Making a living from hyperlocal content in Seattle
If you live in West Seattle, a neighborhood just southwest of downtown Seattle, and you’ve lost your dog or are curious about the wail of a police siren, there is only one place to go: the West Seattle Blog (WSB).
Residents know that within minutes of any significant event happening in the area, they’ll be able to get breaking news as it unfolds on the blog – day or night. They’re also be able to find out about restaurants opening and closing, traffic conditions on the West Seattle Bridge (the only way in and out of the neighborhood, for many residents) and who are the best roofers in the area.
Launched in 2005 as the personal blog of editor Tracy Record, WSB attracts weekly visits from more than 35,000 homes and businesses including more than 10,000 who visit daily. Thanks to strong support from readers and advertisers, by 2008, Record was able to convert her hobby into a family business. She quit her job to edit WSB full-time and her husband Patrick Sand joined her to take on ad sales. This bold move by the husband-and-wife team made WSB the first financially self-sustaining local online news organization in the Seattle area. Advertising revenue generated from almost 100 local sponsors is the sole source of income for their three-person household and also covers business expenses, including paid freelance journalists, photographers, and developers.
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