How to give your customers what they want

Want to create compelling content that draws people to your blog or Website like bees to honey, peanut butter to chocolate or people to the scene of an accident? Then it's time you ignore all the "good, solid advice" you'll hear from well-meaning writing instructors and coaches. Instead, it's time to start thinking like a soap opera writer to create compelling content so that visitors to your Website or blog come thronging to see what's coming next...

In case you've never watched a soap opera (or at least won't admit it in public...) let me show you what I mean...

In this week's episode, Jack falls for Sally, who is married to Robert, who is in reality a spy for a foreign government... And while Mary lies in her hospital room, fighting for her life and that of her unborn child, she begins to remember the car accident that sent her to the hospital... perhaps never to walk again... and the driver of the car... it couldn't have been him... could it?

Okay, I'm exaggerating... a little.

The point is, millions of people tune into these shows every single day - and have, off and on, for over 30 years now.

Which means the writers must be doing something right.

Why do people watch them, and more than that, get completely caught up in the make believe lives, loves and disasters?

Because they're exiting... compelling... the characters are larger than life, fighting for what they believe in, daring to the do the things we wish we could do, living the kind of lives (minus all the hatred, attempted murders and downright corrupt behavior of the meanest characters, perhaps)... that we wish we could live.

But more than that, the writing reaches us on some deep level, touches into our own hopes and fears, wishes and dreams, wants and needs...

So how does your content measure up?

If it's a little flat compare to a soap opera, keep reading - because I'm going to tell you how you too can create content that keeps your readers coming back for more...

Lets start with what your readers need...

What are they really looking for when they come to your Website or blog?

Do they want excitement? Inspiration? Advice? Encouragement? Information?

The list could go on and on. The point is... whatever it is they're looking for, it's your job to give it to them.

What kind of Role Do You Play?

Are you the hero? The teacher? The advisor? The rock star?

Knowing what role your readers expect you to play is very important. Not only in the tone and voice of your content, but also in your company's brand experience.

And although that's the topic for an entirely different article, it's important that you give your customers what they expect when they interact with you, and that they get the "entire experience" of your brand.

70% of the work and research that goes into your content should come from your research into what your customers want, and into making sure you're giving it to them.

The other 30% should be the delivery...

And that's where thinking like a soap opera writer comes in. Soap operas are long, often complicated dramatic stories that are broken down into smaller stories and even smaller chunks of time...

Here's an example...

According to soap opera digest, the show "Days Of Our Lives" was first aired in 1965 on NBC. The storyline focuses on the trials and tribulations of the Horton, Brady, and Di Mera families and other residents of the fictional town of Salem...

The show is written so viewers can get caught up in a particular story line very quickly, and without needing to know the past history. Instead, you can sit down and figure out quickly who the hero or heroine is, who is up to no good, and what struggles are taking place.

When you're writing your content, are you writing it so that someone can get caught up in your words right away - without needing to know all about you, your history or your entire business model?

The next thing soap opera writers are brilliant at is creating a sense of drama, of tension in their story lines...

Now it might be a little easier for a soap opera - because you've got all those deep, dark, basic emotions seething, and burning and boiling just beneath the surface... passionate glances across a crowded room, hot stolen kisses and the dark desires of forbidden love...

Which admittedly can be difficult to insert into your sales or marketing materials.

But there are ways of doing it if you take the time to think about it, and write like a soap opera writer.

Tension comes from unresolved emotions or issues. It comes from problems and pain. 


It comes from wanting something we don't have.

These are all things you can use in your writing.

And of course, in every good soap opera, there comes a time when the story line must end, and we get to experience the power and joy in the triumph of good over evil, and celebrate as true love wins out.

But not for long. Because usually even as the music soars and the camera moves for a close-up of our lovers, and we watch as their lips part, their eyes start to close and they move into each other's arms share true love's kiss...

...A dark and somber figure moves out of the shadows, radiating hatred and plotting the downfall of one or both of our main characters...

Why?

So our feelings of tension, start to mount again... So we're suddenly thrust back into the stress of the new situation...

Because things would get pretty boring, pretty quickly if everything was always perfect, if the sun always shone, if the birds always sang, if the ending was always happy - like in a Disney movie.

So here again is where you can take your cue from the soap opera writers.

Because whatever you're writing about... Whatever barriers you're helping your reader to blast through... Whatever problems you're showing them how to solve... Whatever skills you're teaching them...

Eventually you will have written as much about the subject as you can - or want to.

And it will be time to end that particular story line.

Which leaves your reader wondering... Wait a minute! Is that all there is? But what happens next?

...Where's your cliff hanger?

What are you going to say to get your reader to come back for more?

That's the last bit of advice you can - and should - learn from the soap opera writers.

Always have a cliffhanger... Give them just a hint of what's to come... The next big villain in their lives, or their career, or their business...

The next problem they're going to be pitted against. A problem that you... might... just have the solution for... If they stay tuned for the next episode... (cue the music, fade to black...)

How to Become a Google "Search Expert"

Well, I was all set to write this post - when I found that someone else had done it for me! (Ya gotta love the Universe!) So, rather than spending an hour writing it myself, I'll just send you there...oh and look specifically at tips 5, 7, and 12. They're really handy for doing research, finding who's calling you and when you're working on your writing - of course!

The article is called "12 Quick Tips To Search Google Like An Expert" and it's on HubSpot's Inbound Internet Marketing Blog

Expert Advice on "How to Recession Proof" Your Business -

You may not know that I'm a member - and big fan - of LinkedIn. When asked, I tell clients and colleagues that it's like "facebook for professionals." (And yes, I've found it an effective business tool - three of my most recent clients have come from referrals or direct contacts on LinkedIn.)

One of the most useful tools on LinkedIn is the ability to ask and answer questions. If you ask a question, you get free business advice - sometimes from people who are experts in their fields.

I'm going to give you some more ways of using LinkedIn as a business tool, but first I thought I'd start out by showing you one way to use it.

I'm writing an article about "How to Recession Proof" your business - and I wanted some new sources. So I asked for advice using the "Questions" on LinkedIn - you can see my question - and read all the responses - by clicking the link.

In less than a week, I got 18 answers - and several of them are so good that I'm sending emails to the writers, to interview them for the article. Other tips I'll be posting on this blog - and I may write a special report about it - I'll let you know.

But let's get back to you and your business.

Are you worried about the recession? Do you have a strategic plan in place for how you will keep your sales on an even keel - or even increase them? What's your marketing strategy for the rest of 2008?

Read the answer that I chose as the "best answer" (and let me tell you, it wasn't easy making that decision!) and see if any of Michelle Dunn's answers resonate with you:

If you plan ahead you can survive the recession with a positive outlook and some specific actions.

1. Invest in education:

2. Network and make contacts online and offline:

3. Follow the market: Read the papers or watch the news, know what is happening and stay on top of it.

4. Pay off debt: If you can pay off any debt, now is the time to do it.
5. Cut back on extras: Seems simple, but do you need all the bells and whistles you have on your business or home phone or even your cell phone? Do you need to get Starbucks twice a day? Can you bring your lunch? Can you carpool to work?

6. Build your online presence: With a website, blog, newsletter or articles.
7. Have your clients sign a long term contract or review their existing contacts and renew them or extend them.

8. Specialize in something: Make yourself valuable, employers are more likely to keep an employee who can do more than one thing.

9. Turn your hobby into a part time business: for example selling items on ebay.

10. If you don’t have to sell your home or any property, don’t. You won’t get top dollar and will end up losing money.

11. Update your resume now, just in case.

12. Learn more about jobs that are recession proof, industries such as food, energy, vices (tobacco), entertainment, medical services, debt collection, security or alarm services.

13. Don’t cut prices, but reward your customers: During a recession business owners may think that cutting prices will help them and their customers. Don’t do it. Keep your prices as they are but offer your customers a coupon or a rewards program, to reward them for sticking with you during tough times.

14. Build value: Offer a buy one get one deal or buy one get something at 50% off. This increases your sales, where someone might have only purchased one item, with a deal like that it seems almost foolish to them not to take advantage of the deal and therefore purchase more from you

15. Get in contact with past customers who have not purchased from you in a while, this can activate a dormant account and possibly create more sales for you.

16. Follow up on any new leads and all old leads: Call them and see if they have a need for anything you offer.

17. Offer Outstanding customer service: To keep your customers you want to give them more than what they pay for.

18. Aggressively work on your marketing plan: send out press releases, keep yourself in the eyes of your target audience during the recession.

19. Tighten or update and keep on top of your credit policy: now is not the time to extend credit blindly, and it is the time to collect from any customers that owe you money.

Want more? Stay tuned, because in my next post, I'm going to tell you how you can create your own strategic plan in under an hour!

Got a Complicated Problem? Look for Simple Solutions

I was reading Guy Kawasaki's blog "How to Change the World" and I saw this YouTube video that offers a really simple solution to what is a complicated problem. You can watch the video yourself here:

How to "Recession Proof" Your Restaurant

Okay by now we all know that the U.S. is facing a recession and no one is talking about how quickly it's going to be over with. In fact, it doesn't look like there are going to be any easy answers this time around.

We know what happens - when a recession hits, people start tightening their belts - they keep their wallets in their pants and they stop spending money on "luxuries."

One of the first luxuries for many people is eating out at restaurants.

So what are your plans for "recession proofing" your restaurant?

You might be tempted to cut back on your advertising or marketing. I think that is a mistake. (And I'm not just saying that because I'm a copywriter and I'd like to get your business!)

Well, okay, yes, I am a copywriter, and yes, I'd like to get your business. But I'd like to show you how you can recession proof your business without having to cut your marketing budget, throw lots more money into an advertising campaign that may not be working or spend a lot of time trying untested ideas that may or may not work. How?

I'm working with a friend and colleague of mine on that exact thing - in fact, if you're a restaurant owner who's looking for ways to recession-proof your restaurant so you build strong relationships with your customers, have them tell their friends about you - and bring people with them and spend less money on your advertising and marketing campaigns.

Sound good? Stay tuned for more information. (In the meantime, sign up for my free report - that will tell you what to do if you're making fatal mistakes with your marketing strategy right now) - and I'll let you know when the new report is ready.

Want a new perspective for your business? Take a Vacation

One of the things I love about living in France is the different attitude there is about "work" and "life." The French have a deep and abiding belief in the importance of taking a break from work and spending time enjoying themselves. (This is something that I can really get behind and it's one of my favorite adopted customs!)

We just got back from a week in the north of France - we visited the wine areas of Chablis, Champagne, Burgundy and Alsace. We also zipped over into Luxembourg for a day of exploring.

We explored vineyards, the champagne house of Mumm, the Midieval hospital of Beaunes and so much more...

But the best part is that I came back refreshed and energized - and with a notebook filled from front to back with marketing ideas for my clients!

You can do the same thing with your business - and you don't have to go to the French Riviera or the north of France to come up with your own marketing ideas - you just have to think outside the box for a bit.

For example, the first area we'd decided to visit was the village of Chablis. So that was where we spent the first night. We found a hotel in the Michelin Guide, and Alain called ahead to make a reservation. We'd been driving for several hours, and we were tired and ready to stop when we got there.

But - the price they quoted us was higher than what the Michelin guide said it would be. Not by much - it was only about 15 euros. When we checked in I pointed it out to the girl - who asked to see it in the guide and dutifully wrote it down. And then proceeded to charge us the higher price. Now 15 Euros is not enough to haggle over, but I have to admit, it left a negative impression with me.

Some of my impression was a little changed by the girl who was on duty - she was the desk clerk and doubled as our waitress. She was cheerful, friendly and gave us some great suggestions for things to see the next day. She also gave us a special card that would allow us to go to a wine shop the next day (it was also owned by the same man) and have a free wine tasting. We wanted to tour a vineyard too, and she told us to ask at the wine shop.

And the food was good, plentiful and a good price - and the room was large, clean and quite comfortable - so like I said, I felt better about the room rate not being honored.

But the next morning, when we went to the wine store, the woman who runs the store didn't seem to happy to see us. When we showed her our card and said we'd been guests of the hotel the night before and were interested in tasting the house Chablis. She merely pointed to a list on one of the oak casks that had been turned into a table - and said that's what was available - but her whole attitude was that we were really bothering her and she didn't want to waste her time.

And when we asked about the possibility of touring the vineyard, she flatly told us it wasn't going to be possible and that we'd have to find another vineyard to tour.

And to top it all off, we noticed that the prices of the Chablis here was more expensive - in some cases almost twice that of the exact same bottles in other stores. So after looking at each other (and doing that silent communication thing that couples do), Alain said that it was really too early for tasting wines and we left.

(And we went right back to the first shop we'd visited and bought another specialty of the area) - and bought a case of Chablis for our cellar as well as some to give as gifts and a couple of older bottles that we could drink sooner.

So what does this have to do with you and your business? Think of it in terms of your business brand, and the experience your customers have when they're buying from you.

From my experience as a customer, here are the problems:

1. The price in the tourist guide wasn't honored at the hotel. (I seriously doubt 15 Euros would have broken the owner - but it certainly would have gone a long way in giving us a better experience and impression of the hotel and his other businesses - which would have translated into us spending a lot more money than the 15 euros.)

2. Our experience in the wine store was a total failure. We were there to buy wine - and if we'd received even a little bit of special treatment (because we were guests of the hotel for example), the owner would have profited to the tune of a couple hundred euros.

3. Rather than thinking about the entire experience for the customers - the hotel, the wine store and a special tour of the vineyards - maybe something provided only to guests - we would have left Chablis as brand ambassadors - and would have happily told everyone we know about what a wonderful time and experience we had.

Instead, I'm left with a love for Chablis - and we plan on going back this spring - but we won't be staying at that hotel - or spend any money at any of the businesses owned by that particular company. We'll be going somewhere else.

So this is what I want you to think about...when it comes to your business - what kind of experience are your customers having when they're ready to buy your products or services?

And if you've got just one product or service right now - think about how you can expand your offering - and provide more to your customers.

The case of the hotel/restaurants/wine store/vineyards is a perfect example of how you can add on additional products or services to your current offering - here's how it could have been handled:

Customers stay in the hotel - and will probably eat in the onsite restaurant - and drink the house wines. The next day, they're invited to a free wine tasting - where again, you offer them a unique experience - and increase the opportunities for them to buy something else from you. If you time it right - and maybe offer an additional discount to the other restaurant - again - a bonus only offered to guests of the hotel - you have a good chance that your customers will decide to eat in your second restaurant - and again, drink your wines. After lunch, it would be a perfect time to offer a tour of the vineyard - and make sure they get to experience something extra or special because they're customers. (A special tasting or a discount if they decide to buy a certain number of bottles, for example.) And of course making sure that all the employees are dedicated to ensuring that the entire experience runs smoothly and works for the customers. How much more money would your customers be likely to spend? And what would they be likely to say about their experience to others?

Here's a suggestion - if your products or services warrant it, invite someone to be a "secret shopper" - and go through your purchasing experience. Check for customer service, your brand experience and the satisfaction level of your customers.

If you only sell online, buy from yourself - and keep an eye out for how you can improve the experience and what add-ons you could provide for your customers. (And let me know what you discover...)

Are You an Expert in Your Field?

When I'm working with a new client, one of the first things I usually do is a quick Google search to see what information pops up.

With some clients, I find lots of information, with others, not much. If there's not much information - or if there's not much information related to the client's new product or services launch - that's one of the first places where I start working with them.

Why?

Because 90% of the time - this is where your clients, customers or prospects are going to start looking for you too.

You need to be perceived as an expert in your field or industry.

Look at it this way. Let's say that you sell "financial services to baby boomers." If I do a search for that term (which of course isn't the terminology a prospect is going to use, but bear with me for a minute)...I find 459,000 Websites!

That's a lot of competition for a phrase that doesn't even help your prospects find you.

So that's actually where we start. We look at your particular product or service and we find all the features and benefits of it. And we do some research to find out what words your clients or prospects would use, if they wanted to find out more about it.

Of course, the trick is in finding the right words - and understanding how to put them to work for you.

Here's another example: I typed in "retirement planning" - and got over 14 million Websites. Think about that for a minute. What would your strategy be to compete - and get yourself or your company's name to the first page of Google, or MSN or Yahoo - for a phrase where you've got 14 million other Websites?

One way is to know what your prospects are looking for and what phrases they're going to be the most likely to use when they want more information about that topic.

And those are the keywords we use in our marketing strategy to help you start becoming perceived as an expert in your field.

And then we create a number of different ways for your clients or prospects to find you. Ideally, we want your name to come up again and again when they're looking for answers to their questions or for more information related to your specific product, service or expertise. That's how you become perceived as an expert in your niche or industry, and that's how you will begin to attract - not just MORE clients - but the RIGHT clients - who want what you're selling, and who see you as the only person who can help them achieve their goals.