Archive for On Writing Better – Page 14

How to Win a Blogging Award

By Patsi Krakoff
Tuesday, April 13th, 2010

Can you claim your blog to be award-winning? What kind of prize do you think you’d get if they put you on a best blog list? Most original? Best resource for time-saving tips? Most helpful, profound, smart? Funniest?

The first time I got onto Joe Pulizzi’s Top42 Content Marketing Blogs, back in 2007, I was kinda surprised. And extremely flattered, since I was in the company of some of the top blogs I look up to for inspiration, like Copyblogger, Online Marketing Blog, Conversation Agent, and Web Ink Now.

Now, 3 years later, the pool has quadrupled, and I’m still in the top ten… This quarter, this blog ranks #5. I’m very proud, but more than that, I’m grateful. Being on this list has added more than a few smart readers to the subscriber list, and put me in contact with some great people.

It is also makes getting up early to write everyday worth it, it contributes to my motivation and inspires me to write better.

I want to share with you what the benefits of being on an award list, and what I’ve done since to try to stay on the list. I think there are some good lessons for other bloggers. Read More→

Categories : About Blogs, Content Marketing, On Writing Better, Promoting Your Ezine +/or Blog

Work Better, Write Better: How to Make More Mojo

By Patsi Krakoff
Monday, April 5th, 2010

Woman_and_graph_from_money Do you believe you can change? I mean, seriously change your behaviors and habits? You know, like stop doing some things and start doing others? How do you improve your work habits so you are more productive and effective?

For example, if you've been struggling with blog writing, can you decide you're going to stop struggling, get on that beast and ride it to glory? How do you become a better writer? …and get better blog results?

Last year, I noticed my blog traffic was getting better, but I didn't think it was enough. So I decided to double my blog publishing frequency. I started posting every day instead of every other day.

It worked. Traffic has actually more than doubled since then. The behavioral change, i.e. writing twice as often, wasn't too hard since I enjoy it.

The secret key was a tip I read somewhere: always have one post "in the hopper," saved as a draft for the next day. I think I might have got that from Sonia Simone of Third Tribe and Copyblogger. This writing tip works for other projects as well. If you just get something started, it's easier to get back and continue working on it.

Read More→

Categories : About Blogs, Content Marketing, Ethics & Writing, How to...Tips, Managing Your Ezine & Blog Tasks, On Writing Better

What Is Intelligent Content Marketing?

By Patsi Krakoff
Wednesday, March 31st, 2010

Blue-man-student Good question, similar to "what's a great restaurant" or "what makes for a beautiful woman?" No one right answer and it depends on who the "consumer" is.

My recent post on books for intelligent content marketing shows my preference for psychology and how people think. Obviously, when it comes to writing on the Web for business purposes, you've got to consider the preferences of your readers/clients/prospective buyers.

I'm reading a book called Fascinate: Your 7 Triggers to Persuasion and Captivation, by Sally Hogshead. This is an unbelievably intelligent book that will fascinate your socks off and give you a barrel full of ideas for content marketing.

Fascinate explains the triggers behind viral marketing campaigns. I've never read anything quite like it before. Although many of the stories are familiar to me, Ms. Hogshead puts them into a marketing context.

Whether the book talks about fascinating personalities or products, it's enlightening and useful from a marketing viewpoint.

Here are the 7 triggers that cause us to be fascinated by people and stuff:

Read More→

Categories : Attracting Clients, Books, Content Marketing, On Writing Better

9 Must-Read Books for Intelligent Content Marketing

By Patsi Krakoff
Monday, March 29th, 2010

What are you reading? You may not have much time to keep up with the latest biz books in your field. But some of us (me) spend a lot of time reading. Let me share with you what I'm reading now that I think is really worthwhile.

Different-thinking-concept You may wonder how these relate to writing on the web, or marketing, but trust me, they do. Psychology is the meaningful connection linking marketing to people in any field or profession.

Here's what's on my night table, my desk, my lounge chair out by the pool, and next to my stationary exercise bike:

What's on your reading list?

Categories : About Blogs, Article Ideas, Attracting Clients, Books, Content Marketing, On Writing Better, Online Marketing

The Outline – 3 Questions to Ask for Content Marketing

By Patsi Krakoff
Monday, March 29th, 2010

Speed-drawing (This is a guest post by Linda Dessau, You Talk, I'll Write, and it's great advice for article, newsletter and blog writing.)

"I know we all hated them in school but outlines really can be helpful and worth your time." – Lynne Klippel, March 27, 2010 on Twitter

Last week one of the students in my group program (Content Creation Capsule) proclaimed, "This is exactly what I needed!" What had her so excited? An article outline.

An outline can be as simple as a set of questions. In fact, I often provide questions to prospective newsletter contributors to make it easier for them to draft their article. I simply tell them what I'm curious about in terms of the topic. I do the same thing when I'm interviewing guests for teleseminars.

Let me use this article to demonstrate a really simple set of outline questions:

Read More→

Categories : About Blogs, Article Ideas, How to...Tips, On Writing Better

Time Saving Tips for Smart Blogging – a Tutorial

By Patsi Krakoff
Friday, March 19th, 2010

Just finished this new video clip from iFlashVideo. If you want a quick way to upgrade your business blogging skills to get better results, this program's for you: Time Saving Tips for Smart Blogging.

Categories : About Blogs, Content Marketing, E-Books, On Writing Better, Online Marketing, Pathway to Profits, Writing Great Blog Content

Top 10 Online Resources to Learn Great Blog Writing

By Patsi Krakoff
Wednesday, March 17th, 2010

Note: This guest post is contributed by Anna Miller, who writes on the topic of online degree. She welcomes your comments both here and at her email id: anna.miller009@gmail.com

Blue-man-at-computer Blogging: It’s something you start out as a passion and then slowly develop as a secondary or even primary profession. If you own a blog, you know it’s like a child, one you’ve created and now want to nourish and nurture as the years go by.

The best way to feed your blog and make it grow is to get readers to stop by. To capture a steady stream of readers, you need to post quality content on a regular basis. If you’re just starting out in the blogosphere, here are a few online resources that could help you become a better blog post writer:

1. WSU (Washington State University): You may know your facts, but if they’re peppered with common and not-so-common grammatical and spelling errors, you’re going to turn away your readers. So even though you may be fluent in English, it’s best to double-check your writing using this site as a reference.

2.  Diploma Guide: No matter how good you are, it’s always wise to better yourself. Take a few lessons and courses in writing when time permits and continue to hone your writing skills with this site.

3. Blog Herald: This site has pretty much all the details you need to know to master the art of blogging – from ideas to methods of implementation, get them all here.

4. CopyBlogger: The easiest way to capture a reader is through a catchy headline. Learn the art of coming up with creative titles from this site.

Read More→

Categories : About Blogs, Content Marketing, On Writing Better

Coaches & Therapists: Ready for the Big Six-OH?

By Patsi Krakoff
Monday, March 8th, 2010

Path-to-profits  In 2006 the first of the demographic cohort called the Baby Boomers turned 60. Usually with milestone birthdays people stop, reflect and take stock of their lives. And the BIG Six-OH! really sends people into reflection and introspection.

After looking in the mirror and asking, "How did that happen?" …followed by "Wow, I don't look 60, and I sure don't feel THAT old…" the next thing that follows is usually "Oh! My! God!… that sure happened FAST!"

Meryl Streep in the movie "It's Complicated" is redefining what 60-year-old women look like. Thank goodness, it was about time.

This actually happened to me a few years ago, so I know what I'm talking about. Frankly, it's all good, a little better than I expected, and fortunately, the down-hill part hasn't hit yet.

The most frightening thing? Seeing a few older friends start to fade, health-wise. The next scary thing is seeing a few Boomer friends who do not know what to do next. When they realize they still have 25-35 good years ahead, they are increasingly concerned about meaning, purpose, and energy.

Dan Pink in his new book, Drive, points out there is a possible tsunami coming as the Baby Boomers face questions like:

  • What can I do that really matters?
  • How can I start to make a big difference in this world?
  • How can I live my best life in this next part of it?

Read More→

Categories : About Blogs, Coaching/Personal Development, Content Marketing, On Writing Better, Online Marketing

10 Tips to Put Mojo Back into Your Blog

By Patsi Krakoff
Thursday, March 4th, 2010

Brainstorm Freud divided the brain into three parts: the ego, the id, and the superego. When scientists started using brain imaging, no one was able to locate these three parts, so we assume he was speaking in metaphors.

Now that we can peak inside the living brain, scientists tell us there are 3 parts: the cerebellum (the snake brain), the limbic system (the rat brain), and the more evolved human brain or the prefrontal cortex.

What about your Mojo? Where’s that located? Some of you have lost it, maybe you had a glimpse of it back in 2006 and have been looking to get it back ever since.

I’m talking about motivation, drive, juice, however you want to call it. Mojo is something no one has yet located in any MRI’s or brain scans. We know it exists because we’ve felt it profoundly, some would say as profoundly as sex.

Read More→

Categories : About Blogs, Content Marketing, On Writing Better

Ultimate Secrets Discovered: Proven Power Words Unlock Profits, Success, True Love

By Patsi Krakoff
Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010

Wham-bam-kaboom At Last, Discover the Ultimate Secrets of Proven Power Words, Now! … a guest post by Cheryl Goldberg, of High Tech Communicator.

How many power words are stuffed into this headline?

Six!

Power words are words that allegedly boost the readership of an ad, document, or white paper dramatically and compel people to act. Articles and blog posts abound that claim these words are virtual hypnotists, commanding people’s fingers to click and read further or, even more astoundingly, get people to “throw money at you.”

 Research Studies

I have to admit, anytime someone says that something as simple as words like proven, at last, discover, ultimate secrets, and now will compel my customers to not just cautiously call me about my services, but “throw money at me,” my skepticism meter hurls into overdrive. So I looked into the proof points that these articles gave for these words working so well.

The proof points generally fall into two categories:

Read More→

Categories : Attracting Clients, Content Marketing, On Writing Better, Online Marketing
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