Picture: http://www.flickr.com/photos/secretlondon/3682594172/
The health of our High Streets is a subject which has never been far from the news headlines during 2012 – we got fired up by the launch of Portas Review a whole year ago and now another body, the rather dramatically named Distressed Retail Property Taskforce this week started work in the same area. Read more
Jeremy Hunt and the DCMS have today announced the first Local TV pioneer areas which are expected to be:
Today I am talking about the new experiences running a hyperlocal blog has brought; from organising events, dealing with the mainstream media, learning to negotiate, community involvement to running a campaign, and I will share some hints and tips that will help you get your hyperlocal blog up and running.
I have been running my hyperlocal blog, Wake Green Park, for a year now, and I was inspired to start blogging about my community after seeing Nicky Getgood’s amazing Digbeth Is Good blog.
Wake Green Park is a private estate in Moseley, Birmingham (map). It has approx 300 residents of varying ages, though there aren’t many children in the park due to the small sized flats. The estate is maintained by a private management company and we employ a full time gardener, a security guard and cleaners who maintain the communal hallways. When required we bring in other companies to help with maintenance, such as repairing potholes, fixing security cameras, tree surgeons and the like. We also have a Board Of Directors which is made up out of residents and who help make decisions about the running of the estate.
I had been online and using social media and blogs for a few years before beginning the Wake Green Park blog, but even so, running this hyperlocal blog has been a platform for learning.
First of all I had to choose a blogging platform. I opted for Google’s Blogspot, rather than the WordPress blogging platform. Both are free, but at the time I had limited experience with WordPress and I knew that I wouldn’t require any help with blogger. Although now I have used WordPress a lot more since, I can see the benefits to that blogging platform too.
When I first started the blog I was met with some initial resistance from the board of directors especially because I wanted to organise a picnic in the park for residents. Security and health concerns were raised, plus not everyone was comfortable with me talking about the estate in such a public way. I met with some of the directors and had a chat about the blog and why I had started it; to help bring the estate’s community together. I explained the blog was open for anyone to contribute to and have their say. This helped the directors to overcome any worries they had. As a compromise I have put a disclaimer on the blog saying the views express are mine and not those of the directors or the management company. With all of this I’ve had to brush up on my negotiating skills!
Through starting the blog I have now met the board of directors and know more about the work that they do. I have also had more contact with the management company and I am establishing a co-operative working relationship with them. I have invited the management company to use the blog as way of putting up their notices as well as the mail shots they issue. They haven’t taken me up on that offer yet, but give it time!
Although I have organised events before, they have been mainly done fully online and using social media to promote them. Also, with these events (mainly photography related) I knew I had an audience there that would be interested in them and would actually participate. I was taken a little out of that comfort zone last summer when I decided to organise a ‘Big Lunch’ in the estate. The idea behind it was it would be a good opportunity for all the residents to actually meet their neighbours, make some new friends, get the community spirit going and to have some fun. The estate can be a quiet place in as much that at times you would barely pass a neighbour in the corridor for months!
I had to make a plan on how I was actually going to execute this, knowing that not all the residents are online. When I started the blog I did a little leaflet campaign and dropped a flyer through everyone’s letter box. For the Big Lunch I went with a poster campaign. Through reading the blog post about the lunch a resident, who I had never met before, volunteered her services which was such a help! Together we planned which blocks of flats we would cover and put a poster on the communal front doors so nobody could miss what was going on. If I saw someone on the estate I would speak to them and tell them about the picnic, this met with varying degrees of enthusiasm I must admit! And there were a few party poopers who took down some of the posters, but not for long as I was quick to replace them!
So my picnic campaign was held online, and off line too, in a more ‘traditional’ manner. When the day of the picnic arrived I had no idea if anyone was going to come along and was very relieved when about 20 residents turned up, and brought food with them too. It was a fun summer afternoon and it served it’s purpose of a community event. Everyone said how much they enjoyed it and asked if I would organise another one this year.
Because of running the blog and the interest I take in the estate, the management called with an urgent request recently. Was I at home now? And could I do a live broadcast for BBC Midlands Today in 15 minutes time about the city councils lack of refuse collection? Yes and yes! There would not have been this opportunity if it weren’t for the blog.
Also, I appear to have become a point of contact for some residents when they have enquiries or complaints about the park. I try and help them or at least point them in the right direction if I can’t. I get an insight into what other residents are experiencing through their contact.
Another recent new experience that came about from running the blog is that I have actually looked at planning application for the first time. Through looking up the application online I could see that there were some proposed changes to the parking spaces on the estate.
I’ve learnt about community involvement, or sometimes the lack of it. I know some hyperlocal blogs with a thriving participating community behind it. I also know of some that, like me, would love more people to get involved, or at least write a comment now and again! Wake Green Park is a small area compared to other hyperlocal blogs (some say it’s micro local!), and with 300 residents, many of whom are not online, and I do struggle with getting involvement from other residents. It would be great if someone actually takes up the offer of writing a blog post. There isn’t much ‘breaking news’ on the park. It’s a quiet, peaceful and safe place to live.
People start hyperlocal blogs for many reasons. Some are proud of their area, some want to share stories and photographs, some use it as a platform to make changes, but they all do it because they want to.
Here are some things to think about if you are considering starting your first hyper local blog:
How are you going to get your blog online? Which blogging platform would you like to use? Do you need help with this? Then get in touch with Talk About Local! We would be happy to help you.
How will you publicise you blog? There are numerous ways to get your first visitors (that will hopefully come back and even get involved). Here are a few tips to help get you started?
You might need some help with subjects to blog about, or want to keep up to date with what is being said about your area or local issues. Google Alerts will help you keep track of this. It’s very simple, just enter the words/names/phrases that you want Google to look out for and the latest updates on the internet will be delivered to your inbox.
Good luck, and I hope you enjoy hyperlocal blogging. If you need any help, get in touch and we will be happy to guide you on your hyperlocal journey.
Video 101: Editing Basics from Vimeo Staff on Vimeo.
Happy New Year people! Here’s a lot of lovely useful links to kick-start the year with:
Vimeo Video School 101 – ‘Join the friendly Vimeo Staff as we cover all the basics of shooting and editing videos you can be proud of. We’ve handcrafted these lessons for beginners of all backgrounds, check it out!’ It’s a brilliant resource – incredibly simple, easy-to-follow instructions on the basics of shooting and editing short films for the web. Also includes step-by-step guides on the basics of editing with a PC (with Windows Movie Maker) and the basics of editing with a Mac (with iMovie).
Pete Ashton on The Future of Local – Pete is writing a series of posts for talk about local examining where local media is going next. There are two quite in-depth posts so far in the series on The Future of Local and The importance of The Commons, in which he concludes:
If we’re going to understand where local-oriented activity online is going to develop in the future I think we need to look at it in these terms. There was a revolution. It’s effects were felt but their importance was not fully understood and it’s by no means over yet.
3 ways to deal with content theft via RSS – Philip John’s response on Journal Local to the frustrations expressed by many community website managers such as Darryl of 853 Blog, William Perrin and myself at the My Village network populating its commercial websites with content from independent hyperlocal sites using RSS feeds. Daryl hit the nail on the head of many people’s feelings when he stated ‘I blog for many reasons, but propping up other people’s business plans isn’t among them.’ Philip’s reaction to the online debate was to ‘impart some wisdom on how you can try and protect your content’ – some simple steps you can take to prevent people using the RSS feeds of your website in a way you’re not happy with. My Village manager Roifield Brown has since apologised for the mistake and removed the content created by those who have complained.
Wannabe Hacks’ Hyperlocal Week – Wannabe Hacks are plannig a Hyperlocal Week on 31st Jan – 6th Feb. It promises ’7 days of specialised content looking at various challenges and advantages of the hyperlocal genre.’ They are looking to get as many websites involved as possible to generate a good conversation and content submissions. Contact them if you’d like to get involved.
Mass Observation Communities Online – Mass Observation has been recording everyday life in the UK since 1937 through diaries, questionnaires and observations. Some of this rich historical archive is available to purchase online. However the JISC funded Mass Observation Communities Online project (or MOCO for short), which took place April-September 2010, is a more recent addition to the archive which has ‘expanded on Mass Observation’s tradition by inviting community groups throughout the UK to develop an archive that reflects life in 21st century Britain.’ Groups and individuals from all over the UK were involved but those hailing from Scotland, Brighton and Cardiff might find it useful to delve through the online records, as there is a sizeable representation from these areas.
Evolving English: Map Your Voice – Evolving English are are after recordings ‘that capture the sounds of spoken English all over the world.’ So, using audioboo, they are gathering recordings of people reading aloud Mr. Tickle by Roger Hargreaves (here’s why). Try participating and encouraging others to do the same to help their research and maybe generate some fun content for your community website.
Digital Birmingham: Promoting the census with social media – Might you be able to use your community website to encourage local residents to take part in this year’s census?
The Midlands Media Awards 2011 – If you’re managing hyperlocal website in the Midlands region, consider a submission in the Community/Online Campaign of The Year category.
Here’s a couple more Big Society explanations – the above film is from Beyond 2010, ‘an international conference exploring the role of digital technologies in delivering better public services for less’. It starts tomorrow in Birmingham as part of Hello Digital, which includes some interesting sessions on Speed Data and Hyperlocal News (disclaimer: myself and William are on the panel for this one).
The above Big Society diagram is from D’log, ‘a casual “view from the man in Stoke-on-Trentâ€, so-to-speak, just to get the concept straight in my head.’
BBC News: Nick Booth’s blog – ‘here we explore the world of hyperlocal, or very local, web sites. I’ll be writing about the communities and volunteers who use the web to reflect on life at street level or hold power to account.’ Nick starts with interviewing Steph Jennings and James Clarke, who created the inspirational Wednesfield blog wv11.co.uk because, “People don’t understand how good this place is.”
The Greener Leith Readers Survey – interesting results on a survey designed to measure the impact of a community website:
It would appear that our efforts are helpingt to inspire Leithers to take practical action to improve Leith, reduce their environmental footprint AND it would seem we’re helping folk to participate in the civic life of the neighbourhood – whether that’s by contacting local politicans, or taking part in consultations or events.