Now ask yourself this question.

Is my website actually doing what it’s supposed to do?

Do you even know what your website is [...]]]> So you have a website. You paid good money for it. It has nice colors and pretty pictures. It has some words, maybe a video or something. It even has links and keywords. Mmmmmmm.

Now ask yourself this question.

Is my website actually doing what it’s supposed to do?

Do you even know what your website is “supposed to do?”  Be honest.

To paraphrase Zig Ziglar, you may need to move your website from being a wandering generality and change it into a meaningful specific. How can you find out on what side of the fence your website stands?

Dan Heath over at Fast Company has a good idea.

Notice that it’s all about the message, and mostly about the writing. You can make an enormous change for the better just be using clear direct copy that communicates a clear direct message. You may not need to redesign your entire website (then again…). Nevertheless, if your little informal market survey focus group video project thingy tells you that your website visitors leave your website fuzzy about your company, it may be that you need to upgrade your copy.

In the long run the cost of better writing is much less than a website that stinks.

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David is a freelance writer for hire offering web copy, marketing material, article writing, sales letters, training manuals, speech writing, seo content, sales writing, blog articles, copywriting service, sales scripts and business name ideas.
To learn more, or request a quote visit http://www.rocksolidwriting.com/freelance-writer-quote/

Larry Konopka spent about 45 minutes on the phone with me, discussing what makes his business special. Out of this interview I mined enough good information and ideas to create about 500 words of really nice web [...]]]> I recently completed some copy for the website of Konopka Floor Sanding, a small business located in Pittsfield, NH.

Larry Konopka spent about 45 minutes on the phone with me, discussing what makes his business special. Out of this interview I mined enough good information and ideas to create about 500 words of really nice web copy to sell his business.

I wanted to communicate three things to any site visitors:

• Get the visitor to look at their dingy old worn out floor and feel the pain of how awful it looks.
• Imagine how wonderful it would be to have a gorgeous new refinished floor.
• Sell them on why Konopka Floor Sanding is the absolute best choice to do the work.

Basically, it’s a sales presentation, but with the web copy doing the work instead of a live salesperson. The website won’t close the sale in this kind of situation, but it will plow the ground and plant the seed so that when Larry talks to his prospects, they are already prepared to buy.

This is a classic example of how high quality web copy can help a small local business gain more sales.

Of course, a nice looking website and strong search engine optimization is critical also. Neil Burtt over at You Promote is great at providing a nice internet marketing package for small businesses. He gets the job done without breaking the bank.

The urge to [...]]]> It’s called a POINT for a reason — it’s not dull.

Most people, probably you in fact, are scared by hard concrete words. We think that we must use safe language. Language with the teeth and claws pulled out. Language that is soft, squishy and fuzzy. We think sounding obtuse makes us sound smarter.

The urge to de-fang strong direct sentences is a powerful one. The fear of offending someone, or excluding something makes us queasy.  We are afraid to write with words that poke at, or strike, or (God Forbid) even explode upon the reader’s consciousness.

Listen to what Dan Heath from Fast Company says about this, as applied to the writing of Mission Statements.

This is not just about your mission statement. It’s about your website. It’s about your brochures, tear sheets, email campaigns and print ads. It’s about any message you put out there to promote your business that sucks because you were too scared to say it outright and let it go at that.

Stop trying to sound like a PhD in Blabology (unless of course you actually are a PhD in Blabology). Start writing and talking like a real flesh and blood human being with a beating heart and a brilliantly electric brain. Your readers will respond with cheers and hoots and hollers and probably more than one standing O. Why? Because they like reading things that don’t sound like they were penned by a moron.

Got it? Good. Now go do it. I dare you.

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David is a freelance writer for hire offering article writing, sales letters, training manuals, speech writing, seo content, sales writing, blog articles, copy writing service, sales scripts and business name ideas.

To learn more, or request a quote visit http://www.rocksolidwriting.com/freelance-writer-quote/

IMS is itself going [...]]]> Interim Management Solutions provides consulting for businesses in transition. As a business grows, it passes through stages where their old ways of doing things no longer serve them well. IMS can step in with solid advice that comes from years of experience to help guide businesses through the choppy waters of change.

IMS is itself going through some change. They want to upgrade and improve their website so that it does more than passively profile their business. It should give a visitor valuable information, promote IMS as the best solution, and sell their business.

IMS is working with Neil Burtt over at You Promote LLC on their website upgrade. Neil specializes in creating promotional websites for small and medium sized businesses – websites that get results without breaking the bank.

The first step in the transformation of the IMS site is rebuilding the home page, starting with the copy. Neil called me to see if I would work on it.

The original copy was descriptive, but unfocused and a little bogged down with management book jargon. After a half hour interview with Ed Jaferian, one of the owners, I crafted some strong copy that is much more accessible so that the reader will quickly grasp what IMS does. These descriptions will ultimately be linked to other pages where the visitor can get more detail and see and offer for consultation.

As I told Ed, when I write copy for business sites like his, I target three major areas:

• Eliminating jargon and using plain English
  
• Using direct, strong, simple language in the active voice.
• Writing with short well-structured paragraphs that can be easily scanned and understood.
  
• Promoting and selling your business with benefits and regular calls to action.

Ed was so happy with the result that he wrote me an email, saying, “You have done a great job in capturing the essence of what I have been struggling to say.”

We are exploring improvements to the rest of the website as well, including fresher graphic design, stronger copy for the other pages, and search engine optimization. In particular, we are suggesting an email capture feature, where IMS will offer a useful report or “white paper” in exchange for the email of the visitor. This is the beginning of Relationship Marketing, a model that I think has huge potential for IMS down the road.

Be sure to click on the Link to view the current home page of IMS.

Taylor Tech services machines that process semiconductor chips after they have been imprinted with circuitry. He first attempted to create a website on the cheap using a popular hosting service. After [...]]]> As a freelance copy writer I write compelling copy for business websites. Recently I wrote some powerful content for a promotional website for Taylor Tech.

Taylor Tech services machines that process semiconductor chips after they have been imprinted with circuitry. He first attempted to create a website on the cheap using a popular hosting service. After realizing that his website wasn’t doing anything for his business, he decided to get professional help, so he asked Neil Burtt at You Promote to help him create a website that will both improve his brand image and generate warm leads by creating organic search traffic. You Promote specializes in creating low cost websites for small and medium sized businesses; sites that are engineered to effectively and actively promote your business online.

As part of the You Promote freelance contract team, I was privileged to write the copy for the new website. My focus was threefold:

• Clearly explain to visitors what Taylor Tech does – make it easy for visitors to grab the main ideas.
• Optimize the content for search engines – contribute to high search ranking results.
• Sell Taylor Tech — encourage the visitor to contact Taylor Tech to engage their services.

Go to www.semiconductorsupport.com to see how professionally written copy can make your website light up.

If you want powerful professional copy for your website, blog or newsletter, go to the Request a Quote page on this website to request a consultation on your copywriting needs for your web content.

Back in 2008 Sarah Parker quoted [...]]]> Ask Kalena – A Search Advice Column is a pretty darn good blog about Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Search Engine Marketing (SEM).  Kalena offers a course in SEO/SEM that attempts to provide something close to certification in the field — a comprehensive course in best practices and how to.

Back in 2008 Sarah Parker quoted from a presentation conducted by Ciarran Norris about Copy Writing for Search.  It outlines the importance of clear and concise headlines, first lines, keyword analysis, link placement, and track backs. It’s all about simple mechanics. Make sure your website uses all the arrows your SEO quiver.

BUT…this works best when the copywriter weaves it into the warp and weft of the text so that it isn’t even noticed. The only people who will really see it are the search engine spiders and the experience SEO engineer. The spiders will respond by giving your site high rankings. The SEO folks will nod appreciatively at a job well and artfully done.

And most important of all, your site visitors will get the information they need, and keep coming back for more because the quality and content were simply that good.

Copywriting stitches it all together.

If you want to know more about how I can stitch together all the best aspects of your websites, go to my contact page and request a quote.

Neither. It’s a tool. Like a screwdriver. Try driving a nail with a screwdriver. Not much good is it? But it sure is good for putting in screws. Using technology in your business is about using the right tool for the right job.

Technology has only 2 [...]]]> Is technology a blessing or a curse for your business?

Neither. It’s a tool. Like a screwdriver. Try driving a nail with a screwdriver. Not much good is it? But it sure is good for putting in screws. Using technology in your business is about using the right tool for the right job.

Technology has only 2 functions in your business.

• Increased efficiency.
• Increased effectiveness.

Using technology properly increases your efficiency by making a wide range of repetitive and complicated tasks simpler and faster and cheaper. If you haven’t realized this yet, you will soon when your faster more profitable competitor eats your lunch. But efficiency is NOT where the real value of technology lies. Increased efficiency only SAVES you money, which is good, but it can only get you just so far. It cannot MAKE money.

3 Ways Technology Makes you more Effective

Effectiveness in business means making a profit. Before profits come sales and sales come from customers. So using technology to make your business more effective means creating customers and making good decisions about your revenues and expenses.

Using Technology Find Customers

Use technology to find your customers. E-bay is such a powerful business model because it makes it super easy for buyer and sellers of just about anything to find one another just about anywhere. I know of a commercial lender who is using the internet to create a network of people who funnel him business. This is high touch because he is now able to reach out and touch a hundred, a thousand percent more prospects than without technology. What would a similar system do for your business?

Using Technology to Communicate with Customers

Second, use technology to communicate with your customers, more often, more quickly and with better information. Do you think voice mail stinks? I recently read about real estate agents out there who have set up systems to respond to a request for information within 15 minutes of receiving a message? That’s high touch because studies show that the first agent to respond is usually the one who gets the listing.

Using Technology to Manage Information

Third, use technology to manage information for better decision-making. Business isn’t only about numbers (see point number two), but if you aren’t paying the right kind of attention to the right numbers, the numbers will trip you up. So learn to use technology to gather information and look at it in ways that will help you decide how to invest your three most important assets as an entrepreneur: time, money and energy.

Stop thinking its high tech vs. high touch. It is true that it’s never been about gadgets. It has always been about people. But the smart businesspeople understand that using high-tech properly makes you MORE high touch. Be aggressive about figuring out how, and YOU will be the one eating lunch.

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This article is available for reprint only if the following bio is included intact.
This article is written by David Denis owner of http://www.rocksolidwriting.com
David is a freelance writer for hire offering article writing, sales letters, training manuals, speech writing, seo content, sales writing, blog articles, copywriting service, sales scripts and business name ideas.
To learn more, or request a quote visit http://www.rocksolidwriting.com/freelance-writer-quote/

It’s the business disaster.

A business [...]]]> It’s only a matter of time. Eventually it happens to every businessperson, striking catastrophically like lightning, or creeping up imperceptibly until it swamps you. There may be warning signs, but you may not see them. You may even take precautions, but then you are disarmed by the ferocity of its arrival.

It’s the business disaster.

A business disaster is not fire, flood, or vandalism. It is the economic disaster that burns your bank account, submerges your spreadsheets, or pillages your paycheck. Your job is cut, or your sales evaporate. Your key employees leave — or maybe even worse…they stay and REALLY screw things ups. No matter what the cause is, survival is YOUR problem. FEMA ain’t coming to rescue you — ever. The only ones calling are creditors, and they aren’t bringing your bottled water.

If you, your business and your family are to survive, you need to hitch up your shorts. If you are to overcome adversity, you need to roll up your sleeves and get to work on your own disaster relief efforts.

Your personal disaster survival kit could contain all manner of tools and resources. To overcome these kinds of problems, there are a few basics tools that you cannot do without.

Business Disaster Survival Tool 1 – Your Reality Checklist

To overcome a business disaster, begin with a complete assessment of all your assets and liabilities. Include not just money, but skills, resources and personality traits. Make sure you know both the brutal facts and the signs of hope in your situation. The key is to see the whole truth about your life as it is now so that you are moving forward on solid factual ground. You will almost always find that your situation is not completely hopeless, and that you have more assets than you realized. Your reality checklist helps you find options that you didn’t see before.

Business Survival Tool 2 — Your Anti-Panic Pill

When balanced on the brink of financial disaster, it is natural, normal and understandable to feel panic. It’s just not helpful. The only way to prevent panic from taking over is to take action.

Several years ago, I lost my job. I had a family, a mortgage and no contingency plans. The panic quickly set in, bolting me awake in the middle of the night, taking my appetite and filling my gut with feelings of fear, dread and anger that I could not control. I found, however, that that I could take action. I threw myself into the work of finding work. This allowed me a sense of real progress, and my positive focus helped prevent me from being paralyzed by the panic I felt.

Business Survival Tool 3 – Your Emergency Beacon

Call for help. Besides the support of my friends and my family, the most valuable help I received was from a local outplacement counselor named Stacy. She helped me channel my fear and anger into a powerful, practical plan of action.

I might have figured it out eventually on my own, but it would have taken me much longer — probably too long. The plan she helped me develop involved literally calling everyone I could think of for ideas, advice and assistance. By not going it alone, I leveraged my own skills and maintained external accountability to make sure I was making progress with my plan.

Business Survival Tool 4 – Your Mental Meal Bars

It’s easy in the middle of failure to let your personal discipline fall apart. Again, it is natural and understandable. It’s just not helpful. In the midst of the mess, take time to practice the small disciplines that will feed your heart, your mind and your body.

• Get up at the same time each morning.
• Go to bed in time every night to get a good night’s sleep.
• Set aside at least some time each day to read and/or listen to positive useful ideas.
• Set aside time each day to exercise.
• Make sure at least 2 meals each day are low fat, high fiber, and heavy on veggies.
• Set aside 1-2 hours each week to plan out for the next 2 weeks.
• Schedule other things that are important to you and keep your appointments.

These healthy positive rituals have a direct and profound effect on your ability to recover from disaster. Your mindset can make or break you. Your health affects your energy and your emotional state.

In addition, these simple disciplines are almost always things that you have control over. In a disaster situation, you have lost control of many things, but you can control what you eat, what you hear and see, and how much you move your body. If you can’t do anything else, start there.

Business Survival Tool 5 – Your Road Map

Know where you are, and know where you are going. Spell out your goals with brilliant clarity. Break down your journey into small sections. Keep your focus on the destination, even if it seems really far away. Keep checking your progress and make regular corrections to stay on course. If you are not clear on what it means to be recovered from your disaster, you will delay your recovery and increase your frustration with your progress.

You may have noticed that these principles are principles that we should all be engaged in every day, even when we are not in disaster recovery mode. In fact, if you find yourself dealing with a disaster, the cause may well be related to the fact that you failed to practice one or more of these principles in ordinary times.

Don’t let the smoothness of your current path lull you into carelessness. Start now to incrementally build these tools into your everyday life. You will reduce the likelihood of disaster overtaking you, and you will be better prepared when it does.

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This article is available for reprint only if the following bio is included intact.

This article is written by David Denis owner of http://www.rocksolidwriting.com
David is a freelance writer for hire offering article writing, sales letters, training manuals, speech writing, seo content, sales writing, blog articles, copywriting service, sales scripts and business name ideas.
To learn more, or request a quote visit http://www.rocksolidwriting.com/freelance-writer-quote/

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There are lots of reasons why [...]]]> This is a sample article for a blog on CRM (Customer Relations Managment), Sales Force Automation or Knowledge Management. This particular article is not technical, but deals with some of the human aspects of introducing a new CRM system to your sales team.

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Create Buy In for your CRM System

There are lots of reasons why your sales team will resist sales force automation. Mostly, they all boil down to one thing:

Change is hard.

The good people on your sales team have been working hard using their current tool for years. They may kvetch, they may moan, they may carry on about the shortcomings of the system, but in the years that they have been using it, they have figured out how to make it work. They have worn grooves in all the right places, and created calluses where they need them. They may not like the old system, but they have grown comfortable with it.

Now you are asking them to change. Now they need to enter information differently, enter different information and enter it more often.  This change messes with the mojo and gums up the gears of their finely tuned psychological machinery.  They fear productivity dipping and they don’t like it. Frankly, neither do you, but you know that this new system is way better than the old system if they would just give it a chance.

To reduce their resistance you must get out in front of it. At the earliest stages of talking about converting to an enterprise management system, you need to start earning your team’s buy in. Here are a few things to keep in mind.

1. Your salespeople are your clients.
2. Your CRM system is your product
3. You are the salesperson.

The only reason people ever buy anything – ever – is that they see the benefit in it for themselves. To insure that your team buys your new CRM system, you need to build the sale from the ground up, just like you expect them to do with their prospects. Here are a few suggestions that might help you.

• Communicate Aggressively
• Involve Widely
• Train Deeply

Communicate Aggressively

At the very earliest stages of considering changing systems, start communicating what is going on.

• Ask for feedback.
• Hold discussions.
• Explain the reasons.
• Disclose the data driving the decisions.

Communication is a two way street. Tell your team what is going on, but listen to their concerns and their ideas. Don’t fear their reactions. By starting early, you give them time to adjust to the coming new realities. If you give them the data, they will come to the right conclusions (or maybe even better ones).

Use all the available technology to communicate in ways that are subject appropriate, time-efficient, and budget conserving. You don’t need to fly everyone from all over the country when an hour-long conference call can get the job done. Use survey monkey to conduct surveys on key questions. Use email. Even Twitter and Facebook can contribute to the discussion.

Involve Widely

You will reduce resistance to your sales force automation project if you get your people involved in the process across the board and at every level.

Advocate for your team and get them a place at the table for the software selection process. Have other members take part in the process of designing the conversion. Have these team members communicate what they are learning to the rest of the team. Aggressive communication has to keep on through the entire process. Early information reduces the surprise factor, and therefore reduces resistance.

Part of involvement means beta testing. You would not roll out a new product without market testing. Don’t roll out a new CRM without letting real salespeople (the customers of your new system) test it first. The feedback they provide will be invaluable. Take that feedback and use it to tune up your customization and training processes.

Train exhaustively

Reading a manual is not training. Attending a class or webinar is not training. Your people have been trained only when they can actually perform the desired behavior consistently. Training is not about knowing. It is about doing.

Therefore, make sure that you invest in real, sophisticated, hard-edged training design. Create a clear and specific set of learning objectives, and a series of exercises and feedback points that will insure that your people can actually execute the objectives.

All of this is expensive in terms of time and money, but it is an investment in your investment. If you fail to set things up properly on the front end, you will experience all kinds of delays and obstacles on the back end. It’s a “you can pay me now, or you can pay me later” kind of proposition.

Funny how “pay me now” almost always works out cheaper in the long run.

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This article is available for reprint only if the following bio is included intact.

This article is written by David Denis owner of http://www.rocksolidwriting.com
David is a freelance writer for hire offering article writing, sales letters, training manuals, speech writing, seo content, sales writing, blog articles, copywriting service, sales scripts and business name ideas.
To learn more, or request a quote visit http://www.rocksolidwriting.com/freelance-writer-quote/