When "Bad Writing" is Good

For over 20 years I’ve been writing professional sales, editorial, and promotional copy and I’m good!

 

But when I started writing for the Web, I quickly learned that this medium involved a whole new way of working with words and that some of my good English writing skills had to be thrown out of the window.  This realization nearly killed me!

 

OK, not literally, but you know what I mean.  It came as a real shock.

 

So I spent some time working with and learning from some of the most knowledgeable online writers and search engine optimization pros in the country.  They instilled within me an understanding of this interesting new world and I’m happy to share a few of the most critical things I learned with you today:

 

#1:  Write to be read now.  Unlike a printed piece that might be put down and picked up at a later date, if a person is going to read your Web copy, they’re most likely to read it now — or never.

 

So the Web is not the place for overly expressive language or poetic prose.  And, because research suggests that people spend only a few short minutes on each site they visit, the smart Web writer will get to the point quickly and will commuinicate in short, easy-to-understand sentences.

 

In artist terms, it means that you should draw a stick man and not a detailed portrait.  Do you get the picture?  (Pun intended!)

 

As I write online copy, I try to always keep in mind that the reader’s next web site is a mere click away and I recognize that “clicking away” is the right Web readers use quite liberally.

 

#2.  Write as if you know your reader.  Web writing should be as warm and personal as possible.  Use the word “you” as much as possible, and craft a message that meets the readers’ needs and solves their problems.  This certainly applies to offline writing as well, but on the web it is even more important because the immediate competition is fiercer.

 

#3. Write to be found.  In the beginning, it was somewhat difficult for me to grasp this concept, but it is absolutely critical if you are to write effectively for the Web.

 

The way I look at it, I’m writing for the search engines (Google, Yahoo, Ask, etc) almost as much as I’m writing for my human audience.  Let me explain…

 

Once you establish your list of key words, it is extremely important that you use them as often as possible and that you place them in strategic positions on our web page.  Doing so will maximize your chances of being recognized by search engines and, in turn, found by your prospective customers.

 

This vital requirement sometimes overrides my desire to write a certain way and I find myself re-writing what I think is great copy to appease these invisible, but oh-so-powerful search engine audiences.  Said another way — sometimes “bad writing” is good.  

 

But the flip side is that here’s where you can write “differently!”  Because the Web is such a fluid method of communication, it provides the perfect environment for crawling out of your box and doing something daring.  Feel free to take a chance to write about something controversial or use a style you’d never put in print or test a new, unproven offer.  And do so freely, realizing that if your audience doesn’t like it you can quickly replace what you have with something else.

 

In closing…

 

Today, most businesses have some sort of Web presence and that’s great.  But unless you’re carefully selecting the words you use and how you use them, you may not be getting your money’s worth.   Read the research or partner with a professional who can help ensure that your Web words work hard for you.

 

 

Follow Me On Twitter!  www.Twitter.com/GCDMarketing

The Stimulus Package: What it means for small business

Now that a bit of the dust has settled, this is a good time to go over exactly what’s in the stimulus package for small businesses. 

 

But first, let’s take a look at the following statistics reported by the Small Business Administration.  After just a glance, you’ll quickly see just how important the estimated 27.2 million small businesses are to our country’s economy and overall well-being.  You see, small businesses…

• Employ about half of the country’s private sector workforce
• Hire 40% of high tech workers, such as scientists, engineers and computer workers
• Include 52% home-based businesses and two percent franchises
• Represent 97.3% of all employer firms
• Generate a majority of the innovations that come from United States companies

Now, here’s a summary of what the Stimulus Package means to you as a small business professional:

• $720 mllion to support specific activities of the Small Business Administration
• $400 million to support economic development and entrepreneurship with a special emphasis on businesses located in rural, urban, and low-income communities
• An extension of bonus depreciation so that small businesses can more quickly recover from the costs of new capital investments
• Increased small business expensing for businesses making investments in plants and equipment
• A delay of the 3% withholding tax on payments to businesses that sell goods or services to governments
• A decrease in capital gains tax for small businesses who hold stock for more than five years

In addition, the Package calls for several infrastructure and “green” intiatives that will create jobs and opportunities for businesses of all sizes.

 

This is just a summary and you should speak with your accountant to determine how any of this can be used to your benefit.  I also invite you to visit Small Business Tax Provisions to learn more about the small business tax implications of the Package.

 

You may also visit Stimulus Watch to gain easy, online access to the entire Package.  This site allows you to search the document for information of particular interest and also provides a state-by-state breakdown of exactly how the funds are being allocated.

It Takes A Pro

Earlier this week I went to a new beautician.  (Men, please don’t stop reading, you’ll get something out of this, too.)

 

I get my hair done on a pretty regular basis, usually by a woman in my neighborhood who is both convenient and reasonably priced.  This woman has been doing hair for years, yet has a dwindling clientele as women opt for the bigger, fancier salons.  I purposely avoided such places for years because I was turned off by the pretenses when all I wanted was a good hair wash and style.  After all, who wants to dress up to get their hair done?

 

Anyway, due to circumstances too complicated to share here, I went to such a shop earlier this week and I quickly learned that while the neighborhood woman I’d been going to could do hair well, the woman whose chair I was now sitting in, was a pro.  What a difference!

 

This pro told me things about hair I’d never before known.  And the enthusiasm in her voice let me know, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that she loved her work.

 

“When people come to me for writing or marketing assistance, that’s the impression I hope they have,” I thought to myself.  “I want them to recognize that I’m a pro at what I do.  And I want them to believe that at that particular moment in time, my sole reason for living is to give them the assistance they need.”

 

Any writing and marketing expert worth their weight can provide good copy and helpful advice, but it takes a pro to make that copy sing, make the advice actionable, and make you smile about it all. 

 

Along these lines…  I recently got wind of a free conference call being held next week featuring a national public relations expert.  She’s going to be telling listeners how to become an industry expert aka “recognized pro” at what they  do.  Send me an email at gail@gcdwritingandmarketing.com if you want to know how to join this call.

Direct Mail 101

There are 3 components that are critical to any direct mail campaign and I shared them last summer with women gathered in Virginia Beach, VA for an entrepreneur’s conference.  I’ll very briefly present them here:

 

1.  The List

• The names to whom your piece will be mailed.
• Great copy to the wrong list won’t work.
• List brokers can help. Be specific!
• Know who you want to hit.
• GCD cost savings tip: Grow your own list.

 

 

2.  The Copy

• The words you use.
• Write your copy based upon your intended list/audience
• Know not only who the people are, but who they perceive that they are.
• GCD cost savings tip: Unless you write direct mail copy well, work with a professional. Be honest about your budget and find someone who will work within it.

 

 

3.  The Offer

• The product or service you’re offering.
• Also refers to the price at which you’re making your product/service available.
• GCD cost saving tip: Before going in the mail, research to determine the best offer for your market. Be sure to offer them something they want.

 

In future blog entries I’ll write more about the ins and outs of direct mail and how you can make it work for you.