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Birmingham Mail launches it own website to extend newspaper's brand

A new, title-specific website has been launched by the Birmingham Mail – with more unique content than ever before.

The new site, www.birminghammail.net, will continue to upload stories from the parent print title, but Mail journalists will now add extra content, links, picture galleries, video footage and user-generated content.

The digital team attend each of the paper’s three daily news conferences, identifying and developing specific content online as well as uploading breaking news.

In addition to the improved news and sports content, birminghammail.net offers greater interactivity with a wide range of new bloggers covering a variety of topics.

New blogs online include posts by the football reporters covering local football teams Villa, Blues, Albion and Wolves and a ‘From here to Maternity’ blog by a reporter experiencing her first pregnancy.

Trained video journalists will also be posting footage onto birminghammail.net every day, covering everything from breaking news to quirky reports. They will continue to have ongoing multimedia training, including video journalism courses and specific training on blogs.

Editor Steve Dyson said: “The result will be a new, vibrant community online, extending the Birmingham Mail brand further than ever before.”

The launch is the latest stage of a major overhaul of the websites of Trinity Mirror’s regional titles which began in June.

Georgina Harvey, managing director of Trinity Mirror’s regionals division, said: “The Mail companion site is the first stage in an ambitious new digital strategy for our Midlands region.

“This is the start of a swift and concentrated roll-out of new sites and online products. It’s a very exciting and positive time for the business.”

The new look site is the result of a dedicated Trinity Mirror project team led by senior multimedia editor Ross Hawkes.