Micro Blogs Digest
I’ve been experimenting with very short post on LinkedIn (contrasting my former style of very long posts…almost as if LinkedIn were my blog itself!).
Here is a quick recap of some of the recent entries…
Nobody's Going to Read All That! (So Why Write It?)
The PRIMARY objective of any piece of long-form content is to convince someone to read it.
This is accomplished (or not) in the headline, in the opening sentence, and in the first three paragraphs. (I call this “The Why Section.”)
Failure to do this renders the rest of the piece irrelevant—no matter how good the content may be.
Here, skim for yourself…
Less Pitching, More Empathy
“The art of effective copywriting is not to convince people of something they should know, but to ensure them that what they do know matters to you.”
— Me. I wrote that.
By this, I mean to say: Too many fall into the trap of expecting their marketing copy to convince an audience to buy from them, based on features and not on outcomes. The website messaging pitches the features…without connecting to benefits. The brochure brags about speed. Storage capacity. A variety of colors and finishes.
What if none of that matters to the prospective client or customer? What if, instead, the prospect cares first and foremost about their own pain, challenges or aspirations? Rule of thumb: If you’re leading with product features in your marketing copy, you’re talking right past the client or customer.
Ideas, Not Words
People Don’t Need More Words; They Need Better Ideas
Your job as a thought leader is not to create content; it’s to deal in intellectual property.
So says Jay Acunzo, author of Break the Wheel and a brand messaging strategist.
People can get words from anywhere these days. Thanks in part to AI, we are no shortage of content. But what the world will continue to seek out is expertise. Fresh ideas. New approaches to solving problems.
And if the content you’re publishing isn’t delivering on those needs, it might as well just be words on a page. In fact, it is.
That One Time I Bought a Furnace Filter
The Power of Storytelling
"Show me, don't tell me."
That is the art of effective communication.
What I learned in sixth grade holds true today. If you’re using your marketing content and messaging to TELL people why they should engage with you, nobody will relate.
But if you SHOW them—through storytelling, testimonial, metaphorical allusions, emotional connection—your story will resonate. And be remembered.
Allow me to show you how…
Don't Be a Hero
Who Is the Hero In Your Story?
If I told you my life story, would you care?
What if I asked you tell me your life story?
Eugene M. Schwartz’s The Brilliance Breakthrough: How to Talk and Write So That People Will Never Forget You should be (and often is) considered to be the “bible” of effective copywriting and storytelling. One of the many tenets Schwartz embraces is the notion of making the reader (or the customer) the hero of the story you’re trying to tell.
Too often, we put the capes on our own backs. And that’s where the writing falls short.
Short and Sweet? Not So Fast.
Podcast: That's a Wrap!
My co-host, Curtis Hayes, and I put the wraps on the first season of our Bullhorns and Bullseyes podcast recently, recapping the big takeaways and lessons learned from our guests during the first 40 episodes. Click through to watch the episode and learn more about Season One of Bullhorns and Bullseyes.
Let Content Be Your Praise Singer
You Don’t Have to Be in the Room to Gain Influence
Adrian Lurssen tells the story of when he went to see Nelson Mandela deliver an address in his home country of South Africa. He still draws upon the experience today, but in the most unusual context.
As Adrian has recounted this tale to Jay Harrington and me on an episode of The Thought Leadership Project podcast, he likens this notion of a praise singer to how we considers thought leadership content to work on behalf of the expert that shares it.
See how…