Achieving Eudaimonia in Business Blog Writing

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The Stoics realized that there are things we control, and things we don’t. To get to the good life, we should focus on things we control, accepting the rest as it happens. When it comes to the things we can control, Stoics believe it’s not an external situation that makes us happy or miserable, but our interpretation of that situation. The idea is to achieve a supremely happy life, which Stoics call eudaimonia.

That ancient philosophy can help business entrepreneurs today, theconversation.com comments. As I read this article, it occurred to me that three business concepts based on Stoicism can serve as great guidelines for those of us involved in blog marketing:

  1.  “Before we try to control events, we have to control ourselves.”

Twelve years ago, in the process of explaining the way my company Say It For You came about, I talked about the “drill sergeant discipline” needed by blog content writers. What I meant was that, while all my business owner clients knew that writing blogs in their area of expertise was going to be a great idea for them, not very many of them felt they could take the time to compose and post content on a regular basis.  I also knew that the main key to business blogging success was going to be simply keeping on task. Meanwhile, our business owner clients can’t throw in the towel before success has been given the chance to develop. We can’t control the market or our customers – first we have to control our own activities.

2. “Stoicism means leveraging your uniqueness.” (Don’t let emulation turn into imitation.)

To have any hope of moving higher in search rankings and engage readers’ interest, blogs must provide fresh, relevant content. But, with the sheer volume of information on the Web on every topic under the sun, how do we keep providing new material in our blog posts week after week, month after month, even year after year? Two strategies include bringing in less well-known facts about familiar things and processes, and suggesting new ways of thinking about things readers already know.
But, besides offering unique tidbits of information, we must incorporate one important ingredient – opinion. Taking a stance, using blog content writing to express a firm opinion on issues, is how companies and practices can leverage their uniqueness.

   3.  “Stoicism turns problems into opportunities.”

I teach freelance blog writers in Indianapolis to include stories of their clients’ past mistakes and failures. Such stories have a humanizing effect, engaging readers and creating feelings of empathy and admiration for the business owners or professional practitioners who overcame not only adversity, but the effects of their own mistakes! When customers’ complaints and concerns are recognized and dealt with “in front of other people” (in blog posts), it gives the “apology” or the “remediation measure” more weight. In fact, in corporate blogging training sessions, I remind Indianapolis blog writers to “hunt” for stories of struggle and mistakes made in the early years of a business or practice!

Studying the Stoics gives us a chance at achieving blogging eudaimonia!

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Words of Wisdom for Blog Content Writers – Part A

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sharing tidbits of content writing
It’s the beginning of a new blogging year, and I’m looking through my bookshelves, thumbing through all the new business writing-related books I’ve collected during 2019.What would I do without these “reading around” gems, with their different sorts and shapes of advice and reflection?…

Moments are the thing.
“The goal is the thing,” admit Chip and Dan Heath, authors of The Power of Moments, “but for an individual human being, moments are the thing. Moments are what we remember and what we cherish.” The three situations that deserve to be punctuated, the Heaths advise, are transitions, milestones, and pits.

As a businessperson, you have many stories to tell, we explain to new Say It For You clients, including the benefits of your products and services, successful case studies, news of importance to your customers, and your own perspective on trends in your industry. But perhaps even more important to share in your blog, we add, are those “moments” in the history of your business or practice that helped shape the person you are today.

True stories about mistakes and struggles are very humanizing, adding to the trust readers place in the people behind the text of the blog. What tends to happen is that stories of failure create feelings of empathy and admiration for the entrepreneurs or professional practitioners who overcame the effects of their own errors.

Follow thought leaders.
In addition to surveying customers, you can identify opportunities for your business and analyze choices by following thought leaders in your general business area, advises Jeanette McMurtry in Marketing for Dummies.

Readers found your blog in the first place, we explain to clients, because what they needed corresponded with what you sell, what you know, and what you know how to do. Now that those searchers are “meeting” you through your content, you have the chance to establish credibility and reliability. One way to come across as an expert is to share some of the valuable information you’ve learned by staying abreast of the latest developments in your field.

When we care, we share.
Products and ideas that are practically valuable and wrapped in stories are contagious, explains Jonah Berger, author of the book Contagious. We need to craft content which saves time, improves health, and saves money, he says.

Using anecdotes in your blog, rather than just touting the advantages of your company, practice, or product, is what gives your words the greatest impact. One of the reasons I recommend writing in first and second person (I-you) is that caring and sharing are very personal emotions.

Blog content writers, one of the best pieces of advice is to “read around”, finding gems like these and then sharing them!

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Business Blogging May Not Take a Village, But it Does Take a Team

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teamwork
Even after playing together for more than fifty years (I learned from Steve & Jack’s Home News), the Rolling Stones musicians still understand the value of practicing together, committing to two months of rehearsal before every tour. Why? Practicing together helps them reconnect with each other’s rhythm and understand each member’s distinctive roles.

Running a business blog takes commitment and teamwork as well. In fact, as we Say It For You blog content writers embark on our 13th year, one thing continues to become clear: Whenever things do not work out as planned, it almost always has to do with lack of coordination among the team members:

  • the blog writer
  • the webmaster
  • the business owner or practitioner
  • the staff of the client’s business or practice

As blog content writers, we are interpreters. Effective blog posts must go from information-dispensing to offering the business owner’s (or the professional’s, or the organizational executive’s) unique perspective on issues related to the search topic.

What that means is that owners and professional practitioners have got to be involved in the process of producing content, even after they’ve engaged our services; they can’t “go to sleep” and cede control of the creative process to us. The webmaster has to work together with the blog writer to provide the optimization and analysis that make the content “work”. The front-line employees who deal with the customers daily must be involved.

Hiring professional bloggers is not a “wake me up when it’s over” proposition – just as is true of the Rolling Stones, reconnecting with each other’s knowledge and rhythm is what makes the material come to life. Not only should there be periodic team meetings to discuss content, it is not a good idea for me and my team to take on writing assignments without insisting the business also invest in properly designed landing pages and website optimization. When blog writing is not coordinated with email and social media the results are simply not likely to be what the business owner expects.

Business blogging may not take a village, but it certainly does take a team!

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Blog to Put New Twists on the Same Theme

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variety in blog posts

 

While the entire September 23 issue of TIME magazine was devoted to a single theme, each of the eleven articles was different from all the others, illustrating a point I keep stressing to business owners and practitioners hesitant about launching a blog.

“I’ve already covered my products and services on my website – what else is left to say?”   True, the company or the practice has already covered information about the products and services, but what the blog is for, by contrast, is to provide relevant, useful, and timely content to your prospects and customers to help them solve problems, understand industry trends, and make sense of the news and how it relates to them.

Yes, effective business blogging is centered around a limited number of keyword phrases and key themes. Those keyword phrases need to be repeated in order to “win search”. More important, the very nature of blogging for business over long periods of time offers a “training benefit” to the owners themselves, even if they’ve engaged the services of a professional content writer. That’s because the very process of choosing themes, sharing strategies, and planning for content creation, (which of necessity involves both owner and writer) has a 2+2=5 synergy effect.

In terms of finding variety while writing about the same topic again and again, that issue of TIME proves my point. The magazine’s chosen topic – global warming. The overriding message – we need to pay attention to global warming if we are to save our planet. Still, every single one of the articles came at the topic from a different vantage point. Here are just five examples:

  1. Paper straws alone won’t save the planet. Focusing on individual choices…heightens the risk of reliance on fossil fuels.
  2. Can we innovate our way out of this mess? Message: Advances in technology have transformed the energy industry, and ongoing research and development in wind and solar power will help drive down costs and reduce pollution.
  3. Climate change is the global health emergency of the 21st century. Discusses public health risks in different areas of the world and in poor urban U.S. communities.
  4. Kid’s-Eye View. Young readers drew their view of the planet 30 years from now.
  5. In Africa, necessity is the mother of climate-change innovation. African cities and governments, having already experienced many of the worst impacts of climate change, are adopting innovations in water treatment and telephone communication.

Yes, there is sheer discipline required in maintaining a marketing blog week after week, month after month, and year after year, without becoming same-old, same-old. But, as TIME editors so effectively demonstrate, that is far from an impossible task. Finding interesting pieces of information on topics related to that business or practice. If you can provide information most readers would be unlikely to know, so much the better. “Startling statistics”, anecdotes relating to hardships business owners and clients have overcome, and information about community activities all help lend variety without departing from the core message.

Blog to put new twists on the same theme!

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Inviting Blog Readers to Learn What You Live By

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blogs reveal corporate culture

Of the 17 best examples of business blog design cited by Carolyn Edgecomb of impactbnd.com, the one I think best embodies a point I emphasize to blog content writers is the Zappos website. “If you thought their blog was only going to talk about shoes, you’re sorely mistaken,” Edgecomb points out, because Zappos transitioned their blog to an “outlet for inspiration and everyday life.”

What we live by
Readers are invited to discover the ten core values central to the way the company does business, including building open and honest relationships, doing more with less, and being passionate and determined, and pursuing growth and learning.

Tony Hsieh Unlaced
Readers are invited to “walk a mile in the CEO’s shoes, discovering downtown Vegas from his point of view.

The Zappos blog is really a wonderful example of the fact that, in business blog posts, as compared to brochures, ads, or even the website itself, it’s easier to communicate the unique personality and core beliefs of the business owners.  Over time, in fact, a business blog becomes the “voice” of the corporate culture, whether the “corporation” (or partnership or LLC) consists of one person or many. In fact, when I’m “meeting” a business through its blog, I like to get a sense that the owners are tuned in to the bigger picture of what’s going on in their industry and to what’s happening the everyday world around them. I want to know what they “make of it all” from their little corner.

True, every online content writer must focus on what’s relevant to the searcher’s query. Yet, the more revealing the blog is of the owner’s slant on what’s going on – and what should be going on and how – the more engaging and interesting I’m likely to find that business’ blog posts.

The lesson I “preach” at Say It For You is that the content has to show searchers they’ve come to the right place to get what they’re after, and also show those searchers that the information, services, and products you have to offer are a good fit. But, as the old sales mantra goes,– “They won’t care how much you know until they know how much you care!”

Invite blog readers to learn what you live by!

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