Target Live Tweets Fashion, Visual Storytelling Tips, NewsCred Goes Human

The Strategist picks the day’s most relevant and interesting stories about the world of content from around the web. Here’s what you should be reading today:

Target Live Tweets Fashion Event

According to Lisa Lacy of ClickZ, Target promoted its Everyday Collection with a live tweet event on Jan. 24. The collection went live via a tweet-to-runway-show.

The brand said that it was “a runway spectacular inspired by everyday tweets.” Twitter users who RSVPed and whose tweets appeared in the show will receive $20 Target gift cards. The campaign also includes TV spots and YouTube videos.

Visual Storytelling and Engagement

Jason Cormier of Search Engine Watch writes about visual storytelling and what marketers can put in videos to keep viewers engaged.

In a video, the character must overcome a monster (or challenge), go on a quest and succeed, take a voyage and return, be reborn, go from rags to riches, go through something tragic, or go through something funny.

The character should be relatable to the audience, have ambition and “points of tension,” and go through conflict and resolution.

NewsCred Goes Human

According to Paid Content, NewsCred, which was using automation tools to curate stories for clients, is now giving clients the option of paying for people to do it instead.

Eight journalists from publishers like Slate and the New York Times will be on the team.

Jeff John Roberts writes, “The idea here is that clients who buy access to NewsCred’s fire hose of news stories can now have a personal editor who has real-life newsroom judgment — such as what type of story should be at the top of a page and for how long.”

Luminate and Getty Team Up

The New York Times reports that Getty is forming a partnership with Luminate to provide for a more user-friendly photo viewing experience.

While Getty offers some metadata on its photos, Luminate is going to put in additional metadata including Twitter feeds, web sites, and related articles about photo subjects.

“If there was a story about a celebrity, wouldn’t it be nice to pivot that audience to an entertainment gallery on a related site?,” said Chas Edwards, the chief revenue officer and head of publisher development at Luminate. Brands already using the company’s technology include Best Buy, McDonald’s, Garnier, and Samsung.

Picking What to Write About

The Renegade Writer reports on whether or not it’s feasible for writers to work on pieces focusing on what they love. Unfortunately, if writers aren’t interested in health, technology, business, or other in-demand topics, it will be a difficult journey. However, it can be done.

Writers need to find publications that cover subjects they’re interested in and pitch accordingly. Freelancers should be curious about every topic, however.

“If your goal is to make a living through freelance writing and you’re doing a lot of marketing, it’s a certainty that one day you’ll be presented with an assignment on a topic you don’t love
. If you can become interested in that idea, then yes — you’re earning a living writing only about what you’re interested in.”

How Writers Can Use Downtime

Another gem from The Renegade Writer’s Lisa Evans: The blogger outlines what writers should be doing during their downtime to keep up their freelancing businesses.

They can research editorial calendars and plan out stories, start personal blogs or websites, produce a marketing plan and set sales goals, or sign up for online courses to expand their expertise. Writers should look at new markets, go to informational interviews with other writers, and do work for online markets.

Tumblr’s New Design

On Thursday, Tumblr unveiled its new Dashboard design. 

Multiple blog users can manage all the accounts now from the dashboard, and next to the “create post” widget, “a dropdown menu allows users to choose between publishing immediately, preview, adding to queue and saving as draft.”

Before uploading a video, users can now play the clip in the dashboard. The company is aiming to make the Dashboard “a smaller and more streamlined experience.”