Summer Revenue Conference goes online

The Aug, 14 Summer Revenue Conference conducted by the Texas Center for Community Journalism has been redesigned in a virtual format, due to concerns about the spread of the coronavirus in Texas.
The Robert Burns Memorial Golf Classic is still on for Aug. 13 at the Lady Bird Johnson Golf Course in Fredericksburg. 
Although the conference will no longer be held at the hangar hotel in Fredericksburg, TCCJ Co-Director Kathryn Jones Malone said the conference will still feature outstanding speakers in a convenient format allowing for more people to attend. In addition, the event will be recorded and archived on the TCCJ website for future viewing.
Organizers are working on the technical details of video conferencing and registrants will receive sign-in information by email.
Registration information is available on the TCCJ website, www.tccjtsu.com (a new web address since the center was taken over by Tarleton State University.) The event is still free and registration is no longer limited.
Topic for the conference is “Making Money in the ‘New Normal.’” The pandemic and statewide lockdown of businesses crashed local economies and put intense new pressures on community journalism outlets and their bottom lines, Jones-Malone said.
To address these concerns, the line-up of speakers will include Kevin James, director of Special Projects Sales for Moser Community Media, LLC (Brenham); Mike Obert of Open-Look.com in Richardson; and via Skype, Ryan Dohrn, media sales consultant/coach and host of “Ad Sales Nation” podcast. 
The speakers and TCCJ Co-directors Dan Malone and Kathryn Jones Malone will share insights and advice on new strategies for selling in the “new normal,” latest trends in digital traffic and online ad sales; social media vs. digital revenues, and alternative sources of revenue.
The workshop will end with an open discussion about some of the creative products and strategies Texas newspapers and their websites have used in this extraordinary time of change. Attendees are encouraged share their ideas for what worked and what didn’t. Participants are invited to email examples such as front or inside pages, advertising, promotions or links to pages to kathrynjones1956@gmail.com.
The annual conference is one of the educational events sponsored by the Texas Newspaper Foundation.
The Robert Burns Memorial Golf Classic benefiting the Texas Newspaper Foundation is still on for Thursday, Aug. 13, at the Lady Bird Johnson Municipal  Golf Course in Fredericksburg, even though the annual Summer Revenue Conference has been redesigned as a virtual event. 
Golfers should plan to assemble 1:20 p.m. for the 2 p.m. tee time Thursday, Aug. 13. 
For more information and to register for the golf tournament, contact TPA Executive Director Mike Hodges at 512-477-6755 or mhodges@texaspress.com.