BusyGirlsGuide is a website aimed at the time-poor woman, that has relaunched today. We caught up with editorial director, Lucy O’Neill to find out a bit more about the new site and what’s changed. We also find out how the BusyGirls team work with PRs and what Lucy’s personal pet peeves are.
About the publication:
You’ve just re-launched, tell us what’s changed:
The new look BusyGirlsGuide.co.uk now offers local solutions to Busy lifestyles: advice, news, insight, how-to guides, reviews, event listings, city guides, and much more…
We now feature across 8 cities: New York, London, Chicago, Manchester, San Francisco, Dublin, Edinburgh and Birmingham.
How do you differ from other media outlets in your sector?
Women are inquisitive; we’re researchers, and we want as much information as possible before we commit to a purchase. The BusyGirlsGuide aims to provide trusted guides and recommendations in a way which suits the modern time-poor woman:
The new site is clear, easy to navigate and offers more than ever before. Our BusyGirl reader can log into her local site for more interactivity – if she is too time-starved to read the features in full, she can save her favourite elements of the site into her own online notepad, to read later. The site also allows BusyGirls to accept invitations to events and plan their ideal trip away, sending details, maps and itineraries to a friend with the click of a button.
Describe a typical reader for us:
Female, ABC1 demographic, aged 25 to 44, earning in excess of £30,000 / annum.
What stories are you most interested in covering?
Our topics cover health, beauty, fashion, shopping, home, finances, love, life, reviews and how-to guides.
City guides – we feature guides on any part of the world, but they have to be genuine ‘have visited’ spots.
Events – we feature events suited to BusyGirls across the UK and USA. Let us know if you’re hosting something fabulous – parties, sales, exhibitions, gigs, networking, dating, launches, and more.
Celebrities – BusyGirlsGuide is a celeb-free zone. Bona fide BusyGirls only please – we’re too busy for gossip!
How do you decide the content and headlines?
Quite simply, we make it worth reading and try to leave a lasting impression. We like appropriate, unusual, interesting and new – advice and insight, not celeb gossip or meaningless musings.
How does the editorial process run? Do you have specific days when you focus on different aspects or is the planning on a much more ad-hoc basis?
We publish to the site every day, but ensure that all content is topical and timely. We plan on a monthly basis, but as we are a website, we are able to publish at late notice if necessary.
About PRs:
Do you work closely with PRs?
Yes, the Team at BusyGirlsGuide work closely with PR companies to feature the latest looks, products and services which will suit our target audience.
What information/input from PRs is most useful to you?
We are happy to publish true, tried and tested reviews. We don’t publish full press releases or comment on businesses, services or products which we have no personal experience of. This ensures that our readers actually act on our honest recommendations – better results for your clients!
Full contact information and links are published only in our black book directory listings, which can be purchased for a low administration fee.
What’s the best starting point for a PR who wants to tell you about their client?
We love it when a PR has reviewed our site and provides information which is related to our audience. Please get in touch by email; briefly describe the brand and its suitability for our audience. If we feel that your client would be better suited to a black book directory entry, we will contact you with details.
Do you have a PR pet hate?
Editorially, there are three simple rules to getting a response from us:
1. Submit information which is short, focussed and gets to the point quickly.
2. Don’t keep emailing if you don’t get an instant response – we’re very busy!
3. Check out our site for relevance to our audience before you contact us.
When is the best time for PRs to contact you & when is your deadline for contributions?
Being a website, we are able to publish to the site 24hrs a day, however we like to have 3-4 working days to get the feature right.
About you:
Describe a typical day at work:
Editing, writing, reviewing, planning, creating, consuming coffee, laughing.
What do you love about your work?
Flexibility, variety, creativity, excitement, insight, teamwork, challenges, fun.
What’s the best advice you’ve ever been given?
The truth will set you free.
A phrase I use too often is…
Are you busy?
If you weren’t doing this, what would you do?
Cry. And then create a different online business.
What’s your idea of a relaxing day off?
Tea, poached eggs and The Sunday Times in bed. A long walk with the dogs, home to cook a Sunday roast with compulsory roast potatoes, then bake a cake and curl up with a cuddle from my husband to watch a film under my faux-fur rug. (I sound about eighty!).
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[img|jpg|Lucy O’Neill]