I am, and will be, working on consulting projects during 2009. Right now I am very busy through June 2009, but please check with me if you have an ideas of how I might help you grow opportunities or solve problems. For more about my areas of expertise, check out Services or contact me.
Representative consulting projects:
2008-09:
- Advisor, Knight News Challenge: Program management & marketing/evangelizing for annual $5MM program in 3rd year, working closely with Knight Foundation Program Director and Staff
- Advisor, Knight Foundation: Reviewer & facilitator
- Consultant/Product Development, TechSoup Global, product development and business strategy
- User experience & product strategy advisor, 2 stealth start-ups.
- Redefining Progress (pro bono): Advising on blogging and social media strategy
Susan has some free handouts and white papers you can check out:
- Using social media for social change (written for WeMedia 2009)
- The social media toolbox (written for Knight Foundation Information Needs of Communities session)
- Build your brand through social media (presented at Maynard Institute workshop
2005-06 (selected list):
- Associated Press: Created strategic business and product plan for blogging, RSS, next-generation search for large news organization, with vendor recommendations and development timetable.
- Hearst, Shop Etc.: Developed the strategy (business and product plan, ecommerce relationship, blog and social media/RSS feeds) for a website tied to the launch of a new shopping magazine.
- Consumer Reports: Plan to improve distribution of content into their digital media platform and streamline product development process.
- Yoga Journal: Developed an advertising/revenue strategy and a social media/audience acquisition plan for a magazine web site with more than 5MM unique visitors a month, but no online revenue.
- Popular Science, Time Warner: Built a web-based audience acquisition plan and social media platform for a science and technology web site looking to shift their audience and grow uniques and frequency.
- Rojo: Worked with social media start-up to conceptualize and spec a new recommendation/newsreader product, define marketplace and revenue opportunities for angel round.
- Hearst Magazine Group: Crafted ecommerce strategy for consumer experience company: addressed back end, audience segments, distribution partnerships and revenue splits.
- SRI: Conducted internal assets audit and external market review for large educational technology consulting company seeking to determine commercial sector value for their intellectual property assets.
- Dragonfly Media: Advised publishers of niche blogging sites on paid content pricing, advertising models and syndication partners, optimizing revenue.
RECOMMENDATIONS (What clients have said):
" She is knowledgeable, fast and extremely well-connected."
-- Jim Kennedy, VP, Associated Press
"I hired Susan and her staff to help develop the business plan for shopetc.com, a website for a new magazine, and then execute the plan. She was a tremendous partner in the whole process. Professional, timely, detailed, tremendous execution and added even more value than we contracted her for. She did such a good job she was hired for multiple other projects by other managers at the company. I strongly endorse Susan."
-- Peter Schmidt, Hearst Magazine Group
"Susan is an extremely smart, experienced interactive-media expert who understands the technology, the content and the business aspects of interactive media."
-- Peter Zollman, AIM Group
MORE ON SUSAN
Contact Susan at smernit gmail
Susan's LinkedIn resume is here, and her wikipedia entry here.
Places to follow Susan:
Susan Mernit's blog: susanmernit.com
Twitter: susanmernit
Friendfeed: smernit
BlogHer: blogher.com/blog/susan-mernit
Huffington Post: huffingtonpost.com/susan-mernit/









