When you provide good direction to your writer, you’ll increase your chances of getting good content back. You know that preparing an assignment for your writer is a good idea. (For a refresher on why, refer to part one.) But how do you do it? Let's break it down and make it easy. [...]
Why spend time on writers’ assignments? There are at least three very good reasons. You hired a writer. Problem solved, right? Not necessarily. That's because if you want to get good content from your writer, you need to provide good guidance. That's where a writer's assignment/contract comes into play. And preparing a good [...]
Content is king. Photo: Thinkstock If you work in communications, you know that beautiful is not a metric. Clever headlines and great writing are nice, but they aren't measurable or quantifiable. When you are given a budget, you are expected to generate customers and drive revenue. And that's exactly what makes content [...]
Do you know your audience for a technology success story? (Photo: Thinkstock) When you write about complicated topics like technology, success stories are an especially useful tool. That's because success stories are the perfect way to show rather than tell. First and foremost, technology content writers must remember their audience. Are you writing [...]
Photo by Thinkstock One of my favorite television shows is Chopped. In this Food Network competition program, the contestant-chefs have a short period of time — no more than 30 minutes — to create a spectacular dish, incorporating four mystery ingredients. At the end of each round, there is invariably one chef who [...]
A good success story goes a long way. This is especially true when you work in an industry rife with complexity like healthcare or technology. That's because success stories are perfect for showing (vs. telling) what you do — and how awesome you are at doing it. Plus, with a success story, your target audience [...]
When I work with clients, I talk about why blogging is an important part of a content marketing plan. I also talk about the fact that I don't always set the best example. But my absence from this blog doesn't mean I haven't been hard at work. I think about writing and communications strategy and [...]
Life as a writer can be frustrating. You spend your days (and sometimes your nights, too) poring over your copy. You agonize over every word. You edit and rewrite and proofread. Then, you send your content into the world. Now, you wait. You wait for a response. Will people comment? Will people share on Facebook [...]
If part of your job is writing, then there's a good chance you want to be able to write faster. I hear ya. Here are a few tricks I use to help me make the most of my time. 1. Free write. It's easy to get caught up in the structure of a piece. But [...]
If you're a marketer, then you know that your job isn't just about producing beautiful materials. It's about producing materials that accomplish something. You're not successful unless a consumer picks up the phone or clicks a link or downloads a brochure — and ultimately buys something. And all of that hinges on the quality of [...]
