T
H
E
 
B
J
C
P
 
B
U
L
L
E
T
I
N
From the Editor
Jeff Sanders, Assistant Communication Director
Changes have been made to look and feel, content organization, contributors, and frequency
From the Editor
At a Glance
  • The new modern look and feel is based upon the new BJCP web site.
  • The BJCP now has an Instagram account and is looking for more BJCP-related images.
  • Content will include not only program news, but updates from regions, directorates, and committees.
  • Emails responses from the board to members relevant to the whole program will be published.
So, you may have noticed a few changes...
Look and Feel
You may have noticed a new look and feel to the newsletter, including a new logo, new color scheme, new iconography, and other aesthetic changes. This more modern feel very closely resembles the new BJCP web site effort, which is also underway. Gone are your favorite brown and orange, replaced with simpler, cleaner aesthetics that focus on the content.
I’ve kept the familiar “At a Glance” (known as a “nut graph” in publishing), which summarizes all the major points of the article, based upon positive feedback we’ve received. Articles also include section heads to try to help focus on specific points.
We’re also going to be making a conscious effort to include more imagery within stories. As noted within the Communication Directorate update, the BJCP now has an Instagram account. We also regularly monitor our Twitter feed and the image links shared in the tweets in which we’re mentioned. We will be working with image owners for their permission to use the imagery in more of our publications.
Content Organization
The first two issues of The BJCP Bulletin, like many newsletters put out by hobbyist or non-profit organizations, are organized based upon the content available during the news cycle. If it’s a slow news period, then it’s typically a lot of recycled content or basic information that fills space. Fortunately, the first six months provided plenty of Program News to cover.
The BJCP has some slower periods, when the amount of Program News may ebb or flow. However, the BJCP is also organized into regions, directorates, and committees, all of whom at any given time are in the process of operating the BJCP. Each BJCP Bulletin will include updates from the regions, directorates, and committees.
Content Contributors
A great deal of the content in the last two issues was written by me. While this newsletter contains some 26 or so articles and an email that goes out, it takes some time to plan the content, develop question lists, interview board and staff members, write and refine content, translate to a web-friendly format, and send out to the membership. Going forward, we’ll be changing this approach.
Regional Representatives will provide regular updates on happenings in the region, as well as news specific to the region. Directorate leads will provide updates on events, communications, issues, efforts, and milestones within their individual directorates, which are the engine of how the BJCP operates. Committee Leads will also provide updates on progress being made within their committees, their purpose, their timeline, and whether they need your help. It’s important to note that the BJCP only maintains one standing committee, the Finance committee, lead by the BJCP’s Treasurer (currently North Region Representative Al Boyce).
With this third issue, we are also officially soliciting for content contributors for Editorials and Features. In addition to direct feedback on the content of the newsletter, we are publishing responses between Representatives and members of which we feel the broader membership should be made aware.
Additionally, we are now looking for Feature Writers to contribute regular pieces for inclusion in The BJCP Bulletin. We believe that our creative members, who already generate loads of original content in blogs, Facebook posts, YouTube channels and series, and other content channels should be provided the opportunity to get their stories out to the whole of the BJCP (5000+ members and growing). It’s important to note that content provided by these Feature Writers does not necessarily represent the views of the BJCP, its officers, representatives, or other members.
Conclusion
Wrapping up, hopefully these changes will us to meet our objectives of greater transparency and more frequent communications from the BJCP. We also hope these changes provide for greater opportunities for content contribution, and broader yet deeper coverage within BJCP efforts.
The IT Directorate and Communication Directorate have been collaborating on the new BJCP web site. We expect these changes made to The BJCP Bulletin will also help to make content management and ownership simpler for both directorates to manage.
As always, we welcome your feedback on these changes and all other efforts.
Cheers –
 
Jeff Sanders
Assistant Communication Director, BJCP