Top 10 Ways To Use Patch to Your Advantage

It has been over a year since we started Ramona Patch, and we're pleased to be part of the community. Thank you for the growing support.

We hope that our site will further connect the community. We can't do it without you. Here's how you can engage with us and our readers.

1. Comment on an Article

Much of our reporting emanates from what readers and others tell us in e-mails, comments on Patch and in conversations around town. Share your thoughts and reactions to our articles by posting comments directly below the stories. You must be registered on the site to do this. Find how to register further down in this list. 

2. Post an Event 

Is there a concert, garage sale, group meeting or graduation ceremony coming up? If it's not on our Patch calendar, it should be. Feel free to add your event to our site by clicking on Events in our top menu bar on the home page. Then click on Add an Event.

3. Post an Announcement

Readers can add announcements for births, engagements and weddings, as well as obituaries, free of charge. Tell us who made the honor roll or share school awards, social notes and thank you announcements. If you're looking for volunteers or searching for your lost dog, we welcome you to call on your community for help. Just remember, our Terms of Service say announcements should be for personal use and not for advertising.

To do this, hold your cursor over the News button on the top menu bar of the home page. When a pull down menu appears, click on Announcements, then Add an Announcement.

4. Claim Your Directory Listing 

Before we launched Ramona Patch, our team hit the streets and visited businesses, schools, parks, libraries and more so we could provide photos and detailed information such as products and hours of operation.

If you own or manage a business or organization that is already in our directory, you can claim it and update your information and add photos and video. To do this, hold your cursor over Places in our top menu bar on the home page. When a pull-down menu appears, click on Browse Places. Do a search for your business or organization. Click on it, then click on Claim it (which appears under the photos).

If you do not find your business or organization listed, contact our editor at julie.pendray@patch.com

5. Review Businesses

You can post a review of your favorite business. In order to do that, you must be registered on Ramona Patch. It's free. See instructions in No. 8 in this list.

6. Social Media Engagement

Readers can "Like" us on Facebook at facebook.com/RamonaPatch and follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/ramonapatch. A real sense of community is building on Facebook, where people share information and converation about traffic, accidents, fires and other breaking news. Twitter is a quick, easy format for us to alert readers to important happenings while we work up the full story.

7. Send a News Tip

At the bottom of the home page, there's a link that says, "Send Us News Tips." Your tips go straight to Ramona Patch editor, Julie Pendray.

8. Sign Up for our Newsletter

The daily Ramona Patch newsletter brings you the headlines of all our articles and announcements that have been posted in the past 24 hours. The newsletter will be delivered to your e-mail every day at 6 a.m. if you request it when you register on Ramona Patch. It's free. Simply click on "Sign In" at the far right on the top menu bar of the home page, then follow instructions. Remember that if you read the emailed headlines after 6am, the stories may have been updated by then on the website.

9. Upload Your Photos and Video 

Whenever there's a community event like a parade or fair, or a big weather event, feel free to add your own images to help us illustrate the story. You can also help build the Ramona Patch community photo gallery by adding your best photos of your friends and family out enjoying events.

Click on "Upload photos and videos," which appears under the photos with our stories. Please caption accurately and give your name.

10. Send a Letter to the Editor

Readers are welcome to email a Letter to the Editor for publication. Express your thoughts or concerns about anything that is stirring up conversation around town. Email the letter to julie.pendray@patch.com .