Words in Effect, LLC

Becky Tumidolsky, B2B Content Writer

Content Marketing

10 Perfect Gift Ideas for Your B2B Content Audiences

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Are you a B2B marketer who’d like to say “thank you” to the busy, distracted, time-starved professionals who somehow manage to consume your content?

Would you like to show them how much they mean to you, and how much you care?

For starters, aim higher. Give them the quality content they deserve.

As a consumer of B2B content myself, I take timeout of each workday to read and curate fresh insights, anecdotes, wit, and debate—the kind of content I not only want to share, but can’t wait to share. Finding that one-in-a-million surprise—be it informative, quirky, or scintillating—is a real joy, because it momentarily lifts me out of my stressful daily routine.

That’s how your prospects should feel when they read your article, paper, infographic, social media post, or blog post. You’d like to think they do, because you’re creating content just for them in a spirit of selfless service. (Right?)

Regardless of your content past, ’tis the season to commit to giving the gift of great content in 2015 and beyond. Here are 10 items you’ll most likely find on your audiences’ wish lists.

 

1. Don’t try to impress. Be humble and helpful.

Are you creating content just to seem smart or relevant? If so, please stop.

Crowing about your next-generation, industry-leading awesomeness will only leave your audience feeling like a third wheel next to you and your ego.

Ditch the ego, and let your audiences decide your worth. Share knowledge and ideas freely—with your prospects at the center of your subject-matter universe—and you’ll demonstrate your passion for helping people expand their knowledge and improve their game.

 

2. Be transparent.

I understand the temptation to hurry your prospects through the sales funnel by promoting your brand in your content. Everyone wants to see a return on the content they produce. But here’s the thing: B2B content is a crummy vehicle for sales.

Most business professionals are slow and deliberate about making purchasing decisions, they recoil from aggressive marketing, and they have a keen nose for B.S. The last thing they want is bait-and-switch content (a sleek headline, the promise of useful or entertaining information without strings, and a sales pitch at the end).

If you want to earn your audiences’ respect and trust, don’t try to close the deal too early. If you do, it will backfire on your brand.

 

3. Communicate clearly and error free.

Writers like me aren’t the only sticklers when it comes to grammar, spelling, syntax, punctuation, and sentence structure. Your prospects are a nitpicky bunch, too. They see silly mistakes, confusing verbiage, and disorganized thought as a sign of carelessness and/or incompetence. They’ll make the unfortunate association with your brand. In an instant, the damage will be done.

“Write drunk and edit sober,” that famous line frequently attributed to Ernest Hemingway, is about the best (and most succinct) advice you’ll ever read. You’ll want to write without fear or shame, but you’ll need your feet firmly planted when you edit. And you’ll need to edit on multiple level—everything from spelling and readability to organization and visual presentation. You can’t afford not to.

 

4. Serve ice cream, not whipped cream.

Your audiences want to digest something that’s hearty and satisfying—something that sticks with them for a while. Weightless and fluffy won’t do the job. It’s useless and forgettable.

Do anything you can to avoid rehashing well-worn topics. If you do, offer readers a unique perspective. Don’t just regurgitate facts; take a position. Provide credible support to shore up your material.

If you invest a little more thought and effort, you may wind up creating less content. But your content quality—the bigger concern anyway—will no doubt improve.

 

5. Make your content a two-way street.

Content writing isn’t copywriting. It’s conversation. Think of it as a running dialogue rather than a static presentation.

Make sure you’re speaking directly to your buyer personas in an easygoing, relatable way, as though there’s no one else in the room. Invoke shared knowledge and experiences. Ask for feedback and perspectives. Convey your desire to learn from your audiences, too. And mean it.

 

6. Take an intellectual risk.

The rest of your industry may be thinking or doing X, but you’re tired of seeing X. You’re bursting to do Y.

So do it.

Show what makes you a leader: confidence, expertise, and the courage of your convictions. Boldly go where others in your industry won’t. Welcome resistance and debate. Field questions and counter challenges like the happy warrior you are. Your audiences will appreciate it.

 

7. Take a creative risk.

Your prospects are getting buried in a growing heap of boring, uninspired, conformist content. The risk-averse B2B marketers creating it feel bound by current industry practices or perceived standards and expectations.

The best gifts, however, are the ones we least expect.

Give your audiences a happy surprise: an off-the-wall graphic, an intriguing hook, or a dash of self-deprecating humor. Trade in your corporate voice, your stuffy suit, and your torturous heels for passion, empathy, and authenticity—you know, the stuff that makes people laugh and nod in agreement and start to think of you as a trusted friend.

 

8. Emphasize good design.

Your content needs to be as user friendly and aesthetically pleasing as it is well written.

  • Choose your image(s) wisely—no stock photos, unless you can haul them into picmonkey.com and add your own distinct touches.
  • Pay close attention to colors, fonts, and white space.
  • Be on guard for potential distractions, and eliminate them.
  • Make your content easy to scan and easily digestible by breaking up monolithic paragraphs and using subheads and bullets.

 

9. Provide real value—every time.

Content that serves as a handy, useful reference has a good chance of easing your prospects into a closer relationship with you. If done and marketed well, an eBook or white paper may just be the incentive they need to trust you with their contact information.

When your prospects do sign up, continue to treat them with respect. Don’t flood their inboxes. Only send them emails that are worth their time and attention. Your continuing purpose should be to lead your prospects down the path to improving their own lives.

 

10. Be your audiences’ biggest champion.

Work hard to understand your prospects. Be empathetic. Respect their feelings, concerns, and reservations—particularly when it comes to making leaps of trust (i.e., reaching out to do business with you) with their brand reputation and career aspirations hanging in the balance.

Ultimately, your content success depends on whether your audiences feel valued. If you show them the best side of your brand and make clear they are your raison d’etre, they may just become ambassadors or clients. And these are the gifts that keep on giving.

 

 

Since 2001, Becky Tumidolsky has written awareness-building content for B2B brands and their discerning audiences. Her work has appeared in leading publications such as Forbes, U.S.News & World Report, Bloomberg Markets, Newsweek, and Inc. as well as corporate blogs, websites, white papers, and other content assets.

Becky loves writing fluid, error-free prose. She’s even more passionate about building the foundation for her work—uncovering core brand distinctions, framing them thematically, and developing fresh, compelling narratives that advance corporate strategies.

Follow and connect: Twitter| Google+| LinkedIn| Facebook

Making Native Advertising a Respectable Practice

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Native Advertising final2

 

If the title of this post made you roll your eyes, I’m sure you’re not alone.

These days, native advertising is a hot topic, and marketers from shore to shore are piling on. Some argue that native advertising, by virtue of its attempts to blend into its surroundings, is (at best) a cause for concern—though not irredeemable.

At worst, it’s a vile, sinister ploy that has seduced publishers and “defeated journalism.“Per Andrew Sullivan:

Advertising snuck into the editorial pages in a way that advertising has always wanted to do. It used to be an axiom that the job of journalists was to be resistant to that and sustain the clear distinction between advertising and journalism. One side has effectively surrendered.

Now hold on there.

I agree that some outlets have labeled native advertising less clearly than others. This is certainly a valid criticism. But demonizing native advertising—a widespread practice that’s not going away any time soon—as a whole? To me, this seems a bit over the top.

In 2001, I began my freelance career writing editorial-style business profiles (commonly referred to as “advertorials”) for promotional sections in big-name publications. I’ve written for a lot of great B2B organizations, from solo practitionersto Fortune 500s. These marketers aren’t looking to manipulate gullible readers; they just want to reach new prospects, elevate their brand by way of conferred prestige and authority, and present themselves in a manner befitting the publication in which they will appear.

Where’s the shame in that?

 

 

Native Isn’t Content. But It Is. Sort of.

 

Native advertising is nothing to fear. It is evolving into the perfect mash-up between the needs of advertisers, publishers, and consumers in a package that is non-intrusive and interesting. As long as ads are consistent with a publisher’s editorial vision, ethically disclosed to the consumer, and generate real engagement even after the user clicked through to the advertiser’s website, native advertising can be an effective way to reach audiences. —Maria Shinkevich, CMO for MGID

 

Respected authorities like CMI’s Joe Pulizzi argue that native advertising and content marketing are entirely different creatures because one is rented and one is owned. Joe took great issue with a recent article in the Wall Street Journal that appeared to conflate the two.

But Joe also writes that native advertising can be a useful tool to “(legally) steal audience” and drive them to brand-owned content channels. As Joe describes it, native advertising is “usually content based.”

The information is usually highly targeted (hopefully) and positioned as valuable, or similar to the value of the “real” content on the publisher’s site. But again, in native advertising, you are renting someone else’s content asset (just like advertising), except that you aren’t pimping a product or service.

As someone who makes her living writing B2B brand stories for both rented and owned platforms, here’s my take: If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck—no matter who owns it or where people find it—it’s still a duck.

If done well, native advertising (like content marketing) is a great way to connect with audiences. If done poorly (again, like content marketing), it can leave a brand’s reputation in tatters.

 

 

Thing Is, It Works . . .

To the chagrin of those who dislike them, native ads aren’t just an effective way for brands to gain exposure via highly visible space on a respected stage. According to research conducted in 2013 by IPG Media Lab and Sharethrough, native ads actually rival editorial content in terms of the length of time audiences spend viewing them. And nearly a third of the respondents in this study said they would share native ads with family and friends.

Here’s a breakdown of the research results.

 

Sharethrough--native ads infographic

 

 

. . . As Long As Marketers Respect Their (Rented) Audience

 

Those publications that are pioneering native ads are usually good at making sure the quality of the content is high. They won’t just commission content (for money, we should make clear), but work with individuals writers or marketers so that it feeds an audience need. —Tony Hallett, Collective Content (UK)

 

Native advertising offers marketers a shot at new audiences via established outlets that can lend some prestige and help elevate brands. As such, it demands the same thoughtfulness and care as content marketing. Make no mistake: It is not an invitation to pack five pounds of canned s**t in a three-pound box.

To rise to the occasion and make a meaningful impact, native advertisers must:

 

Think Like a Journalist.

Flesh out your five W’s. Connect through resonant stories, familiar experiences, and simply translated expert knowledge.

Be authentic! Dump the contrived quotes and well-worn industry catchphrases.

Meet audiences’ expectations for seriousness; exceed their expectations with a unique angle, strong voice, and clever style.

 

Write Like a Professional.

Native advertising must be as solidly constructed, eloquently written, and meticulously edited as the editorial content that surrounds it.

Best advice I can give: If you’re not a seasoned writer—someone with the keen sensibilities of a marketer, a journalist, and a strict grammarian—find someone who is.

 

Deliver a Seamless, Engaging Experience.

Readers will stumble upon your content while browsing a source they respect—one that exists solely to serve them. They expect your brand story to be tailor-made for them as well—attuned to their perspective, their needs, and their concerns. Nothing will destroy your pact with readers faster than self-indulgent, unqualified claims of greatness and sales pitches masquerading as “helpful information.”

Like any good content marketer, make it your aim to serve readers, period.

 

 

Where Do You Stand?

How do you feel about native advertising, from both an ethical and a practical standpoint? Please sound off below.

 

 

Since 2001, Becky Tumidolsky has written awareness-building content for B2B brands and their discerning audiences. Her work has appeared in leading publications such as Forbes, U.S.News & World Report, Bloomberg Markets, Newsweek, and Inc. as well as corporate blogs, websites, white papers, and other content assets.

Becky loves writing fluid, error-free prose. She’s even more passionate about building the foundation for her work—uncovering core brand distinctions, framing them thematically, and developing fresh, compelling narratives that advance corporate strategies.

Follow and connect: Twitter| Google+| LinkedIn| Facebook

The Perils of Writing Poorly: 5 Ways to Kill Your Audience

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Psycho Collage

 

 

Do you believe content writing can be delegated to just about anyone? If so, here’s a disturbing vision that might just scare you straight.

A weak, wandering narrative. Sentences and paragraphs that don’t flow logically or stylistically. Incomprehensible bloat. Ideas randomly introduced. Awkward or missing transitions. Tangents that lead readers astray, out into the dark forest, then lose them altogether.

One by one, your audience disappears—picked off by that evil, murderous duo, Confusion and Irritation.

 

 

Haphazard Writing Is Murder.

Long-form content requires much more than a catchy headline and subject-matter expertise. It needs lots of forethought, finessing, and fine-tuning to engage readers and move them to act.

Whatever you do, do NOT write long-form content without having mastered the basics of English composition. If you attempt it anyway, you’ll be doing your brand a disservice.

Writing rules and best practices aren’t necessarily intuitive. Nor are they negotiable. They must be learned and practiced and practiced again. No matter how well-intentioned you might be, if you’re poorly equipped or halfhearted in your writing efforts, your content will reflect that. And your audiences will suffer for it.

 

Say Goodbye to Those Pesky Prospects for Good! Here’s How.

1. Whip up Something That Has No Discernible Purpose.

Maybe you’d like to help readers solve vexing problems, showcase your thought-leading ideas or practices, or spur discussion by weighing in on an industry debate.

All fine and good. But what’s the backstory? Why this topic, this channel, this moment in time? What unique contribution can you make? How does this fit into/support your broader marketing campaign/strategy?

 

Who cares, really? I mean, if you want your audience gone, forget purpose. Forget personas. Let your tone, structure, and style—your entire approach—be a matter of personal whim. Writing is easier that way.

 

2. Seize on a Topic That’s Been Beaten to Death.

No one needs to read another post about what content marketing is and why it bolsters business—unless you can make it so illuminating and entertaining that people will be dazzled, come away with something new, and eagerly share it.

In an earlier post (“Is Your B2B Blog a Real Snoozefest?“), I tackled this very subject using the following example of supposedly groundbreaking content:

 

Top 10 Tips for Writing a Blog Post

Create a top-10 list.

Include visuals.

Share on social media.

[ . . . ]

Pinch me! I must be dreaming, because I’m deep in REM sleep mode.

If your blog marches to this same predictable rhythm, you’re not giving readers much to look forward to or talk about in their social circles. You might as well stop posting and revisit your purpose, your objectives, and what’s really driving your efforts.

 

Go ahead: Follow that familiar format, hammer those cliches, and play it safe. Keep things easy for you and predictable for your readers. To ensure your audience’s quick demise, you’ll want your content to blend in nicely with the content everyone else in your industry is producing.

 

3. Use Lofty Language, Blase Boilerplate, and Industry Jargon.

Perhaps you’ve heard of this phenomenon called the “curse of knowledge.” It’s the inability of smart, knowledgeable people to translate their genius into broadly relatable content. To me, this challenge is completely understandable—and entirely surmountable. We B2B content writers make our living translating industry expertise for the benefit of target audiences.

When B2B marketers resist using plain language and rely instead on lofty words, industry cliches, and soul-drainingboilerplate, it’s not a curse of knowledge that plagues them. It’s the fear of being authentic and vulnerable. Breaking the industry mold is just too great a risk.

In her post “20 Devastating Content Marketing Mistakes,” Tatiana Liubarets writes, “It’s almost never acceptable to hide simple concepts behind confusing language or buzzwords. Keep it simple, stick to the basis of your ideas, and never let yourself slip into this content marketing mistake.”
cartoon-gallery-of-management-consulting

 

If you want to keep audiences engaged, Liubarets’ advice makes sense. If you want them gone, keep pushing the meaningless blather and testing the limits of readers’ patience.

 

4. Deny Them Food and Compass. Then Lead Them Far Astray.

When they begin their journey with you, readers want and expect to be able to follow your train of thought. They need sustenance—solid support for your assertions and an emotional connection with you. They need to understand the lay of the land, and they need a clear sense of direction.

If you want to muddle your message without mercy, try these smooth moves:

  • Provide as little context as possible. Force your audience to navigate in the dark.
  • Don’t clarify relationships between and among ideas. (No clear framework, no logical progression, no transitions.) Also, jump back and forth for no apparent reason and without warning.
  • Clog the works with irrelevant details, pointless tangents, and unnecessary words and phrases.
  • Be as dry, dull, and formulaic as possible. The last thing you want is to seem passionate about your topic and give readers a reason to care.

 

5. Build a Giant Wall of Text and Force Your Audience to Climb It.

The look of your web page or document is as important to the reader’s experience as the writing itself. Readers want and expect scannable information, transitional cues, appropriate fonts, visuals that reinforce key messages, ample white space, and aesthetic appeal.

So don’t give them the pleasure! Ditch the subheads. Keep paragraphs big and monolithic. Use tacky or inappropriate fonts and visuals. Or skip the visuals altogether.

Then sit back, relax, and watch those pesky prospects drop like flies.

 

Since 2001, Becky Tumidolsky has written awareness-building content for B2B brands and their discerning audiences. Her work has appeared in leading publications such as Forbes, U.S.News & World Report, Bloomberg Markets, Newsweek, and Inc. as well as corporate blogs, websites, white papers, and other content assets.

Becky loves writing fluid, error-free prose. She’s even more passionate about building the foundation for her work—uncovering core brand distinctions, framing them thematically, and developing fresh, compelling narratives that advance corporate strategies.

Follow and connect: Twitter| Google+| LinkedIn| Facebook

 

 

The Perils of Writing Poorly: You Call That a Hook?

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http://www.dreamstime.com/royalty-free-stock-photography-woman-holding-hook-image21075567

 

Do you remember sitting beside the campfire as a kid, being taught to fear the creepy guy with a hook for a hand?

(You know, the hook that could be heard scraping the teenagers’ car door: Screeeeeeeee.)

Maybe that’s why, as adults, many content writers give scant attention to the hook in their stories—the opening sentence (or two or three) designed to capture readers’ attention and interest and draw them in for the kill.

If this describes you, it’s time to face your fear. Take a big breath, make a creative leap, and give your readers apleasant surprise.

 

 

Why Your Hook Must Be Fierce

Neglecting your hook can be a fatal mistake.

A dull hook can’t cut through the clutter, and it won’t reach readers at their core.

When people are lured by a great headline and begin wading into the body copy below, they want to be hooked. They’re begging for it. If you don’t hook your readers right away, they’ll make themselves scarce in a hurry.

 

Publishing brand content without a good hook is like launching into a major speech without acknowledging your audience. In a sea of competing content, where consumers’ attention so easily drifts, your success or failure will depend largely on how you craft your opening lines.

 

 

now this here's a hook
Now this here’s what I call a HOOK!

 

 

How to Write a Hook That Will Slay ‘Em

Here’s a great exercise: Look closely at the hooks used in feature stories, in-depth news articles, blogs, and opinion essays. Assess their creativity and effectiveness. Think about what you might have done differently.

Below are some classic tricks writers use to pique their readers’ interest.

 

Begin with an intriguing anecdote.

Give a few key details so readers will want to know what happens next.

An example from GE’s content hub, gereports.com:

Hilary Monaco has a black belt in Taekwondo, and she can take a few punches. When her sparring partner landed a hard kick to her head during practice last fall, she didn’t think much of it.

 

Pitch something out of left field.

Jolt the reader. Make him or her wonder where you’re going with this. Then clarify your meaning and purpose by providing the necessary context.

Here’s an example from New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd:

The Right to Be Forgotten.

It sounds like the title of a classic novel about desire and memory, perhaps Marcel Proust’s sequel to “Remembrance of Things Past.”

It is, in fact, based on a French legal phrase, le droit a l’oubli, the “right of oblivion,” which allows criminals who have paid their debt to society to object to the publication of information about their conviction and jail time.

 

Ask a relatable, thought-provoking question.

The moment readers start to answer in their own heads, jump in with a unique perspective.

Here’s a great example, courtesy of Copyblogger:

Have you ever stared at something, knowing you’re doing everything right, but it still won’t … freaking …work?

That’s how Copyblogger has felt about its Facebook page for quite some time.

 

Reference a historical event, a familiar yarn, or a classic movie.

But frame it in a new way. Draw parallels that help illuminate your topic or strengthen your position.

This is the opening paragraph for a recent essay in Time magazine. The author goes on to poke fun at the decision by Toys R Us to sell Breaking Bad action figures:

Human history is often defined by its very worst pitch meetings. Take the one in 1812, when one of Napoleon’s generals told the Great Emperor, “I’ve got an idea. Let’s invade Russia—in the winter!” Or the one in 1985, when the anonymous product developer at Coca-Cola said, “How ’bout we take a product everyone loves, quit making it and replace it with a different formulation no one is asking for! What could go wrong?”

 

Turn conventional wisdom on its head.

Start with a statement about something most people assume to be true. Then explain why the assumption is false.

Such a hook might look something like this:

As everyone knows, attempting to network with strangers on LinkedIn is a major breach of etiquette.

Marketing maven Matt Matthews couldn’t disagree more. In his latest bestseller, The 2014 Marketer’s Guide to LinkedIn Success, he argues . . . .

 

Try a punchy quote.

Choose a quote that captures the perspective and/or personality of a featured individual. For example, if you’re writing about the late Steve Jobs, you might begin with a quote from him: “Stay hungry. Stay foolish.”

Say you’re tackling the subject of gutsy corporate leadership. You might try a quote from a revered leader in another arena—for example, General George S. Patton: “If everyone is thinking alike, then somebody isn’t thinking.” You could weave in a little battlefield history to boot.

Whatever quote you use, make it a memorable one. Short and direct works best.

 

Make a general observation.

It could be about the importance of this, or the nature of that, or the certain result of a given action. It could be about a cultural, marketing, economic, or other big trend as evidenced by an interesting statistic. It could even be an old adage (e.g.,”A rolling stone gathers no moss”). Then demonstrate how your featured person, company, or topic is a perfect example—or a notable exception to the rule.

From National Review‘s Jonah Goldberg:

On the Internet, you’re never really alone. Name any fad, any cause, any hobby or passion—Shaker furniture? Dungeons and Dragons, Bolivian tree frogs?—and you’re only a few clicks away from someone who shares your obsession.

 

Use a metaphor or simile.

Just make sure you clarify the relationship in a colorful or offbeat way.

By way of example, here’s a variation of Mark Twain’s classic quote:

Politicians are like used diapers: They both need to be changed often, and for the same reason.

 

 

And Now, Some Penetrating Questions

How much attention do you give opening lines? Which types of hooks do you rely on most in your writing? Which are most effective at capturing your interest? Please share your perspective below.

 

Since 2001, Becky Tumidolsky has written awareness-building content for B2B brands and their discerning audiences. Her work has appeared in leading publications such as Forbes, U.S.News & World Report, Bloomberg Markets, Newsweek, and Inc. as well as corporate blogs, websites, white papers, and other content assets.

Becky loves writing fluid, error-free prose. She’s even more passionate about building the foundation for her work—uncovering core brand distinctions, framing them thematically, and developing fresh, compelling narratives that advance corporate strategies.

Follow and connect: Twitter| Google+| LinkedIn| Facebook

The Perils of Writing Poorly: Is Your Copy Possessed?

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exorcist-regans-window

 

Copywriting can be a dangerous pursuit. Each time an inexperienced, harried, or careless writer begins to fill a blank page, he or she unwittingly opens the door to a dark possibility.

I’m speaking, of course, about copy possession.

Great copy is easy to spot: It’s coherent, free-flowing, and well reasoned. It speaks in an engaging voice and embraces the reader like an old friend.

Possessed copy repels at first sight. It growls, it barks, it speaks in strange tongues. It taunts readers and mocks their standards and expectations. 

If your copy is written with all the clarity, fluidity, and appeal of a federal tax form, you’re fighting a losing battle for audiences’ attention and respect. The moment your possessed copy goes live, there isn’t a prayer in the world that can save your brand.

 

 

Content Is Forever. Exorcise the Demons Before You Publish!

 

Warding off evil spirits isn’t easy, but it’s a fight we marketing professionals can’t afford to lose. If all this seems a bit too unsettling, perhaps it’s time to consider hiring a qualified writer with experience in these matters—someone who can charge into battle without fear.

For content creators who decide to go it alone, the following tools and tricks offer some measure of protection. (The rest depends on your analytical process, your writing skills, and the creative risks you’re willing to take.)

 

 

Make an outline.

In the early part of my writing career, I almost never jotted down a framework before I wrote. I felt it hampered the creative process. Then I went to graduate school and wrote outlines just to make it through each day. That experience changed everything.

Organizing your thoughts on paper (and putting flesh on the bones as you go) ensures all the points you need to include flow logically and form a cohesive whole. Afterward, you can go back and fine-tune your copy so your final product is greater than the sum of its parts.

 

 

Focus on your audience.

Your work is meaningless if it’s misinterpreted or poorly received. Put yourself in your readers’ shoes. They’ll wonder what your purpose is, what your point is, what it means for them, and why they should care. You should have concrete answers to these questions before you lay a finger on your keyboard.

 

 

Have a good grammar guide handy.

Run-on sentences, seemingly random punctuation, series that aren’t parallel, modifiers that dangle: These hideous manifestations of apathy and ignorance can inspire a range of audience reactions, none of which are good for your brand.

I recommend The Copyeditor’s Handbook: A Guide for Book Publishing and Corporate Communications by Amy Einsohn and A Pocket Style Manual by Diana Hacker and Nancy Sommers.

 

 

Consult a dictionary as often as necessary.

Misspelled words (e.g., seperate), confused homophones (insure vs. ensure) and nonexistent words (irregardless) are telltale signs of possession. Your readers will have a hard time forgiving such easily preventable mistakes. For the love of all that’s good and decent, look up words you’re not sure about. I’m a Merriam-Webster girl, myself.

 

 

Don’t ramble.

Content volume is exploding. Attention spans are shortening. People are busy as hell.

Rambling sentences and paragraphs have no place in your content. Look for ways to break things up whenever possible—as long as you don’t swing wildly in the direction of short and choppy. (As in all things, balance is the key to happiness.)

It would also be helpful to review your sentence structure—are you varying it enough?—and to eliminate unnecessary words. You don’t need a damned adjective for every damned noun, and you don’t need a damned adverb for every damned adjective or damned verb. (Damn it.)

 

 

Copywriting Is a Test of Mettle. Excellence Is a Hard-Earned Victory.

 

Good copywriters make the process look easy, but I can assure you it’s not. It requires a big emotional and intellectual investment, serious self-discipline, and lots of stamina.

Outlining points of emphasis, reviewing picky grammar rules, eliminating redundancies, checking for consistency, retooling sentences and paragraphs—though not especially glamorous, these are mission-critical tasks for marketing writers. It’s how we vanquish the demons that threaten to consume our message. Great content just isn’t possible otherwise.

Before you tackle your next copywriting project, ask yourself this question: Am I prepared to do whatever it takes to protect the soul of my brand?

 

Since 2001, Becky Tumidolsky has written awareness-building content for B2B brands and their discerning audiences. Her work has appeared in leading publications such as Forbes, U.S.News & World Report, Bloomberg Markets, Newsweek, and Inc. as well as corporate blogs, websites, white papers, and other content assets.

Becky loves writing fluid, error-free prose. She’s even more passionate about building the foundation for her work—uncovering core brand distinctions, framing them thematically, and developing fresh, compelling narratives that advance corporate strategies.

Follow and connect: Twitter| Google+| LinkedIn| Facebook

The Perils of Writing Poorly: Punctuation Madness

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For those of us who write, edit, and consume content and advertising copy, punctuation madness is becoming harder and harder to escape. We find it everywhere, from billboards and brochures to landing pages and blog posts. It’s even managed to infect television spots (I’ve witnessed it firsthand). Oh, the horror of seeing the English language butchered in plain sight—and target audiences recoiling in terror!

Content marketers, are you aware of the dire threat punctuation madness poses to your brand? Do you take it as seriously as you should?

Mad punctuation attacks copy like an army of mindless zombies, eating away at coherence and meaning until your message lies in tatters. No matter how brilliant your ideas or clever your wordplay, punctuation that’s overused, underused or sorely misused will consume everything in its path until the only thing your readers notice is the carnage left behind.

 

 

Marketers, You Must Respect the Power of Punctuation

 

 

“Punctuation marks are to writing what vocal delivery is to speech.”

—Janis Bell, from her book Clean, Well-Lighted Sentences

 

 

When punctuation marks are put to good use and function as they should, we barely notice them. Their presence and effect can be subtle, but they act with great purpose. Punctuation plays an enormous role in the look, feel, and meaning of text.

The simplest punctuation errors (e.g., using it’s as a possessive pronoun) can be excruciating , but they’ve been written about ad nauseam. (I’ve gotten into the ring too, warning marketers not to “anger the Grammar Gods.”) My greatest concern is the fact that too few people understand and respect the power of punctuation—and how destructive that power can be if used improperly.

Consider all that punctuation does for us:

 

It sets the tone.

 

Formal? Folksy? Familiar? Punctuation points the way.

Semicolons send a very different signal than em dashes; the exclamation point and the period each has its own vibe. The same string of words can be interpreted a variety of ways depending on how it’s punctuated, so make sure you’re punctuating appropriately for a given audience.

 

It eliminates ambiguity.

 

Never leave readers wondering what you mean…

Dogs who love their masters will be rewarded.

Dogs, who love their masters, will be rewarded.

(Those commas mean the difference between a select group of dogs and ALL dogs. Big distinction.)

…or laughing at your expense.

My biggest heroes are my parents, Superman and Wonder Woman.

My biggest heroes are my parents, Superman, and Wonder Woman.

(If your parents aren’t Superman and Wonder Woman, you need that Oxford comma!)

 

It creates subtle variations in meaning.

 

Henry passed the note (which he took great pains to edit).

Henry passed the note, which he took great pains to edit.

In the first sentence, the clause in parentheses is an aside—not as critical to the story as the act of passing the note. In the second, the fact that Henry took great pains to edit the note seems equally important to the story. Did you catch the distinction?

 

It clarifies relationships between ideas.

 

Here is a terrific example from Lynne Truss’s New York Times bestseller Eats, Shoots & Leaves. See how the relationship changes from one pair of statements to the next?

Tom locked himself in the shed. England lost to Argentina. (There’s no clear relationship here.)

Tom locked himself in the shed; England lost to Argentina. (These might have happened simultaneously or in close succession, but it’s not clear they’re causally related.)

Tom locked himself in the shed: England lost to Argentina. (The first event was caused by the second.)

 

It emphasizes key words or phrases.

 

Midterm exams were finally over.

Midterm exams—finally!—were over.

Isn’t the second sentence a bit more colorful? You can almost taste the test taker’s relief.

 

It improves rhythm and flow.

 

Just as we writers advise others to vary sentence length and structure, we also understand that punctuation can help make any text—no matter how dry the subject—read like lyrical prose.

Now, imagine if I had ended the above sentence like this:

…we also understand that punctuation can help make any text read like lyrical prose, no matter how dry the subject.

A little underwhelming, wouldn’t you say?

 

 

In a World Gone Mad…

 

Now, imagine each of the aforementioned punctuation superpowers in the wrong hands. The result would be a monotonous, confusing, laughable mess, and audiences would run for the hills. I just can’t stress it enough: Punctuation madness kills!

Do you appreciate the power of punctuation? What errors do you find maddening—or maddeningly funny? Don’t hold back!

 

Since 2001, Becky Tumidolsky has written awareness-building content for B2B brands and their discerning audiences. Her work has appeared in leading publications such as Forbes, U.S.News & World Report, Bloomberg Markets, Newsweek, and Inc. as well as corporate blogs, websites, white papers, and other content assets.

Becky loves writing fluid, error-free prose. She’s even more passionate about building the foundation for her work—uncovering core brand distinctions, framing them thematically, and developing fresh, compelling narratives that advance corporate strategies.

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