Hull paper launches innovative UGC website

Text size:

Wednesday 30 January 2008

The Hull Daily Mail today launched a ground-breaking user generated content (UGC) website, giving local people a platform to debate issues of their choice.

Your Mail claims to be the first website by a regional newspaper publisher devoted to content from members of the public. It is billed as “the place for community conversation in Hull and the East Riding of Yorkshire".

The site can be found at www.thisisyourmail.co.uk and also through the Mail’s main website at www.thisishull.co.uk.

The Mail’s parent company, Northcliffe Media, is making a significant investment in the site to test for the group a comprehensive approach to UGC. The launch follows months of development and testing.

Your Mail allows registered users to start conversation threads, post responses, upload pictures, rate content, and create or join online groups. Users can also create a personal profile. All content appears on the site instantly.

Your Mail has four sections:

  • Your Say: An open forum for debate on subjects of the users’ choice.
  • Your Patch: A section using mapping technology to pinpoint UGC content in 150 local areas across Hull and the East Riding.
  • All Yours: A platform for users to create and join networks of people with shared interests.
  • Your Family: An area for people to create family pages, enabling relatives and friends to stay in touch wherever they are in the world.

Hull Daily Mail editor John Meehan, who is also Regional Editorial Director, Northcliffe Media North East, said: “Your Mail users set the agenda and provide the content on the site – it really is theirs. We provide the platform, encourage people to get involved and ensure the site is used responsibly.

“The content is a diverse mix of news, views, passions and preoccupations. It’s fascinating to see what people are interested in and want to discuss.

“Your Mail recognises the changing nature of the relationship between publishers and the audience. The Internet means members of the public can publish without us - but we can help them to do it, we can give their content credibility and we can provide access to a large and growing online audience".

Meehan said he believed Your Mail went further than any other website created by a regional publisher in empowering members of the public to publish what they want, when they want.

Assistant Editor Alex Leys developed the concept for the site and is the project leader for Your Mail. Leys said: “This has the potential to become a very popular site. It allows users to choose different ways to interact, but we’ve concentrated on making it really user-friendly so visitors don’t get bogged down in the technology."

The site has been built by Hull company Bluestorm New Media. Your Mail went live on the web as a beta site in mid-December and has undergone extensive development since then, partly following feedback from focus groups of potential users.

Prior to launch it was promoted only through a "coming soon" teaser campaign. Despite this, it launched with 300 registered users and 23 All Yours groups.

The Mail has hired a team of three to work on the site. None are journalists – their job titles of Content Moderator/Generator reflect their roles ensuring the site’s content is legal and responsible and interacting with users and the wider community to stimulate contributions.

The site also enables advertisers to reach very local audiences at low cost through Community Partner posts. Meehan said: “Our primary focus is on building up the number of users and contributors. That’s a massive challenge. We really don’t know how enthusiastic people will be about communicating through a site like this, but we believe we have created a platform that is easy for them to use with some excellent interactive features.

“We believe there is also significant potential to attract revenues by offering local businesses affordable, targeted advertising."

Your Mail is the latest innovation from Mail News & Media, which publishes the Hull Daily Mail. In November 2005 it became the first regional publisher to produce daily video reports. The Hull team’s video journalism work earned the Mail awards for Publishing Innovation of the Year in the 2006 Regional Press Awards and Innovative Newspaper of the Year in the 2007 Newspaper Society Awards.

Last year Mail News & Media launched a comprehensive local sports website, sporthull.co.uk, another first for a regional newspaper publisher.

For further information please contact:

John Meehan
Editor, Mail News & Media
Regional Editorial Director, Northcliffe North East
Tel 01482 315350 or email j.meehan@mailnewsmedia.co.uk