What News Director doesn’t want hyperlocal/extended/interactive content on their website? It looks great when done well and it also provides visitors with a way to get better information from your site. We all know simply posting a text version of a newscast script is easy but, it doesn’t count as “good web content.” I”ve developed this list of easy ways to beef up your web content; even the smallest details can make a boring story look important.
- Make it Immediate:
Tell the reader what is going on now, why the story was posted now and what impact it has on them. EXAMPLE: Boring:An 8-year-old boy was hit by a car in the 300 block of Main Street Sunday. Immediate: An 8-year-old Nolanville boy is recovering Monday morning after he was struck on Main Street by a speeding car - Avoid long comma strings; use lists:
People read web stories differently than a newspaper; they scan for chunks of information. Your job is to break it into easily digestible chunks. The easiest way to break up a story is to use a list. EXAMPLE: Boring: Edwards was charged with aggravated assault, assault, evading arrest and a parole violation.Chunkified:Police have charged Edwards with:
- Aggravated Assault
- Assault
- Evading Arrest
- Parole Violation.
- Key Facts: Tell the reader what they need to know. Consultants always say readers want to pick and choose the information they want, but they also say readers want their information as fast as possible. You can bold main ideas or “nut graphs” to get a reader’s attention. Some sites will even give you a bullet list of key facts inside of a story.
- Allow Readers to comment on stories:
Web2.0 is all about interactivity and sharing of information. Let readers weigh in on stories using comment systems like JS-KIT. Present the reader with facts in a story and allow the marketplace of ideas to prosper in your comments section. Comments are even an excellent source for leads on stories. Just the other day we got a comment on a story about a missing person that actually allowed us to help police locate the man. - Link to backrounders
This is quite possibly the easiest, most helpful addition you can make to your web stories. Everyone knows how to make a link right? Here’s a refresher just in case.
Most CMS platforms have a link button, like this
. Typically you use the mouse to select the word you want to become clickable then click the link button. A small window will appear asking for the link’s URL, how you would like the link to open (generally you want to choose _BLANK or “New Window.”If you don’t have a fancy button you can always use good ole HTML.
Now you can make links- but what should you link? Some folks thing you’re entire article should have blue-underlined words. I personally subscribe to the “when it’s relevant” school of thought. I like to link organizations, people and past articles. The latter is especially easy because you can simply use your web site’s search box (or if you’re missing this crucial element you can use a google search with the “SITE:” function.) Say you’re following up on a murder case- type the suspect’s name into the search box and find the story about his arrest. Link his arrest to your new story. Use verbs as link text for any subsequent links your search may find.
Example:
The Central Texas pastor accused of killing his wife entered a not guilty plea in 54th District Court Monday. Matt Baker is accused of murdering his wife Kari Baker and attempting to make it look like suicide. Baker has maintained his innocence amd has since been arrested and released only to be indicted a year later by a grand jury. - MAPS: Every DMA has a handful of small towns – bearing names no one can pronounce – much less locate on a map. That’s where a good map finds a place in a good story. Google makes it easy to incorporate maps into your story by offering an embed link on every map. Simply log on to maps.google.com, search for your location, click the link tab and you’re ready to embed!EXAMPLE:This map went along with a story involving an evacuationView Untitled in a larger map
Follow me on Twitter