3CMA Member Blog

3CMA Member Blog

Let’s Blog!


By TOM BRYSON

3CMA President | Director of Communications, City of Farmers Branch, Texas

You’d be amazed how many wide and varied online definitions there are for the term "blog." Well, I’m going to take this opportunity to offer one uniquely suited for our 3CMA membership.

You ready?

"A personal narrative of professional experience designed to share our common endeavors and, in doing so, raise each other’s game."

And with that, it is my pleasure to introduce the 3CMA Member Blog – just one of the very specific ways 3CMA and the Board of Directors intends to keep the membership engaged throughout the year. For so many of us, we go to the annual conference and share quality time with "our people," the folks that understand, that "get" us. Then, sadly, it’s time to return to the real world and our professional isolation until the next time we can get together.

3CMA, the Board of Directors and many like-minded members are determined to be sure that all members feel included and engaged throughout the year. This is just one of the ways we plan to do it. Right now, plans are in place for every member – that is all 27 – of the 3CMA Board of Directors to write at least one blog post per year. That alone should give us fresh content every two weeks.

But why stop there?

Most of us are writers before anything else. What better exercise can there be of that very special muscle than to relate the relative wisdom, folly or extent of our experience for the good of the group? So, Board Members are being asked to write at least one, but the sky’s the limit.

And most importantly, this is the 3CMA MEMBER Blog. We want to hear from you! Whatever you have going on or whatever you might want to say, believe me, is relevant and we want you to express yourself.

Topics for posts to the 3CMA Member Blog can be wide and varied and include:

  • How to best do mobile video
  • Social Media hacks
  • How scared we all are of the census
  • AP Style and the death of the artful narrative
  • Long form journalism in 280 characters
  • Leadership initiatives
  • How to "one person shop" it
  • Studies, trends, best practices and lessons learned
  • The Socialist Tendencies of the Oxford Comma

By the way, those are all just random topic ideas. If anyone wants to grab one, please do. Beyond that, many of our committees can also use this opportunity to get word out to the membership:

  • Savvy Awards:
    - How to write a good entry
    - Updated info for judges
    - New categories, changes etc.
  • Conference:
     - What’s the latest on locations
  • Professional Development
  • And, so much more …

Get the idea?

I really feel like we can create a great dialogue with this kind of sharing. Most of us write every day, but not this kind of writing. It’ll be therapeutic.

This is how it will work. Our friend and colleague Belinda Willis, from the City of Mansfield, Texas, (email) has graciously volunteered to act as editor for the 3CMA Member Blog. She is creating a content calendar that will enable us, as an organization, to impart new knowledge regularly throughout the year. Once a post is ready to rock, 3CMA will have it posted to the website, social media pages and emailed to the membership.

There will be precious few limitations on topics – so few, I can’t think of any right now. General target length will be between 750 and 1,000 words (or so). Pix and/or illustrations are encouraged, if original and relevant (however, cheesy clip art will be deemed evil and, therefore, unacceptable).

So, if you have an idea, get with Belinda and get on the calendar and let’s set about extending the networking all year-long.