State of Local

We all have a pet project or two rattling around in the back of our minds. That idea that you’d really like to tackle, but haven’t had the time or the ability to get it off the ground.

My favorite pet project is one that I suspect you could launch in just about any community. But as far as I know, it’s hasn’t been attempted anywhere.

Roadside memorials to loved ones seem to be nearly universal across the U.S. They dot major intersections and lonely stretches of highway. Typically, they mark the scene of some fatal vehicle accident, and the markers range from simple crosses to elaborate floral arrangements and written prayers.

All of these markers have a story, and they seem to be the perfect fit for an online project mashing Google Maps with photos, rememberances and links to news stories. Read More… »

As prognosticators go, I find Jeff Jarvis hits the mark only about 20% of the time. But when he does get it right, he’s really worth reading.

Jarvis has long argued that when it comes to online advertising, “small is the new big.” In other words, while national advertising is obviously important, it’s also vital to reach and encourage local advertisers. Particularly those small clients who couldn’t afford a major local campaign on TV or in print. But could afford online ads, if scheduling ads was easy enough and cheap enough.

His latest post was sparked by Tuesday’s Wall Street Journal article “Local Papers’ Web Scramble.”

Now, for the first time, pure-play Web companies have the biggest share of the local online-ad market. In 2007, Internet companies had a 43.7% share of the $8.5 billion local online-ad market, while newspaper companies had a 33.4% share, according to the media research firm Borrell Associates. Just three years ago, newspapers had 44.1% of the local online-ad market. (Directories such as the Yellow Pages have 10.1%, and local television outlets 9.3%.) Read More… »

A lot of media companies post their video on YouTube, and they do it for several reasons.

First, they’re often able to create a “channel” in which they can share ad revenue with YouTube. That certainly makes sense. And many companies believe that having a presence on YouTube is good branding, and might lead people to the video who otherwise wouldn’t visit the home site. Once again, not a bad idea.

But I’ve heard some execs argue that YouTube is great because it “protects” your videos from being downloaded. If that’s your motivation, then you’re in real trouble.

There are literally dozens of web sites and programs which allows users to download video off of YouTube, Google Video and other sites. Mashable has a rundown of some of the best known solutions, but there are many more available. Read More… »

Graeme Newell at 602 Communications has a great post on the challenges of marketing ads to people who are moving away from email and other mass market advertising platforms to social networks that limit direct contact to trusted people you know. In a world where technology is increasingly making it easier to eliminate “interruption” advertising, it’s important to create a trusted relationship with your readers.

There is an adage on the internet that if you obstruct the flow of information in any way, the community will not fight you, but simply go around you. You will quickly find yourself irrelevant. As technology gets better and better, tools will continue to arise that simply eliminate unwanted interruptions like mass advertising and promotion. Holding people hostage and forcing them to watch a non-targeted ad is not going to be tolerated in the future. The audience will demand that the ads they let in be customized to their individual tastes and desires.

So what’s the answer? Newell suggests that broadcasters begin the hard work now of connecting with their audience in a more personal fashion. Read More… »

In theory, having a blog that focuses on a high-profile local business makes sense, particularly if you’re a newspaper. You should have a better sense of the company than even the best-funded outsider, and if the business is big enough, there’s an audience for the blog that can be worldwide.

The downside is that sales pressures will make it difficult to do a good job with the blog. If the target company is a big advertiser, it’s nearly impossible to argue that the blog is important enough to risk alienating all that potential income.

But if that’s a concern, then you should really just walk away from the idea. Don’t try and dance around the conflict and do a blog that attempts to cover the business in a way that won’t annoy anyone at the company. Because you’ll end up with a blog that reads more like a promotional brochure than a work of journalism.

For an example of that approach, take a look at the “On Target” blog at TwinCities.com. Read More… »

Launching a successful hyper-local web site (or network of sites) has the same attraction and success rate of turning iron into gold.

In theory, creating a site that focuses just on local from a certain neighborhood or section of the city makes sense. People would care about news from their local school board, soccer team and high school glee club. Getting hyper-localized crime stats and other zoning news would likewise seem to be a natural.

But as people have painfully learned, while it’s an idea that makes sense in the abstract, it’s almost impossible to pull off successfully. Particularly if you hope to turn a profit. Read More… »