All Posts, Content & Copywriting, Marketing
You want me to do what? Something else besides read your blog or watch your commercial? Call right now? Give you the name of my friends & their email addresses? As if businesses don’t already require so much from the average consumer already, right! In the grocery stores, they want you to scan your own items & bag your own food. Don’t bother going into the bank when you can just do that account transfer yourself at home.
If you let businesses tell it, it’s really for your benefit you see…all in the name of quicker & saving you $. So when it comes to reading articles online, watching TV or surfing the web, Calls To Action (CTA’s) are peppered throughout just about every source of media to go beyond the current action of the user. For those unfamiliar with the term, a CTA is a statement imbedded in the content of the media source that summons the consumer to act. The goal is to implore the consumer to act upon information for the purpose of obtaining something from the consumer and most often, for making a sale. CTA’s often require an immediate response such as “call now, while supplies last,” write a Congressman to stop some agenda, or as simple as utilizing a coupon before a deadline.
So why are CTA’s so important in the first place and why are they a taking a leading role of so much media content? Here’s why: I have seen & heard of various marketing campaigns falling flat on their faces by failing to compel reaction from its audience. Although entertaining, a witty commercial can totally fail to sell the volume of product stocked in a warehouse because they lacked a clear call to action.
Terminology – Create, View, Buy Now, Subscribe…all are examples of businesses telling users/consumers what they want them to do. The words are usually short & concise because too many options & too many “too good to be true” statements turn users off. Word choice and terminology should always be relevant to the industry of the business. But in order for a business to see any ROI based on these efforts, they have to create a sense of urgency and/or create a limitation that once again, compels the reader or viewer to do something that is advantageous to the business.
Incentives & other “Bene’s” – Creative use of expiration dates and gifting incentives are very important in the world of CTA’s. In most cases, there has to be some type of incentive for the reader/user/consumer to go beyond what they are already doing. Such incentives may include a small token of appreciation such as a gift or discount that is relevant to they company or promotion of another business.
Make it Standout! I just love to see the little blue & white Cox Cable Digeez’ spin & flip around solving my internet & high-speed cable dilemma. http://bit.ly/CoxEspn3 Use of BOLD text, flash media and the like, as well as hyperlinks in web content are all tricks of the trade to peek the curiosity of the user to move them along the conveyor of consume & purchase world. So the main goal of both advertising agencies and media companies is to know how to stand out, get your attention and how to hold it long enough to profit them.
Use natural sounding phrases that are friendly yet enticing
Use testimonials to encourage participation
Use words that accurately describe the result of your interaction
Don’t be overly verbose-create simple & strong CTA’s
The bigger and more pronounced your call to action, the more chance it will be noticed and acted upon.
All Posts, Content & Copywriting, Marketing
Focus on Client Needs – The whole point of writing content for your clients is to provide value whether on their website, via their print marketing materials or on a billboard.
#1. Know their needs – spend time with your client obtaining relevant industry information, current marketing materials and noting their business insight into the industry (if it’s unfamiliar) and lastly, their company’s goals & desires.
#2. Know & Convey How Your Services Can Make Their Company Better – Be clear yourself and then convey to the client the benefits your services can provide them. Most importantly here is to establish a trustworthy relationship with them by making sure they know that:
- they have a professional who has the talent and experience to fulfill their needs. Provide references and previous examples of your work if needed. AND
- by connecting that experience & expertise to their content needs and how you can improve their professional credibility and financial line.
Stay Focused! – We may have our own ideas about a particular industry, political topic or the like, but you are being hired to do the job THEY want you to do. You have been hired to 
write about this client’s business, needs, ideas and standpoints-not your own. No matter how well you may write, you need to keep your writing focused on their area of expertise, products and/or services.
The Key to Keywords
#1. Remember to talk & write in the same industry language of your customers. A good tactic to employ here is to do some keyword research.
#2. Figure out how your customers (and their competition) think and how to write from that same level of expertise. See more from one of my previous articles http://bit.ly/Nsuub4 .
#3. Use a business based thesaurus. Here you will find other related words for a particular term that will showcase your assumed business prowess as well as increasing your clients SEO success.
I hope these few tidbits have been helpful. I’d love to hear what’s in your content writing toolbox and what tools you employ that I can add to sharpen my own content writing skills.
All Posts, Content & Copywriting
Last week’s blog http://bit.ly/RxWTOk definitely caused successive waves of emotions regarding client communication and the rocky waters one can hit if misunderstood. Now this week I want to focus on the pitfalls of not being cognizant of gaps in communication with your colleagues. When life imitates art, reality reflects what had previously been expressed in that art (or literature, real life drama, etc). As I’m finding out more recently than ever, so does an experience lay the foundation for writing these blogs & learning how to do somethings better as you go along. If we’re not cognizant of what we’re conveying or implying to a colleague, we can misinterpret key points, directives and pertinent goals of a project. And that doesn’t just affect the working relationship but also goes to heart of productivity (or lack thereof) and the trust a client puts in you to get the task/project completed. And I’m sure we all know from last weeks blog how detrimental that can be!
Tomato – Tomahto?
If I say the sky is blue and you say yes, it’s Robin’s Egg, are we going to split hairs over which is accurate or engage in the debate of semantics (the meaning/interpretation of words or groups of words within a certain context commonly used in order to win some form of argument)? There’s nothing wrong with individual expression, however lapses in correct communication with your colleagues can cause not just frustration but a host of other issues. Some of which might include:
*Lack of Productivity *Missed Deadlines *Delays in the internal workflow system *Disintegration of team morale & cohesiveness *Stressful work environment
And I’m sure there is a bevy of many more. It’s an “if / then” , “cause/effect” kind of issue. Recently I had a situation where a client colleague gave me some documents and wanted them converted to another format. I thought we were on the same page, but the simple misunderstanding of “what it is vs. what I want it to be” caused longer hours, more resources and impacted the financial investment into the project. A frustrating lesson to learn but nevertheless, it’s in my handbook now!
Tone Can Be Everything
One of the valuable lessons my father instilled in me from almost birth is that it’s not just what you say but HOW you say it that makes the difference. Yes, I know you all have probably heard that a thousand times but as I was writing this blog, I thought about how that same motto holds true in business. Whether its in a meeting, over the phone or responding to an email and/or text; HOW you say something will certainly determine WHAT people hear when you speak and/or write. If your tone is biting, snippy or inpatient, that can determine the “joy” your colleague will have when needing to collaborate with you or fulfilling a directive. Body language also plays an important part here as well. A hand on the hip, an audible sigh or a rolled eye can easily cause a “in one ear & out of the other” effect.
That’s Not What I Said!
Last week I talked about the regurgitation method or otherwise known as rephrasing. When having a conversation, try to fully engage & listen to what others are saying. Then rephrase and repeat back to them what you believe were their important points. For the time it takes to do this, it will certainly be time well spent rather than going back on multiple occasions for clarification.
Not On Their Dime
If you are not concise regarding the instructions on how to complete a particular task, you might waste valuable time and have to go back for a do-over. That could also cause an unexpected financial impact on the project from the clients wallet. So it behooves us all to make sure that what we are conveying to one another is accurate such as confirming the plan of action, workflow timeframes and completion dates.
In conclusion, better communication leads to a more productive workplace, which in turn increases a company’s revenue. If the company is doing well, that means clients are happy and possibly you & your colleague(s) can enjoy the financial fruits of your labors. So let’s all try to be a little more cognizant of our colleague communication so that fruit stays ripe & abundant for both the workplace and financial harvest.
All Posts, Web Design, Web Development
Most of us know how important it is to maintain a good business relationship with the clients we deal with. To do this, we must build their trust and confidence to ensure a good business relationship and ongoing business dealings. Back in April, I wrote a blog titled “They Trust Me, Trust Me Not…” which talked about the importance of gaining and maintaining the trust of your clients. At some point and unfortunately, you’ll come across a client(s) where the business relationship becomes as rocky as an everyday romance. Unfortunately, I am dealing with this issue right now with a client and in the process of deciphering what went wrong where, I’ve come up with some navigating tactics when the honeymoon seems (or is) over.
Realistically Set the Bar – What is absolutely essential is setting realistic client expectations. Under estimating a projects complexity or scope can cause serious communication breakdown and seal the fate of your deal. If you can’t meet an expectation, inform the client that there is no way the project will get done on time and within cost. Hopefully your relationship is strong enough that they respect your craft and know that it is worth hanging in there until completion and possibly investing more cash flow into the project. The flip side is that they are angry and/or frustrated – so what do you do? You take responsibility for the oversight or incorrect projection and build confidence once again through honesty.
Give or only take? What do you do when you need the clients input on an essential decision and they just won’t do their part giving you information? Does it seem that you’re the only one trying to resolve an issue or find a work-around to solve a problem? Then it may be time to confront your client (in a non-aggressive & professional manner of course) and find out why they’re not pulling their weight, what the hold-up is, etc. A great business relationship needs two committed & fully communicative parties and if one half isn’t fully invested, it will inevitably cause problems and the venture or business relationship may not be a successful one.
Keep the lines clear – Speaking of communication…we all know how frustrating it is to go through a “dead zone” while on our cell phones. It’s the same in the business world- lack of effective communication about how a project will proceed, timeline for completions, and projections of cost, can cause serious problems in your business relationship and your bottom line. To ensure you & the client are on the same page, try asking rhetorical questions (The “question” is posed for the sake of encouraging the listener to consider what was said/the viewpoint) or my personal favorite, the “regurgitation” method. This is basically asking the client to regurgitate/reiterate (“repeat a response after the cessation of the original stimulus” per Wikipedia) what you just said but they do it in their own words to help to confirm that you are on the same track and what you have asked or said is really understood.
Keep it business & not personal – Most of the time, difficult business situations that arise are often linked to communication. As with our personal life relationships, most of the time you only get out what you put in. I cannot stress enough that effective communication is essential. Whether the client feels unheard or you can’t seem to agree on a point, ALWAYS remember that they are the client. Keep a professional demeanor, a level head and govern the words you say recognizing the power of them over your current and prospective business dealings. Also have confidence in your talents and don’t let 1 clients displeasure cause a low hanging head. Know that their disagreement on a matter has everything to do with the business and do your level-headed best to keep it that way. Choosing to always keep it professional will command respect and they mght just use you again because of your stamina & professionalism.
Word of Mouth – It’s been reported that “studies confirm that word of mouth marketing drives 20-50% of business decisions.” Wow! So what that says clearly to me is that how you deal with the client, good or bad, has a profound effect on the success of your business as well as your future collaborative business efforts. It may be a little hokey but I always remember, what they say is tied to what they think and that can cause the deal to sink.
So I’ve learned some valuable lessons and am encouraged to further hone my craft and become better at successfully navigating the client relations waters. As I’m going up & down river though, I’ll keep these considerations pocketed in my life vest.
2012 Olympics, All Posts, Branding, Content & Copywriting, Marketing, Web Design
Google and Yahoo have always been on different paths in the quest for being king of the hill among search engines. But as I went to each site looking for Olympic updates & information, I noticed a glaringly obvious difference between the Gold & the Bronze when it came to their homepage content strategy for the 2012 London Games. As the two giants regularly tussle for domination of their sectors, is the competition fierce for the web visitors and advertising dollars during the games? As it’s been pointed out on several occasions, Yahoo has (or “is” based on opinion) a big branded advertising business and isn’t shy about it. Google is all search – you get no advertising on its homepage whatsoever. One could say that Yahoo’s homepage creates a schizophrenic type atmosphere and Google chooses to reflect why people go to any search engine at all – to simply search. Each has a diametrical perspective; which may or may not be shared by minimalistic loving web surfers or those who want to know everything every moment of every day.
Now it may just simply be “tomato v. tomahto” – all up to the users choice of flavor. Let’s see where these two rivals stand on the content podium for the 2012 Olympic Games looking at just this one, but VERY TELLING facet – the homepage. For this year’s Olympics, you can almost see the tumbleweed across Google’s homepage with nothing more than a clip-artish image above its unapologetic, simplistic search box. Whereas Yahoo completely capitalizes on the opportunity to lavish (and possibly overwhelm) you with up-to-the-minute stats on what sport is broadcasting, which country is leading in medals, and all note & news-worthy headlines from every vantage point of this historical event. 
Could it be that the choice of a clip-artish image was a passive-aggressive “thumbing of the nose” at Yahoo’s voracious need for your attention? If so, Google gets benched on the therapy couch for this one…lol. But before they end up neck and neck for your search engine loyalty, what finds them at the same starting line is the intent of the user. If one chooses to be in the know, then Yahoo wins hands-down because it is in part what they do best. Yahoo hand-holds you every day, all day- showing you what’s hot (and not) and postings about every media event worldwide. They actually look to be a strategic partner with both their advertisers and users alike. So you are ALWAYS in the loop, whether you want to be or not when just searching for let’s say a great vinaigrette recipe.
Die-hard Google fans will say that their fearless leader displays a search engine decorum truly lacking in their competitor and that if people want news, the can get news BUT only when they ask for news. They provide a discriminating à la carte rather than a force feeding approach. At the end of the day, Yahoo hands down is a true entertainment portal capable of satisfying various entertainment and leisure users. For better or for worst, Google isn’t trying to be an entertainment portal, so it doesn’t even come close to competing with Yahoo in this regard.
So as far as the 2012 Search Engine Homepage Olympics are concerned, Yahoo’s neck is a little more laden than its competitor. Now I know that Goolge lovers might say that “everything that glitters isn’t gold”…Well I guess you’re not Yahoo then are you? LOL.
You want me to do what? Something else besides read your blog or watch your commercial? Call right now? Give you the name of my friends & their email addresses? As if businesses don’t already require so much from the average consumer already, right! In the grocery stores, they want you to scan your own items & bag your own food. Don’t bother going into the bank when you can just do that account transfer yourself at home.
