Today’s guest post comes from journalist turned journalism trainer Amy Webb, head of Knowledgewebb.net, a website that teaches writers the tools they need to succeed in the age of digital media. Webb heads a team of trainers who hold webinars and travel the country teaching at conferences and providing in-person, one-on-one training. Webb unveiled a major overhaul of Knowledgewebb last week that includes a number of improvements of special interest to freelancers that I asked her to share with my readers.
We launched Knowledgewebb 2.0 last week, and Michelle kindly asked me to reveal a few of the hidden gems independent journalists can now find on our technology training site. I couldn’t say yes fast enough.
1. A badge reward system. We’ve turned learning into a game. As you take classes, attend webinars and live chats, participate in our discussion forums and read other content on the Knowledgewebb site, you’ll start to unlock a number of badges, virtual awards that show what you’ve learned. For example, if you complete five live chats, you’ll win the Chatty Cathy badge, which will be displayed on your Member Profile page as well as next to your username in the discussion forums and anywhere on the site where you leave comments. If you see badges on another member’s profile that you don’t have yourself, you can roll your mouse over those badges to see what they’re called. We offer a total of 62 badges. Look for prize contests along the way, too.
2. Training report cards. Report your progress to employers, editors, associations, Mom and Dad — anyone who is likely to see your efforts to gain new skills in a positive light.
3. Blogs. Knowledgewebb is now home to three blogs: my MyDigimedia blog, dedicated to discussing tech trends and how they affect various industries; the Ask the Coach blog, Doug Mitchell’s advice on job networking; and the Good Stuff blog, a treasure chest of digital tools and innovative gear our staff found.
4. More chances for discounts. We currently work with 20 journalism organizations. If you belong to any of them, you are eligible for a 30 percent savings on the annual membership fee. That makes your cost $89 a year for an all-you-can-learn atmosphere that includes the ability to request lessons and have our experts answer your questions directly in our forums. If you belong to a journalism organization that isn’t listed, drop me a note with a contact name.
5. More than 300 lessons. I always save the best news for last. As part of our redesign, we increased our resource library. Knowledgewebb now offers more than 300 self-guided lessons, webinars and chats on a variety of technology and business-owning topics. We continue to add more each week, which means your membership value appreciates over time.
We’re dedicated to building a technology support community at Knowledgewebb, not just a static repository. After all, we’re all in this together, so don’t sweat the tech. We’ve got that end covered.