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Hey, Client, This Is Me! Sell With Your Writing Voice
In a crowded market, clients will be seeking personality as they read what you've written -- they'll click right past pages that feel "been there, read that." They're looking for a voice that says, "Hey, client, this is me!" They want to know not just what you deliver -- but how. Will you be funny or serious? A perky cheerleader or a sardonic commentator? Will your view of life be based on "believe and it happens" or "what you see is what you get?" Here are some tips to add your own voice to your writing. 1. Write from the heart. Too excited, passionate or angry to sit still? Best time to connect with your voice. Grab a pencil and scribble ideas as you jump around the room. 2. Say something new. After forty articles on time management, your readers know about cutting projects into manageable chunks and setting priorities. Ho hum. Try "better than zero" or "turn your life into a time warp." 3. Tape yourself talking to a good friend about a product. Do your words sound different when you speak than when you write? Transcribe the tape into an article for easy reading. 4. Picture your ideal client (you do have one, don't you?). Imagine that she is gushing about your service to a friend -- highly recommending you. What words does she use to describe your services? What emotions come through? 5. Cut. Then cut again. When you have to trim your piece to meet a word count requirement, notice that you're left with the most essential words -- all yours. 6. Write fast. Get the words down before your inner critic has a chance to participate. Edit later. 7. Reveal yourself: family, mistakes, secret dreams. When you feel just a bit embarrassed, or feel your private persona has become more public, you've probably just touched your audience's heart. 8. Be concrete -- not abstract. As writing guru Natalie Goldberg would say, "It's a geranium, not a flower." 9. If you've had voice training, be especially alert to creating the bland and the blah. Julia Roberts could hold an audience while she reads the telephone directory. Your copy has to stand alone, without dramatic oratory. Exercise 3 may not work for you. 10. Don't be afraid to break the rules: use slang and contractions. And it's okay to begin a sentence with "and" or "but." Just tread carefully on the rules of grammar and spelling. "Your about to head off for you're great adventure" can be a credibility-buster. About The Author Cathy Goodwin, Ph.D., is an author, speaker, editor, and consultant. She helps clients who want to use writing to sell and sell what they write. Visit http://www.makewritingpay.com.
Latest News:Site: Yahoo! News Search Results for news News Ltd buys Getprice NEWS Ltd is preparing itself for the online retailing explosion with the acquisition of comparison shopping site, Getprice.com.au. Alabama news links: Judge gives man 187 years in prison on child porn convictions News from around Alabama. News Near You for Sept. 6 This daily column features short news items from some of the 20 localities that make up the greater Richmond area. If you have a news item, call 649-6990 or e-mail us at news@times dispatch.com NEWS NEAR YOU PowhatanB-24 bomber pilot Neely Young will speak at the World War II Round ... News Briefs Good news for working mothers. Minister of Education, Gideon Saar, announced Monday his decision to extend tuition subsidies for children aged 3-4 in public nurseries. BREAKING NEWS - Child struck by car, car doesn't stop TUCSON - News 4 has confirmed that a child was hit by a vehicle in the area of Drexel and Mission. Officers on scene say the vehicle did not stop. They are actively searching for the driver. Northwest News: John Canzano blames lousy city leadership for baseball's demise in Portland; Say so long to the ... Northwest News is a daily roundup of what's making headlines in the Pacific Northwest. News by location Get local and national news updates via E-mail. LUMBERTON - The Robeson County Board of Commissioners is expected to approve a resolution Tuesday formally adopting a quarter-cent sales tax increase. News buys up shopping website NEWS Limited has signalled a push into the online retail space. News Snapshot: Exit 12B in South Burlington is back in the spotlight ? THE NEWS: The city of South Burlington and the Chittenden County Metropolitan Planning Organization will hold a public meeting to discuss the latest developments on a proposed exit ? 12B ? from Interstate 89 onto Vermont 116 near Kennedy Drive. News by location Get local and national news updates via E-mail. Ten drivers have now clinched spots in the Chase for the Sprint Cup. HAMPTON, Ga. - Tony Stewart raced to his first victory of the year, pulling away from Carl Edwards off the final restart Sunday night at Atlanta Motor Speedway. Site: news - Google News AP Top News at 6:20 pm EDT - The Associated Press
MORE RESOURCES: Site: Yahoo! News Search Results for copywriting Gogolmania.2: cultural creativity in Kyiv It's not often you see giant Catalan puppets and airborn acrobats perform alongside earthy Ukrainian ethno-music. I wrote last year about the creative paradise of Gogolfest. Sean D'Souza: Spiced up news will ensure clients return Imagine someone borrowed your content.Imagine they then took that exact content, just changed some links and sent it out to their contact list.Would recipients realise the content was "borrowed?"In most cases the answer... Greenwich woman presents the 'original' story of her life Greenwich resident Carla Wallach never expected to write out the story of her life, but with such a distinctive background, her friends and acquaintances practically demanded it. INFOCUS Marketing Expands Beyond List Rental Management with Done in One Integrated Marketing Services WARRENTON, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--INFOCUS Marketing continues expansion of services with list management, print production, mail fulfillment, design, copywriting, email campaign management, and list brokerage. Jason Parker Of ES3 Marketing L.L.C. Launches New Internet Marketing Blog Recently Jason Parker and company decided to tare down the old ProIMer blog to provide more value to online business info web surfers. Now ES3 Marketing L.L.C. has launched a new blog at es3marketingllc.com Conversion Conference Helps Online Marketers Increase Campaign Effectiveness Conversion Conference is the only industry event devoted exclusively to improving online conversion, and it's going to the Washington DC area October 4-5. More than thirty top thought-leaders and authors will provide practical sessions on landing page optimization, testing tools and website conversion path critiques. Conference Overview Conversion Conference was developed by... iWebContent Announces the move to new Office Facility and Expanded Growth iWebContent moves out of startup mode and out of startup facilities. The SEO content writing company moves into new 5,000+ square foot facility, targets 400% growth within the next twelve months. Ethics Denial By Online Reputation Management Firm Reputation 24/7 A BUSINESSMAN today urged companies with squeaky-clean profiles to consider hiring online web experts to safeguard their reputation in cyberspace. Senior Marketing Executive - B2B. - 22k Senior Marketing Executive - B2B MARKET LEADER: With business booming this is an excellent opportunity to join this leading business.THE ROLE: This highly visible role will be around building the brand further and supporting the sales effort. Marketing Communications Officer. - 25k Circle Anglia, one of the UK's leading providers of affordable housing, is looking to appoint an enthusiastic self starter as Marketing Communications Officer, working within its Group Communications team. Site: copywriting - Google News Professional Internet Sales Copywriters Lose Clients Because of Goldfish ... - Release-news.com (press release)
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