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On Line Winter 2016 | 1
Powering
CommunicationsEfficient
www.RuraliteServices.org 5605 NE Elam Young Parkway, Hillsboro, OR 97124
Leaving a Strong Legacy
Writing and photography tips for Ruralite Services utility communicators and freelance writers
Are you ready to hone your writing and photography abilities?
Freelance writers and utility communicators will spend three days this fall boosting storytelling skills at Ruralite Services’ biennial workshop.
Attendees will collaborate on a series of photography and writing tasks October 2-5, 2016, at Riverhouse on the Deschutes (formerly Riverhouse Hotel and Convention Center) in Bend, Oregon.
In April, members will receive a brochure with workshop details, including the panel of speakers and registration costs.
Room ReservationsReady to book your bed? Call (866) 453-4480 for reservations. Tell them you are with Ruralite to get the conference room rate. Rooms (including a free breakfast) are $109 or $119 plus tax. Rates apply three days before and three days after the conference. (Free breakfast is only available on conference days.)
Learn more about the workshop host city at www.visitbend.com. —[email protected]
INSI
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Save the Date: Fall Workshop Set in Bend, Oregon When the lights go out, so do they. How
often do you #ThankaLineman?Electric cooperatives and public
utility districts across the nation observe National Lineman Appreciation Day on Monday, April 11. To help you plan, here are a few ways to #ThankaLineman.
Surprise SnacksHave volunteers pack snacks for linemen to take on the road. Ask every member services representative to write a thank-you card (more if you have fewer MSRs than linemen), and put a card in each bag. Place the snacks either in utility trucks or in a lineman meeting area.
Facebook ContestGarrett Hylton with Wells Rural Electric Cooperative, Nevada, gave members a chance to support local line crews.
After taking pictures of line crews representing different parts of the co-op’s service area, he posted them in a Facebook album. He asked fans to “Like” their favorite lineman picture, then used the image with the most likes as
Use Big Pictures 2
an ad on his local magazine pages. He explains how it worked in this video.
Schedule ahead to get pictures of several line crews at work. Vertical images work best for covers. Make sure all staff (and staff family) know about the contest.
Commemorative ShirtBenton Rural Electric Association, Washington, gave linemen a special shirt at a breakfast for line crews.
Like the idea? Ask your editor or Duy Mai for sample artwork. We can order shirts for you, too.
More Ways to #ThankaLinemann Work with a local elementary or
middle school to arrange a line crew visit. Tell local media about the event.n Ask students to send thank-you
cards to linemen and display them in your lobby in April.n Ruralite’s Social Media Support
Program subscribers will receive custom graphics for Facebook and Twitter.
How are you celebrating? Send us your ideas so we can share them on our blog. —[email protected]
Are You Ready to #ThankaLineman?
Winter2016
Back Pages Made Easy 3 Save on Annual Reports 4
Garrett Hylton, “What Works for Me”
2 | On Line Winter 2016
Give pictures room to shine.
From top, Oregon Trail Electric Consumers Cooperative used three strong images to
highlight recent wildfires. A full-page portrait draws readers into an Umatilla Electric
Cooperative story. Blachly-Lane Electric Cooperative let a portrait bleed over
both sides of a page for extra impact.
You have a story and lots of pictures ready to place on a page. Where do you start? Photographer David LaBelle challenges communicators to start with a big picture.
“The eye eats first,” says David.Although it is tempting to pack a page
with a lot of small pictures, focus instead on a few striking images. Make one image—ideally a portrait—dominant to anchor a photo essay or feature story.
“If your goal is to truly engage your readers, start with dominant art and you will always win,” he says.
Lots of detail requires enough space to read the image. Think about your home television: a large screen enhances your viewing experience.
“The goal is to communicate,” says David. “Focus on the real point of the story. That may mean cutting some copy or throwing some pictures away in order to let a few images dominate.”
For more photography and storytelling tips from David, visit bridgesandangels.wordpress.com. —[email protected]
Use
BIGPictures
On Line Winter 2016 | 3
Each month, Ruralite Services’ magazine members use the high visibility of the magazine’s back page to address important utility and local issues.
Writing the column often remains in the back of a manager’s mind as he or she mulls over the right way to deliver more than cut-and-dry news.
How do utility leaders move their monthly back page column writing from to do to done?
Annie Terracciano, general manager at Northern Lights Inc. in Sagle, Idaho, takes outside resources to heart.
Every month, Annie looks through back page
examples from Ruralite, Florida Currents, Currents and KIUC Currents magazines Ruralite Services emails to utilities.
“I made a file folder system and put about three articles aside once a month,” she says.
Stockpiling references lets her avoid the midmonth crisis of not having a back page column topic. By receiving the back page email the first week of the month, Annie says she has plenty of time to go through the content for inspiration and still have time to submit her back page to her editor.
“There is plenty of time you can take advantage of so the pressure isn’t on when you sit down to write,” says Annie.
Another helpful resource is NRECA’s manager columns. Found in Cooperative.com’s Straight Talk section, the column archives span more than five years, with plenty of timeless topics (members only).
In some cases, planning ahead is not the most effective approach. Since the most current topics can change on a monthly basis, Ted Case, Oregon Rural Electric Cooperative Association’s
executive director, does not use a planning calendar.
“My job is more of a political job, and hot issues like solar are forming, no pun intended,” says Ted.
“I’ve got to be flexible when it comes to my topics.”
There are ways to help back page information speak to your readers. Ted does not write a column. He tells a story.
“I rely a lot on my personal history,” says Ted. “I try to write it in a way that it is not so technical that I lose (the reader) in the opening.”
Annie uses a similar approach to connect with her members.
“My preference is to start and finish on a personal note,” she says. “I try to use the month, season or anything else all of us are experiencing.”
As for word count, Ted avoids filling the page.
“What I notice about back pages a lot is that they are dense,” says Ted. “I think, frankly, less is more. You get a big white space on the back and the tendency is to fill it with as much content as possible. I try for three paragraphs as opposed to nine. Some topics are complex and need long form. But be mindful that white space is sometimes not a bad thing.”
No matter how you plan your content, there are many beneficial approaches industry leaders take to craft successful back page columns.
“I only get 12 columns a year,” says Ted. “I want to make them count.”
Find back page examples on Ruralite Services’ blog. if you want to receive them monthly, contact Linda Wiseman. —[email protected]
Details: RuraliteServices.org/Tools/Social
Three Easy Tools to Create Social Media ImagesNeed to add punch to social media posts? These tools offer handy—and easy—design tools on the go.
Adobe Post (NEW) iOS, Free Known for its creative suite of design products, Adobe released a free app in December, Adobe Post. Use a picture from your phone’s library or pick from free stock photos. Add text using a wide selection of fonts, background designs and filters. Only square images are supported. Post.Adobe.com
WordSwag iOS, $3.99Need a tried-and-true option? Craft clever social media images with WordSwag. Use one of your pictures or pick from several generic backgrounds. The app offers five layout options for each font style. Images are square, and users see a preview of how the cropped image will appear on Twitter. WordSwag.co
Canva Web or iPad, FreeWant to avoid fumbling with your phone to create an image? Try Canva on your desktop or iPad. Canva helps non-designers create a wide range of social support content (pins, Twitter posts, Facebook cover images, etc). Upload your own photo and use the service for free, or pay $1 for stock images. Canva.com
Need more help?Try our social media support program. It is better than an app since we do the work for you. For only $200 a month*, you can download energy-efficiency, safety and magazine content, then decide what to share with consumers.
*Cost for magazine subscribers
Move Back Pages from To Do to Done!
Terracciano
Case
Remember: n Use industry resources
to generate topicsn Stockpile quality topics n A personal touch
resonates with readersn When it comes to word
count, less is more
4 | On Line Winter 2016
Editing Tip
R emember when “like” was popular at every-other-word intervals? Overuse of words is not
exclusively verbal. It commonly affects the printed word.
Whether you are writing a feature or technical article, make stories stronger by cutting unnecessary words. Here are examples of how a few unnecessary words can be removed from your writing.
Just This word can be overused in several scenarios, even when sending emails.
n “The Board of Trustees gave just enough time at the end of the meeting to answer members’ questions.”n “Just give me a call.”n “You just set the panel near a continuous light source to charge.”
“Just” can make you sound desperate or demanding. Removing this word makes sentences stronger.
ThatIt may surprise you how often the word “that” is unnecessary. It often can be cut with no loss of meaning.
n “The farmer proposed a design that he fine-tuned over three years.”
n “David recalls a time that he scaled Beartooth Mountain.”n “He rode that horse.”
When “that” comes before a noun, it is usually a valid use of the word. When preceded by a noun, “that” most likely can be cut.
Type ofTypes are important in utility news, but the phrase “type of” can be intuitive to the sentence when it is removed.
n “The types of balloons were red, green and blue.”n “The chair was an type of antique, from 18th century England.”
There are times when “type of” is necessary to complete a sentence, but in many cases the sentence reads well without it.
Bringing it Home Tightening sentences is the best way to properly convey your message, whether you are making an email request or writing a four-page article about new energy technology.
“Just the right type of insulation can create a better indoor environment that your family will appreciate.”
Be Concise; Cut Extra Words
How to Save on Annual Report Printing
You need to send an annual report to members, but mailing costs are rising. What do you do?
Scott Peters, manager of marketing and member services at Columbia REA in Walla Walla, Washington, prints his annual report inside Ruralite magazine.
In this video, he shares what he discovered works—and what did not work—in his quest to save money while boosting member engagement.
Part of Ruralite Services’ “What Works for Me” Video Series
Sometimes our sentences need a lot of work. Recognizing unnecessary words improves your editing skills and results in stronger articles.
Want more ways to make your writing stronger? Visit DailyWritingTips.com and GrammarGirl.com. —[email protected]
Here are more words and phrases to remove from your writing:
n reallyn quiten kind ofn sort ofn veryn muchn perhapsn basicallyn fairlyn for all intents and purposesn definitelyn actuallyn particularn generallyn specificn totally n individual
On Line Winter 2016 | 5
Be Concise; Cut Extra Words
Building
n“To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift.”
This challenge from Oregon-native Olympian Steve Prefontaine captures the spirit of departing Ruralite Services’ CEO Russell Green’s ongoing journey in the utility industry.
Russell left Ruralite Services at the end of January. He will continue sharing his gift of leadership and service in the Northwest by joining the National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corporation as a regional vice president.
“It has been an incredible pleasure to build and lead such an amazing team,” says Russell. “I leave knowing the organization is in a great position to move forward into an exciting future. Thank you for the opportunity to serve you. The best part of my transition is knowing I will continue to serve in what I believe is the greatest industry in the country, partnering with the best people I have ever been privileged to meet.”
He began his career in energy services at Lane Electric Cooperative in Eugene, Oregon—home of his beloved University of Oregon Ducks. Then he moved to Vernonia to lead West Oregon Electric Cooperative for more than a decade.
Duringthe last 11 years, Russell brought new life and purpose to Ruralite Services. He expanded services to meet evolving member needs. The addition of Efficiency Services Group brought access to new programs and resources, while the office move to Hillsboro poised the team for growth.
The search for Russell’s successor is underway by the Ruralite Services Board of Directors. Want to stay in touch with Russell? You can connect with him on LinkedIn. —[email protected]
a Career of Service
Russell Green used his time at Ruralite Services’ helm to strengthen the cooperative’s foundation. Shown above
are archive pictures from a staff community service project, last year’s annual meeting and breaking
down walls for new office space. Photos by Mike Teegarden
6 | On Line Winter 2016
Powering
Communications RuraliteServices.org (503) 357-2105Efficient
Victoria Hampton Brings New Skills to Ruralite ServicesAs Ruralite Services’ programs expand to fill new member needs, the team is joined by a fresh, but familiar, face: Victoria Hampton.
Victoria has worked with Ruralite’s editorial staff since 2014 to collect story ideas, schedule interviews, write features, take pictures and design pages. What began as a 10-week internship grew into a solid working relationship. Victoria continued writing part time for the magazine after her internship ended last summer.
She earned a bachelor’s in journalism and creative writing from Pacific University in 2015. After graduating, she joined Ruralite’s team full time. She splits her talents between magazine support—she works with four utilities in Idaho and Washington—and marketing responsibilities.
Personal Note Victoria grew up reading Ruralite magazine’s Northern Lights edition at her home in Western Montana.
When off the clock, Victoria volunteers as a Doernbecher Children’s Hospital classroom tutor. She enjoys the plethora of restaurants and food carts in the Portland area and likes trying new places on the weekends. She lives in Gladstone, Oregon.
Let us know how we can help!Curtis Condon, CCC Managing Editor | (503) [email protected]
Follow us for writing tips and ideas RuraliteServices/
Kathi VanderZanden Director, Marketing and Communications(503) [email protected]
Jennifer Brown Associate Editor | (503) [email protected]
Mike Teegarden, CCC Assistant Editor | (503) [email protected]
Linda WisemanMagazine Assistant(503) [email protected]
Dave BarnhartEnergy Efficiency Support | ESG(503) [email protected]
Duy Mai Graphic Designer(503) [email protected]
Pam Blair, CCC Assistant Editor | (503) [email protected]
Megan McKoy-Noe, CCCManager, Content Marketing(678) [email protected]
Brandon Pomrenke Associate Editor | (503) [email protected]
During the holidays, Ruralite Services supported Embrace Oregon by donating four launch baskets for teenagers aging out of foster care. Staff filled laundry baskets with home essentials such as toiletries, dishes, utensils, towels and paper goods.
The baskets will help four teens begin their new lives. Learn more about the effort at www.embraceoregon.org. Photo by Mike Teegarden
Ruralite Staff Embrace Launch Basket Challenge
Victoria HamptonMarketing and Editorial Specialist(503) [email protected]
Contact Victoria:[email protected](503) 718-3739