Did you just write a great blog post? What about some powerful web site copy?

Well, then why isn’t anyone staying on your site long enough to read it?

Did you focus on writing for one person or for many people? Did you picture your “perfect” reader?

No? Well, maybe you should. When was the last time you read web site copy or a great fiction book that wrote to “everyone?”

The thing you should remember to start with is creating your “perfect” reader.

Who Are You Writing To?

Now that we understand how important it is to write to one person, let’s focus on whom we are writing to. After all, you can pick out any Joe Underpants off of the street to write to, but to truly get into their soul and make them feel what you are writing, you need to have that “perfect” reader.

So, who is it going to be? Are you writing a fictional story about another world of magic and mayhem? Perhaps you are writing sales copy for a web site or product you’re selling? What about a blog post of your rants for the day?

Whatever you write, see your perfect reader sitting across from you. Yes, they are sitting across from you! Don’t freak out, they aren’t a ghost or anything; you’re only imagining them there!

Now what do they look like? Are they male or female?

Do they have long or short hair?

What are they wearing? Now if I had a nickel for every time I heard that! Please try to keep them clothed…for now anyways.

What are their interests? What are they like?

Create Your Words Around the Reader

You see what I am getting at here? Create the person your writing to and sit them right in front of you. Have a conversation with them. Find out their needs and wants – then write for them.

Once you finish your first draft, ask your reader: “what do you think?”

If it doesn’t make your reader feel the way you want them to feel, you need to make some changes. If it doesn’t inspire your reader, make some changes.

You see what I am getting at? Your writing should touch your reader on a personal level. It should make them want to read more of what you write. It should make them go out and buy more of what you are “talking” to them about.

When you connect with your reader on this level, you now have a raving fan. They will buy what you want them to buy. They will tell everyone else they know how great you are and how they should read and buy your writing.

Who do you write for? No matter who it is, please, oh please, make sure they have some clothes on!

Need help with your business writing or just need some help finding that perfect reader? Check out my content creation and other services, and then contact me to start working on finding your perfect reader or customer.

Photo credit: sepblog

Related posts:

1. 15 Ways to Find Inspiration for Your Writing
2. 10 Key Points to Remember in an Effective Blog Writing Checklist
3. How Do You Focus On Writing?

Have you ever come across a blog post or some sort of web copy that seemed like it would be a good read, but ends up being more of a disappointment?

Unfortunately, we have all read things like that.

There are some basic things to look at when writing for the web and in even in general to make your piece appealing to your reader.

Check out these four basic things to keep in mind when you write that next blog post or craft some SEO web copy:

Please Break Up Your Paragraphs

You know one of the things I hate the most when I am reading someone’s work on a blog or web site? I hate jumbled together text with no separation – it drives me freaky batty!

You too? Yeah, I didn’t think I was the only person that felt that way.

When you write something that other people will read online, the golden rule is around 2-3 sentences per paragraph – at the VERY most 4 sentences. I hate it when I go to a site and see one GIGANTIC blog of text and no separation.

Not separating your writing not only makes things hard to read, but it also is confusing when you change your thoughts. Remember, when you have a change in thought, change your paragraph.

Add Subheadings

Have you ever read something and it’s just a bunch of paragraphs, but no direction about what each area is trying to describe? Yep. Same here.

Even if you separate your paragraphs out, you may need more to describe what each area is trying to say to your reader – this is when you use a subheading.

What’s a subheading you ask?

See these words above each area of this post? You know like “Please Break Up Your Paragraphs” or “Add Subheadings” – these are what I am talking about.

Hint: this is also great for SEO copywriting. I will go more into that on another post. If you want to know when it comes out, why not subscribe to my updates?

Get to the Point

Did you ever click to read something because it had a snappy headline, but they didn’t get to the point of the article until two paragraphs later? Yes, I know I have.  This point is simple:

Get to the freaking point already!

Especially online, you only have a few seconds to keep your reader on your page with what you wrote. If they don’t like it, they will bounce out of your site and no one wants a high bounce rate.

Keyword Spamming Doesn’t Equal SEO Copywriting

Now, I provide content creation along with SEO copywriting services and when I see other people’s blog posts and articles spammed with keywords, it really tweaks my flux capacitor!

The rule of writing for the web is: write for your reader first and search engines second.

Seeing keyword stuffed copy not only looks bad, it reads bad too. How would you like to read something that had the key phrase “adult undergarments” staring you in the face every few words.

I don’t know about you, but I am not one that wants to see “adult undergarments” on a constant basis. (No pun intended!)

What’s the Point?

Here’s the point of this blog post in a nutshell:

When you write something like blog post or articles online, do you actually read it to yourself from your reader’s point of view?

Do you think it is interesting and easy to read?

If you answered no, go back and do some more editing – your readers will thank you for it.

Photo credit: lowjumpingfrog

Related posts:

1. Why Keeping Things Simple Will Lead to Business Success
2. Is Your Content Relevant to Your Readers?
3. How Do You Focus On Writing?

Getting into “the zone” of writing is not always an easy thing.

There are distractions all around us. From the phone ringing to socializing on Twitter, there are distractions that will get in the way of your writing.

When it’s time for me to focus on writing, I do as much as I can to focus on that and nothing else (it doesn’t always work out that way, but sometimes children are very persistent!).

Here are a few things I try to do when it’s time for me to start writing that new blog post, assignment for a client, or whatever else I need to put together.

• Time – Finding the time to write is one thing, managing that time is another. To maximize the amount of time you have when writing, use methods that double the amount of work you get done in the same amount of time. Some methods include: mind mapping, writing blog posts in batches and setting up editorial calendars (I will go more into these in future posts).
• Phones – During your writing time, focus on writing by not taking phone calls. If possible, turn off or mute the ringer on your phones.
• Email – I know, you can’t go without checking your email every couple of minutes, but imagine what you could do while you were worrying about email. During this writing time, shutdown that email client, webmail or mobile email session. It is time to focus on writing, not on your email.
• Social Networking – You are on Twitter, Facebook or other social networking sites to keep in contact with others and do some networking. They are great, but for now, shut them down.
• Door – With all the distractions in our lives, one of the easiest ways to focus on writing is to shut the door. If possible, find a room that you can focus on writing and shut the door.

As a parent of younger children, I totally understand that you are not always able to get the perfect time or place to write, but you have to at least try.

Photo credit: lowjumpingfrog

My writing inspiration comes in all shapes and sizes; I pull these ideas together to create compelling copy for my clients and personal projects. If you would like help in writing some inspirational copy for your next project, please contact me.

Related posts:

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Where do you find your inspiration?

To a writer, writing is a love and a passion. Many write about their passion. Others write stories that entertain us and some write about writing.

No matter what you write about, you need inspiration. There is inspiration all around us. Things we see everyday have inspired books, blogs and even scripts for movies.

To get you started, I have listed 15 ways to help inspire your writing.

15 Ways to Find Inspiration for Your Writing

1. Get out and live – Most writing ideas come from everyday things. I find so many things to write about when I am out driving, going to the store or even taking my kids to doctor’s appointments. One example is the post James wrote on how to get out to become a better blogger.

2. Books – Writers are also readers; to write, one must also read. Looking at your current collection of books, going to the bookstore or even looking at the selection at your favorite online bookseller can find you inspiration for your writing. I know I got lots of inspiration while reading Stephen King on Writing (Amazon Affiliate link).

3. Children and family – I am a father and husband. I love my children and love spending time with them in any way I can. On a daily basis, they inspire me to become a better father and my wife inspires me to become a better husband. I try to post my adventures in parenting when I can.

4. Try Something New – Do you have a routine? Do you do everything the same way everyday? Try changing it up a bit and see what happens. Change the route of your daily drive or get up earlier to enjoy the morning. See what kind of inspiration you get by changing things up.

5. Exercise – Now, this one really does work. I am trying to get myself back on the exercise track soon. Last year, I lost a lot of weight by exercising; I had so much energy and I never had a shortage of writing inspiration. Try going out for a walk or ride your bike around the neighborhood; see what ideas you come up with.

6. Networking – There are so many ways to network with other people. You can network online and outside in the real world. To network online, I use Twitter and other social networks. I also find new people to connect with at places like conferences, bookstores and even while buying groceries. I love interacting with people; networking with other people is a great way to find new inspiration for your writing.

7. Movies and TV – I love movies and some TV. There are times a great line from someone or the plot of the movie may inspire me to write something from it. Movies and some TV are about taking you away from the real world and into a world of endless possibilities. I found many, many things to write about when I watched Office Space for the first time.

8. Other blogs and web sites – I love this one. There are many writers out there that have great ideas. Reading what they have can help inspire new ideas for your writing.

9. Other conversations – What do I mean by this one? Have you heard other conversations while in a coffee shop, store or your own home? Sometimes these conversations will bring up new and interesting ideas for writing.

10. News – News is all around us; it comes to us from the Internet, TV, newspapers and radio. Many writers write on news of the day. You should take a look at what’s happening in the world and take away some ideas for yourself.

11. Music – For me, music is a way to pick up my mood and inspire my writing. It’s not for everyone though. Try to play the type of music you enjoy.

12. Pictures – Have you ever seen a photo and wondered what the story was behind it? Why not create the story yourself? Try it and let me know what you create.

13. Keep a journal – Keep a notebook with you to jot down notes wherever you are. I have a Moleskine notebook as well as a voice recorder to capture ideas. When you need some inspiration, go back to that journal and use it for your writing.

14. Give yourself a deadline – Give yourself a deadline to get your projects completed. Many writers create lots of ideas when they have a deadline they have to meet.

15. Bookmarks – Take a look at your bookmarks on your computer and your social bookmarking sites like Del.icio.us for inspiration. I know some that have hundreds of thousands of bookmarks stored away.

Although there are many other ways to find inspiration for writing, this is a good start to lead you in the right direction.

How do you find inspiration for your writing?

Photo credit: dbdbrobot

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