Channel the Saran Wrap

The only problem with it is that it’s not environmentally friendly, so don’t channel that part of the Saran Wrap™, but grab hold of everything else and apply it to your writing, online, blogging and social media efforts.

Saran Wrap™ is:

1. Transparent. If you aren’t transparent, you’re hiding something, which makes you untrustworthy…people want to connect with people, not businesses, NOT smoke screens.Transparency is about being really genuine - don’t just be a car salesman, be a car salesman who loves sandwiches, tennis, his kids and the novel you’ve been writing for the last year.

2. Clear. Be clear about your mission, your goals, your industry, your philosophy, your blog topic, the scope of what you do. Clarity is about your own personal understanding and connection to your professional life and plan. If you aren’t clear, you’re confused, disorganized and ineffective - things that will negatively effect your productivity, overall business, relationships, etc.

3. Sticky. If folks just breeze on through your blog, website, store - you haven’t really gotten anywhere. You want to stick to them, you want them to stick to you, you want them to subscribe, bookmark, buy, sign-up, return, remember you. The point is to build a long relationship and have it expand over time.

4. Connected. Ever notice how it’s very difficult to get just a little bit of Saran Wrap™ off the roll? The wrap is so connected to itself, like brothers in arms, a VERY tight network. Use this in two ways: 1) build your own network via your blog and your social networks and, 2) encourage this network to tell their own networks about you as well.

5. Become ‘the’ word to the extent that people think your name represents the entire industry - think Kleenex™ here. Saran Wrap™ is a registered trademark brand name, the product is actually plastic wrap. Word of mouth and a good product has made them the industry leader, standard and mascot.

6. Tools. One box, all you need. Saran Wrap™ has the container, the wrap, the cardboard tube that keeps the wrap in check, the metal teeth to cut the wrap. Have all of the tools people need at the ready. Make it easy for them to contact you, purchase your product or service, use your product or service, tell their friends about their contact or service, etc.

Don’t pick the G.I. Joe action figure

Image courtesy of Destro

We have a toy philosophy for our kids that basically states: go open ended.

But, back to the toys. If you give kids a G.I. Joe action figure, you’ve basically defined for them the who, what, how and why of the toy. I mean where do they really have to go with it?

Juxtapose that with a wooden block. A wooden block can be anything. A dog, a car, a mountain…could even be G.I. Joe.

A static, brochure website is the equivalent of the G.I. Joe toy. Basically, it is what it is. You can change up your content or your images (if you have an easy to navigate content management system (CMS))…but to really expand it any way, you’d have to pay big bucks to a designer or coder. Just like you’d have to buy G.I. Joe’s new uber-tank to expand his outfit and capabilities.

But, the blog is the wooden block. It’s designed to be anything you want, anything you can imagine - and it’s made to grow by:

• the blogger him/herself
• the theme
• the blogging software
• the blog posts
• the plug-ins
• the widgets
• the links
• the readers
• the subscribers
• the sponsors
• the writer’s growing expertise
• the industry’s transformation
• the traffic
• the comments
• the search engine ranking
• the inquiries
• the relationships
• the technological advances
• the infinite possibilities…

Which one do you want??? Just askin’…

Poor John Grogan: he had no blog

Warning: spoiler alert, though, come on, it’s obvious.

On Christmas afternoon, I went to see Marley & Me, the screen adaptation of John Grogan’s memoir about his insane yellow lab and his life as a journalist. I loved the book, loved the writing, loved his dog (because I love mine.)

But, as I watched, I got stuck on something non-doggish. Grogan, who started as a reporter, was soon pigeonholed as a columnist - because he was really good at it. And, it, in this case was humorously documenting his life, his dog, his family and his community on a ongoing, regular basis to a wide, growing and devoted audience.

At one point, he left his column to try to be a reporter, again. But, he couldn’t take himself out of his articles. He pitched a column again. At home, he had an album full of his columns, cut out from the paper and pasted in…

And all I could think about was that he was a born blogger.

Ninety-nine percent of my tears were because the dog died (that’s the spoiler, but not really, it’s obvious and was in the book). There were so many tears because I’ve lost a yellow lab and it was like losing an arm - and because I do my best crying during movies.

The remaining percent of the tears goes to the tragedy of  John Grogan not having a blog during the beginning of his journey as a writer. Let me repub this part:

Humorously documenting his life, his dog, his family and his community on a ongoing, regular basis to a wide, growing and devoted audience.

Thankfully, blogs were eventually created…thankfully, John Grogan has his own blog today. I came right home to find it, and I was correct: he’s really good at it.

The brilliance of blog comments for writers

Have you ever written something on a blog about grape jelly only to come back an hour later, read your comments and realize you were wrong - that you actually wrote the post about peanut butter?

It doesn’t happen to me often, but it happens.

Blog comments offer us an incredible view of what we said, how we said it and how it lands with our audience. Did we, in fact, communicate the message we were hoping to deliver? Did we sound angry when we meant to sound passionate? Negative when we meant to be realistic?

What an opportunity to learn, to be critiqued in the pseudo-privacy of our own blog’s backend.

When this happens, I go back and reread what I wrote. I’m curious to see if I can find the place(s) that led my readers to that other place. I try to figure out how I can do it better next time…or if my readers tapped into something more fascinating than I could have, originally, imagined - which is quite often the case.

The best things you could ever write about

While I’m interested in a pretty wide range of things in this world, there are plenty of things that I’m profoundly not into. GI Joe & Barbie, Velveeta, heavy metal, comic books, hunting, skydiving, fruit cake and video games top the list.

Can you imagine if I had to write about them? Sitting down in front of the blank screen, I can imagine searching wildly for my muse to no avail - she hightailed it to a beach in Tahiti at the first mention of Toys-R-Us.

Whether you’re a marketing copywriter, a freelance writer, a blogger and/or a business owner, you will always be looking for good content, the next job and the mojo to write and make it good.

Of course, I understand the argument that the need for a paycheck might necessitate that we write about things we aren’t inspired by. But, really?  I’m taking issue with that concept.

What if I follow my interests and because these things light me up so brilliantly, I write so well that I get accolades for that work and then more of that same kind of work? What if it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy?

I’ve written before about the fact that your energy comes through to your readers via your writing. That readers pick up on your writing emotions, even if they can’t really identify why they feel a certain way. So, if you write about GI Joe and don’t like him (or what he stands for or how he directs kids’ play into war and fighting), the reader will get that - no matter how subliminally. And let’s just say it won’t be the best ad copy we’ve ever seen.

If you’re a great or solid writer, it’ll be fine. But, don’t you want more than that? Don’t you want to be inspired, fed by your work creatively, satisfied, feeling good, making a difference with your words?

I do.

how do you blog? blogging checks and balances

I was working with a client who I do marketing, blog and writing consulting for, and we were working on her blog writing strategy when she asked me, ‘But what are the rules for blogging?’

She’s a life coach with an incredible family story who is working on a blog about/surrounding her upcoming book about coaching.

It’s important to note that we had already had an involved conversation about how she could find a voice that was conversational, not preachey, yet still full of power and information. (I couldn’t understand why that was confusing and difficult.) But seriously, my advice to her on this point was to find the person to write to that makes her feel really good, that loves/likes her unconditionally, whose relationship holds no negative emotional charge (meaning do NOT pick your spouse or your mother), who supports her, who’s a huge fan, who also calls her on her shit, who brings out her most incredible self. She has to pick that ‘you’ that she’ll be writing to. For the sake of this post and to avoid confusion, let’s call her ‘Jane’.

So, when she asked me about the rules, I told her, ‘You need checks and balances.’

As I see it, she has 4 perspectives tugging at her pen. She can’t, and shouldn’t, keep them equally balanced at all times, but her goal is to make sure that no matter what she writes, each of these corners is okay, taken care of, considered.

Here’s the plan:

• Make 4 cards, one for each perspective. In this case: 1. Jane. 2. Book Mission. 3. Personal Life and Family. 4. Coaching Work.
• Under each heading, write the definition of each perspective, the gist of what each perspective stands for, perhaps their boundaries. (Examples below)
• Tape them up in front of your computer.
• As you write, remember each perspective and make sure they’re okay with what you’re writing, that you meet each of their standards and requirements.

Here’s an idea of what those cards look like, all flushed out -

1. Jane: Confidence, energy, humor, total support, real connection, authenticity, acceptance.
2. Book Mission: to help people with life in general, decisions, challenges, time management, relationships, balance, etc.
3. Life: children, husband, safety, personal boundaries (ie. Little Rosie doesn’t want her middle school drama plastered all over her mom’s blog, but the realtime negotiations of curfews or friend choices is fair game.)
4. Coaching: Coaching Philosophies, mantras, lamposts, rules, ethics.

If you really need reigning in, you can add photos to each card to hold you accountable.

What do you think? Any other ideas on staying on track, on topic, on mission, on post, on blog…???

is blogging the new letter writing?

Dear…all of you,

As I was explaining the concept of blogging to a non-web-type the other day, she asked me, ‘So is blogging the new letter writing?’ It’s been percolating in my brain ever since. My immediate answer is that I would love to think so because:

1. I can’t really write with a pen anymore. Literally. The hand muscles that have to work to hold the pen are practically atrophied from non-use, so it’s physically uncomfortable and my hand writing more closely resembles that of a 3rd grade boy every day…but I type really fast.
2. I have serious issues with sending things. I get hung up on things like finding an envelope, licking it shut (eww and I watched Seinfeld), finding a stamp and then getting it to the post office. Meanwhile, hitting the publish button comes easy to me.
3. I like my communication served with a big old scoop of instant gratification. Letters take 2, 3, 4 days to cross the U.S. - even 5 or 6 if I’m just trying to send them from one end of my tiny little island to the other.
4. I always tell my bloggers-in-training to write the blog as if they were writing directly to someONE (friend, family, ideal client) - make that connection, let your post be personal or authentic or apropos (pick at least one.)
5. It would make comments and return visits the ‘letter back’ - and everyone wants a letter back, an answer, a response. So, your posts should ask questions, elicit strong feelings, make people feel welcome, inherently give good information while emboldening your readers to answer back with their own thoughts and brilliance.
6. Blogging over letter writing saves paper, transportation fuel and your fingers (from papercuts)…though computers use electricity, I think more energy is saved via blogging.
7. We still have email for the private stuff, this is a live broadcast from the heart and guts…blogging is a letter to the world.

Write back soon and tell me what you think.

Be well,

Julie

what would i write about? thinking up good blog content

As you’re developing your writing strategy for your blog, you may want to break it down like this (I’m going to use a popcorn blog as an example because I’m hungry, I adore popcorn and last time I checked, popcorn wasn’t political):

1. The Basics. Cover all the facts about popcorn - different kinds, standard recipes, gift ideas, special ingredients, health benefits, history of popcorn, favorite kernels, favorite poppers, etc.
2. News. What’s new in the popcorn world? Did Orville Redenbacher discover a carb-less cookie? Has Cuisinart invented a hybrid popper? Was the world record for biggest kernel just popped? (sorry I absolutely had to do that)
3. Personal Experience. As you were popping corn today, what did you notice? How did your latest recipe turn out? Which brands do kids love, which do they abhor? (Hopefully that nasty microwaveable kind with the fake butter).
4. How To’s. How to start a popcorn business. How to keep the popcorn from going stale. How to make the perfect bowl of popcorn every time.
5. Guests and Features. And here come your opportunities to connect to your community. Invite chefs, parents, popcorn companies, kitchenware companies, kids, teachers, other bloggers, etc. to your blog to increase its content, information and value (and to cross promote and drive traffic).
6. Contests. Everyone loves a contest (though not this crowd so much - what’s up with that?)…but popcorn people definitely do. Give things away, raise money with a raffle, donate funds to a cause, partner with another site…the opportunities are endless.

My advice? Write what you know and write to people that don’t know as much as you do, write to people interested in your field. Hell, even if they know as much or more than you know, they don’t know it like you know it so they’ll learn from you and it’s a great opportunity to learn from them. Make your mark by being completely you. Twenty people could write about Smart Food and they would all sound different and they would all resonate with different readers…like a poem, if you will.

I know this is no big secret, but I’m going to say it anyway: there are a lot of people in this world and many of them are online, reading blogs even. And because there are so many readers, the people who care about what you are writing will find you…and you will find them. I swear, it just happens that way.

portfolio redux

Anyone else ever get so busy taking care of clients that you hardly have time to take care of yourself? Case in point, it’s been over a year since I’ve updated my portfolio page. And, it’s finally here. Thanks, as always, to my prized designer, Leslie Tane, you can all now see a selected smattering of what Writing Roads has been doing for the last year. The Bonobo Kids site above is just a taste…

Oy, did I just refer to myself in the 3rd person? Listen people, I have 16 in-laws visiting us for a week…I have a really, really good excuse. Really, really.

the target market of one: finding your blog audience

Blogging is about the conversation, right? That said, there are certain ‘big’ blogs that I read where I can tell the writer is talking to thousands of people - I feel it, I feel like I’m just one of the many. There are other ‘big’ blogs that always leave me feeling like I’m the only one in the room - and that’s the goal - for any kind of marketing writing, perhaps any kind of writing.

Some of my readers have gone out of their way to tell me that they feel like I’m talking directly to them…which I find superb, because I am. I’m most certainly talking to one person - and that intimacy is able to come through. I’ve picked one person to write my blog to, and every time I sit down to write, I imagine this person sitting in front of me. I purpose my message to this individual allowing my conversational style to be authentic.

So, why then, you may ask, do so many of my readers feel like I’m writing to them personally? They, possibly you, feel that connection because it’s a contact high. It’s catharsis at its best. My best example of this phenomenon has to be the movies. Note: I am a writer with a very potent imagination, this might not show up for you in exactly the same way it does for me.

Take any romantic movie, throw George Clooney (still my favorite) in (or whoever does it for you) and let him/her romance the hell out of someone (could be a girl or a boy - have you seen the Ocean’s movies?)…somehow, sitting there, watching that movie, the viewer gets the sensation that George is talking to them, that they are in love and being loved by GC…and they literally feel full of bliss. Catharsis by movie: you get to revel in your emotions by watching someone else’s experience.

Anyway, as I write to my one and only, you pick up on our intimacy, our connection. I hope it makes you feel included, like you’re part of something. Because you are. This is an excellent writing tool that enables you to meet your audience and influence them. It’s the difference between talking to them and shouting at them, really. The difference between inviting them over to try your fabulous new coffee maker and telling them that they BETTER GET ONE BEFORE THEY’RE ALL GONE! Think about it.

The best part is, with the blog platform, you (the audience) get to talk back. You can keep that conversation going - say what you like, reveal what you don’t, ask for what’s missing. A conversation wants two or more - it can’t exist with just one. In effect, I am writing to you. And, I love it when you join me with emails or comments. I promise to always talk back.