Reviews are in for Live it! magazine

Posted on June 14, 2012 by Ashley White

Our new Live it! magazine launched last week with its debut issue, featuring stories on a local artist, an entrepreneur and a Stingers host family.

Future issues of the magazine will continue to focus on the people, places and things that make west central Minnesota an exciting, unique place to live.

Many people in the community have already given us their feedback on Live it! Read what they had to say on our social networks, and let us know what you think of the magazine in the comments below. We’d love to hear from you!

You have a story to tell

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Ashley White

Since I started in my new position as community content coordinator two months ago, I’ve talked to quite a few people about starting a blog. The conversation almost always starts the same: “What would I blog about?” they ask, usually quickly followed by, “I don’t really have anything interesting to say.”

Nope. I don’t buy it, and I (politely) tell them so. And once we start brainstorming, these same people produce some absolutely fantastic ideas for a blog (read from two of our newest local bloggers here and here). They are confirming the reason I ultimately wanted to take this job: Everyone has a story to tell. Blogging lets you do that. And it allows the rest of us to hear from people in the community who don’t always have the opportunity to tell their stories.

With that said, we’d love to have more people blogging for the West Central Tribune. If you still need some convincing, though, I’ve put together a list of the top reasons you might want to consider blogging:

1) It connects you to a larger community. No matter where you’re blogging from (even if it’s rural Minnesota), blogging gives you the opportunity to connect with and meet people across the United States and even the world who share your passion. Even the biggest blogging skeptics have to agree: that’s pretty incredible.

2) You’ll learn something new. No matter how invested you are in what you’re blogging about, it’s impossible to know everything about that subject. If you visit other bloggers who write about your topic, you’re almost guaranteed to learn new things – or, at the very least, see your blog topic through someone else’s eyes.

3) Blogging gives you a voice. Ever feel like no one is interested in what you have to say? Maybe your spouse’s eyes glaze over when you talk sports or your 85-year-old grandmother just doesn’t get why you watch so much reality TV. Not on the Internet. With millions of people using blogs every day, you’re almost guaranteed that someone will take an interest in yours. Don’t get me wrong: It can take time to build up a community of followers, so don’t be discouraged if you don’t see a ton of web hits right away. But if you post consistently, tag your posts for search engines and cross-promote your blogs on your social media sites, you’re likely to build followers. People like to read what other people think.

4) If you’re a business or organization, you really should be blogging. Writing a blog lets your consumers see you as a person, not just as a company. On your blog, you can post quirky things that happen at the office, introduce new hires or tell stories about people who have benefited from your product or service. Facebook, newsletters and other promotional materials limit the amount of space you have to tell these stories. On the Internet, you can share to your heart’s content.

5) It’s not as time-consuming as you might think. In the era of Facebook and Twitter, it can be hard to justify spending a lot of time writing lengthy blog posts. But not every blog post has to be 1,000 words. If you already have Facebook and post regular status updates, consider using those as a blog post and adding a few more sentences or a link to another article. You can put as much or as little time into your blog as you want. But be warned: Many people find that once they start blogging, they enjoy it so much that they make more time for it.

6) There are no rules when it comes to blogging. There is article after article out there that will tell you “how to write a great blog,” but in reality, no one can tell you how to blog. Sure, there are some best practices you may want to keep in mind, but a blog is completely yours and how you run it is up to you. Period. So if you want to take a month-long hiatus from blogging or if you decide that you’re going to blog in all capital letters with 12 exclamation points after each sentence, no one can tell you that you’re not doing it right. Which brings me to my last and final point:

7) BLOGGING IS FUN!!!!!!!!!!!! It really is. Blogging gives you a creative outlet to tell your stories and say what you want to say. Don’t feel like you have to be a professional writer or grammar expert to start a blog. Just be yourself, and when in doubt, refer to #6.

I’m sure I could think of many more reasons to start a blog. These are just the ones that came to me quickly. If you’re now convinced that blogging is something you or your business/organization should be doing, why not start a blog on Areavoices? If you have questions or an idea for a blog, e-mail me at awhite@wctrib.com, give me a call at 320-214-4308 or find me on Twitter @Ashley_WCT.

P.S. What are some things you’d like to see on this blog? Any burning questions you have about our reporters/editors or the news process in general? Let us know in the comments below!

– Ashley White, community content coordinator

It’s time to “focus”

Posted on January 23, 2012 by Sharon Bomstad

Reporters and the rest of the news staff at the West Central Tribune are gearing up for the annual Focus edition – a showcase piece published early each spring by the West Central Tribune centered around a certain theme.

Over the years, the Tribune staff has taken a look back at history, a look ahead to the future, a look at interesting aspects of area communities and people within those communities, as well as a look at the more traditional “progress” aspects of the region.

“Made with Pride” – or some variation on that theme – has been selected by the news staff as the focus of this year’s project.

We are going to stick with actual physical items that are produced across the region, as opposed to, say, services.

We will include fact sheets on what goes into producing the product, where the product goes, etc., while taking a closer look at one of the more interesting aspects of the production process.

Statistics are available on the number and type of production manufacturers in the region, and we will tell the stories behind some of that production.

If you know of a product made across the west central region of rural Minnesota, give us a call at 320-235-1150, drop us a line at Box 839, Willmar MN 56201, tweet it to @wctrib, tell us on Facebook or stop in our offices at 2202 Trott Ave S.W. in Willmar’s Industrial Park. You can also leave your suggestions in the comments below.

While we, obviously, won’t be able to tell every story, we will strive for a good cross-section that covers the region and its offerings.

Watch for Focus 2012 coming out in April in the West Central Tribune.

-Sharon Bomstad, features editor

Nice to meet you

Posted on January 10, 2012 by Ashley White

I’m a little late in writing this (OK, so I’m actually a month late in writing this), but I’d like to formally “introduce” myself to all of you. I’m Ashley, and I’m the new community content coordinator for the West Central Tribune (if you want, you can read more about my background here).

In my new position, I’ll be doing a little bit of everything. My main focus, though, will be working with bloggers for Forum Communication Co.’s Areavoices platform. On Areavoices, anyone from the community can write a blog about any topic that interests them (read a few of my favorite Areavoices blogs here, here and here).

Now that I’ve had time to settle into my new position, I’m currently looking for more local people to start a blog that will be featured on wctrib.com. If you have a passion for something (whether it’s cooking, sports, tiddlywinks – whatever!), you can be a community blogger. Or if you’re a company or organization looking to spread your message, blogging can be a great tool in helping you do that. From time to time, we’ll even be running some blog posts in the print edition. If you’re interested in starting your own Areavoices blog (or if you already have a blog and would like to get more exposure), just send me an e-mail. We’ll make it happen!

Another one of my jobs as community content coordinator will be helping to think of ways the Tribune can become more digital-focused. In the last month, we’ve started expanding our presence on Twitter (follow us @wctrib), and we are planning some new ideas for our website and other digital content.

Lastly, one of my goals is to continue making this blog a place where you can see what’s going on inside the newsroom. A lot happens here every day that most people don’t realize (some good, some bad, some just crazy), and I look forward to working with the other reporters to show you the story behind the story.

What else would you like to see, digitally speaking, from the West Central Tribune? Feel free to shoot me an e-mail at awhite@wctrib.com, or you can follow me on Facebook or Twitter. You can also reach me at 320-214-4308. I’d love to hear from you!

-Ashley White, Community Content Coordinator