Archive for Writing
How to Write An Email Using the Best Words in the Subject Line
Posted by: | CommentsWith everyone’s email box overflowing, how do you get someone’s attention to read yours? Baydin, the company that helps you manage your email inbox, analyzed five million emails and discovered the subject lines that got the most responses and those that did not. I read about this in Tech Journal and you can visit the site to see the complete infographic with all the information that Baydin collected.
But I was most interested in the best words to use in email titles — and the ones to avoid. Five million emails seem like a pretty definitive sample to me. I’ve copied the part of the infographic with the best and worst words. Best words: apply, opportunity, demo, connect, payments, conference, cancellation. Worst words: confirm, join, assistance, speaker, press, social, invite.
Funny about the word “invite.” I tend to read those emails. You know, the opportunity for free food and drinks. But maybe that’s only me.
Blogs vs. Term Papers and Essays – A Growing Trend?
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They will write blogs, not term papers
The words “term paper” strike fear into the hearts of students, followed closely by “essay.” I remember those dark days of burning the candle to finish a term paper in college. It usually wasn’t fun if you had been assigned a specific topic.
I was lucky that my English professor, Dr. Edward Chalfant, didn’t require term papers, but simply asked us to write what we felt about an American novel or a Shakespearean play.
He was ahead of his time and foretold the coming of the blog, an informal style of writing that can enable a more personal connection between students and professors and between companies and customers in the business world.
Blogging for Grades
The New York Times weighed in on this topic recently, quoting educators who advocate trashing the old-fashioned term paper and those who still preach that students need the discipline of the format: make a point, defend it, repeat it. Read More→
Why Companies Abandon Their Blogs and What To Do About It
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I was in a new business meeting the other day and suggested that starting a company blog had the potential to increase visitors to the company’s website. We all know (don’t we?) that Google rewards dynamic content so posting regularly will eventually boost your rankings.
Why Blogs are Abandoned
The designer I was with said “Oh, no” that won’t work. I couldn’t blame him. He had designed websites and blogs for a number of clients and within a short time the blogs had been abandoned.
It’s a commitment to write a weekly or twice-weekly blog. Who will write the blog – someone inside the company or will we outsource it? What will we write about? Where will our ideas come from?
These are legitimate questions, but I believe it is a lack of will and commitment from top management that is behind the failures.There isn’t a plan in place to keep the blog going and building momentum.
Tips for Bloggers
So, if you, or your company, have abandoned your blog here are some steps to take: Read More→
Do Infographics Clarify or Mystify?
Posted by: | CommentsHave you noticed that infographics have become the rage?
According to that trusty source, Wikipedia, information graphics, or infographics, are graphic visual representations of information…that present complex information quickly and clearly.”
A lot of infographics are useful, like this Washington, D.C., subway map that helps you to figure out the correct train to reach your destination.
Source: Wikipedia
But I’ve become bleary-eyed trying to figure out most infographics. Arrows and winding paths through mounds of graphic designs leave me dizzy and confused. I get lost in the maze of information most of the time. Read More→
