Contributing to the kbb Website

Some rights reserved by pingnews.com

… but (and you guessed there was a ‘but’ didn’t you?), there are a few points we would like to make, not the least because it is the editor who goes to jail in cases of libel.

If you have not written for the website before, or you are not generally considered as a “recognised expert” in the KBB industry, you must submit, in the first instance, a summary, or outline of the proposed article, on the basis of which I can decide whether or not it will be of interest to the readers.

This avoids unnecessary effort and time wasting on behalf of the author, should the proposal be turned down.

We do reserve the right to decide not to publish texts that were originally accepted on the basis of the synopsis, if the full draft does not adhere to that synopsis, or fails to sufficiently live up to it.

A few basics

Published articles tend to be around 500 – 800 words in length with a title that reflects the direction and subject matter of the text. Text must be supplied in electronic format, i.e. sent via e-mail. We can accept Microsoft Word and Text Only files but anything else will only confuse me and the other worker bees.

Relevant diagrams, drawings, charts, or photographs, together with captions, should accompany the article. Make sure these are supplied in a format that makes publishing them on a website possible without us having to crank up Photoshop. This means supplying the illustrations as JPEG or GIF files that have a resolution of 72dpi and a maximum width of 600 pixels.

A short ‘About the author’ paragraph should also be supplied, giving details of relevant qualifications, membership of professional organisations, vocational experience, etc., and don’t forget to include the URL of your own website

Content

We’re happy to republish a feature that has already been published elsewhere although we do give priority to new material, especially industry comments. We’d rather be told the article had been published previously when it is submitted so that we can tell people where to find the original.

Product manufacturers, service suppliers and PR/marketing agents should be aware that advertisements or product plugs thinly (or even thickly) disguised as articles will be not be used as features or comments – play the game chaps!

But if your company/client is in a position to write knowledgeably about a KBB issue owing to their experience in the market, then that’s all fine and dandy – and a market perspective is a welcome alternative – but the opportunity to increase knowledge, share experiences and further best practice should not be abused. Please.

Copy and any illustrations should be sent by email to our editor Grahame Morrison at grahame.morrison@ubm.com, and we look forward to receiving your contribution.