisers are the buzz word in our economy late- why you should be calling at high-
er levels, how to locate decision-
DATA COURTESY OF SEYFARTH SHAW LLP cornerstone of your enterprise ly,” Garry said. “What it really makers and why you must have an
GRAPHIC BY MICHELLE FINKLER/ASSOCIATE EDITOR and you should really take a per- means is that you’re looking at understanding of your customer’s
sonal interest in their wealth, in METRICS: CONTINUED ON PAGE 8 business to be successful at selling
strategically.
RICHARD FARREL, PRESIDENT, TANGENT
KNOWLEDGE SYSTEMS AND AUTHOR OF
GROW CIRCULATION IMPROVE CLASSIFIED SALES PART OF THE CELEBRATION “SELLING HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH
SELLING”
Closely watching the numbers gives Make your newspaper a top National Nurses Week in May could
circulation managers a solid base for destination for classified ads with a provide a special section For details or registration assistance,
contact Inland at (847) 795-0380
growing readership. reader-centered approach. opportunity for your paper. or go to www.inlandpress.org.
PAGE 9 PAGE 10 PAGES 12 AND 13 Select “Event Registration” under the
Training heading.

7. Ideas
EFCA: Employers urged to take action
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 days or more. Then, an election is 2009,” Schurgin said. “Their
cent Inland Press Webinar. held, after which certification can chances are as good today as they’ll
The Employee Free Choice Act be issued if election results dic- ever be. They’re going to do every-
“will make it dramatically easi- tate. thing they can to get this done by
er for unions to organize,” said However, with the EFCA, once the end of this year.”
Ken Dolin, also a partner at Sey- organization begins, the union sim- Schurgin said with the new ad-
farth Shaw LLP. “This is not go- ply needs to obtain card-check sig- ministration, employers should
ing to be great news for many em- natures from 50 percent of employ- expect increased government en-
ployers.” ees. Once 50 percent or more are forcement, as well as increased la-
The EFCA, which would alter secured, certification is issued. The bor and human rights protection.
the National Labor Relations Act, election can take place within days He said now is the time for employ-
is likely to pass, Schurgin said. It and sometimes without the com- ers to start preparing for the pos-
has the backing of powerful union pany even being aware of the sibility of a union targeting their
lobbyists and President Obama’s union’s presence, Dolin said. company .
pro-union administration. “Unions claim secret ballot elec-
Prepare now
Schurgin and Dolin said the tions favor employers because em-
EFCA would change three major ployers launch extensive anti- “We need to get ahead and be
aspects of labor law: it would re- union campaigns during the post- proactive before a union comes
move an employer’s right to a se- petition period, including anti- into the picture,” Schurgin said.
cret ballot election, there would be union captive audience speeches He suggested employers write
increased penalties for employers and one-on-one meetings between letters to congressmen and sena-
The Inauguration Edition published by The Virginia Gazette. The special issue who engage in “unfair labor prac- supervisors and employees,” he tors. They should also try to cre-
was a success, with street sales nearly doubling. PHOTO SUPPLIED tices,” and it would permit the fed- said. However, “Arguments by ate a workplace environment
eral government to assign an ar- unions, though, ignore that unions where union organizing is unat-
Inauguration Edition a bitrator and impose a two-year con-
tract under certain conditions.
Under current law, Dolin said
are winning elections at the same
rate at which they did over 30 years
ago.”
tractive. For this, an employee at-
titude survey can be helpful. To
boost morale, Schurgin said news-
success at Virginia paper employers now have the right to a
secret ballot general election when
deciding union representation.
Passage likely
The EFCA passed in the House
papers should increase the use of
recognition awards and publicize
accomplishments by the paper
By Adolfo Mendez “Those [advertisers] who “EFCA will eliminate secret bal- in 2007 but stalled in the Senate. At and its employees.
EDITOR lot election and will be replaced by the time, President Bush immedi- Also, Schurgin said managers
passed on it were kicking card-check recognition,” he said. ately promised a veto. Unlike Bush, should take the time to evaluate
The Virginia Gazette in themselves. Those who Eliminating secret ballots and the Obama administration is most the entire newspaper, all of its
Williamsburg, Va., published “In- were in it were ecstatic, replacing them with card checks likely going to make EFCA a top policies, employee handbooks and
auguration Lessons for Ameri- especially the ones who conducted in public gives unions priority Schurgin said.
, personnel manuals to identify and
ca,” a 44-page special section, in an unfair advantage in organizing, As evidence, they offered this resolve issues now to thwart the
the Gazette on Jan. 17.
chose to be on a page or businesses argue. It’s also unde- extended quote from President possibility of a union recogniz-
“It was intended to succinctly opposite a page of their mocratic and unwise, Dolin said. Obama, taken from a speech he ing any vulnerability .
recall the presidency of each of favorite president.” “Cards are unreliable; they can gave in Dubuque, Iowa, in Novem- “If you use the analogy of a
President Obama’s predecessors contain forged employee signa- ber 2007: doctor, you’re conducting a com-
and walk him through their suc- Bill O’Donovan tures, misrepresentations and “We’re ready to take the offense plete physical of the entire com-
cesses and failures,” said Publish- threats. Even if there are no for- for organized labor It’s time we have
. pany he said.
,”
er Bill O’Donovan. “One recur- whom I persuaded to partici- geries, misrepresentations and a president who didn’t choke say- Schurgin also suggested edu-
ring lesson learned is to pick bet- pate,” O'Donovan said. “Their threats, employees may feel pres- ing the word ‘union.’ We need to cation of supervisors and employ-
ter cabinet members. Another is challenge was keeping within sured in the presence of a union strengthen our unions by letting ees on the impact of unions and
to watch your health, and to wear 300 words, which all but two did.” solicitor,” Dolin said. them do what they do best — organ- the newspaper’s position on them,
a bulletproof vest,” he added. The section also was prof- With the card-check system, ize our workers. If a majority of lawfully urging them not to sign
“The edition was inserted in itable, he said. “We only grossed Schurgin said it would be more at- workers want a union, they should because there’s “no second
our Saturday paper, and we $15,000 in advertising but it was tractive to unions to target small- get a union. It’s that simple. We need chance by virtue of vote.”
padded the draw 40 percent,” a quick sale under enormous er newspapers and other types of to stand up to the business lobby Businesses shouldn’t be put off
O’Donovan said. “Returns show time constraints,” he said. smaller companies. “If there’s only that’s been getting their friends in preparing now for the change to
we nearly doubled our street “Those who passed on it were 20 or 30 employees, it’s easier for Congress and in the White House to come, they said. “This is a wake-
sales to 7,891. It was a huge hit kicking themselves. Those who unions to get cards signed,” he block card check. That’s why I was up call for all of us who said, ‘We
among the readership,” he said. were in it were ecstatic, especial- said. one of the leaders fighting to pass won’t be the target of a union
The section included five-part ly the ones who chose to be on a Another change: shortening the the Employee Free Choice Act. campaign,’” Schurgin said.
coverage on President Obama— page or opposite a page of their length of the campaign period, That’s why I’m fighting for it in the “There is a sea change going on
how he got elected, what he did favorite president.” making it more difficult for em- Senate. And that’s why we’ll make out here. Six months from now,
right, what went wrong, what les- For example, he said one client ployers to state their case against it the law of the land when I’m pres- there may be union activity and
,
sons are there for Obama and les- kidded about gaining position unions. Under current law, once ident.” you won’t have time to respond.”
sons for the country . on the page with Jefferson Davis. the union-recognition cards are Schurgin expects the new EFCA
“Key to our success was a signed by 30 percent of employees to be introduced before April. “We Contacts: Bill Schurgin,
savvy professor who aligned all Contact: Bill O’Donovan, and a petition is filed, there usual- may see an amended version of the wschurgin@seyfarth.com;
43 presidents with other faculty bodonovan@vagazette.com ly is a campaign period lasting 39 EFCA. They have to pass it in Ken Dolin, kdolin@seyfarth.com
PAGE 14 The Inlander | www.inlandpress.org | MARCH 2009

8. Special Report
Local business directories match readers with advertisers
Free listing By Michelle Finkler over $500,000 of revenue,” she
ASSocIATE EdIToR said. “More recently, as we’ve Archived Webinar
launched the Wenatchee World’s
This and other Webinars are
Setting up an online directory for Marketplace, it had an even quick- available in Inland’s Archived
your community can be a great way er success with $165,000 in the first Webinars collection.
to connect area businesses with lo- week.” Visit InlandPress.org and
cal customers. And sometimes, an click on “Archived
Business advantages Webinars” under the
online directory can connect area
businesses with not-so-local cus- Media companies that set up an “Training” tab.
tomers. online directory can decide to call
Consider Gazlo.com, a local it whatever they want, whether that ries. There are also sponsorship
market directory launched slightly be Marketplace or a name more positions where a business can
over a year ago by Bliss Commu- specific to the area, such as The sponsor a category.”
nications, based in Janesville, Wis. Janesville Gazette’s Gazlo.com. Upgraded listings
A man in Greece was conducting But even with different names, all
an online search for a clock seller— of the various Ellington Market- Businesses can also opt to up-
not in any specific town—when place sites are similar in what they grade to a “basic” or “expanded”
Basic listing Gazlo.com turned up in the search offer advertisers and consumers. listing that offers features that go
results. “It’s what consumers are used to beyond what’s available for free.
“He wanted to buy a grandfather getting when they get a Google “Basic” listings include a business
clock from one of the businesses in site,” Weaver said. “To compete profile, listing in up to five catego-
the directory,” said Sara Weaver, with Yahoo!, Google and the Yel- ries, unlimited keywords, a photo
vice president of Sales and Busi- low Pages, we have to offer more gallery and a custom meta descrip-
ness Development for Mediaphor- for free. We can’t nickel and dime tion tag for search engine optimiza-
media, the software division of the our advertisers. We add a photo, tion.
World Company, based in Law- business hours, name, address and “For a basic listing, I’ve it seen
rence, Kan. phone number, a link to their Web go for $44 up to $99 dollars a
Weaver said the man interested site, a map and methods of payment month,” Weaver said. “A lot of
in buying the clock searched on for free. Most of our partners would people adopt the same strategy.
Google for “clockmaster master agree that you only get one chance You can list up to five categories.
clock repair,” and the Gazlo.com to make your directory useful for We list you in one category, and
site was listed first in the search consumers or they won’t come we’ll charge you to be listed in
results. back.” more than one category.”
“We work really hard to make On the homepage of each site, The “expanded” listing also has
our sites search-engine friendly,” there’s a search bar to enter key tabs for videos with a built-in Flash
Weaver said. “If they’re using words, business name or location, video player. Companies can up-
Google to find something locally, and there’s also an option to refine load ads and coupons that they’re
it will pop up in searches. When the search by entering a zip code or running. They can also list a num-
Expanded listing you don’t know what you’re look- address so users can find results ber of products, post calendar
ing for, these categories are opti- close to them, Weaver said. There events and a staff directory.
mizing well.” are three rotating ad positions in the Weaver said the expanded listing
Mediaphormedia, which uses El- middle of the homepage for busi- costs anywhere from $100 to $250
lington Marketplace as its software, nesses that expand their listing. It a month, with the most common
has been partnering with other me- is rotated with an unlimited spon- price being $200 a month.
dia companies in helping them de- sorship position. Newspapers also Weaver said the upgraded listing
velop marketplace directory sites. charge extra for access to the right options give a boost to many busi-
Weaver said that last year, Media- rail, which Weaver said is another nesses, especially small ones that
phormedia worked with 27 differ- revenue stream. may not have the time or resources
ent companies in setting up their “Homepage right-rail ads go for to devout to building and maintain-
directories. about $300,” she said. “Lawrence ing a Web site.
When the Lawrence Journal charges $500 to $700. You have to “We found in the market, most
World’s LawrenceMarketplace. look at what you’re charging for businesses have a Web presence,
com site first launched, Weaver your own newspaper site and make but the site might have been de-
said it took four to six months for it make sense.” signed by your nephew,” Weaver
it to catch on with local consumers. On the left side of the homepage said. “When they see our site, they
Through branding and advertising, is a list of categories to choose thought it was useful. Businesses
LawrenceMarketplace.com has be- from, such as Arts and Entertain- are putting in a lengthy profile.
come a name people recognize, she ment, Automotive, Food & Dining, Some companies are even using the
said. Weaver said the site is now in Health Care and Retail, to name a Marketplace site as their primary
its third year, and receives more few. site.”
“You only get one chance to make your directory useful to consumers or they than 225 million page views a “If you were to choose a catego-
won’t come back,” said Sara Weaver, vice president of Sales and Business month. ry for Food & Dining, there’s a Contact: Sara Weaver,
development for Mediaphormedia. Above: Screen shots from “For LawrenceMakretplace.com, page for that category,” Weaver sweaver@ellingtoncms.com
LawrenceMarketplace.com. Images supplIed in the first year, it brought in just said. “Then there are sub catego-
PAGE 10 The Inlander | InlandPress.org | SEPTEMBER 2009