Blog Readers, Like Letterman, Like Lists

/0 Comments/in /by

David Letterman’s Top Ten Lists were such an effective way of organizing content that NBC tried to claim ownership of the idea when Letterman moved to CBS. (The talk show host still finds lists make for good content strategy, and they’re now called the Late Show Top Ten; Stupid Pet Tricks is the name of another list series on the Late Show.)

That lists and bullet points in general are a good fit for blogs is actually something I stress in corporate blogging training sessions.  By most accounts, search engines like lists and bullet points.  Even more important, I’ve found over the years, lists help keep readers – and writers – on track (especially the writers).

Fellow blog content writer Brian Clark advises keeping bullet points symmetrical.  He means keeping all the points in a group approximately the same length, and also using the same grammatical form throughout the group.

“People love lists, and just about any kind of list is bound to attract traffic,” says Susan Gunelius in her “20 Ideas for Writing a Blog Post”. She suggests starting with a number, then taking it from there, with. Top 10 lists, 5 things not to do, 3 reasons I love something, etc.

Continually creating new content can pose quite a challenge for busy business owners and professionals, and, I’m sure, for talk show producers as well. One type of re-purposed content that can be very helpful to blog writers and extremely valuable to readers is “best of breed” resource lists. Using material from former blog posts, newsletters, and even email, collate references on different topics.  The idea is that your blog can become the “go-to” when readers want more complete information on any topic you’ve discussed.

Blog readers, like Letterman fans, like lists!
 

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedintumblrmail

Mistakes Matter in Canes and Blogs

/0 Comments/in /by

During my tour of the Benjamin Harrison presidential mansion a week ago, our wonderfully knowledgeable volunteer guide Bob Trimpl  pointed out the beautiful hand-carved walking cane displayed on the library desk. Unfortunately, he explained, several of the faces of the different presidents look exactly alike (the carver lacked the skill to differentiate, apparently). What’s more, Trimpl added, several of the presidential names were misspelled!

Did my guide’s pointing out those mistakes add to my enjoyment of the tour?  Definitely.  Still, “unfortunate” is the operative word here, I couldn’t help thinking. The artist’s gift to his president was diminished by his neglecting to clean up the details.
When it comes to blogging for business, I teach content writers, high quality includes using proper grammar and spelling. And when business owners and professional practitioners serve as their own editors, I definitely urge no-error erring on the side of caution. Who knows? I ask. That improperly used “loose” may be what “loses” your blog visitor. Why take a chance?

When it comes to the faces on the cane being “too similar” there’s a lesson for business blog content writers as well. It's more than OK to quote another person's blog post if you take only parts of it and don't take the credit for creating it.  The way to avoid plagiarism (duplicate content in Google-speak) is to properly attribute statements to their authors.

Can talking about past mistakes add interest to blog content?  Well, yes. In fact, I teach freelance blog writers in Indianapolis that including stories of their clients’ past mistakes and failures has a humanizing effect, engaging readers and creating feelings of empathy and admiration for the business owners or professional practitioners who overcame adversity and improved their skills.

Still, I’d conclude, avoiding distracting spelling and grammar mistakes in the blog content itself is what great authors might call “the better part of wisdom”.

 

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedintumblrmail

For Business Blogs, Take Tried-and-True, Add an Approach

/0 Comments/in /by

The health brochures on display in my doctor’s office called to mind the way different writers had taken different approaches in presenting the information to readers. In the same way, we blog content writers can sustain writing over long periods of time by varying our approach.

A humor piece in the Readers Digest reinforces that very idea. Reddit.com asked workers what the most important rule was for people in their profession.

  • Plumbers answered “Don’t chew your fingernails.”
  • Camp counselors answered “Don’t lose the kid.”
  • Scuba divers said “If it moves, it wants to kill you.”
  • Photographers’ advice: “Take the lens cap off”.


(I was reminded of an anecdote I heard at a sales meeting, about hotelier Conrad Hilton.  When asked what the secret of success in life was, he quipped “Put the shower curtain inside the tub!”

Remember that readers are different and they have different “rules” and needs. Smart blog marketing takes into account that there are many subsets of every target market group, and that not every message will work on every person. At Say It For You, we teach blog content writers that online searchers want to be thought of as individuals. . We blog content writers need to keep on telling the story in its infinite variations, knowing that, to a certain extent, the blog content readers who end up as clients and customers action have self-selected.

After all, to some of your readers, it’s not going to be important if they chew their fingernails or forget to take the lens cap off. What IS going to be important is you sustaining your blog writing by gathering ideas from everything you see, read, and hear and then relating that material to your own business brand. The other thing that IS going to be important is sharing what YOUR important rules are.

Business blog posts need to include stories about how you solved client problems, and what lessons you’ve learned through your experiences, wisdom you’ll be applying in your dealings with them should they choose to become your customers.

 

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedintumblrmail

In Business Blogging or Medical Brochures, It’s All in the Approach

/0 Comments/in /by

To pass the time while waiting to get my flu shot, I browsed handouts at my doctor’s office.  In each one of the three St. Vincent brochures I picked up, the writer had taken a different approach in presenting the information. Each approach, I realized, is one that we freelance blog content writers might take in presenting information to blog readers.

1. Creating awareness that new solutions exist for problems readers are experiencing:
“Don’t just treat your vein problems.  Solve them.”

The brochure goes on to list the risk factors for spider and varicose veins, and then list treatment options to discuss with the doctor: Radiofrequency closure, laser-light therapy, sclerotherapy, and venous duplex imaging.

Marketing blogs will succeed, I teach business owners and practitioners, only if it’s clear you (the business owner or professional practitioner) understand online searchers’ concerns and needs, and that you and your staff have the experience, the information, the products, and the latest technology to solve exactly those problems and meet precisely those needs.

2. Offering business blog readers a course of action that puts them in greater control.
“Women & Stroke: The more I know now, the sooner I can do something about it.”

There is no cure, at least not yet, the brochure informs women, but it can be controlled.  More exercise, losing weight, limiting salt and alcohol intake and certain medications can control the risk, readers are reminded.

In blogging for business, does asking the customer to take action invalidate the good information provided in the piece? Not at all. The reader wants to feel she’s in control of her destiny. As long as your material is valuable and relevant for the searchers, I teach in corporate blogging training sessions, they’re perfectly fine knowing there’s someone who wants their business.

3. Offering lists of resources or lists of informational items.
“Exercising Guidelines for Adults”

This brochure lists components of an exercise program, including warm-up, stretching, aerobics, and cool-down. Turning ideas about your product or service into lists is one piece of blog content writing advice I’ve been sharing with business owners and professional practitioners for years.

From doctor’s office brochures to content in  the blogosphere, it’s all in the approach!
 

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedintumblrmail

Extraordinary Uses Make for Extraordinary Blog Posts

/0 Comments/in /by

No, I didn’t know about these extraordinary uses for ordinary things, and, unless you’re a Reader’s Digest fan like me, you probably didn’t, either:

  • Salt removes red-wine carpet stains.
  • Models and performers reduce puffiness around their eyes with hemorrhoid cream.
  • Ketchup is good for polishing silver.
  • You can use a piece of uncooked spaghetti to light hard to reach candles.
  • Adding black pepper to the wash load brightens tablecloths.


Blogging about unusual ways your products or services have been applied in different situations is a good way to capture interest. In blogging training sessions, I call those "triggering tidbits", pieces of unusual or little-known information that can be tied to explanations of your own company's products, services, and culture in order to capture online readers' interest.

So that the information really is useful to readers, though, your reason for including the information has to be apparent early on in the marketing blog post. It’s best if the new information relates, not only to your topic, but to something with which readers are already familiar.

Establishing the relevance of the information you’re presenting is important, I explain to freelance blog writers, not only from the standpoint of search engine optimization, but for putting that information into perspective for readers.

On the other hand, it’s reassuring to remember, there’s no need to over-think the question of whether to include interesting tidbits in your posts. The very fact that  your company, practice, or organization has a well-kept blog with lots of fresh content tells people you’re “in the game” .

 

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedintumblrmail