Telling the underreported stories “beneath the shell”

Executive Director: Jatara McGee

jmcgee15@terpmail.umd.edu

(724) 882 6471

Stories Beneath the Shell (SBS) News

0UMDSBS.com 0Stories Beneath the Shell (SBS) News is a web

publication devoted to covering diverse, under-reported stories at the University of Maryland and surrounding communities through multimedia storytelling and social media.

How we make money0On a college campus, there are hundreds of student

groups vying for an affordable place to advertise 0Local businesses rely on students’ business and are

always looking for innovative ways to advertise0 In addition to a website, we also have an SBS Twitter,

Vine, Instagram, Storify and Facebook account. All of these can be used for advertising.

0Businesses are always looking for innovative ways to advertise… the SBS platform is the ideal solution

Projected advertising plans0 Red package $250

0 4 months 0 Includes one 500 x 500 ad on our website

0 Black package $5000 6 months0 Includes one 500 x 500 ad on our website, social media promotion

0 Gold package $1,0000 12 months0 Includes one 500 x 500 ad on our website, a custom social media

plan and one event sponsorship

We’re different… that’s why we work

0We aren’t the local newspaper or niche web publication. We’re new, innovative and fun, and that is marketable trait for many students who follow SBS

0Our audience is very diverse.0Our target audiences are often groups on campus that

are frequently overlooked.0We’re giving advertisers the opportunity to reach

those same audiences.

Additional opportunities• We host several professional

development events a semester, which serve as prime opportunities for advertisers

• Advertisers can sponsor an event and receive a custom advertising package corresponding with the event and all event promotion

The cost of maintaining the SBS website

0 Web hosting, tech support, templates and premiere accounts are the key annual costs to maintain the website0 Combined, the cost to maintain the website for 3 years is

around $20000 Other costs, such as workshops and equipment

repair/upgrades are estimated to cost approximately $1,000 each year

0 Staffing is inexpensive and often free

Staff payment0We currently do not pay any staff members

0 Many student reporters receive course credit for their work

0We pay for services outside of reporting, such as branding or web development

0With expansion and success in advertising, we could provide student executive board members or reporters semester scholarships or stipends

0The scholarships and stipends would depend on profit for the semester

The SBS News team

Staffing0 Executive Director Jatara McGee0 Multimedia Coordinator Mia Simon0 Public Relations Coordinator Shannon Clash0 Events Chair Kareek Best0 Sports Chair Benjamin Strack0 Features Chair Natasha Nieves0 Photography Editor Drew Rauso0 Public Relations Assistant Nikki Dei0 9 editors, 6 staff reporters and over 30

contributing reporters

Why we’re an advertiser’s best value0 Maryland’s independent daily newspaper: The Diamondback

0 We are online; therefore, our website is our top priority. We also offer much lower rates than the Diamondback.

0 Niche cultural publications: The Mitzpeh, La Voz, the Black Explosion, the PublicAsian, Eclipse0 Each of these publications serves a target audience. We serve all of

these audiences. We also publish on a more regular basis and upload stories as often as every day, bringing more daily traffic to our website.

0 Other niche publications: The Campus Trainer, Her Campus, etc0 We publish more frequently than these publications and our stories

reach their target audiences as well.

Potential revenue0 Scenario: obtain a consistent 10 advertisers for a full year duration

0 If all 10 advertisers buy the red package, our revenue would be $7,5000 If all 10 advertisers buy the gold package, our revenue would be $12,0000 Our revenue would likely be somewhere between $7,500 and $12,000

0 With costs estimating under $2,000 a year, estimated profit = $5,500 to $10,000 per year

0 Red package $2500 4 months

0 Black package $5000 6 months

0 Gold package $1,0000 12 months

Potential for expansion0After we solidify the SBS groundwork at Maryland, we

want to expand it to other schools in the DMV area and beyond

0 Branding would remain the same: Stories Beneath the Stories (SBS) News. 0 The title per school would differ based on the school's

mascot, for example: Stories Beneath the Shell (UMD), Stories Between the Stripes (Towson), Stories Between the Beak (American), Stories Beneath the Wings (Catholic University)

Milestones0Founded on January 26th 2013 by six University of

Maryland sophomore journalists, with a mission of using multi-platform journalism to tell the stories that are often overlooked

0 In less than one year…0 Awarded an $11,000 Moving Maryland Forward grant

from the Office of Diversity and Inclusion at the University of Maryland

0 Awarded $500 from the Pepsi Enhancement Fund0 Awarded “Outstanding Multi-ethnic Student

Organization” for the 2013-2014 academic year

Bottom Line0The operating costs to maintain Stories Beneath

the Shell (SBS) News are very low0Student journalists are paid in experience and

often receive course credit for their work0 If advertising revenue is as high as we predict, we

would consider providing staffers with scholarship stipends per semester

0We can offer potential advertisers low prices, diverse platforms for advertisement, AND customization