It wasn’t quite 2 million page views for greaterlongisland.com in 2017, but it was close.
From Jan. 1 through Dec. 31, greaterlongisland.com, which hosts the community news sites GreaterPatchogue, GreaterBayShore, GreaterBabylon and GreaterPortJeff, was viewed 1.9 million times.
And while the Patchogue and Bay Shore sites were in operation for all of 2017, the Babylon site didn’t launch until April.
The Port Jefferson site wasn’t unveiled until September.
“We’ll surpass 2 million by huge margins in 2018,” said greaterlongisland.com owner, founder, publisher and editorial director Michael White, who lives in Bellport.
Together, the Greater Long Island sites cover 27 hamlets and villages across Suffolk County.
The sites saw 1,055,000 unique visitors this past year.
GreaterPatchogue alone was viewed 1.1 million times.
The Greater Long Island team includes staff reporter Nicholas Esposito, promotions head Nicholas Marchand, as well as a stable of talented photographers and filmmakers headlined by Benny Migliorino of Benny Migs Photo in Patchogue, and Andrew Theodorakis of Yellow House Images in Stony Brook.
Keeping true to White’s promise for 2017, the greaterlongisland.com sites published dozens of videos this past year, a mix of editorial and sponsored yet engaging (paid) features.
Greater Long Island’s most-watched video of the year was a paid spot for RHUM, a restaurant in Patchogue, which surpassed 63,000 views and counting.
“The goal from Day 1 was to become the go-to community news resource for the people of Patchogue and its surrounding areas,” said White, who previously worked for the Daily News. “The new goal is to become the preferred regional news outlet for all of Long Island. And we’re going to have fun doing it.”
In nearly two decades of journalism, White has reported at three daily newspapers and a top chain of community weeklies.
He also has a master’s degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
Marchand, who leads the advertising sales efforts for greaterlongisland.com, said it’s been rewarding to help small businesses make a splash and maintain a consistent presence for themselves locally.
Greater Long Island has also been somewhat of an easy sell, he said.
“Mike reinvented the wheel; I’m just pushing it down the hill with a stick,” Marchand said.
The company also sponsors the annual Island to Table outdoor dining experience, a premier foodie fundraising event that showcases top chefs using top local ingredients.
The funds go to benefit HomeGrown Change, a nonprofit gardening and sustainability group. Be on the lookout this winter into spring as we announce the 2018 chefs lineup.
Please help! Soon we’ll be releasing a very brief reader survey because we want your guidance as greaterlongisland.com crafts a plan for providing even more editorial content in the new year and beyond. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, or sign up for newsletters so you don’t miss it.
Photo: Patchogue’s New Year’s Eve ball countdown and fireworks display at 9 p.m. Sunday. (Credit: John Collins/Yellow House Images)
