Mumsnet local needs you!

[RebeccaMumsnet]

Happy New Year one and all.

We hope that you all had a lovely festive period and are enjoying the DC back at school well?

Mumsnet local was revamped last year and we have 180+ local sites across the UK. We aim to have up-to-date info on what's happening where you are, local tradespeople, listings from anything from your local butcher to childminders and an awful lot more - please do have a look and sign-up to your local for local offers.

We need your help to do this.

Please pop over and upload a listing, review a local service or have a chat to folks in your local area or if you have more time and are looking to make a little money, you could take on a local site as a Mumsnet Local Editor?

We are looking for local Editors in:

Aberdeenshire
Anglesey
Argyll & Bute
Bath
Belfast
Berkshire
Blackburn
Blackpool
Bradford
Caerphilly & Merthyr Tydfil
Calderdale
Carmarthenshire
Ceredigion
Channel Islands
Cheltenham & Gloucester
Cheshire (specifically, West Cheshire)
Conwy & Denbighshire
County Londonderry/Derry
County Antrim
County Armagh
County Down
County Fermanagh
County Tyrone
Coventry
Derby
Dudley
Dumfries & Galloway
Durham
East Ayrshire
East Riding of Yorkshire
Glasgow
Gloucestershire
Gwynedd
Hampshire
Herefordshire
Highlands & Islands
Ipswich
Isle Of Man
Isle of Wight
Kingston Upon Hull
Lancashire
Leicester
Lincolnshire
Luton
London: Barnet
London: Barking & Dagenham
London: Brent
London: Bromley
London: Camden
London: Ealing
London: Enfield
London: Havering
London: Hillingdon
London: Redbridge
London: Sutton
London: Wandsworth
Manchester: Bolton & Bury
Moray
Munster
Neath Port Talbot & Bridgend
Norfolk
Norwich
North Ayrshire & Inverclyde
Northampton
Northamptonshire
Oldham & Rochdale
Perth & Kinross
Plymouth
Powys
Rhondda Cynon Taff & Vale of Glamorgan
Rotherham
Rutland
Scarborough
Scottish Borders
Slough
South and North Lanarkshire
South Ayrshire
Southend
South Yorkshire
Stirling & Clackmannanshire
Stoke On Trent
Sunderland
Swansea
Swindon
Teeside
Tyneside
Warrington
Wakefield
York

Mumsnet Local Editors manage their Mumsnet Local site, keeping it clean, tidy and up-to-date. They write newsletters and work with local ambassadors (voluntary) to hold meet-ups locally.

Local Editors can make money by contacting businesses local to them and asking them to advertise on their local sites. If you become a Local Editor, you will keep the revenue from the local advertising and offers that you book.

If this sounds of interest to you, then please do send us an email on [email protected] with 'interested in becoming a Local Editor' in the subject field. It helps if you tell us a bit about yourself in the email.

Local is still in its infancy but it's growing all of the time: In the last year we have seen some local editors who have been working hard to build local contacts and communities really starting to see dividends, with several seeing monthly earnings topping £1,000. It is slow and steady but the potential is great for the right people.

We very much look forward to hearing from you if you are interested or have any questions.

Happy New Year

MNHQ

I have just had an advertiser say they won't bother self loading adverts because our system is 'a pain in the ass' and self employed tradespeople do not have the time to try to self load over twenty times before giving up.

I have emailed three times now asking for help with another advertiser who is struggling to load an image that is not square shaped (as requested by the site). I have not had a reply and I am getting really pissed off. I have an advertiser ready and am having to fob them off with excuses because nobody is helping me. Not every advertiser is computer literate nor has the time.

This is very embarrassing. I'm not surprised they bugger off to Netmums or local magazines.

So be prepared.

@LESuffolk

I have just had an advertiser say they won't bother self loading adverts because our system is 'a pain in the ass' and self employed tradespeople do not have the time to try to self load over twenty times before giving up.

I have emailed three times now asking for help with another advertiser who is struggling to load an image that is not square shaped (as requested by the site). I have not had a reply and I am getting really pissed off. I have an advertiser ready and am having to fob them off with excuses because nobody is helping me. Not every advertiser is computer literate nor has the time.

This is very embarrassing. I'm not surprised they bugger off to Netmums or local magazines.

So be prepared.

Hi Suffolk,

Apologies for this. We will look for your mail asap and respond.
We do have full details in the handbook and there is the local editors hideout that you could post in. The other local eds are usually more than happy to offer their experiences.

This is a good and easy-to-use site for cropping images.

We will be in touch asap.

@Strawberrykisses

Where it says Tyneside, is the the north& south Tyneside site? I presume Newcastle is taken?

The whole of Tyneside I believe. If you'd like to take on North or South or all then please do mail in.

Thanks Rebecca. I did email the other LE's with no response (everybody is so busy and wrong time of year).

Have just heard from LEGreenwich who has sent me a link to the software and have had another go and emailed the image back to the advertiser.

But would be great if you could take a look. Thanks.

If North Dorset becomes available ever could you put me down for it?

Anyway apart from that little pity party, it is an interesting job with the opportunity to garner experience in copywriting, PR, social media, editing and actual Writing with a capital A. I have had three commissions off the back of my copy on FB etc.

I am seeing big leaps in the profile of Mumsnet in Suffolk with Google searches placing us on the first page and on a couple of occasions- above Nethuns. Yay!

You will need to devote quite a bit of time though. This isn't a five hours per week gig.

Posted too soon-

And attending Press Nights at local theatres/events is pretty cool in exchange for reviews (and free tickets). Am going to be able to give tickets to local parents soon for the purpose of this as my days of sitting through Peppa Pig are over. My children are about twenty years too old.

I have thought about applying for LE but not sure if I have the necessary skills. That said, there is NOTHING on my MN Local yet, so maybe my efforts would be ok? Something is better than nothing right?

I did try to put in details of my local baby & toddler group but the site wouldn't let me as I don't have the postcode. (Does anyone know the postcode of their toddler group?) I couldn't find it through google, but I couldn't complete the listing without it, so gave up.

If you add the first bit of the postcode ie SE21, it'll accept it MrsP.

Thanks Mignonette.

And I would encourage you to give it a try MrsP.

I have no experience in these fields at all. You learn fast!

And as you say, there's nothing there so it can't hurt!

Good luck.

Hi RebeccaMumsnet I think you'll find that the whole of Tyneside isn't available, unless there is something you aren't telling me as Local Editor for Newcastle/Gateshead

StrawberryKisses It's North & South Tyneside Local and Sunderland Local. The previous lovely LE had both Tyneside and Sunderland sites. If there is anything you would like to ask just PM me.

You're looking for someone in Ipswich but that's in Suffolk. There just aren't enough of us using local to need both, Ipswich has never worked well so can't we just stick with Suffolk (especially as the LE is doing really well!)?
Otherwise you over-dilute and leave us having to duplicate post

I would potentially be interested but not for the whole of Hampshire. MNHQ you do know how big Hampshire is? I can't quite imagine 1 MN LE being able to cover the whole area, especially with regards to the what's on and advertising perspective.

There's not much info on the Cardiff site. If the editor wants details of groups I also have info for special needs groups.

I thought Glasgow had a local editor - she has certainly introduced herself as such - or has she been sacked given up?

Hector Vector I'd certainly consider spiltting Hampshire with you - I cover Portsmouth and there is another Ed for Southampton.

Aahhhhhh so they have already split it?

I wouldn't consider Portsmouth or Southampton local and wouldn't have a clue what going on there at all. I started to compose an email to MN to request more information but I reckon it'll take up too much time. Does it?

Rebecca, I did email you :) can I have Southend please as well?? If no one else has asked.

Hi

I would second Mignonette (I wonder if I've met her?) with all that she's said.

I'd been a SAHM for 12 years and although I'd done lots of different things work-wise beforehand, I'd never done anything like this. It's been a very steep learning curve for me (I've been doing it for about 7 weeks now), but I'm really enjoying the challenges and it's a very varied and fulfilling thing to do, particularly if you know 'your manor' well! Aside from learning lots of new skills, I'm finding that I'm also finding out loads more about what's happening in my patch too!

I fit it in around the school day and do bits and bobs in the evening and at the weekends. I think that possibly those who've come to it with the relevant skill-sets might find it less time-consuming than those of us who are starting from a point of zero on all but the admin functions. However, I stand to be corrected...

It would seem to me that you get out if it what you put in....You have nothing to lose and everything to gain . Give it a go....

Good luck!

@Cannycraic

Hi RebeccaMumsnet I think you'll find that the whole of Tyneside isn't available, unless there is something you aren't telling me as Local Editor for Newcastle/Gateshead

StrawberryKisses It's North & South Tyneside Local and Sunderland Local. The previous lovely LE had both Tyneside and Sunderland sites. If there is anything you would like to ask just PM me.

Gah! Sorry, I wasn't very clear. NEWCASTLE is most definitely taken - the rest of Tyneside is available.

@topknob

Rebecca, I did email you :) can I have Southend please as well?? If no one else has asked.

Hi topknob and all who have mailed,

We will be in touch over the next week.
Thank you for the great response, please do keep the mails coming.

The image still won't load and I have lost my paid advertiser . It has taken three people four days to try to sort this.

I don't know where to go from here. i have had it to be honest.

I've done it, I've sent the email :)

Hello everyone. Im hear to listen if you feel you need me.