Best of Best of SNO: New Year, New Story Packaging Ideas

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Happy New Year, Best of SNO Aficionados!

We hope your resolutions are going well (or are already forgotten) and 2025 is off to a great start!

As we kicked off the new year, we took a look back at some of the 1,000+ stories published to Best of SNO so far this school year. Beyond the excellent reporting and writing, we noticed certain stories stood out — thanks to exceptional story packaging. Visual elements and creative formatting made these pieces impossible to ignore at a glance.

Here are a few standouts that demonstrate how strong visuals can elevate storytelling:

  • Holiday heroes from the Tiger Times didn’t stop at a feel-good story; they enhanced it with a thoughtful secondary image and a well-produced video, which they turned around quickly, to add depth and energy to the piece.

  • Senior Citizen Thanksgiving Luncheon unites Gen Z, Baby Boomers from The Pitch staff: This story, which could have been overlooked with plain text, became engaging with additional photos and some simple b-roll video.

  • A cold case thaws after nearly a half-century from the Scot Scoop: Storytelling doesn’t always require video — excellent infographics can work wonders. Scot Scoop used the Generic Embed SNO Story Element to incorporate third party graphics seamlessly.

    • Just a reminder, with the Site Booster add-on, you can create infographics directly on your site.

  • Harris-Walz campaign hosts Election Eve party across from Midtown from The Southerner: As we’ve mentioned before, our long-form story format offers powerful design tools. This is one example of how this staff maximized these tools throughout their election coverage, delivering clean and impactful story layouts.

The takeaway? While story packaging won’t determine whether a piece is published on Best of SNO, it can give your story an extra edge. Thoughtful visuals — images, videos, infographics, and design elements — don’t just complement your reporting; they elevate it.

As you dive into the second half of the year, consider how you can package your next big story for maximum impact.

Happy storytelling!
—The Best of SNO Team