Business Writing

How to Get Readers to Read It

If you've been wondering how to get readers to open your ezine or email and read it, read this brief article (less than 200 words) from marketing expert Marcia Yudkin's "Marketing Minute."

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"Catchy Lines" from "The Marketing Minute" by Marcia Yudkin:

A subject line of a news service to which I subscribe read:

Pedicures, pit bulls or polo: Which can you deduct?

On a scale of hooks from 1 to 10 (highest), I'd rate this line a 10. I dropped everything else to read the article summary, then the corresponding article, which had a headline I'd rate only a 6:

Weird tax deductions taken by small businesses 

The line I originally read used the following all-star techniques to rachet the reader's interest up several notches:

• Involvement: The word "you" plops you squarely into the topic - it's not something others are doing.
• Outlandishness: Each possible deduction is pretty extreme and very specific - "pit bull" sparks attention more than "guard dog."
• Suspense: With the question format, you're not sure of the answer and want to find out.
• Alliteration: You couldn't help but notice the repeated p's in "Pedicures, pit bulls or polo," right? Repeated letters and sounds always increase impact, unless the topic is too serious for such extra pleasure.

Use these methods in newsletters, blogs, articles, web pages, tweets and ads for a boost in readership.

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Marcia Yudkin, my marketing mentor, practices what she preaches. "The Marketing Minute" is the only weekly ezine I read--because it's engaging, practical, and brief. It takes just a minute to read.

Subscribe for free to "The Marketing Minute." If you use this link to subscribe, I'll receive a commission if you purchase a product from Marcia. But remember--her terrific ezine is free.

Which ezines do you recommend for business writers?

Lynn
Syntax Training

The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th Edition

When I sent out my monthly e-newsletter, Better Writing at Work, recommending books for business writers, two subscribers let me know that The Chicago Manual of Style is now available in a 16th edition. Thank you, Fran and Linda!

I ran out and purchased the new edition of Chicago. If you are an editor or a proofreader, I recommend that you get it too. The retail price is US$65. The online subscription is US$35 per year or US$60 for two years.

You can learn about the major rule changes in Chicago on the The Chicago Manual of Style website. One change I appreciate is that Chicago now closes up website and renders it with a lower case w. The word web page is also lower case now.

To me, the most surprising change is the addition of a comma after a title that ends with a question mark or an exclamation point, if the sentence requires a comma. Here is an example from my bookshelf:

Take Back Your Life!, a book by Sally McGhee and John Wittry, focuses on getting organized using Outlook 2007.

Previously the comma after the exclamation point would have been wrong despite the need for it in the sentence. The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th Edition, recommends that comma. I like the change, although it will require me to update materials in our Keys to Error-Free Writing class.

Chicago still recommends e-mail, which disappoints me. I suppose I will have to wait for the 17th edition to see my preferred form, email, accepted.

In many posts on this blog, I have cited Chicago. Over the next month I will go through those posts to be sure my citations are still accurate.

Have you spent time with Chicago 16? If so, how do you like working with it?

Lynn
Syntax Training

Books for the Business Writer's Bookshelf

The other day my friend Joanne wrote to ask me how to render the word "by laws." She said Google had suggested "by laws," and a legal website had offered "by-laws."

"Which is correct?" she asked.

Neither. That is why it is important to check respected expert sources. I let Joanne know that four of my highly reputable, up-to-date guides to usage recommend "bylaws."

Do current reference books fill your bookshelves or exist on your desktop? They should. Google is not an expert on correct grammar, punctuation, and spelling. Neither are websites whose authors don't consult the experts.

In the current issue of Better Writing at Work, I offer my list of recommended books for the business writer's bookshelf. For details about the books, subscribe to my free monthly e-newsletter here.

These are my recommendations:

• Garner's Modern American Usage, Third Edition
• The Gregg Reference Manual, Tribute 11th Edition
• The Chicago Manual of Style, 16th Edition
• The Associated Press 2010 Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law
• The American Heritage College Dictionary, Fourth Edition, Copyright 2010
• Canadian Oxford Dictionary, Second Edition
• Merriam Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 11th Edition, Copyright 2009
• Real Leaders Don't Do PowerPoint: How to Sell Yourself and Your Ideas, by Christopher Witt
• Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die, by Dan and Chip Heath
• Why Business People Speak Like Idiots, by Brian Fugere, Chelsea Hardaway, and Jon Warshawsky
• Clarity, Conciseness, Zing, and More: 262 Ways to Take Business Writing Beyond the Basics, written by me

As a writer, do you consult other treasured resources? If so, please share them.

Lynn
Syntax Training

New Resource Just for Admins

I have been invited to participate in a website that gathers resources for administrative assistants. It's called Assistant Edge. You can see the logo I have added to the right column on this page. If you click on the logo, you will find an assortment of my blog posts that are being featured on the Assistant Edge site.

Assistant Edge offers practical resources from other business writers and sites. It features tips on networking, using social media, sending effective email, and working as a virtual assistant. It includes posts from Patricia Robb's excellent Laughing All the Way to Work, a light-hearted and helpful blog for administrative assistants in Canada and the United States.

At the beginning of my career, I worked as an office assistant. I was so green that I didn't know how to use a staple remover. Once when the labor relations negotiator had an important phone call, I slipped a note under the men's room door to let him know about it. When he returned to our office area, he said to me, "Don't you ever do that again." I learned many lessons.

Assistant Edge can help you learn important lessons faster. Check it out.

Note: I have no financial relationship with Assistant Edge. I just wanted to participate in what seems to be an excellent resource for administrative assistants. 

Lynn
Syntax Training

Free Spanish-English Online Dictionary

Ricardo wrote to me today to tell me about a free English-Spanish online dictionary. It's at the Word Magic website. As someone who is interested in learning Spanish, I was pleased to find out about this resource.

I tested the dictionary with the Costa Rican expression pura vida, which people use to respond to "how are you" type questions. I was happy to see that the online dictionary defined pura vida as "just fine" and "super" rather than the literal translation "pure life." It provided good synonyms too: estupendo, excelente, and others.

If you want to use proper holiday greetings in Spanish, the Word Magic dictionary does a good job with "Happy holidays" and "Happy New Year":  Felices Pascuas, Felix Navidad, and Feliz Año Nuevo.

Muchas gracias, Carlos! I appreciate knowing about the Word Magic dictionary.

Lynn
Syntax Training

Open Source Resources for Writers

If you are open to open source software, check out "50 Awesome Open Source Resources for Online Writers," a new list created by Christina Laun available on Job Profiles.

The list features open source software for blogging, editing online, mind mapping, backing up your files, turning on your creativity, getting organized, checking your grammar and spelling, and many other writing tasks.

Have fun!

Lynn
Syntax Training

Typefaces and Other Topics

I was just introduced to a blog by Ken Adams, whose expertise is in drafting contracts. His recent posts cover some of the latest options and thinking on typography. If you are interested in contracts, typefaces, and gems of language, visit Ken's site.

Lynn

Great Resources on FAQs

If you write frequently asked questions (FAQs), check out these excellent resources from E-WRITE:

Frequently Asked Questions Style Guide
E-WRITE wrote this style guide for the Energy Information Administration of the U.S. Government. Even if you don't write FAQs, it is a good example of a style guide. Here are three suggestions on using links to provide additional information in FAQs, adapted from E-WRITE'S style guide:

1. Use link text that enables readers to know exactly what they will get if they click the link.
2. In your link, use the title of the page or document you are linking to if it accurately describes the content.
3. Indicate the file format when you link to a file other than a web page, for example, a PDF or Word document.

"How to Work Your FAQs Harder, Not Your Agents"
In this article written for Contact Professional, E-WRITE experts Leslie O'Flahavan and Marilynne Rudick offer practical tips and a convincing argument for writing FAQs that reduce the work of customer service agents.

"Putting the A in the FAQS: How to Write Excellent FAQs that Answer User Questions"
In this article, O'Flahavan and Rudick offer six quick fixes for FAQ problems. The problems are:

1. Too many Qs
2. Chaotic FAQs
3. Unanswered questions
4. Dead-end answers
5. Vague questions
6. Marketing hype disguised as FAQ

For the solutions, read the article. 

I receive E-WRITE'S free ezine, filled with useful information for people who write online (all of us?). You can subscribe here.

Thanks to Margaret at Snohomish County Public Utility District, who flagged this E-WRITE topic for me.

Lynn

Thanks to Photographers

I remember a time when viritually all published photographs had a photo credit. The credit clearly stated the photographer's name. On the Web and in print that is not the norm anymore, but I would like to give credit and thanks to Larry Gill, who took my new photo (at upper left) and the one on my website.

In fact, I thank Larry for taking my old photo, which you would have seen if you visited this site before August 10, 2007.

And always I give thanks for the beautiful nature photos of our web designer, Diane Varner. For a new way of looking at the world, visit her blog.

Where would we be if we had only words, no images? Let's thank a photographer or another visual artist today.

Lynn

Writing Case Studies

Yesterday Matthew Stibbe at Bad Language wrote brilliantly about what is wrong in corporate case studies. If you are in corporate communications, read his ideas here.

Stibbe covers the symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment of case studies, also known as "white papers" where I live.

Among the symptoms: case studies are lifeless and have no story.

Among Stibbe's thoughts on a diagnosis:

• One size fits all--no thought of different audiences and media
• Over-loaded content--too much stuff packed in
• Overzealous brand policing--things like "You can't say that" and "You must do this."

Among his treatment steps:

• Remember the audience
• Use one case study in multiple presentations: newsletter, booklet, etc.
• Tell more story

Because he says it so well, you must read his piece. (I have added to his lean prose above.) And while you are visiting Bad Language, take time to browse. You will learn something about business writing--not only in what he says but in how stylishly he says it.

Lynn