Archive for On Writing Better – Page 26

How to Master Storytelling for Better Selling

By Patsi Krakoff
Tuesday, September 23rd, 2008

Stories sell. It’s not really a secret. Read the best sales and landing pages and you’ll be captured by personal stories. Ask any of the online copywriting gurus and they will tell you: Stories sell.

Our brains are hardwired to be receptive to stories. Once engaged, we find ways to relate, to trust, to enjoy the experience the storyteller is sharing with us. And it’s quite easy to sell something after that.

As a psychologist, I am tempted to explain the neural background for all this, but that’s not the story I want to share here with you today. This post will be short, because I’m going to simply tell you about a master of storytelling who will reveal how to use stories for selling. You can listen and learn from him for free this Thursday.

Craigvalentine
Craig Valentine is teaching these important concepts. Craig is the 1999 World Champion of Public Speaking and 3-time Mid-Atlantic Salesperson of the Year for Glencoe/McGraw-Hill. He knows a few things about storytelling and selling. Here are the details:

When:  Date: September 25, 2008  Time: 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm EST (10:00 am – 11:00 am Pacific)

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Categories : Content Marketing, On Writing Better, Online Marketing, Pathway to Profits

Content Marketing Interview with Allison Nazarian, copywriter and founder of Get It in Writing

By Patsi Krakoff
Tuesday, September 16th, 2008

Allisonnazarian
Allison Nazarian is a young copywriter with a lot to offer. She uses content to market her services on the Web, and helps her clients to do so through her company Get It in Writing.

In our continuing series of interviews about content marketing, we share her experiences here:

1. Tell us what your profession is, and who your typical clients are.

The core expertise of my company, Get It In Writing, is copywriting.
This branches out into more broad marketing consulting for certain
clients. Typical clients run the gamut from one-person entrepreneurial
ventures to Fortune 500 and publicly-traded corporations. 

All need
WORDS (ie copy) for websites, blogs, newsletters, print pieces (though
print is less and less popular, I must say), press materials, sales
kits, etc. 

Read More→

Categories : Content Marketing, On Writing Better, Online Marketing, Writing Great Copy

Alex Geana: Portrait of how one professional uses content to market online

By Patsi Krakoff
Saturday, September 13th, 2008

Content marketing means different things to different people. So I went out to Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and to coaches and consultants I respect who are using Web content to market their services. The results have been terrific.

For one thing, I realize that I am entrenched in marketing the way I do it. It helps me greatly to see how others use it differently. I hope you’ll find these series of content marketing interviews enlightening and helpful.

Alexgeana
Here’s an interview with a smart young professional writer with a creative and eclectic business style, Alex Geana.

1. Tell us what your profession is, and who your typical clients are.

I’m a communications and online marketing consultant. I’m just starting
my own practice and have a budding list of clients. It varies,
depending on their need.

I’m excited about working with the great American Realist Clark Hulings
he’s a master painter with a strong following in noted circles, yet
wants to reach a broader audience. We’re working on an online marketing
campaign to do just that.

Read More→

Categories : Content Marketing, On Writing Better, Online Marketing

How to Write Content That Markets Your Company (Or, What would Seth do?)

By Patsi Krakoff
Thursday, September 11th, 2008

Chris Baggott cracks me up. I asked him how he uses content to market his company’s services, and he sent me this video that shows his Seth Godin doll hanging out in the background! What great use of video content to educate and entertain your peeps…take a look:

Categories : About Blogs, Content Marketing, On Writing Better, Online Marketing

How to Get Your Blog Buzz Back

By Patsi Krakoff
Thursday, September 4th, 2008

Depression
Now I’m getting depressed. Not only am I now officially "old" (and believe me, I’ve got a black belt in denial) but I haven’t been nominated for Michael’s best writing blog list. Okay, I know you don’t want to hear my whining.

But maybe it’s time to beef up this blog. I haven’t been feeling my blog buzz lately and I’ve just been sliding by. This sometimes happens to my tennis and when it does, I ramp up my workouts.

Here’s my plan for getting my blog buzz back:

  1. Read my favorite writing blogs daily and leave a few comments (Use Michael’s list of great blogs)
  2. Use those blogs to inspire my own writing
  3. Post something at least every other day, even if it’s just to refer to a great post found elsewhere
  4. Write at least one meaty post a week, where I reconnect with this blog’s purpose of teaching content marketing on one form or another
  5. Figure out a way to get more reader participation, maybe a poll or survey or contest
  6. Take frequent breaks from my own work and visit what our clients are doing – stop isolating

Read More→

Categories : About Blogs, Content Marketing, On Writing Better

Web Pages: Why it’s important to write content, not just copy

By Patsi Krakoff
Thursday, August 28th, 2008

Maleworker
What’s the difference between web copy and web content?

This is an important distinction if you want your online presence to be more effective. Web content refers to all the pages with relevant information that educates, entertains and engages your readers.

Web copy refers to the content specifically designed to sell or persuade readers to take action.

Why should you care about this distinction? Most people, when they take their business online, get a website designed and put up sales pages for each product and service they need to sell.

They neglect to write multiple content pages. You need as many pages of content as you can stand if you want to get Google juice for all the versions of your keywords and keyword phrases. (Think blog posts/pages, for example.)

The most overlooked part of the online marketing picture is Web content pages – designed to inform your readers and clients. You need to write content that provides solutions to your client’s problems.

Bob Bly, prolific writer and online marketer knows the difference. He’d like to teach and sell you a whole course in how to "become a six-figure Web content writer." Here’s his definition of Web content vs. Web copy:

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Categories : Content Marketing, On Writing Better, Online Marketing

Sales Copy Review- 5 things to rewrite

By Patsi Krakoff
Wednesday, August 27th, 2008

Filefolderspiggybankandmoney
How often do you go back and re-read or rewrite your sales pages? If you’re like most professionals, probably not often enough.

This week I’m rewriting sales copy for our ebook on business blogging (Build a Better Blog). It’s been up on the Web for more than 3 years and although it has been tweaked here and there, it needed to be written for the 3rd edition due out soon.

It’s amazing to see how your writing evolves and how your sales copywriting improves over time. But if you never go back and rewrite your sales pages, you won’t be able to implement your new skills and improve your sales copy.

Here’s a list of things to review on your sales pages after time:

  1. New insights on benefits: Your current customers tell you how your product has helped them, in ways you might not have thought about. Are all the benefits spelled out?
  2. New testimonials: Some clients have written or called with amazing results you can use with their permission. Include new social proof from people who are typical and/or well known.
  3. New features: Your product or book or service improves so be sure to highlight how the new edition or new version is better.
  4. New stories: Your own personal and professional experiences are a great way to seduce readers and engage them into becoming fans.
  5. New voice: Over time, you will develop more of a persona that goes along with your brand. Use your personality and your unique voice as much as possible.

Read More→

Categories : Content Marketing, On Writing Better, Online Marketing, Writing Great Copy

Top Content Marketing Blogs – we made the list!

By Patsi Krakoff
Thursday, August 21st, 2008

Junta42_top_blog
We made the list of Top Blogs for Content Marketing again this quarter. Thanks, Joe Pulizzi, of Junta42 for keeping us informaed about the importance of content for successful business strategies. This blog went from 25th position to 19.

Getcontent
I highly recommend you check out the blogs on this list and learn more about how to write content that connects and builds relationships with your customers.

For more on the whole concept of content marketing, be sure to get and read Joe and Newt Barrett’s book, Get Content, Get Customers. It’s a must read.

Categories : Blogs We Love, Content Marketing, On Writing Better, Online Marketing

Seeking Transformation: What Is It That You Really Do for Your Clients?

By Patsi Krakoff
Wednesday, August 20th, 2008

Pink_present
Denise and I had a session with a mentor this week about our upcoming speaking gigs. I don’t want to tell you who he is just yet, or what his real expertise is. But we worked with him for over an hour to flush out the core outcomes our clients derive from working with us and buying our services and products.

This is one of the most important pieces of work you must do when writing speeches, sales copy or other content that persuades people to want to do business with you.

What are the truly transformative benefits that your clients experience? What services do you provide to your clients that are profoundly meaningful to them?

When it comes to our blogging expertise and products, of course, our clients benefit from having a professionally customized business blog that is optimized for business and branding. There’s no doubt about that. But what else?

But what are the outcomes they experience as a result of working with us? Now that’s a much harder question to answer. It differs from client to client…but there’s no doubt that asking the question and exploring possible answers leads to writing better speeches, better sales copy, better marketing.

What are the benefits that are truly transformative and extend deeply into making our clients’ lives and work better, faster, more efficient, more meaningful and more enjoyable?

Read More→

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

3 Things to Write (or Speak) About…

By Patsi Krakoff
Monday, August 18th, 2008

Problems
Here are 3 things to write about if you want to attract readers, showcase your expertise, and get clients:

  1. Problem
  2. Solution
  3. Action steps

I know this is really simplified, but anytime you have to write a blog post, article, newsletter, email promotion, or speech, you can’t go wrong if you follow these three points.

Most of us try to include the kitchen sink. We go into all the problems, the history of the problems, and all of the manifestations possible. Keep it simple: Problem – solution – action.

This is a great outline to follow if you’ve got to write a speech or presentation. Denise and I are using this outline for our speech about The Blog Squad’s expertise in business blogging. This week we’re in Manhattan Beach at the Ayres Hotel, addressing a group of professionals at the Speak Your Way to Wealth conference.

Problem – Solution – Action: Now, for those readers who are more experienced in making presentations, this may seem like a no-brainer. The problem is that when you’re an expert in a particular niche, you want to teach everything you know to your audience.

Read More→

Categories : Article Ideas, Content Marketing, On Writing Better
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