Archive for Writing
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→
How to Write a Blog Post
Posted by: | CommentsAs you know, if you’re a subscriber or frequent visitor, I’m passionate about blogging. I believe a blog can be the centerpiece of a company’s social media strategy.
But writing a blog post is different from writing, say, an ad or product flyer. A blog is an informal conversation with your readers. You’ve got to put your personality into a blog. Visitors want to know what you stand for and your honest opinions about things – both good and bad.
Stick Your Neck Out
When writing a blog, stick your neck out
You’ve got to stick your neck out a little and risk offending. You don’t want to be hurtful, but as an example, in my post about Home Depot, I wanted the company to know that the needs of Manhattan residents without cars are different from folks who live in the ‘burbs with big minivans to haul things away from the store. I guess they’ll never hire me to write a blog for them, but that’s the chance I took.
In social media, you hear the term “authenticity” all the time. You’ve got to be authentic in everything you write and every connection you make. There’s just too much information out there about you to get away with half-truths or exaggerations.
Informal Rules of the Road
So what would a blog post be without a list? Here’s mine about writing a blog:
- Be authentic. Say what you mean and mean what you say. You’re building relationships and you want them to last.
- Write in the first person. Remember when you were a kid, your parents taught you that humility is a virtue and don’t use the “I” word too often. In journalism school, you were taught to write objectivity. Leave yourself out of it. Blogging turns that rule on its head. Whether editorializing is correct in a news organization’s reporting is a story for another post.
- Respect your readers. Don’t talk down to them. Try to understand and respond to their information needs. Ask for their feedback. You’ll learn a lot that way.
- Respond to comments. If someone is nice enough to comment, send a thank-you note either via a reply in the post, or with a quick email.
- Don’t stuff your post with key words. You want readers to find your posts – if no one reads a story, does it exist? So naturally you use key words to attract visitors. But if you’re writing about social media, don’t use the term in every sentence. That’s called keyword stuffing and readers are smart enough to know it and tune you out – maybe forever.
- Make it readable. Break up copy into short takes with headlines. Make it easy for your readers to get through your copy. I read a ton of blogs and when I get to a site and all I see are long paragraphs of dense, small type with no sub-heads, bold face or graphics, I don’t stay long.
- Write with emotion. This may sound strange. But really enjoy what you’re writing about. Put yourself into it with gusto. Laugh a little if you’re writing a post primarily to entertain. Feel the pain if you’re writing about a serious subject like the misery of the people displaced by the tsunami in Japan. It’s called empathy and your readers will embrace you for it.
Thanks for visiting. I really appreciate it.
11 Types of Blogs To Generate Web Traffic and Please Your Readers
Posted by: | CommentsThere are more different types of blog posts than I can count on my fingers and toes. Tone of voice is important, too. For example, if you’re writing for a business audience, should you use humor in your blog posts? Will your readers think you aren’t serious?
The question you first need to ask yourself, “What is the objective of this article?” If you’re writing to entertain, then it’s OK to use humor. And, yes, business people like humor, too.
When writing about a serious subject such as unrest in the middle East and its implications for business, though, humor would be out of place.
I’ve concluded that many posts fit into the Who, What, Where, When, Why and How Come formula that I learned in journalism class that guided me as a business reporter. See if your posts answer at least one of these interrogatives. It will help to give your blog focus.
The Blog Post List
1. How to. People always want to learn how to do things better, faster, cheaper, safer. How-to blogs appeal to every demographic. Want to learn how to mow your lawn? Head over to Consumer Reports.
2. Promoting a Cause. You may feel passionate about a cause. A particular passion of mine is women and heart disease. I could make the case about why my readers should join the Go Red campaign to educate women on the risks of heart disease.
3. Analysis. In this type of post you can demonstrate your expertise by including your own opinions and those of other experts – linking to authority sites also boosts your SEO. I wrote one recently entitled “The New Leadership Paradigm: Rule by Community” that described the spontaneous formation of new communities of leaders made possible by the power of the Internet. This type of post is also called a Roundup.
4. Reviews. What’s your field? Has an expert written a new book you can review? I just downloaded the Kindle version of Gary Vaynerchuk’s new book “The Thank You Economy” and will write a review after I read it.
5. Q&A. This a great way to conduct an interview with a guest. You can make life easy for readers who don’t like a lot of dense copy. Also, it’s more personal. I interviewed Pat Weber for three blogs that I posted on the elevator speech. She interviewed me for her site and then we decided to turn these posts into an ebook, “Repairing the Elevator Speech to Burnish Your Personal Brand,” which is available to new subscribers of Write Speak Sell.
6. Entertainment. Some blogs are simply meant to entertain. They can be about serious topics – like a lack of service that I experienced at Home Depot in a post “Don’t Forget to Bring Your Own Saw to Home Depot” but written with humor with the primary purpose to entertain your readers.
7. Promotional. You may have a new product or service that you feel the world can’t live without. Write a post – but don’t be too sales-y. Remember that the reader is always asking “What’s in it for me?”
8. Lists. Like this one on blog posts. How about a list of what you consider to be the best books on leadership, or recipes for apple pie?
9. Inspirational. Posts that ask people to be better citizens, to follow their passions in life, to tap their inner spirit are examples of topics that will hopefully inspire your readers to action – and make you feel better, too.
10. Problem/Solution. A demonstrated winner. I wrote a post a while back “Why Can’t WordPress Tutorials be Written in Language for Regular People? I received a lot of comments and I was most gratified by this one, “This was so helpful!!! I’ve been trying to figure this out for almost 24 hours!!! …LOL.”
11. Instructional. I recently wrote a post entitled “How to Insert the Name of Your Website into Your LinkedIn Profile” that received many thank-you’s. So simple, but many LinkedIn users don’t know how – just take a look at some profiles.
Do you have a favorite type of post? What have I left out?
How to Write a LinkedIn Invitation
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I regularly receive invitations to join the network of other LinkedIn members.
Today I received this compelling invitation:
Good evening Jeannette, we are both members of NYEBN. I viewed your profile and based on your experience and expertise, I feel you would make a great connection. Please let me know if there is anything that I can help with.
Would you mind connecting?
All the best,
Al
I was intrigued and went into his profile and, indeed, our companies and services are highly complimentary and he’s someone I’d like to know better, so I accepted his invitation. We both live in New York so I’ll be in touch to explore how our mutual interests might lead to collaborating on business or referrals to other people.
I am not a LION, or open networker on LinkedIn. Those are members who are open to connecting with anyone who extends an invitation. The original premise of LinkedIn was to connect with people you know, but that restriction loosened over time. So most members are agreeable to linking with people when it makes sense – and when the invitation is personalized.
How NOT to Write an Invitation
I don’t respond well – and most people don’t – to the default LinkedIn invitation:
I’d like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn.
- Joe Blow
Many members delete these invitations because they are not personalized. The canned invitation seems spamm-y and shows no interest in me as a fellow professional. Who says I want to join your network?
Give me a reason, like Al did. Notice that he offered to help me – and didn’t ask me for anything in return.
So, the next time you want to connect with someone new on LinkedIn, take the time to craft a personalized invitation. It’s only polite and will lead to better results and stronger connections.
