How to Contribute

The key to being community-sourced is for anyone in the community to be able to contribute. So how do you get your content published on ping.mn?

Steps to Contribute to ping.mn

1. Write the story or article.
2. Submit the story to ping.mn as a writer. Medium has a guide on how to do this. (First time writers need to email [contact at ping.mn], DM or tweet us your medium username)
3. Some of the editors will review your story, providing feedback.
4. Review feedback on Medium, and make changes as needed.
5. Editors will schedule and publish the story.
6. Promote the story online alongside @PingDotMN.

Important to Know — This is non-paying

This is an unpaid gig. We are telling the stories to one another that no-one has cared to share before. It would be awesome to get paid, but everyone involved in ping.mn is a volunteer.

Tips for writing well

• Keep it personal. Our focus is on the people and the tech they are building in our community.
• Open with the most powerful point in the story.
• Aim for a reading level of no more than 8th grade — The US average reading level. Hemingway App can help you with this.
• Include at least one image that is relevant to the story. It shouldn’t violate copyright law so get permission! And give credit where credit is due.
• If you have questions about structure or just want feedback, let us know.

Content Guidelines

• We welcome every submission, and our team will work with you to ensure it aligns with our mission.
• Needs to have a direct tie to #MNTech.
• Limit critical and negative comments targeted at people or groups. Ask good questions, use data, and give us hope for a better future.
• Avoid posting press releases in full or part. These can be very helpful starting points, but tell us how it affects people or technology.
• This is not a platform for blatant self-promotion. You may write about your own happenings, but keep it unbiased.
• There is a regular published list of upcoming events. If you have an event/meetup let us know by tweeting or DMing us the details. Feel like it’s more noteworthy? Let us know!

Finding Images you can Use

Missing an image for your story? Use try one of the below sites. Give credit if it is required. Only images explicitly in the public domain do not need to be credited. Ideally images should show off the content of the story, but this is not always possible.

• Creative Commons Search
• Pexels
• Pixabay
• Stocksnap.io
• Unsplash.com
• Picography
• Negative Space
• Life of Pix

Want to talk more about ping.mn?

There is a Trello board used to manage ping.mn. Let us know if you’d like to join.