1. Write a Compelling Headline — The goal of a headline is to grab the reader’s attention and make them want to know more. So always use benefits-oriented headlines and subheads that speak directly to your ideal customer’s wants, needs, problems or goals.
2. Write like you speak — The best copy writing reads like a one-to-one conversation between the reader and the writer. Read it out loud - that's what I do…you'll also pick up any grammatical errors or funky sounding verbiage.
3. Keep it simple — This one is pretty straightforward. Don't alienate your readers by using long suspicious sounding words that aren't commonly understood. Keep it to an 8th grade level (any professional copywriter will tell you this) and write simply and clearly.
4. Make it skim-able — Paragraphs should be brief (four to five lines max) and most sentences short (18 words or less). And use bullet points to explain separate pieces of information.
5. Use Active Voice — Whenever possible, always choose to use active voice in your writing. Avoid passive voice. This basic grammar rule will keep your writing more lively and…well…active!
6. Sell the Benefits — Promote benefits, not just features. Benefits are what the features can do for your customer. It’s why they should care about, or want, those features. Here’s a quick tip to get you thinking about the benefits…Make your list of features, then for every feature put yourself in the customer’s shoes and ask, “What’s in it for me?” The answer every time is the benefit. That's what you want to promote!
7. Call to Action — Always, always, always include a “call to action” and ask for the sale. This is not the place to be shy. You want to make sure your customer has an open invitation and knows it. And it needs to be easy - always include your contact information, phone, email, link to a page…whatever way you want them to contact you, be sure to list it here within the call to action.
Ok…I've been talking a lot lately about dreaming while awake and really thinking hard about what is to be accomplished in 2009. I believe wholeheartedly that when you dream out loud (while you are awake) you are actively taking a step toward creating and solidifying what it is you want to accomplish. So, in that same vein of thought…here's a happy Friday quote to inspire you to dream and dream BIG!
"All men dream but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity; but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act their dream with open eyes to make it possible."
-T.E. Lawrence
On the fly…
A few quick and easy blog tips to remember for 2009!
- Post items to your blog at least three times a week. Scheduling a specific time of day to blog (like at 9 a.m. every Monday, Wednesday and Friday) will keep you focused.
- Find content for your blog by setting up one or more Google Alerts. You can do that here… http://www.Google.com/alerts. Set up the alerts for topics you want to write about or are a part of your niche. Google will email you when it finds content online that is of interest to you and it will serve as a continued source of inspiration.
- Commenting at other blogs is a great way to pull traffic back to your own blog. This is an awesome thing to do but how can you possibly keep up with reading the gazillion blogs that you are interested in where your particular brand of expertise (your comments) are needed? Those Google Alerts will include many blog posts that are just ripe for your comments!
So, as MANY of you know I love biznik for a variety of reasons but mostly because of the tag line…"business networking that doesn't suck."
I mean, it just doesn't get any more perfect than that.
It sums up what every one of us in business wants in any type of business networking. Plus, the interface of the online application is set up in such a way that it not only do you get exposure to top shelf entrepreneurs and indie professionals (independent business professionals) in creative and exciting fields but your participation also leads to better search rankings, better blog exposure, more traffic to your site, etc. etc…very cool stuff.
But wait, there's more! 
The most recent addition to the super cool web 2.0 business networking group are live interviews with experts in the field of entrepreneurship that we all know and love.
Drum roll please…
Here's a new one that will be of interest to anyone in marketing. I encourage to to take a listen and check it out. It's FREE…yes, free. We all love the freebies.
