Unravel the Babble

I have Seth Godin to thank for the wonderful snippet of insight below. Not that he’s aware of my gratitude. But, as one of his millions of blog followers, I appreciate his crisp, revelatory emails that land every morning in my inbox. This one is after my own heart.

Instead of paraphrasing, here it is, word for word.

“Sentences, Paragraphs and Chapters

It’s laughably easy to find someone to critique a sentence, to find a missing apostrophe or worry about your noun-verb agreement.

Sometimes, you’re lucky enough to find someone who can tell you that a paragraph is dull, or out of place.

But finding people to rearrange the chapters, to criticize the very arc of what you’re building, to give you substantive feedback on your strategy–that’s insanely valuable and rare.

Perhaps one criticism in a hundred is actually a useful and generous contribution in your quest to reorganize things for the better.

[And for those in need of subtitles, this isn't a post about your next novel. It's about your business, your career and your life.]

Four people tell you that there was a typo on the third slide in your presentation. A generous and useful editor (hard to call them a consultant), though, points out that you shouldn’t be doing presentations at all, and your time would be better spent meeting in small groups with your best clients.”

Here’s where to go for more Seth.

Take a look at what Amanda O’Donovan’s clients say about her useful and  generous contributions. For more of the same, you can contact her at 416.456.3859 or amanda@amandaodonovan.com. 

When was the last time you read to the end of an article? Let’s be honest, some of us can’t even spare the seconds to read a whole blog posting or watch an entire YouTube video. Seth Godin describes this attention deficit as driveby culture. We’re all so busy searching for an experience, that we forget to actually get out of the car and savour the moment.  These days, large swathes of uninterrupted print seem to be the domain of the intellectually replete. The rest of us must content ourselves with scraps of information known as Charticles and Listicles.

A Charticle is all about the graphics. It’s the appealing images, charts or illustrations that attract your attention in the first place. The accompanying text simply rounds out what you’ve already understood from the pictures. Unlike a classic article, which uses graphics for added visual appeal, or to communicate more information (usually through a graph), the ratio of text to images is inverted in a charticle. Like the graphic novel, the charticle presents a contemporary image and a fresh take on the information it contains.

In the context of B2B communication, a charticle can be a great way to introduce new subject matter. You might drop it into a Newsletter, for example, and it could be the start of a breadcrumb trail to more detailed information, such as Case Studies and Whitepapers, which you introduce once the reader becomes hungry for more knowledge.

A Listicle starts life as a series of bullet points. The author then fleshes it out with a few paragraphs of additional content, so that it qualifies as a mini-article. Listicles are quick to produce, and often contain recycled information presented with a fresh slant. It’s hard to put off writing them. Better a published Listicle than a heavyweight article that’s still just an idea at the back of your mind. These diminutive articles can be a great way to present the key messages that persuade your prospects why you are best equipped to solve their problems.

Listcles can be, 1. Ranked — Top Ten, Seven Most, Six Best — 2. Themed — A grouped listing determined by the author — 3. Random — An unstructured list that leaves the reader to draw conclusions:

1.       The Top Ten Most Annoying Things About Listicles

2.       Ten Shocking Truths About Listicles

3.       Ten Random Thoughts About Listicles

Just like Charticles, Listicles can be great attention-grabbers. Beware of dismissing either of these lightweight articles for their lack of depth. Used effectively,  they’re anything but shallow, because not only will they drive your potential customers to more substantial educational content, but they can also be a quick way of demonstrating how you can solve their problems — which, after all, is the very reason you’re in business.

Amanda O’Donovan writes light content for newsletter articles, charticles and listicles, as well as more meaty copy for case studies, whitepapers and entire websites. You can contact her at 416.456.3859 or amanda@amandaodonovan.com. 

I was reading the latest from Joe Pulizzi at blog.junta42.com when his posting about Content Strategy as the Future of Marketing caught my eye. He talks about a recent presentation by Kristina Halvorson from Brain Traffic, a Minneapolis-based web agency that thinks about content constantly. She advocates that concise, clear, compelling content should be part of a master plan. Structure it well and make it easy to find, as well as impossible to ignore, and you’ll drive sales at the same time as you deepen relationships.

Unfortunately some companies are still completely ignoring the importance of producing a constant stream of engaging content  to attract and nurture clients. And, while others are waking up to the power of establishing an informative dialogue with past, present and future advocates of their products and services, very few understand the strategic importance of content. It’s not just a handy little gadget in the communications tool belt…….it should be the hub of your entire marketing strategy. Ignore it at your peril.

Your audience will only read your content if it’s relevant and useful. Joe Pulizzi suggests thinking more like a publisher than a marketer, hiring a content strategist and viewing your content as a valuable asset that draws on multiple sources to educate and entertain.

For more, take a look at Kristina Halvorson’s presentation on SlideShare.

Content Strategy: The Future of Marketing

Amanda O’Donovan helps her clients plan, structure, present and refresh clear and compelling content. You can contact her at 416.456.3859 or amanda@amandaodonovan.com. 

Old world communication was about publication not participation. Small elitist groups delivered their messages to the masses, and remained firmly in command and control. In those days, we hoped people would stumble on our web content and we liked to think they’d find the information useful.

In a 2.0 world, it’s our job as communicators to orchestrate information, involving as many people and sources of knowledge as possible, and striking a meaningful, progressive dialogue with the people we want to buy our products and services. New world communication is about intimacy, interaction and innovation. And, while change is refreshing, our message must also be consistent, because many different groups will consume it.

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7 Ways to Communicate More Effectively

Teach Yourself to Lose Control

help your customers get what they want, instead of feeding them what you want

Talk About Their Problems not Your Products

feel the pain and present yourself as the healer

Be Responsive, Authentic and Dynamic

create a conversation, be honest and write energetically

Create a Content Democracy

expand your sources and understand that many people consume your message

Build an Architecture of Participation

maximize your message by encouraging contribution and harnessing collective intelligence

Show and Tell

describe and support your value by creating a connection to positive experiences

Balance and Juggle

make use of multiple channels of communication and don’t forget to refresh

For a closer look at how to communicate more effectively, download Communicating in a 2.0 World

Amanda O’Donovan is a Toronto-based professional writer who helps her clients communicate more effectively with their audiences.