Make Useful Media

December 11, 2008 · Comments

shopper I started thinking about how journalists are going to fare in 2009. I thought about how many papers are facing layoffs, how many hundreds of news room jobs have already been cut, and what those skillsets might do once they’ve been unhinged from their current responsibilities. What came to mind was something we might all consider. Are there ways that we can make more useful media, and are there ways we can make media useful?

Every one of these ideas applies to us as much as it does to the incoming rush of journalists out there.

Location-Based Media

I live in a small town in northern Massachusetts, surrounded by many other small towns. There’s always tons of little things going on, but we rarely know what’s what or where. A blog with really simple brief posts about events, and then maybe longer reviews about places that are great to visit would really give me some value. And if you’re looking for revenue, local advertising is an area where you can hustle some interesting opportunities together.

Another location-based idea involves my experiments with BrightKite. I’ve written about my thoughts on the annotated world, and I think there are further opportunities here, for all of us to consider. And please, not for your company’s dumb products. Think “useful.” Think “helpful.”

Interest-Based Media

There are always opportunities for media around specific ideas. I suggested the need for someone to build a blog to equip people to report small news. It’s another way someone could be helpful, and there are so many more.

That’s the thing. You could write about your skills and there’s almost certainly someone out there who’d want to know more about it. Are you passionate about canning and pickling? I know that TV celebrity Brea Grant probably would subscribe, because she’s looking to learn more about it. Want to learn about grilling and food preparation? Try Justin Levy’s Prime Cuts blog.

There are hundreds of ways to slice this, maybe more. But there’s gold in figuring it out.

Self-Improvement

This category never gets old. Blogs like LifeHacker and 43 Folders and Lateral Action come right to mind, as do many other blogs that teach us ways to improve. There’s a fairly perpetual marketing for this kind of information. Do you have an area of self-improvement that you can write knowledgeably about? Maybe it’s your ticket to the next level.

We Have Such an Opportunity

We have the presses. We are the TV stations. This is our chance to master tomorrow’s radios today. Why create what’s been done before? Why stick to the media styles and methods and models that have dominated the traditional formats for so long?

Make useful media, share it far and wide, and build business around those opportunities. This is your chance.

Photo credit, ralphbijker

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  • You're right. When one opportunity ends, another one begins.
  • It is exactly the issue that I speak in my last post in my blog. A service of local online sales of apartments in Cordoba, Argentina. I live here and I could not find deals on the Internet, which made me think of a logical and simple idea. An application using Google Maps, YouTube and Twitter to keep me abreast of tenders with a map and videos of the apartments, with the riders using Twitter to keep abreast if already made a reservation. That you think of the idea?
  • No point rambling her with another echo chamber comment.

    If you're reading Chris' post, only comment if you have a specific idea. If you already have one, leave now and lead the way.

    My idea (Please steal it if you can do better):

    Authoritative, down-to-earth and remarkable online assistance through our botched Healthcare system.
  • Self-improvement, huh? Hmmm, think there's a market for information about that? *grin*
  • First, thank you for the encouragement to do things differently. This post, your interview today with John Jantsch and two other blogs have all emphasized the power and importance of giving first.
    You've got me thinking about this, thank you.

    Todd
    Participate in Danny Evan's "Operation" - http://www.dadgonemad.com/2008/12/operation.html
  • I do believe the entire landscape of journalism is evolving quite quickly on many fronts. Where it ends up is going to be very interesting to watch.
  • Thanks Chris, "make yourself useful" is a great motto for any business. Delighted to hear you think Lateral Action is starting to do that.

    And I like your three categories of usefulness. We're very well served for location-based media in London so it's easy to forget how many opportunities there are out there in less crowded places.
  • Hi Chris,

    Really inspiring ideas. I think that social media it's used at it's full potential. I mean, I would like to see for example a good hotel business blog. The type of articles there could be limited only by your imagination : all that you can see around, where to spend the free time (pubs that have reviews from users and maybe tips like : Friday night is the best because...). Also all kind of events that will take place in the city and after-the-event-pictures. And so many other articles.

    I think you can monetize almost everything you would like to write if you do it the proper way and you offer enough good content to your readers.
  • For a great example of location-based media: www.ibrattleboro.com
  • I enjoyed this post very much!

    Did you happen to read the story yesterday in the New York Times 'YouTube Videos Pull in Real Money'?

    Your article gets a little deeper with respect to sharing with readers ideas for content creation.

    If anyone out there is ready to get started, check out the NY Times article:

    http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/11/business/medi...
  • Hey Chris,

    As usual, you have your finger on the pulse. Anyone unwilling to pay attention and be nimble will be left wondering what ever happened to "the good old days?"
  • Location based media! I am convinced It's the best way to go. There is this one local web site that I just love because it's so interactive. Folks in the community contribute and now it's become one of the places to look before you leave your house to go out on a friday night.

    http://www.worcesterite.com
  • Some big publications are trying to go hyper-local, but can't really get beyond the big-media mentality of recording only the "important" things for posterity....

    Great post. Much to think about!
  • Betsy
    We have a great example of location based media in Buffalo, NY that launched a couple years ago that's become a great go to source to share info about events and also serves to galvanize those who are trying to revive the City -- www.buffalorising.com
  • In terms of Internet-based media, I would suggest that sites such as NowPublic are filling the need to report "small news".
  • Are we talking about Gothamist type blogs or something that is more news-news related?

    C
  • Nice inspiring thoughts. Always nice to come to your blog and read great content you would not find other places.
  • Anna Tarkov
    Huzzah!!! This is exactly what I've been up to in the last 2 months. Local, local, local. I can't say this enough. People like local news. Just look what happens when you write good local stuff.

    You get comments like this: http://dailydaley.windycitizen.com/2008/12/03/m...

    Please read the comment from "Linda" and my response.
  • If anyone is interested in seeing how this is being done in Chicago, please visit http://www.windycitizen.com and http://www.gapersblock.com
  • Hi Chris - I'm a big fan of the "self-improvement" and "interest-based" blogs because you don't always need news sometimes just information and new perspectives. I use them to "self-improve" what I'm doing at work to stay competitive. Now is the time to create and strengthen one's community of knowledge through these smaller channels. I know that my trusted sources of information are more and more based through the channels that are not managed by national media giants.
  • Hi Chris,

    I publish a collection of local sites about Chicago called The Windy Citizen over at http://www.windycitizen.com We publish original metro reporting through some content partnerships and a growing number of blogs written by local people in the know, like Anna who commented just above me. We've scooped the Tribune a few times and are seeing pretty steady audience growth.

    2 questions for you and your readers, things I genuinely would like to understand better.

    1. What, if any should the line be between reader-contributed news stories and stuff written or aggregated by an editor?

    2. What's the right scale for something like this in a city? We've started out at the "metro" level, but it's become more clear to me that that doesn't really mean much and might not be meeting people where their needs are. Neighborhood sites or topic specific sites might be more the way to go.

    3. Also, in a city, why would someone use a site like this and not Yelp? What does Yelp not have that you think could still stand to be created or attacked? I realize you're not really talking so much about city stuff, but still.
  • And by two questions, I meant 3 questions.
  • Great post Chris!

    I think location based media will become a popular concept in 2009 as more and more people are exposed to the broad array of free web tools that are out there. Hopefully Obama's social networking efforts will inspire millions of people world wide to organize location based content.
  • I agree with Chris on many fronts but remain hesitant of social media commentary always turning it's back on the product or the service.

    Yes, compelling stories are great and interesting articles are good but if we want to get the average small business owner excited about social media, we need to get them excited about how they are going to be able to utilize these tools to engage prospects with their products, services or events.

    When the word "dumb products" is used, I pause. Why can't we wrap an interesting back story around the product. Why did the owner sacrifice to so much to release their product? Why is the product so special? How can the benefits of their product answer their target audience's needs.

    Why is social media so insistent on turning it's back on the products and services when this is makes the world turn.

    It's not that people have a problem with advertisements. It's that they are burnt out on receiving advertisements they are not interested in. If I see a story on how a runner was able to experience the benefits of a new shoe and I have just finished a tough run, I am thrilled to learn more about the shoe.

    Even the word Social Media scares many small business owners. "Social" is too indirect and too casual. Business owners have their family's well being at stake. In this economic downturn, they are looking for ways to sell products and services. End of story.

    Let's work together to make a clear case for social media.
  • Hey Chris, I often wonder when the old media is going to evolve. I still like reading magazines - they are a very efficient technology very portable, easy to carry and read during a long flight. But why is it that every issue TIME magazine and Sports Illustrated is identical for all subscribers.

    I would like to see these magazines redefine themselves with the option of having a custom magazine made. Give me a menu of say 50 topics and allow me to choose my favorite 10-15. Then I can get a magazine that is tailored to my interests. If old media doesn't start making these changes in the next year or two they really have no future. I will just move all reading to my RSS reader. If they adapt I will happily read magazines for many more years.
  • Great advice Chris. As a Baby Boomer who manages three blogs, is involved with Social Media like Twitter, etc., I'm a bit of an anachronism. So, I like what you have to say not just for my own direction but for the encouragement it gives others of my generation to dive in.
  • I subscribe to your blog and have been reading your posts by email for a few weeks now. Got this post today and it inspired me to submit a proposal to Change Makers' Re-Imagine Media competition! My proposal is grounded in making useful media and making media useful to the every day. I had been thinking about submitting something but had this big grand project thought up and I desperately wanted to scale it down to something feasible and manageable that could be useful to anyone. It's not a blog but I'd love your feedback: http://www.changemakers.net/en-us/node/14377
  • In addition to making the media more useful, there also is a huge challenge to make it more accessible. Now that such a huge number of people have the increasingly powerful hand held devices, so much more than mere "phones," there is more opportunity here to engineer ways to meet this medium without sacraficing good content.
  • stevenimmons
    I'm in favor as long as long as it doesn't all become a storm of 'public access TV' media, with low quality and poor editorial control. As media is power, I don't think we should be naive about the controls the current media barons will exert.
  • Chris
    I don't mean to nitpick, but I'd like to comment on this statement:

    ------
    And please, not for your company’s dumb products. Think “useful.” Think “helpful.”
    ------

    A company's products can be "useful" and "helpful"...After all, an individual never purchases something with the expectation that he/she will be worse off. The belief is that the product can be "useful" or "helpful".

    Sure there can be spam, and I would have a problem with that...but there are also legitimate ways to market your products via social media.

    In fact, the ability to locate and service the demands of the marketplace are more efficient when using todays digital tools.

    Trade and Exchange are a critical part of our lives...We can't survive without them. So I think it's an error to say that social media should not be used to help others become aware of your products, whether they're "dumb" or not.
  • It is so easy to become a bit self-absorbed and not put out anything of value when writing a blog. But you're right. The one blog that generates the most revenue is the one I neglect because it requires me to provide something interesting. It IS a blog focused on local news and activities, which could do better.

    Thanks for the reminder; I'll get back on track.
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