Kreative Ramblings
Archive for June, 2009
Letting your article go
Author: Karen McGreeveyOkay, we’re coming in to the home stretch so to speak. Just one more “tip” and-a-half and-then you “hit submit”!
Top and tail it
Write a short, introductory paragraph as a “teaser” for the main article.
Many article directories now put the first paragraph of each piece into RSS feeds that are picked up by other Web sites, so you’ll want to make sure your two or three major keywords appear at least once in that first paragraph.
Write another short paragraph to summarize the major points of the article, and offer some ideas so the reader can explore the subject further. And, of course, don’t forget your own resource box. Use the html format.
Then when your article is converted to html your link will automatically be live.
And then…
You’re done!
Submit it, and get that “baby” on the road!
Jewels of Life: Believe, Tips and Tricks, Tutorials, Working with a VA
read comments (0)More tips for sprucing up articles
Author: Karen McGreeveyFor the last several days, beginning with June 24, we’ve been “running a series” of tips showing you how to create unique articles
Here are a couple more tips to help you round out your articles:
Edit lightly
Trust your first instincts. Proof-read and correct any obvious errors, but don’t do any major editing until your piece has had time to “sit” for a while.
Again, by leaving it overnight you will get a fresh perspective the next time you look at it. However, even if your deadline doesn’t allow enough time for you to do that, it really is important to find a way to take a break from it.
You might also want to try this–when you’re pushed for time–write several articles at one sitting! This can create enough change of focus to make you “forget” the one you’ve just written.
Short articles are unlikely to need major editing if you’ve written them using the suggestions we’ve posted over these last few days.
The articles will flow easily and naturally already and having each Q & A on a separate sheet makes it easier to select only the ones you want.
Your job now is to put them in a reasonably logical sequence and make sure they’re easy to understand and that you lead the reader smoothly from one question and answer to the next.
By now, you’re just about ready to submit your article. But…not quite yet!
Tomorrow, we’ll have two final thoughts about creating unique articles.
So, see you tomorrow!
Jewels of Life: Believe, Tips and Tricks, Tutorials, Working with a VA
Tips for Writing Unique Articles
Author: Karen McGreeveyIf you’ve been following along with us the last few days, you know we’ve posted a series of suggestions to help you write new articles. Today, we’re adding two more for you to practice. For starters:
Take a step back
Put your pile of questions aside for a few hours, overnight if possible. Don’t consciously think about them; just go about your day as usual. Give your subconscious time to process the questions without any further prompting from you. If new questions come to mind jot them down somewhere safe, and then forget about them.
Get out your pen and write
When you’re ready, just sit down with your pages of questions and simply start to answer them. Writing your answers by hand can give you access to ideas that you might miss if you type them.
And DON’T edit yourself at this stage. Even using Speech to Text software or a digital recorder can be helpful in bypassing your internal editor.
Or, try imagining someone sitting in front of you, asking for advice; just talk to them. Keep your tone natural and conversational and stay with the question-and-answer format.
That’s it for now!
Come back Monday; we’ll have two more thoughts in this series on how to create unique articles.
Jewels of Life: Believe, Tips and Tricks, Working with a VA
More About Creating Unique Articles
Author: Karen McGreeveyIf you had the good fortune to come along here yesterday, you were able to “get in on the ground floor”, so to speak, to picking up some tips on how to come up with unique articles. If you missed it, though, you’re in luck! You can catch up by reading our post for June 24.
Take back your focus
Once you begin to understand the general feelings of your readers, you’ll be able to allow your mind to go back to your original topic of “Study Skills”. So, from your new perspective, what questions would you ask? What would you want to know?
Entertain yourself
Now, write each question on a separate sheet of paper; don’t stop until you have at least ten, and preferably more.
Stay in the mindset of your readers until you feel you’ve asked every major question that concerns them.
Then put your paper aside.
Take a break tomorrow, but stop back Saturday to see what happens next with the next tip; it will be on “taking a step back”.
Jewels of Life: Believe, Tips and Tricks, Working with a VA
A Step or Two to Creating Unique Articles
Author: Karen McGreeveyIf you’re like many of us, “present company” included, you sometimes find it difficult to come up with ideas for articles for blog posts or to submit to article directories.
You know it’s crucial to your business to keep your name in front of your customers and prospects.
So what do you?
Over the next week or so, I’m going to share some of the tips I found while researching this very issue. So you’ll want to make it a point to stop back often.
Remove your roadblocks!
This means, take whatever you’re writing about and break it down to a single, specific word. Then think about everything you can about that word.
For example, if you’re trying to write about “Study Skills”, expand your thinking to “School”. Now jot down everything that comes to mind when you think about School.
And when you run out of ideas, start asking yourself open questions around your subject and noting your answers.
For example:
What did I enjoy about school?
What scared me?
What did I wish I’d known from Day 1?
This “exercise” will help you get into the groove of someone struggling with school issues of all kinds, and you’ll start to get a feel for their concerns and worries.
Okay. That’s it for now.
Stop back tomorrow to get the next tip; it will be on “keeping your focus”.
Jewels of Life: Believe, Tips and Tricks, Working with a VA
Online Sales Go Up with Content Marketing
Author: Karen McGreeveyThere’s a trick to adding quality content to a Web site.
Though considered quite simple, the task of adding quality content to a site can mean the difference between generating MORE SALES or DRIVING AWAY PROSPECTIVE CUSTOMERS.
For instance, coming up with something unique and creative enough to grab the attention of your reader is the key to a successful business.
There are a few simple ways you can increase your sales with content.
The following are a few examples to try that bring in the customers, and keep them and their wallets coming back .
The easiest way to build a list of potential customers is to offer something for FREE on your Web site. It could be as simple as a free report that goes into more detail about your product, or it might be a free copy of an eBook you have written.
Enticing the customer to want to sign up for something will allow you to gather and to retain a list of customers that you can use in future marketing efforts.
Promotion
Promoting your product throughout the content of your Web site is the best way to get a customer interested.
Place a graphic of your product on your site and make it clickable so when a customer clicks on the image they will be taken to a sales page about the product.
Once the customer is there, give them the option to either buy the product or receive more information about the product. This again, allows you the opportunity to develop a list of potential customers to whom you can then market.
Keywords
Perhaps the best way to drive traffic to your site and to gain customers, as a result, is to write content-rich copy with specific keywords for greater search engine optimization (SEO).
When you provide these keywords, you will help your Web site reach the top of the search engines and bring more customers to your site.
Knowing which keywords to use requires some research on your part.
There are many sites on the web that will allow you to plug in a word and display how many searches there are.
Use these tools to plug in some of the keywords from your content and then properly place them throughout your content. But do place them “organically” so the content remains in a natural, flowing manner and not forced.
Once you’re implementing one or all of these strategies, you’ll start seeing the sales.
And they’ll just keep coming!
Jewels of Life:
Getting Back the Fire – Tips 5 & 6
Author: Karen McGreeveyBoost your energy
Perhaps you’ve noticed how the desire to lose weight sometimes leads some of us to drink coffee, use diet pills or to drink diet pop. This is because the energy-inducing ingredients in these products boost our systems and act as an impetus to motivate us. Actually, exercising and getting a good night’s sleep will as well.
Since the “moody blues” can sometimes be brought on by too many sugary foods and the “sugar blues”, in turn, can kill motivation, it’s wise to limit the use of sugar products.
Take any small step
Neil Armstrong said, “That’s one small step for man; one giant leap for mankind”. While he probably didn’t mean it quite like this.
But if you commit to doing just one task for one day toward your goal, perhaps like writing a paragraph in a sales letter, it won’t be long before you get motivated enough to finish the sales letter because you know when it’s finished you’ll be able to finish uploading your ebook to your Web site, and you can then start selling it and earning money.
Money speaks pretty loud
Motivation techniques really do work.
Some of the foregoing examples attest to the fact that motivation techniques really do work. However, the “how” is up to you since what stirs your colleagues may not stir your soul.
In any case, a good laugh can overcome a lot of things so whatever path you choose to rev up your motivator, let humor be your guide.
Jewels of Life Believe, Hope, Tips and Tricks
Getting Back the Fire – Tips 3 & 4
Author: Karen McGreeveyStimulate your pain
In this instance, the pain does not refer to the pain you experience with a broken leg or with having eaten something that upset your stomach or that which gave you that famous Excedrin headache number 59.
But rather, it’s the emotional distress to which you might be subjected if you didn’t go to work. Or to avoid a math test you took a snow day from school without the benefit of snow. The consequence maybe resulted in a loss of pay or a lower grade on the test.
Find a true interest
If everyone around you is thrilled to stand in line at midnight for the latest Harry Potter book or to line up for tickets to the opera and you would rather skip three meals than do either, then figure out something that motivates you to action. Like maybe you don’t like to clean house but if you somehow got word Jon Bon Jovi is stopping by soon, how fast do you suppose your motivation would motivate?
Jewels of LifeTips and Tricks, Working with a VA, Believe
Getting Back the Fire – Tip 2
Author: Karen McGreeveyStimulate your desire
I am a “knock on your door” salesperson’s dream, and a full shopping cart’s my nightmare!
Over the years, I have managed to amass a cupboard-full of dishes and pots and pans and drawers and closets of jewelry and snazzy make-up, and whatever, from a multitude of sales people hocking their wares on the neighborhood streets or, in latter years, the airwaves. You name it I think I have to have it.
That’s motivation; someone’s message was a significant call to action to motivate me to sign up for or to buy whatever they were selling. Oy!
If we watch them we can learn how to be our own sales people. Minus the “you can’t live without this’ push that is.
Jewels of Life: Hope, Tips and Tricks
Getting Back the Fire – Tip 1
Author: Karen McGreeveyActually, there are probably dozens of solutions to help you get motivated. We’ll just focus on six of some of the best techniques we’ve found. Of course, “best” is really subjective but these will be a springboard to get you thinking along these or similar lines.
Try them all or do a mix-and-match. With six, there ought to be at least one or two that will motivate you to get your motivation jumping.
1. Talk to get motivated.
We’re well into the New Year, like it’s half over, so it’s past the time to tell everyone you know you’re going on a diet. Really! Or you’re going to work out at the gym three times a week. Sound familiar? Many years ago, one or two of the young women I worked with would begin each year with resolutions like these. And they would talk about it and talk about it and talk about it.
But all the talk worked (mostly) because once you “make it public” by telling someone it not only boosts your motivation it does hold you accountable to yourself. Well, it’s supposed to be a means to hold you accountable!
What you do is create energy and motivation as well as a desire to lose weight or to stick to an exercise regimen.
Come by for a visit tomorrow, and get another tip to help you get motivated.
Jewels of Life:Believe, Tips and Tricks