Did That Business Blogger Know What They Were Doing???

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Adam Davis of Buzz Feed shows video clips, in each of which a famous movie actor is committing some sort of grammar “crime”. For Он и онаexample, we see Meryl Streep remarking, “That person knew what they were doing.”

“’They’ is plural, so unless you’re talking about more than one person, you need to say ‘he’ or ‘she’”, explains Davis.

Y’know, that he/she/you/one thing seems to come up a lot in blog content writing. I hate to think I’m one of those people Lauren Davis of i09.com says is not being helpful, who are just asserting their perceived linguistic superiority, and I’d hate for business blog content writers I’d helped train to write stuff that packs the punch of a very boring textbook.

Of the two Davis bloggers (Adam and Lauren), I tend to side with Adam, who apparently realizes that grammar mistakes in content writing for business are very much like wardrobe mishaps, in that they call attention away from the kind of impression we intend to make on behalf of our businesses or professional practices. 

Women’s Lib turned out to have created some new problems for writers. “When I was growing up,” observes Lynn Gaertner-Johnston, “the automatic choice would have been the male pronoun.”  Streep would’ve said “That person knew what HE WAS doing.” “They” is an awkward choice when Streep is talking about one person, and using “she” no matter what gender “that person” actually was is even more awkward, I suppose.

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt’s CliffsNotes agrees that remedying the problem of gender bias in pronouns isn’t easy. “When possible, rewrite sentences using third-person plural forms,” they advise.  “Diplomatic people keep their opinions to themselves.”

Did THOSE business bloggers know what THEY were doing????

 

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Good-and-Good Blogging for Business

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The six-student presentation at the Hasten Hebrew Academy the other evening was definitely “good and good”. Principal Miriamprofessional speaker Gettinger explained why that expression could be used to describe an effective sermon (her husband’s a rabbi).  In fact, I couldn’t help thinking, “good and good” should be the standard of excellence in any communication, perhaps particularly in blogging for business.

A sermon with good content that is nice and short? That’s good and good. A sermon with good content that drags on interminably? That’s good and bad. Any sermon with poor content but that is mercifully short – well that might be described as bad and good.  Worst of all is a sermon with poor content that is too long – that’s bad and bad, Gettinger pointed out.

“How long?” is one question I hear a lot at corporate blogging training sessions. Typically the business owner or freelance blog content writer is referring to the recommended length of blog posts, or, sometimes, the question refers to the blog post title.

As a longtime professional ghost blogger, working to create marketing blog content for a variety of Say It For You clients, I think the “good-and-good” standard applies. Of course, the most effective length for any one blog post is whatever it takes to hit the main points of the one topic that is the focus for that post.

When it comes to effective blogging for business, we need to “know our size”, exercising “portion control” in the length of paragraphs, of blog titles and of entire blog posts. Blogs need to be conversational rather than billboard-style, and be sprinkled with enough keyword phrase use to attract targeted online traffic.

First and foremost, (the first “good”), the content, needs to be helpful to target readers. Then, make each blog post as short as possible, but no shorter.

You might call that a recipe for “good-and-good” in blogging for business!

 

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Business Blogging Using Body Language Awareness

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Consolation of a friend depicted by two figurines on a bookImprovement is always possible, was the guiding principle behind the communication system developed by family therapist Virginia Satir. Satir felt that if we became more alert to others’ body language, we would be better able to deal with them and turn conflicts into win-win situations.

The Five Positions refer to body language that conveys the emotions of people who are speaking. Now I realize that, when we’re creating business blog content, we are unable to see the readers, and we really can’t tell just what body language signals they’re emitting.

For example, we have no way of really knowing whether that person who found the blog post is being:

  • A Placater (who’s asking for something or bringing bad news and whose body is facing directly forward with palms facing up in supplication)
  • A Blamer (who’s looking to lay blame and point out problems and probably has a finger on one hand raised and pointing, with eyebrows lowered)
  • A Computer (who’s thinking or evaluating, with arms crossed or hand propping up  chin)
  • A Distracter (who’s being humorous and fun-seeking, often to avoid difficult discussion)
  • A Leveller (who’s comfortable and relaxed, facing forward, with relaxed head and eyebrows)

So as a corporate blogging trainer, what do I suggest content writers do when these visual clues aren’t present to guide our writing?

Pretend. Imagine that one of those types is at the other end and you’re speaking directly to him or her. (Pick just one type of reader per blog post and direct your remarks to just that type.) The idea is to demonstrate that you “get it”.  You understand the message they are (no doubt unwittingly) broadcasting through their body language. You’ve got to read the body language before you can speak it.
Corporate blog writing for business will succeed only it’s clear you (the business owner or professional practitioner) understand online searchers’ concerns and needs.

So, my advice to you is to “jump through the screen” and assume one of the five Satir positions!
 

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Bibi Makes a Point on the Side of Humor in Blogging for Business

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Israel's Prime Minister Netanyahu speaks during a news conference in JerusalemJust after I’d posted Monday’s Say It For You blog urging blog content writers to use humor with caution, my friend George shared the following link to what he calls “a truly original ad”.  George was right, I think you’ll agree – the video really got me laughing – and thinking…

WAIT!  Before you click, let me provide some background (most of you will need to go with the subtitles ; I was able to understand the Hebrew).  This is a campaign ad for Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, nicknamed Bibi.  Netanyahu represents the right-wing Likud party. The challengers are Isaac Herzog (nicknamed Buji) of the Zionist Camp and Tzipi Livni of the Kadima party….

OK, you’ve seen the video, so what happened here?   Monday, I quoted Jason Miller saying that humor is an effective way to connect  with an audience and humanize your brand or company.  This video sets a very common scene of parents waiting for the babysitter to arrive. The incongruity of having the Prime Minister serve as a sitter lends humor.

Of course, the blog content writers I advise are not writing politically related copy. In fact, politics is one of the subjects best avoided in blog marketing for a product or service, I advised. But this video clip, where politics was the very topic of the piece, managed to make a few very pointed statements about the two opponents: Herzog would be too quick to give away  the rugs in the apartment (territory) and Tzipi is not visible enough and an infiltrator (she would have moved before the parents came home.).

“It’s them or me,” is the parting line of Bibi’s explanation to the parents, watching out for the future of your children. When the parents arrive home and say ” Shalom” (hello, meaning peace), Bibi says, ” Not unconditionally!”

Got to admit – this video was made up of  a soft, yet very pointed jabs at the Bibi’s political opponents, yet presented such an everyday, human situation, so funny and endearing.  Loved it!

Still, let’s face it.  What’s the likelihood of our being this effective with humor on an ongoing basis in our blog posts? In fact, this video made me think of a sort of moral dilemma when it comes to blog marketing (actually to any kind of marketing).  We want to clarify the ways we stand out from the competition.  But how can we get the point across that readers should want to choose us?

My friend and colleague Thaddeus Rex at National Speakers Association tells us to get readers to laugh at the competitor’s negative, but emphasize your positive.

 

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Humor Can Be a Hot Potato in Blogging for Business

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“It’s no surprise that using humor in advertising is an effective way to connect with your audience and Afraid girlhumanize your brand or company,” observes Jason Miller of Social Media Examiner. “Just because your company is serious doesn’t mean all marketing has to be,” he adds.

As a corporate blogging trainer, I must admit I was relieved to see that Miller added an important caveat: “Being funny is a risk…Some people might not appreciate your company’s brand of humor!”  Bill Faeth, writing in the Inbound Marketing Blog, agrees. The reason comedies are typically outnumbered by dramas, he explains, is that being funny enough to make hundreds of people laugh without offending anyone is actually really tough. You can poke fun at yourself, Faeth suggests. Almost anything else, especially competitors or where they live – probably a no-no.

On the other hand, (one of the functions of a business blog, I have taught business owners and professional practitioners IS to offer different aspects of an issue before explaining why they are on one side or the other of that issue), Hope Hatfield of LocalDirective.com  points out that humor is a hook, having the same impact as a strong headline to grab the audience’s attention. Humor’s an icebreaker, she adds, but only so long as you carefully consider your target market, focusing the humor around a problem your company can solve.

No matter how funny your marketing messages are, don’t forget that the goal is to educate your prospects about your products and services. “You want to make sure that you don’t lose the message in the humor, Hatfield cautions.

Research at the Saimaa University of Applied Sciences on the impact of humor in advertising on consumer purchase decisions concluded that, while humor is an effective method of attracting attention to advertisements, it does not offer an advantage over non humor at increasing persuasion.

So what do I think the bottom line is for using humor in blogging for business? Well,…barring politics (including company, city, state, national, and international), religion, ethnic groups, physical appearance, food preferences, insider information, and anything anyone might conceive as risque – go right ahead.  But keep the humor centered around your own weaknesses and around the consumers’ problem you’re offering to solve.

 

 

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