Associated Content Hires Patrick Keane as CEO

Big news at AC this week--we've got a new CEO!

Patrick Keane started in AC's New York offices on Monday, March 30. He brings deep experience in digital media, advertising and technology to AC and we're very proud to have him on board.

Patrick comes to AC from CBS Interactive, where he was EVP and Chief Marketing Officer. At CBS he was responsible for sales strategy, consumer marketing, advertising operations, field marketing, and research and analytics for all properties across sports, news and entertainment.

Prior to joining CBS, Keane spent more than four years at Google. He was head of advertising sales strategy responsible for developing and managing the strategic plans and relationships and was the original founder of Zeitgeist, Google's annual thought leadership forum. Patrick also built and led Google's North American field marketing team.

Prior to Google, Keane was at Jupiter Research.

You'll be hearing more about Patrick as he gets settled and we introduce him to the AC Community. If you're curious you can read more about the him on the WSJ's All Things D blog, on Reuters and on PaidContent.

Friday Potpurri

Happy Friday!

Check out a brief roundup of all things Associated Content:

Source Pam Pleasant was interviewed by a local TV news program in MO. She demonstrated her money-saving techniques. Her AC articles got her on there, and we’re mentioned at the very end of the broadcast. Watch Pam's interview here.

AC is in another article about earning money in a tough economy, this time in the April issue of Women's Day Magazine. Check out "9 Ways to Boost Your Income" online or buy a hard copy at your local newsstand.

We're also on a good list of places where wannabe travel writers on the Graduate Degree Blog can “learn what it takes to be a travel writer, how to improve your writing, and ways to increase your chance of success.”

Add the Best of AC Health Twitter name to your follow list and see what's new and noteworthy in our health section.

Finally, if page view (and earning) acceleration has been on your mind lately, read Vikas D. Reddy's excellent article on the subject here.

AC's SXSWi Wrap-up

We are back! It was an awesome, busy four days for Associated Content in Austin, TX at SXSWi.

AC had a booth on the SXSW trade show floor where we met movers and shakers in all areas of online work, from programming to promotion. Bloggers, artists, designers and early adopters were everywhere in Austin, socializing and attending panels and parties. Our eco-friendly AC notebooks were a popular giveaway and we even met a few Sources! Thanks Christine Cadena for the t-shirt--it was great to meet you in person!

AC reps attended keynotes by Tony Hsieh of Zappos.com and Nate Silver of 538. We took notes at panels with titles like "User Generated Content: State of the Union," "Building Your Brand with Web 2.0 Tools" and "Journey to the Center of Design" and brought back the advice offered by the experts to share with our coworkers and make AC an even better place to be.

Twitter and iPhones (when they were working) were all the rage (Foursquare, a new location-based social networking game from the makers of Dodgeball had some buzz, expect to hear more about it in the coming months). Since the trade show was also mixed in with the Film portion of SXSW, we met a slew of video producers eager to check out AC's video platform and make some money off of the traffic their work gets (as opposed to posting it for no monetary returns elsewhere).

Everyone we met was very excited about the idea of publishing their content on AC for money and exposure. People were eager to get started, and we'll see an influx of new Sources as a result of our outreach at SXSW within the next couple of weeks. Please give them a hearty AC welcome. It's good to be home!

Associated Content at South by Southwest Interactive

South by Southwest Interactive Festival starts this weekend, and AC will be there! It's our first trip as a company to SXSW and we're really excited to do a ton of networking, socializing, panel-attending and general conferencing.

If you're going (I already know a few Sources who are), stop by our stand. We're #528 and will be giving away some quality swag and even a cash prize sweepstakes. We'd love to meet you in person!

We issued a few SXSW and Austin assignments in order to help other attendees find out what not to miss in Austin and to give people who couldn't make it a way to feel in on the on the action. You can see a guide to Interactive parties and lounges here and here. Check out an Interactive speaker lineup here.

Austin is an awesome town, with great food and amazing music. I'm particularly interested in this sure-to-be controversial article about the Top 5 BBQ restaurants in Austin. And the best honky tonk bars.

Need to get around Austin without a car? Here's how. Looking for a late night snack? This article has the best spots to eat after hours. There for the music? Check out an article on the ten best record stores in Austin.

It's going to be an awesome couple of days at SXSWi. We'll do a blog post or two from there about the panels, speakers and other events. Visit the official SXSW website for more information.

This Week on Associated Content

After a lot of research and discussion, we are making a few changes to some of the descriptions used at Associated Content.

These changes are being made for one big reason: To be as clear, open and accessible as possible for any site visitor and contributor to understand what AC offers. Some of our traditional descriptions, while totally familiar to those of you who have been with us for a while, often required some explanation for people unfamiliar with AC.

Starting this week, Content Producers will be referred to as “Sources.” We are making this change so that it is clear to visitors that every contributor to Associated Content is a source for valuable information.

Additionally, “Calls for Content” are now, simply, going to be called “assignments.” Our transparent system of offering you original topic ideas and set upfront payments -- hundreds of them every week -- remains exactly the same. Our goal was to make it more obvious what this system was all about.

We appreciate it might be an adjustment, but nothing is changing about your profile, content, status or the way AC works – particularly our unique payment system.

You, our Sources, are still AC’s greatest strength, and your title will convey that to everyone who connects with your content.

Get Started Promoting Your Content

Are you taking advantage of the new tools AC has developed to help you share your content across the Web?

If you’re not already using Auto-Post and Content Widgets, get started! Make sure you take every opportunity to engage your audience and increase your page views.

Auto-Post

Auto-Post allows you to easily share your work on Associated Content with your Facebook friends, Twitter followers and WordPress blog readers. Simply fill in your account details on our Auto-Post page, and links to your content will be posted automatically, every time you publish.

Not currently using Facebook, Twitter or WordPress? Check out these Content Producer tutorials:

Getting Started on Facebook by Sylvia Cochran
Using Twitter to Promote Your Content by Lisaswrite
Starting a WordPress Blog by Nina Rotz

Once you’re set up on Facebook, Twitter or WordPress, start using Auto-Post right away! It's an easy, automated way to promote your content and keep your contacts in the loop.

Remember, you can also manually post your content (or other CPs’ content) to any social media site you use (MySpace, Blogger, Digg, etc.) by clicking the promotion box located underneath every piece.

Content Widgets

We partnered with Newsgator to create custom widgets that make your content more portable than ever. Click the “Widget / Feed” link right above your CP profile page to preview your own, personalized widget, which automatically displays your 5 most recent pieces of content. Simply copy and paste the code we provide to add the widget to your Blog, MySpace profile or any other personal website that accepts HTML code.

You can also create custom widgets that pull in work by other CPs or popular content from around the site on our custom RSS / widget page. Look in the left column of this blog for a visual on our Newsgator widgets.

If you need any help setting up Auto-Post or Content Widgets, please email community at associated content.com. You’re welcome to share your feed back as well – we’d love to hear how you’re using these tools to promote your work on AC.

Associated Content in the Wall St. Journal

You've heard us talk about how AC is a great way to supplement your income because we're paying out our CPs every week, even as the economy stays tough.

Today, the Wall Street Journal included Associated Content in an article entitled, "Selling Expertise On the Internet For Extra Cash." Along with Amazon's Mechanical Turk and LivePerson, they highlighted us as a place to create content in a topic that you're an expert in and earn money on it!

They even interviewed 2008's CP of the Year, Sabah Karimi for the article. She has some good advice to offer in there, so follow the link above or click here to read the article.

Open ID Login Available on Associated Content

Associated Content recently added a new login option with OpenID.

We're pleased with the addition, and please rest assured that AC users are not required to use OpenID. Your traditional login remains the same. We added it as an option for the convenience of the AC users who already use the OpenID service. OpenID is a handy, reputable program that is used by other organizations like AOL, Google, Microsoft, MySpace and Yahoo!.

If you'd like to learn more about OpenID, especially in relation your Associated Content account, AC Sr. Software Engineer Mike Scarborough has just published two articles for your edification. In this article, he answers the following questions:

• What is OpenID?
• What is my OpenID?
• How does Associated Content use OpenIDs?

Mike specifically addresses OpenID security questions in "Is OpenID Secure?"

You can visit their website at openid.net. No login required.

Martin Luther King Day and the Inauguration on Associated Content

Happy Martin Luther King Day, AC blog readers.
Whether you're at the office or enjoying a day off, today feels like an especially poignant MLK holiday. There is a plethora of amazing content about today and tomorrow on AC right now and I've gathered a few highlights here for you to check out.

• Carol Rucker recalls sitting in on a peaceful protest as a 15-year old in Cincinnati on the day Dr. King was shot.
• Veralidaine wrote a year ago on Dr. King's legacy for Americans with disabilities.
• Traci Freeman has excellent suggestions for volunteer activities and children's crafts to teach them about MLK, such as writing their own "I have a dream" speech, creating a timeline of his life and even a Martin Luther King, Jr. scavenger hunt.

Inauguration will be dominating the news cycles for the next 24 hours (at least) and every possible angle is covered on AC by our Content Producers.

• The News Team has gathered much of the Inauguration into a single list here.
• Dr. Frank Czarny offers a scholarly take on trends in Inaugural speeches as part of his "Transformational Leadership Times" article series.
• AL Horan shares some thoughts on race and history on the eve of Inauguration from Marietta, GA.
• If you don't have access to a TV but will be in front of a computer, here are a few places that you can watch coverage of the events online.

It's an exciting time to be participating in the proliferation of new media, and all of these contributions are building a resource for the public record. If in 6 months or 6 years we need a reminder of the hopeful tone of the beginning of 2009, Associated Content will be a place to find a variety of authentic, sincere voices from all over the U.S. and the world.

Thank you for the Super Political Coverage

If you visited Associated Content on Election Day, you probably noticed that the home was page lit up with original political coverage from our Content Producers.

We had up-to-the minute coverage from many talented CPs who were filing updates throughout the day and evening of the election. It was an excellent showcase for Associated Content's depth, timeliness and commitment to providing a platform of unique perspective. And of course for the talents of our contributors!

Tim Skillern, AC's intrepid News Director, was responsible for much of the programming. Yesterday he published an article called "AC's 2008 Homepage Election Coverage: 36 Hours of Analysis, Reports, Predictions and Fun" to showcase the 9 Content Producers who made up Associated Content's homepage election coverage team. These folks wrote in 10 shifts starting early on Tuesday and wrapped up late on Wednesday. They covered all types of news, both national and local, and did a stellar job with the breadth and quality of their reporting.

Thank you CPs who contributed to AC's election coverage and thank you Tim for your tireless efforts! Get ready for the inauguration in January.

Associated Content Facebook Portal Coming Soon

I hinted last week at a Facebook app from Associated Content and am happy to announce that it will be ready next week! Happy Halloween Friday, Facebook friendly Content Producers. Our new Facebook application, called the AC Portal, will be available soon.

The portal is really neat. It's fully interactive and will allow you to discover content from all over AC and share it with your Facebook friends. You'll also be able to create a profile widget to promote your recently published text, video, audio and slideshows. Think of how this will benefit your page views! Finally, the AC Portal will enable you to invite your friends to join AC and will keep you updated on the latest AC news, Calls for Content and Performance Bonus details.

All of that, in a single app! There will be plenty more next week when it is released. Have a safe and happy weekend.

Coverage of the DNC and RNC on Associated Content

The political conventions have begun! Associated Content's CPs are providing one-of-a kind coverage of the Democratic and Republican National Conventions by publishing loads of original text, video, audio, and slide shows. Here's what you can expect in the next two weeks:

• First-person reporting from the Convention floor.
• Original reporting, video, and photos from rallies, protests, parties, and more.
• Top-notch analysis from Content Producers across the globe.
• Inside sneak peeks from convention delegates.

Check this page daily for new additions.

Just this afternoon, a few of our Denver staffers went down to check out the new media action at Google's Big Tent and spread the world about AC. They even met a few CPs! View the photos here. If you are interested in participating in AC's coverage of these historic gatherings, check your Calls for Content. There are a variety of writing and reporting options available.

Welcome to the Associated Content blog!

Welcome to the official blog of Associated Content. Check here for news, announcements, fun and useful links, highlights, and informative pieces from every department at Associated Content.