TESTIMONIALS

“No other content management system we came across in our search could deliver the ease of use along with the capabilities to do what we wanted to do. They simply weren’t out there.”

– Michael Hopkins, ANC's vice president for external communications

I'm pretty particular. For them to get a glowing review from me, that's not easy.

– Don Foy, technology specialist, The HeraldCitizen

"I am looking for anything I can do to help make my graduate feel special. I would be all over this at $40."

– High school parent in focus group

"This (election app) is another great idea. . . Perfect timing."

– Shawn Storie, Group Manager-Publisher, Smith Newspapers

Our team now is inspired and energized after a whole new world of possibilities has been unlocked.

– James Henry, executive editor, AgriNews Publications, about their redesign

I love reading the Sun Newspaper! I have a daily subscription and I have seen some of the design changes that have taken place throughout the past , but none of those compare to the most recent change that’s been done, I immediately loved this change! This paper really 'POPS' and I immediately gravitate to my easy chair, paper in hand, looking forward to my daily read! Thanks for the change! Thumbs up from here!

– J.Z., a subscriber to the Sun Newspapers after we redesigned the papers

Members who attended Bill's session are giving it outstanding reviews. One said, 'Bill Ostendorf's presentation about Print Not Being Dead was fantastic! It had tips to implement and plenty of thought-provoking comments.'

– Lisa Hills, executive director, Minnesota Newspaper Association

I just want to share with you what an amazing job Lynn did on the April edition of the Guide. Her patience is endless, as we had one client who yet again drove us nuts! She really is a superstar, she never complains, she never flusters, she is so professional.

– Lisa Beauchamp, general manager, Bermuda Guide magazine

"I just sold our 2020 Grads sponsorship for $2,400!"

– Texas publisher

I would now like to say that I REALLY enjoy your NEW paper now! There are now many more articles of interest and I am getting use to finding re-located articles. Keep up thwe good work!

– J.R., a reader of the Sun newspapers after a Creative Circle redesign

I just wanted to say thank you to Lynn for her hard work and patience compiling the Guide. We had added in new features in this issue and we faced challenges of clients not having their ads ready.
As ever, Lynn, was amazing!

– Lisa Beauchamp, general manager, Bermuda Guide magazine

Sean was 100% great to work with. Really enjoyable. Outgoing. Professional. And he knows his role and what he’s doing. And he did it in a way that wasn’t pushy. He made people want to buy.

– Toby Bonner, GM, ad director and coowner, the Powell Tribune

"If this were on (my local newspaper) site, I would write to every parent and encourage them to do it."

– School principal

I had the pleasure of working with Creative Circle on several training and quality improvement projects. Foremost among these was the redesign of The Telegraph in 2002, which was much more than an exercise in typography and layout. Mr. Ostendorf and his crew took us through an extensive training process in the use of the new design tools that helped us improve our content planning as well.

– Dave Solomon, Former Executive Editor, The Telegraph of Nashua, N.H.

If you want to improve your newspaper, make it more compelling for your readers, Bill Ostendorf is the best newspaper consultant in the business.

– Bob Lynn, former AME/Visuals at The Virginian Pilot & Ledger Star

Creative Circle was a natural fit. What I needed was a team with whom I could work with in a collaborative fashion to build a new news enterprise. . . The team at Creative Circle provided the right amount of pushback as part of the creative process.

– Richard Asinof, entrepreneur and publisher of ConvergenceRI

It was a pleasure working with Bill. He is personable. He is a straight shooter. He is one of the smartest persons I’ve ever worked with. He has an amazing understanding of what it takes to take a newspaper to the next level.

– Bob Lynn, former AME/visuals for The Virginian Pilot & Ledger Star

Bill has an uncanny ability to criticize weaknesses in a constructive way and to unearth hidden talents. He talks to people with authority and respect and in turn, people warm to him very quickly.

– Tony Williams, managing editor, The Bermuda Sun

We get more comments on our content than the design itself. They tell us “We like what you’ve done.”

– Rick Thomason, publisher of the Times News in Kingsport, Tenn

I’ve been through this process before and this was different. It was usually two or three alternatives. But you gave us a lot of options from the very beginning. . . . I like that you invited all the different departments in to participate. I thought that . . . allowed us to capture something that felt like it represented our paper.

– Rick Thomason, publisher of the Times News in Kingsport, Tenn

(The team at Creative Circle) are always willing to engage about ways to improve the publication and their technology platform.

– Richard Asinof, entrepreneur and publisher of ConvergenceRI

Working with Creative Media Circle has been an outstanding success.

– Tony Williams, managing editor, The Bermuda Sun

Bill Ostendorf has worked with hundreds of publications to improve design, visual impact, content and readability. His vast experience and his problem-solving insights are the essence of his spirited presentations that enrich the skills of his audiences. Bill is a dynamic speaker who loves newspapers and enjoys talking to newspaper people. His work for SNPA has always been excellent.

– Edward Van Horn, executive director, Southern Newspaper Publisher's Association

Bill’s webinar was brilliant. I learned a lot from it and I personally emailed him and thanked him for sharing his expertise, comments and advice.

– Lisa Beauchamp, GM, The Bermuda Sun, after attending a classified workshop led by Bill Ostendorf

My photojournalism leadership and management book, Vision, Courage & Heart got its start with Bill Ostendorf. He was the book’s first editor. He did a great job of putting the book on a winning course. . . He was easy to work with. He was fun to work with.

– Bob Lynn, author of Vision, Courage & Heart

Creative Circle took time to ensure that every aspect of the redesign, from color themes to font selection, matched the market and traditions of the newspaper, rather than a cookie-cutter template used on client after client. The best testimony for their work can be found in the fact that it stood the test of time. The design elements are still in use at The Telegraph, and are no worse for the wear.

– Dave Solomon Former Executive Editor The Telegraph of Nashua, N.H.

I love the redesign. I love the way we did it. I think we learned a lot. I think our staff got a lot better. . . . Our products are far and away better than when we started.

– Justin Wilcox, publisher, Johnson City Press

What’s Open has been wonderfully received by our community. It fills a much-needed niche.

– Jim Johnson, publisher/owner, The News, Kalona, Iowa

We wanted a world class web site and that's exactly what we got.

– Roger Alford, director of communications, Kentucky Baptist Convention

We’re having more of a conversation with our readers.

– Linda Kleczewski, managing editor of NewsTribune, La Salle, Illinois

I’ll tell you, the team up there, they were very helpful. They’re welcome down here anytime.

– Cliff McCollum, editor, The Baldwin Times

We really love the new website. Looks so great, so user-friendly — our reporters are already on it posting for breaking news, etc. Thank you and your team for all your work with us. It's just great!

– Ann Healey, editor, Colorado Community Media

Bill is a very knowledgeable guy. What I like about him is he’s everything you need in one person.

– Larry Miller, former chief executive officer, Osteen Publishing Co.

“Creative Circle understands newspapers. They keep up with the behaviors of the reader.”

– Roger Bergenheim, publisher, Providence Business News

What we didn’t know was that the designers at Creative Circle Media could take us so far in such a short time.

– Matt Lane, Editor, McAlester NewsCapital

Working with Bill was a learning experience.

– Joyce McCullough, publisher, La Salle (Ill.) NewsTribune

Who better to assist me in the layout and design of the souvenir magazine than the incredibly talented team at Creative Circle Media?

– Lisa Beauchamp, general manager

It’s always a highly interactive and mutually respectful experience working with the Creative Circle team.

– Lisa Beauchamp, general manager

This is the best thing we have done for the community in years! I think this will pay big dividends long after this crisis is over. Great job on this. It puts the newspaper in the forefront and leader in the community and puts us way ahead of our other media competitors in the area!

– Billy Kirk, advertising director, Kingsport Times News, Kingsport, Tenn.

That eye for detail while also instituting broad changes that have great impact - that’s a great combination.

– Mark Fitzgerald, editor of The Inlander

“People have just really responded to the fact that we are now telling their stories through their own words. They have a greater sense of ownership. It really is their newspaper.”

– James Henry, executive editor, AgriNews

Your new design provides a format that not only makes Town Journal more attractive, but easier to navigate.

– Debi Pittman Wilkey, Editor, Town Journal

We saw an almost instantaneous change. Readers have really noticed.

– Linda Kleczewski, managing editor of NewsTribune, La Salle, Illinois

Bill is well worth the money.

– Joyce McCullough, president and publisher, Daily NewsTribune Inc.

That design Denise did for the pocket program was brilliant!

– Cindy Durham, Assistant Executive Director, Southern Newspaper Publishers Association

Lynn (Rognsvoog) is fantastic to work with. She’s fast, she’s diligent, she never panics.

– Mark Fitzgerald, editor of The Inlander

People attending (Bill's) workshops always come out with information they can take home and put to work right away.

– Jim Angell, former executive director, Wyoming Press Association

The paper is much easier to read and comprehend the content.

– Reader of the Times News in Kingsport, Tenn.

(Lynn) is genuinely there to help us reach our goals. She was willing to explain things a few times just to make sure we understood what we were doing.

– Kaitlyn Akers, editorinchief of Le Provocateur

“Now there’s an electricity to our newspaper.”

– James Henry, executive editor, AgriNews

This is a really great feature. I appreciate all the work you guys have put into it

– Don Foy, news editor, Herald-Citizen, Cookeville, Tenn.

He’ll challenge you. He’s like a therapist who will tell you to get over your stuff.

– Parks Rogers, publisher, The Baldwin Times, on working with Bill Ostendorf, Creative Circle's president and founder

Thank you for your help on this project. I think (the web site) looks great. You certainly do not over promise. It does everything you said it would and more with our new requests.

– Jerry Healey, publisher, Colorado Community Media

I LOVE IT! We use this app in Arizona. I highly recommend it for your local market. Bill and his team are fantastic.

– Charlene Bisson, AZ Group Publisher, Independent Newsmedia, Phoenix, Ariz.

“This wasn’t just a redesign. It was a reimagining of the workflow.”

– Mark S. Murphy, editor, Providence Business News

“Thank you for building this new feature.” – publisher, Bristol, R.I.

– Publisher, Bristol, R.I.

This is going to save us time and help us a lot. Thank you!

– publisher, Madisonville, Texas

We knew from the outset that [Mercury magazine] had to look — and feel — very different from the daily newspaper. Working with Creative Circle allowed us to accomplish that in an extremely short amount of time. I’m not sure we could have done it as efficiently or as effectively without them.

– Sheila Mullowney, managing editor, Newport Daily News

“It’s not just the aesthetic. It’s taking a look at the stories and how we are telling them.”

– James Henry, executive editor, AgriNews, on how their redesign changed how they cover the news

"This is very exciting. . . It's so hard to do this on election night and try to get it right and make it look good and keep it organized. Thank you."

– Angela Kellogg, editor and publisher of the Clare County Cleaver

“The students were impressed with the patience and dedication of the Creative Circle staff to the students and redesign project.”

– Michael Guilfoyle, executive director of communications, Assumption College

“No other content management system we came across in our search could deliver the ease of use along with the capabilities to do what we wanted to do. They simply weren’t out there.”

I'm pretty particular. For them to get a glowing review from me, that's not easy.

"I am looking for anything I can do to help make my graduate feel special. I would be all over this at $40."

"This (election app) is another great idea. . . Perfect timing."

Our team now is inspired and energized after a whole new world of possibilities has been unlocked.

Members who attended Bill's session are giving it outstanding reviews. One said, 'Bill Ostendorf's presentation about Print Not Being Dead was fantastic! It had tips to implement and plenty of thought-provoking comments.'

I just want to share with you what an amazing job Lynn did on the April edition of the Guide. Her patience is endless, as we had one client who yet again drove us nuts! She really is a superstar, she never complains, she never flusters, she is so professional.

"I just sold our 2020 Grads sponsorship for $2,400!"

I would now like to say that I REALLY enjoy your NEW paper now! There are now many more articles of interest and I am getting use to finding re-located articles. Keep up thwe good work!

I just wanted to say thank you to Lynn for her hard work and patience compiling the Guide. We had added in new features in this issue and we faced challenges of clients not having their ads ready.As ever, Lynn, was amazing!

Sean was 100% great to work with. Really enjoyable. Outgoing. Professional. And he knows his role and what he’s doing. And he did it in a way that wasn’t pushy. He made people want to buy.

"If this were on (my local newspaper) site, I would write to every parent and encourage them to do it."

If you want to improve your newspaper, make it more compelling for your readers, Bill Ostendorf is the best newspaper consultant in the business.

Creative Circle was a natural fit. What I needed was a team with whom I could work with in a collaborative fashion to build a new news enterprise. . . The team at Creative Circle provided the right amount of pushback as part of the creative process.

It was a pleasure working with Bill. He is personable. He is a straight shooter. He is one of the smartest persons I’ve ever worked with. He has an amazing understanding of what it takes to take a newspaper to the next level.

Bill has an uncanny ability to criticize weaknesses in a constructive way and to unearth hidden talents. He talks to people with authority and respect and in turn, people warm to him very quickly.

We get more comments on our content than the design itself. They tell us “We like what you’ve done.”

(The team at Creative Circle) are always willing to engage about ways to improve the publication and their technology platform.

Working with Creative Media Circle has been an outstanding success.

Bill’s webinar was brilliant. I learned a lot from it and I personally emailed him and thanked him for sharing his expertise, comments and advice.

My photojournalism leadership and management book, Vision, Courage & Heart got its start with Bill Ostendorf. He was the book’s first editor. He did a great job of putting the book on a winning course. . . He was easy to work with. He was fun to work with.

I love the redesign. I love the way we did it. I think we learned a lot. I think our staff got a lot better. . . . Our products are far and away better than when we started.

What’s Open has been wonderfully received by our community. It fills a much-needed niche.

We wanted a world class web site and that's exactly what we got.

We’re having more of a conversation with our readers.

I’ll tell you, the team up there, they were very helpful. They’re welcome down here anytime.

We really love the new website. Looks so great, so user-friendly — our reporters are already on it posting for breaking news, etc. Thank you and your team for all your work with us. It's just great!

Bill is a very knowledgeable guy. What I like about him is he’s everything you need in one person.

“Creative Circle understands newspapers. They keep up with the behaviors of the reader.”

What we didn’t know was that the designers at Creative Circle Media could take us so far in such a short time.

Working with Bill was a learning experience.

Who better to assist me in the layout and design of the souvenir magazine than the incredibly talented team at Creative Circle Media?

It’s always a highly interactive and mutually respectful experience working with the Creative Circle team.

This is the best thing we have done for the community in years! I think this will pay big dividends long after this crisis is over. Great job on this. It puts the newspaper in the forefront and leader in the community and puts us way ahead of our other media competitors in the area!

That eye for detail while also instituting broad changes that have great impact - that’s a great combination.

“People have just really responded to the fact that we are now telling their stories through their own words. They have a greater sense of ownership. It really is their newspaper.”

Your new design provides a format that not only makes Town Journal more attractive, but easier to navigate.

We saw an almost instantaneous change. Readers have really noticed.

Bill is well worth the money.

That design Denise did for the pocket program was brilliant!

Lynn (Rognsvoog) is fantastic to work with. She’s fast, she’s diligent, she never panics.

People attending (Bill's) workshops always come out with information they can take home and put to work right away.

The paper is much easier to read and comprehend the content.

(Lynn) is genuinely there to help us reach our goals. She was willing to explain things a few times just to make sure we understood what we were doing.

“Now there’s an electricity to our newspaper.”

This is a really great feature. I appreciate all the work you guys have put into it

He’ll challenge you. He’s like a therapist who will tell you to get over your stuff.

Thank you for your help on this project. I think (the web site) looks great. You certainly do not over promise. It does everything you said it would and more with our new requests.

I LOVE IT! We use this app in Arizona. I highly recommend it for your local market. Bill and his team are fantastic.

“This wasn’t just a redesign. It was a reimagining of the workflow.”

“Thank you for building this new feature.” – publisher, Bristol, R.I.

This is going to save us time and help us a lot. Thank you!

We knew from the outset that [Mercury magazine] had to look — and feel — very different from the daily newspaper. Working with Creative Circle allowed us to accomplish that in an extremely short amount of time. I’m not sure we could have done it as efficiently or as effectively without them.

“It’s not just the aesthetic. It’s taking a look at the stories and how we are telling them.”

"This is very exciting. . . It's so hard to do this on election night and try to get it right and make it look good and keep it organized. Thank you."

“The students were impressed with the patience and dedication of the Creative Circle staff to the students and redesign project.”

I just wanted to say thank you to Lynn for her hard work and patience compiling the Guide. We had added in new features in this issue and we faced challenges of clients not having their ads ready.
As ever, Lynn, was amazing!