DAYTONA BEACH -- We have been busy the last few days working on a marketing and advertising campaign that we are confident will propel this 24/7 internet newspaper forward as we cross the threshold of five years of public service to the people of greater Daytona Beach and well beyond the borders of Volusia County and Central Florida.
It is our goal to have this project completed in the next 36 hours so we can put more focus back on the news. Our reality, though, is that without advertising, we can't report the news. It's very difficult in this economy for small business owners to part with money. We understand that. But an effective way to make money is to get the word out. And internet advertising reaches a far greater audience than perhaps realized.
With all that is going on locally, across the state, the nation and around the world, there's no better medium than the internet and the delivery of news and information, including advertising and marketing
We have a set plan for promoting our fifth anniversary, as a way to celebrate our April 7, 2008, launch:
# Countdown of the "Top 100 Newsmakers" across Volusia County. A mini-profile story of each individual and why they are in the rankings. The order is subjective, based primarily on news judgment and public feedback. Yes, there will be some of the usual suspects, but there will be quite a few surprises. In the end, though, it should be pretty clear how and why they stack up the way they do. Can you guess who is No. 1?
# Countdown of the Top 500 Stories of thew previous five years. For those who have been with us from the very beginning, this should bring back some memories. For those of you who are discovering us for the first time, this gives you an opportunity to see the depth of our reporting and multi-media presentation with stories, blogs, images and videos. Can you begin to imagine what the No. 1 story could be?
# The showcasing of five outstanding individuals and five businesses that have and continue to make a difference in the lives of those who live, work and play in Volusia County.
# As a permanent feature, we'll have a look back at a key date or time as in 5 years ago, 3 years ago and 1 year ago.
And yes, we will continue pushing hard on our investigative reports for "Show Me the Money" for municipalities and county government pertaining to how our tax dollars are spent. And we will dig deeper into public safety with our investigative reports: "How Safe Are We?"
We also will continue with our two online video shows, "The Sunday Conversation" and "The Roundtable" as well as other political features such as "Making the Grade," "Party Lines" and "Word on the Street."
We will continue to push our aggressive brand of award-winning journalism as best we can with the precious few resources we can attain. We hold no shame in our conservative values and contempt for big and intrusive government. We are comforted by our faith and by the belief that what we are doing is beneficial to those around us and the greater good.
Such a path is presented in II Corinthians 9:8: What is my reward then? Verily that, when I preach the gospel, I may make the gospel of Christ without charge, that I abuse not my power in the gospel.
God always provides for us what we need to do our best work. When you trust in the Lord, you are empowered to get to the next step, level or task at hand. A little can go a log way when you believe. We believe and will continue moving forward.