Category Archives: Writing for the Web

The Ladder of Emotional Values: Pleasure Reigns

What emotions are people seeking to satisfy online? What can we understand about human motivations and values in order for content marketing to work? Maslow’s famous hierarchy of needs tells us we are motivated to satisfy our basic needs first (food, shelter, clothing), before we seek to obtain satisfaction for social, intellectual and spiritual needs. A similar hierarchy…

4 Content Marketing Goals for a Coach Website

How should content marketing be used on the home page of your website? What makes good website copy? More specifically, if you’re a professional service provider, like an executive coach, a consultant, a lawyer, health care or financial adviser… how do you create a website that attracts clients and gets potential new leads? No matter what business you’re in, your…

Content Marketing Tasks: Practice Makes Progress

If you’ve spent your career avoiding certain marketing tasks because you don’t think you’re any good at them, you struggle each time you try, and you end up with weak results, take heart. Persistence has been touted by poets for a reason. Your brain learns a lot each time you try something, even if you fail. If…

Content Marketing Tip: Start with Ready-to-Publish Articles

Content marketing is easier when you can outsource some of the writing and researching to qualified writers. A great way to short-cut the time needed to research, write and publish quality online content is to find a good writer to supply articles. For example, as a former executive coach and psychologist, I write for other coaches and consultants who are…

Why Writing Like You Talk
Works Better for Your Brain

Today’s guest post is by Barb Sawyers: Many experts who try to write their own content need to rewire their brains, to abandon the lessons drilled into them at school in favor of the more conversational approach that works better online. The good news is that they can evolve. Think about the conclusions of Dr….

5 Content Marketing Questions:
Get Readers to Take Action

What will make your web readers take action or not? Content marketing isn’t successful without results. So when writing a blog post or a web page, keep these key questions in mind. You want to inspire readers to pick up the phone, click here, sign up, register, or remember your brand. Here’s a final note…

5 Content Marketing Questions:
#3 What’s Possible?

In Maria Velosa’s Web Copy That Sells book, there is a 5-step blueprint for writing on the Web. This is really what content marketing is all about. When you answer the following 5 questions, your writing tasks are simplified and your copy becomes clear. What is the problem (pain, predicament)? Why hasn’t this problem been solved? What…

5 Content Marketing Questions:
#2 Why Hasn’t This Problem Been Solved?

In a previous post, 5 Content Marketing Questions: #1 What is The Problem?, I reviewed the content marketing questions that help you organize and simplify your Web writing by asking 5 important questions: What is the problem (pain, predicament)? Why hasn’t this problem been solved? What is possible? What is different now? What should you do now? Question #2, Why hasn’t this…

Writing Web Content that Gets Results: Questions

The rules haven’t changed, but it’s surprising how many people start writing web content without regard for the basics. Many people focus on the medium, the latest shiny tool: the blog, the Twitter tweets, and Facebook updates, without regard for the basic rules of writing copy for the Web. Content marketing is a buzz word not just because…

Edit Your Content: 12 Things NOT to Miss

Here’s a checklist for editing your blog content before you publish. For any content that is vitally important, i.e. sales content or articles delivered to clients, I use Barbara Feiner, a professional editor. She not only corrects errors, but evaluates for clarity and flow. But for blog posts and everyday content creation, I put on my…