Building a Brand For Yourself

I really enjoyed Terry Williams' talk today and I especially liked what he said about how journalists need to build a brand for themselves. It reminds me of what John Herman said when he came to visit us a few weeks ago. That's exactly what John was talking about and it's how he's been able to be so successful. I really like that Terry brought it up again today because I think it's important for us to be reminded of. I think right now it's hard for us to do as students but I've been trying. I always tweet my articles and I also blog about my experiences in journalism. That might be too broad though and not really enough of a brand. It's not very focused. I'm not sure if I'm supposed to be overly focused though or if I'm just supposed to show my personality while doing journalism at the same time. Either way, I think building a brand as a journalist is very important. It shows that there is a face and a personality behind the people that deliver the news. It also helps to make you more reliable to your audience or reader. I'm not quite sure how to grow that readership right now though. I know Terry talked about Twitter and having a lot of followers, but I don't have that many. I have 152 at the moment and I don't know how to get more. I tweet about journalistic things and use relevant hashtags. I also include links when appropriate and I include other people's handles so that I can get the attention of bigger names and companies. I want to know what I'm doing wrong or what I can do to improve. Terry said that reporters should have a few hundred followers or more, at the least. I think that when I graduate and start writing for a paper outside of UNH then I'll be able to start building a bigger readership and my brand will be able to grow. It can't hurt to start now though. If only I knew how to do it more effectively...

Reactions to PowerPoint Pitches II

3) The Source

• Overall first impression: The grammar is bad, there is too much unnecessary text and it is unclear what exactly the idea is until you get halfway through the slide.
• Ideas for improvement: Make sure spelling is correct. The first slide after the title slide is full of spelling errors. Most of the other slides have spelling mistakes as well. A lot of the news/social media sites are spelled wrong.
• There are also a lot of unnecessary punctuation marks throughout and capitalization is wrong at times. Make sure words that are supposed to be capitalized are and words that aren't supposed to be aren't. Also, sometimes in the titles of the slides all the words are capitalized and on others only the first word is. Be consistent. 
• There should be a name and contact information on the first slide and there isn't. The person viewing the slide should know who's company it is.
• As said in "The Art of Pitching," the slide background should be dark and the text should be light.
• There is way too much focus on other sites (good and bad) and not enough about why this company is good. Actually, there is barely any information about this company. I'm not sure why all of the information about history, hyperlinks, and other sites is included in this slide. It is irrelevant. 
• This pitch talks up other sites sometimes and I think that's a bad idea because it makes this company seem less necessary.
• There is no business model included in this pitch. There is also nothing about marketing/sales or the team that will run the company. Also, where is the company going from here?
• The sixth slide should be the second slide. There should be no question about what the company is and in this case, I was confused.
• What I liked about it: I like the overall idea for the company. I think a lot of people like the idea of having everything organized in one place.

4) Focused Fencing

• Overall first impression: It is very straightforward and informative. Also, the passion is very obvious.
• Ideas for improvement: As said in "The Art of Pitching," make the slide background dark and the text light. I do really like this theme though, especially the title slide with the little graphic.
• On the title slide make sure to include a name and contact information.
• I think there are too many pictures throughout and too much text. Less is better. Just keep it simple. Also, if this was actually being presented there wouldn't be a need for so much text because it could be explained orally.
• To go along with the opinion that there's too much text, it would be better to use bullet points instead of blocks of text.
• What I liked about it: It covered a lot of different aspects of the company. Each slide provided good information and added great value to the overall pitch.
• I like the slide about the sport itself. It showed why this company would be so important.
• I like that there was an offer. It made it seem more real.
• I really liked the passion behind this. It is obvious that this company actually cares about what it is doing.

Looking Forward to Terry Williams

After reading through Terry Williams' biography I am excited to meet him and hear all that he has to say about his experiences in journalism. I like that he has experience in both the business side and the writing/reporting/editing side. Our previous guest, Joe Burke, was all business and that was way too confusing. Then Meg Heckman was pretty much all journalism, which was nice but would have been better if she had talked a little more business. I think Terry will be a good mix of the two seeing as he has experience on both sides. I think it'll be really helpful for the class to get to talk with someone with him. He'll understand that we're journalism students who know nothing about business or math or numbers, because he was a journalist too before going into the business side of it (at least that's what I'm assuming from reading his bio). Anyways, he seems like a guy who's had a lot of experience in a lot of different areas and I'm looking forward to hearing what he has to say. He seems very well rounded and I think it'll be very beneficial to hear his advice.

Reactions to PowerPoint Pitches

1) The Gamer's Gazette

• Overall first impression: I really like it. It's very informative and straightforward. 
• Some ideas for improvement: I think the colors of powerpoint should be changed. In "The Art of Pitching" it says to always use a dark background and light text otherwise it'll look cheap. I don't think that this one looks cheap, but I think that it should follow the advice of the expert.
• On the second slide where it addresses what the company is, it only talks about the video games based on the news but says nothing about the fact that it's also a gaming news outlet.
• I think there should be a slide towards the beginning that talks about the problem that exists without this company. It talks about why this company is good, but it should also talk about what would be wrong if this company didn't exist. There should be a "problems" slide and then a "solution" slide.
• This powerpoint didn't talk about how it's going to market the company and make people aware of it/want to use it. There should be a slide dedicated to that and it should talk about where it will advertise and how.
• What I liked about it: I like that the prices for the game are already known. It shows that the company already has a firm idea for a business model, which is important.
• I like the "why video games?" slide. It's a good question to answer since it is such a different idea. People may wonder that so I like that it's answered right away.
• I like that it has the gaming news outlet component to and is not just video games. An idea I have would be to include actual news stories in addition to the video games stories. Then at the end of each month check which news stories got the most page views and then use those statistics to decide which stories to make into games.

2) Exploring New Hampshire, Discovering Asia

• Overall first impression: I really like this powerpoint. It is very informative and covers many different areas.
• Some ideas for improvement: I really like the theme of this powerpoint, but in "The Art of Pitching" it says to use a dark background and light text because it looks more professional. I do really like the theme of this though even though it breaks the rules.
• I think there should be a slide right after the title slide that says what the product is. Then the person viewing the powerpoint will know what it is right away. Take the first bullet point on the third slide and put it on a new slide after the title slide.
• Just a question: On the fourth slide about the consumers, why is it only for residents of Manchester, Nashua, and the seacoast? I thought it was going to be for all of New Hampshire. Maybe once there was a bigger staff it could expand to the whole state.
• Put contact information on the title slide.
• What I liked about it: I really like how the title of each slide is written as a question.
• I like the "who is the consumer?" page because it shows that there is a very good market for this company. I like all of the possibilities and how it could really appeal to anyone.
• I also like the "what will it look like?" page because it goes into more of the specifics instead of just generalities. Also, those are very good ideas and offer a lot to consumers.

What I Thought of Meg Heckman

I really liked what Meg Heckman had to say when she came to class last week. I like that she's thinking about the future of journalism, especially in the digital realm. She was very informative, not only with journalism, but with life related to journalism as well. I liked her advice about not going to grad school right away. So many people have been asking me if I'm going to grad school when I graduate and when I say no they always ask me why not. I also know some other people who have gone to journalism school right after college and it's made me feel guilty about not going. I liked that Meg said that if you do go, then you should definitely wait. She said that you should wait until you are confident about what type of journalism you want to do. It was a little scary when she said that what we think we want to right now isn't what we'll want in ten years. I think it's really good for someone to tell us that and not be afraid of letting us know the truth. Right now I'm so sure that I want to write for a women's magazine, but who knows, maybe I'll completely change my mind within a couple of years. I'm just glad that Meg came and talked to us so honestly so I won't be so surprised when I start to change my mind.

An Idea for the PowerPoint Pitches

Seeing as there were so many problems with uploading the PowerPoints and hearing the audio, I think it would have been a cool idea if we had presented them to the class. It would have felt more like a real pitch that way. We would have been able to be more animated and we would have been able to actually talk to real people. Recording myself on the computer was hard because the recordings wouldn't last long. I had to talk fast and I felt rushed. For a lot of the slides I didn't get to say everything that I wanted to. Also, it felt robotic and forced. I feel like it would have felt more natural talking to the class. I think it would have been very good practice and could have helped us prepare for actually doing pitches if any of us actually go on and do them for real investors. Just a thought.

Well Now PowerPoint Pitch

Well I couldn't figure out how to post the PowerPoint directly into a blog post, but here's the link to it in Google Docs so hopefully this will work.

Well Now Pitch

But I Have No Money...

One of the main problems I'm finding with making the power point for the pitch is that my company obviously has no money. I don't even have a prototype. No one in the class does. On Shark Tank all of the entrepreneurs had already been in business for awhile. They had products and sales to back them up and show that they were a serious business who was worthy of the sharks' investments. I know that my business obviously has no money or product because it is just a project for class, but I wish that we were at least pretending that we did. I wish that we could have spent some time making a business plan and coming up with rough estimates of how much money our business would have after a year. Then we could work those numbers into our pitches. That would help a lot in our pitches because we could explain the money we were making as well as make diagrams and charts to show it. In The Art of Pitching it says how important to have visuals such as this so I wish that we could be doing that. I think it'd be helpful because then it'd be a more realistic pitch and it would also gives us more hands on experience in working with numbers, even if they were fake.

Meg Heckman Article

I found Meg Heckman's article "Optimism Reigns at Hyperlocal News Confab" to be inspiring seeing as it directly relates to what is probably the main focus of this class. It's about people taking their journalism and writing skills, mixing them with business, and creating a great publication. As Doug Miner said in the article, "I'm a journalist, but it's really got to be a business. If not, you can't do it."

I like the idea of having a group such as LION, Local Independent Online News Publishers, because it's a great way to bounce ideas off others and receive feedback. I like the community aspect of it because all of these people are striving for the same goal in their own way. This kind of reminds me of the thing that John Herman told us about, the NH Media Makers meetings that are held each month. I like LION better though because it's a bigger group and it's always the same people. The community can really grow and people can form relationships and be able to help each other. It reminds me of class and the way we talk to each other about our ideas. It's nice to have people who understand what you're trying to do (since they're working on something as well) because they tend to have some really good ideas that you may not have thought of. Overall, I really am in favor of groups like this. They're definitely a step in the right direction when it comes to saving journalism.

The Art of Pitching

I think that Chapter 3, The Art of Pitching, was very interesting and informative, but I'm trying to think of how I would apply it to myself. With my idea of an online magazine, who would I be pitching to? I don't really need investors and I don't know if you pitch to advertisers or if they come to you. The only people I could think of pitching to would be my audience/readers. How would I do that though? I don't think it really makes sense. My idea seems more like something that spreads through word of mouth or by stumbling upon it. I know that's not much of a business plan, but it's not like I would go around to different places and hold presentations. The chapter we read seems more like for when someone is selling an actual product or service. Also, the author kept talking about going into a company and trying to sell them on my idea. I wouldn't be going to a specific company for my business idea. I guess this whole chapter kind of confused me because I couldn't imagine how I would apply it to myself.

Don't Be the Paranoid Entrepreneur Who Talks to His Dog

At the end of Chapter One, The Art of Starting, I really appreciated that the author addressed fear and paranoia. One thing I always thought was that if you have a good idea, then you should keep it to yourself until it's so far along that it'd be too late for anyone else to steal it. The author said that sharing your ideas offers room for them to improve though. He said, "There is much more to gain - feedback, connections, opened doors - by freely discussing your idea than there is to lose." This is something that I'll need to remember if I want to actually start a business and make something happen. People always say that two heads are better are one but I guess I only applied that to people who are actually working on a project with you. I've always been scared about asking other people for advice or help if I thought that maybe they would steal my idea. Obviously I'm not afraid of asking my parents or my friends, but I've never reached out to others who would be able to actually put my plan into action for themselves.

One of the questions in the back of the chapter that the author answers is "How far along should I be before I start talking to people about what I'm doing?" and he says that you should start right away. This is another example of something that I don't do. I keep the idea to myself until I actually get started on it. That why I seem to know more about what I want to do and it gives me a feeling of security that someone won't steal my idea. For example, today was the NH Media Makers meeting that John Herman told us about. I had it written on my calendar and I wanted to go, but then I decided not to. I felt that my idea wasn't solid enough yet and I didn't have enough of a plan. I thought that the people would think that I was wasting their time by not having a solid enough plan. In this chapter though, the author said that it's ok to do that because people will give you ideas and help you make yours stronger. He said, "The more people you talk to, the richer your thoughts will be." Maybe if I had gone to the meeting, people would have helped me develop my ideas and I could have a solid plan. Now I have to wait until the next meeting and in the next month I'll have my own ideas, but that's all they'll be. They'll only be mine. They won't have influence from others. Now I realize that the influence of others is a good thing and that I should be seeking this out. I'm glad I read this article because not only has it given me a new perspective on how to grow my ideas, it's given me the confidence to do so.

A Site Designed to Help Entrepreneurs

The other day I was reading the Boston Globe when I came across an article called "Hang Up a Shingle 21st Century Style." It was about this website called Kickstarter which allows new businesses and start ups to ask for donations in order to help get themselves started. The article I read focused on new restaurants in the Boston area that were using the site to Kickstarter to raise money so they could start their business. The site is for anyone though, not just those in the food industry. Anyone with a creative idea or a business plan can sign up to "start a project." Then people on the site can see your plan and if they like it, then they donate money to you. One of the perks of donating is that whoever donates gets a small benefit from the person whose plan they donated to. In the Boston Globe article, a benefit that one restaurant was doing was that if you donated, then you got your name put on a big mural in the restaurant. Other things I've seen on the site are perks such as a one-time discount if you buy from the company once it's up and running or if it's something like a book or CD then the donator would get a copy before it went on sale.

I think that this site could be great for anyone in our class if they actually wanted to follow through with their project and make it into a real business. I know that most college students don't have a lot of money which is why this site would be so helpful. I actually thought of Corinne first because she said that Etsy was too expensive for her and she didn't want to sell her knitting things on it. A site like Kickstarter could really help though or it could help her so much that she wouldn't even need Etsy. She could just have her own site. Overall I think the site is just a great idea and it seems as if they've had a lot of success come from it.

Joe Burke's Visit

Joe Burke's visit was a lot more intense than I thought it was going to be. I know that we were kind of warned, but it still took me by surprise. I think it might have been a little too intense though. I think he may have overestimated how much we would be able to grasp. I would have preferred to go cover less material but in more detail. It was just a lot to take in, especially for a class where most of us are not good with math or numbers. Half the time I had no idea what he was talking about at all. I know that we all read the homework on the accounting website, but this was a little over my head. By the end of it I decided that one day when I do have enough money to be a successful person, I'm going to be hiring someone to do all of the math and spreadsheets for me.

On the other hand though, I think Joe was very smart and knew so much about business, accounting, and numbers. It was very impressive to hear him talk. I wish I had been able to follow him though. It was clear that he knew exactly what he was talking about the whole time and that he obviously knows so much more as well. I just wish that he had been able to communicate the information to us in a simpler way. I know that's not his fault though because it's probably not how he's used to talking about it. It just would have been nice if he had broken it down a little or gone a little slower.

Assets for My Business

After reading through the pieces and reading the word "asset" over and over, I began to wonder what assets my company would have. I wouldn't be selling anything because it's an online publication and would be free for people to read. I guess my writing skills would be an asset because that's what would get me traffic and page views. Good content would also be an asset I guess. One thing that I could have would be intangible assets, like a trademark or a logo. It's hard to think of tangible assets though. Also, would I have fixed assets? I guess my computer would be a fixed asset. Maybe my blogging platform would be a fixed asset as well.

While reading all of the pieces, assets made sense to me, but now as I try to apply it to my own project/company, I'm confused. Also, is advertising an asset? My company would use advertising on the site, but is it an asset? I wish there was a site which applied accounting to journalism. That would be a lot easier to understand.

An Entrepreneurial Idea...Maybe

As a big fan of Cosmo magazine, I really enjoy the lists that they post on their website. For example, a recent one they did was "Ten Things Women Should Know By 25" and it was just a list of things that women should have or be good at by the time they turn 25. They do a lot of lists like this and judging by the amount of likes and comments that they get, they seem to be really popular. One thing I noticed through reading the comments though is that people wanted more serious lists and less about men and drinking. I then decided to write a post on my blog about this and then I tweeted out the link. Well, the writer of those lists saw my tweet, read my blog post, and tweeted me back saying that she loved it and is going to write a more serious list for Cosmo. I love Cosmo and I freaked out and was extremely excited. I still can't believe that Cosmo is writing a story based off of my idea. Anyways, I got to thinking about the lists and their popularity. I love reading the lists, but I also love making lists. I started thinking about making my own website (or for now, just a blog) that featured only lists. I could do a wide variety of things and make one to two new posts a day. An example could be "Ten Things to Do  While in College" or "Ten Ways You Can Beat Senioritis" or anything like that which could relate to girls my age. I would make a list and then write a short description for everything on the list. I don't think I could do that idea for this class because it's not too journalistic, but I definitely want to do it on my own. I would call it something like, Kate's List or something like that. Just an idea.

Right Over My Head

When I was first looking at the glossary of all the accounting terms I might as well have been reading Latin or Japanese or Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics. It was bad. The only words that I could easily understand were profit, loss, corporations, and asset. Every two minutes I had to ask my boyfriend (an accounting major) to explain to me what the words meant. It took me awhile to get through the whole list and then I was dreading reading all of the articles that followed it. Today when I finally started reading them though after staying away out of fear, I realized that they weren't so bad. I know it wasn't because I had read the glossary though. I think that just seeing the words used in sentences and applied to situations made a lot more sense to me than the straight definitions did. It kind of made me wish that I hadn't spent so much time on the definitions because just by reading through the sections I understood so much more than I did from reading the glossary. I guess the real test will come tomorrow though when I take the quiz and listen to the guest speaker.

Meeting John Herman

I really enjoyed John Herman's visit to class last Monday and I think it was really helpful and encouraging to hear his story. The whole time he was talking though I couldn't tell if he was inspiring because he showed that I could do the same thing, or if he was depressing because I realized that I will never be that successful. By the end I decided that he was inspiring. At the time it was very overwhelming though and I was just trying to take in everything he was saying.

I think that John shared a lot of really useful information with us that could be applied to anything that you wanted to do. He didn't really give advice or tips though, he just told his story of how he jumped from one thing to the next but that was advice in a way. It showed us through example how to be successful and make a name for yourself. I like that this type of advice can be applied to any type of business venture, whether it's a magazine like I wanted to do, or Allie's Asian culture site, or Catie's graphic novel. It could even be applied to something completely different, like a coffee shop or a delivery service. John said one thing about the way he works that I wrote down and I think that any business or person could use it to improve themselves. He said, "I take things people use, flip them, and give them back to them in unique ways."

Now, I need to think of how I can take a magazine, flip it, and give it back to people in a unique way. I know that the fact that it'll have more of a focus is a good thing, but I'll probably need more than that. I'm just not sure what that is yet though. I guess I'll just have to do as John does and just jump into things and see where it takes me.