Sessions Tagged: Digital
Please Note: Schedule is subject to change.
Thursday, July 10
3 pm
to
3:45 pm
Meet fellow digital directors and web editors to talk about social media, analytics, CMS woes, and more.
Moderator:
Ben Kubany, Willamette Week
Room: Legislative Terrace
Friday, July 11
10:15 am
to
11 am
Mobile device use is exploding. New interfaces, personalization and interaction within the content experience are at the forefront of growth now and in the years ahead. How can alternative media leverage mobile technologies to embrace, optimize and innovate in the space. We'll review current trends and research, then look forward into the future and think about how you should plan your mobile product strategies.
Blair Barna has worked in the world of alt-weeklies for 20 years and is the advertising director of the Charleston City Paper in Charleston, S. C. He founded and co-owns the paper -- now in its sixteenth year -- with his two business partners, publisher Noel Mermer and editor Stephanie Barna. One of them is also his life partner -- he'll leave it up to you to guess which. Barna has two children, three cats, two dogs, and no time to himself. Prior to blazing trails in Chucktown, he worked for Creative Loafing in Savannah and Atlanta.
Justin Ellis is an assistant editor at the Nieman Journalism Lab. He was previously a staff writer and columnist for the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram, where he covered areas like business, politics, culture and technology. In 2009 Ellis was part of the paper’s team to cover the inauguration of President Barack Obama. A former Knight Digital Media Center fellow and researcher at Investigative Reporters and Editors, Ellis is originally from Minnesota. Ask him about meats and cheeses.
Wouter Vermeulen is Director of Platform Sales & Product Marketing for Opera Mediaworks, where he is responsible for ad network focused platform sales and product innovation, solution development across AdMarvel's portfolio of software and services. In addition, Wouter manages all Opera Mediaworks' marketing, industry relations and partnerships. AdMarvel (an Opera Mediaworks service offering), makes mobile advertising work by enabling mobile developers, publishers and carriers to easily source, provision, manage and track advertising from virtually any ad network or direct sourced advertising inventory. Prior to Opera Mediaworks, Wouter was leading all mobile content and sales strategy for Cox Media Group (CMG), responsible for building out and managing CMG's mobile content platform and scaling national and local mobile sales efforts across the various CMG subsidiaries. Wouter has his MBA from European University Brussels. He is a frequent speaker and panelist at industry events in the areas of mobile advertising, content, messaging, mobile commerce, and monetization strategies.
Room: Capitol Ballroom 4
11:15 am
to
12:15 pm
Are your clients and prospects so consumed with their digital strategies it's hard to get a word in edgewise, much less present the power of your brand to bring new customers? Get in on the conversation with a platform and vendor agnostic primer that will quickly arm you and your reps to talk about digital services, even as you're still deciding if and which ones you want to offer, and tie that in with your current offerings. Any rep can have great free digital advice at their fingertips for any client in minutes. Get the appointment (damn near) every time. Send us one client you need to break through with and we'll include them in our conversation.
John Heaston became seriously afflicted with the alternative media compulsion in 1992, starting a free, student-run monthly from late nights in a hijacked journalism lab. He was publishing editor of Sound News & Arts, editor of The Reader (Omaha), editor/publisher/salesman of the Omaha Weekly and publisher/editor of The Reader since 2002, the bilingual community weekly El Perico since 2004 and
OmahaJobs.com since 2005. He just discovered that providing his advertising clients with digital services (websites, social media, SEO, video, content marketing, etc.) is like exchanging nickels for $5 bills mostly utilizing existing talent and relationships.
Chris Robino has more than 18 years of leadership experience building business and guiding leading organizations. An accomplished entrepreneur and corporate strategist, his vision and expertise in organizational performance have driven notable achievements in the corporate and technology sectors. His accomplishments have been featured in Business First, The Daily Reporter, and The Columbus Dispatch. Chris has built, run and sold 8 different businesses over the last 20 years. His latest venture
SearchRankings.Net, is a full services Search Engine Optimization and Marketing firm, that helps clients optimize web based initiatives for better search engine exposure.
Kris Kluver is the founder of Social Media Contractors. His understanding of social media management and content creation was born out of a need; Kris first became interested in social media when he began hiring help for social media to fill the growing needs of some of his other companies. Today, Kris is driven by a desire to constantly learn more about the evolving trends and philosophies of the 'how' and 'why,' and the true ROI of social media. Kris is a serial entrepreneur who started his first company at age 19 in Omaha, Nebraska. He has since been directly involved with the creation, operation, growth, and occasional sale of more than 20 successful businesses, and has advised on countless others. Kris sits on the board for the HALO Institute at Creighton University and is a member of the Nebraska Diplomats. He has a BA from the University of Wyoming.
David Walker currently manages SouthComm Digital, LLC as a standalone digital agency supporting
SouthComm Communications, a suite of Alternative news weeklies and niche publications. Prior to
SouthComm David held a similar role at Creative Loafing Media and has at his disposal relationships with
multiple digital ad networks, Ad Exchanges and technology partners. From interest based displays to
multiple retargeting tactics to video solutions SouthComm Digital supplies their markets ability to scale
in the digital space.
David understands the challenges and opportunities in the ALT world having been a long time employee
of Washington City Paper where he held the position of Advertising Director up until 2010. He led WCP
and then all 5 CL markets to achieve their digital sales objectives, including training and establishing best
practices in digital sales.
David lives in Washington DC with his wife and two young sons.
Room: Capitol Ballroom 4
11:15 am
to
12 pm
Everything you think you know about pageviews is wrong. A page view means that someone visited your site. And that’s about all it means. But how many visitors you had really doesn’t tell you much of anything about how successful your online content is and, in turn, how successful your online business model will be. The key is turning visitors into readers and readers into audience members. And that means starting from the end and identifying at metrics that matter, then working backward to make sure you are strategically acting to drive those metrics.
Jerod Morris is the Director of Content for Copyblogger Media. He manages the
daytoday operations of Copyblogger.com one of the world's most influential
marketing publications. He also hosts The Lede, Copyblogger’s weekly podcast
about content marketing, copywriting, conversion optimization, and much more.
Jerod was a featured presenter at Authority Intensive 2014 and speaks regularly
about strategy and leadership as it relates to the creation and distribution of
content on the open web. He has appeared on ESPN’s Outside the Lines and his
work has been featured or mentioned in publications ranging from Deadspin to The
Wall Street Journal and The New York Times.
Kate O'Neill , founder and principal of KO Insights, is a speaker, author, and consultant focused on meaningfulness in business and in life. She consults with select clients, often adding much-needed context for strategic growth opportunities in data-rich and customer-centric environments. Kate has been featured in CNN Money, TIME, Forbes, USA Today, and other national media. She is the author of an upcoming book on meaningfulness in marketing. In 2009, Kate launched and grew [meta]marketer, a digital strategy and analytics firm, over a five-year period and significantly shaped the marketing analytics landscape. Prior to [meta]marketer, Kate’s experience included creating the first content management role at Netflix, leading cutting-edge online optimization work at Magazines.com, developing Toshiba America’s first intranet, building the first website at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and holding leadership positions in a variety of digital content and technology start-ups. Kate is a vocal and visible advocate for women in technology, entrepreneurship, and leadership — she was featured by Google in their global campaign for women in entrepreneurship — as well as for Nashville as a growing tech center.
Room: Meeting Suite 5
1 pm
to
1:45 pm
Introduction: Mark Zusman, Willamette Week
How will science and technology change journalism in the next 5-10 years? Come discuss with Gregg Pascal Zachary:
how software "robots" are writing stories about sports, business and crime -- without human help; how editors are assembling networks of drones, or small satellites, to cover natural disasters war and crises; how massive sensor networks provide new data flows for journalists to analyze and report on; how Google "glasses" and other tiny video cameras create enormous opportunities for makers of video documentaries -- and how public "records" will be transformed by ubiquitous recording of the activities of police and other government employees.
In a world where devices are transforming the way reporting is done, -- and automating many essential functions -- what role will human journalists play? How will these science-based technologies change the way citizens and experts contribute to journalism - and consume it. Finally, what do all the changes mean for creators and consumers of alternative journalism? What is the alt-take on the future?
Gregg Zachary is a professor of practice at the Cronkite School. His four books include "The Diversity Advantage: Multicultural Identity in the New World Economy" (2003) and "Endless Frontier: Vannevar Bush, Engineer of the American Century" (1997), which won the IEEE Literary Award and was described as "deeply informed" by the New York Times. From 1989 to 2002, Gregg was a senior writer for The Wall Street Journal. He was based first in San Francisco, where he covered Silicon Valley, and later in London, where he reported on globalization. From 2004 to 2006, Gregg was a senior editor at Time Inc.'s Business 2.0 magazine and from 2007 to 2008 he wrote the "Ping" column on innovation for The New York Times. He has taught journalism as a lecturer at Stanford University and at the University of California at Berkeley. He has received fellowships from the University of Michigan and the German Marshall Fund. His articles have appeared in many prominent magazines, including Foreign Policy, The New Republic, Wired, The Wilson Quarterly, Technology Review, Smart Money, Reason and Mother Jones. He has written and directed several television documentaries, including "Code Rush," about innovation in Silicon Valley, for PBS. He also is regularly interviewed on world affairs by the BBC, Voice of America, Marketplace and other radio outlets. Zachary currently writes the "Scientific Estate" column for Spectrum magazine and contributes perspectives on African politics to The Atlantic. Gregg also teaches courses on technology, policy and society as a professor of practice at ASU's Consortium for Science, Policy & Outcomes.
Room: Capitol Ballroom 4
AAN's lawyer, Kevin Goldberg will be available to discuss legal issues (but not give legal advice) free of charge; in the (unlikely) event that everyone is too shy to ask questions, Kevin has some issues at the ready to kick start the discussion.
Kevin Goldberg is an attorney with Fletcher, Heald & Hildreth. His expertise is in First Amendment, Freedom of Information Act, and intellectual property issues, particularly copyright and trademark matters encountered by content creators and users. Kevin has a B.A. from James Madison University and a J.D. George Washington University.
Room: Meeting Suite 6
2 pm
to
2:45 pm
Vendasta’s Co-founder & VP Marketing Jeff Tomlin will talk about strategies of building revenue with traditional sales approaches, vs. building market share. He’ll help you work through the thought process and connect the dots with other successful digital success stories, examine why traditional media sales need digital foundations today, and connect the products with the sales strategy to create a 10X improvement of digital revenue growth.
Introduction by Molly Willmott, The Memphis Flyer
Jeff Tomlin is Co-Founder and VP Marketing at VendAsta Technologies, a software development company providing white-label reputation and social presence management solutions serving over 250 media companies that serve local businesses. Prior to co-founding VendAsta at the beginning of 2008, Jeff was the Vice President of Strategy and Business Development at Point2 Technologies where he developed strategic relationships with companies like Google, Yahoo, the New York Times, CanWest, Classified Ventures and IAC Interactive Corp. He hates to say that he’s been doing this a long time, but he has vivid memories of marketing on Altavista, Hotbot and Excite...
Room: Capitol Ballroom 4
Learn simple steps you can take to improve your website's search engine visibility before you shell out for expensive SEO (search engine optimization) services. The truth is, most of the stuff SEO companies charge for aren't that useful for local content trying to attract more local readers. Understanding what makes your content valuable/desirable to advertisers, your SEO strategy becomes clearer. This session will cover how SEO should fit within your overall digital strategy, how to conduct a basic digital self-diagnostic test, and practical tips to help your target audience find you.
Introduction by Fran Zankowski, Colorado Springs Independent
Marc Shepard can't deal with the fact that he's been in the Alt Media business for over 18 years, so don't bring it up. He ran papers in Portland (ME) and Providence (RI) before landing at the Dig in Boston. All of his sports teams are better than yours, he still has the quaint belief that you won't go out of business if you don't spend more money than you make, and wishes the Boston Phoenix had listened to him on that. Hate him on twitter
@MockShepid.
Room: Meeting Suite 5
3:15 pm
to
4 pm
Who manages your social media internally? Is your overall strategy more focused on driving readership, growing fans, promoting specials, or making money on social? In this open forum, we'll find out how papers both large and small are spreading the social media workload and managing the inevitable tensions between the marketing and editorial sides. Come prepared to share!
Molly Willmott is director of new media for The Memphis Flyer. She is the Electronic Publishing Chair on the AAN Board of Directors.
Room: Meeting Suite 5
4:15 pm
to
5 pm
Federal News Radio web editor and It's All Journalism podcast producer Michael O'Connell offers tips and tricks on how to use audio to give your stories a voice.
Michael O'Connell is web editor at
Federal News Radio and producer of the
It's All Journalism podcast, a weekly podcast focusing on the changing state of media. Previously, he was a managing editor at the Connection Newspapers in Northern Virginia, where he oversaw four editions of the weekly community newspaper. In his 10 years at the Connection, he also worked as a community reporter, Fairfax County reporter, associate editor and community editor. He also spearheaded the Connection's online and social media strategy. Michael graduated from the Indiana University School of Journalism in 1983 with a journalism/English degree. In 2010, he entered American University's Interactive Journalism program on the way to earning an M.A.
Room: Meeting Suite 5
5:15 pm
to
5:45 pm
Overview and demo of Pricing Engine ordering and reporting systems, and hands on training and Q&A for pilot partners and those interested in learning more about adding SEM and Digital Ad Sales to their portfolio.
Jeremy Kagan has been an Adjunct Professor at Columbia Business School teaching Digital Marketing for almost a decade. He also runs digital advertising startup Pricing Engine, which helps smaller advertisers with Search Marketing and Digital Advertising across Google, Yahoo, Bing, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Foursquare, and Reddit. Kagan was a Vice President in Sony Musicâs Global Digital Business running mobile accounts, and head of strategy for Publicis Modem, a leading digital ad agency. You can see him as an expert guest about digital marketing on Bloomberg TV, Fox Business News, and Forbes.
Room: Meeting Suite 5
Saturday, July 12
9:30 am
to
10:15 am
Introduction: Amy Austin, Washington City Paper
The America of the near future will look nothing like the America of the recent past. Huge generation gaps have opened up in our political and social values, our economic well-being, our family structure, our racial and ethnic identity, our gender norms, and how we consume media. Pew Research Center Executive Vice President Paul Taylor will discuss how U.S. demographics will change in the next 50 years, and what it means for the future of media.
Paul Taylor is the executive vice president of special projects at the
Pew Research Center, where he oversees demographic, social and generational research. Paul is the author of The Next America, a new book examining generations and the country's changing demographics. From 1996 through 2003, he served as president and board chairman of the Alliance for Better Campaigns. Before that, he was a newspaper reporter for 25 years, the last 14 at The Washington Post, where he covered national politics and served as a foreign correspondent. From 1992-1995, he was the Post's bureau chief in South Africa and reported on the historic transformation from apartheid to democracy. He also covered four U.S. presidential campaigns. Paul is also the author of See How They Run (Knopf, 1990) and co-author of The Old News Versus the New News (Twentieth Century Fund, 1992). He twice served as the visiting Ferris Professor of Journalism at Princeton University, in 1989 and 1995. He graduated in 1970 with a bachelor's in American Studies from Yale University. Paul has lectured at numerous colleges and frequently discusses Pew Research studies in print and broadcast media.
Room: Capitol Ballroom 4
10:45 am
to
11:30 am
Fresh off her year as a Knight Fellow at Stanford, former alt-weekly editor Alexa Schirtzinger will present the results of her fellowship research on innovation in local news. Expect some interesting case studies, an innovation toolkit, handy tips for freshening up your online presence, and free candy.
Alexa Schirtzinger recently completed a John S. Knight Journalism Fellowship at Stanford University, focusing on alternative business models for local journalism, and was previously the editor of the Santa Fe Reporter.
Room: Capitol Ballroom 4
Introduction: Susan Harper, INDY Week
Facebook is on a mission to make it easier for journalists and newsrooms to find, share and embed newsworthy content and to connect people with stories and videos from news organizations. Jason White, who manages news partnerships for the social media giant, shares the latest collaborations, as well as tools every organization can use.
Jason White is a strategic partner manager for Facebook based in New York City. He works with news and publishing companies on their Facebook strategies, helping them leverage the world's largest social network to achieve business objectives. Prior to joining Facebook in June 2013, White was a senior news editor at NBC News Digital, where he helped lead coverage of major domestic stories. He also led the digital rollout and social media strategies for network documentaries such as Inside the Obama White House and Inside Congress. Previously, White worked on TV/Web integration for CNN and CNN.com. He was instrumental in launching CNN.com's first blog — the 360 Blog, for Anderson Cooper and his team — and in developing a commentary product for CNN.com. White has also worked as a producer for the PBS NewsHour and a reporter for Stateline.org.
Room: Davidson
3:45 pm
to
4:30 pm
How can alternative publications convert print brand status into digital market share? In this session, we'll introduce open source tools that turn multimedia storytelling, native advertising, online voting, and community-sourced event calendars into increased traffic, revenue, and ad prices. Learn how the design of user interfaces impacts the way content is shared and consumed in digital ecosystems and how that affects your bottom line.
Molly Willmott is director of new media for The Memphis Flyer. She is the Electronic Publishing Chair on the AAN Board of Directors.
Ryan DeRose is the founder and president of Vibethink, a full service creative agency located in Charlottesville, Virginia. Ryan capitalized on his experiences in education consulting, web development, and online marketing to create a new kind of business designed to solve problems specific to the digital age. His roles at the company include business strategy, creative direction, UX/UI design, and front-end development.
Giles Morris is the director of creative strategy and communications at Vibethink. Former editor-in-chief of AAN member paper C-VILLE Weekly, Giles spent a decade in daily and weekly newspapers as a freelancer, reporter, and editor. A finalist for this year’s AAN multimedia feature story award, Giles has spent the last five years thinking about how print media companies can best transition their business models to the digital marketplace.
Room: Meeting Suite 5