When You Just Don’t Feel Like It

A lot of people will tell you that if you blog, you MUST do it regularly or you will lose your audience.  While I can appreciate the value of regular content, I don’t think it’s necessary that YOU personally have to knock yourself out writing day in, day out.

Some people will have noticed that I haven’t blogged here since December 2, 2009 and that post was simply an announcement about a new PLR bundle. Certainly nothing to write home about. And while some people may have wished I wrote more, overall, business has not suffered by my laziness. Traffic is steady, sales are up and I’ve enjoyed my couch potato time.

If you’re facing content writing burnout and are looking for a way out, I’ve got news for you. Actually, a few pieces of good news:

• A blog doesn’t die because you can’t post every day or at regular intervals. A blog thrives when you or your writers have something interesting to say.

• YOU don’t have to do all the writing. The more your business becomes about YOU, the more you’re on the hook for personally keeping your audience entertained and educated. Take this blog, for example. I haven’t blogged for almost 2 months, but there’s been plenty of great advice and perspective to be found. In fact, all my business ventures are a combined effort – relieving pressure on me and increasing profit potential by tapping into a variety of skills and assets.

• If you’re not doing the writing, there are plenty of options:
  • You can have guest bloggers or regular authors on your website.
  • You can accept one-time and sporadic submissions from writers.
  • You can hire a ghostwriter.
  • You can use private label content. PLR can be published as is or used for inspiration for more original content.
  • You can pose questions and allow your readers to generate the content in the form of contents.

• Despite the fact that a blog is a powerful way to connect with your audience, in most online businesses, it’s not going to be your biggest sales driver (but IS very useful for driving TRAFFIC). Even in 2010, the so-called age of social media, email is still the heart of all your marketing. It is your direct contact with your target market and customers. Here’s a few reasons why:
  • Email is still the most important method of online communication for a huge number of people.
  • While social media has replaced a lot of friend-to-friend communication (i.e. Sally can log into Facebook to say hi to Jane instead of sending her an email), this may result in people having less overwhelming email inboxes, meaning your email may just get more attention than it might have received previously.
  • People are busy and will forget about your business. An email can pull them back to you – over and over again.
  • A pitch is often expected through email. While you can also pitch through a blog, it is often more subtle. You can hit them much harder with an email.

If you’ve got limited time or you’re in that “just don’t feel like it” mood, choose your writing focus wisely. Do you really need a blog post or would a few more messages to your autoresponder do the trick? Then leverage the resources and skills of other to round out your blogging and content marketing.

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The A-B-C of Persuasive Writing

Is persuasive writing as easy as A, B, C?

I wish it were. In fact, it takes plenty of time and practice to become a persuasive writer. Plus, there are dozens of techniques and ninja tactics at your disposal.

However, keeping just these three things in mind will certainly help when you write for the purpose of encouraging a specific action from your readers.

A is for Audience

Effective communication begins with a good understanding of your audience. What keeps them up at 3 in the morning? What do they want? What are their biggest fears? What is their fondest dream? How do they talk? What do they think of the subject?

If you truly know and empathize with your readers, it will show in your writing, and they’ll pay attention. Your piece will call out to them. Also, by knowing your audience, it’ll be easier for you to write about…

B is for Benefit

What do you have to offer that will make your audience’s lives happier, easier and more enjoyable? How can your information, product or service change their lives for the better?

Don’t expect your readers to figure this out for themselves. Write it out.

C is for Call to Action

Now what? So you understand your audience’s problems and have the solution – what would you like them to do next?

Don’t assume they know the next step. Tell them what to do:

Please type your name and email address in the form below, then click the subscribe button. Wait for a confirmation email. When you receive it, click on the confirmation link in the email. Otherwise, you won’t get the information you requested. If you don’t see it, please check your spam box.

Please click here to learn more about this product.

Please email me at myname@domain.com to schedule a consultation call.

Please reply to this email to send me your questions.

Persuasive writing is more complicated than this. However, if you follow these A-B-Cs, your writing will become more compelling instantly.

Use it next time you write an email to your subscribers, a blog post, a Twitter tweet, even a video script.

Here’s Your Call to Action

Please leave a comment below to let us know if this post has been helpful to you. Thank you!

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Better Organization for Consistent Content

Great content comes from a place of organization and planning. The time and energy invested into the organization will not only make it easier to create great content but will also provide an easier path to success with your total website and online business or venture.

Organization means having a purpose and a plan for your content, your website and your organization or business. It prides you with the focus, the time and the energy to be creative and develop content that will draw visitors your site and keep them there and returning in the future.

Tips for Organizing to get Consistent Content

1. Make a weekly plan for content topics. Set up a day each week when you will cover a particular subject or area in your niche. Having a plan for what you will write will make it easier for you to create your content. It will also allow your visitors to know what content to expect and will make them more likely to stop by for that new content.

2. Keep notes and ideas stored up in labeled folders. It would be a good idea to have a folder for each topic that you will be covering. When you are away from your computer or just brainstorming you can fill you folders with ideas for future content.

3. Straighten your desk. It may seem silly, but a cluttered desk makes it difficult to think and to be creative. Clutter will also be a distraction for doing the things you need to be doing because you start thinking about straightening and organizing instead.

4. Write out invoices as you go. Knowing what jobs you have completed and filling out your invoices for those jobs will free you up at the end of the month to continue working on your content.

5. Kill the distractions. Planning out your day through a schedule, to-do list or other tools will help you stay focused on the tasks that need to be accomplished. You will never create the content that you desire for your website if you are constantly running around putting out fires instead of plowing along on the path that you intentionally chose.

Organization is not about being neat and tidy. It centers on the ability to easily find what you need when you need it. Reducing the clutter, making a plan and defeating distractions will all push you towards the goal of organization.

Creating an organized work space and work life will not create great content for you (unless you are writing about organization) but organization is a powerful tool in the complete scheme for consistent content that will build your website and draw new and loyal visitors to that website along the way.

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Writing Is a Breeze… with Metaphors

Writers are constantly on the lookout for techniques to make writing our writing more interesting and effective. One of my favorites is using metaphors.

Back to English 101: What Is a Metaphor?

A metaphor is a figure of speech, where you explain something by saying it IS something else. For example, take the title of this post, “writing is a breeze.”

Writing isn’t literally a breeze, is it? But by saying that it is, I in effect characterize writing as something soothing, light and fresh – just as a breeze is.

In a metaphor, you use something more familiar (breeze) to describe something less familiar (writing). You don’t say they are alike (“writing is as fresh as a breeze”), because that would be a simile. Rather, you say that one thing is another.

How Metaphors Work

Metaphors are wonderful writing tools. They give us a communication shortcut. Going back to the example of this post’s title. I didn’t have to say that writing becomes fresh and easy when you use metaphors.

Similarly, I don’t have to explain it when I say, “Spice up your writing with metaphors.” Because you’re familiar with spice and how it makes a dish tastier, you know exactly what I mean.

Which brings me to the next benefit of metaphors: they make writing more interesting. Metaphors conjure concrete images in the readers’ mind, making your piece more lively.

Where to Find Metaphors

The best metaphors come from ordinary daily life. After all, we want something familiar with our readers. Depending on whom you’re writing for, you can use metaphors from domestic life (cooking, cleaning, household objects), work, and the environment (such as nature).

Pop culture is also a rich source of metaphors. Check out what’s popular in movies, TV, music, and books. Is this an excuse to watch TV? You bet!

Three Tips for Using Metaphors

Using metaphors is fun, but it’s easy to make a mess of it. Keep these 3 simple tips next time you employ a metaphor in your writing:

1. Use metaphors that are familiar with your readers.

This is where really knowing your readers pays off. By using the right metaphors, your piece will connect with your readers.

2. Don’t mix metaphors.

If you’re using cooking metaphors, don’t mix gardening metaphors in the pot. That will make things confusing and messy.

3. Don’t overdo it.

As with all things, moderation is key. Overdoing metaphors is like putting too much salt in your dish. It’s a big turn off.

Next time you sit down to write a blog post, article or an mail, stop and think where a metaphor or two might put more color in the piece. And try to be more aware of metaphors as you read the printed word, whether online or offline.

Now do share: what are your favorite metaphors and why?

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Developing Content that Visitors Read

Spending hours creating content for your website means nothing unless you can get visitors to stop and read what you have written. The length of the content may not be as important as the information that you provide and how it is laid out for the readers.

The easier it is for readers to scan, read and use the content that you provide then the more likely they are to take advantage of your content. These same readers will also spend some time reading older posts and are the ones that are likely to become return visitors. Ultimately, that is the goal of all the content that you produce.

Tips for Strong Content

1. Start with subheadings. Bold subheadings that include the key words of your content will make it easier for the search engines to find your article but also make the article more appealing to the eyes of the reader.

2. Never underestimate the power of a bullet. Readers can skim the content to unlock the main points of the article. Bullets can also make it easier for you to create the content by providing you with an outline.

3. White space makes online content easier on the eyes. White space is any break in the print of an article. It includes the indentions of bullets, spaces between lines and other spaces that just open up the article.


4. Be careful with links. You need to be sure to make any links take readers to a new window or tab otherwise they will be taken away from your content. It may mean that you have to learn at least some basic html to be sure that you keep readers focused on your own website.

5. Keep the sentences short and easy to follow. The last thing online readers want to do is chase down the end of a sentence.

6. Keep the paragraphs shorter as well. Three to five sentences is a good length for paragraphs used in online content. Much longer and it can be difficult for the readers to follow along.

The best content allows the reader to get information with ease. You always want to include new and valuable information in the content that you provide on your website, but that is only the beginning. The way that you set up your content can have just as much to do with the number of return readers you have to your site.

Keep your content easy to read with short sentences and paragraphs. Break up the content with white space. Be sure that you keep the readers on your website by being aware of your links. Developing content that visitors read can be accomplished with just a few simple steps.

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The Power of P.S.

Remember when people wrote letters by hand and sent them through the postal service? If they made a mistake, they had to either erase or start over. And if they got through the entire letter and realized that they forgot something, they would add a post script, or P.S., to the end. Times sure have changed.

Or have they? If you’ve perused any online sales letters lately, you’ve probably seen several that have a P.S. attached to the end. Seems rather odd that a carefully planned sales letter would have an afterthought attached to the end, doesn’t it?

But most copywriting experts agree that a P.S. is one of the most important parts of any sales letter. And that’s not just a hunch – it has been confirmed over and over through split testing. The reason is deceptively simple: It’s because of its location.

Think about it. Have you ever looked at a sales letter that interested you, but not had the time or energy to read through the entire thing? What do you do? Chances are, you skim through it, or just skip straight to the end to see what is on offer and how much it will cost. And you’re certainly not the only one who does that. The Internet has a way of perpetuating short attention spans, and with so many sites out there competing for users’ attention, they’re usually looking to cut straight to the chase.

Since effective copywriting involves working with the reader’s natural tendencies, it doesn’t really make sense to try to keep the reader from skipping to the end of your sales letter. It’s much better to put something there that will draw him in and make him want to go back and read more. And that is where the P.S. comes in. Make it noticeable, and it’s almost guaranteed that it will get read.

How to Use the P.S. to Your Advantage

So now you know why the P.S. is so important. The next step is deciding what to put in it.

It definitely should NOT be an afterthought. In essence, that’s what the term “post script” means, but that’s not what it should be in a sales letter. It’s got to be something that will grab the reader’s attention and entice him to learn more.

One tactic that many marketers use is creating a sense of urgency. They mention that the asking price is only good for a limited time, or that the buyer will receive certain bonuses that may not be available later on. This encourages the reader to go back and see what else you have to say, or possibly even to go ahead and make the purchase.

Another strategy that is often used is reiterating key benefits of the product. You may have laid them out in the body of the letter already, but by mentioning them again in the P.S., you make sure that the skimmers see them.

A carefully crafted P.S. can keep your visitors on your site longer, and ultimately result in greater conversions. Try adding one (or tweaking the one you’ve got) and see if it boosts your sales!

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