Archive for Writing
How I Overcame Writer’s Block
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I’ve had writer’s block the past few days. The first thing I did was analyze the problem. Bad move. Why? Because analyzing is another excuse for putting off what I don’t want to do anyway. It’s the holidays; I’m busy; I have to get ready for a party. We all know the drill. So here is what I did.
First, and this has worked for me before, stop staring at your computer screen, hands frozen over the keys waiting for an inspiring opening sentence. Instead, just start typing gibberish like this –
Aue.s iea opueei aoeuemflpo ejsoemaiu e0 plel;adedxe[eopes/eide
Just let your hands fly over the keys. Come on, loosen up! It’s the equivalent of shaking your hands dry when there isn’t a towel available.
Next, do not call a friend for help. Another time waster. Here are a few additional tricks to get you going, after you’ve loosened up.
Go to Google’s Wonder Wheel. What a great tool for article ideas. Here is how it works:
- Type in your key word(s) in the Google search box and hit enter
- At the top of the search page click on “Show Options”
- Scroll down and click on Wonder Wheel – which shows your key word at the center with spokes going to related words, which then lead to other words.
- Under Options you can also click on “Forums” to show forums with those words
What’s cool is that every time you click on a related word or phrase, news with the keyword appears alongside so that you learn what’s being writen about the topic at that moment in time.
Next try Rack and Write. Never been there? This site is a real hoot. You enter some key words and the site comes back with hundreds of potential blog titles. As the site points out: “this is a brainstorming tool, so some of the sentences will sound wacky.” I entered the words CEO, Public Relations Director, and Press Release and here are a few titles I got back: “Realize Your Dream Press Release By Following These 4 Simple Steps,” and “The Worst Ideas for Press Release” and my favorite, “Fire the CEO!” About 99% of them are useless but they are great for sparking other ideas.
Link your article or blog to the news. It’s really quite amazing how you can align your brand with just about any news development. In my blogging course, our instructor Bea Fields asked us to write a blog about the death of Michael Jackson. For the life of me I thought, what would I write about? And it became apparent almost immediately: he was one of the greatest communicators of all time through his music, his words and his dancing. Easy.
Set a time limit. Give yourself a half hour to research and write your piece. You may end up going back to do some editing or adding a few new facts, but the basic piece will be done.
Don’t be afraid to go off message once in a while. If your topic is narrowly defined – like gardening tips, or how to build your own furniture, try writing about something that is close to your heart, like the value of true friendship, or get mad about something stupid that happened to you at the supermarket. Just let go.
Build on other ideas you’ve written about. That’s what I’m essentially doing now. I’ve written about how to find story ideas before – I’m just expanding on that theme with a few new tips.
I’m a roll. I think I’m over the hump. My blog is finished! Would love to hear from you with your tips for overcoming writer’s block.
Now I can go to my party.
Thank You Notes Are Not Only a Courtesy, They Can Lead to New Business
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Andrea Nierenberg
One of the easiest and most effective ways to stay in touch is with the power of the personal note with a “thank you” to a business associate. In research I’ve conducted, I ask the question, “How many of you send out personal notes?” I also ask, “How many of you receive personal notes or cards from clients or business associates?” The response indicates that few people take this practice seriously. As a follow up, I ask, “Has anyone received notes of appreciation, and how does that make you feel?” I trust you know the answer to this last question.
Here are eight opportunities to send a “thank you,” and when and how to do it effectively:
1. When customers do business with you, every time. Write a short, personalized “thank you” on an interesting card, letterhead, or even a postcard that says, “I appreciate your business, thank you.” You can never say thank you to someone too many times. We all appreciate the fact that people go out of their way to make us feel important and recognized.
2. When they compliment you. When a client compliments you about something, it’s an opportunity to jot off a little note of thanks, saying, “Thank you for taking the time for making my day. I appreciate it.” Compliments are given so rarely, so take the lead to say thank you when you get one.
3. When clients offer comments or suggestions. It’s a wonderful gift when your clients give you a suggestion or comment on how you might do something better or different. They’re also giving you an incredible buying signal. They might really be saying, “If you make that change, your product or service will be more attractive to me.” Here’s how to start this type of note: “Thank you for your suggestion on how I can better serve you. I’m in business to do exactly that. And you make my job easier and so much more enjoyable when you provide input.”
4. When customers try something you recommended. When clients buy into something new, solely based on your suggestion, they’re going out of their “comfort zone”. They’re putting trust in you and your product. This calls for a special note that could read, “Thank you for your trust in me. I value your business.”
5. When customers recommend you. This is the best form of advertising you can ever get. It’s so easy to take the time and go back to our advocate, and say, “thank you for referring me to —–. I will keep you posted and informed on what develops. It means a great deal to me to know that you’re willing to recommend me. I appreciate it.” This type of “thank you” might include a small gift as well.
6. When customers are patient, or not so patient. Our clients help us when they give us time to learn how to best serve them. Often this requires their patience. On the other hand, they give us a “wake up call” when they ask us to hurry up. When this happens they might really be saying, “Hello, remember me? Keep me in mind, or I might get swept away by the competition.” In either case, pull out a note card again, and let them know how important they are to you. Perhaps say, “Thanks for keeping me on my toes. I appreciate how you help me keep your business.”
7. When clients say “no” to you. You’ve just pitched an account and you didn’t get their business, this time. It’s still the opportunity to write a short note. Thank them for their time, their consideration and their honesty. Keep the door opened by being friendly and courteous. Research I conducted in the last three years shows that almost 20% of my business comes from prospects that said no the first time. People remembered the notes I sent and it made a difference. Such a difference that I got referrals, even from contacts that were not able to use my services themselves.
8. When customers make you smile. I have one client who e-mails me jokes all the time. Another one will call up and just give me some good news. Whatever it is, it makes me smile, and I want clients to know that they’ve made me feel good. I’ll send them an interesting note or card. This technique always gets noticed and remembered.
So, if you’re not using personal thank-you notes, you should start now and watch how they help your business grow.
Andrea Nierenberg is president of The Nierenberg Group , an international business consulting firm specializing in customized training, workshops and keynote addresses that equip executives with the tools they need to “Find, Grow & Keep”® the clients that are key to their success and to be more effective business communicators.
F-Shaped Pattern for Reading Web Content Could Enhance SEO Rankings
Posted by: | CommentsI’m not exactly sure how I came upon the study done by Jakob Nielsen about how people read web content. The study claims eyetracking visualizations show that users often read Web pages in an F-shaped pattern: two horizontal stripes followed by a vertical stripe. This could be helpful information in enhancing SEO rankings for your website or blog.
This dominant reading pattern looks somewhat like an F and has the following three components, according to Nielsen:
- Users first read in a horizontal movement, usually across the upper part of the content area. This initial element forms the F’s top bar.
- Next, users move down the page a bit and then read across in a second horizontal movement that typically covers a shorter area than the previous movement. This additional element forms the F’s lower bar.
- Finally, users scan the content’s left side in a vertical movement. Sometimes this is a fairly slow and systematic scan that appears as a solid stripe on an eyetracking heatmap. Other times users move faster, creating a spottier heatmap. This last element forms the F’s stem.
Implications of the F Pattern
Quoting from Nielsen’s Alert Box, the F pattern’s implications for web design are clear and show the importance of following the guidelines for writing for the Web instead of repurposing print content:
- Users won’t read your text thoroughly in a word-by-word manner. Exhaustive reading is rare, especially when prospective customers are conducting their initial research to compile a shortlist of vendors. Yes, some people will read more, but most won’t.
- The first two paragraphs must state the most important information. There’s some hope that users will actually read this material, though they’ll probably read more of the first paragraph than the second.
- Start subheads, paragraphs, and bullet points with information-carrying words that users will notice when scanning down the left side of your content in the final stem of their F-behavior. They’ll read the third word on a line much less often than the first two words.
You can learn more about the F Pattern theory and see actual heatmaps from user eyetracking studies at http://bit.ly/18Zl1I and decide for yourself if you want to follow Nielsen’s advice.
Miscommunication from The New York Times
Posted by: | CommentsIn an embarrassing mea culpa, The New York Times apologized for seven errors in a single article, an appraisal of Walter Cronkite, the CBS icon whose death made headlines when he died recently. The bottom line is that there was miscommunication throughout the newsroom in the writing and editing of the appraisal written by the paper’s TV critic, Alessandra Stanley, plus two errors in a separate obituary.
As the Times’ public editor reported, “The newspaper had wrong dates for historic events; gave incorrect information about Cronkite’s work, his colleagues and his program’s ratings; misstated the name of a news agency, and misspelled the name of a satellite.”
Time and again, when owning up to their mistakes, reporters and editors said they thought someone else was doing the fact checking. According to the public editor, “Douglas Martin, who had written an advance obit of Cronkite several years earlier, phoned Chip Cronkite. They went over spellings, discussed the cause of death and the like. No one thought to forward Chip Cronkite’s message to the culture department, where Stanley’s appraisal sat.”
If The “Gray Lady” can make so many errors with layers of editors supposedly watching over reporters, how can mere mortals avoid similar disasters? As the public editor wrote, “when communications is poor, individuals do not bear down hard enough and they make assumptions about what others have done”
A good lesson for all of us. Fact check, spell check, and don’t leave to others what we should be doing ourselves.
