Triggering Trivia in Business Blogs

/0 Comments/in , /by


Modern technology has made it possible to find and share fascinating information, explains Alex Palmer in the delightful little book Alternative Facts. Of the 200 entries in the collection, about one-third are “true-ish” rather than true, and readers are invited to guess which those are, with answers found at the back of the book.

Trivia in general, I’ve long maintained, represent useful tools for blog content writers. In addition to adding some fun to the discussion of a topic, trivia can be used in business blogs in at least four different ways:

1. defining basic terminology
2. sparking curiosity about the subject
3. putting modern-day practices and beliefs into historical perspective
4. explaining why the business owner/practitioner chooses to operate in a certain way

Of course, stocking up on ideas for future blog posts isn’t all about trivia, as I explain to newbie blog content writers. The trivia tidbit is just the jump-off point for the message.

Here are eight facts, culled from Palmer’s book, that illustrate the value of “triggering” the discussion of a subject using a piece of trivia and relating it to the sponsor of the blog:

Who might use each of these tidbits in their blog?

1. Chewing your food longer can help you lose weight.
(weight loss advisor, spa, health provider, health food store) ,:

2. Of all creatures, moths have the strongest sense of hearing.
(audiologist, hearing aid company)

3. Americans are the only people who label pencils No. 2.
(private school, tutoring center, office supply store)

4. Warner Music Group owns the rights to the lyrics of “Happy Birthday”, and earns royalties on every use of the song on film, on TV, or in a public performance.
(patent attorney, birthday party organizer, party favor store, child care center)

5. William Shakespeare wore one gold earring.
(jeweler, fashion advisor, salon)

6. The bathroom scene in Alfred Hitchcock’s “Psycho” was the first time a toilet was flushed on screen.
(plumbing supply store, plumber, home builder, realtor)

7. The oldest preserved human body in the world was covered in tattoos.
(tattoo parlor, salon, spa)

8. Being double-jointed is something a person is born with.

(dance studio, exercise coach, dance equipment or exercise equipment provider)

For blog content writers, adding fun and interest to blog posts might be a “trivial” matter!

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedintumblrmail

Use First-Person Power in Business Blogs

/0 Comments/in /by

 

Popular magazines, I find, are a great source of ideas for blog marketing. The publication needn’t be recent, I found, browsing through the Cook’s Illustrated 2016 Annual that I happened upon at a local café, thinking to get some new meal ideas.

One thing that really stood out about the intro to each recipe was the “we”:

  • “We thought the classic American dinner roll couldn’t get any better. Then we tried a cutting-edge Asian baking technique….”
  • “Sticky buns look inviting, but most are dry and over-sweet. We wanted a version that fulfilled its promise….”
  • “Unless you’re a skilled pastry chef, wrapping delicate dough around a wet filling is a recipe for disaster. We wanted a strudel recipe for the rest of us…”

“The voice of a writer is usually easier to hear in first person,” says William Cane in Writer’s Digest, expressing the thought that third person narratives mimic the “beige voice” of a reporter. First person blog content writing (using the pronouns “I” and “we”) allows the writer to be intimate, unique, and conversational..

Different blog posts, of course, serve different purposes. Second person (“you”, “your”) is a good fit for how-to blog posts, while third person (“he”, “she”, “they”) may be a choice for news items.

Admittedly, nobody likes people who speak of nothing but themselves. Still, in corporate blogging, I stress first person business blog writing because of its one enormous advantage – it shows the people behind the posts, revealing the personality of the business owner, practitioner, or the team standing ready to serve customers.

Still, it’s important to remember that all content writing in blogs is actually “second person” in that every piece of information offered has to be about the readers. Generally speaking, I prefer first and second person writing in business blog posts over third person “reporting”. I think people tend to buy when they see themselves in the picture and when can they relate emotionally to the person bringing them the message.

Use first-person power in business blogs!

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedintumblrmail

Eating the Blog Frog

/0 Comments/in /by

 

A saying attributed to Mark Twain is a good rule for blog content writers:

“If it’s your job to eat a frog, it’s best to do it first thing in the morning. And if it’s your job to eat two frogs, it’s best to eat the biggest one first.”

Productivity coaches Stefano & Sabine of Noisli.com explain the Twain saying as follows: “The frog is that one thing you have on your to-do list that you have absolutely no motivation to do and that you’re most likely to procrastinate on. Eating the frog means to just do it, otherwise the frog will eat you meaning that you’ll end up procrastinating it the whole day.”

Since the success of business blogging is so very dependent on the sheer discipline of continually posting new content, I was especially interested in some advice for writers I found in The Autobiographer’s Handbook. Author Anthony Swofford tells writers:  “Wake up.  Drink coffee. Write.  Ignore phone, ignore email, ignore world. Write.”

One of my own favorite marketing gurus, Seth Godin explains that “writing long-form content on popular topics in your niche will put your thinking on display and give your readers an opportunity to evaluate your expertise.”

The problem with that very good advice from both Swofford and Godin – maintaining a business blog requires what I call “drill-sergeant discipline.” From the very early years of Say It For You, it became clear that the key to business blogging success was going to be simply staying on task.

Psychology professor K. Anders Ericsson, who has spent twenty-five years analyzing high-flying professionals,says that elite performers in any field, he says, engage in deliberate practice, an “effortful activity designed to improve performance”. Momentum in the online rankings race comes from frequency of posting blogs and from building up longevity by consistently posting relevant content over long periods of time.

Content writers soon learn – successful blog marketing requires “eating the frog”!

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedintumblrmail

Blog to Punctuate, Not Bewilder

/0 Comments/in /by

 

It’s not hard to find websites listing funny examples of misleading punctuation – or lack thereof.

  • A woman without her man is nothing.
    A woman: without her, man is nothing.
  • Let’s eat Grandma.
    Let’s eat, Grandma!
  • I have only twenty-five dollar bills.
    I have only twenty five-dollar bills.
  • I’m sorry I love you.
    I’m sorry; I love you.
  • The author finds inspiration in cooking her family and her dog.
    The author finds inspiration in cooking, her family, and her dog.

“Failing to use a punctuation mark, using it in the wrong place, or failing to proofread, vappingo.com points out, is one of the most effective methods of transforming a great piece of writing into something that sucks.”

From a practical point of view, Walsworth.com reminds writers, “Utilizing correct punctuation won’t help you make friends or boost your business, but using punctuation incorrectly will make your book, magazine or catalog copy stand out like a sore thumb.”

As a content writer and business blogging trainer, I cannot tell you how often I hear the argument about blogs being more informal and more conversational in tone than websites.  The conclusion drawn is that punctuation and spelling don’t matter in blogging. Big mistake – anything that puzzles readers interferes with their interest and engagement, defeating the purpose of the blog content.

A business writer’s basic tools, Tony Rossiter says in Effective Business Writing in Easy Steps, include:

  • Plain English
  • Vocabulary
  • Spelling
  • Punctuation
  • Grammar
  • Preparing and checking the presentation

    Punctuation helps your blog do what it was meant to do, namely tell readers what you do and what you’d like them to “do about it”. Blog to punctuate, not bewilder!

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedintumblrmail

Attract, Don’t Demand Attention with Stick Blog Content

/0 Comments/in , , /by

Making messages deliver impact is, of course, “our thing” as business blog content writers, and this week’s Say It For You blog posts are devoted to sharing wisdom from Chip and Dan Heath’s book Made to Stick. 

We can’t succeed if our messages don’t break through the clutter to get people’s attention, the authors point out, and surprise gets our attention, Chip and Dan Heaths agree. Opening your blog post with a startling statistic can be a way to grab visitor’s attention, I often point out to writers, adding power and focus to posts, and showcasing your own knowledge and expertise.

“If you want your ideas to be stickier, you’ve got to break someone’s guessing machine and then fix it.” Gimmicky surprises can’t do that job; you must target an aspect of your audience’s thinking that relates to your own core message, the Heaths emphasize. To be satisfying, the surprise must be “post-dictable”, so that the next step becomes obvious to readers.

But we also can’t succeed if we can’t keep people’s attention, the authors caution. I agree. My experience as a blogger and as a blogging trainer – has shown me that statistics, even the startling sort, aren’t enough to create positive results for any business or practice. We need to search for sticky ideas that have the power to maintain our interest over time – and to propel action.

The authors offer specific steps to follow in crafting a message:

  1. Identify the central message you want to communicate.
  2. Figure out what is counterintuitive about the message. Why isn’t the result already happening naturally?
  3. Communicate the message in a way that “breaks the audience’s guessing machine”.
  4. Help them refine their “machine” with a solution.

    Item #1 on this list is the foundation. It’s advice writers too often forget; their blog content is often the worse for it. Each article, each blog post, I teach, should have a razor-sharp focus on just one story, one idea, one aspect of a business or practice.

Using the counterintuitive is an excellent tool for engaging interest. But in creating blog content, I add, look beyond the surprise. The risk content writers face is being perceived as “bait and switch” advertisers. The unlikely comparison must clarify issues, helping readers get the answers they came to find.

Attract attention with sticky blog content that gets and keeps people’s attention by offering solutions.

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedintumblrmail