We all agree that there is an unsatisfied mkt! I agree with those who say,start online; this will get you worldwide readership! And attract ads!;low over-heads,quick-start etc

I have been writing for the African Courier Magazine (print 4 Diaspora - more than just biz matters) since 2005,beside my regular job and I can share my lessons.

If you want quality,dont go for journalists and reporters except when reporting,and u can get these freelance! Their stories are simplistic,unoriginal,just chewing of cud then spewing it out! They dont break down things coz they dont get it themselves.

Employ only webmaster,editor,designer (all part-time) and marketing manager full-time. U want the best,u pay very well on freelance basis for 1 feature =1200worded,and 800worded regular opinion,commentary and analysis pieces by professionals in their fields,and lastly a few max. 400worded journalistic pieces. Try different people with originality of thought and retain the ones attracting readers or generating publicity,for regular columns. At least 20k for 800words by a profi in their field. (When I did a feature on doing stocks,not as a profi but from my own eperience,that netted me 30K and I did it in a day!) Many good writers without a forum can start at 20K but not for less as they earn well elsewhere.

A lot of media in UK is worse than BDA coz of cost-cutting,paying 5k per article! But then they r sold cheaply or distributed free-of-charge.

Try to borrow from the Economist; business pple r trying to understand endless data-thus,filter it and break down what is important for them in a balanced way; let them make up their minds. Try to be forward-looking.

Allow ur writers to create distintive styles and xter befitting the subject - like Mutahi Ngunyi & politics! Finally,I think u cant pull this off by urself while doing your job full-time!


When buying shares,ask yourself,would you buy the whole company?

and to work around what tonicasert raised about insider trading/rumours,you can have a section of the site as a blog (nation also has this),then disclaim to kingdom come and also have a moderator to filter any such posts.

The problem with equality is that we desire that it be with those that have more than us rather that those that have less

@ Jammo

I relate to your frustration with business daily and kenyan journalism,what i find interesting is the solution you are coming up with.

No offense,but your solution is typically kenyan (being a jack of all trades) and is probably why the current media are disappointing.

You are not happy with the content of business daily because they use journalist students to write articles on finance. people who in real life only relate to finance upto their bank accounts,cannot tell the difference btn an income statement and a balancesheet and think the minister of finance understands finance.

The solution is not for you to start a finance magazine from scratch,coz IMHO having read your posts,the standard you seek is high and can only be achieved through specialization. Even if you were to launch a 1 man show business paper,you would get so distracted by the daily BS like staff payroll,arguing with advertisers etc that at the end of the day you will have to compromise quality due to exhaustion.

What I would suggest you do is get a column at BD and write your ideas and analyses,may be get SK to move into publishing some of your articles and sending them to subscribing members.

Or the ultimate is to come together with upto 10 partners who share the your dream,pool capital and go big time. Hit Nairobians so hard with good quality Finance analysis that you will have them scrambling for copies each week.

NB. If you decide to go for the ultimate,I am in.



I guess if you can't win with facts,you can always pen bile-laced,xenophobic rants to distract everyone.

Thanx guys. Thanx alot. But please get my burden..and am sure many share it...getting right timely info to that existing and would be investor/shareholder out there. Only a fraction of investors hav access to web..convenience n logistics.. How many new skerians hav u noted since last year? I didn't kno of sk till feb last year! Investing public has grown tremendously but investor education is at its worst! Dailies don't help much either..plus havin met marketers from old mutual n baam...trust me funds and trusts aint helpin either.. I'm tryin get guys informed.. A vibrant market is good for all of us..That's my aim... Internet is good..but only a fraction of investors are keen on web..i just want to get right,correct,relevant,factual info out there and timely! Call it my csr.

The race is not always to the swift..nor the battle always to the strong..nor food always to the wise..nor riches always to the intelligent..favor is not always to the skilled..or learned..but time and chance happens to all. Ecl9:5..

The common belief that Internet connectivity is expensive in Kenya is a falacy,in my view. I went to SA a few years back and was shocked at the cost of browsing at internet cafes...it was equivalent to 10 bob per min and the speeds were worse than what you get in any decent 1-bob-per-minute joint in Nairobi.

I don't think there is anywhere else in the world you can connect at 1 US cent per minute...or 3G at USD37 per month. Diasporians,please confirm or deny this....

The reason Internet penetration is so poor in Kenya and other developing nations is that computers are too expensive! Think about it,if the price of petrol dropped to 5 bob per litre,would more Kenyans buy cars? Of course not....unless the average price of a good mtumba dropped from the current 750k to 100k.

Internet usage will only improve if computer prices dropped to 5k...look what happened to cellphones....14million users and climbing

So,Jammo is right in thinking hard copy paper.

The idea of doing a column is great,but not in BD. The average guy sitting at the broker's office right now is not reading BD - but he probably has a copy of DN clutched under the armpit.

That's the guy Jammo wants to reach..with accurate information and well thoughtout analysis of the market.

This is why I thought Jammo's paper could be distributed through subscription by the brokers and their agents...they could actually pick up copies free of charge and distribute to their customers also free...you cover your costs with advertising.

From a marketing perspective,seems to me like you're sitting on a gold mine.

The need for comprehensive and up-to-date financial information and analysis is long overdue in the Kenyan market. Those currently catering for the need are journalists and unfortunately many wouldn't know a balance sheet from an income statement.

My advice? Since you already have such an admirable following online,start with a simple two pronged approach...

i) A blogsite incorporated into a website to cater for the online community. In addition,you can use revenues obtained from advertising and subscriptions to fund the magazine in the long run.

ii) Look to have a column in all (if possible) the major papers. Tuesday seems to be the day NMG and Standard Group have set aside for financial analysis...so flow with it. Write for the Financial Standard and Smart Company. In the short run,this provides you with exposure to your target audience.
The blogsite and website give you the opportunity to recieve real-time feedback on the content from existing and new readers.

In the long run,with the experience and following you've obtained from the above,pull out of writing colums and begin a full fledged quarterly magazine. The readers and corporates will follow.

You've got the vision,and no one else can implement it exaclty as you see it. So take up the challenge and run with it......

Better days are coming... they're called Saturday and Sunday.