Communications News
Guidelines for submitting stories to Communications News
Communications News is written for enterprise telecommunications, data
communications and network managers who are looking for solutions for their
corporate or organization networks that are practical, proven and
cost-effective.
Before you contact us
Communications News is available on the Web– at
www.comnews.com– and in print. In addition,
our editorial calendar and editorial submission guidelines are posted on our Web
site, as is a breakdown of our circulation. Please read the publication, the
guidelines, the editorial calendar and the circulation statement before
contacting us, so that you understand our audience makeup and what types of
editorial contributions we accept.
What we are looking for
FEATURES: The majority of our features are
vendor-contributed, solutions-based, real-world application stories in a
case-study format. We also publish tutorials that discuss technology
developments important to
enterprises (i.e., corporate, educational and government
organizations). Articles should be focused on enterprise end-user solutions, or
solutions provided by service providers to enterprise end-users. Our focus is
NOT on operations/provisioning solutions for carriers/telcos or service
providers (e.g., billing, OSS, CRM).
COVER STORIES: Cover stories are expanded case histories and
are selected from abstract proposals submitted for a given month and topic.
Do not submit a cover story proposal; we will determine from
the abstracts we receive for the planned topics in any given month which one
warrants cover story treatment. Cover stories generally run 2,000-2,500 words,
with the vendor also providing high-quality photography of the customer who is
the subject of the article. Among the criteria we use for selecting cover
stories: Does the implementation have enough scope and variation to warrant
expanded treatment? Will the implementation appeal to a wide range of enterprise
end-users? Have we covered the topic (e.g., wireless LANs) with a cover story
within the past 12 months? Has the vendor provided a cover story within the past
12 months? Will the vendor commit to the extra resources necessary to provide
the type of article and photos necessary?
PRODUCT SECTIONS: New product information should be sent to
the Products Editor (products@comnews.com).
This will ensure that it gets handled correctly. If you send it to the wrong
editor, it may be misplaced. We publish New Product Announcements
relevant to our enterprise end-user audience. We do not conduct product testing
or write product reviews. Please send your new product announcements as soon as
the product is shipping, and do not try to target it to a specific issue.
Calling to follow up on product press releases does not help or speed up the
process. Please do not follow up by phone to " check on the status" of the
product submission. Please submit files of less than 3 megabytes. NOTE: Do not
send screenshots or company logos as artwork. Artwork guidelines at: Product
Submission Guidelines:
http://comnews.com/about/prod_submission.htm
PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT SECTIONS/BUYERS GUIDE NEW PRODUCTS SECTIONS:
Both of these sections are for new product announcements; they are not product
reviews. Please do not submit new product announcements for
specific Product Spotlights or Buyers Guides. We want to publish
appropriate new products as soon as possible and not hold them for Product
Spotlights or Buyers Guide New Product Sections that are scheduled in later
issues. Rule of thumb: Submit your new product announcements when the product is
shipping.
FEATURES: Getting Started
First, send us an abstract proposal. After defining the
topic, write two or three paragraphs describing what you want to say in your
article.
Make sure that you identify, with the abstract, the month
and editorial focus subject from our editorial calendar that you feel the
article fits in, as well as the vendor supplying the article.
DO NOT submit an abstract unless the companies involved
(vendor and customer, if appropriate) have agreed to have the article published.
Send the proposal to the
editor (e-mail is the best way)
at least 14 weeks prior to publication date (e.g.,
Dec. 15 for the April issue). Our policy is to review all proposals at the same
time shortly after the abstract deadline date and to inform all potential
contributors whether or not their abstract has been accepted for development
into a feature. Please do not follow up by phone to " check on the status" of
the abstract.
Important: Please submit with your abstract the vendor name,
address, phone, fax, contact person for reader inquiries, e-mail and Web
addresses.
Writing the Article
CASE HISTORIES should be solution-based, providing practical
and useful information to enterprise end-users (i.e., corporations, educational,
government). A simple and effective formula is this: " Here is a problem we had;
here is the way we solved it; these are the products and techniques we used;
this is how we're working now."
A case history should not be more than two years old and should include all
the elements of the solution, not just the vendor's products (if there are more
elements than one). We prefer third-person accounts, so it is generally better
to include quotes from the end-user, rather than use that person as the author.
Case studies should not carry the vendor's byline, since the vendor and products
are mentioned in the story. Also, quotes from the vendor generally are
inappropriate for case histories and are usually deleted from manuscripts. A
case study should focus on just ONE enterprise situation, not on multiple
examples. Here is some of the information we would like included in the article:
-
Describe the problem solved and the improvements made. But don't
tell the reader; show him. Be descriptive of an actual situation
that illustrates the point, rather than simply making the point, as
in " The solution provides security." Put that statement in context
with an actual example of how security was provided for the
customer.
-
Provide a straightforward presentation on how a solution was
implemented, what the challenges were and what the results are, so
that IT decision-makers will have at least most of their questions
answered.
Remember that the technical side of the implementation is the
most important element of a case study, providing useful information
to IT managers who want to know how the network is configured, what
changes were made, how the changes affected the network, etc.
-
Was there a particular moment or occurrence that crystallized the
need for the solution? That moment would make a good anecdotal lead.
-
How was the problem increasing expenses, hindering operations,
causing staff to be unproductive? Again, use examples to illustrate
your points.
-
Was the solution interoperable with other components of the network?
If not, what changes were made to provide interoperability?
-
When did corrective action first start and how was it accomplished?
-
How was a final solution selected? Site visits? Vendor demos?
-
How many products were reviewed before deciding?
-
How long did the implementation process take? What were the steps?
-
Describe the most important components of the solution, or the
network where the solution was installed: hardware, software,
networks, consultants, training, etc. This can best be done by
having the customer talk about situations where these parts of the
solution came into play.
Also:
- What was the approximate cost of all components of the solution?
- What was the cost justification and the ROI? Who had to approve the purchase
or installation?
- How many staff and/or customers are served by the system?
- What are the security and business continuity issues addressed by the
solution, if applicable?
- What are the benefits, in terms of: savings, productivity, customer care
or service, etc.?
- Are enhancements planned?
- Include any anecdotes that speak to the value and benefits of the
solution?
- Please include quotes of principals of the subject company throughout
the article to describe the process.
- Do not include quotes from the vendor or vendor partners.
The importance of "Warts." Warts are journalistic
imperfections in an article– not errors but rather negatives about the subject.
Articles that paint too rosy a picture often are dismissed by readers as
self-promotional. Articles that include "warts" become more believable by
readers because the warts provide a dose of realism and truth that says to the
reader, "We are presenting the problems associated with this solution, as well
as the benefits."The article immediately becomes more believable, as a result. A
journalist would seek out these imperfections in order to write a more balanced
article. We encourage you to include warts in your article whenever possible.
Manufacturing quotes in case histories: Please don't
interview the subject and use real quotes. An example of what we see a lot: "
XYZ company did a fantastic job with the implementation and their products are
saving us lots of time and money."These types of quotes do not lend any useful
information to our readers, and generally will be deleted from the article.
Contact information. In addition
to contact information for the vendor submitting the article, we will need the
name, phone number and e-mail address of a person at the company that is the
subject of the case history. This person preferably should be the one
interviewed for and quoted within the article. Editors routinely call these
contacts to verify information or to ask additional questions.
Failure to provide this contact information can result in your article being
turned down.
The Tutorial
A second type of story is a tutorial, which examines a new,
basic or advanced technology in a new or updated context. A tutorial style
article should still be readable and, where possible, cite specific examples and
cases. A tutorial can carry a byline from a vendor representative, but the
vendor's products will not be mentioned in the article.
Please do not submit an opinion piece as a tutorial, and remember, we want
discussion of solutions, not problems. Your article should explain how the
technology is used by and benefits the enterprise end-user. Avoid too much
historical background. Do not criticize competing technologies; instead focus on
the features, implementation, benefits, etc., of the technology of your focus.
Tutorials should be solution-based, providing practical and useful
information to enterprise end-users. Also:
- Provide a straightforward presentation of the
technology/solution discussed, so that IT decision-makers will have at least
most of their questions answered.
- What are the cost and staffing implications of the technology/solution being
discussed?
- Is the solution interoperable with other components of the network? If not,
what changes must be made to provide interoperability?
- Describe the most important components of the technology/solution.
-
What are the benefits, in terms of: savings, productivity, customer care or
service, etc.?
Articles that are self-serving or recite the technical specifications of a
particular product are unacceptable. The article should not serve as a thinly
disguised promotion for a product or company.
Any submission of articles must be exclusive to Communications News.
We generally do not accept articles that have been published in another trade
journal, newspaper, periodical, on the Web, company literature or conference
proceedings.
Acceptance Frequency Policy
In order to be fair to all potential contributors, we limit the frequency of
articles accepted for publication from any one company to no more than one
article every four months
Length
Our feature stories generally run from 700 words to 1,200 words. Most stories
are on the shorter side.
Submission
If your article is accepted for publication, it will be assigned a file name
to use in future references (e.g., c04company.doc). Please be aware that your
manuscript will be edited for style, space requirements and ease of reading. We
can accommodate your article and graphics on a CD or as an attached file to an
e-mail message (preferred).
Important: Make sure the manuscript you send us has the name
and address of a contact person within the vendor company submitting the article
to whom we can send reader inquiries.
Photos and illustrations
Photos and artwork help to set a tone for articles, and provide important
visual interest. We encourage you to provide photos and/or artwork for the
article. For case histories, we prefer photos at the customer site, preferably
including the main person who is quoted (no head shots, please). Artwork,
graphics or photographs should be high-quality photographs, transparencies,
35-mm slides or electronic files. Line drawings such as tables, charts or
schematics also are acceptable. Graphics may be submitted in digital format or
via hard copy. The graphics should be in Adobe Photoshop- or Adobe
Illustrator-compatible TIF, JPG or PPT files. EPS is not recommended. The best
quality comes in 300 dpi high-resolution or higher.
Important: Do not embed graphics, artwork or photos in the
Word document containing the article. Also, include captions with all photos and
artwork.
Contact Us
Editorial Assistant,
Ph: 941-966-9521 x139
cbradley@comnews.com
Check this number first with questions about deadlines, topics, media kits,
contributed articles,
editorial calendar, etc.
Editor
To propose cover stories or feature articles, send a short abstract
first. Indicate the Month and Focus Subject the article is intended for in the
subject line of your e-mail.
Products editor
Send new product announcements. Indicate " New Product" in the subject line of
your e-mail.
Product Submission Guidelines:
http://comnews.com/about/prod_submission.htm
Communications News
2500 Tamiami Trail N.
Nokomis, FL 34275
Phone: (941) 966-9521
FAX: (941) 966-2590