Improve your writing structure: fixing the muddle in the middle In 2006, I needed to start writing optimized blog posts for a client in the car sales industry. I wanted to write something better than what currently existed in that online space, so I looked for blogs from competitors and: There wasn’t much out there.
Get targeted demographic data for free with Google Analytics Companies can spend thousands and thousands of dollars trying to get a good handle on their target markets and still not feel as though they have a true picture. Meanwhile, other companies don’t spent any time or resources getting to understand their
Creating content that Google rewards – without (too much) phone anxiety In 2014, Google is rewarding quality original copy – and the reality is that, like it or not, one of the best ways to accomplish this is through one particular type of primary source: the phone interview, the cause of anxiety for many writers.
Any time writers get together, it seems that someone brings up the “problem” of being an introvert. After all, they say – quite accurately – writers also need to promote their work, unquestionably an uncomfortable activity for many introverts. Moreover, when using primary sources, the tool is usually the interview – which involves contacting and
Introduction to Google Local If you provide a service to your local community, then chances are this post is for you. For example, type moving company into Google. What we see in Cleveland will differ greatly from what someone else sees in Miami. This is because Google understands that some queries carry local intent. Queries
Romance your reader with captivating opening lines Studies into speed dating, where people seeking a relationship meet multiple potential partners in a short amount of time, suggest that two people tend to “click” – or “not click” – within a matter of seconds. Why? It’s hard to say. Maybe it’s her laugh or his eyes.
Subject matter experts: how to find and choose expert sources Talk about a story that gives you the shivers . . . in 2012, Forbes shared the tale of Ryan Holiday, a “self-styled ‘media manipulator’” who was quoted numerous times in print and online publications. Here’s the problem: “He is not an expert in barefoot
How to deal effectively with online complaints and criticisms Recently, a woman accused a Starbucks barista of using caramel to create satanic symbols in two cups of coffee that she’d bought: one was a Pentagram symbol and, the other, 666. She posted her complaint to the Starbucks Facebook page and her post was liked and
Breaking writing rules: is it ever okay? In 11th and 12th grade, 20 or so students from my class were able to take a computer programming class – learning Fortran and Cobol – back when programming meant typing each individual command on an individual manila punch card and then feeding a thick set of these
Ethics in writing: where is the line in the sand? Isaac, a high school senior, was dying of leukemia. He wished, with all of his heart, to survive long enough to graduate. I learned about Isaac when my newspaper editor called me and said that I needed to be at the football field where his
