... And Nothing But the Truth ...

For too many years truth in advertising was an oxymoron. Not so today. Hyperbole, rhetoric, and unsubstantiated claims don't fly when the truth - or a platform to expose a lie - is just a keystroke away. Having been involved in technology marketing for years I know all about the temptation to promote vaporware just to make a buck ... Me: "So what are the features of TechnoWizzo 1.0?" DevSpeak: "Features? Uh, well let's see ... it pretty much does everything the customers want ..." DevSpeak 2: "Yeah, everything ... what he said." Being that fiction was never my strong suit I it was at that point that I'd gently suggest to ZYX company that they might want another writer as I was busy promoting tangi-ware. Even if a few people buy, the market can spot fluffy prose from a mile away. As a writer it does nothing for your career to be linked to a company that's going backwards as soon as their paying customers realize that the smoke and mirrors aren't part of the package. And for all you marketers out there, heed well the old adage: UNDERpromise and OVERdeliver. Until next time ...

Leveling the Playing Field

Before you publish or post check your document's readability. The more mainstream your message, the more important this step. Readability is what separates effective marketing from a self-serving soapbox. The first makes us buy, the second sends us running in the other direction. It's the core of Righting.

Not sure how to do this? Here are seven simple rules to keep in mind:
1. Keep words to three syllables or less.
2. Keep sentences to 20 words or less.
3. Keep paragraphs to 5 sentences or less.
4. Define all acronyms before you use them.
5. A picture is worth a thousand words.
6. Do NOT use NOT in a sentence; it confuses everything.
7. Break complex sentences into two, three or more sentences.

Simple speech sells. Keep it clear. You show your expertise more by making yourself understood by the masses. And remember, writers pontificate ... righters sell.

What's Bugging You?

I get a lot of questions from clients about the value of "Buzz Marketing". For those of you wearing DEET, Buzz Marketing is a type of viral marketing that involves dropping hints about an upcoming event to key people so as to orchestrate a buzz in the market independent of your traditional outreach strategy. While some criticize these efforts as deceitful or subversive in nature, the truth is they are guerilla tactics at their finest. After all, we all want to create a buzz around our products. So how do you do it legitimately? There are really two ways (anything else is a variation on the theme) ... The first is through traditional PR. The upside is the potential to reach millions in one fell swoop. The downside - and reality for most small companies - is that unless you are a major player you're on the short end of bad odds. The second is using new media. Chat rooms, personal blogs, IM, and other message boards even the playing field. Used properly these can yield big results regardless of the depth of your pocketbook. The key to success is to develop a long term plan, build a following and only deliver high-value content. This will drive your users back time and again and will get you recommended faster than you can say MySpace.

The Buzz on WIIFM

No, it's not a new radio station. Nor is it a new variation on wiffle ball. It is the answer to your positioning problems. Let me explain ... Marketers are famous for creating buzz words to explain buzz words. Sit in on virtually any marketing meeting these days and you'll hear WIIFM bantied about. What's it mean? What's In It For Me? Not my question. Theirs. What's In It For Me is marketing speak for getting into the mind of your target audience and understanding benefits from their point of view. Trust me when I tell you that they don't care about the bits, bytes or bots in your software application. They want to know how it makes their life easier. Can they do more in less time? Can they buy a sports car with the money it saves them? Will they land their dream job? To drill down to this level you'll need a white board, your most creative associates and enough beverages and snacks to sustain the team for a few hours. Remember, happy minds are creative minds. First list all of the features you can think of. Don't limit yourself. Don't filter. Just list. Next make a list of the advantages these features offer. Finally, consider both lists and drill down to the real benefits. Don't be filter anything at this point, just list everything that comes to mind. Once you've done that, divide the benefits into categories and prioritize them from most compelling to least. I there's disagreement, set it aside and revisit the statement after you've reviewed a few others. Now you're thinking like a marketer.

On Righting

Being called writer is misleading. After all, most of learned to write in grade school. First letters and numbers, then our names, then our addresses, then reams and reams of words until one day we learned to put all of this together to form sentences, paragraphs, and essays. These days it seems that anyone with a computer fancies themself a writer. What's different about Righting (no, that's not a typo) is that it combines all the elements of writing with an understanding of the reader. Yes folks, someone's supposed to read what you write and they're going to act or not based on your words.

Writers string words together with the hope that you'll read and understand their message. Righters remove their own ego, put themselves into the mind of the target audience, then assemble the ideas that will make the reader act.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that there aren't many good writers out there. But in the end, it is a select few who make the leap from Writer to Righter.

Disagree? Don't take my words (again, not a typo) for it, just look at the big guys and see for yourself what they're doing to get you to buy their brand.