10 Tips for Localizing National Stories

SABEW Annual ConferenceApril 7-9 2011

Dallas

1. Break it down

1. Break it down

• Readers need information about complex issues like health care reform, finreg and the foreclosure fiasco in digestible form.

• These topics present more story ideas than there is time or staff to address, so…. Don’t re-report and re-write the wires.

• Consider efficient alternative storytelling methods such as diagrams, timelines, flow charts, Q&A, local player profiles, consumer guides and consumer case studies to showcase the nuts and bolts behind larger issues

1. Break it down

• HUD monthly housing scorecard - create a local version for print and/or web

• NYT “Pre-existing condition? Now a health policy may not be impossible” -- practical vs. policy

• New York Fed financial crisis timeline – color-coded http://www.ny.frb.org/research/global_economy/IRCTimelinePublic.pdf

2. Go long!

• Retail Vacancy Map PropertyShark Blog Center

• Develop a longitudinal angle:– Job-seeker diary – Local household-goods market

basket– Track transactions on a single

property– Map mortgage status of a

street or subdivision– Mall vacancy map – Small business cluster – Track local tourism bookings ,

vacation rentals

2. Go long!

• Times Square District Management Association retail vacancy map

• U.S. Census Bureau Housing vacancies and home ownership http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/housing/hvs/qtr410/q410ind.html

• Las Vegas Review-Journal “Fortunes rise and fall for one North Las Vegas neighborhood”

2010 United Van Lines Migration Study

3. Engage local expertise• Use local companies as experts

on national industries and trends

– Kelly Services, Manpower for jobs outlook

– Kellogg, General Mills on commodities

– Masco Corp. on home building – United Van Lines migration report

• Include smaller, private companies that usually fly under the radar in tech corridors, bio-med incubators, light industrial

4. Source the suppliers

Photo by Gurdonark Flicr/Creative Commons

• Manufacturers• Professional service

providers• Unions• Materials suppliers• Transportation and

logistics • Venues and facilities • Purchasing agencies /

buying groups

5. Tap into trade groups

• Data, surveys galore, entrée to private or media-shy companies

• Legislative issues -- taxes, health care reform, regulation

• Industry buzz– Landscapers turning down

jobs in favor of UI checks

6. Delve into local data • State, federal

agencies

• Universities – business, public policy

• Municipal leagues, development arms

• Commercial, corporate

7. Who benefits?

• Disasters are a boon for recovery experts and other goods and services suppliers

• Supply disruptions such as the oil spill created openings for alternative venues, products and suppliers

• Lawyers, consultants, compliance experts, even services from printers to Webmasters find opportunity in change or chaos

7. Who benefits?

Photo by JD Hancock Flickr / Creative Commons

• Japan crisis: – Rebuilding, substituting

• The “perversity of economics” -- little impact from destruction relative to rebuilding

• “Five hidden upsides to global turmoil” from U.S. News & World Report

• Consultants, administrators, support firms

8. Find the personal finance angle

• Photo by tedmurphy• Flickr / Creative Commons

• Ponder the consumer, career and personal finance angles along these seven dimensions:– Earning– Borrowing – Spending– Saving and Investing – Taxes – Risk management

9. Go beyond the biz wire

• Photo by poppet• Flickr / Creative Commons

• Current events, global news, weather and other non-financial events can generate great business stories– Charlie Sheen business

of rehab– Mega-millions lottery

lottery retail hotspots– Royal Wedding

apparel, jewelry, catering industry, tourism, even new candle scents

9. Go beyond the biz wire

• Current events, global news, weather and other non-financial events can generate great business stories– Charlie Sheen business of rehab– Mega-millions lottery lottery retail hotspots– Royal Wedding apparel, jewelry, catering

industry, tourism, even new candle scents

10. Have fun!• Quirky, amusing and

offbeat topics are compatible with providing substantive information.– Garbage– Tightwads– Barbie – Cupholders– Quirky indicators– Junk mail

Thanks for attending!

• Check out www.businessjournalism.org for my story ideas blog, free online and on-site training and many other resources

• Tell colleagues about our free “10 Tips for Localizing National Stories” webinar on June 21

• Share stories you’d like the Reynolds Center to highlight : E-mail mpreddy@aol.com , follow @MelissaPreddy on Twitter or call (734) 218-2043