Does Your Yearbook Staff Have A Mission Statement?

I spent some time thinking this week about what impact a mission statement might have on the school Yearbook. What do you think? Would the following describe the ultimate mission statement?

The Yearbook staff will tell the story of the year using the only permanent record of the school year- the Yearbook. The Yearbook team will use great photographs, layouts, graphics, captions and body copy to show the school in the best possible light. They will celebrate the highlights of the school year, tell the story of the student body and show what an important role the staff plays in student success. The staff will make EVERY student, staff member and parent proud to be part of the school community. The Yearbook staff will never be satisfied with "average", instead they will use the latest technology along with time proven graphic design techniques to make magic this year. School work and marks will never suffer as a result of the hard work on the Yearbook. Yearbook and all that it involves will enhance the school experience because when the staff graduates their legacy to the next group of editors will be the passion to create the ultimate Yearbook.

Life is good, Yearbooks are amazing and you are appreciated.

The Office of Matt & Mary Sloan
matt@yearbookplanet.com

Three Predictions For Yearbooks In 2015... And One Is Not A Good One. Every Principal Should Read This.

The new year is here and as we begin the 2015 school year our office sees three big trends for this year.  Copyright concerns, Augmented Reality and Adobe Creative Cloud applications will likely dominate conversations with customers and prospective customers this spring.

Copyright and potential exposure to legal action for the school, school board and students will need to be addressed. Canada has finally tightened copyright laws and amongst other powers internet service providers will begin providing information to authorities when copyright protected videos, music and other materials are downloaded. The fines range from $5000.00 to $20,000.00 and schools should be very concerned about content in the school Yearbook. Every spring our office needs to stop production of pages due to copyright infringement and schools often believe because they are a school they are somehow immune to prosecution. Principals should consider a conversation with the school Yearbook Adviser and their sales professional regarding this very important issue.

Augmented reality will continue to dominate Yearbooks. It's everywhere! Simply wave your smartphone over a Yearbook page and video and audio plays. Take a closer look at most of the newspapers and advertising pieces landing in your mailbox- it's there! Want more information? Give me a ring and I'm happy to help. 

Adobe Creative Cloud seems to be gaining traction. The web based applications of Photoshop, InDesign and Illustrator in particular are of great interest to Yearbook staffs. Our creative cloud extensions automate many of the Yearbook tasks required but installation can be tricky. If you are considering Creative Cloud touch base with us soon. Training your staff if likely the first step to a successful deploy and we can help.

All the best in the new year. Life is good, Yearbooks are amazing and you are appreciated. 

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Regards,

Matt & Mary Sloan

The Office of Matt & Mary Sloan

Representing Herff Jones Inc.

905.605.1069