BRAND STRATEGY OVERVIEW: KICKER a Digital Media Start Up

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DIGITAL MEDIA START UP: BRAND EXPERIENCE ONBOARDING

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Kicker is a newsfeed for people who
don’t find traditional news engaging.
Our product targets a younger audience & is comprised of a website,
a daily email newsletter & 6 social media platforms including:

Facebook,Twitter,Tumblr, Instagram, Pinterest & Snapchat.

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In the journalism world...
Every writer knows the word ‘Kicker’.

Kicker is the punchy last sentence of an article.
a good Lead invites you to the party, and a good
Kicker makes you wish you could stay longer.‘

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This guide is designed to bring Kicker into view, clarifying its: mission,
audience, differentiation, voice & aspirations for those new to the Brand.
WHY?
WHAT?
WHO?
...does Kicker exist
...does Kicker stand for
...does Kicker attract

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We make it easy & fun to be in the
know.
Why is that so important to us? We
want to live in a world where every-
one is confident enough to discuss
matters with others, make informed
decisions toward developing an opin-
ion based on facts, and view being
informed as a welcome part of their
lives.
We present the news with unbiased
integrity and with context to pro-
mote clearer understanding.
We believe knowledge does really
equal power so we include referenc-
es, relevant insights or explanations
[like Wiki], embedded right there
in the content to help you gain the
backstory & keep reading on. For us
the news is cool if you understand
We don’t dumb down news plus we
show you how you can get involved.
We hate salacious-schlok media to
fill the void and when people claim
they’re doing something different &
their not. We also hate when people
say news is boring! Because it’s just
so damn provocative, horrible, hilar-
ious and exciting out there everyday.
WHAT? WHO?WHY?
Kicker tells you the news
like your best
friend would.
Unbiased
news explained.
Understand
the main things well,rather
than all of them sort of.

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Kicker is a news source company committed to bringing our readers
a digestible, unbiased snapshot of what today looks like in the world.
TRUST
MISSION
VALUES
Integrity
Curated Content & Comprehension is King
Unbiased trumps Likes
Truth trumps Click Bait
Knowledge = Power
Everyone has the Right to Know
To empower young people to change
the world by helping them become
more informed & engaged.

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OUR READERS
At 83 million strong with
$180b buying power,
Millennials are a recog-
nizeable force in today’s
marketplace.
They matter. They matter to their
local, national & global econo-
my plus they want to know what
matters to them, just so long as it
doesn’t take too much time to dis-
cover.
Our readers seek fair, balanced
news with contextual information
that traditional news stories aren’t
designed to carry so that they have
a foundational, historical & holistic
understanding of the topic & its
relevancy.
Keep reading to discover more
about the particulars of those that
identify Kicker as their ‘explain-
er news’ platform of choice, cur-
renty boasting an audience that
is 66.34% Millennial, according to
Google Analytics, & in the running
against 5 other major startups.
An additional survey of their inter-
ests & insights is also included at
the very end.
#MyKick

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OUR TEAM
Kicker is a community of
professional journalists
& campus ambassadors.
We’re committed in vision to hon-
est, unbiased reporting of the news.
We’re inspired to speak to Millen-
nials & people of all generations,
that appreciate an alternative way
of keeping pace with what’s hap-
pening in the world everyday.
Meaningful & fun ways to discov-
er, understand & learn more about
world events, the latest invention
or scientific break through, peo-
ple, places or just curious things
worthy of being aware of, is what
keeps us up at night plus out of
bed in the morning.
And keeping our readers informed
on how to get involved with some-
thing they learned about or even
be inspired to take action is some-
thing we view going hand in hand
with all that we do.

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knowing where to turn to
get involved
context
Our goal is to curate
elements of existing
news sources plus oth-
er organizations
and roll them into
a one stop platform
that people will love.
trusted, unbiased, reliable
pushing hard news and
having fun too!
bite size hard news issues
with other sticky stuff

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I didn’t leave a New York Times
job to fail --it’s not a whim.
Kicker is a vision I’m truly
passionate about and fully com-
mitted to. And I have the editori-
al, production, social media and
management skills to do it.
We’ve already grown from
4,505 visits in month one to
24,582 visits in month four
with total uniques to date at
33,066 and 71,107 pageviews
–all without any PR or market-
ing. Kicker is already
organically scaling.
--Holly
Holly Epstein Ojalvo
launched Kicker in Septem-
ber 2012 with the aim of making
news accessible & interesting for
high school to college age students,
bringing together her two clear
passions: education & journalism.
After recieving her Masters of Ed-
ucation at NYU, & teaching high
school English for five years in the
public school system, she served
as Editor of The New York Times
Learning Network blog.
She then moved on to become
Senior Director of Digital Content,
at USA TODAY, & Editorial Director
of USA TODAY College.
She connects with 2K followers on
Medium & 8K folowers on Twitter
plus enjoys being an active part of
her Brooklyn community with hus-
band & daughter.
OUR FOUNDER
‘

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Overview
Kicker, is a one-year-old online news site dedicated to empowering young people with knowl-
edge about the world & the first-ever website to provide action items with
every news story.
Bootstrapping is thus far its sole means of finance provided by the Founder, Holly Epstein
Ojalvo, who seeks an alternative to typical ad sponsorship.
In addition, although Kicker enjoys zealous fans and loyal employees user
acquisition has been slow -largely word of mouth and organic social media- due to a lack of
funding.
In early 2014, analytics indicate 80,000 unique viewers with an average of 2 page views/visit
by an audience that is 66% Millennial [18-34ys].
In addition, Kicker receives letters from core users exclaiming Kicker’s unique virtues on a
regular basis; however, email sign ups on the main website and social media ‘likes’ remain
low, with Facebook at less than 10,000.
There are many more using Kicker
than showing up as Kicker users.
CURRENT STATUS
sign ups
invisible users

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Digital Business Strategy
Product/Service
The primary Kicker Product is a Digital Media Service
delivered via an easy, fun user experience with a few sur-
prises. Optimization of the platform to grow engagement/
acquire users is primary to its success. [search, interface,
metrics, data collection, etc.]
Model
Kicker is a Digital Explainer News Source targeting
young adults 14-24 yrs, whose mission is to help keep
them informed about the top stories of the day, every-
day. Less focused on breaking news, it focuses on the big
world issues and events [slower news] along with con-
text, explanation and backstory regarding why they mat-
ter to this audience. Kicker also features formats such as
Quizzy [infotainment],Take Action [how to get involved
in a particular issue] & My Kick [user video posts].
Competitors
Kicker is one of many competing to become the ‘go-to’
news source for this diverse segment that finds tradition-
al news un-engaging or unclear, and with the smallest
following vs simialr platforms like:Vox,The Skimm, Circa,
Elite Daily, Ryot, MTVact, more.
Funding
The only funding model in place is Founder Bootstrap-
ping. Most competitors are relying on seed funding or
sponsorship/ad model.The Founder is eager to explore
non-ad model alternatives.
Users
Analytics reveal 66% of Kicker’s audience are Millennials.
Kicker has 1,312 enewsletter sign ups; however, this small
following is highly enthusiastic, loyal and motivated to
advocate for the brand. It is also supported by a similarly
small, motivated and loyal group of young journalists. It
is worth noting that readership appreciates the fact that
there is no advertising. -largely word of mouth and
organic social media
Founder
Holly Epstein Ojalvo was a NewYork Times blog editor
and an award-winning high school teacher and student
newspaper adviser with a wide spread professional net-
work including many prestigious contacts who hold her
in high esteem in her industries of both Journalism and
Education. She has 6,500 Twitter followers & 800 Friends
on Facebook. Holly also posts blogs/articles regularly on
3rd Party sites.
Goals/Strategy
There are currently no formal goals set with the excep-
tion of the Founder’s desire to ‘blow up’ enrolling huge
readership and to avoid advertising as a funding model.
There are also few metrics or KPI’s set in order to clarify
next steps for Growing Readership or Exploring Spon-
sorships/Grant Funding, etc.
CURRENT STATUS
millennial
14-24yrs
seeks
sponsorship

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Digital Marketing Strategy
Omni-Channel Publishing Approach
Currently Kicker has an extensive Digital Footprint and is
regularly active on it but without definitive goals or any
formal comprehensive strategy.
The touchpoint ecosystem is comprised of a:
Website
The website has just undergone a refresh to:
1] Enhance the User Experience
To promote quick read navigation, the website’s Top Tabs
are now color coded signifying the following primary
Content Categories: Day in 10, Big Story, Quizzy, My Kick
To promote user’s ability to take action/get involved,
the website features a clickable button [world icon] that
takes them to a an outside organization resource.
2] Enhance Content Sharing
To promote specific article sharing, social media buttons
have been added adjacent to featured articles.
To promote Kicker content sharing in general, social me-
dia buttons have been moved to top of homepage from
the very bottom.
3] Enhance Search Optimization
To promote finding Kicker, the website back end has
been updated: keyword validation, competitive analysis,
on/off-page, etc.
The look/feel of the website skews more femaile than male.
User Aquisition
Kicker’s website analytics indicate 80,000 unique
viewers with an average of 2 page views/visit
by an audience that is 66% Millennial [18-34ys].
However, email sign ups on the site and social me-
dia ‘likes’ remain low, with Facebook at less than
10,000. In addition, Kicker receives letters from core us-
ers exclaiming Kicker’s unique virtues on a regular basis.
There are many more using Kicker than showing up as
Kicker users.
Enewsletter
Kicker’s inbound weekly news update typically features
4 links that take users to its website. Most direct competi-
tors also have a weekly newsletter.
Social Media Platforms
Kicker has the lowest number of Likes/Followers on Face-
book/Twitter of all its direct competitors.
Facebook > 8,961 Likes/8,738 Followers/2-3 posts daily
Twitter > 1,754 Followers/2,533 Likes/1 post daily
Instagram > 201 Followers/1 post daily
Tumblr
Snapchat
Pinterest
3rd Party Media Link Backs
Holly, the Founder’s personal blog entries is a dedicated
page on the Kicker website. She also posts guest blog
entries on high-traffic sites representing various industry
concerns with variable audiences, as well as showing up
through interviews in which she is either the interviewer
or the interviewee.
CURRENT STATUS
UPDATED
viewers
social
platforms
no KPIs
few
sign
ups

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Offline Marketing Strategy
Kicker Ambassador Program
Kicker is represented by a network of college students
across 12 university campuses located mostly in the
Northeast region.
The ambassadors are Kicker loyalists and advocates that
are screened as carefully as possible. An application
form is required, including the request regarding Why?
they want to be an active part of Kicker, along with a vid-
eo chat interview.
At present there are very few formalized objectives in
place to guide this network in their pursuit to spread the
Kicker word, such as: goals, KPIs, rewards program, etc.
In addition, low bandwidth in the HQ org mitigates its
ability to maintain continuity with each rep, like gaining
feedback of any kind, around their engagement initai-
tives, or impressions regarding the Kicker product and
brand.
Lastly, brand materials have yet to be generated to sup-
port their efforts --not even the most basic like: flyers,
postcards, stickers, promo give-aways, etc.
CURRENT STATUS
77% female reps
follow thru
no goals set

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Content Strategy
Audit
A brief, cursory audit reveals inconsistencies in messag-
ing plus missed opportunities for integrating new graph-
ic look/feel of website into the omni-channel presence
Kicker has established.
Visual Brand Personality
Kicker’s visual branding is inconsistently presented
throughout all its communications.The blue/black logo
usually appears on a white square field and although
highly visible, appears unsophisticated, crudely incorpo-
rated. In general, missed opportunities to extend a sense
of personality due to lack of additional icons, pattern,
texture, etc.
UX
The recent website refresh focused on enhancing search,
navigation, sharing and engagement. Beyond attention
to SEO, the site now features many multi-media formats
bringing an enhanced, dynamic sense of context and rel-
evancy to its audience including: embedded tweets, gifs
and videos.These along with interactive quizzes make it
infotainment rich, again with appeal to a younger audi-
ence.
Information Architecture
In the recent website format refresh,Kicker settled into
presenting 4 primary,color coded features:Big Story,Day
in 10,Quizzy,My Kick.Each are featured as top level
tabs/color field which same color tab indicated on the cor-
responding content block further down on the homepage.
Voice-Tone
Kicker’s editorial voice-tone is very young, and its brand
voice-tone and very wordy. It comes across more female
than male.
Marketiug
Kicker currently utilizes an editorial calendar outlining a
regular and consistent posting schedule of specified con-
tent types for each day and time of day.
Content Types include:
-posts/link backs directly from the 4 primary website
content features:

-Big Story [top story of the day]
-Day in 10 [10 things you need to know today]
-Quizzy [infotainment/Who said what?]
-My Kick [user generated video paost]
-curated news articles, events, conferences from affinity
content features:
Facebook Ads have never been created or tested.
Other than clickable links featured on these six platforms
that take ‘leads’ to the Kicker website homepage, a land-
ing page specific to enewsletter sign up has not been
created.
One of leadership’s goals is to maintain a sense of GEN-
DER NEUTRALITY to content.
CURRENT STATUS
features
4 main
weak branding
low share rate

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Kicker User
Initial analytics review of the Kicker website and social
media channels reveal significant activity by:
Users age 14-34 yrs old, with 72%
female regarding Facebook Likes.
The Founder believes there is clarity around the User and
is designing the platform for teens and young adults 14-
24 years old.
Regarding both genders, the Kicker user generally shows
up as innately sophisticated, socially conscious and seek-
ing to be informed. No other information has been for-
mally documented to characterize an Ideal Kicker Cus-
tomer Profile.
Holly regularly receives letters from Kicker fans, mostly
female, but some male regarding their overt enthusiasm
about the platform.
The Founder’s aim is to create/offer a
gender neutral platform.
Kicker Org
News 101, LLC was formed in 2012 to develop Kicker.
Beyond the Founder, Holly Epstein Ojalvo, core Kicker
supporters include:
-7 to 10 journalists [unpaid]
-one administrative assistant [unpaid]
-a network of Kicker Campus Correspondents
across 12 University US campuses mostly in
the northeast region [unpaid]
Strategic advisers include two business consultants: Dora
Chomiak, a Columbia MBA, and Kathryn Kercher, plus
informal advisers on project management, user expe-
rience and design, audience development and content
development. Legal support is provided by Brooklyn Law
School’s BLIP Clinic, which advises start-ups in media and
technology.
Kicker is currently in private alpha mode, developing a
core team, with plans to begin a friends and family round
of funding to launch a public beta version.
CURRENT STATUS
employees
72%female

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The Problem Kicker is Solving
Young people see news sporadically –mostly on
social networks– but not in a dedicated way.
Why don’t more young people follow
news closely?
Three reasons, studies show:
1] Bewilderment/Confusion feeling overwhelmed
by too many sources, too many stories and without back-
ground knowledge or context
2] Boredom/Disconnect news stories don’t speak
their language nor presented in a compelling way and
not delivered on the platforms they frequent
3] Helplessness they want to take action after hearing
news but don’t know how
News products aimed at this market consist most-
ly of curricular supplements or of young-writer
commentary, which fail to solve these problems.
At the same time, Millennials enjoy finding com-
pelling content online and acting upon it. Yet calls
to social action are often disconnected from real
world events– a missed opportunity.
The Problems Kicker is Having
As a media enterprise, Kicker currently has two
main challenges:
- lack of proper funding model
[Founder seeking alternative to ad-based model]

- low readership/invisible users
[sign ups/likes/content shares]
- user sign ups mostly female
- low number of Likes/Shares
Presently, Kicker does not embrace advertisers,
nor does it actively pursue outside donations.
Leadership has been reticent to adopt an adver-
tising model or too time-starved to pursue other
funding options. Financial sustainability is Job 1.
In addition, Kicker’s ‘visible’ audience, although
extremely enthusiastic is not increasing at an ad-
equate rate to sustain the enterprise long term, as
evaluated from its analytics.
Lastly, recent website programming tweaks have
been employed to improve and enhance the user
experience, content share-ability plus SEO.These
require testing at this time, to validate their effec-
tiveness toward acheiving goals.
THE PROBLEMS
bewildered
segment
invisible
users

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How Might We...?
...achieve financial sustainability using an alternative
model other than advertising?
...enroll more male readers while retaining our female
readers?
...discover who our 80,000 invisible users are?
...discover why they remain invisible?
not liking, sharing or sign up for Kicker content.
...increase brand awareness?
...increase our number of Likes? Shares? Sign Ups?
...increase the number of Universities in our KCC network?
...provide advisory support to our Founder?
...provide operational support to the org for enhancing
effectiveness/efficiency?
PROBLEM FRAMING
*
$$

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RECOMMENDED RESEARCH

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High Level Investigation
An in depth research initiative is required to identify
the scope of contextual and relevant high level inform-
ants regarding Kicker’s quest.
Millennial ‘Explainer’ News is a relatively new catego-
ry with new entrants continuing to emerge.
This research is intended to provide a snapshot view of
the landscape Kicker inhabits plus clarifying insights
that better reveal its current position within that space,
addressing:
- industry
- target market [14-24yr olds]
- Kicker competitors
- the current Kicker presentation
Qualitative Survey:
Audience Deeper Discovery
In order to pull together a holistic solution it’s vital to
discover more about the Kicker User.In general research
is designed to shed light on: why do they prefer Kicker?,
Which Cultural/Emotional Drivers are most prevalent?,
Which Brands/Influencers align with their values?
The first step is to administer an extensive Qualitative
Kicker User Survey designed to gain feedback from 60
Kicker Fans.
This survey is intended to provide clarifying insights
around the User’s impressions of:
- current Kicker brand identity
- Kicker strengths/weaknesses
- Kicker competitors
Plus gain an overall sense of them:
- persona/emotional drivers
- key influencers
- favorite brands
CONTEXT + USER PROFILE

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‘In the ‘new news’
space everyone from
my 13 yr old niece &
40 yr old sister watch
Vice onYouTube.
...a huge challenge to
control the market.
--Lucia Moses/
Digiday
KICKER ORG IDENTITY
There are several identity centric
issues.
The NAME Kicker is not intuitively
associated with news by the av-
erage reader, so although not a
full blown barrier, it also doesn’t
serve as a ‘quick read signifier’ of
the Explainer News Space to attract
potential users either.
TheVISUALidentityofKicker,com-
pared to its competitors skews
much younger in look & feel. Al-
most like a video game vs an en-
cyclopedia. Maybe that’s what’s
attracting so many readers, but
readers that don’t necessrily want
to be identified/associated with
such a ‘kiddie pool’ experience?
The FOUNDER is incredibly pro-
fessionally accomplished & held
in her industry high regard; how-
ever, suffers from lack of expo-
sure & promotion. It is impera-
tive for Holly to present herself
through an entire well-integrated
ecosystem of online touchpoints,
as well as develop a full schedule
of speaking engagements, board
appointments & other opportu-
nities to gain high level relation-
ships & increased press coverage.
KICKER COMPETITORS
With so many currently, & contin-
uing to enter, in the space what is
EVIDENT includes that they skew
a bit toward male vs female gen-
der, as well as younger vs older-
through their identity.
All except Kicker are supported
by an advertising model.
All seem to be experimenting
with formats & featured ele-
ments, with some adding what
they may detect is working for
another competitor as they
evolve.
It would seem that which will de-
termine the winner[s] include:
revenue generating business
model or donor funding, UX/
SEO, building robust eco-system
of touchpoints, identity person-
ality, exposure via peer referral,
social media follower building via
engagement/popular content,
influencer relationship build-
ing, offline strategic partnership
building & press/promotion of
the enterprise plus Holly the
founder.
Obviously, the first to secure the
largest readership has a huge
advantage toward sustainability.
als want their news to be written by
Millennials.’
‘This generation wants real, seri-
ous content,’ he said. ‘They don’t
want everything turned into a
joke, meme or that they have to
go to the kiddie pool to get infor-
mation.’
ThisiswhytheNYTimeshasarel-
atively high readership among
young people, the same people
who are watching cat videos are
also watching ’60 Minutes.’
Data indicates that Millennials do
care about serious news, but the
current sources for that aren’t
digital, aren’t differentiated
enough & aren’t well designed.
MARKET
Millennials, born 1982 -2000, now
number 83.1M & represent more
than one quarter of the nation’s
population, exceeding 75.4M
baby boomers. [US Census Bu-
reau/ June 2014]
Pew Research Center identifies
three different generational age
brackets of younger Americans:
- high schoolers [16-17yrs]
- college-aged [18-24]
- post-college aged [25-29yrs]
A 2013 Pew Research Center sur-
vey of more than 6,000 Americans
indicates:
- Millennials read more books
than the over-30 crowd.
- 61% of Millennials get their news
on Facebook.
- Millennials’ are more likely than
their elders to say that important
information is not available on the
internet.
KICKER ORG GENERAL
Kicker enjoys a seemingly UN-
WAIVERING FOLLOWING of read-
ers & employed journalists willing
to work for low wages because
they believe so strongly in both
the mission & Holly.
Kicker’s leadership [Holly] is com-
mitted & focused on develop-
ing the enterprise. The already
WELL-FORMATTED WEBSITE with
a relatively robust back end will
soon benefit from further up-
grades.
The KICKER AMBASSADORSHIP
PROGRAM has currently launched
on 12 campuses nationwide & the
ability to roll out 12 more chapters
this coming year seems achieva-
ble.
HOLLY IS RETICENT TO EMPLOY
AN ADVERTISING STRATEGY, un-
like all of Kicker’s competitors.
Nor has she pursued donations
or sponsorship, but is now willing
to consider this funding option.
Holly combines two passions:
Journalism + Education. Given the
younger audience pursued, it’s
intuitive to promote her as a for-
mer editor at the New York Times
much more so than as a high
School English Teacher.
INSIGHTS
SELECT FROM MULTIPLE RESEARCH SOURCES
Industry/Market/Kicker Org Overview
INDUSTRY
At the highest level, there’s a
rash of new Millennial Explainer
News startups with traditional
news media sources in hot pur-
suit as well. Many have come
into the space after Kicker.
Even for the big name/well-fund-
ed ones, success in actually
reaching Millennials has been
mixed, at best.
ComScore’s data [July 2014] on
six sites including Kicker, shown
on the next page indicates mar-
ketshare per readership age. Re-
gardless, the implications are big
for marketers spending money
to reach this massive generation.
A post by Lucia Moses on Digiday
reveals:‘Everyonefrommy13yrold
niece & 40yr old sister watch Vice
on YouTube. That’s a huge problem
for someone who used to think they
could control the market.’
David Burstein, the author of
Fast Future: How the Millennial
Generation is Shaping Our World,
said, ‘The mistake some news sites
make is in thinking that Millenni-
All Kicker competitors get seed funding or
have adopted an ad/sponsorship model.
50% of Kicker competitors project a more
masculine or femine identity.
*
*

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INSIGHTS
ComScore.com/July 2014
Competitor Readership Data

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SOCIAL ACTION ORIENTED
- MILLENNIAL TARGET
RYOT
‘Ryot is like us because they pitch
themselves the same way we do (i.e.
as the crossroads of social activism &
online news) .’
‘A sillier version of Kicker but with
better kickers.’
TAKE PART
MTV ACT
FLUFFY CLICK BAIT
BUZZFEED
FUSION
NEED2KNOW
VICE
DIGITAL NEWS FEED
- MILLENNIAL TARGET
KICKER
POLICY MIC
‘PM does what Kicker does but
successful at massive scale. Stuff to
learn from them.’
‘...good content but horrible layout
& I don’t like the fonts...it doesn’t
catch my eye.’
THE SKIMM
‘...dumbs down, logo like it’s for
dizzy females only.’
‘...like us because of the way its articles
are structured.’
‘Bare bones, boring, but very reada-
ble. Kicker’s dumb cousin, but with a
format worth looking at.’
OZY
CIRCA
ELITE DAILY
VOX
TRADITIONAL SOURCES
- GOING DIGITAL
NY TIMES
‘We’re not NYT Lite but we want our
audience to know we seek to set the
bar as high as them & would love
to be considered as unbiased &
truthful as them.’
USA TODAY
CNN
MSNBC
INSIGHTS
SELECT RESPONSES FROM KICKER JOURNALISTS
Competitors
OTHER SOURCES
HUFF POST
MASHABLE
YAHOO!
GOOGLE NEWS
UPWORTHY
TUMBLR
FACEBOOK
THE DAILY SHOW
‘Kicker needs a more definitive per-
sonality. Maybe our aim should be
a little more snarky like Jon Stew-
art...we want to bring veracity, edge
& fun.’
‘We’re not saying
we’re NewYork Times
Lite,
but we want our
audience to know we
seek to set the bar as
high as them.
‘Kicker needs a more defined
personality --maybe a little
snarkier like Jon Stewart.

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continues
COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS
POSITIONING
Little distinction other than more
focus:news vs lifestyle slant

PERSONALITY
Big distinction -most logos/tone
gender neutral with exceptions:
Ryot,Mic > male
The Skimm > female
FUNDING
Vox,Circa,Ozy > big backers/
well funded
AQUISITION
CHANNELS
Primary for competitors still
unknown
eNEWSLETTER
SUBSCRIBERS
Kicker > 500
The Skimm > 500,000
PERSONALITY, FUNDING, ETC.

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COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS
LIKES
re: CONTENT TYPES
FLUFF > 34%
ANALYSIS > 17%
NEWS > 13%
Kicker’s low Likes % is mostly
a function of the low number
of followers compared to
competitors, but som &e in part
to the fact that it posts more
News/Analysis than Fluff.
The Skimm, Elite Daily, Ryot
with highest Post Like %
posting mostly Fluff.
*
*
*
POST PERFORMANCE

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HARD NEWS
SOCIAL ACTIVISM
25-34 yrs
25-34 yrs
25-34 yrs
25-34 yrs
25-34 yrs
18-24 yrs
18-24 yrs
18-24 yrs
18-24 yrs
55-64 yrs
18-34 yrs
*SKEWSFEMALE
SKEWSMALE
FLUFFY CLICKBAIT
Kicker COMPARED
IDENTITY
AGE:skews youngest of
all competitors
GENDER:skews female
even though it claims
‘neutral’
CONTENT
Most similar to Policy Mic
FORMAT
With new multi-media
refresh,we are differenti-
ated & the format skews
toward HS age
*
*
*
CURRENT POSITIONING
25-34 yrs

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Why do you read Kicker?
Why is Kicker different?
Who is the Kicker User? Profile distinctions?
What are 3 attributes or adjectives you
would use to describe Kicker?
Who is Kicker’s competition?
What are key differences between them vs.
Kicker?
What search terms do you use to find news?
Which news platforms do you read besides
Kicker?
What do you think about the Kicker name?
What would you change about Kicker to
make it stronger/stickier?
How did you discover Kicker?
Why is Kicker getting so few ‘Likes’?
What’s your greatest fear? hope? guilty
pleasure?
Top 5 favorites things in the wide world?
What do you like doing with your free time?
Where do you like to hang out?
Top 5 global issues you’re most interested in?
Which do you enjoy most: reading the
news or actively participating in an issue
raised in the news?
Top 5 most influential people in your life?
Top3mostusedonlineshoppingplatforms?
Top 5 websites in any category you fre-
quent the most?
Which social media platforms do you fre-
quent the most?
What else is important for us to know?
Top 10 favorite brands in any category?
Top 5 clothing/accessory brands?
Top 5 fast/casual restaurants?
Top 5 drink brands?
Top 5 car brands?
Top 5 celebrities or well-known people in
any industry are you most influenced by?
Top 5 favorite bands?
Top 5 platforms you listen to music on?
Top 5 music festivals you’re interested in?
USER? USER?USER? State of Mind
Affinities/Brands, etc.
State of Mind
Cultural/Emo Drivers
State of Mind
Kicker Impressions
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH SURVEY SELECT QUESTIONS
WHAT WE ASKED

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WHY is Kicker different?
‘No advertisements!’
‘Gender neutral & not just angling
for clicks.’
‘Easy, interactive, modern...’
‘...love how it correlates to multiple
sources.’
‘...amplifies voices on social media
to whole new level!’
‘Fun to read!’
‘Most news is so dull & presented
as if it has nothing to do with your
actual life...’
‘...engaging but not condescending.’
‘Unique layout...’
‘Not too text heavy- let’s multimedia
tell the story.’
‘Hard news digestibly written.’
‘Great multi-media!’
WHO is Kicker User?
‘On-the-go people who want to stay
informed.’
‘College students who like to cut
past facts & get the real “why” of a
current event.’
‘Millennials.’
‘People overwhelmed by confusing
or loaded headlines.’
‘...from high school age to parents--
those that care about what impacts
Millennials or with no time to read
in-depth articles.’
WHO is the competition?
Vox
Ryot
PolicyMic
The Skimm
OZY
Circa
EliteDaily
conversational, digestible, connect-
ed, unbiased, trustworthy, engag-
ing, easy, multi media, friendly,
intelligent
SEARCH TERMS for news?
news, millennial news, readable
news, listicles, easy news, fun news,
digestible news, todays news, ex-
plainer news, gif news, modern
news, aggregate news
the Kicker NAME?
‘didn’t know it’s a journalism term.’
‘I get it confused with Kickstarter.’
‘...sounds action-oriented.’
‘...sounds action-oriented.’
‘Would make more sense if stories
had more kick.’
‘URL & name don’t match!’
WHAT 3 attributes best
describe Kicker?
WHERE else do you
consume news?
HOW did you discover
Kicker?
HuffPost
Yahoo!
GoogleNews
Refinery29
DailyBeast
Vice
CNN
ESPN
NY Times
BBC
Daily Show
Business Insider
INC.
Fast Co.
Medium
twitter
through a friend
through colleague at my school
paper
word of mouth
USER?State of Mind
Kicker Impressions
SELECT SURVEY RESPONSES
‘The Kicker user is a
college student
who likes to cut past
facts & get the real
‘why’of a
current event.
‘The Kicker user is
from high school
age to parents--
those that care about
what impacts
Millennials or with
no time to read
in-depth articles.
‘I get it confused
with Kickstarter.
RESPONSES

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WHY is Kicker gaining so few ‘Likes’?
‘Readers are not pushed enough by the platform to Like or Share it, content needs to be
shared & these people’s friends need to start using it.’
‘I don’t sign up on news sites, ever. To like a page on Facebook, someone else has to
share it on Facebook & pull me in. Then, when I realize I like the content, I’ll share it.
Maybe promoting posts from time to time would be an effective way to get targeted
likes.’
‘They might not value the news or think it’s useful to them. They also may not under-
stand Kicker’s essence or goal and miss out on a great thing because they’re too indif-
ferent to really explore what the site has to offer.’
‘Probably because most people rarely like or sign up for any organization unless they
use it multiple times every single day.’
HOW to make Kicker stronger?
‘Create content to be more sharable.’ ‘Make URL same as name.’
‘Big Story is way too long...also gifs & images can be over done...makes it lose gravitas plus
looks messy.’
‘More focus on provocative titles plus cut down story size.’
‘More highlighting of ABOUT & TEAM KICKER...if people readily understand who’s behind
Kicker they’ll be more likely to stay!’
‘Really emphasize to go out & make a difference part.’
‘Most young people get their “hard” news reads from traditional sites like CNN, BBC,
AP, etc. They get their “soft” news reads from Buzzfeed, Gawker, Jezebel, etc. Kicker is
straddling the fence. If we want a stronger brand, we need to cultivate an image that
is more clearly one or the other. If we’re going to aggregate news, but market our-
selves as a place people come for a slower take on issues, then we need to write more
about the background of stories.’
‘Cover more issues that aren’t necessarily the top headline of the day, but are important to
young people’s lives.’
‘I think Kicker could tweak its voice slightly so it doesn’t come off like it’s trying too hard.
Kicker is definitely accessible, which I love, but at times I’ve felt like the casual, “young” tone
feels forced. In order to make Kicker truly accessible to the largest group of people possible,
its voice needs to sound more natural/ fluid.’
USER?State of Mind
Kicker Impressions
‘Kicker straddles the
fence.
If you want a
stronger brand then
cultivate an image
that’s clearly more
hard or soft news.

‘Make the URL the
same as the NAME.

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Greatest FEAR?
‘Wasting time.’
‘That people will give up saving the
world...just letting corruption con-
tinue.’
‘...misunderstanding in the small
picture & Loneliness in the big one.’
‘...stuck in a job I hate.’
‘...inability to pursue my dreams
due to financial hardship.’
‘Spilling liquid on my computer.’
Greatest HOPE?
‘To make lasting friendships & pur-
sue a career in writing!’
‘Health, happiness, good friends,
steady job...’
‘...to work on projects I care about.’
‘To stay open-minded & keep learn-
ing new stuff.’
Top 5 favorites THINGS?
‘iphone, Spotify, coffee, guinea pig,
my bed, humor, nature, sweat
pants, sushi, shoes, books, blogs,
Indian restaurant, my car...’
In your FREE TIME?
‘Hang out with friends, clean my
apartment, read.’
‘Surf internet...socialize.’
‘...watch movies & videos.’
‘...walking, climbing, drinking wine.’
Where to HANG OUT?
‘outside’
‘boyfriend’s house’
‘hiking trail’
‘...the library or Barnes & Noble.’
‘...non-hostile environments.’
Top 5 global ISSUES?
‘Environment. Govt. Animal Rights.
Human Rights. Education.’
‘Gender Equality. Marriage Equality.
Minority Rights. Prison reform.’
‘Feminism. Fat positivity. Minority
& Civil Rights. Immigration. LGBT
rights.
‘Internet laws & cyber-security.’
‘Immigration Reform. Environment.
Social & Economic Inequalities.
Education Access. ’
‘Women’s issues. Sustainability.
Food scarcity. Education. Immigra-
tion.’
‘Gay rights. Gender discrimination.
Reproductive rights. Environment.
Poverty.’
Know vs. Act?
70% of respondents said they pre-
ferred reading the news to stay
informed vs. taking action about
something they read.‘
MISSING in your life?
Everyone needs to stop caring
about what everyone else thinks!’
‘Romance.’ ‘A guarantee.’ ‘Travel.’
‘Time for creative endeavors.’
‘...a place for me to vent without
being judged.’
‘Political news that takes a long
term view.’
Most frequented SITES?
Tumblr, Buzzfeed, Facebook, Gmail,
Goodreads, NY Times, Narratively,
Brain Pickings, Gmail, NYT, Kicker,
Tumblr, Longform, Twitter, Linke-
dIn, Fast Company, INC., Business
Insider, Twitter, Facebook, Mash-
able, Vimeo, Short of the Week,
blogs, Instagram, Pinterest, You-
Tube, Medium
Greatest INFLUENCERS?
‘Parents, my brother, friends.’
‘My mentors & idols.’ ‘Books.’
‘Great writers...counter-cultural
activists.’
‘My peers.’ ‘World events.’
What do you STAND FOR?
‘I stand for free speech, open minds
& a safe, healthy environment.’
‘Feminism. Social justice. Critical
thinking.’
‘Being a good friend, good listener.’
‘Self-expression, in any form, an-
ti-bullying & building each other
up, not tearing each other down.’
‘Feminist values. Access to quality edu-
cation. Stopping every once in a while
to smell the roses.’
USER?State of Mind
Cultural/Emo Drivers
70%prefer
KNOWING
- reading the
news to stay
informed
vs.
ACTING
- taking action
about something
they read.
*
DRIVERS
‘Everyone needs to
stop caring about
what everyone else
thinks.
‘My greatest fear
is wasting time.

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Favorite BRANDS?
TECH Apple, Samsung
PERSONAL Dr. Bronners, CVS, Lush,
Burt’s Bees, Sephora, Method
FASHION Urban Outfitters, Chanel,
Dior, Madewell, Burberry, Kate
Spade, GAP, ZARA, Converse, North
Face, Dansko, American Apparel,
Nike, Alex & Ani, UnderArmour,
Brooklyn Industries, ModCloth
DRINK Stumptown Coffee, Ballast
Point, Dr. Pepper, C2O Coconut
Water, Kombucha, Starbucks, ZIMA,
Naked Juice, Starbucks
FOOD DunkinDonuts, Lindt choco-
late, Choward’s Violets, Cliff Bars
ONLINE/MEDIA Amazon, NPR,
Buzzfeed, Reddit, Vice, NY Times
OTHER Barnes & Noble, Tumi, Ikea,
Disney, Skillshare, SkillCrush, REI,
Patagonia, ZipCar, AirBnB
Influential CELEBRITIES?
Miley Cyrus, Anne Hathaway, Lady
Gaga, Emma Stone, Rhianna,
Jennifer Lawrence, Amy Schumer,
Mindy Kaling, Beyonce’, Lena Dun-
ham, Rebel Wilson, Melissa McCar-
thy, Mindy Kaling, Lupita Nyong’o,
Natalie Portman, Cate Blanchett,
Kristen Stewart, Malala Yousafzai
Dylan O’Brien, Louis C.K., Idris Elba,
Mark Ruffalo, Ashton Kutcher, Jay-Z,
Gael Garcia Bernal, Jimmy Fallan
Favorite BANDS?
The Fresh & Only’s, Kurt Vile, Jorge
Ben, Los Destellos, Los Panchos,
Shannon & The Clams, Wild Moth,
Mac Demarco, Jackson Frank,
White Stripes, BB King, Led Zeppe-
lin, Arcade Fire, Of Monsters and
Men, Frightened Rabbit, Belle & Se-
bastian, Beirut, The Scripts, OneRe-
public, Train, Dave Matthews
Band, Brand New, Sleeping with
Sirens, Memphis May Fire, Issues,
Pierce the Veil, Nirvana, Of Mice &
Men, The Icarus Account, One
Direction, One Night Only, Fun,
the Script, Beyonce’, Bon Iver, Aloe
Blacc, Alt-J, London Grammar
HOW do you listen?
in car, in room, YouTube, Spotify,
Pandora, radio
Kicker produced FESTIVAL?
“Kicker Calling” -music & news up-
dates as connecting forces, global
community.’
‘Meme/Internet culture heavy with
politicians hanging out. Activist
groups would serve food & talk to
you about their cause while you ate
your mini-cupcakes. Trendy bands
like Alt-J, Grizzly Bear, Bastille.’
“The KickOff! “-connecting people
with ways to make a difference
on the issues they care about.’
“Discovery” -mostly young speak-
ers, talking about big issues in
the world today, a mix of infor-
mation & call to action.’
“Welcome to the World” --about
broadening one’s mindset. Kicker
is a fantastic onboarding point
for people who don’t generally
read the news but want to be
informed, so the festival could
be about the value of keeping
up with current events because
it helps us become passionate,
global-minded citizens who take
action.’
USER?
State of Mind
Affinities/Brands, etc.
WHAT ELSE should we
know about you?
‘Maybe ask if we were given a
$1million budget to spend on our
own research endeavor, what
would it be? ‘
‘What’s a brand you’ve stuck by for
your entire life and why?’
‘What are 3 things you like & dis-
like about yourself? I like that I am
positive, open minded and deter-
mined to succeed but I do not like
that I am indecisive, a worry wart &
stubborn.’
‘What’s one thing you wish you
could change about your city? I live
in New York & seriously wish the
people were friendlier.’
The scope of brands,
bands and celebrities
cited were extremely
broad.
common attributes:
AUTHENTIC,
REAL
VULNERABLE
&/or CONFIDENT
RELIABLE
CONVENIENT
AFFORDABLE
IRREVERENT
FUN
SURPRISES
*
INFLUENCERS
‘Apple.Burt’s Bees.
Converse.Kate Spade.
Ikea.AirBnB.Disney.
‘Amazon,NPR,
Buzzfeed,Reddit,
Vice,NYTimes.

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INFLUENCER AFFINITY
YouTube Vloggers Music Artists Celebrities

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ORGS/MEDIA AFFINITY
ALLTHEUNIVERSITIES
WITH+SOONWITHKICKER
AMBASSADORPROGRAMS

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‘A content strategy
that increasingly
promotes CURIOSITY
without being click-bait
--like ‘explainer’that
beats the reader to
their innate questions
and in the form of a
question.

KICKER PREFERENCE
Worth noting that over 50% sur-
veyed sighted lack of advertis-
ing as significant regarding their
preferred use of the platform.
This consistent with Millennial’s
need, in general, for clues sup-
porting Trustworthiness.
This aspect is fundamentally dif-
ferent from the range of Kicker
competitors --indicating pursuit
of alternative funding model
could be important. However,
must be resolved quickly or as-
suming a limited temporary ad
model in the interim.
For the most part, Kicker gets
high marks regarding its con-
tent curation, editing and multi-
media integration --for meeting
the audience’s required ‘info-
tainment’ standards.
Kicker was identified as gender
neutral by approximately 25%
of respondents. More investi-
gation would benefit the quest
to discern if this factor has sig-
nificant ‘drag’ on enrolling new
users.
Highest ranking attributes in-
cluded: Fun, Easy, Friendly, In-
telligent. This is excellent!
KICKER PERSONA
The survey reveals a spectrum
of profiles from the very whole-
some, suburban Mid-Westerner
to the metro area LGBT Activist
and equally Urban to Suburban.
Through both survey responses
and a few 1-on-1 interviews it’s
evident the current brand skews
more female and younger.
In addition the profile skews high-
ly ‘conscious-mindful-respon-
sible’, all to say Kicker readers
would seem to be less concerned
about fashion trends or celebrity
scandal and highly perception to
social injustices and environmen-
tal threats.
Interestingly, many of the read-
ers I met not only reflect Holly’s
worldview & values, but her gen-
eral sense of humor as well.
Attheriskofoverlycharacterizing,
there is a recognizable sub-seg-
ment that might identify as ‘nerd’.
COMPETITION
Kicker brand discovery was most
often cited as being through
word of mouth. Certainly a
much deeper look into the pro-
motion of Kicker online should
be investigated to increase ex-
posure & general awareness.
Findings indicate a small sam-
ple survey of non-Kicker Users
could be very helpful in promot-
ing increasingly definitive con-
clusions.
It’s observed that Vox’s Ezra
Klein, is being well promoted as
an influencer, hosting interviews,
speaking on podcasts, posting
frequently on social. Holly should
consider the same, especially un-
derthebannerofformerNYTimes
editor.
KICKER PROBLEMS
The two primary obstacles, as
rated by respondents, were
the fact that content is not be-
ing shared and that the Kicker
name is not consistent with the
URL nor an intuitive bridge to
the offering.
Beyond that were comments re-
garding Kicker ‘straddling the
fence’. Broad industry/compet-
itor research reinforces this per-
spective, indicating lack of clar-
ity around the Kicker’s mission
and positioning. Current per-
ception skews toward it being
too many things at once and left
with a hazy identity. If claiming
to be a ‘hard news’ source that
is digestible, the visual brand
does not effectively support that
key message.If Kicker wants to
stand for ‘anti-click-bait’ news
then it’s format equivocates as
well. More on this in the Recom-
mendations.
Strategy, going forward, must
incorporate a range of effective
ways to promote content shar-
ing to drive awareness/adop-
tion.
And regarding the name/URL
incongruity, strategy should in-
corporate a campaign designed
to unpack the meaning of Kick-
er, as steady drip feed on all so-
cial media channels.
CULTURAL DRIVERS
The Kicker audience, in gener-
al, feels wary and tired of sus-
pect, manipulative messaging/
sponsored ads that engulf them
everyday. They are shrewd and
seek the WHY? and the WHO?
behind everything they spend
time with. And sometimes just
like all of us, they do indulge in
simply eating an entire bag of
potato chips.
The survey reveals many don’t
trust most of what they read
online –that everything is taken
with a grain of salt.
Respondents summarize two
camps in the news source space,
‘hard’ vs. ‘soft’ and maybe even
a third which might be called
‘sponsored gossip’ or ’click
bait’. It’s clear that Kicker read-
ers do sample this range of con-
tent sources from time to time,
but prefer Kicker for when they
really want understanding of a
particular event.
Regarding key influencers, the
strongest seem to be peer-aged
vloggers.
EMOTIONAL DRIVERS
The Kicker audience authenti-
cally feels that they can make
change in the world and that
it’s their responsibility, even
though the majority of respond-
ents indicated they were more
interested in Knowing vs Acting
upon a story.
Perhaps simply knowing that
there is a button to support a
cause is enough, almost acting as
a ‘halo of cred’ in a way reflecting
the person they aspire to be.
They want to make to a differ-
ence and the fear of apathy or
working in a job they don’t be-
lieve in looms large. Framing
content from this perspective
could create increased curiosity.
Perhaps thinking about a con-
tent strategy that beats a read-
er to a natural question they’ll
have.
Regarding the lack of sharing
Kicker content, more question-
ing/observation should be em-
ployed to discern why, including
around any emotional drivers
responsible, such as identity
suggesting ‘too kiddie pool’, etc.
INSIGHTS
SELECT SURVEY INSIGHTS
Kicker Users and More
ACTIONABLE

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KICKER PERSONAS
age14-17
HS COLLEGE
18-24 age

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KICKER PERSONALITY
Both the 1-on-1 interviews and qualita-
tive survey findings,suggest Kicker Users
could be envisioned as a similar collective
to that of the Breakfast Club Archetypes...
less so the John Bender character, [bad
boy]; however, each Kicker fan certainly
has his/her unique personal worldview &
insecurity/vulnerability that could be de-
scribed as some hybrid of the movie char-
acters.
Two key primary Kicker archetypes miss-
ing in the Breakfast Club set are:
Good Girl
motivated more by her worldview
than how the world views her [con
trasted to the popular girl]
Activist
unphased by showing up as differ
ent [contrasted to the outcast girl]
potential Kicker Users
PERSONALITY ARCHETYPES
BAD BOY
GOOD GIRL
JOCK
OUTCAST
ACTIVIST
GEEK
POPULAR GIRL
In Context
It’s difficult to discern the exact attributes that signify the current Kicker Customer from the broader market.
Maybe easier to say what they are NOT: cheaters, bullies, heavy drug users, lazy, disaffected, ignorant, sexist,
racist, close-minded, reckless.
Possible that all these archetypes
use, even prefer Kicker, but we just
don’t know it.Why do they just lurk?
never commit? share? declare?

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KICKER PERSONALITY
The Current Kicker Customer is...
curious about world events or insecure about their lack of knowledge about them. Positive not apathetic.
Generally responsible, motivated academically, to contribute/give back and more pre-occupied with social
consciousness than self-status.
In the movie, the group mutually elected
Brian to write their assigned paper. Why?
because he was not only the smartest &
best writer, but he actually relished the
opportunity: 1] authentically enjoying it
2] being flattered by classmates who oth-
erwise wouldn’t even make eye contact in
the hallway.
Does this shed any light on our INVISIBLE
USERS?
Maybe there’s something about the Kicker
Identity that reads just a little too:
Geek Squad
School House Rock
Kiddie Pool
Imagine if it were the other way around?
The desire of all the personas to show up
as Kicker Users would be much greater.
Or imagine if you solve it by finding this
narrow segment. Are the numbers there?
POPULAR GIRL
ACTIVIST
GEEK
potential Kicker Users vs visible Kicker Users
PERSONALITY ARCHETYPES
BAD BOY
JOCK
OUTCAST
Presents WHOLESOME, IDEALISTIC,
NERDY & motivated by
CURIOSITY, ALTRUSIM or INSECURITY
--or some combination of any of these 3.
GOOD GIRL

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KICKER TARGET
age13-17
HS COLLEGE
18-24 age
The Big Divide...too broad
Although current analytics indicate Kicker enjoys a readership from age 14 to 34 yrs
of age, as a sustainable business model marketing to such a broad spectrum is chal-
lenging and costly. Not to mention that competitors will be carving out positionings
to soon focus more on one vs. the other. No doubt they’re all enjoying Kicker’s Prod-
uct, concise high standards content plus engaging format, but the current Kicker
identity will not win the long term race in holding onto the older segment.
*NOTE: ‘The Friends’ cast is slightly older than college age,
but as a highly recognized representation of ‘young adult’
the hope is they comprise a essence close enough to make
the point.

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RECOMMENDATIONS OVERVIEW
Digital Business Strategy
Deep Competitor Review
~ compile key info on competitors [business model, content
strategy, audience, traffic, funding, owners, branding, etc.]
Revenue Strategy
~ determine optimal strategy, set short/long term goals, KPIs,
potential sponsors/advertisers
Develop Donor/Investor
~ identify donors and most appropriate angel universe for the
short term, set pitch meetings
~ develop Donor/Investor Pitch Presentation
Narrow Target Market
~ focus on 18-24age segment.Youngest age = high school
senior preparing for college, oldest age = college graduate
bachelor’s degree and beyond.
Narrow + Formalize Positioning
~ from competitor, Kicker User and Revenue findings, narrow
Brand Differentiator and Unique Value Proposition.
~ consider new naming more obvious to space
~ consider content format & positioning: greater clarity
around hard vs soft & aggregate vs. long form/back story.,
potentially a far more viable NICHE we can gain traction in
than going head to head with big players:
NewsWiki, News for Dummies, the 21stC Thinking Woman’s
The Skimm & copy what they do for different segment, adopt
side-kick supporting Holly with adjusted voice-tone to help
neutralize female skew of current presentation, etc.-
Evaluate Social Media Platforms
~ Kicker’s target is found on YouTube more than Pinterest plus
YT offers more long term promise to potential sponsors.
Goals/KPIs against Timeline
~ raise $50k seed funding/venture capital
~ raise $10k on crowd funding platform/friends-family
~ approach brand aligned ad sponsors/influencers
~ set a date to initiate employee compensation
~ eye toward smartphone app development.
Digital Mktg Strategy
User Aquisition Strategy: Digital
~ develop strategies, channels, KPIs, budgets starting with HS
seniors [to gain Facebook likes, email subscriptions, web
site traffic,Twitter followers, etc]
Activate YouTube/Drop Pinterest
~ develop YouTube as centralized video content hub/integrat
ed touchpoint for featuring curated video selections, My
Kick videos as submitted by readers,Kicker generated videos,
etc.featuring Kicker within the environment their prime
influencers live.
Website/Social Enhanced Integration
~ develop 3] consistent color coded prototype posts for #Day
in10, #BigStory, #MyKick and #Quizzy to be used on all plat
forms to better integrate with website, enhancing UX/brand
recognition.
UX/SEO Validation
~ test user experience and SEO for new users: 1] signup expe
rience 2] website use 3] mobile use.
Sign Up Landing Pages
~ develop 2-3 unique landing pages based on 4-5 specific
audience profiles.
Online Publications
~ identify best sources for article placement and integrate
with Comms/Content Strategy.Write articles/releases.
Influencers:YT vloggers + Others
~ assemble list of influencers to enroll through a pitch pres
entation. Develop content strategy/write articles/releases.
~ increase shared content rate 20%
~ increase consumer reach 10% within the 18-24 segment
~ increase readership size by 300 new sign ups
~ increase community engagement 15%
~ narrow target profile thru A/B testing
~ increase organic and earned media vs paid
~ increase press mentions > 2/mon
Content Strategy
‘Straddling the Fence’ Format Issue
1] Tweak visual identity/communications tone including logo
to appear more ‘hard’ plus promote Holly as former NY Times
editor. Perhaps more resonant with older and male audience
segment.
2] or leave brand tone/look/feel as-is, and tweak the content
format to more ‘Long Form’, similar to Wiki but obviously more
fun/interesting, toward claiming to be an authentic ‘Slow News’
resource. Also promote Holly as a former NY Times editor.
Communications Development
~ formalize message structure at all funnel levels
~ create downloadable pdf Media Kit
~ develop Wiki posts for both Kicker and Holly
Visual Design
~ tone down the color, especially consider using an all black
logo to present more gender neutral & more palatable to an
older reader
Brand/Founder Awareness Building
~ develop campaigns devoted exclusively to featuring the
Kicker personality, leveraging User/Influencer interviews,
animation, etc.
~ expand ‘About’ section on website to amp up Holly’s es-
teemed profile more as a NYT Editor and not as a Teacher.
Brand Guidelines/Onboarding
~ supports brand integrity thru consistent communications
~ aids swift uptake by employees, consultants, vendors, etc.
Influencers
~ develop on-going slow drip orchestration of engagement,
posts, events
~ increase traffic volume 25%> visits/channel-source
~ increase engagement 15% > pages viewed/session
~ increase content effectiveness 10% > goal/event completion
~ decrease bounce rate 20%
Offline Mktg Strategy
Kicker Ambassadorship Program
~ revise name to Kicker Campus Correspondents
~ identify 12 new University campus contacts to launch
~ create KCC Kit of branded materials to support their efforts
~ develop clear program: goals, KPIs, rewards-based mile
stones
~ develop CTA, social media posts and A/B landing pages to
drive sign ups
User Aquisition: Campus Newspaper
~ develop through campus [HS/College] newspapers, includ
ing link backs to newspapers and writing articles for Kicker.
Enter Competition: StartUp/Entrepreneur
~ enter sponsored event
Kicker Happy Hour
~ plan/execute first one in Brooklyn. Make these monthly
events on Kicker rep’d campuses nationwide.
Establish full speaking schedule for Holly
~ increase ambassador campus network by 12, adding 24 ad
events on Kicker rep’d campuses nationwide.
~ increase earned media, content sharing and target reach by
10%.
Advisory
Kicker Board
~ assemble list of advisors asap to invite to formal funding
pitch/presentation event.
~ develop Advisory Pitch Presentation
~ pitch completion
~ each member with assigned specific goals: strategy/priority
advice per expertise, intro to key contacts for gaining org or
tech support, intro to potential funders/venture capital net
works, etc.
STRATEGIC

annodell.com digital marketing strategy overview

annodell.com
RECOMMENDATIONS DIGITAL BUSINESS STRATEGY
CHOOSE
ONLY
ONE

annodell.com
RECOMMENDATIONS DIGITAL MARKETING STRATEGY

annodell.com
RECOMMENDATIONS IDENTITY
NAME
LOGO
TAGLINE
ICON
Consider a name
change that signals
the space directly.
Consider black &
white logo -projecting
a more masculine/
gender neutral per-
sonality.
Assess/test taglines-
masculine vs femi-
nine. Start out using
both, mix it up. Seek
insights.
Consider a more
integrated sublimi-
nal look/feel to icon
on all comms for
promoting brand
awareness.
Supports gender
neutral positioning
plus greater flexi-
bilty.
‘Your news
your way
everyday.’
‘Kick not knowing the news.’
‘All you need to get up to speed.’
‘Newsworthy is here.’
‘Kick news noise.’
‘Get the news worth knowing.’
‘Your news best
friend.’
‘It’s not news
it’s Life.’
masculine
existing
existing
proposed proposed
proposed
neutral
femine
NEWSWORTHY.US

annodell.com
RECOMMENDATIONS CONTENT STRATEGY

annodell.com
RECOMMENDATIONS CONTENT STRATEGY
Engagement Tactics
- post archival Kicker content when same issue
trends in breaking stories.
- strategy with our own writers:
1] they should regularly reshare their own posts from
our Facebook page to theirs.
2] Facebook blitz -ask them to reshare 1-3 posts/mon,
ones gaining most traction.
- ask fans to post on our Facebook page what
news stories they want explained.
- brainstorm better ‘voicier’ captions which
generally drive higher click rates.
- change our Facebook banner more frequently.
- drive in-person Happy Hr activity into the on
line space.Tweet out trivia questions 2 days
before,then announce right answer and winner
from bar with pix across social platforms. May
be hand out printed cards with famous politi
cians quote and logo. Graphics good enough to
frame! Create signature‘Kicker Kocktail’[blue].
Post fun things about event prior and of course
post during. Everyone that posts with a com-
ment plus photo gets free drink at the next
event.
Themes
- important for Holly, Kicker Founder, to write
her story and get it out there, maybe a link on
Kicker ‘About’ page to 3rd level page that fea
tures it, also driving people to it from her Bio
links at end of articles/blogs she writes, etc.
‘I’m Holly.
I created this site because I really, really love
the news.’
- feature our own writers regularly [to enable
fans to get to know us]
- create original Branded Kicker quote boxes &
infographics to mix in with links to our content.
- create Kicker ‘behind the scenes’ instagram
videos > we call them ‘InstaKicks’.
- create a specific ad campaign targeting re-
cent grads who are looking for jobs.
- create a specific ad campaign targeting re-
cent HS grads seeking colleges.
Post Times
- Fb indicates our fans are online the most be
tween 10am-10pm with peak time around
7pm.This works for us perfectly since the
Day In 10 posts around 5-6:30pm.
General Concepts

annodell.com
User Acquisition Strategy: High School Seniors
With the assumption our focus is on junior/senior high school audience, let’s formalize strategies,
channels and tactics to acquire users [Facebook likes, email subscriptions, website traffic,Twitter
followers].
Recent Efforts
Kicker has recently commenced Facebook advertising with good success achieving excellent
response rates above the industry average [2.2%-3.9%] and is driving ~140 likes/day with a $50
budget at roughly $.40 per like.
Problem Statement
Kicker needs to drive other forms of acquisition such as newsletter subscriptions, website traffic
as well as other social media followers.
Tasks
1] Determine 5 opportunities for driving Facebook likes, newsletter subscriptions and web traffic
for Kicker. At least 2 should be free opportunities, especially given High School market focus for
now. Detail strategies, tactics and budgets as well as other resources needed to execute [recog-
nize tight budget]. 2] Initiate Facebook Ad Strategy with set budget for achieving 5,000 Like plus
5,000 Newsletter Sign Ups on Kicker website in 4 mon time frame.
Hack
Contact High School newspapers or news clubs to use Kicker as a source for news and possibly a
way for high school writers to gain ‘professional’ writing experience.
RECOMMENDATION
HS FOCUS

annodell.com
User Acquisition Opportunities
Collaborations
Description quickly grow user base by collaborating
with orgs, companies or blogs [not competitors] with
similar audience & number of followers.Works to ben-
efit both, by essentially ‘extending’ or ‘sharing’ audi-
ences.
Strategy Incentivizing exchange with a similar org/
company/blog/page, either making a deal to shout-out
the other’s page in a Facebook/Twitter post or even
collaborating on articles [i.e. Kicker publishes an ar-
ticle about a specified charity and in exchange the
charity shares our article with its social network follow-
ers or features a link to it on their website.] Can work
with individual bloggers/YouTubers/Instagrammers as
well --ask them to create or share with their followers a
#MyKick video, or other.
High School students enjoy collaborations as it plays
on the ‘trust’ element of their relationship with the
brand. If they trust a org/comp/blog/page, then any-
thing it suggests they often trust as well.
Budget Free, & also possible to collaborate with page
that has larger following where we ‘do more’ or spon-
sor them in order to make the exchange ‘equal’ [essen-
tially pay for a shoutout/followers.]
Contact HS’s Directly
Description Contact HS year/extra-curricular coordi-
nators or careers depts & through them offer student’s
opps to write for Kicker or integrate it into their school
newspapers.
Also could host essay competitions, winner gets essay
published on Kicker [plus perhaps some other ‘prize’].
Strategy Incentivizing students/HS staff with empha-
sis on CVs/college applications, promoting angle that
students who write for Kicker or enter the essay com-
petition gain distinction.
When emailing, be sure to ‘sell’ Kicker in the email,
including a printable PDF poster, featuring either/both
the Kicker writing opp/essay competition, that teach-
ers or students can post anywhere.
Budget Free, & also possible to collaborate with page
that has larger following where we ‘do more’ or spon-
sor them in order to make the exchange ‘equal’ [essen-
tially pay for a shoutout/followers.]
HS FOCUS
OPPS 1 & 2

annodell.com
Social Networking
Description Promote awareness through social net-
work interaction --as often the only free way for people
to discover a page is when it to pops up in their news
feed. Explore ways to ignite Kicker page interaction on
social sites to promote a ‘chain’/‘viral’ reaction on the
targeted audience’s news feeds.
Strategy 1 Respond to comments, not just on Kick-
er’s page, but on other pages with similar audience
[not competitors]. An effective example: find posts re-
lated to Kicker’s content, scan comments section for
unanswered questions about the post, answer them
including Kicker link at end [i.e.,‘There’s a great post
answering your question in more detail on gokicker.
com’]
Possible platforms to use this technique include Face-
book pages associated with news content [i.e., Am-
nesty International] and websites that contain forums,
such as theStudentRoom.com
Especially on Facebook, when a person’s comment on
a post receives attention [liked or replied to] then it of-
ten pops up in their friend’s news feeds, thus drawing
attention to Kicker from both the people reading the
comments & the friends of the people commenting.
Strategy 2 Another way of attracting people to view a
Facebook page is asking groups of friends for a favor.
Get 3 friends to like Kicker’s Facebook page, creating
a prioritized post on their friend’s news feeds. Coor-
dinate with multiple friends that then like the page at
nearly the same time, promoting Kicker on the radar of
many within a short time period.
Budget Free,great means of building a positive rep-
utation & attracting a lot of attention on Facebook plus
some forum sites.However,seeking a lot of results by
using this method requires effort/time,which is a com-
promise.Convincing multiple friends to like Kicker at
the same time may need to involve an enhanced incen-
tive.
OPP 3

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Influencer Endorsements
Description Kicker sponsors influencers that high
school students follow on social networks, such as
those popular on blogging-style platforms -especially
YouTube vloggers,Tumblr bloggers & Instagrammers
who interact with the targeted audience.
[Note:YouTube vloggers are especially influential]
Strategy Identify/contact popularYouTubers, blog-
gers & Instagrammers directly [via email] to sponsor
them in exchange for ‘shout-out’ or mentioning Kicker
in a post. Offers the advantage of mass-marketing to a
targeted, dedicated audience.
Budget Although costly, possibly cheaper means of
marketing as compared to traditional forms such as
Facebook ads. And more effective because it involves
sponsoring ‘everyday’ individuals who often have little
to no experience in marketing or business. As a gener-
al rule, their number of followers is proportional to the
amount they charge.
WikiHow Page or Forum Post
Description Create a WikiHow page or forum post
on a popular website that links to a Kicker article. If it
is a popular post, it will drive people to Kicker’s web-
site, next the option to sign up newsletter or to like the
Facebook page.
Strategy Explore incentives around content. Example:
create an article such as ‘How to Prepare for Your Col-
lege Interviews in 10 Steps: Step 1] Be up-to-date on
current affairs.’
Or, write the same article on the Kicker website & at
the bottom of the WikiHow post say:‘Sourced from go-
kicker.com - Think news is boring? Think again. It’s not
‘news’ - it’s life! ‘
Budget Free
OPPS 4 & 5

annodell.com
Comms Development
Recent Efforts As a startup,Kicker has created its high
level messaging as needed and,therefore,a bit incon-
sistently.Although a journalistic enterprise at heart,its
communications hierachy as a registered brand/busi-
ness has not been adequately formalized.
Problem Statement Kicker is not gaining the advan-
tage or equity that consistent brand/business communi-
cations promote.As a common best-practice,along with
the need to develop formal pitch decks for pursuing
funding plus advisory members,this exercise is best
completed asap.
Tasks Develop the following with various stakeholder
feedback:
-mission, vision, positioning, value proposition,
taglines, search engine page description, key
search terms, primary #hashtags, short sound
byte blurbs, extended explainer copy, social
media ‘About’ entries, Holly byline, journalist
bylines, competitor positioning, more.
Hack As mentioned, many versions of several of these
message units already exists which will help expedite
the process.
Overall Content Strategy
Recent Efforts Kicker projects a robust communica-
tions presence on all prioritized social platforms: Face-
book,Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest,Tumblr, Snapchat.
With still a small following there’s work to be done.
Problem Statement Kicker is missing:1] adequate
PR/promo articles, about the enterprise and Founder,
in 3rd party large readership platforms such as Fast
Co., USA Today College and even a Wikipedia entry. 2]
content is not being shared on social or website which
impacts exposure/number of Likes/readership 3] no
presence onYouTube which is hugely popular with our
target.4] Perhaps focusing on fewer platforms does
more.
Tasks 1] Identify platforms to feature promo content
plus encourage Holly to post/blog with increased fre-
qency. 2] Increasing shared content requires more dis-
cussion/planning with diverse stakeholders including
Holly,Journalists,Users.Considered these:
- set a goal to achieve 5,000 Facebook Likes in 6mons
- allocate budget to develop Facebook ads to aid in
further narrowing in on our‘core users’utilizing
A/B testing strategies with variable copy or image
use content to increase Likes/Followers
- allocate budget for boosting posts
- develop slightly more‘tanta
lizing’article titles/images
3] Shift focus from Pinterest toYouTube,hugely popular
with our target,to drive as an outpost content hub that
sits smack within the environment of our audience’s pri-
mary Influencers [vloggers].

RECOMMENDATIONS
COMMS+CONTENT

annodell.com
Kicker’s mission is to empower
young people to change the world by
helping them become more informed
and engaged with it just a little more
everyday.
ORG MESSAGING
MISSION

annodell.com
For People who don’t find traditional news satisfying but
want to keep up with what’s going on in the world, Kicker is a daily
published digital news source explaining the top important stories
in a way that fills in why they matter.
Unlike traditional,longform news sources or the superficial,gossipy
click bait sites, Kicker presents what you need to know today in an
engaging multimedia, modern format, with quick read content that
gets you conversation-ready for the day
--plusguidesyoutoresourcesthathelpyoutakeactionifyouseekmore.
ORG MESSAGING
POSITIONING

annodell.com
ORG MESSAGING
The Problem
Millennials are the second-largest generation in American history.
They are interested in the world, they are globally and socially
minded, and they are reachable. But no one is providing them
with news.
For most young people today, news is not a key part of daily life.
This means that millennials are misinformed, media sources are
failing to build a young audience and tomorrow’s active citizens
aren’t being cultivated.
Why don’t more young people follow news closely?
Five reasons, studies show:
1. Bewilderment
–overwhelmed by too many sources and too many stories;
2. Confusion
– lack background knowledge; stories lack context;
3. Boredom
–news stories aren’t presented in a compelling way;
4. Disconnect
–news isn’t consistently presented on the platforms they
frequent and doesn’t speak their language;
5. Helplessness
–often compelled to take action after hearing about some
thing, but they don’t know how.
News products aimed at this market consist mostly of curricular
supplements or of young-writer commentary, which fail to solve
these problems.
At the same time, millennials enjoy finding compelling content
online and acting on it.Yet calls to social action are often discon-
nected from real-world events – a missed opportunity.
The Solution
Kicker targets the 40 million millennials in the United States
who are bright, savvy and interested or “interestible” in current
events but who are largely alienated by mainstream media.
Kicker offers a reinvented, simplified, appealing way of experi-
Kicker is a news source designed to engage millennials in current events.
encing news: in story-explainer hybrids, presented as packages
of text and multimedia, for selected top stories. Each story pack-
age provides key contextual material and ways to take meaning-
ful action. All in a visually engaging, interactive, fresh, accessi-
ble yet sophisticated way.
Market Potential and Revenue Model
Many products and services – food and clothing as well as media
like games, music, movies and shows – are successfully market-
ed to millennials. News is not.We aim to fill that void profitably.
Two market trends overlap to create an opportunity with this au-
dience:
- Vast majority of millennials report being moderately to
extremely interested in current events.
- Young people are now reachable directly via social net
works and other digital platforms, and they increasingly
seek information, entertainment, and activity without the
filters of parents and teachers.
Revenue streams to consider include:
- Advertising: sponsorships, custom publishing/branded
content, and display ads;

- Virtual goods/currency;

- E-commerce: merchandise, partnership/affiliate deals,
teaching and training materials.
Team and Status
News 101, LLC was formed in 2012 to develop Kicker.The found-
er is Holly Epstein Ojalvo, previously a New York Times blog
editor and an award-winning high school teacher and student
newspaper adviser. Strategic advisers are two seasoned business
consultants, Dora Chomiak and Kathryn Kercher.We also have
informal advisers on project management, user experience and
design, audience development and content development. Legal
support is provided by Brooklyn Law School’s BLIP Clinic, which
advises start-ups in media and technology.
Kicker is currently in private alpha mode on WordPress.We are
developing our core team and have plans to begin a friends and
family round of funding to create a public beta.
EXEC SUMMARY

annodell.com
something for everyone/gender, color, age agnostic
clever/smart
unbounded in spirit
engaged
goodwill forward
fun!
activated
ORG MESSAGING
PERSONALITY ATTRIBUTES

annodell.com
other taglines
‘Your news best friend.’
or
‘Kick not knowing the news.’
or
‘It’s not news it’s Life.’
or
‘All you need to get up to speed.’
or
‘The news your way everyday.’
‘Kick news noise.’
ORG MESSAGING
TAGLINES

annodell.com
We’re the only ‘Millennial-Friendly-News-Source’ that combines
everything you’re looking for in one single platform...
...plus we’re always fervently committed to never dumbing down the is-
sues and keeping it interesting along with the backstory so you feel
confident in conversation & in developing your own opinion.
1] curated top daily news stories
2] unbiased reporting
3] multi-media context promoting enhanced understanding
4] where and how to take action
5] fun things like‘Quizy’
6] engaging things like‘My Kick’featuring our reader’s POV
7] a Kicker campus correspondent network
ORG MESSAGING
UNIQUE SELLING PROP

annodell.com
Think news is boring? These posts will
kick news boredom in the...
Sex and GenderAbout Kicker
Big StoryDay in 10
US vs THEM
goKicker.com
Kicker
Keeping it real. Empowering our readers
to change the world...
A community of jounalists and college
campus ambassadors committed...
Kicker is the only daily curated top story digest that explains things like your
best friend would. Unbiased, multi-media & addic
-News explained like your BFF
ting. It’s not ‘news’ it’s Life.
The news you need to get up to speed.
If you don’t read anything else today...
Just read this to join today’s convo with
confidence...
My KickTeam Kicker
Our readers talk. They also ROCK!
Check out these up close, candid...
SEARCH BLURB

annodell.com
Kicker | the News. Briefly. Explained.
goKicker.com/
Kicker reveals everyday how today’s top ‘news’ is life. We tell you like you’re human, with
story background and references so you don’t need Wikipedia to understand!
Kicker | kick the habit of not knowing!
goKicker.com/
Kicker insures you’re laughing at The Daily Show, not clueless. Laugh more. Read Kick-
er-your top story insight on the world. Quick. Easy. Addicting. And often hilarious.
Kicker | Today’s Top Stories. Explained.
goKicker.com/
Kicker is your daily newsmail briefing that gets you up to speed on exactly what you need.
Understand the issues & WHY they matter. A 10 min read gets you in the know all day.
Kicker | It’s not news. It’s life.
goKicker.com/
Kicker empowers you daily with a world events snapshot of why, when, where and how
stuff happens to humans around the world plus why it might matter to you.
Kicker | All you need to know today
goKicker.com/
We care about what’s going on in the world and don’t want to be boring about it. Under-
stand THE most important things well, not everything just a little.
Kicker | What everyone’s talking about or should be
goKicker.com/
Kicker spells out today’s top news stories in plain English so you get it. Don’t be fooled by
the click bait and don’t just skim! Join the conversation with confidence.
OTHER WAYS TO SHOW UP

annodell.com
Think news is boring?
We’re your news best
friend.
News, explained by your smart
poli sci major friend.
Today’s top stories explained.
the news. briefly. explained.
Everyone has knowledge gaps.
Bridge yours here.
Just what you need to get up to
speed.
Feeling overloaded, overwhelmed?
Don’t just be ‘not-dumb’. Be smart!
Digestible, unibiased news
empowering informed
opinions...that do change
the world.
News with training wheels.
Kick the habit of not knowing...
Kick the habit of being clueless
-read Kicker & laugh along with Jon
Stewart tonight.
Kick the habit of…clicking
away, staying in the dark,
being out of the loop, feel-
ing clueless...
Kick boredom
Kick apathy
Kick ignorance
Kick hopelessness
Kick helplessness
What everyone should know + why!
What eveyone’s talking about or would
be if they read the news!
Don’t miss the stuff everyone’s
abuzz about at happy hour tonight.
It’s your Day in 10.
On point and to the point.
Get to the why?
News for curious people on the go.
More satisfying than appetizers,
less heavy than dessert.
News you can relate to.
News for young people of all
generations.
Make up your own mind.
Develop an opinion that really does
matter.
All you need to know
today.
Not overwhelming. Not clickbait.
Underground, secret, undiscovered,
sleeper hit, exclusive, early adopter
stuff...
Kick not knowing the news with
Kicker.
SOUND BYTES
BLURBS

annodell.com
Do you ever feel…?
Overwhelmed by the sheer amount [and speed] of stories and information?
Confused or left out because you don’t always have the background knowledge you need?
Bored with the way news is written?
Like journalists aren’t really talking to you?
Helpless to do anything to make positive change?
If you do, you’re definitely not alone.
And here’s how KICKER helps:
News 101 Here, you can opt out of the crazy news cycle and find out about what’s really important today. You
won’t find breaking news on Kicker. Being first is so over. Instead, we give you story packages that help you under-
stand the most pressing topics of the day.
Access On Kicker you won’t find unexplained references to people, places and ideas that policy nerds know and
love but that might leave you feeling left out. No need to put your fingers in your ears or go searching Google or
Wikipedia. Relax. We’ll just tell you what you need to know. We want to help you feel smart, not stupid.
Engagement At Kicker we aim to tell you who’s who and what’s what in a natural voice that talks to you. We
think that’s way more interesting than big boring blocks of third-person text, don’t you?
Honesty No blaring link-bait headlines that scream at you. We promise to be honest with you about what’s going
on and how important it seems to be. No underselling, no overselling. Baby Bear from the “Goldilocks” is our mas-
cot. (OK, he isn’t really, but he should be.)
Empowerment No matter what it is, there’s always something you can do about it. We’ll tell you how you can
engage in self-improvement, advocacy, awareness-raising, fundraising, volunteering, or maybe just a little bit of fun.
Why ‘Kicker’?
When someone’s telling you a story, the kicker is the gist, the takeaway of the whole thing, the point where the ac-
tion starts. (It’s also, by the way, what journalists call the conclusion section of an article.) We tell you how you can
start taking action. Right now.
It’s Kicker because we’re really psyched to help you take some kind of social action when you get all worked up
about what’s going on in the world. And when you impress your family at the dinner table or that cutie at the gym
with your dazzling knowledge of the latest banking scandal or scientific discovery, we don’t mind if you tell them
about Kicker. You don’t have to, but it would be nice.
EXPLAINER COPY

annodell.com
Kicker is accessible daily news with a mission:
empower young people to change the world by helping them
become more informed & engaged just a little more everyday.
We’re a news source company committed to bringing our readers a
digestible, unbiased snapshot of what today looks like in the world.
You can always expect to learn the ‘kicker’ of the daily top news -which
is why the story matters to it’s stake-holders and the world,plus why that
may mean something to you. No extraneous blah-blah and no sleaze.
And we’ll even point you in the right direction to do something about it
if you’re so inclined.
We’re more interested that you understand the main things well
-than knowing all the things sort of [or even barely].
Our audience is basically,‘The Daily Show’ generation. People who care
about what’s going on in the world and don’t want to be boring about it.
‘
EDITORIAL
EXPLAINER COPY

annodell.com
About
Think news is boring? Think again. It’s not ‘news’ -it’s life!
Mission
We’ll make things easy to understand, but we will always respect your intelligence. We
won’t dumb down or sacrifice clarity for cleverness. And we won’t overwhelm you with
endless links and streams that make you worry about missing out or entice you with
overpromised, underdelivered clickbait or drown you in trivial details.
What We Believe
That it’s important and good and useful to know what’s happening in the world.
That everyone has knowledge gaps, and it should be easy and shame-free to fill them.
That ‘news’ shouldn’t consist of boring blocks of wonky minutiae or partisan political
pundits verbally punching each other.
That being in the know usually means going a little bit beyond a skimming, breezy,
snarky, superficial sound bite.
Sure, there are lots of new newsy sites and apps and newsletters out there. Some explain
the news. Some make the news fun and engaging. Some give you a rundown of the top
stories. Some give you ways to take action. Some appeal to millennials. Think of Kicker as
an amazing mashup of these: We explain top stories in a super helpful, super engaging,
super empowering way.
Description
Kicker is for getting up to speed, really easily and quickly, on what’s happening in the
world and discovering how you can take action.
ABOUT BLURB

annodell.com

UX, UI + SEO Validation
Recent Efforts Kicker has just completed significant
front plus backend revisions based on previous user
feedback plus programmer consulting recommenda-
tions,all designed to enhance navigation plus search.
Main front end revisions include:color coded content tabs
and social share buttons specific to each main article.
Problem Statement Kicker needs to test both UX and
SEO to validate or further revise,toward gaining maxi-
mum return on its investment in this work.Also,as a fast
paced startup,supporting employees/consultants with
standards makes it vital to formalize the Kicker UX/UI
Graphic Kit of Parts in a digital format to maintain brand
integrity through a consistent visual identity.
Tasks 1] Identify 12-30+ users and gain feedback
around navigation,overall formating,new intro of color
coded tabs/content,ease of sharing content,clarity of
content and new features like Quizy and My Kick.Ideal
if the group is comprised across diverse locations.
2] In addition,ask the same group to clear cache/or
approach incognito to test ease of Kicker discovery
through typical search methods.
3] Create‘at-a-glance’KickerVisualVocabulary Guide-
line for use in all communications:print,digital,video.
Hack Lisa has already worked with about 5-7 users in
this regard, so let’s tap them plus identify a few more.
Social Media Strategy
Recent Efforts Kicker holds a robust presence on
all prioritized social platforms, with posts from Kicker
website articles [Day in 10, Big Story] plus posts sig-
naling Quizzy and My Kick videos, also curated news
posts, videos, personal development events, etc. Plat-
forms include: Facebook,Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest,
Tumblr, Snapchat.
Problem Statement Kicker’s social presence does
not leverage the most recent website refresh featuring
color-coded content tabs,making it more integrated
and easier to navigate.Also,YouTube is not in the mix
yet as a vital platform,hugely popular with our target.I
Tasks Begin developing prototype posts formatted in
brand blue/orange/yellow with corresponding #hash-
tags to promote integration with website color coding,
for all six social platforms.In addition,consider:
- allocate budget for boosting posts
- increase use of hashtags
- consider creating owned hashtag:
#kicknotknowing
- shift focus from Pinterest toYouTube to drive as an
outpost content hub within the environment of our
audience’s primary Influencers [vloggers]

Hack Color coded posts are easy to create and can
begin being posted immediately at regular rhythm.
RECOMMENDATIONS
SITE+SOCIAL UX

annodell.com
logo fonts
primary identity colors secondary colors
Kicker blue:
hex code: #2AABE2
RGB (42, 171, 226)
logotype logo in holding shape: square
with rounded corners
K Circle only
Kicker blue:
hex code: #2AABE2
RGB (42, 171, 226)
Kicker orange:
hex code: #7VCBA3
RGB (227, 83, 84)
Big Story My Kick Quizzy Day in 10
Kicker yellow:
hex code: #9YAB8
RGB (236, 224, 23)
Kicker purple:
hex code: #4ACBF9
RGB (136, 54, 136)
Kicker black
Bree Serif -bold
headlines
Rockwell Bold
logo
Noto Sans -regular
body copy
Aa Bb Cc Dd Ee 12340
VISUAL IDENTITY ELEMENTS

annodell.com
Top tabs are color
coded with content
categories Buttons for Kicker
brand social sites
Social buttons
specific to article
UX REDESIGN
COLOR CODED CONTENT TABS

annodell.com
UX REDESIGN
RESPONSIVE MOBIL INTERFACE

annodell.com
NEW UX FORMATS
embedded tweets embedded gifs
embedded videos
MULTIMEDIA

annodell.com on-brand image examples

annodell.com
#knowledge
Logo -Blk/White
with Hashtag
Font: Rockwell Bold
Credit
Font: Noto Sans
Message SquareMessage Square
Message
Font: Bree Serif Bold
Logo/URL/social handles
Font: Noto Sans
Motto
Font: Rockwell Bold
logotype only/URL
#kickboredom
SOCIAL/BRAND
PROPOSED BRAND ID GRAPHICS

annodell.com
icon
Stacked Logo
All black on white
tagline
Font: Rockwell Bold
white letters/black band
PROPOSED BANNER

annodell.com
SIGN UP or LIKE
CONTENT
BASED
top
story or more
salacious
image
TARGET
16-24
#Dayin10
still or video
Kicker logo
as primary
focus
TARGET
18-30
image evoca-
tive of brand
values as pri-
mary focus
message that
takes a slight
jab at a real
competitor
TARGET
GUYS
TARGET
COMPETITOR
BRAND
LOGO
BRAND
IMAGE
ROGUE
FOCUS
FB AD STRATEGY

annodell.com
FACEBOOK
#1 BEST PERFORMING
212 Likes
#2 BEST PERFORMING
82 Likes
FB AD ANALYTICS

annodell.com
FACEBOOK
KICK NOT KNOWING...
campaign
KICKER MAN!
campaign w/ video series
GET THE WAY BACKSTORY
campaign
PROPOSED BRAND CAMPAIGNS

annodell.com
Holly/Kicker Founder
Team Kicker
PROPOSED BRAND CAMPAIGNS

annodell.com
#hashtag posts
banner
Kicker Twitter as seen on
Facebook
TWITTER
CURRENT BANNER

annodell.com
TWITTER
our typical
hashtags
#news
#explainernews
#change
#knowledge
#power
#action
#passion
#kicknotknowing
CURRENT TYPICAL BRAND POST

annodell.com
TWITTER
CURRENT FEED

annodell.com
TUMBLR
CURRENT FEED

annodell.com
Relationship Building:
Kicker Campus Correspondents
[KCC]
Extending the Kicker network, powered by target au-
dience aged advocates is essential to faster growth.
Through these‘ambassadors’we reach their peers.
Recent Efforts The existing campus reps have had
mixed success rates with gaining Kicker supporters,
which may reflect:1] unclear program objectives 2] lack
of engagement by us 3] we chose the wrong person 4]
lack of proper materials to signal brand backing.
Problem Statement Kicker needs to develop addi-
tional campus chapters as effectively/quickly as possi-
ble with limited human and funding resources.
Tasks
1] Identify the next 12 University campuses right for
Kicker,along with primary administrative contacts,to
swiftly enroll new Ambassadors.Emphasis should be
on selecting at least 1 male/1 female on every location,
with preference of 4 total reps/campus.
2] Develop formalized Campus Correspondent Kit of
brand materials for recruitment purposes:folders,one
sheets,postcards, banners,stickers to start.
3] Develop‘rewards program’for recognizing their efforts
toward meeting our existing goals already developed.
4] Develop a‘feedback protocol’for assuring better/
frequent means to gain updates.
5] Assign Kicker internal member as Director of the ef-
fort,other than Holly.
Hack Several Kicker volunteers/writers have already
suggested their own schools plus have identified spe-
cific contacts.
Advisory Board
Extending the Kicker network,powered by experienced,
well-integrated professionals is essential to wise growth.
Through our Advisors we reach up for good counsel.
Recent Efforts Although Holly has a considered list of
contacts,nothing yet has been initiated.
Problem Statement Kicker needs to develop an advi-
sory board to challenge echo chamber tendencies,plus
to gain further potential contacts through advisors,ideal
to advance/grow whether via direct funding support,
donated services,PR opps,etc.
Tasks
1] Identify the 8-12 primary advisors best for Kicker at
this point in time with focus on both audience growth
and funding alternatives to advertising.
2] Develop a formalized pitch deck that provides Kick-
er overview to date,competitive set,particular wins vs
challenges.
3] Set a date now to drive toward completing this kick
off presentation with the group.
4] Research each candidate to pinpoint the particular
‘ask’of them,based on their profile,contacts,etc.
5] Make sure the presentation clearly identifies our
goals and expectations specific to their time/effort.
Hack Kicker is fortunate to have such an impressive
list of contacts to choose from, through Holly’s network-
ing and sterling reputation. She just gets to pick up the
phone once the core list is finalized..
Influencers
A huge step we should take sooner than later --job one
identify influencers,male/female,maybe varying age
based on personality fit othem/followers.What are some
current best practice examples of brands leveraging influ-
encers?What tactics do they employ? How do they track
performance,etc.?
Problem Statement Kicker needs to build brand
awareness,at the very least,with our key audience
through people they know/trust.
Tasks
1] Identify 5-8 influencers,outlining goals,KPIs to
achieve success,whether brand awareness,sharing
content,growing social followers or increasing sign ups
like:
- increase web traffic by X% in 2 mons
- increase following on Facebook by X amt every wk
- increase brand mentions on social media by X% in
one mon
- increase sign ups X amt every wk
2] Identify compensation budget plus other incentives
in a formal/minimal pitch.
3] Consider use of custom hashtags to monitor activity.
4] Identify tracking tool/measurement methods.
Hack Kate is actually friends of a friend with Tyler
Oakley, so maybe he would help us get started, get
feet wet in honing all the issues at least..
RECOMMENDATIONS
NETWORKS

annodell.com
with
CAMPUS PRESENCE
The Kicker Campus
Correspondent net-
work currently exists
across twelve Uni-
versities with the goal
to roll out twelve more
this year.
In the meantime, there is more to
do to develop the program for bet-
ter results. Most colleges welcome
companies to post positions, attend
career fairs and host campus inter-
views and information sessions.
But to establish the Kicker on-cam-
pus brand, it’s important to go be-
yond these traditional methods.
Kicker should, of course, make
every effot to hire the right people
plus invest in training:
- Kicker culture
- key performance indicators
- direct recruiting tactics.
Finding the bandwidth to stay in
touch regularly plus mentoring and
rewarding resluts are also crucial!

annodell.com current KCC collateral assets proposed KCC program flyer
PROPOSED KCC PROGRAM FLYER

annodell.com
stickers
postcards
KI
C
K
NOT KNOWING
TH
E
NEWSWITHKICKER
.
goK IC K E R.co
PROPOSED KCC COLLATERAL ASSETS

annodell.com
facebook ads male
goal 1: Like Page
goal 2: click thru to land
ing page
goal 3: visit Kicker site
landing pages male
goal: complete app/
click submit male in crowd > A/B testmale individual > A/B test
PROPOSED DIGITAL MKTG ASSETS

annodell.com
female in crowd > A/B test
facebook ads female
goal 1: Like Page
goal 2: click thru to land
ing page
goal 3: visit Kicker site
landing pages female
goal: complete app/
click submit
PROPOSED DIGITAL MKTG ASSETS

annodell.com
Andrew Heyward
Former President of CBS News,
& currently a principal at Market-
spaceNext & Heyward Advisory
LLC, Andrew works with clients
to create & strengthen original
online content, make more ef-
fective use of broadband video,
deepen engagement through
online communities & develop
new business models for the dig-
ital era. He is the son of UNICEF
executive director Dick Heyward
and Russian-born interpreter
Elisabeth Heyward.
Esther Wojcicki
Dr. Esther Wojcicki is a journal-
ist, award-winning educator &
founder of the Palo Alto High
Media Arts Program, one of
America’s largest, most dynamic
& successful high school media
studies programs, & a model of
how to teach 21st century skills.
She regularly presents her work
& methods to global audiences
of educators, policy makers &
business leaders. She sits on the
Boards of leading educational
organizations.
Jess Teutonico
Jess is the Executive Director
of We Are Family Foundation,
founded in 2002 by legendary
music producer & multi-Grammy
winner Nile Rodgers. She over-
sees the 2 signature programs
there: TEDxTeen Youth Confer-
ence & Three Dot Dash, a sought
after incubator & accelerator for
social entrepreneurs, with over
250 alumni affecting billions of
people, working with over 200+
coalition partners & 250 influen-
tial Mentors.
Anthony Napolitano
Anthony is a former Sr Executive
for Google Ads, VP of Sales at
BAM Tech Media’s live streaming
services & was the National Sales
Director at StumbleUpon, work-
ing with publishers & brands to
drive traffic plus increase aware-
ness in their content & brand
messaging. He now employs his
breadth & depth of profession-
al experience as the Managing
Partner for Pinterest’s Partner-
ship Sales Division.
Dora Chomiak
A Digital Leader with focus on on-
line marketing & sales, business
development, product develop-
ment, as well as strategy, Dora
deploys emerging technologies
for integrating targeted media,
from vision through to sustain-
able operations. She supports
HromadskeRadio.org globally &
hosts TEDxWestVillageWomen.
She is fluent in Ukranian. She
does public speaking in NYC fo-
cused on the growing tech start-
up ecosystem in Ukraine.
Ann Moore
Former CEO & Chairman at Time
Inc., Ann is the first woman to
claim those positions. In 2013,
after retiring, she started The
Curator Gallery which hosts vary-
ing exhibitions with a hope to be
known for education & ‘selling
excellent art’. She also served as
the publisher of Sports Illustrat-
ed for Kids in 1989 & publisher
of People Magazine in 1991. She
was named People’s president in
1993. in 2005, she made Forbe’s
100 Most Powerful Women list.
ADVISORY
Kicker’s core advisory is
comprised of seasoned
professionals with diverse
expertise and arc of expe-
rience.
Based on the contacts Holly pre-
sented, this selection in particular,
is assessed through the primary
lens of expansion and growth of
the Kicker audience, as well as for
the exploration of enterprise fund-
ing in alternative ways.
Overall Holly’s job can be extreme-
ly lonely and conflicting, so having
a diverse, seasoned counsel at her
disposal is a wise, fruitful step as
the competition increases.
Assembling these people for our
well-researched pitch is mission
critical --let’s set a date.

annodell.com
RESULTS, ROLE, LEARNINGS

annodell.com
Competition Clarification
- direct vs secondary
- positioning, impact assets, funding model
Target Clarification
- 8 personas
- ideal customer profile
- brand/influencer affinities
Enhanced Positioning
Enhanced Brand Identity
- Voice-Tone
- Visual Look/Feel
Digital Mktg Strategy
- 140 new enewsletter sign ups on website from
improved SEO
- 297 new enewsletter sign ups on website from
Facebook ads
- 2,161 new Facebook Page Likes
- 313 new Instagram Followers
- 190 new Twitter followers
- 66 Kicker Campus Correspondent application
submitals
Fundraising
- $8,135.00 on Crowdrise platform [81% of $10k
total goal]lus 3rd place in StartUp competition
12 New University Reps
- including formalized program outline, goals,
KCC brand materials
RESULTS [5 month period]
shares >
> sign ups

BRAND STRATEGY OVERVIEW: KICKER a Digital Media Start Up

BRAND STRATEGY OVERVIEW: KICKER a Digital Media Start Up

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BRAND STRATEGY OVERVIEW: KICKER a Digital Media Start Up