When Glen Gardner, 53, and his employer of 13 years, Mid-West Family Broadcasting, parted ways last November, in his mind it was only the beginning. After 35 years in media, most recently as station manager for WTDY-AM radio, Gardner knew he could never leave the industry entirely.
Now the CEO of Glen Gardner & Associates, Gardner nurtures two businesses: a web marketing consultancy business and a new media venture, YourNews.com, an online news and information site that Gardner claims will turn local news media on its head.
After considering a marketing position with YourNews.com, Gardner said he saw so much potential in the Web product that he decided instead to purchase a license for Dane County with a personal investment of “less than $10,000.” YourNews.com is a newspaper-like Web platform offering national and local news and information in 20 communities around the country, the largest being Detroit. The site utilizes “GEO” targeting, meaning it can deliver both local news and advertising to small slivers of the population — by zip code.
“There are a lot of businesses out there that don’t need to use an elephant gun to shoot an ant,” said Gardner, whose investment has since grown and now includes all zip codes in Sauk, Columbia, and Adams counties as well as Dane.
“There’s a paradigm shift in the definition of what news is,” he said. “We get hung up on what box it comes out of, but to the consumer, it’s just news.” Gardner is banking on news being Internet-driven in the future, believing the younger demographic will pick and choose the news content they want, when they want it, and in what dosage. To localize the site’s content, Gardner has casual agreements with area writers — familiar media names like Bill Wineke, Tim Morrissey, Melanie Conklin, and John Karcher. “YourNews.com also allows users an opportunity to upload their own (very local) news, from what’s happening in their neighborhoods to who won last night’s softball game.” And yes, there are plans to thread in paid endorsements written by freelance writers. It’s a blend of the “new news platform” that includes news, opinion, user-generated informational tidbits, advertorials, and traditional ads, and different reporting styles.
Gardner spends a couple of hours a day working on the Web site now, and says he is prepared to fund it for up to two years. His revenue goal: $1 million in the first year.
Advertising revenue has already covered his initial investment, he said, and consequently the writers are now receiving “small” paychecks based on the number of stories they’ve contributed. Once the company is profitable, Gardner says he will split 48% of those profits with staff.
“I financed it, but they’re taking the risk. They need to be rewarded.”
Morrissey and Wineke couldn’t be happier with the arrangement. Said Morrissey: “This is a completely informal relationship. I tend to write something every day. It’s an outlet.” Morrissey, who also worked for Mid-West Family for 30 years, isn’t worrying about the money right now, just “that it will come.” Bill Wineke, retired State Journal columnist, has a similar take. “Glen called me out of the blue one day and offered me a deal I couldn’t refuse…. to write seven days a week, for free!” Wineke said that if he never sees a dime, “it will still be a lot of fun!”
Gardner admits that starting two companies in this economy is both exciting and “scarier than hell.” Working from home, he takes advantage of COBRA insurance benefits, though he admits his concept of benefits have changed.
“My 401(k) is now my ‘k’,” he quipped. “The 401 was gone long ago.”
