When you talk - do people listen?

Did you watch The Apprentice last night? Brent, member of the Synergy Corporation team struggled with having his ideas heard and accepted.

Was it his ideas?
Was it his delivery?
Was it his appearance?

Have you ever had that happen? You are sitting in a meeting, perhaps brainstorming ideas for your company and everytime you speak up it is as if you are the Invisible Person. The worst is when someone has the same exact idea that you've expressed, or in the case of Brent an idea that was spawn from your original idea, and the other person gets the credit.

Could the same be happening with your written communication? Does it go unread? Or perhaps the reader glances at your words but the ideas don't sink in.

At AllWrite Ink, we specialize in understanding the audience and helping you find the words to communicate a message that gets noticed.

Give us a call the next time you feel that no one is listening. We will.

DCB

It's all in your tone

This morning I was eating breakfast when my husband, David, came into the kitchen.
He looked around and spied a foiled wrapped package on the kitchen counter and said:

"What is THIS?" (with a sneer in his voice)

Hold that thought and rewind to last night at dinner when we were all eating and the smell of apples and cinnamon began to fill the air. "What smells so good?" my family asked. "I'm baking a coffee cake for tomorrow morning," I answered. They all agreed that they looked forward to the special treat.

So now less than 12 hours later, the self-same coffee cake is being sneered at.

When I questioned his attitude, he replied that he had heard himself say, "What is THIS?" (with hopeful anticipation.)

Notice how the same exact words can evoke such different feelings and responses. It is all in how the words are perceived.

So often it isn't the words we say, but how we say them. Today I will be especially aware of my tone of voice as I communicate with others.

DCB

So what do you write about?

I woke up this morning, thinking about words. Yes, yes, that clearly says something about my life, but I was thinking: so what do I write about today?

When I've looked at other's blogs the topics are all over the place: gossip, spousal complaints, teen angst, sexual preferences, recipes, camping tips, obscure observations, etc.

So how do you decide what to write?

It is the same in business when you think about it. (how was that for a transition?)

There are many things you can offer to your customers, but a successful marketing campaign will recommend that you focus on just one point. Is it service, availability, convenience, price, product lines?

The answer is: whatever is most important to your audience. I'm a firm believer that you need to keep your reader, customer, audience in mind when communicating. Walk in their shoes. Learn what it important to them - what motivates them - what problem do they have that you can solve?

So what should I write about today?

I'm not sure. I need to learn what you want to read about. So tell me.

DCB

First full day as a blogger

If you have the chance to take a class on blogging, RSS or internet marketing - I highly recommend it.

Yesterday, not only did I learn the ins and outs of setting up a blog, I also learned the blog benefits for a small business owner:

1. Blogs enable you to be connected to the global community - far more than a website.
2. They are great for search engine optimization (SEO) because of all the content.
3. Spiders visit regularly (reminds me of a particularly scary Twilight Zone episode) because the content is updated so frequently.
4. The ability to use key words - both in your blog description but also in your blogs.
5. For those with a small working group or community group - blogs can be set up to be used by a group
6. set up is simple
7. IT'S FREE!

I produce a monthly newsletter for my company, AllWrite Ink, that I've been emailing out to customers, colleagues and prospects. In the March edition - there will be additional information, tips and etiquette on blogs - let me know if you are interested in receiving a copy.
DCB

Learning to Blog

Who would have thought that I'd be back in college at the ripe old age of 48, learning something new. Anita Campbell, owner of Small Biz Trends, is teaching a wonderfully informative class at the University of Akron, on creating a blog.

So here is my first attempt!

At first, I thought blogs were the ramblings of opinionated people who didn't have anyone to listen as they went on and on and on. However, I am quickly learning that blogs are the newest, fastest growing trend useful for business and personal use.

Go to Google and type in "business blogs". Amazingly, you'll find 402,000,000 references! Do you have a blog? It is the way of the future - a wonderful way to share information out to the greater global community!

More later.

DCB

Photo courtesy of Hile