Archive for On Writing Better – Page 27

What Do Readers Really Want? Some personal musings…

By Patsi Krakoff
Wednesday, August 6th, 2008

Antrion_retreatpatsi003
I am writing this off the top of my head and from the depths of my heart. The truth is I’m not sure where I’m going with this post, but I know I have some worthwhile nugget for you.

Yesterday when I wrote the post about blog ideas, it’s true, I’d been struggling with finding good topics for this blog, and for keeping my focus on how to write good content on the Web that informs and markets for you.

This morning, I was still struggling. My blockage is coming from an interview we did last week with Yvonne DiVita of Lip-Sticking Blog. I wrote about her ideas for writing quality posts over on BuildaBetterBlog.com, Blog Content Ideas, What’s the best source? Yvonne has had tremendous success with her blog, and it’s established her as an expert and thought leader when it comes to marketing to women online.

She says her success is due to always writing what readers want.

And that’s my problem. I’m never sure what readers want. Oh, I’m very grateful for the lovely comments and feedback, especially since most readers seem to agree with me (;-0)…

But let’s face it: there aren’t a whole bunch of comments or emails flooding in. And people aren’t in dire pain, begging me to please – oh please, tell me how to write a blog post, or an email promo…!

Read More→

Categories : About Blogs, Content Marketing, Managing Your Ezine & Blog Tasks, On Writing Better, Online Marketing

Blog Post Idea Farm…

By Patsi Krakoff
Sunday, August 3rd, 2008

Idea_with_legs
How many different kinds of blog posts are there? If you’re wondering how you can spice up your postings, think about these:

There are:

  1. The link and bait, the ‘me-too’ copy and paste post
  2. The ‘stir-up-the-pot’ post (also known as ‘outrageously oppositional and intentionally contrarian’ post)
  3. The ‘how-many-ways-can-I-repeat-my-core-message’ post
  4. There are email questions from clients
  5. Tutorials & how-to’s
  6. Toot-my-own-horn
  7. Piggy-back post off of current affairs, politics & celebrity gossip
  8. Sports analogies
  9. Outrageous tabloid headlines reworded for your niche

What else? Give me some ideas here… hit the comment link and tell me your favorite short cuts to creating blog content.

Categories : About Blogs, Content Marketing, On Writing Better, Writing Great Blog Content

Writers Wanted: You can’t do it all yourself

By Patsi Krakoff
Monday, July 28th, 2008

Blonde_with_laptop
"Where can I find someone to write and edit my blog posts?" a colleague asked me this morning. That’s a smart question. You can’t do it all yourself. You can, but there’s probably not enough time to service clients, make money, run a business and write on your blog. Get help.

The colleague who asked me this question is a great and prolific writer. He has more ideas and content than he has time to write up. A professional editor could turn his articles into dynamic blog posts that would make a huge difference in his search engine traffic.

But this takes time and energy. You have to look at keywords and be strategic with headlines.

Get someone who:

  • Knows blogging (your platform system, whatever that is)
  • Knows how to write
  • Knows something about content marketing and writing to persuade
  • Knows what a good headline is
  • Is keyword savvy
  • Knows something about your niche
  • Has impeccable grammar and editing knowledge
  • Has a journalist’s nose for news
  • Has personality and can be conversational in writing

Read More→

Categories : About Blogs, Buying Content, Content Marketing, Managing Your Ezine & Blog Tasks, On Writing Better

3 Steps to Successful Writing on the Web

By Patsi Krakoff
Wednesday, July 16th, 2008

Manandpen
There are really only 3 steps to becoming successful at writing:

  1. Keep writing – you have to write a ton of bad stuff before it can get better
  2. Keep reading – you must read good writers in order for the good stuff to sink in
  3. Keep learning – you need to take courses in order to really learn your craft

These three tips come to me by way of Paul Hollingshead, a co-founder of AWAI, a copywriter promoting good copywriting skills through the American Writers & Artists, Inc.

Even if you don’t want to become a full time, freelance copywriter, you’ll need to learn how to write your sales pages if you want to use the Internet to grow your business. That’s why I’ve signed up for the AWAI Copywriting Masters Program. I think they have a special discount rate on through Friday, July 18, 2008, so don’t delay.

In fact, I’d say that copywriting skills are important for more than just writing sales letters. You need to understand the psychology of copywriting so you can apply the principles to all of your content marketing. It just makes sense. Copywriting is any kind of writing to persuade and influence. And that means blog writing, articles, and web content.

Read More→

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

Relevant Content: Search Engine Bread Crumbs

By Patsi Krakoff
Wednesday, June 25th, 2008

Hanselandgretel
On our 5 Traps of Internet Marketing teleclass yesterday, almost 1000 people registered and we got some interesting questions. Here’s one:

"What is the most important thing to do to get people to find your site when you cannot afford to buy placement on search engines?"

Getting found once you’ve got a site (website or blog) is what Denise and I call The Great Internet Challenge. We even wrote a white paper on it (if you want the long answer to this question, www.onlinemarketingchallenge.com

Short answer: Write relevant content. Then write more content. Then publish even more content on other sites such as article directories, press release sites, white papers, newsletters archived on your site, etc.

Each time you write content about your key topics, you are seeding the Internet with keywords. Like bread crumbs that lead back to the gingerbread cottage, those keywords will help readers find you.

Search engine optimization experts charge you an arm and a leg and then still ask you to do the same thing as I’m telling you here: write relevant content.

Read More→

Categories : Content Marketing, On Writing Better, Online Marketing, Teleclasses & Seminars

4 Keys for Content Marketing that Gets Results

By Patsi Krakoff
Tuesday, June 24th, 2008

Jigsaw_pieces
How do you write good content for your web pages (blog, newsletters, articles, press releases, etc.) that also brings in clients and customers and makes sales?

Let’s face it, talking about how great your product and services are isn’t going to enthrall a lot of readers. What are 4 keys to writing content that markets your business?

Yesterday, while Denise and I were on a teleseminar called From Contacts to Contracts with Adam Urbanski about social media tools and business blogs, I gave this advice:

"Without a doubt content is key in business blogging, but even when a business professional writes well, they may not be adapting to blog writing for business results." The same is true for many kinds of business content marketing.

Let’s look at 4 keys, the 4 E’s for content marketing purposes:

Read More→

Categories : Content Marketing, On Writing Better, Online Marketing

Ask, Ask, Ask: Using Surveys for Content Marketing

By Patsi Krakoff
Sunday, June 22nd, 2008

Question_cube
We recently asked a thousand readers what their biggest problems are when it comes to Internet Marketing, using SurveyMonkey.com. This a great way to get content ideas, stay in touch with what readers want, and develop programs and info products that sell.

How can you create content that markets your business without knowing what readers want?

You can’t know what your targeted audience’s pain points are unless you ask. Even if the results aren’t what social scientists would validate as statistically reliable data, you can get a ton of comments that can seed blog posts and articles.

Here’s what one person said they wanted to learn:

"How best to use my writing skills to attract quality folks who will convert to customers. I write articles, post to my blog, have Squidoo lenses and I’m on MySpace and Facebook. Still, there is a gap. I know that relationship building takes time and patience, but I need to see financial results from these activities."

From this comment you can discern several concerns:

  • Time is certainly a factor
  • Knowing which marketing tools to favor
  • Return on investment of time
  • Financial results

Read More→

Categories : Content Marketing, On Writing Better, Online Marketing, Teleclasses & Seminars

French Open Tennis: More Business Lessons

By Patsi Krakoff
Wednesday, June 4th, 2008

Dementieva
Playing on clay courts means the ball doesn’t always bounce predictably. What a great lesson for doing business! You can say/write/do the exact same thing with a different client and get completely different results.

So in business, just like on clay courts, be prepared for the unexpected. Be nimble, be quick and react to surprises with calm.

Example: when we wrote our Better Business Blogging special report, we really wanted to deliver quality information that people could go and apply to better blogging. It wasn’t written to sell anything.

We wanted to teach best business blogging practices. But we did say
that somewhere later on we’d put together a comprehensive multi-media
program to teach more in detail.

Most people who previewed it wrote to give us positive feedback. So we thought we had a successful report to give out. But not everybody saw it that way.

Read More→

Categories : About Blogs, Coaching/Personal Development, On Writing Better, Writing Better Ezines, Writing Great Blog Content

5 Blog Writing Lessons from the French Open Tennis Championships

By Patsi Krakoff
Tuesday, June 3rd, 2008

NadalI don’t know if Rafael Nadal will win the French Open this year again, but I do know that every time I watch the top players compete, I learn something about blog writing.

Seriously, these are the kinds of things I think about when I go online to post on one of our blogs:

  1. You’ve got to keep moving. When a topic is hot, you see a few hundred other posts about it, and you realize it’s time to move on to something else.
  2. Keep your eye on the ball. Never forget why people read your blog and why you started your blog in the first place. Stay on topic, deliver the winning shots.
  3. Start strong with a fierce serve. Your first sentence may be the only thing a reader sees in a feed. Make it compelling.
  4. Mix it up. If you’re always being positive and cheery, write a few negative posts and criticize some commonly held practices or beliefs. People won’t keep reading if you don’t surprise them.
  5. Never give up, stay in the game. Success is half persistence, half sweat. Your ability to refocus your writing and get back on track even when you don’t feel like it, will pay off in the long run.
Categories : Content Marketing, Managing Your Ezine & Blog Tasks, On Writing Better, Writing Better Ezines, Writing for the Web, Writing Great Blog Content

How to Start a Blog Post or an Ezine: Avoid the Yawn Factor

By Patsi Krakoff
Sunday, June 1st, 2008

Start strong. Please don’t bore me. Do you realize that even if I do subscribe to get your blog feed, if you don’t start out strong, I’ll just delete you?

Here’s a feed I got this morning:

Sleepy
"The summer season is almost here, and with it comes a lot of excitement about the outdoors. …XYZ is a great place to share your fun with the world. Read on for the latest highlights!"

I may be a bit negative on this, but really, I can’t get excited here. I can’t remember the last time I got excited about the summer season.

Remember your first paragraph sentence may be the only thing someone sees.

If you’ve got something you’re excited about, then I want to know but it better be real. I won’t believe you when you say something like this. You just went from someone who has something to say to someone who is trying to sell me something. What does it mean to "share your fun with the world?"

The purpose of the first sentence is to get someone to read the second sentence. I’ll bet the real reason this person started with the summer season is to try to connect with readers on common ground. But they fail because it’s a ploy to get them to read on for the "latest highlights" = i.e. our products for sale.

Why can’t marketing people be more authentic?

We talk about this in our Better Business Blogging report: download a free copy at www.betterbizblogging.com.

Categories : Content Marketing, On Writing Better, Writing Better Ezines, Writing Great Blog Content
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