Archive for Writing Great Blog Content – Page 8

Writing Great Blog Content: Painful?

Rich Brooks of Flyte Media says that writing content is painful, and compares it to having dental work without novacaine! What do you think?

For me, writing – whether for my blogs, website, my email broadcasts and newsletters – is more like getting my teeth cleaned: it can be painful, but then you come out with a pretty white smile!

Take this series I’ve undertaken on how to write great content for your blog. The simplest of tips includes these 3 easy steps:

  1. Scan your favorite blogs for relevant ideas
  2. Take an excerpt from it and link to it
  3. Add your own comments.  (If you want to boost readership, go for disagreement and controversy. But that’s a different topic.)

Here’s what Rich says:

No matter how much you love your job, no matter how passionate you are about what you do, writing content is going to be much more work than you think.”

The passion makes the writing start like a burst of energy. Education and discipline, however, are the tools that have to kick in to make your content readable, search engine optimized, and interesting to other people.

I agree with Rich that writing always takes more time and work than you think, even when it is full of passion. Passion isn’t enough, some hard thinking and decent grammar should back it up.

Your thoughts on this? Is passion enough? Does grammar even count?

What about time – how much are you spending on your writing and blog?  Is it pleasure, pain, or both?

I’d love to hear your comments.  Hit reply and let me know your thoughts.

P.S. For more tips (and diagrams), read these other recent posts:

 

How to Avoid Problems with Hyphens and Dashes…

Have you ever encountered this problem when blogging or writing content marketing?

Because of the informal nature of writing on a blog, or for online ezines, people now write like they speak – you know what I mean? Instead of commas or semi-colons, everyone uses dashes to interject phrases – just like the way we talk.

But everyone uses them differently! Forget the Chicago Manual of Style! As I read through other great blogs, I see lots of variations on the use of hyphens and dashes:

1. People use a double hyphen–like this. Sometimes with a space on both sides — like this, sometimes with no spaces on either side.

2. People use a hyphen instead of a dash. This is most likely because the dash is not on the keyboard. You have to find it under symbols and who wants to take time to do that?

3. People use an en dash instead of the em dash. An en dash is the shorter version of the em dash. With an en dash there is a space on both sides – with an em dash, there are no spaces—you just put it in.

Am I the only one who cares about this? If we are not going to follow the rules of academia as outlined in the manuals, are we inventing new usages because of the lack of a dash on the keyboard?

(WordPress tip: you can insert custom characters found in the omega icon in your wysiwyg editor.)

I feel like the author of Eats, Shoots & Leaves (Lynn Truss)…my inner stickler is on the loose.

Let’s all get together and decide: if we use a hyphen instead of a dash, let’s make it just one with spaces on both sides – like this, okay? Personally, I prefer the em dash with spaces on both sides — but that’s not supposed to be correct.

Unless you write in to tell me you’d prefer something else, I’ll keep on doing that and assume you agree with me…

Blogger’s Block: Writing Tips to Get “Unstuck”

What do you do when you’re stuck and can’t write on your blog? Here are some blog writing tips. I diagrammed them out.

It’s the rainy season here in Mexico – a great time to do a lot of reading and writing.  At least, that’s what one would think…But…I’m having trouble.  I’m stuck.  I’ve got Blogger’s Block.  (Yes, even experienced bloggers can get stuck from time to time.)

Solution? Start writing about where I’m at, what’s going on here, and then tie it in with something useful and relevant to readers. That’s one blog writing tip that usually bails me out.

Source of problem? I’ve been blogging so much lately for my clients that I’m dried up and stale for my own blog.

So what? I’ll bet some of you have the same blog writing problem or similar. You give your all to your clients, then when it comes time to do your own content marketing you’re as dry as toast without butter.

It’s no wonder the cobbler’s children have no shoes.

What to do? One blog writing tips is to “Just do it,” just start writing and see what comes out. You may surprise yourself. One of my clients tells me he doesn’t write that much anymore. He finds it easier to hook up the Web cam and post a video clip. Hmmm…wait a sec.

Just by starting to write, I had to trace my thought processes to find what I usually do when I am stuck. This time I diagrammed it out using SmartDraw.

It’s interesting, no? Much easier to show than tell, and you can clearly see my four favorite resources for breaking bloggers’ block.

I will now go walk my talk and come up with some good blog posts.

And if you’re still having trouble, I’ve got more tips in a great little package you can have called Time Saving Tips for Smart Bloggers, audio, transcript, PDF handouts. You can solve your blogging blues with all the tips in this program.

What resources do you use to find ideas? Hit the comment link and share.

If Your Blog Writing Still Stinks…

Your blog writing can improve. I’ve talked about this before:  here’s a secret formula you can use to grab people’s attention, stimulate their desire, and trigger action. Ba-da-boom, instant sales and subscriptions!

Don’t be silly, there are no easy formulas, of course not. But just follow along with me here. I’ve been reading several neuroscience and communications books that say the same things in different ways, and I think these persuasion tips can easily apply to better blog writing.

Take a look at this diagram I whipped up with SmartDraw:

Grabbing readers’ attention is the first step, of course. (By the way, this doesn’t only apply to blog writing, but to other content marketing pieces and in general for other things you write for the web.)

Attention is generally done more effectively by negative content. That’s because negative stories wake us up. They activate the more primitive centers of the brain, especially the centers for fight or flight.

Negative stories start us thinking. For example, a reader might jolt up in their chair and think, “Oh dear, this could happen to me…” Like watching a car accident, we’re drawn into a story that is full of danger or fear.

But negative stories generate worry and anxiety, as well as caution. (You may be one of those cool dudes with an Alfred E. Neuman attitude, “What? Me Worry?!” but even cool dudes feel the fear subconsciously. Oh yes you do, you just don’t admit it…)

Here’s the secret key to getting readers to act: negative stories get our attention, but they don’t stimulate us to action. To get readers to act, they have to want something different. So to stimulate a desire for change, you must switch your writing to positive stories.

In this part of your blog post, you start describing a better future. You enable the reader to see possibilities they have missed. Once their negativity buttons are triggered, you’ve got their attention, now do something with that.

When your blog writing includes positive stories, for example, how a client’s life changed when they started using your product, readers start seeing themselves in the picture.

Readers can see themselves in your story, and begin to imagine doing something new and different. This is how you stimulate desire for change. It is how you get readers primed to take the next step, to take the action you are going to suggest to them.

Let me tell you a personal story.

I grew up with less than ideal parenting. Before the age of 8, I had experienced 4 different parental figures. That created a little confusion and a heck of a lot of insecurity in my young world, but it also created a strong sense of determination, perseverance, and resilience.

Although often insecure, my sense of curiosity and will to survive is world-class. I have used my strengths to land on my feet in precarious situations, and I have managed to soar to achievements in spite of never being completely sure of myself.

I write an award-winning blog that is on several best blog lists and have helped countless clients become better blog writers. I’ve made my living online for over ten years.  I’m probably doing something right.

You may have heard my story before, or similar ones (a good example of this is Tony Robbins, who loves to say he was a bum living in his car, now he’s a success because he mastered certain tips for living, etc. etc.)  but I tell you this for several reasons. First, to demonstrate use of negative and positive stories. I also want to impart a lesson for blog writing.

Knowing yourself well, both the weak and strong sides, is a key to writing well. If I hadn’t experienced a confusing childhood, I might not be as curious. I might not try to seek out answers and solutions. I might not be so driven to succeed.

You may have similar or much worse experiences in your background. The key is to look at how they contribute to your passions, your desires, to what you really value. Unlock those things and set them to work in your favor.

When you can connect your personal story to what you do and what you write about, you will connect with readers. And I believe that will help your writing, and ultimately your business success.

Negative stories will grab your readers attention, positive stories will help them to see themselves in a better future, and neutral stories will give them the steps and show them how.

Does this make sense to you? (I’m feeling a little insecure right now, of course…;-) !

Online Persuasion: How to Write to Create Desire

When writing online, how can you appeal to readers’ emotions on a business-oriented site? Online persuasion works best when you appeal to both the logical and emotional centers in the brain.

If you want to write content that persuades readers – both thinking type and feeling type processors – to take action, you write about emotional triggers AND provide reasons to act.

Many online content marketers misunderstand what it means to “appeal to emotions.”  How exactly do you bypass the conscious thinking brain and instantly connect with readers’ emotional centers, out of their conscious awareness?

It’s easier than you might think. Stephen Denning writes about this in his book The Secret Language of Leadership, and these lessons for leadership communications are applicable to writing web content.

Here’s a diagram of how many business professionals traditionally write content when they want to persuade people to take action:

The traditional communication approach follows this sequence:

Define the problem ► Analyze it ►Recommend a solution

Effective content marketers, however, follow a unique, almost hidden pattern:

Grab the audience’s attention ► Stimulate desire ► Reinforce with reasons

When language follows this sequence, it can inspire enduring enthusiasm for a cause and spark action.

Grab Attention:

  • Write headlines that draw the reader in
  • Use images that evoke curiosity, humor, or desire
  • Format your content for easy reading

Stimulate Desire: Read More→

Are Your Content Readers Thinkers or Feelers?

Have you ever read an e-newsletter or blog post and got a feeling of disappointment? Maybe it was just too subjective, airy-fairy and touchy-feely? If so, then you may be like me, a thought-processing person who wants facts and data when reading content online, an e-newsletter or blog post.

Several years ago, my friend John Agno published this review of personality types in his newsletter.  It contains important information to consider when writing your blog, e-newsletter or content marketing to attract clients, and it still applies today.

The Myers-Briggs Personality Inventory is a method for helping people match their communication styles to others’ personalities.  Understanding Myers-Briggs allows you to foster the kind of interpersonal climate that paves the way toward better understanding.

One of the four Myers-Briggs dichotomies is Thinking/Feeling — that people use to assess their preferred ways of communicating, processing information, analyzing that information, and coming to a decision.

The population is evenly divided between thinkers and feelers. Two-thirds of men are thinkers and two-thirds of women are feelers, but 70% to 90% of businesspeople are thinkers, regardless of gender. The name of this dimension is slightly misleading. Thinkers aren’t unfeeling, and feelers aren’t fuzzy-headed. Both process information carefully. The difference is in what facts each group considers to be most salient. Read More→

Serial Writing Formula: 1=5+2=7+1

I’m no math genius, nor do I even think remotely like that in analytical terms. But once in a while I stumble upon something that makes sense, saves time, and produces exponential results.

I’m talking about serial writing. You take one main concept, break it down into a list of 5 key elements, write an introductory overview, write a concluding summary, and here’s what you get:

  • 1 longer article you can include on your website, ezine, and format into a PDF special report to sell or give away as a bonus.

1 idea = 5 points + intro + summary = 7 articles + 1 PDF report

Here’s why I like to do this:

I know that each week I need to come up with fresh content from my blogs and 2 ezines. That could be a struggle to keep fresh, yet stay focused and on topic. Or, it can get my creative juices flowing if I sit down and look at a concept from the stand point of this formula.

Here’s what I’m talking about. I learned this while I was doing it last week. I decided to try to encapsulate the main ingredients of successful online marketing systems – that was the main concept.

I made a list and came up with 6 key elements (actually only 5; the 6th one was recycling the first 5 steps).

I wrote an overview listing all 6 steps, then posted one point each day on our blogs. After the 7th posting, I wrote an 8th one summarizing the points, and including some additional information about the tools necessary for each step.

Then I edited each blog post to become a stand-alone article for submission to article directories. The goal here is to get these keywords out onto the Web in as many different ways as possible. I also am writing a press release with the 6 steps included.

Then I gathered all 8 articles together and edited them into one stand-alone special report and formatted it into a nice PDF file. This can be used as a free give-away for signing up or registering for something, or can be sold as an ebook.

We can also take the 8 articles and turn them into a series of autoresponder messages and call it a mini-course. This would be used to drive traffic to a landing page for selling a course or ebook or other program.

This week, as I wondered what to write about for my blogs, I remembered how easy it has been the last couple of weeks while completing the online success series.

So this is the start of another series: How to Write a Series of Articles for Marketing. Maybe I can find a catchier title, like Confessions of a Serial Writer…? Stay tuned as I walk my talk and show you how to make your writing life easier by multi-purposing.

How to Start a Blog Serial Writing Project

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If you’ve been reading my blogs for any length of time, you know about my problem with writing:  I love to write, and I can write too much.  Anyone with a doctorate suffers from the same disease. Dissertation-itis. Nobody has time to read all those words anymore, especially not online.

Then, at some point in my writing career I got lazy. Or maybe I got smart. I started skipping the long research on a topic and reading up on its history. I just started making a list of main points and then writing out a couple of sentences on each item.

I think I got the idea from Jeff Herring, The Article Guy, who said if you can write a 7 item grocery list, you can write a good article. Now Jeff teaches article writing for people who struggle with writing and have a hard time coming up with stuff.

I fell in love with the “Make a List” writing school. Their theory is anything worth reading can be written in a list of bulleted points.

And now for my real confession:  I’ve taken the list building approach to an extreme. I’ve become a serial writer.

I wish I could say that it’s the cure for writer’s block, or that it’ll turn your work into Internet gold. I will proclaim it to be a rousing success for saving you time and energy whenever you’re faced with writing for your ezine, blog, web pages, press releases, and even white papers.

Here’s how to start a serial writing project (in list form, of course):

  1. Find an idea your readers want to know more about that will benefit them
  2. Make a list of 5 main points
  3. Write an overview of the idea with the 5 points listed and post it on your blog
  4. Each day for the next 5 days write a blog post about each of the 5 points
  5. Write a summary of the 5 points, reviewing them and reminding readers why this is important
  6. Edit each blog post into a stand alone article
  7. Compile the 7 articles into one full article. Read More→

Engaging Content: 7 Tips to Get Readers to Think

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When it comes to content marketing, there are ways to write content so it actively markets you and your business without being “in-your-face” sales copy or boring product reviews or press releases.

I’m reminded of an excellent book on creating effective website design called Don’t Make Me Think.
The premise is that a customer searching for products and services online shouldn’t have to figure out how to find what they’re looking for on your website.

When it comes to reading your blog, however, please, please DO make me think!  As I said last week, your readers may scan your post, without getting their thought processes going, and move on.

Your blog posts should have meaty content that stimulates your audience to ask questions, to comment, to agree wholeheartedly, or disagree vociferously.

How can you do that?

Here’s my list of ways to engage the brain, for example, in a blog post:

  1. Ask a question that can’t be answered (without thinking for a few minutes, at least)
  2. Describe an ethical conundrum and ask readers to contribute solutions
  3. Ask your audience for their top 3 tips for …. (insert a common problem your customers have)
  4. Write about a problem you experienced or a mistake you made, and ask, “What would you have done?”
  5. Describe a most pivotal moment in your business, and ask others to share their story
  6. Write about a situation facing a customer and ask readers to contribute ideas and projected outcomes
  7. Suggest some ideas and ask for more ideas…(hint, hint)

Okay, now it’s your turn. What methods do you use?  How can you write blog posts that stimulate readers to think and even actively participate?

Bonus question: How does doing this actually work to market your business?

Your readers may scan your post, without getting their thought processes going, and move on.

Content Curation: How to Become a Thought Leader

Here’s an important post from Joe Pulizzi’s Junta42 blog, Content Curation Grows Up, Original Content Still Key . I share these key points with anyone who struggles with writing online for their business and needs ideas for what to write.

I first heard the term content curation is this post by Rohit Bhargava back in 2009.

Rohit positioned that, as more corporations and individuals create content, the role of the content curator is needed.  Rohit describes this position as:

Someone whose job it is not to create more content, but to make sense of all the content that others are creating. To find the best and most relevant content and bring it forward.

I know many of my readers and clients who want to become thought leaders in their field. The thing is, Joe and Rohit are absolutely right: you don’t have to be the one with all the ideas. But you do need to gather all that’s relevant and being said in your field and summarize the key points that are most important to your audience.

And, you do need to add your point of view. That’s what makes you unique and a thought leader.

Here’s what else Joe says in his post: Read More→