Community Corner

13 Things You (Didn't Know You) Could Do on Patch

After one year of existence, we're helping making life ridiculously easier for you and your neighbors!

Upper St. Clair Patch celebrated its , and today we want to take the time to remind you why we're here and what this site is all about.

We've built Patch so that you have plenty of opportunities to comment on stories, share your opinions, post photos and announcements and add events to the community calendar. We hope that our site will strengthen the community, and you, as a member of the community, will help make it better.

From our online business reviews to blogging, there's probably at least one thing you didn't know you could do on Upper St. Clair Patch in our list of 13 below:

Find out what's happening in Upper St. Clairwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

1. Comment on an Article

We subscribe to the idea that "news is a conversation." Much of our reporting will emanate from what readers tell us in emails, comments on our sites and in conversations around town. Share your thoughts and reactions to our articles by posting a comment directly below each story. 

2. Start a Blog

We offer the opportunity to blog on our site in the section called Local Voices. It's located on the center of our homepage or under the News tab on our homepage. Once you get started, you can post as little or as much as you want. If you're interested, please email the Upper St. Clair Patch editor at becky.emmers@patch.com.

Find out what's happening in Upper St. Clairwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

3. Rate Your Neighborhood Businesses

Do you want to be the first to tell your friends whether the new restaurant in town gets a thumbs-up? You can post a review of your favorite (or not-so favorite) restaurants, mechanics and government agencies under the Places tab on the homepage.

4. Send a News Tip

At the bottom of the homepage, there's a link that says, "Send Us News Tips." Tell us about stories we should cover. Your tip will be sent straight to Becky Emmers, Upper St. Clair Patch editor.

5. Post an Event

Do you know of a school play at the high school or local fundraiser? Is there a garage sale or graduation ceremony coming up? If it's not on our Patch calendar, it should be. Feel free to add events to our site at http://upperstclair.patch.com/events. Oh yeah, and it's free.

6. Post an Announcement

Post births, engagements and wedding announcements. Tell us who made the honor roll or share school awards, social notes and thank you shout outs. 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 Use say announcements should be for personal use and not for advertising. Here's the link to post an announcement: http://upperstclair.patch.com/search/announcements. You can also find it under the News tab on the homepage. And again, it's free.

7. Sign Up for Newsletters and Breaking News Alerts

The daily Upper St. Clair Patch newsletter brings you the latest articles, the most recent announcements and opinions posted in the last 24 hours and a listing of that day's upcoming events. It is delivered to your email every morning. You can also sign up for a weekly newsletter and breaking news alerts. To sign up, click on "Patch Newsletter" in the upper right hand corner on the homepage.

If you want to change your subscription settings, login to your Patch account and click your name and profile at the upper right corner. Click on Notification Settings and you can change your newsletter settings.

8. Claim Your Places Listing

Our business and organization listings aren't skimpy. Our team of researchers actually hit the streets and visited businesses, schools, parks, library and more so we can provide photos as well as detailed information such as products sold and hours of operation. To contact us about the listing for your business or organization, email us at directorysupport@patch.com. If you own or manage a business or organization under our Places tab, claim it at http://upperstclair.patch.com/places.

9. Shout It Out!

Leave a shout out on the site without having to add a comment to an existing article. You can tell us what you have to say right now by using the new shout box at the top of the Activity Stream. Whatever you "shout" will go directly into the stream, right on the homepage.

10. Contribute to the Neighborhood Gallery

Have a photo or a video of an event that you recently attended? We have the perfect place for you to share those photos with your neighbors.

"Your Neighborhood Gallery" debuted on Tuesday, Dec. 13. This photo gallery provides a place for readers to easily upload photos (and videos) of the Upper St. Clair community directly to Patch.

We want to know what you’ve seen in town, and we want you to share your pictures with our readers and staff. While you can upload photos and videos related to specific stories to many articles on this site, until now, there was no existing place for you to upload media that aren’t related to an existing story or post.

11. Check Out Local Traffic and Gas Prices

Check out our new Traffic & Gas tab on the homepage. You can consult a real-time traffic map complete with incident reports and construction notices. Plus, find the lowest gas prices in town.

12. Social Media Engagement

Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. Immerse yourself in our content and actively contribute and engage via social media.

13. Send a Letter to the Editor

Patch would like to extend an invitation to every member of the community to submit a letter to the editor. Express your thoughts or concerns about anything that might be stirring up conversation around town, and we'll post it. Email it to Upper St. Clair Patch's editor at becky.emmers@patch.com.

We hope Upper St. Clair Patch and these 13 tips will help make life ridiculously easier for you and your neighbors!


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