2. Our Community
Michigan Startups & Creatives
• An online community unites us. It serves as a way to connect and
inform others with similar interests. As a storyteller, I believe in
creating art and work that unites others.
Niche online publication
Publishing news, startup
stories, interviews, and
resources
85 Michigan based businesses
• Michipreneur Team
• Amanda Lewan, Editor & Community Manager
• Marc Hudson, Web Developer
• Noelle Sciarini, Contributor
• Lauren Ebalt, Contributor
• Kyle Pollock, Contributor
109 Resources
Live coverage of tech and startup
events
Tech, Retail, and Food
4. 1448 – Print Press Invented
1792 – Ben Franklin, Pennsylvania Gazette
1846 – Associated Press Founded
1833- 1900 – Journalism becomes “big
business”
1900-1974 – Weekly magazines, broadcast
1965- 1995 – Conglomeration of news
1999- Blogger.com launched, online
journaling
2004 – Facebook is founded
2006 – Twitter and micro blogging movement
2006- Buzzfeed founded
2014 – Where are we now? Content
Marketing (aka Digital Marketing) Media
All businesses and individuals are now media.
Alexa Rating
top news sites by traffic.
Technorati
most popular blog list.
5. Digital Media Trends
Lists (Listicles)
Businesses
Click bate – Upworthy Titles
•
Amex Open Forum Blog
“Buzzworthy” – Detroit $500 house story
•
Shinola Blog + Storytelling
Shorter and shorter content
•
General Electric – 6 Second
Science Vines
•
Ford Social
•
Chalkfly Blog
Syndication sites/Roundups
Visual content
Instagram
Pinterest
Rise of content marketing for businesses/individuals
Blogs as community watchdogs, leads for national news
Individuals
stories, connections to the local
PR as social media too
Hybrid traditional + digital pieces
•
Danielle Laporte
•
Justin Musk
NYT’s Snow Fall
7. Values To Grow By
1.
2.
Authenticity -- Is there a human connection?
Personality – Do I want to pay attention?
1.
Audience
2.
Content Focus
3.
Channels
3.
Reliability – Are you trustworthy and consistent?
4.
Awareness – Are you listening?
4.
Management
5.
Respect – Are you responding?
5.
Reporting
Community: Who are you trying to serve? What’s your
larger story? What are they looking for online? What
problems do you solve? How do you connect them with?
My larger story: grounded in place: growing Michigan’s
creative community, uniting others in Detroit
Content Guidelines – create and
identify the voice for your
brand.
8. Blogging Basics – Types of Posts
Brainstorm
Lists
Subscribe to industry blogs/news
Storytelling
Create writing habit –
weekly, daily, morning, night
Tips & advice
Make it fun
Case studies & examples
Set deadlines
Interviews
Think about timely, newsworthy
links, or connections across
industries
Roundups (news/resources)
Guest posts
Video/visuals
In depth industry stories
Write low energy posts when
busy – longer/more in-depth
when free
Take feedback kindly from
editors, give clear, kind feedback
to your writers
Think about seasonal stories
9. Social Media
Voice of your business online
Social media is a part of your
overall marketing strategy
Always be responsive, consistent
Use visuals
Encourage sharing, thank others
Get creative: monthly Tweet
Chat, rewards, contests, user
created content
Hootsuite, Tweetdeck, Social
Sprout, Recite, Tweet reach,
Facebook’s Business marketing
Twitter lists
Wordpress
Read up on marketing: Hubspot
Blog, Content Marketing
Institute, Social Media
Examiner, Mashable, Copyblogger
, Post Advertising Blog
•
33 Resources for your Startup
(Michipreneur)
New favorite resource: free
infographic templates
11. Strategies for Growing
Established similar audience
Establish strategic content partners
Regularly share, support online
Guest post for yourself/biz
In person & online relationships
Measure content and all posts, increase what you see
Help others first
working
“lean startup approach”
Grow email subscribers & social following
eBook content or free content to download
Reward social sharing, check ins, etc
Create really, really great content that includes
storytelling. People remember stories that emotionally
move them.
12. Standing Out
Use storytelling strategies for your brand/business
Theme, emotion, scene
Craft Sharable Stories
Best tweet examples
“At the core of a person’s life
is a narrative. This is why, if
you’re trying to convey a
message, simple, relatable
storytelling will enable your
audience to see themselves
through the eyes of the
people you are trying to help.
This is the beginning of
empathy. The story is the glue
that bind together the human
experience; it’s the device
through with both
understanding and a desire to
help emerge.”
– Randi Zuckerburg
13. From a Community Builder’s Journey
Have a mentor in your life
Be creative – try new things, enjoy
Don’t do it all on your own – talk about your ideas, get
emotional support, get feedback
Don’t be afraid to get out in person too
Always thing of ways to serve your community
Don’t give up until your ready
Notas do Editor
Overview, my work, Michipreneur team: MA’s in creative writing from WSU, worked in ad agency startup, learned what a STARTUP was and love it. Started freelancing – part of the founding Michipreneur team.
SEE: Covering America: A Narrative History of a Nation's Journalism,By Christopher B. Daly.We have new ways to tell old stories, but the gatekeepers have left.
Content marketing is the use of creating content to build an audience for your business or brand. Your audience will then begin to trust and turn to you as an industry expert, leading towards sales. This is used across industries and has inspired large movements like the Content Marketing Institute. Some see it as a natural evolve from advertising/marketing as “interrupting” to “informing” us in the information age
-How do people connect with one another in person? And online? -Community: who are you trying to serve? What’s your larger story?
The secret to blogging success is consistent, high-quality content.For those of us who aren’t “writers” – this can be a challenge.