Going Hyperlocal is the brainchild of Richard Coulter (pictured), the former assistant editor and chief sub of the Bristol Evening Post. Coulter now runs filtonvoice, his own hyperlocal print product, which claims to have made a healthy profit each month since its launch last October.
Coulter has joined forces with Emma Cooper, who has 21 years of advertising sales experience, and Steve Dyson, a former regional daily editor, experienced media trainer, pundit and blogger, to run the workshops.
Cooper herself now runs keynshamvoice in her home town near Bristol, which launched successfully earlier this month.
Calling themselves the Local Press Network, the trio are holding their first training workshop on Thursday 21 June in Filton, Bristol, charging £299 per delegate. They say that by being part of the network, new entrepreneurial publishers could recoup this cost and more in their first month through savings on print, website and other add-ons.
Coulter said: “There are a lot of negative vibes about the printed press, and much excitement about hyperlocal websites – but revenues in both are either declining or miniscule. What I’ve discovered is that there’s a healthy editorial and commercial appetite for a clever combination of the two – hyperlocal print products.
“I’m making a living with filtonvoice, and a second has now been launched by Emma, and we have decided to share our knowledge with other trained journalists and possibly media sales professionals looking to continue their trade but away from the big publishers.”
Dyson, the former editor of the Evening Gazette, Teesside, and the Birmingham Mail, now writes and delivers training courses for the NCTJ, is a regional media pundit for Holdthefrontpage, the BBC, InPublishing and Press Gazette, and delivers training for blue-chip clients via Dyson Media Ltd.
Dyson said: “When Richard contacted me about filtonvoice, it immediately felt like a successful structure that could be replicated elsewhere.
“Using hand-on experience, we are now developing an intensive, interactive workshop day to show others exactly how to do it, with a valuable toolbox for anyone who wants to launch, edit and make a living from their own hyperlocal newspaper.”
Going Hyperlocal will include a step-by-step illustration from Coulter, workshops on selling advertising at a local level from Cooper, and a detailed industry analysis and top tips for mini company and legal structures from Dyson.
Cooper, a former head of advertising at the Bristol Evening Post and Western Daily Press, said: “I’ve already put my skills to use in helping to create significant, long-term advertising revenue for filtonvoice, and I’m so impressed with the project I’ve now launched my own.
“I have the experience to show journalists how to sell their own advertising, which combined with their editorial skills can create strong hyperlocal printed products.”
After the workshop day, delegates will also be able to join the Local Press Network, which will offer a variety of services like production, printing, book-keeping, website development and national advertising should any ongoing assistance be needed.
To book a course space, contact Emma Cooper on 07715 770448 or emma@keynshamvoice.co.uk
