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Ask “Have You Read?” and “Have You Tried?”

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“Have You Read?” (a two-page section of Bookmarks Magazine), I couldn’t help thinking, is a great way to offer options without being commanding or “pushy”.  A parallel tactic is described in a Learn Laugh Speak post on polite ways to offer alternatives. When customer service hospitality workers need to offer alternatives better suited for a customer, they need to do this without coming off as pushy or rude. It’s a good idea, the trainers explained, to offer have-you-tried choices, allowing the customer to feel more in control of the decision-making process.

  • What if you…?
  • How about trying…?
  • Have you considered….?

When it comes to converting readers into customers, our job as content writers is to present choice, we stress at Say It For You. Given enough “space” to absorb the relevant and truthful information we present over time, consumers are perfectly able to – and far more likely to – decide to take action. Defining a problem, even when offering statistics about that problem, isn’t enough to galvanize prospects into action. Even showing you not only understand the root causes of a problem, but have experience in providing solutions to very that problem can help drive the marketing process forward.

Offering options using a “Have you tried…?” approach may prove the way to avoid a “hard sell”. At the same time, you don’t want to force a visitor to spend a long time just figuring out the 57 wonderful services your company has to offer!. What you can do is offer different kinds of information in different blog posts.

What we content writers can take away, I believe, from both the Bookmarks article  and the Learn Laugh Speak guidance for hospitality workers is the importance of allowing customers to feel in control of the decision-making process.

 

 

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Content Creators Need to Think Like Wolves

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After re-visiting Michael Breus’ book The Power of When, I’ve concluded that, in order to create marketing content for a business or practice over the long-term, we need to think like wolves….

The book, based on circadian biology, explains that there is a best time for each of us to eat lunch, ask for a raise, write a novel, and take our meds, depending on our individual “chronotype”. 50% of people are Bears (who prefer a solar based schedule and have a high sleep drive). Dolphins are light sleepers, while Lions are morning-oriented. The author describes wolves as “night-oriented creative extroverts” with a medium sleep drive.

From a content-marketing point of view, a key clue may be found on Page 77 of Breus’ book, where the author notes that “wolves see every situation from multiple vantage points”.  The big thing about content marketing, I’ve often explained to business owners and professional practitioners, is learning how to keep on keeping on. No doubt about it, sustaining content writing over long periods of time without losing reader (or writer!) excitement is the real challenge, one that “wolves” are best equipped to handle using their ability to approach the topic from “multiple vantage points”.

  • In order to add variety, I teach content writers to experiment with different formats, including how-to posts, list posts, opinion pieces, and interviews.
  • Different articles can present the same business from different vantage points, “featuring” different employees and different departments within the company.
  • Individual posts – or series of posts – can be tailored to different segments of the customer base.
  • Different pieces of content can offer valuable information and advice relating to different aspects of the business’ or the practice’s product or service offerings.

While “wolves are creative and completely open to trying new things,” the author cautions, “they do run into some trouble sticking with it”. Breus’ advice? “Be spontaneous about the direction you choose, so long as you take walks and eat meals on your correct bio time.”

My own advice, meanwhile, is that sustaining an engaging business blog  over the course of years is very do-able – so long as you stay engaged.  Keep learning by “reading around” – books, blogs, articles, magazines, almanacs – you name it, all to stay aware of developments, cultural changes, even controversies.

Whatever your circadian biology, in content writing, it helps to think like a wolf!

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Blogging to Pitch, Query, and Propose

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Reading Amy Jones’ fascinating article “Pitch vs. Query vs. Proposal” in Writer’s Digest reminded me of the sales function of blog marketing. Just as writers need to capture the attention of editors, we aim to convert our clients’ website visitors into buyers. Not to strain a synonym or wax overly philosophical, book writers need to first capture the attention and interest of the editors, with the ultimate goal to reach readers. To capture the attention of potential buyers, business owners and professional practitioners need to capture the attention of an appropriate segment of web surfers, going through the “filter” of a search engine. ….

But, do blog posts lead to purchases? Pamela Bump of Hubspot cites the firm’s 2021 executive Marketing Leadership Survey: Asked “Have you ever purchased something from a company after reading a blog post from them?”, 56% sais “Yes”; 20% of marketing leaders described blogs as “one of their most important channels for hitting goals.

the Pitch
In the pitch, Jones advises writers, tell the editor or publisher why you are the best person to write about a particular topic for of that publication. In other words, show at you and that publication would be a good match. The parallel in blog marketing? Make it easy for search engines to understand what you do, and where you fit. No, Pat Ahern of inter-growth.co, says, people searching the web aren’t ready to pull out their wallets, but answering a question of our target audience can be the first step in them checking out our blog.

the Query
A query, Jones goes on to tell writers, say, takes the form of a letter to an agent or editor accompanied by a sample or excerpt from the novel or article. “If you’re a plumber, remind readers when and how to winterize,” Marc Prosser of SCORE advises business owners. In other words, establish your authority in your field. By sharing your expertise, you’re building customer loyalty and demonstrating a “match” with common search terms.

the Proposal
Having stimulated some show of initial interest in your article or book, Jones now tells writers, you are ready to create an actual proposal, detailing the “product”, showing evidence of need for need for a new approach to the topic, and some actual “specs” of your manuscript. Blog content writers can share valuable information about both the features and benefits of their products and services, adding testimonials from former and existing clients.

Blog to pitch, query, and propose!

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Blogging This or That

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For the same amount of money, Jeana Harris explains in Indianapolis Monthly, you could have a four-bedroom Roaring Twenties foursquare in Meridian-Kessler or a sleek two-bedroom downtown condo just five blocks from Mass Ave. Would you prefer a view of peaceful streets sheathed with mature trees, or a sixth-floor view of the city coming alive at night?

Unlike upselling, which involves encouraging the purchase of anything that would make your customer’s purchase more expensive with an upgrade, enhancement, or premium option, Sophia Bernazzani explains in Hubspot.com, cross-selling pitches other products or services that work together with the ones already owned by the client or customer. Investopedia.com points out that both methods are “suggestive”, requiring only marginal effort on the part of the sales professional compared with the potential additional revenue.

“Having a larger number of choices makes people feel that they can exercise more control over what they buy. And consumers like the promise of choice: the greater the number of options, the greater the likelihood of finding something that’s perfect for them,” Sheena Iyengar and Kanika Agrawal assert in The Art of Choosing. But not everyone agrees. “More Isn’t Always Better”, says Barry Schwartz in the Harvard Business Review. Research now shows that there can be too much choice, inducing “choice paralysis”, with consumers less likely to buy anything at all.

Can business blogs help potential clients and customers make better, sometimes complex, decisions? A possible path to achieving that precise result, we have found at Say It For You, involves suggesting questions readers can ask themselves while choosing among many options. (Do they want ease of use? Current functionality? Future capabilities?)

No, more isn’t always better, but companies that get the balance right will be amply rewarded, Schwartz concludes. Due to the natural “drip effect” of blogs .consistent posting of informational “this-or-that” content can help consistent marketers achieve that Goldilocks “Mmm…just right” result.

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Blogs are About Value, Not Pricing

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An article in Mental Floss magazine about a 300 year-old Stradivarious violin reminded me of an ongoing discussion having to do with whether product or service pricing should be mentioned in blog content….

In discussing the upcoming auction of the Strad, author James Stewart makes some salient observations about pricing and how it relates to value. Factors that add to the value of this particular violin include:

  • the fame of the violin maker family
  • the identity of former owners of the instrument (Seider taught violin to Albert Einstein using this violin)
  • the association with the 1930’s filming of The Wizard of Oz at MGM Studios

Due to this combination of value-enhancing factors, it’s estimated that the violin might fetch $15 to $20 million in the upcoming auction.

“Today’s consumer is bombarded with advertisements in all media, direct mail offers, and telemarketing offers,” observes Dr. Richard Murphy of Jacksonville, University. “There are numerous factors involved when we begin to discuss the issues of value, cost and price. The value of anything is perceived by the customer, not the manufacturer or the vendor.” A Forbes article mentions one of Warren Buffett’s most famous quotes: “Price is what you pay; value is what you get.”

One question facing blog marketers is whether prices should be mentioned at all in the content. Ten years ago, Marcus Sheridan of social media examiner.com observed that, instead of addressing the No. 1 consumer question up front, business owners often decided to wait until a later stage of the sales process. “People like to know how much stuff costs,” Sheridan warned.

At Say It For You, we don’t think price is the No. 1 consumer question on the minds of web searchers who land on our clients’ blog posts. Instead, what your business blog writing needs to do is answer questions, offer perspective and thought leadership, while giving searchers a “feel” for the desired outcomes of using your products and services.

Think about it: When you visit an online shopping site, or even when you go into a local store to buy something, often all you can see are products on the shelf (or, in the case of an online visit, pictures of products) with names and prices.  Too often, there’s nobody to talk to and no other information available, (there may be customer reviews online).

At our content writing company, here’s how we view the issue of “putting price first”: Buyers want more than just product and service descriptions and prices. Blog content writing is about introducing readers to business owners, explaining the owners’ specialty or niche within their field, their special “philosophy” about their area of practice or their industry, and their unique approach to providing client services.

Blogs are about value, not pricing!

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