Content Mastery Guide

Editor and Ghostwriter

Blog + Pages = Blogsite – Simple Writing Tips for Your Blogsite Pages

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Last week on Content Mastery Action Day, an Action Club member asked me about turning her blog into a website (or “blogsite”). The process is as simple as adding pages, and yet simple is not easy.

I can’t finish my website because I don’t know what to write

This same problem has plagued so many talented business owners, resulting in “Coming Soon,” screens or blogs/websites with the address: “www.butpleasedontgotherebecauseitsnotfinishedyet.com.”

Inside, this creates a sense of pressure, embarrassment or even shame, and that can seep into your confidence level about all aspects of your business.

Outside, this creates the impression that your business itself is undeveloped, under construction or temporary.

You can build a website around your expert content

Hopefully you’ve been concentrating on writing relevant, masterful content and publishing it on a blog. That blog is a great place to create or enhance your online presence with the most current details about your business vision.

Take your blog, add some pages and voilà! You have a blogsite (blog/website hybrid) you can easily update.

On most popular blogging platforms such as WordPress, adding a new page is as simple as adding a new post. Check with your VA, designer or other web specialist for more details.

Simple writing tips for your key blogsite pages

Writing your About page – We covered this topic in last week’s call, Writing an Online Bio. Action Club members can download the recording, handout and worksheet from last week’s call. The key to an effective About page is to put yourself in your visitors’ shoes and imagine what they need to know about you in order to take the next step in your relationship.

Writing your Services page – On your main Services page, give a broad description of each service, with the option to click through to more detailed pages for each individual offer. This gives everyone an overview without overwhelming someone who is just exploring. Want an even simpler option? Suggest that visitors contact you for the details. You can always add those detailed pages later. This is about getting it done!

Writing your Contact page – To minimize spam (unwanted email), use a contact form (such as Wufoo, Contact 7 for WordPress or a Google Docs form) instead of displaying your email address. Visitors can fill in their contact details along with their questions or comments, and it is sent to you just like an email. Include a postal address and phone number on your Contact page to enhance your trustworthiness as a “real person.”

Writing your Welcome/Landing page – To welcome your reader to your blogsite – perhaps for the first time – I suggest you write a specific message for them (versus your latest blog post). Again, put yourself in your visitors’ shoes and help them know they are in the right place.

You can either create a “featured” blog post that will always display at the top, or you can set up your blogsite so that visitors to www.yoursite.com will “land” on a Welcome page.

Later, you may want to branch out into some other optional pages where you can promote your special programs and events, products or free resources.

For now, starting with these four simple pages will turn your blog into a blogsite, building on your expert content and solidifying your blog as the home base or “hub” of your online presence.

Barrie Author Opens Online Club to Help Business Owners With Dreaded Task

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For Immediate Release

Linda Dessau, author of Write Your Way to More Clients Online, helps business owners write blog posts. Her Content Mastery Action Club meets monthly by phone for an "Action Day" of learning and writing. In between, members can access a library of resource materials as well as editing services.

A recent HubSpot study shows that companies that blog attract 55% more website visitors than non-blogging companies (source: http://bit.ly/blog-study). That's no surprise to Dessau. "People are online everyday looking for solutions to their problems," she explains, "Service businesses are uniquely positioned to publish quality information to fill that need. And in the process, they build trust, credibility and relationships with prospective clients."

It's called content marketing, and Dessau has been doing it since 2003. In fact, she has met the vast majority of her editing and writing clients through her own content marketing efforts.

Not everyone sees the same results. "Today anyone can instantly publish new content online, and that's both a blessing and a curse." Dessau warns that content marketing can work against you if prospective clients are turned off by typos or confusing grammatical errors.

She recommends that business bloggers proofread carefully, reading each post out loud before publishing. Members of her Action Club can have their new blog posts professionally edited each month, providing both accountability and peace of mind.

"Under Linda’s guidance, I feel much more focused, relaxed, original and organized, and less overwhelmed about the writing process," shares Action Club member Joellyn Wittenstein Schwerdlin, "I now have the confidence to expand my once-a-month newsletter to 4-5 monthly blog posts, which I'm planning for 2011."

Action Days happen on the second Thursday of every month, and new members are admitted all month long.

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For more information:

Web: https://www.contentmasteryguide.com
Email: linda [at] contentmasteryguide.com
Phone: 705-737-3491

Linda Dessau is an editor, writer and writing coach, certified by the Coaches Training Institute (CTI). She created the "You Talk, I'll Write" service in July 2005 to combine her passion for coaching with her gift for writing. She launched ContentMasteryGuide.com in May 2010.

How to Write a Blog Post, Part 4: The connecting post

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Writing connecting posts helps you to grow your network, build relationships with prospective clients and establish yourself as a trusted resource.

A big part of its appeal is that when you write a connecting post (I've called it a "connective piece" earlier on this blog) you don't have to start from scratch with a blank page or brand new idea.

Instead, you're connecting the dots for your readers (Andrea J. Lee calls it "being their Google") between:

How to write a connecting blog post

  • Keep up with the news – To find relevant blog posts to share or potential guest authors to invite, try setting up Google Alerts, a Twitter search tool or a blog reader. I also suggest you commit some of your article writing time to following your mouse around the blogosphere to see what you can find. (Note: That includes your own site – look for posts you can comment on or rewrite from a fresh perspective.)
  • Make the content your own (even when it isn't) – Whether you're sharing a link, posting a guest article or describing a client's triumphant success, include an introduction or explanation. Show how the content relates to your blog's mission, which is (hopefully) to solve the unique problems of your ideal clients.
  • Review your week – Look to your Inbox, telephone calls and personal adventures for stories and examples of the topics you write about in your blog. Grant yourself the license to make some creative connections.

There are going to be some days when you just don't have any new content in you. And there will be other days when someone else just said it better. With connecting posts, you can keep blogging anyway, adding some variety and spice to your own mountain of content.

How to Write a Blog Post, Part 1: The "how to" post
How to Write a Blog Post, Part 2: The personal post
How to Write a Blog Post, Part 3: The thought leadership post

Writing your online bio: Who are you and why should they care?

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When it's time to write your online bio, you may be relieved to think, "Finally, it's all about me!" But is it?

Up until now, I've been encouraging you to put yourself in your reader's shoes and remember that they are online looking for solutions and information. In order to make that crucial connection and build a long-term trusting relationship, you need to give them what they want.

There will be plenty of time down the line to share the wisdom YOU think they should know.

That goes for your articles, blog posts and other online content, but what about your bio? Your bio may seem like the perfect place to let loose and say whatever you feel like saying. But before you do, consider the following:

  • Your bio is where you establish credibility: In fact, 3 out of 10 of Stanford's Top 10 Guidelines for Web Credibility point to how well a site identifies and describes the person or people behind the scenes. Does your About page make the grade?
  • Your bio is where you spark a connection: People use your bio to decide whether or not to follow you, visit your website, subscribe to your newsletter, hire you or refer you. In Twitter, we have only 160 characters to make an impression!
  • Your bio is where you express personality: There are countless other professionals who do exactly what you do. Some have exactly as much training and experience as you do, and comporable client success stories. It's your hobbies, passions and personality that will set you apart to your ideal client and help make a match.

Writing prompt: When it comes to writing an online bio, it's still all about your reader. Choose the words that will help people get to know, like and trust you. Help your ideal client hone in on your unique qualities and capabilities that make you the perfect fit.

We'll be discussing this topic on the next Content Mastery Action Day. This full-day event is designed to help you jumpstart your content writing goals for the month. There is built-in accountability, a Q&A call and the opportunity for live editing assistance to make your article the best it can be.

While the full day is only available to Action Club members, anyone may attend the presentation call in the morning.

What: Writing an Online Bio – Who Are You and Why Should They Care?
When: Thursday, December 9th, 2010, 9:30-10:00 a.m. EASTERN (in, out and on with your day)
Where: Webinar

This presentation will cover:

  • Why you'll need five versions of your online bio
  • Which questions to ask yourself when you are writing each version
  • What to leave in and what to leave out – including how to deal with having outdated or unrelated experience or no formal credentials
  • BONUS: A worksheet for preparing your own online bio (subscribers only)

How to Write a Blog Post, Part 3: The thought leadership post

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Thought leadership posts (or “thought pieces,” as I’ve called them before on this blog) are an important part of a balanced blog. They play a key role in establishing and deepening your relationship with your readers.

Do you need to be a thought leader?

There’s a lot of buzz about being a “thought leader” these days (though according to Wikipedia the term has been around since 1994), but do you need to be one? Absolutely not!

There is no need to pressure yourself with trying to reinvent the wheel, especially since most of what you will write about is not new at all. In fact, breaking new ground as an innovator is only one of several possible reasons to write a thought leadership post.

Four ways to be a thought leader with your writing

  1. Propose your own theory or explanation behind a specific challenge or phenomenon – this is what most people think of as thought leadership; coming up with a brand new idea to explain something better and more clearly than anyone before
  2. Take a stand on an issue that’s important to you, even when that is contrary to popular opinion – another commonly recommended blogging technique, where you attract attention with passion and controversy
  3. Present a puzzle, unanswered question or other “food for thought” that leads your reader to new insights or awareness – a natural approach for coaches and trainers, this allows you to use your natural talent for empowerment to lead your reader to discover their own new truths
  4. Put your own unique take on an established principle or solution – ah-hah, here’s where anyone gets to be a thought leader; as Andrea J. Lee taught me, there are people in this world who can ONLY hear a message from YOU; they’re tuned into your frequency and your way of explaining things (and I bet you’re already writing these type of blog posts)

What makes something a thought leadership post?

You can set out to write a thought leadership piece, but you won’t really know you’ve done it until you see the response. For example, in Part 2 of this series, I wrote about beating the imposter syndrome by building a mountain of content.

A few people responded publicly (by tweeting, retweeting or commenting), and a few others have emailed me privately. I know they represent others who appreciated my take on this topic but didn’t necessarily reply.

My stats in Typepad, HootSuite and AWeber also showed me that many people clicked through to read the post (so the article title must have done its job!).

I knew I’d struck a chord with that post, and you’ll know when it happens to you.

How to write a thought leadership piece

What are you feeling passionate about sharing with your readers? Do some free writing (either by hand or on the computer) about the topic and see where that leads you.

In my April 2010 post about thought pieces, I suggested four ways to delve more deeply into a topic:

  1. Define (what is your topic?)
  2. Deconstruct (what’s it made of?)
  3. Differentiate (how is it different from other things? how are its elements different from each other?)
  4. Dispute (how are other points of view on this topic inaccurate or ineffective?)

Use these broad categories to jumpstart your brainstorming, or as a structure for dividing what you’ve written into sections.

Introduce the topic by explaining why you think it’s relevant for your readers, and conclude by asking them to take an action.

Even if you don’t feel like a thought leader (maybe you actually feel like an imposter), I still encourage you to try your hand at writing a thought leadership piece. Chances are, you already have.

How to Write a Blog Post, Part 1: The “how to” post How to Write a Blog Post, Part 2: The personal post How to Write a Blog Post, Part 4: The connecting post