Everyday Business Blog Writing – Every Day

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“When we communicate, customers understand.  And when they understand, they buy,” asserts humorist Todd Hunt. What’sHappiness concept. your biggest challenge every day? Communication probably tops the list, because everybody messes it up — and we’re hilarious!
I was fortunate enough to meet Todd Hunt in person a few years ago at a National Speakers Association of Indiana meeting, and his monthly e-newsletter always contains wisdom I can share with Indiana blog content writers.

Grammarist.com explains one nicety of grammar that Todd Hunt talks about in his latest issue:  Everyday is an adjective used to describe things that occur every day, or are ordinary or commonplace.  In the two-word phrase “every day”, the adjective “every” modifies the noun “day”. For example, every day you eat breakfast. You brush your teeth every day. These are everyday activities. When you’re not sure which one to use, try replacing the word with “each day”. If that makes sense, you want the two-word form “every day”.

Todd Hunt explains the difference in a different way:

“Every day” answers the question “When?”  Office hours are 9am-9pm every day.
“Everyday” answers the question “What kind?”  The everyday low price is $10.99.  What kind of pricing? Everyday.

The point of the discussion, as I explain when training newbie bloggers, is not to turn yourselves into grammar Nazis,, but to ensure that readers understand precisely what you meant to say. The goal for us content creators, after all, is to communicate so that customers understand.

We aim to make our everyday business blogwriting engaging – every day!

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Dealing With the Downside in Business Blogs

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businessman graphIt’s always instructive for me to observe different ways information is presented to readers. That’s especially true if the subject matter is “sensitive”.

Of course, in business blogs, it would be wonderful if everything were positive and all we needed to do was write about positive developments in our business or practice, about all the benefits that come from using our products and services, and about the flawless customer service which we’ve, without exception, provided.  And, of course, that’s not the way the world works, is it?

I was thinking about that the other day when I came across a guide sheet my college mentor colleagues and I had been given to educate us on ways to advise disabled students applying for internships and permanent employment.  The tutorial was called Disclosing Your Disability in three Steps.

I think all of us blog content writers can take a real lesson from that approach to putting a positive emphasis even when honestly disclosing not-so-positive information.

Step 1: Prepare to disclose.
Consider your strengths and challenges. To the extent you’re comfortable, the employer will feel comfortable.  Consider timing – before the interview, after an offer is made, etc.  Plan in advance.

“Thou shalt never hide the facts,” writes Georgetown University professor Robert Bies in Forbes Magazine. When hidden facts become public, you’ll look worse.  But, adds Bies, find positives associated with the bad news, positives grounded in reality. Focus the readers’ attention on the way your company or practice has solved, or is solving the problem.

Step 2: Prepare a script.
Write down what you want to say.  Keep the language simple and avoid being too clinical or detailed.  Remember, the employer will be interested in whether you’ll show up, and whether you’ll be of value to the organization.

One very important use for business blog content writing is exercising control over the way the public perceives any negative developments. The blog is the place to correct any inaccurate press statements

Step 3: Disclose.
Be confident.  You will teach your prospective employer how to respond to your disability based upon the way YOU are handling disclosing it.  Stress your courage and motivation.

As a corporate blogging trainer, I know how crucial it is to convey to customers, as well as to the online searchers who are y our prospects, the kind of message that will alleviate mistrust and create confidence.

Blog posts are like interviews, and sometimes, we content writers need to courageously deal with the downside!

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So What’s the Deal with Business Blog Posts?

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“So what’s the deal with Japanese whisky?” is the intriguing title of a feature article in Mental Floss Magazine. Reporter Kyle Chayka holding a glass of whiskyorganizes the article around four questions; I think that precise format could be adapted to any business blog post introducing a product or service.

Background material:
“Wait…How Did Whisky Ever Land in Japan?” The author explains that a young man studying chemistry in Glasgow returned home to start Japan’s first distillery. In this part of the blog post, the content writer would talk about the origins of the company, and about the particular consumer or business need that company is able to satisfy.

So What Makes It Different from Scotch?
Technically, not much, explains Chayka, but Japan’s distillers “take time to make it correctly rather than making it quickly and cheaply.” In this portion of the post, the content writer would explain the differentiating features of the product or service, comparing it to competitors’ offerings.

What Does it Taste Like?
“Japanese distilleries also use rare Mizunara oak for their barrels, which imparts a hinty of coconut,” the author explains. When you’re composing business blog content, I tell writers, imagine readers asking themselves – “How will I use the product (or service?” “How will I feel?”

How Should I Drink It?
“Highball” in Japan is synonymous with a whisky soda. So mix away! But if you like drinking it neat, a great starter blend is Nikka’s Taketsuru Pure Malt 12 Year,” is the author’s advice.  This section of the blog post would offer helpful hints relating to the product or service. In every business or profession, there’s no end to the technical information available to consumers on the Internet. But it falls to us business blog content writers to break all that information down into chewable tablet form, telling readers “how to drink it”.

So What’s the deal with business blog posts?  Give ‘em the background, differentiate, give ‘em a taste and then give them advice!

 

 

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The Royal “We” in Business Blogging

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“When Roman consuls spoke of public issues, they did so on behalf of all those with whom they shared power, and Royal Gold Crownso they used the royal pronoun ‘we” instead of the singular,” Doug Lennon explains in The Little Book of Answers.  Then King Richard I began to use the “royal we”, implying that he was speaking for his subjects as well as for himself. It’s improper, Lennon cautions, for nonroyals to use the plural.  (That’s why, when Margaret Thatcher referred to herself as “we”, she incurred nothing but ridicule.)

Why, then, do I so like for Indianapolis freelance blog content writers to express themselves as “we”?

  • Using first person pronouns (“I” and “we”) helps keep the blog conversational rather than either academic-sounding or sales-ey.
  • “We” shows the people behind the posts, introducing the personality of the business owner or team ready to serve customers.
  • Using “we” allows statements of opinion, establishing the business owner or professional as a thought leader:  “At ——-.we believe…”  “Here at ———-, we always…”  “At ______. We’re convinced that….”
  • We freelance blog content writers “speak” not for ourselves, but on behalf of the companies and professional practices we’re marketing. Richard I spoke for his subjects; we’re writing for our clients.

On the other hand, shouldn’t content creators learn anything from the icy reception Margaret Thatcher earned by using the “we” word? Yes, but it’s got little to do with putting ourselves – or our clients – out there as royalty.  In fact, all content writing for marketing blogs is second person-driven, meaning that it’s all about the “you”s (the targeted readers who are the potential customers) and their wants and needs.’

The royal “we” in business blogging just keeps things up close and personal!

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Don’t Cut Your Business Blog Vocabulary Down to Size

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Word Toolbox Teaching Tools Resources Spelling Reading Lesson Ai“How many words are there in English? It depends on how you count them…a good conservative estimate is 250,000.” Perceiving that many of our words mean practically the same thing, back in the 1930s a British writer named C.K Ogden proposed a new form of English with a vocabulary of only 850 words. While Winston Churchill liked the idea of Basic English, Roosevelt joked that Churchill’s famous speech about “blood, toil, tears, and sweat” wouldn’t have been nearly as effective couched  as “blood, work, eye water, and face water.”

As a writer and corporate blog writing trainer, I must say I prefer the English language just as it is, chock full of nuances and variety. Time4Writing.com apparently agrees: “A good vocabulary is an indispensable tool,” Time4 explains. “Just as really good mechanics can pull out the right tools…good writers can pull out the right tools at the right time to make good writing even more powerful.”

“Style is the way writing is dressed up (or down) to fit the specific context, purpose, or audience,” Kathleen Cali of Learn NC teaches. “Good writers are concise and precise, she adds,” weeding out unnecessary words and choosing the exact word to convey meaning.”

Adding variety to prose can give it life and rhythm, the Purdue OWL (Online Writing Lab) stresses.

Life and rhythm – I can’t think of any goal more important for a business blog content writer to achieve. There’s just so much content out there – being boring is a certain path to the bottom of the heap when it comes to engaging readers and converting them to buyers. We have such a rich, rich language to work with, I tell writers.  For Heaven’s sake, use it!

C.K.Ogden, I learned, wanted to eliminate all the English words beginning with the letter Z. No, no, no, I’d protest.  When writing a business blog, be conversational, sure. But what word variety can add to a marketing blog posts is ZEST! How about spunk? Pizzazz?

Were Roosevelt still alive, I’m sure he’d tell you the same thing: Don’t cut your business blog vocabulary down to size!.  

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