Higher Ed Communications
As the summer winds down and the academic year gears up, Capstone HQ has been collecting plenty of cool stuff we think you’ll love. We hope these ideas will help you tackle interesting and ambitious projects with your publications. What's MEL, and why should you care? Read on. But first. Before we dive into the …
[Read more...] about Is it time for your publications to lean into the obvious?
In the seven years that Kat Braz had worked at the Purdue Alumni Association, she’d made big moves. After overhauling the alumni magazine, Purdue Alumnus, she and her team landed a silver medal in CASE’s magazine publication improvement category. Her eye as an art director had led her to become a popular presenter …
[Read more...] about A better way to think about profiling donors
In alumni magazines, there’s no bigger award than the Sibley. And this year, I was thrilled to see HBS Alumni Bulletin take home the crown. I’ve written for the publication several times over the years, and they run an A+ shop — high standards, great ideas, and (from my perspective at least) a smoothly running …
[Read more...] about Cracking the Sibley Code: Q+A with Dan Morrell
We’ve all been there: a million different writing projects that you’d love to get done — and not enough people to do them. Hiring a solo freelancer for the occasional project may not be enough. It can be time consuming to get them up to speed, they might not be great at all the diverse projects you want to throw …
Head down on big projects? I know the feeling. Still, it’s worth it to take the occasional breather to see what other folks are doing and to get new ideas. Here are some cool things worth your time this week. • Looking for meaningful content on a schedule? Are you responsible for producing magazine, web, and social …
[Read more...] about Telling the “non-story” and other great ideas
When my team and I aren’t working on amazing projects for our clients (check out this story about long-term service for The Catholic University of America and this WPI Journal profile of a woman who’s helping make Netflix even more irresistible), we’re on the lookout for the coolest ideas and tools to share with …
[Read more...] about Magazine redesign philosophies and tools worth your time
One of my favorite things to do is talk to editors who are at the very top of their game to figure out how they do their best work. That’s why I was thrilled to have a chance to sit down with Carole Engblom a few weeks ago to talk about her work with St. Olaf Magazine. She’s been at St. Olaf College …
[Read more...] about How Great Editors Work: Q+A With St. Olaf’s Carole Engblom
Today I’m sharing some of my favorite ideas for your publications and stories. Try stacking story elements for better storytelling. We all know that the right story packaging can turn a so-so story into a spectacular one. That’s why I love the map and annotation that Carleton staffer Jonathon Reese did for the most …
Winter has set up shop outside of Capstone HQ in Minneapolis: there's lots of snow, ice, and sub-zero temperatures around here — and there are no warming trends on the way. As a college friend once said, “Like turtles through the hourglass, so go the days of February.” But there’s tons of amazing stuff helping …
[Read more...] about 4 Worthwhile Ideas For Your Publication
Maybe you’re a New Year’s resolution-setter. Maybe you like long lists of ambitious goals. Maybe you even write your resolutions in spreadsheets with multiple tabs so you can track your progress. (Guilty.) Maybe you’re not! But there’s still something amazing about the clean slate of a new year, the chance for a …
[Read more...] about How To Make Your Publications Even Better In 2018
