Email No Longer Rules Says WSJ

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An article this month in the Wall Street Journal, “Why Email No Longer Rules…” has stirred controversy.
“Email has had a good run as king of communications. But its reign is over.”
The author, Jessica Vascellaro,  argues that just-in-time communication, such as Twitter, Facebook, and the upcoming Google Wave offer a constant stream of information. Conversely, email [...]

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What is a White Paper?

Client Question: What is a “White Paper?”
The term “white paper” was originally used to designate government reports, but the term and format are now commonly used in many industries. The term is an offshoot from “white book,” which is an official government publication. Since it has its base in government publications, white papers should reflect [...]

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Drowned by Jargon

I attended a professional development conference today. While some of the recommendations were very good, they were drowned by jargon.
Let’s discuss this offline some more. You should talk about that offline. That’s an offline conversation. (A variation of this was stated seven times in one hour. Ugh.)
We were all physically gathered together, so the discussion [...]

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Blog Action Day: Business Writing and Climate Change

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Today, October 15, 2009, bloggers from across the world join together to write about a single issue: climate change. The goal is to shift global conversations and raise awareness.
What do business writing and climate change have in common? Both, at their core, are about connection and interaction.
I’ve been writing a lot lately about social media [...]

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More on Social Media and Business Writing

The questions continue to pour in from clients about our recent newsletter topic: Business Writing and Social Media. It offered tips on where and how business people need to participate in social media to keep communication skills current. There is a current hype from so-called “social media experts” that social media is THE trend and [...]

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Social Media: Participate or Perish?

Is social media a fad? No. It will continue to evolve and change, but it’s here to stay, as this video powerfully illustrates:

How should you keep your skills current, as social media becomes integral to moving information in business?
At this point:

1) Make sure you list yourself on LinkedIn, and keep your profile current. Your employees [...]

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Trim Business Writing Redundancy

Redundancy is very common in business writing. Trim bloat by omitting modifying words that merely echo the primary word. There is no need to repeat yourself:

Replace: free gift with gift (if it’s not free, it’s not a gift)
Replace: basic fundamentals with fundamentals
Replace: absolutely necessary with necessary
Replace: forward planning with planning
Replace: after the conclusion with conclusion
Replace: [...]

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Business Email Productivity Tips

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Recent research confirms the volume of email continues to increase.
The technology marketing research firm Radicati predicts that this year the average office worker will send and receive about 199 emails per day! That is nearly 200 separate messages, each requiring your focus and action. Even if you can quickly delete an email after skimming it, [...]

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Condolence Letter Tips

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Today is the eighth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks here in the United States.  Thousands of people lost their lives, and many more hearts were broken by family, friends and co-workers lost.
I am sometimes asked if a condolence letter is necessary, or even suitable, in a business relationship.  It’s an easy answer. Yes. Reaching [...]

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Sales Letters: Gain Attention First

“Advertising is a business of words, but advertising agencies are infested with men and women who cannot write.”
~David Ogilvy, Advertiser
AIDA is an easy to remember acronym for writing persuasively. It reflects the writing elements needed to help you make a sale:
A = Attention
I = Interest
D = Desire
A = Action
In business sales letters, the first step, [...]

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