Writing on the Web from Patsi Krakoff, The Blog Squad

3 Contest Winners Announced for 'Make Me Think' Ideas

Cheryl, Kevin and Lisa@Serahs are winners in our contest to contribute ideas to the post 10 Ways to Write to Make Readers Think. And I'm throwing in a bonus question winner: Monica.

Please email me to tell me which book you want from the list of marketing books and where to send it.

Thanks to everyone who stopped by to give ideas, they are all valuable. I'll still send you a free book from the list if you agree to pay for the shipping. (Subject to what's left on the list, of course.)

Email Newsletters: Best Ways to Deliver & Format?

Ah, the eternal question of emailed newsletters: What's the best format to send it so it gets delivered, opened, and read? Here's what one of my Customized Newsletter Services clients asked in a recent email:

Dear Patsi,

There is a definite divergence of opinions among my colleagues about the best way to distribute a newsletter.

• Some feel that the entire text should be in the email in html, eliminating the need for click-thru's.

• Some simply send a one or two sentence summary, with an attached pdf.

• Some send what amounts to headlines, with a click-thru to the website where the newsletter is resident.   

• Some send a one or two sentence plain text summary with link to the newsletter.   

Everybody seems to do something different. They all have a rationale for their decision. And all seem to have their limitations, as well.   

Win a Free Book by These Marketing Geniuses

Want to win a free book? I'm running a contest... The entries are fantastic already! Please join the fun...

If you're new to marketing your business online, you've got a lot of learning to do. Fortunately there are a lot of books published now so you don't have to spend a fortune buying expensive ebooks and home study courses. Here's my list of free books you can win:

• What No One Ever Tells You About Blogging and Podcasting by Ted Demopoulos
• Meatball Sundae by Seth Godin
• Email Marketing by the Num8ers by Chris Baggott
• The Ultimate Guide to Electronic Marketing for Small Business by Tom Antion
• Naked Conversations by Robert Scobel & Shel Israel
• Publish & Prosper: Blogging for Business by DL Byron & Steve Brobeck
• Advertising Headlines that Make You Rich by David Garfinkel
• Writing White Papers by Michael Stelzner

I've got duplicate copies of these books and I'm cleaning out my book shelves. I've read everyone of these and they're excellent. You should read them too.

How to win a book: Contribute to my  blog post below, my list of 10 Ways to Write to Makes Readers Think. I'll pick three people from those who leave comments and send them the book of their choice from this list.

Or, take a stab at writing an answer to the bonus question in that post. Oh, and if you don't want to contribute to the list, I'll still send you a book if you want to pay the shipping. Just let me know which book and where to send it.

10 Ways to Write to Make Readers Think

When it comes to content marketing, there are ways to write content so it actively markets you and your business without being “in-your-face” sales copy or boring product reviews or press releases.

I’m reminded of an excellent book on creating effective website design called Don’t Make Me Think. The premise is that a customer searching for products and services online shouldn’t have to figure out how to find what they’re looking for on your website.

When it comes to reading your blog, however, please, please DO make me think! Your blog posts should have meaty content that stimulates readers to ask questions, to comment, to agree wholeheartedly, or disagree vociferously.

How can you do that? Ahhh, let me think about that a minute here... Wait! I've got an idea. I'll build a list of ideas to make readers think. And, YOU can contribute to the list!