Promotion, Promotion, Promotion

My writing colleague Linda O'Connell recently nudged me into trying to promote myself. You know, get my face and name out there. She suggested I reach out to newspaper and local TV news folks to connect my most recent Chicken Soup story to what's going on in our country... and she even wrote a text to get me thinking.

This is what she wrote:

"Despite continued stereotyping, and Donald Trump calling Ferguson one of the most dangerous cities in the world,  I'd like to share with you and the community at large my timely and inspirational story. ‘MY Ferguson’ was published in Chicken Soup for the Soul, My Kind of America. 

The story of Cathy and Jerome Jenkins and young Cortez Thomas is hopeful, positive, and uplifting--exactly what people need to hear in these trying and divisive times.

I am a published writer, former seasoned Ferguson public school teacher, and current parochial school teacher who believes ....(your mantra or something like this:)  Goodness trumps hate. If we seek the good, we will find it."

The thing is, Linda is gifted when it comes to promotion. You read her posts, you listen to her, and she weaves in bits of self-promotion in a creative (and interesting way). She never piles it on. You never feel like "Will this bragging never end?" because it's not bragging. She drops a detail about a published piece, and usually follows it up with something inspirational, or generously shares a writing resource she's found.

Pixabay

I have to dip my toes into these unknown waters (marketing) because at some point in the next 98 years, I will have my novel published. (Look for it in 2020 at a street corner near you. It'll be hand-written, on a stack of legal pads.) In February I will be doing someting incredibly exciting and terrifying. I'll be taking a WOW class on creating a platform (Website. Newsletters. Effective Posts. Yikes! Karen Cioffi has her work cut out with me). Will I be able to walk that fine line between singing the same song over and over (Buy my book! Buy my book!) and being so quiet, nobody knows I'm out there?

I'm not sure. I would hope I'd be able to dig up enough interesting details about my life and my job, so I could them to cushion a promotional tidbit here and there. We'll see.

I read a New York Times article on how authors in the past create brands for themselves. How crazy were the schemes? Here are a couple of them:

In the late 1800's, Guy de Maupassant (who came up with my all-time favorite writing quote: "Get black on white.") launched a hot air balloon. It flew over the river Seine, the side of the balloon emblazoned with the title of his most-recently published short story. 

In the early 1900's, Georges Simenon announced he would write an entire novel in just three days. To make it even more challenging, he'd do it in a glass cage outside the Moulin Rouge nightclub.

Three days? That's even worse than NaNoWriMo. However, Simenon never had to go through with the stunt, because the newspaper that was financing went out of business, putting a stop to the clever scheme. It didn't stop people from claiming they'd witnessed the writer tapping away in his glass cage... even though it had never happened.

(This one got me thinking. I could write in a glass cage--naked. People would pay money for me to put clothes back on. Certainly, I'd make more money that way than I would as a writer.)

So, in the next few months I'll be trying to learn how to build a platform for myself. A platform sturdy enough to support my wide rump. Is such a thing possible? We'll see.

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15 comments Karen Cioffi, WOW Classes

What is Inbound Marketing and Its 3 Core Elements?

by Karen Cioffi

Inbound marketing is a collection of marketing strategies and tools that is focused on visibility and attention. Its purpose is to bring readers and potential customers to you and your website.

Sounds great, right? No more hunting them down. They come right to you.

This is the idea behind inbound marketing.

But, how do you do this?

It’s pretty straight forward and there are three core elements to this process.

1. Visibility

The first and most important element to inbound marketing is to generate attention to you and what you’re offering. This is done through:

• A website
• Blogging
• Simple SEO strategies
• Social media

2. Turn visitors into potential customers / clients.

You need to have certain things in place to turn that visitor into something more.

This is where your call-to-action (CTA) comes in.

You need to have an email service provider. This service will provide you with the opt-in box code that will allow the visitor to input her email address and get onto your mailing list. It’s this list that is key to conversion (the process of a visitor going from reading to buying or some other desired action).

Usually, to motivate the visitor to become a subscriber, you need to offer a great ‘freebie.’ This is your ethical bribe.

To determine what gift your audience would appreciate, think of what you would want. Or, you might ask on your social networks. The freebie needs to be valuable enough and worded right to get people to give you their email addresses.

Just be sure that the new subscriber can quickly and easily get the gift you promised for signing up. This entails creating a Thank You landing page that has the link to the download.

3. Email marketing

Getting subscribers is pretty much the whole purpose of numbers one and two above.

But, once you get subscribers, how do you convert them into customers?

You’ve got to provide ongoing ‘actionable’ content that the subscribers can use in their own journey. It’s this content along with CTAs to your services or products that will eventually motivate conversion.

One of the best ways to take advantage of email marketing is to create an autoresponder of eight to 10 emails that will go out automatically once someone signs up to your mailing list.

These emails should be highly focused on the type of content the subscriber signed up for. Each one should have a CTA, even if it’s to connect on social networks.

There you have it, the three core elements of inbound marketing.

***

Karen Cioffi is a former accountant who is now a multi-award-winning author, ghostwriter, freelance writer, editor, and author-writer online platform marketing instructor. She founded and manages Writers on the Move (a marketing group), and presents online writing and marketing workshops and webinars.

Karen has published 12 writing and marketing eBooks, the most recent, Article Marketing: Increase Website Traffic with Properly Formatted and Search Engine Optimized Content.

In addition to this, Karen’s website, Karen Cioffi Writing and Marketing, was named Writer’s Digest Website of the Week, June 25, 2012.

Want to get more traffic to you and your website? Check out Karen's online class, GIVE YOUR AUTHOR/WRITER BUSINESS A BOOST WITH INBOUND MARKETING. Visit our classroom page for details and enrollment.

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4 comments call to action, email marketing, inbound marketing, Karen Cioffi, online class, WOW class, WOW instructor

Top 5 Basic Domain Name Elements

by Karen Cioffi

As an online marketing instructor and ghostwriter, I get students and clients who are just starting out. Just beginning their marketing journey. And, they don’t know the very basics of an effective website or what actions to take to get started.

The very first thing to do, when you’re first thinking about creating your own website or having one created for you, is get a domain name.

The domain name is your online address. It’s where people can find you online.

For example, my content writing site is Article Writing Doctor – that’s the domain name and the website title. The URL (actual online address) is http://articlewritingdoctor.com.

The Key Elements of a Domain Name

1. You want your domain name to be reflective of what your site is about.

Still using my Article Writing Doctor site, the reason I chose that name is because it’s highly relevant to my site’s niche.

If your site is about cooking, you'll want a domain name that reflects that. If I had a cooking site, I might use something like Cooking with Karen. Or, maybe zoom in closer on the niche, Karen Cooks Italian or Italian Cooking with Karen.

Make it as specific and keyword effective as possible. The reason I added "with Karen" is because "Cooking" and "Italian Cooking" are very popular keywords. Chances are the domain name wouldn't be available.

2. You want it to be keyword optimized.

The keywords for my domain name are: article / article writing / writing.

3. Keep it short and clear.

Keep your domain name short and to the point. This is best for both readers, search engines, and your marketing efforts. Shorter works better.

4. Think unique.

Try to make your name unique. Make a list of 5-10 names, possibly using variations. Find one that works and that’s available to use.

5. Choose the most popular ‘ending’ if possible.

There are a number of name extensions or endings for URLs: .com / .net / .org, and so on.

You might think of the URL endings as the same as using Street / Avenue / Drive / Road, and so on. Your home address might be:

123 Smith Street
123 Smith Avenue
123 Smith Drive

Get the idea? And, the most popular domain name extension is .com.

Summing It Up

So, there you have it, five of the basic elements to creating an optimized domain name. If you’re getting ready to take the website plunge, use these tips to create a search engine and reader friendly name.

***

Karen Cioffi is a former accountant who is now a multi-award-winning author, ghostwriter, freelance writer, editor, and author-writer online platform marketing instructor. She founded and manages Writers on the Move (a marketing group), and presents online writing and marketing workshops and webinars.

Karen has published 12 writing and marketing eBooks, the most recent, Article Marketing: Increase Website Traffic with Properly Formatted and Search Engine Optimized Content.

In addition to this, Karen’s website, Karen Cioffi Writing and Marketing, was named Writer’s Digest Website of the Week, June 25, 2012.

>>>Do you have a writer's website? Check out Karen's 5-day online class: CREATE YOUR WORDPRESS WEBSITE TODAY: No Code, No Technical Stuff, No Fuss .  Visit our classroom page for details and enrollment.

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5 comments author marketing, author websites, choosing a domain name, domain name, Karen Cioffi, online class, WOW class, WOW instructor

The Top 3 Social Media No-Nos

by Karen Cioffi

At this point in time, most everyone knows the importance of using social media marketing. It’s a powerful strategy that has the ability to bring traffic to your website, boost authority, and build your business.

But, there are certain things you should watch out for. Some of these No-Nos will help you avoid harming your credibility and authority, others will help you boost your visibility.

Here are the top three social media No-Nos:

1. Not using social media as part of your marketing.

I’d be surprised if you’re not already doing this, but if not, you must be a part of social media networks in order to create and broaden your visibility and bring traffic to your website.

Join the biggies, like Facebook, Twitter, GooglePlus, Pinterest, and so on. I also use StumbleUpon and LinkedIn. There are lots and lots of them. Find a few that work for you and start sharing on them.

Then find the one or two networks that work best for you and ‘work’ them by posting to them more and engaging with other users more.

Be sure to use social sharing buttons on your blog posts. As you publish each post, share it to your networks. And, be sure to share the posts of other users. This helps create the engagement I mentioned above.

2. Promoting too much.

If you’re primarily promoting your products or services, this is a NO-NO. People want to be informed, they want you to help them. They don’t want to be sold to.

There’s a 80/20 marketing rule: Provide your audience with 80% useable information and 20% promotional content.

In fact, there’s so much information online that I think a better rule would be the 85/15 or 90/10 rule. Make yourself the go-to person for the information your audience is looking for. Then slip in the promo for the product or service that will help ease their pain, build their business, get them healthier, make them money or other solution to their problem.

Make it about your audience.

3. Using link-bait.

Okay, first let me explain what link-baiting is: It’s the practice of creating titles and links that are used specifically to get traffic to your website.

If the content (website) you’re sending the traffic to isn’t relevant to the ‘hyped up’ title, this is a NO-NO. Or, you may be sending people to outdated content or to fluff pieces (no substance or value).

People don’t like this and it will affect your social standing and authority.

Use these tips to help boost your results.

***

Karen Cioffi is a former accountant who is now a multi-award-winning author, ghostwriter, freelance writer, editor, and author-writer online platform marketing instructor. She founded and manages Writers on the Move (a marketing group), and presents online writing and marketing workshops and webinars.

Karen has published 12 writing and marketing eBooks, the most recent, Article Marketing: Increase Website Traffic with Properly Formatted and Search Engine Optimized Content.

In addition to this, Karen’s website, Karen Cioffi Writing and Marketing, was named Writer’s Digest Website of the Week, June 25, 2012.

>>>Want to get more traffic to you and your website? Check out Karen's online class, GIVE YOUR AUTHOR/WRITER BUSINESS A BOOST WITH INBOUND MARKETING. Visit our classroom page for details and enrollment.

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1 comment audience, Facebook, Google +, Karen Cioffi, link bait, marketing advice for writers, no-no's, online class, Pinterest for writers, social media, twitter, WOW class, WOW instructor

Bring Traffic (People) to Your Website through Power-Blogging - Build Authority and Make Sales

by Karen Cioffi

If you were to ask any marketer what the most important online marketing strategy is, each one is sure to say: Get traffic to your website.

Why is this such an important element of your online platform?

Well, without website traffic . . . no one will know what you’re about or what you’re offering.

So, how do you go about getting that traffic?

Below are 5 simple strategies to use.

1. You’ve got to blog. There’s no way around this one. You need to generate ‘valuable’ content on a regular basis.

2. Make your blog posts search engine and reader optimized.

If you’re wondering what this means, it simply means to use relevant keywords and format the post for easy reading.

An example of using relevant keywords: suppose your article is about cooking French food. You will want to include “French food” or “French cooking” in the title, the first paragraph, and near the end of the post.

3. The next essential element is to share those great articles you write to all your social networks. You should have accounts with Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and GooglePlus. While there are many others, these are a few of the biggies.

Sharing on social media will help broaden your marketing reach in leaps and bounds.

4. Visit other bloggers’ sites and leave comments. Be sure to actually read the article you’re commenting on. If your comment is interesting or informative, the author and/or other commenters may click on your link – bringing traffic back to your site.

5. It’s still a good idea to use article directories to generate more traffic. It gives you another pond to fish at - each of these directories has its own set of readers. And, many of the directories allow reprints, so simply use your blog post.

A few of the top directories to use are: eHow; Hubpages; Ezinearticles; Examiner; Articlebase; and Technorati.

When using article directories, be sure to include a brief, but effective bio in the provided resource box. And, include a link back to your landing page or sales page.

There are lots and lots of other article directories you can use, just do a Google search.

These are some simple ways to bring traffic to your website to gain visibility and authority. Keep in mind that marketing is an on-going journey. Just keep producing that content. And, be sure it’s valuable enough so others will want to share it.

***

Karen Cioffi is a former accountant who is now a multi-award-winning author, ghostwriter, freelance writer, editor, and author-writer online platform marketing instructor. She founded and manages Writers on the Move (a marketing group), and presents online writing and marketing workshops and webinars.

Karen has published 12 writing and marketing eBooks, the most recent, Article Marketing: Increase Website Traffic with Properly Formatted and Search Engine Optimized Content.

In addition to this, Karen’s website, Karen Cioffi Writing and Marketing, was named Writer’s Digest Website of the Week, June 25, 2012.

>>>>Join Karen Cioffi's upcoming online class, BECOME A POWER-BLOGGER AND CONTENT WRITER IN JUST 4 WEEKS. Visit our classroom page for details and enrollment.

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1 comment author marketing, blog, blogging benefits, Karen Cioffi, optimizing your writing website or blog, search engines, writer tips

Boost Your Online Platform by Taking Tiny Action Steps

by Karen Cioffi

"Someone is sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago."

This Warren Buffet quote inspires me. It's simple, yet so amazingly powerful.

1. A tiny seed can create something as massive as a tree, even a sequoia tree.

Think of the giant sequoia tree in California, USA. It averages around 26 feet in diameter, weighs around 4,189,000 pounds and reaches heights of 275 feet.

According to Wikepedia, "Record trees have been measured to be 311 feet in height and over 56 feet in diameter. The oldest known giant sequoia, based on ring count, is 3,500 years old."

The seed of the sequoia tree is 0.16–0.20 inches long, 0.039 inches broad, and 0.039 inches wide.

Hard to imagine, isn't it.

Well, this can easily relate to writing, to content marketing, to business . . . to just about everything in your work and life.

Small positive actionable steps, no matter how tiny, can create massive results. You may think your writing and marketing efforts aren't moving you forward, but think of how long it takes that tiny seed to grow into a tree that gives shade.

2. Basic action steps to move your platform forward.

A. Everyone selling something online needs a website. So, the very first step is to create one or have one created.

B. Make your website work for you by publishing blog posts to it regularly. This strategy will create visibility, bring people to your site, build authority in your niche, and boost sales.

C. Share your blog posts on social media networks, such as GooglePlus, Twitter, and Facebook.

3. What you sow today can have benefits for many tomorrows.

Time will pass whether you take action or not. If you have an idea, take action now. Don't wait for tomorrow or until you have more time or until you have more money. Take action now. The benefits may turn out to be bigger than you could possibly imagine.

You may reap the benefits of your writing or content marketing or business efforts far into your future, so take that initial step. Or, maybe it's expansion that you're thinking about, or a new strategy.

Keep in mind though that every living thing needs sun, water, and food to grow. Well, to build a business is the same thing. So, when you take that step (plant that seed), be sure to give it the nurturing it needs to become what you believe it can be.

Plant that seed today!

***

Karen Cioffi is a former accountant who is now a multi-award-winning author, ghostwriter, freelance writer, editor, and author-writer online platform marketing instructor. She founded and manages Writers on the Move (a marketing group), and presents online writing and marketing workshops and webinars.


Karen has published 12 writing and marketing eBooks, the most recent, Article Marketing: Increase Website Traffic with Properly Formatted and Search Engine Optimized Content.

In addition to this, Karen’s website, Karen Cioffi Writing and Marketing, was named Writer’s Digest Website of the Week, June 25, 2012.

Join Karen Cioffi's upcoming online class with WOW! Women On Writing: Give Your Author/Writer Business a Boost with Inbound Marketing. You'll learn about basic website optimization, blogging smart, email marketing, and social media marketing. 

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1 comment author platform, growing your platform, Karen Cioffi, taking action, tiny steps, WOW class, WOW instructor

Creating Content - 10 Online Repurposing Formats

Creating Content - 10 Online Repurposing Formats

by Karen Cioffi

While your blog post should be valuable, it also needs to ‘pack a wallop.’ It needs the ability to be repurposed.

Repurposing content has been around a while, but isn’t always used to its fullest potential. According to Jeff Herring, the highest paid direct response internet marketer, there is a psychology to repurposing, it’s “the ability to look at one thing and see many things.”

It may be turning a blog post into a video, a product, a script for TV. The ideas can keep going.

To make the most use out of your marketing time, this is the strategy you should invest in. Don’t let an article simply be an article – repurpose that article.

Creating Content: 10 Online Repurposing Formats:

1. Expand on your article and turn it into a report that you can offer for freebie for your subscriber list opt-in.

2. Take bits of your content and tweet them throughout the month.

3. Create a podcast.

4. Combine a bunch of articles on a particular topic and turn it into an ebook.

5. Turn your ebook into a live chat workshop. After the live event, you can copy and transcribe the chat – then combine the transcript with the ebook for a combination product.

6. Turn your ebook into a live teleclass. Record the teleclass for more repurposing.

7. Turn your ebook into a live webinar. Do the same as with the teleclass, record it.

8. Turn your ebook into an ecourse. This content format is a good way to get subscribers – those interested will need to sign-up to your mailing list to get the course. Or, you can sell it.

9. Query radio hosts. Most radio hosts are always looking for guests with information to offer their listeners. Offer to be a guest and present your content.

10. Create a video and upload it onto YouTube.

TIP: Be sure to upload any Youtube video you have onto your own site also.

Creating content and having it in so many formats widens your potential customer base. Think about it, some people like to read, others love watching videos, some like the instructional format of teleseminars or webinars, and those pressed for time would rather listen to content while driving or exercising.

Remember that any information you’re sharing should have a clear call-to-action in it. Let the reader know what you’d like her to do: subscribe to your mailing list, buy what you’re offering, or other desired action.

Karen Cioffi is a former accountant who is now a multi-award-winning author, ghostwriter, freelance writer, editor, and author-writer online platform marketing instructor. She founded and manages Writers on the Move (a marketing group), and presents online writing and marketing workshops and webinars.

Karen has published 12 writing and marketing eBooks, the most recent, Article Marketing: Increase Website Traffic with Properly Formatted and Search Engine Optimized Content.

In addition to this, Karen’s website, Karen Cioffi Writing and Marketing, was named Writer’s Digest Website of the Week, June 25, 2012.

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Join Karen's online class, BECOME A POWER-BLOGGER AND CONTENT WRITER IN JUST 4 WEEKS! Visit our classroom page for details and enrollment.

******************************************************************************

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3 comments article content, author marketing, Karen Cioffi, online class, repurposing ideas, WOW instructor

The Shotgun Social Media Strategy

by Karen Cioffi

Most marketers know that the majority of social media channels don’t share your posts to all your connections. So, if you post something to Facebook, the majority of those connections won’t see your post. We’re talking about at least 98% of your connections will never see that post. Pretty dismal, right?

And, the same holds true for most of the other channels, including Twitter.

This obviously affects your marketing reach.

According to marketing pro Jay Baer, there’s something called “reliable reach” and social media doesn’t make the cut.

So, what is reliable reach?

It’s the ability to have a message you send to a particular person actually reach that person.

Emails have reliable reach, so do telephone calls, a fax, and direct mail. Social media does not.

If you’re like me, you spend time and effort on working the social media channels. BUT, the majority of your connections aren’t getting the opportunity to receive what you’re posting.

So, say you have 5,000 Twitter followers. Your reliable reach is only 2% or less of that number which is about 100 followers.

The reason given for this lack of ‘real’ marketing reach on social media channels is because there’s just too much information being posted and processed.

Sounds convincing, doesn’t it?

Well, if you want to cut through that noise, all you have to do is pay. If you pay Facebook or Twitter, your posts will reach a lot more of your connections.

But, what if you don’t want to pay or don’t have it in your marketing budget?

slide: @JayBaer

How do you compensate for this highly unreliable reach?

Baer recommends putting down your marketing ‘rifle’ (targeted approach) for a marketing ‘shotgun’ (board range approach).

Let’s break it down:

With the targeted approach, you produce great content, focus on one to three social channels, and strive for a large following on the channels you’re working.

But, for this approach to work, you need reliable reach and that’s just not happening.

The broad target approach is based on using a lot of social channels and posting lots of content.

The theory is if you send more posts in more places, you’ll reach more connections.

The shotgun approach makes sense to me, as long as it’s not used abusively. People don’t want to be bombarded with your content or sales pitch for that matter. You’ll need to fine ‘the magic number’ of postings that enables you to reach more of your followers, but not so much that you put anyone off.

As with everything in life, moderation is best.

***

Karen Cioffi is a former accountant who is now a multi-award-winning author, ghostwriter, freelance writer, editor, and author-writer online platform marketing instructor. She founded and manages Writers on the Move (a marketing group), and presents online writing and marketing workshops and webinars.

Karen has published 12 writing and marketing eBooks, the most recent, Article Marketing: Increase Website Traffic with Properly Formatted and Search Engine Optimized Content.

In addition to this, Karen’s website, Karen Cioffi Writing and Marketing, was named Writer’s Digest Website of the Week, June 25, 2012.

***

Join Karen Cioffi's upcoming online class, GIVE YOUR AUTHOR/WRITER BUSINESS A BOOST WITH INBOUND MARKETING. You'll learn about basic website optimization, blogging smart, email marketing, and social media marketing. Visit our classroom page for details and enrollment!

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1 comment Karen Cioffi, reliable reach, social media, social media marketing, targeted marketing, WOW class, WOW instructor

Blogging Frequency and Potential Customers – There is a Correlation

by Karen Cioffi

A new study shows evidence that there is a correlation between blogging frequency and lead generation. Leads are people or businesses who show interest in what you’re offering. They’re potential customers / prospects.

Along with generating more leads, blogging on a regular basis and as often as you can matters for at least three reasons:

1. Search engines love fresh content.

2. It will increase your credibility and influence.

3. It will increase your website traffic.

Blogging frequency matters. It equates to more leads, which means more potential sales and more connections making their way to your website.

So, just how often do you have to blog?

The obvious answer is as much as you can. If you can blog daily, great. But, how many people or home/small businesses can realistically do this? Not many.

Luckily, you don’t have to blog every day to make a difference. It doesn’t take as much as you might think.

Home and small business were shown to have a significant increase in leads by publishing around 12 posts per month.

What if writing and publishing 12 posts per month is too much?

Twelve new posts a month is a lot for most writers. I used to do this, but once I started a second business it became too time consuming. So, I now post once a week to each business.

While three times a week is optimal for visibility, traffic, and opportunities, it’s a commitment.

Blogging requires creating a writing schedule, possibly working with blogging templates, and keeping up with what’s going on in your industry. All while doing your actual work, say writing your book or writing for your clients.

You need to find the right amount for you.

Strategies to help out:

If you want to post more frequently to your site, but don’t have the time to write new posts as often as you’d like, there are alternatives.

1. Look into guest posts. Post a message on your social networks that you’re looking for guest bloggers. You can also spread the word in your groups.

2. Try content curation. With this blogging strategy, you find a blog post on a ‘quality’ site. Write a short lead-in with your viewpoint on the content, then link to the original article. You’ll have a quality post in a fraction of the time.

Blogs are influential. They’re persuasive. Posting original and quality content regularly is a must if you want to bring prospects to your website and boost your sales.

Karen Cioffi is a former accountant who is now a multi-award-winning author, ghostwriter, freelance writer, editor, and author-writer online platform marketing instructor. She founded and manages Writers on the Move (a marketing group), and presents online writing and marketing workshops and webinars.

Karen has published 12 writing and marketing eBooks, the most recent, Article Marketing: Increase Website Traffic with Properly Formatted and Search Engine Optimized Content.

In addition to this, Karen’s website, Karen Cioffi Writing and Marketing, was named Writer’s Digest Website of the Week, June 25, 2012.

***********

Join Karen Cioffi's upcoming online class, 

BECOME A POWER-BLOGGER AND CONTENT WRITER IN JUST 4 WEEKS: 

Learn to Write Professional, Properly Formatted, and Optimized Content 

as the Basis of a New Freelance Writing Business 

or to Add to Your Existing Services.

Visit our classroom page for details and enrollment.

**********

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3 comments blogging, blogging frequency, how to get website traffic, Karen Cioffi, marketing tips for authors, WOW online classes

4 Major Mistakes to Avoid When Writing Blog Posts

by Karen Cioffi

Writing is a craft, a craft that needs to be learned. With that being said, there are many successful bloggers who had no writing training.

You might consider writing as being doubled sided. There are research papers, resumes, business and health content, and even short stories, children’s books, and novels, among many other genres.

To write for these genres, you need to learn the craft of writing. Depending on the genre you write, you need to know how to write dialogue and POV (point of view); how to reference quotes; know the difference between a comma and a semi-colon, and how to use each. You get the idea.

On the flip side, there is web writing: blog posts and writing copy. In these niches there aren’t many rules, aside from grabbing the reader and making your content engaging and shareable.

While there aren’t many rules for blogging, there are four mistakes you should avoid:

1. Avoid aiming for perfection.

If you wait for the perfect time, the perfect circumstance, the perfect topic, the perfect anything, you’ll be forever waiting.

While you do need to be a responsible writer and respect your reader by providing quality content and doing the best you can, you shouldn’t wait for everything to be perfect. There’s nothing wrong with learning as you go along.

I love what George Fisher said about perfection: “When you aim for perfection, you discover it's a moving target.”

2. Avoid confusing and unfocused content.

The quickest way to lose a reader is to make your content confusing. If you’re topic is ‘allergies,’ don’t go on a rant about the latest clothing styles.

Blogs posts should be in easily digestible pieces of information that are focused. From the title to the concluding paragraph, keep it on topic.

3. Don’t write long paragraphs.

We all lead hectic lives. We want to get targeted information as quickly as possible. For this reason, your content needs to be easy to read and written in short paragraphs. This is especially important for skim readers.

4. Don’t use grandiloquent language.

Here we go back to the premise that people are in a rush and along with this, most people don’t want to have to look up words to get the gist of the article. This is another quick way to lose a reader.

Keep your writing simple. Write how you would normally speak.

Following these ‘four mistakes to avoid’ will help you write blog posts that readers will appreciate and will want to share.

Karen Cioffi is a former accountant who is now a multi-award-winning author, ghostwriter, freelance writer, editor, and author-writer online platform marketing instructor. She founded and manages Writers on the Move (a marketing group), and presents online writing and marketing workshops and webinars.

Karen has published 12 writing and marketing eBooks, the most recent, Article Marketing: Increase Website Traffic with Properly Formatted and Search Engine Optimized Content.

In addition to this, Karen’s website, Karen Cioffi Writing and Marketing, was named Writer’s Digest Website of the Week, June 25, 2012.

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Join Karen Cioffi's upcoming online class, 

BECOME A POWER-BLOGGER AND CONTENT WRITER IN JUST 4 WEEKS: 

Learn to Write Professional, Properly Formatted, and Optimized Content 

as the Basis of a New Freelance Writing Business 

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Visit our classroom page for details and enrollment.

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