Chinook Book
In a time of Amazon and other big name brands, many small local businesses end up with the short end of the stick even if their products and services are better for you, your family, and the environment. The idea behind Chinook Book was to create an annual publication that gives discounts to those who choose to shop locally and sustainably. As it evolved, Chinook Book became a kind of marketing agency as they added content strategy and branding opportunities. As their first and only content writer, it was my job to develop and maintain the organization’s brand voice while simultaneously replicating our vendors’ brand voices. I effectively wrote and managed all branded content, editorial content, social media posts, and emails in our seven markets (Portland, Seattle, Bay Area, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Denver/Boulder, Columbia River Gorge, Willamette Valley).
Editorial Content
Every month I created one or more pieces of editorial content that followed the month’s theme. As an environmental publication, I used our platform to not only provide promotional content for sustainable local businesses, but also to convey aspects of environmental science and green living in an accessible and interesting way. For example, during the Spring Spruce Up monthly theme, I wrote a piece on how to practice more sustainable lawn care, which focused on the environmental impact of the lawn movement in general.
Thematic Guide
At the beginning of each year, management and marketing decides on eight to twelve themes for the following months. Space in each thematic guide is sold to partners, and their chosen promotional offers are integrated into the copy of a relevant section. During the Summer Adventure Guide monthly theme, I wrote a piece on things to do in Seattle when visiting, and during the Spring Spruce Up theme I wrote a guide to home improvements. Due to the primarily promotional nature of the thematic packs, I worked our new lighthearted editorial voice into the copy to add a bit of zest to the mix through puns and comedy.
Branded Content
A large portion of my work with content involved working directly with partners to create branded content that catered to their needs. Often branded content highlights a sustainable aspect of a business, an upcoming event, or a story/history they want to share. I wrote a piece about a bookstore called Wild Rumpus in our Minneapolis/St. Paul market to show what a branded content piece might look like. While some businesses like the Suzuki Institute of Seattle, The Sleep Sherpa, and Discover St. Louis Park asked me to write their content from scratch, other companies would call for guidance and inspiration. Examples of these consultation-based branded content posts include a piece for KEEN about Portland hikes and a piece about clothing resale for a local consignment shop.
Holiday Gift Guide
The largest content project every year was the Holiday Gift Guide series during November and December. Our sales team would sell over 100 promotional offers for the Holiday Gift Guide, which I would organize and divide into 20+ blog posts. My first year, I divided the offers into posts about specific giftees, but the following year I organized them based the gift experiences. An example from my first set of Holiday Gift Guides can be seen here, and the others can be accessed by the links at the bottom.
During my second year, I focused on the experiences, as mentioned above. Rather than doing “Gifts for the New Family” or “Gifts for the Wellness Warrior,” I went for “Share the Perfect Date Night,” “Spread the Magic,” and “Create Your Own HyperLocal Gifts.” As we dropped the photoshopped banner heads, we moved towards a more professional stock photo angle, and with that came movements towards being a more inclusive community.
