Posts

Single-Topic Publications and Ghost Blogs: Sisters Under the Skin

/0 Comments/in /by

Don’t eschew specialty magazines, is Don Vaughan‘s advice to writers looking for assignments. You don’t have to be a subject matter expert to write on specialty topics, he says – all you need is an innovative idea specific to the topic.

At Say It For You, we agree. Since our blogging clients are guaranteed exclusivity in their marketplace, we often find ourselves writing content on topics in which we’ve no prior experience or training. I couldn’t help chortling at Vaughan’s remark about the Portable Restroom Operator publication, which has been “chugging along since 2008”. (One might wonder, Vaughan observes, what there would be left to write about after two or three issues on the subject of toilets!)

Most specialty magazines, Vaughn explains, are eager to receive pitches from skilled writers with intriguing ideas that:

  1. touch on unexplained aspects of the magazine’s them
  2. offer new approaches to frequently reported topics

Specific tactics that Vaughan recommends for non-specialist magazine writers can be useful for blog writers:

  • profiles of innovators in the field
  • aspects of the topic’s history
  • reflections on important anniversaries of the industry (or, in the case of blogs, of the company or practice)
  • new product reviews
  • profiles of prominent people who have benefitted from the product or service you offer
  • news about developments in the industry

“On rare occasions,” Vaughan observes, “good story ideas may arise from not being knowledgeable about the publications’ topic (bloggers, read “client’s topic”). He shares the story of one writer who broke into writing for Guns and Ammo Magazine with a pitch about the first and only time he’d ever shot a gun. Human interest stories can be a source of out-of-the-box story ideas, showing how professionals addressed a very ordinary situation.

In blogging, as in writing for specialty magazines, creativity and intention count more than technical expertise!

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedintumblrmail

In Horseracing or Blogs, Ask for Permission

/0 Comments/in , , , /by

 

Barbara Bush agreed; Margaret Thatcher didn’t. The point, Jake Rossen explains in the Mental Floss article titled “Hoof-Hearted; the Reason Racehorses Have Such Weird Names”, is that most governing bodies for thoroughbred racing set certain parameters for names, and when you opt to name a horse after a person in tribute to them, you have to ask permission.

Similarly, there are rules authors and blog content writers need to know about fair use and attribution. Whenever you want to directly quote, excerpt, or reproduce someone else’s work in something you are writing, you should consider whether or not you need legal permission to protect yourself and your business from potential future problems, the Vervante blog reminds us.

Vervante lists instances when you need to cite your source:

  • You’re quoting someone else.
  • You’re mentioning statistics that you didn’t collate yourself.
  • You’re using another person’s thoughts or ideas that aren’t your own.

The most common way we cite our sources (whether it be an article or a website) within our blogs is by paraphrasing and hyperlinking back to the page where the information originated (precisely what I’ve done three times in this very blog post).

Unfortunately, Jane Friedman explains, quoting or excerpting someone else’s work falls into one of the grayest areas of copyright law. There is no legal rule stipulating what quantity is OK to use without seeking permission from the owner or creator of the material. It’s fine to link to something online from your website, blog, or publication. Linking does not require permission. One guiding principle – if your use is not likely to affect the market for the original work, you’re probably OK.

“At first, it might seem odd that we should direct to other websites the users we’re always struggling to attract to our own domain,” rockcontent.com wryly comments, but “realizing the importance of referrals from other pages to the success of yours will change your mind”, the author adds.

Since the purpose of this Say It For You blog is to help content writers improve their craft, I consider linking to other websites to be my way of paying tribute to those authors’ expertise and knowledge.

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedintumblrmail

Letting the ideas Do the Work in Your Blog

/0 Comments/in , , /by

“By the end of three minutes, your audience will already be leaning yes or no on your proposal”, Brant Pinvidic writes in The 3-minute Rule. You know your product, service, or company is amazing, but they don’t know how it works or why it’s so great. You need to give them more knowledge in less time, the author explains, not selling, but letting the ideas do the work. 

Given the concern today about the rising price of oil, I was particularly taken by the story Pinvidic shares about an oil company executive. (This was taking place back when oil prices were one quarter what they are now.) Pindivic was coaching the presenter, whose goal was to show investors that his company, unlike others, had found a way to keep drilling even if oil were to fall to $32 a barrel (the price was $40 at the time) The problem – it was only after 17 minutes of presenting (by which time the audience had fallen asleep) that the speaker explained how his company could keep drilling at $32 a barrel of oil..

The revised presentation began with the most important idea, the essence of the proposal: Our company can keep drilling profitably even if crude prices drop below $32 a barrel. Next came the “why” and the “how”: We have clear leases on proven wells with ample reserves. The valley location gives takers quick access to major highways to the Port of Houston. The new presentation ended with perspective and context: Our competitors must stop production below $37 a barrel.

In a nutshell, Brant Pinvidic is urging marketers to stop selling and to let the ideas do the work: “Don’t state and prove. Inform and lead.”

At Say It For You, I often refer to blogs as the sound bites of the Internet. In short segments, business owners convey to readers the essence of their accomplishments. Corporate blog writing, I explain, isn’t advertising, Blog content writing means telling readers about the essence of your special knowledge, insights, and beliefs, as well as about the products or services you offer. However, just as Pindivic stresses, the most important idea (and there should be just one core “thesis” for each blog post) needs to reassure readers they’ve come to the right place for the solution to their problem or the answer to their question.

While your topic may have little to do with oilfields, your audience needs your help “drilling down” – and quickly – to the essence of what you know, what you do, and how you can be of benefit to them. Stop selling and let the ideas do the work!

 

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedintumblrmail

Blog What the Best Have in Common

/0 Comments/in , , , /by

“We’ve become experts in identifying what draws a person’s eye to a cooking space,” Sarah Weinberg writes in delish.com, and we’ve noticed that the best ones have things in common.

  1. Smart and accessible storage
  2. Countertops that are easily cleaned and that don’t absorb food particles and odors
  3. Smart appliances
  4. Attractive, bright lighting

Quality is always defined in the eyes of the customer, Simple-PDH.com notes. Different groups of customers might define “best” in different ways, and we can group customers into “target markets” to better understand their needs and preferences. “Quality is defined by two elements: customer satisfaction and customer expectations.” Meeting customer expectations is what defines success.

For that very reason, it’s a very good idea to blog about “what the best have in common” when it comes to your category of product or service. Learning about these “commonalities” helps prospects define their expectations of you and of what you have to offer them.

In working with Say It For You business owner and practitioner clients to create blog content for them, I often encounter resistance to the what-the-best-have-in-common model. Reluctant to suggest that they have things “in common” with some of their competitors, they prefer to focus only on aspects that prove they (and only they). are “best”!

” An informed consumer is capable of making sensible decisions by gaining an insight about a product prior to its purchase.” Based on that belief, one of the primary objectives of the European Union has been the provision of information to consumers. The opposite effect happens with “choice overload”, which can lead to behavioral paralysis, KelloggInsight points out.

At Say It For You, we know that consumers know: whatever your business or practice, there are other out there, and realize that some of those are worthy competitors of yours. But, when visitors to your website find answers to their questions, updated information about your type of product or service, and social proof offered by clients and customers, you won’t need to be “the only one” to be “the one” with whom they choose to do business..

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedintumblrmail

In Blog Marketing, Controversy Can Start – or End – Conversation

/0 Comments/in , /by

 

Ban the word “must” in your pitch to an editor, Estelle Erasmus advises writers in Writers Digest. “We must do more for starving children” is not likely to get you an op-ed, because no reasonable person would argue the point. Editors are looking for something that can be legitimately part of a debate, she explains, so as to start a conversation.

When it comes to blogging for business, common intuition is that more controversy generates more buzz, Zoey Chen and Jonah Berger find. Yet, while controversy does increase interest initially, it also generates discomfort.

Research demonstrates that people care deeply about three Bs: behavior, belonging, and beliefs. If you create division around any of these things, people will seek to either confirm or disprove what you’re saying, which creates buzz. On the other hand, what you don’t want to create is backlash against you and your product or service.

Still, as Fractl writes, “Creating a piece of content that incites an emotional reaction or discusses a polarizing topic can bring valuable attention back to your brand.” To avoid backlash, she advises: a) Don’t choose a side or have an agenda in presenting the issue. b) Look at the lighter side of the story.

A controversy “do” includes offering a unique perspective, looking at a situation in a way that many people might not have considered, theEword.com points out. Also important is creating timely content, showing that your business is up on current affairs. Be balanced and a fair moderator, adds blogherald.com.

At Say It For You, I’ve always emphasized to content writers that blogs must have a strong, “opinionated” voice. Posts must go far beyond Wikipedia-page-information-dispensing and offer the business owner’s (or the professional’s, or the organization executive’s) unique perspective on issues related to the search topic.

Controversy can start – or end – conversation, to be sure. But, given that there is always going to be controversy, blog content writers need to use it as a tool for thought leadership.

 

 

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedintumblrmail

Portfolio Items