Blogging to Get More Done

November 19, 2015/0 Comments/in blog marketing, idea sources for blogs/by Rhoda Israelov

Midwest blog content writers should take heed of Nick Usborne’s analysis of the content on the John Deere website. In Networds: Creating High-Impact Online Copy, Usborne tracks the “before” and “after” of the John Deere page promoting its 4000 series tractor.

Old content:
Underneath their familiar green and yellow exterior isn’t just a redesign of the compact tractor, but a transformation. Where power is no longer measured by horsepower. Where implements practically attach themselves. And comfort is no longer at odds with productivity. One hundred and twenty improvements. Zero gimmicks. And countless firsts. These tractors are ready. 120 Improvements. Countless Firsts. Zero Gimmicks.

Usborne’s take on this old content:
“This content has no depth and no benefits. It’s boring and borderline ridiculous. The company isn’t selling luxury cars here; it’s selling tractors to people who have very specific needs…Can this tractor tow large objects? How large? How heavy?”

New content:
GET MORE DONE
With 133 attachments available you can:
Mow up to 20 acres
Till up to 5.5 acres
Lift up to 2728 lbs
Dig with a 36-inch bucket up to 8.5 feet deep

Usborne’s take on this new content:
“Now that’s action!…This makes me excited, this allows me to envision the possibilities of what I can do, and this creates the needs for me to own this tractor, and helps me to justify the purchase to my wife!

“As the John Deere website continues to evolve,” says Matt Bailey in Internet Marketing: an Hour a Day, “I hope to see more transition into consumer needs-based content.”

This whole blog marketing thing, I teach newbie content writers, is not really about the technicalities of search engine optimization, although that may be how the story begins. What I believe it is really about is providing those who find your site with a taste of what it would be like to have you working alongside them to help with their challenges and issues. So, whether you’re writing your own blogs or working with a professional content writer, your blog posts are your way to say to each searcher:

“Our services/products can help you get more done!”

Blogging Assumption-Free

November 16, 2015/0 Comments/in blog marketing/by Rhoda Israelov

I’ve been doing some heavy thinking about assumptions, and it’s Daniel Herndon’s fault.

“Assumptions can be good or bad, but either way they inform our beliefs and opinions,” Herndon says. Assumptions inform the decisions we make, and often they can be productive, he admits. But what about when our assumptions are counterproductive? he asks. (That’s precisely the question I haven’t been able to stop turning over in my mind ever since his thought-provoking newsletter hit my inbox.)

What if our assumptions are keeping us from doing something great? (Read these examples from the Herndon post– you won’t be able to get them out of your mind, either!)

What if your parents are not always right?
What if you don’t have to change your oil every 3000 miles?
What if you don’t have to go to college to get a good job?
What if some things don’t ‘happen for a reason’?

I’ve been “translating” this assumption-challenging attitude into my own field of blog content writing. “What if all those rules we were taught at all those webinars and seminars and ebooks and “15 things” lists are actually stopping us from writing truly great content?” is what I’ve been asking myself.

What if blog readers don’t have as short an attention span as we thought?
What if they don’t all read at a sixth grade level?
What if you don’t need to keep the content “above the fold”?
What if searching Google AdWords isn’t the best starting point for creating posts?
What if being almost obnoxiously opinionated on issues in your field is just fine?
What if you went ahead and gave away all your how-to “secrets” in your blog and your readers still wanted you to provide services for them?
What if keeping below 65 characters wasn’t the most important thing about writing a title for a blog post?

What if you had your ideal prospect sitting right in front of you, and you were going to take three minutes to teach him one thing he needs to know how to do? What if you were going to take three minutes to share with her a valuable insight, or express and explain your point of view on a controversy that’s in the news? No blogging platform, no SEO, just talking.

Now sit down and do something great. Write your blog post directly to that one man or woman. Assume they’re going to read it – every word.

Next time you’re getting ready to write copy for a blog post, ask yourself Daniel Herndon’s question: “What if what you believe and take for granted is actually a false assumption?”

Business Blogging Using Not-So-Trivial Trivia – Part B

November 12, 2015/0 Comments/in blog marketing, idea sources for blogs/by Rhoda Israelov

This week I’m devoting my Say It For You blog posts to sharing some of the gems I discovered, in J.K. Kelly’s Book of Incredible Information.

There seems to be an ongoing debate in the world of fashion about pantyhose. “The look will never be quite the same as it would be with a nude leg, but there’s nothing you can do about that,” says Charles Manning of Cosmopolitan. Sheer and “leg-colored” pantyhose are no longer worn for fashion, but rather for function or professionalism, according to the budgetfashionista.com.

Whether nude pantyhose are a “thing” again or not, J.K. Kelly reassures us that pantyhose are not just for legs. What ARE they for, then?

Lost something? Slide a length of pantyhose over your vacuum cleaner hose, secure it with rubber bands, and vacuum where you think the lost item might be. The hose will keep the item from being sucked up into the bag.
Cut a piece of pantyhose slightly larger than your new hairbrush. Push the bristles through the hose. When it’s time to clean the brush, pull the pantyhose off – with all the hair – and put on a new piece.
Line houseplant pots with pantyhose to prevent soil loss from the bottom of the pot.
Insert a bar of soap into a pantyhose length, tie a knot at both ends, and use as a back-scrubber.

So how might you use this pantyhose trivia for business blogging? (Remember, tidbits serve as jumping off points for explaining what problems can be solved using the company’s’ products and services.)

These pantyhose hints would add humor and interest to a fashion blog or a dress or shoe company’s blog. Blogging for a garden shop? A hair salon? An appliance store? Any one of these could use the Kelly’s helpful hints to add new interest to the ongoing marketing message in their blog.

Using blogs to perform a focus group function can be a very feasible marketing strategy, with blog readers invited to offer their own ideas about how fashionable or gauche pantyhose are, and create ways to use the ones for household tasks. “Polling” in your blog can be a great technique to stimulate interaction with target customers.

Make those not-so-trivial trivia count in blogging for business!

Business Blogging Using Not-So-Trivial Trivia – Part A

November 10, 2015/0 Comments/in blog marketing, idea sources for blogs/by Rhoda Israelov

Writing blog posts on any one topic over long periods of time can get old, as any business owner or professional practitioner can tell you. And, yes, even we seasoned professional blog content creators have a need to infuse new energy into the process from time to time. That’s precisely where the weird and wonderful tidbits in J.K. Kelly’s Book of Incredible Information can help.

I’ve had so much fun exploring the pages of this incredible collection of not-so-trivial trivia, I’m going to devote this week’s Say It For You blog posts to sharing some of the gems I discovered, along with ideas about how you might incorporate some of these into your own blog content writing….

About one in three movies features at least once scene containing an insect, Kelly reminds us.
There’s actually a name for the professional “bug men” or “bug wranglers” who facilitate the process, I learned. No joke, either. These are trained entomologists responsible for providing the insects and for manipulating them onscreen.

So, how to you train an insect? You don’t. They cannot be trained, only manipulated to fit the needs of the movie script. Spiders refuse to walk on Lemon Pledge furniture wax, for example, so you spray the stuff where you don’t want them going. To make an insect fly toward a window, wranglers place a light out of shot behind the window.

What about make-up for insects? You bet, Kelly explains. For “Silence of the Lambs”, the wrangler couldn’t obtain specimens of the rare moth needed, so he anesthetized moths and painted on the distinctive markings of the death’s-head hawk moth onto their bodies. Needless to say, the wrangler used water-based, non-toxic paint that would wash off later without any harm to the insect.

So how might you use this insect-training knowledge in business blogging? The tidbit becomes the jumping off point for explaining what problems can be solved using that business’ products or that practice’s services, for defining basic terminology, and for putting modern day statistics into perspective.

On a very simple level, this trivia could add humor and interest to a blog by a pest control company or a makeup studio.

On a deeper level, there’s a lot here about training. How do you train employees? Can – and should – employees be manipulated? How do you go about inspiring children in the classroom? I can see the bit about the insect wranglers being used in blogging for an employee placement firm, an instructional design firm, or by a college training corporate managers.

For freelance blog content writers, incredible information tidbits can turn into incredible treasure,
adding new interest to the ongoing marketing message in the blog.

Blogger Writing Basics

October 22, 2015/0 Comments/in blog marketing, Business writing tips/by Rhoda Israelov

The ideas highlighted in this week’s Say It For You blog posts were sparked by Tony Rossiter’s Effective Business Writing in Easy Steps. “Whether you’re drafting a lengthy company report or sending a short email to colleagues, it’s vital to get it right,” cautions Rossiter, defining “right” as meaning clear and concise prose, in a style that’s acceptable to your readers.

Different layouts fulfill different purposes, Tony Rossiter explains, such as: The word Write on a cork notice board

Attracting attention
Saving space
Selling something
Summarizing a topic
Raising questions

Good, clear layout is essential, the author cautions. “Remember that every line on every page is the result of someone’s conscious layout decision.”

Layout applies to business blogs in different ways, with one of those being the Calls to Action.

There should be more than one CTA, so as to appeal to different readers who might be at different. Stages in the sales cycle. Those ready to buy can do that right away. Those who need more information before making a decision can choose to pick up the phone. There should be something for those not quite ready for even a phone conversation – they might be guided to watch a video or read an article, for example.
The CTAs themselves can be in different formats, with some in the text, some in separate “boxes”, and with different CTA’s linking to different landing pages or sign-up pages.

If the purpose of the blog post is to attract attention at first glance, you may wish to use special formatting:

Put the opening sentence in bold or in italics
Use the first sentence as the entire first paragraph
Center the first sentence (rather than justifying it to the left with the rest of the text)

The content of the opening sentence, in addition to the formatting, can be designed to grab readers’ attention:

Begin with the conclusion, using the remainder of the blog post to “prove” the validity of that bold assertion
Raise a challenging question in the opening sentence, then use the post to propose an answer.

Every line on every page should in fact be the result of YOUR conscious content and layout decisions!

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