The Yearbook World of Scott Geesey
from Jostens Yearbooks of central/northern Pennsylvania
ARCHIVE - JANUARY 1, 2020
WELCOME TO 2020: January is a Crucial Month for Your Yearbook Effort
Hello! And HAPPY NEW YEAR! I hope your holiday break was a great one. Did Santa bring you everything you wanted?
And this is not only a new year but also a new decade. Doing something with 2020 and vision and glasses and eye charts is the hot theme idea this year, one of a kind.
For my fellow Penn State football fans out there, their Cotton Bowl win last weekend showed that the Nittany Lions have playoff potential next year. Fix the pass defense and these guys are going places!
But now it's time to get back at it - time to get going with some GREAT yearbooking and ReplayIt work in January!!
But be sure to check out my December updates of The Yearbooking Report, posted right before the break. This month's feature interview deals with something that many students probably got for Christmas - a new smartphone. How can a mobile device be utilized for our yearbooking work? Be sure to watch this video with ideas and tips, and listen to the podcast for the full interview filled with even more great material.
Check out the widgets in the lower right of the home page here...and don't forget to check out this month's trivia question and then ENTER by the January 17 deadline!
As school resumes, what do we need to do right now?
My observation over the years is that the first couple of days after Christmas break run rather slow as folks get back into a regular rhythm, and this week I expect the same. But believe me, there's plenty to do with your yearbook in this very important first week back from vacation. Let's run down some important specifics...
SALES ARE CRUCIAL: This is definitely issue #1 of the new year, both book sales and any ad sales. January is absolutely crucial for spring books because of your upcoming ordering deadlines. Check out the ideas in my upcoming emails, but don't wait - move right now on your book sales followup. A solid effort now could mean the difference between a comfortable yearbook year and wondering if you'll make your budget. Let me know how I can assist you and your staff, I'm ready to help, and watch your email for more ideas and suggestions.
PAGE DEADLINE TIME: For nearly every spring yearbook staff there's a page submission deadline in January, probably in the next two weeks. Don't wait, get right back into page making and proofreading this week. Remember that if you miss a page deadline you can work hard and catch up before your next deadline, but one missed deadline often means more later so let's redouble our efforts.
And for fall yearbook staffs, if you've been waiting to get your page production started, NOW'S the time! Let's get the new year off to a good start with your portrait pages, fall sports and activity pages, etc.
HYPE THE BUZZ: Don't sit on your laurels, it's time to get the yearbook buzz started again after the holiday break. Daily announcements, handouts and posters, any idea you can find - let's blitz your school for the rest of this month. Why do many folks not buy a yearbook? Because they didn't know the book was for sale or how to buy one. It's part of our job to keep reminding them about your sale, over and over and over again. No matter your school, there are still plenty of folks out there who want to buy your book.
KEEP TAKING THOSE FRESH PHOTOS: Wrestling and basketball are in full swing as well as swimming and other winter sports. Make it a goal to send a photographer to more than just one game, especially to great rival games. Always put yourself in a position to have far too many images to choose from instead of pining for more pictures.
And if you want lots of images to use...
PROMOTE YOUR REPLAYIT APP AND WEBSITE: Remember that we are offering your students and families two for the price of one - your great yearbook coming out later this year but also your cool ReplayIt.com website and app to check out great images and info anytime PLUS your digital Time Capsule at school year's end with everything from the year saved and archived for future viewing anytime. That's actually THREE for the price of one!
Need more images? I bet your audience, an army of photographers perhaps touting new smartphones received for Christmas, is ready to help. Urge everyone to download the free Jostens ReplayIt app, register for your site and then start sending their own pictures while they follow your staff's photo work for the rest of the school year. Remember that there is no limit to the number of images displayed on ReplayIt and later in your digital Time Capsule.
And while you're at it, don't forget VIDEOS! Add sound and movement to your storytelling and remember that everyone can easily watch your videos on the ReplayIt app. Get some tech savvy students to help and really have some fun.
Let's get back to work BIG TIME this week with the goal of getting your yearbook effort flying!!