Dr. Michelle Ferrier presented LocallyGrownNews.com, a hyperlocal online community platform for women entrepreneurs at the New Media Women Entrepreneurs Summit in Washington, DC on Monday, November 8, 2010. She explained the cooperative model used to share content, technology, marketing and other resources to recreate sustainable journaiism enterprises in communities nationwide.

1. Locally Grown News.com
Connecting consumers to their food and their communities
Michelle Ferrier, Proprietor

2. Locavore:
Eating Local Foods
 “Better food – more local,
more healthy, more
sensible – is a powerful
new topic of the American
conversation.
[--”Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of
Food Life,” by Barbara Kingsolver]

4.  Shifting the civic dialogue from the town center
to the kitchen table.
 Building relationships between neighbors.
 Shaping agendas for dialogue and action in
communities.
Building
Social Capital

5.  Online community website lets members
share stories, photos and events around
local food, local products, sustainability
and community...Local First!
Creating Local
Community

6. LocallyGrownNews
Franchise Offers:
 Content niche around local first initiatives.
 Shared content and advertising network.
 Shared marketing/design/promotion support.
 Robust content management system with support.
 Dedicated team of women supporting each other.

9. Version 2.0

10. Version 3.0
•Geolocation tools for all
content
•Addition of “Rate This”
feature
•Content types such as
Video, Marketplace
Directory

11. Version 3.0

12. Key Elements
 Content: Compelling content that drives passion
 Architecture: Robust content management system
versus blog platform
 Functions: User-generated content and social media
features.
 Engagement: Being in/of the community; helping to
reflect that community to itself; participant observer.

13. Engagement
May 1, 2010 to July 31, 2010
Aug. 1, 2010 to Oct. 31, 2010

14. Future Growth
Geographic growth
along I-40 and I-85
corridor.
New franchises in
Florida coming on
board 1st Quarter
2011.
Print/mobile vehicles
launched
in 2011.
New revenue
streams in
merchandise offered
2011.

15. ISO:
New Proprietors
 Michelle Ferrier, Founder, LocallyGrownNews.com
info@locallygrownnews.com; Twitter: localize_nc;
 Women passionate about their communities
 Interested in growing your own business
 Desiring collaborative, supportive network