14 things yearbook staffs should think about to improve their operation in 2014.

1. Logan Aimone, MJE
Permission granted for educational
classroom use only.
http://slideshare.net/loganaimone
http://loganaimone.com
14 Things to Think
About for 2014
Improving your yearbook
operation this year
F O R Y E A R B O O K S T A F F S O N L Y
Monday, July 8, 13

2. 14 Things to Think About for 2014
Why try?
• Work to improve each year. Last year’s
book may have set records or won awards,
so build on those successes and what
worked.
• Sell more. The book might be beautiful,
but you still need people to buy it.
• Improve and engage. Better content from
an engaged audience results in sales.
• That’s success all around!
Monday, July 8, 13

3. 14 Things to Think About for 2014
You still have time to
make 2014 the best book on
record.
Try some new endeavors to
improve your yearbook
operation. Here are 14
things you can try.
Monday, July 8, 13

4. 14 Things to Think About for 2014
1. Be excellent
• It probably goes without saying, but I’ll say
it anyway: Strive for excellence.
• Excellence isn’t settling for pretty good.
• Good enough is not good enough.
• Demand the best from every photo,
caption, story and design.
• Set goals to improve with each deadline.
Monday, July 8, 13

5. 14 Things to Think About for 2014
2. Be the #1 source
• Be serious about being the top information
source and archive for all things about your
school.
• If someone wants to know a fact, score,
date, record, time or whatever — be the
place they turn for that information.
• Own sports stats, especially JV and lower
squads. No other source is recording this
information in this way.
Monday, July 8, 13

6. 14 Things to Think About for 2014
3. Get out there
• You can’t really get a story unless you get
out and talk to people. In person.
• Yes, in person!
• You can always tell the difference when a
writer has observed and interviewed in
person.
• Email or chat interviews fill a need, but
they are not as effective as being there.
Monday, July 8, 13

7. 14 Things to Think About for 2014
4. Find stories
• Establish a solid system in place to gather
information beyond the big events.
• You’ll need this information for the
narrative copy blocks as well as sidebars
and fast-fact charts.
• Demand enterprise. Dig around to find
something newsworthy and interesting
from this year. Write it in a compelling,
interesting and useful way.
Monday, July 8, 13

8. 14 Things to Think About for 2014
5. Improve photos
• Most of the yearbook is photography,
which can make or break the book. Invest
time in teaching each staff member to take
usable photos that are…
• In focus
• Well composed
• Candid
• Leave every assignment with images that
are wide (scene-setting), mid-range and
close-up. That gives designers options.
Monday, July 8, 13

9. 14 Things to Think About for 2014
6. Show us
• Probably the most widely read (and most
liked) stories are those that tell interesting
stories about people.
• Your school and community are full of
these stories. Localize national issues with
the stories of people around you.
• Spend as much time on captions as on
copy. The captions must be engaging, too.
Monday, July 8, 13

10. 14 Things to Think About for 2014
7. Get social
• Use Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to
interact with readers by posting links to
content and by getting tips from readers.
• Monitor and listen to the conversation, or
ask them to let you know about events
occurring outside school (or at school but
not known). Or search by #hashtag.
• Let readers submit photos and ideas to you
through these pages.
Monday, July 8, 13

11. 14 Things to Think About for 2014
8. Curate & Share
• Delicious.com is a free social bookmarking
site. Pinterest allows sharing and re-
sharing by“pinning” on“boards.” Tumblr
allows curating links, images, text and
video.
• Post links/items that will be useful to
others. Tag and sort in a number of ways to
enhance content beyond the printed page.
• You can also see what others shared.
Monday, July 8, 13

12. 14 Things to Think About for 2014
9. Beyond the page
• Flickr is a free online image-sharing
service. Make your images available for
people to browse as slideshows.
• Instagram is a social photo-sharing site.
Follow others or promote your staff’s work.
Show what happens behind the scenes!
• Through a Creative Commons license,
you can get images to use (free and legal!).
WikiCommons is another source for free
images.
Monday, July 8, 13

13. 14 Things to Think About for 2014
10. Post Video
• YouTube, SchoolTube and Vimeo are
solutions to upload videos.
• Some might be blocked on school
computers, but they’re not blocked on
mobile devices or at home, where most
people will access the videos.
• Use short clips that enhance the printed
content. Social sites Instagram, Tumblr
and Vine host short video clips.
Monday, July 8, 13

14. 14 Things to Think About for 2014
11. Try QR Codes
• The“QR” stands for quick read and is a type
of two-dimensional bar code
• Smart phones can scan the codes and
launch PDFs, videos or websites
• Create a QR code easily and for free online
• Even without a website, this is a way to
add content and value or to promote sales
Monday, July 8, 13

15. 14 Things to Think About for 2014
12. Do fewer…
• … superlatives that feature the same
students as other sections. Find ways to
showcase a variety of students.
• … cliché stories on topics not tied to a news
event. Make sure you have a news peg to
include the story. Then localize.
• … boring stories that aren’t about people.
Feature your students and staff and what
makes them interesting in 2014. Dig!
Monday, July 8, 13

16. 14 Things to Think About for 2014
13. Follow the law
• Obey copyright.
• Only use“fair use” images or get
permission.
• Flickr and WikiCommons each allow
searches for Creative Commons or public
domain images.
• Know privacy rules.
• Know your rights.
Monday, July 8, 13

17. 14 Things to Think About for 2014
14. Remember…
• Your role on campus is to inform your
audience and record the events of the year.
• You have a responsibility — an obligation,
even — to take that seriously and to do it
well.
• Your audience needs you to tell the story in
a truthful, authentic and teen-oriented
way.
Monday, July 8, 13

18. 14 Things to Think About for 2014
Thanks!
Twitter: @loganaimone
http://loganaimone.com
Monday, July 8, 13