Writing on the Web from Patsi Krakoff, The Blog Squad

Men with Pens Squeaks Out 1 Point Victory in Blog Match Up

In a hard and close battle, this blog lost by a measly 1 point to those big bad Men with Pens, Harry McLeod and James Chartrand. (Just because they are prolific bloggers with a huge archive of valuable posts and a community of raving fans who adore them...really!)

John Hewitt of Writers Resource Center is doing the equivalent of March Madness of writing blogs, pitting two blogs against each other, and generating valuable feedback on how to make blogs better.

I can't disagree with anything he said about this blog, and will take his suggestions for improvement to heart. You can read his critique of Writing on the Web here.

John has been so generous in sharing his wisdom and perspective. On top of which we all had a great time leaving trash talk comments about the contest on each others' blogs.

Here's James' and Harry's report out of the contest from the victory box. Good luck to Men with Pens in the next round where their blog is matched-up against Brian Clark of Copyblogger.

Here's what else I learned from John Hewitt of Writers Resource Center:

Wishy-Washy Writing: Just delete these 5 words

This is worth reading and not just because it echoes my thoughts every time I read someone's blog writing that's too wishy-washy: 5 Words You Can Cut Out, from the Daily Writing Tip:

1. just
2. really
3. quite
4. perhaps
5. that

I have to add two:

1. maybe
2. very

Every time you re-read your writing, be on the look-out for these wishy-washy offenders and make your writing stronger, better.

Content Marketing: An easier, softer way to snag clients

Six months ago I hadn't heard the term 'content marketing,' but I liked it immediately. So much so, I put it in the tag line of this blog when I redesigned it: How to Use Content Marketing to Attract, Sell and Profit Online.

Most people I talk to guess that content marketing means writing, publishing, and distributing content that ultimately sells your services or products.

Joe Pulizzi, of Junta42 blog, defines it like this:

Content marketing is a marketing technique of creating and distributing relevant and valuable content to attract, acquire, and engage a clearly defined and understood target audience - with the objective of driving profitable customer action.

Understandably, you may not be clear what that really means or how important it is for your business yet. Quite frankly, I'm not sure anybody can really tell you what that specifically means for you. You might have to do some serious thinking...like, for example:

Be a Journalist: Great Marketing Advice for 2008

"Become a journalist," advises John Jantsch, of Duct Tape Marketing. That's his best marketing secret shared on Anita Campbell's blog Small Business Trends.

“... no, I’m not really suggesting that you join the staff of some publication, but the acceptance of new media tools like blogs and podcasts has turned the marketing tables - so take advantage of the allure of a reporter and start a blog and podcast and request interviews with industry leaders, community leaders, authors and maybe even your biggest prospects.

Instead of asking for a meeting to demonstrate your product, ask to feature your prospect in your next blog or podcast episode. You will automatically change your status in their eyes, increase your role as an expert and create great content for your marketing materials.”

This is something Denise and I have done over the last six years. We interview experts on both free and for-fee teleseminars.

Next week, for example, we're interviewing Steven van Yoder, about how to Get Slightly Famous, his trademarked message and book, for our Blogging and

42 Top Content Marketing Blogs: We made the list at #25!

This blog has been included in a list of 42 Top Content Marketing Blogs, that Joe Pulizzi has compiled. I tell you this because I'm glad and proud, of course. But there's another reason: there are some very good blogs on this list that you should familiarize yourself with.

If you're writing for your business, you should visit some of these blogs to learn how to do content marketing better.

I struggled for a while to define the purpose of this blog because it started out as a platform for me to compose content for an ebook on writing ezines and newsletters. But in the last 3 years, I'm writing about other forms of communication for business: press releases, articles, white papers, even sales copy. It's all about Content Marketing.

It's all about learning to write for your business on the web in a way that builds relationships with prospects and clients: Content marketing. Joe Pulizzi runs an expert blog on the subject, Junta42Blog, well worth the visit.

Want to know about this subject? Get Content, Get Customers is an excellent free ebook written by Joe and Newt Barrett.

Who and Why? 2 Questions Your Site Should Answer

A client asked for feedback on their blog the other day. I visited and was amazed. While the content was definitely oriented to reader benefits (earn more money, have more time off, create a dream life) --always a good first step --the content was simply signed, "The Team."

There was no 'about' page or anywhere on the site to say who was authoring the content. There was a company but no company bio or any personal names at all. No way to know who was "speaking" to the reader.

When I suggested that they identify themselves, the client explained it wasn't necessary since people come to the site through a link from someone and they would know who sent them there.

The two biggest questions people ask when they read a page is

1. Who is speaking to me? (and, Why should I believe anything they say to me?)
2. Why should I stay and read this?

You can't hide behind a company name, or be vague if you want to create credibility and trust.

New Poll: What Do You Need to Master for 2008?

I'd like you to vote on which writing tasks you feel you need to learn to master the most, if you want to explode your Internet marketing results in 2008.

As you may have noticed, I've changed the name of this blog so that I can cover all the different ways writing is used to grow and market your business online. I need to know what topics interest you, the readers, the most so I can make this blog as useful and relevant to you as possible.

The poll is on the right side bar. You can pick two out of this list. If you don't find what you want on this poll, hit the comment link and tell me what you need to learn the most. Thanks, and all the best for 2008!

Writing on the Web: New Blog Name

Here's why I've changed this blog's name from CoachEzines, to Writing on the Web: I started in 2004 primarily focusing on writing great ezines and blogs, but today's Internet marketing includes many more ways to communicate. If you want to leverage the Internet to Attract, Sell, and Profit, you must learn new ways of Writing on the Web.

Read this page if you want to know more: Why Writing on the Web is Key to Internet Marketing

Pathway to Profits: The Content Journey Begins with a Map

In our Blogging and Beyond Mentor Group, on the private membership site, we expose our students to many different tools that can accelerate online marketing success.

Writing content that attracts readers to your business is essential. It can seem overwhelming at first when a professional is told that to market successfully online, he or she must produce quality content and publish in 3-4 sites using multiple tools and media distribution.

You need a Content Plan, a map of what you will write about, and where you will publish each type of content. You also need to cover several content categories. No matter what your business or niche, you will have several topics you need to cover.

This is the first of several suggested pathways to start your journey for successful online marketing.

We suggest sitting down to make a plan. Write it down. Map out where you want to go, and then make a list of how you're going to get there. You will need to set up a blog, a shopping cart and database management system, maybe a website (or use your blog as a website), a newsletter, and other information products (teleseminars, podcasts, ecourses and ebooks).

Step One - Get clear on your business. Write out the answers to these questions:

1. What business am I in? (General category, industry, and service or product you provide)
2. Who is my ideal client/reader? (Describe in as many details as possible)
3. What am I passionate about? (What is my specific expertise?)
4. Why should readers believe what I say or write (what makes me an expert?)
5. What are the 3-5 biggest pain points/challenges my clients experience?
6. What 5 problems do I solve for my clients and customers?
7. What are 5-7 sub-topics that I need to write about to establish my expertise and credibility?

Once you are clear on your purpose, only then can you decide which tool to use to distribute your content: blog, ezine, email, teleseminar, ebook, etc.

Next: Step 2 - Blog First?

Writing for Your Business: Here's a Pathway to Profits

Writing for business: where to start? What's the best path to follow if you want your writing to work for you?

If you want to successfully market your business on the Web, you have to write quite a bit. And I don't only mean the copy on your Web pages, although that's a start. You must write on a blog, write articles for your own website and for article syndication sites, write a newsletter, write press releases, and write a white paper.

Of course, being successful means selling something, so you also have to learn to write persuasively for your email promotions, landing pages, and autoresponders. That means learning copywriting, unless you can afford the big bucks for a copywriter.

On this blog, I've been covering many of these writing tasks. I started out covering what you need to know about writing a successful newsletter, but boy, has that evolved. This list of writing projects for successfully marketing your business online is big.

To avoid overwhelm, let's break it down. I recently composed a special report for our Blogging and Beyond Mentor Program, describing a Pathway to Profits.

In the next few weeks, I'm going to break it down for you here: what is the sequence of writing tasks necessary when you take your business online and want to get found, get published, and get leads for your business?

There is “no one size fits all” solution for everyone who wants to do business on line. There is no one road to take to get to success. It's truly different for everyone.

The person who is selling a book will have different needs than a person selling coaching services. It's impossible to say "do it this way and you'll be successful".

But ask anyone who makes money from their online marketing efforts and they'll have followed some basic best practices. Stay tuned as I lead you down The Blog Squad's Pathway to Profits(tm)...