FORT COLLINS – The August day is hot. Camera crews stand ready. Janice Mount, creator and host of the new television magazine program NoCo Link, invites her next guest to be seated in the cool shade of Old Town’s leafy canopy.

The guest for this segment is Deanne Mulvihill, executive area manager for Arbonne International, which sells health and beauty products through independent consultants. She fidgets, fingers her notes, then sits. She glances from the camera to nearby onlookers to the power cables snaking underfoot. Her gaze settles on her smiling hostess. Mount welcomes Mulvihill and the interview begins.

Mulvihill said later that once the cameras started rolling, she saw nothing but Mount’s eyes and calmed down immediately.

“Janice made everybody there comfortable,” she said. “It was an awesome experience. Janice was relaxed and in control. There was no tension (on the set); I was very impressed. She is one class act.”

Each 30-minute NoCo Link show will spotlight several local businesses and nonprofit organizations. An event calendar and segments on history and individuals making a difference in the community round out the broadcast. Filming takes place at various businesses and facilities in the Northern Colorado region. The program premier is slated to air at noon Tuesday, Sept. 14 on NoCo Channel 5 (Comcast 8 or 14) and at 10:30 p.m. on KCDO-TV Channel 3.

Mount believes Northern Colorado has the businesses, viewership and economic clout to sustain her ambitious concept, which is modeled after several successful business programs in Denver, such as Colorado & Co. and It’s Your Business.

Outlet for local entrepreneurs

Mount envisions NoCo Link as a television outlet for local entrepreneurs to showcase their products and services without having to travel to Denver. She has a strong concept of the marketing and infrastructure required to make this venture successful, with 15 years of extensive experience in media, from scheduling guests and affiliate relations to sales and on-air time. She gained this inside knowledge working for a decade helping a small independent station grow into the second-largest Christian network in the world – Daystar Television Network, based in Dallas.

A Colorado native, Mount started brewing the idea for NoCo Link last fall. She developed a business plan and pulled together producers, editors, a production team, guests and all of the administrative details and incorporated NoCo Link in May.

“This is all about people working together for the common goal of promoting Northern Colorado,” she said.

Mount is encouraged by the community’s initial response.

“The feedback we’re getting is that people are extremely excited about having this in Northern Colorado,” she said, adding that she has received encouragement from area SBDC directors Donna Beaman (Fort Collins), Dick Pickett (Greeley) and Robin Shea (Loveland), who hope the program will be valuable for the region.

The program is funded by advertisers interviewed during the program. These guests will own their five- to seven-minute segments, and will receive footage of it for their own promotional purposes, such as posting on YouTube or business websites. In addition, NoCo Link will keep the segments posted online at www.nocolink for three months.

Local resources

Although NoCo Link does not yet have the luxury of its own studio, Mount is using local resources such as Shadowplay Films for production and editing services, and regional locales as filming locations.

“We are partnering with Northern Colorado venues,” she said. “After the first taping, which took place in Old Town Fort Collins, we’ll be going to places like Ellis Ranch, Embassy Suites, Best Western Loveland, and the sculpture parks.”

Mount said she has received standing invitations from some venues willing to be used as backups whenever the need arises.

Since NoCo Link is an independent rather than a network program, Mount has to purchase air time on stations to get it out to viewers. NoCo Channel 5 reaches 100,000 homes on Comcast cable and KCDO Channel 3, a full power over-the-air station out of Sterling, reaches 1.3 million homes including viewers in Denver, Wyoming and Nebraska.

Mount is confident in the reach of NoCo Link.

“Surrounding areas and communities will learn about these great local businesses and start coming here,” she said.