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The Truth About Magic Bullets

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There are no 3-easy-steps to becoming a millionaire. If magic bullets and passive income really existed, we'd ALL be sitting around enjoying the view from our yachts. Cambridge Dictionary defines a 'magic bullet' as "a quick and simple solution to a difficult problem". None of the major dictionaries offer a definition for 'passive income'. These are marketing myths. They will cost you more money than you'll make. Or you will give up doing the work that is your expertise to spend your time doing marketing work. It's nice to dream but then get back to work. PS: There are no unicorns in real life either. Click to Tweet this Article
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Resist the Urge to Ask

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Received this message on Facebook : What is your opinion about sending this kind of email below out? I am on the fence. (I've changed the name on their signature and company for privacy.) "Hi Natasha, We are doing a little organizing and noticed that it's been a while since you have opened any emails or shown any activity via the "XYZ" email subscription. No worries! We value your time! We just want to be sure we are bringing good vibes to the online community whilst not pestering anyone with unwanted emails. Are we bothering you? If you don't want to receive any future emails from us you can click here to unsubscribe from the mailing list. No prob. If you do want to receive these emails then you simply need to do nothing. Keep on keepin' on. Find What Feels Good. Love, A" Consider this: If the motivation for sending something to your list is personal, think twice.  Always give something of value - this email doesn't do that. Your emai...
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Un-credible Words

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Just because you say it's so, doesn't make it true. Take this email disclaimer below as an example. Please, read the small print. The first line sounds pretty good... ethical and all that. And hey, they respect me. I might believe it if I had actually subscribed. I know I didn't because I never subscribe to anything using the particular email address this came to. I'm already questioning their sincerity. Next they tell me that removal is automatic and "enforced" (whatever that means). Apparently "automatic" means 2-3 business days in this case. The link to click to start the "process for email deletion" opens an email with their address filled in, nothing else. Decidedly NOT automatic. The other way I know I didn't subscribe to this email list is that I would never sign up for anything that "may be a newsletter, press release, solicitation or advertisement." The "best practices in responsible email marketing...
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Slice Words to Save Money

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If you're beating around the bush, you're wasting time and possibly money. Neil Everton of Podium Media and Communications Coaching suggests we look at our writing with a critical eye and ask: "Am I prepared to pay $1 for every word I've written?" Unproductive words and phrases abound. I've written before about wimpy phrases to avoid ; here are some slightly pretentious ones to also slice out. “Due to the fact that...” Use “because” at the beginning, or rearrange the sentence to use it in the middle. “For the most part...” Eliminate this one completely without changing your meaning. “In my opinion...” Use “I think” or eliminate it all together. I'm already expecting your opinion if I'm reading your writing. “On a regular basis...” Save $3 here by using “regularly” or “always” at the end of the sentence instead. “The first step is to...” Chop out 4 words and simply use “first”. Using more words doesn't mean you'll get read...
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The Difference Between Editing and Proofing

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We often use the words editing and proofing interchangeably but there is a significant difference. If you're not aware of it, you could be failing at both. Editing is big picture or 'zoomed out'; proofing is detailed or 'zoomed in'. Editing is about the overall structure and flow of the article. Are the introduction and conclusion supported by the content in between? Are the paragraphs organized well? Is it easy to read and digest? Are the sentences structured well? When you're reading something and you have to pause to reread a line - that's a signal that editing is needed. Proofing is about grammar and spelling and punctuation. It's often about the little words, like 'of' instead of 'if'. And about missing words, like 'the' or 'an'. It's hard to proofread our own writing because our brains follow the same pattern as when we typed it. Reading out loud, or printing to proof with paper and pencil, are both good...
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Trying to Unsubscribe

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We often talk about the importance of making it easy to unsubscribe. I thought I would share with you my recent experience demonstrating the frustration that can occur when it is not. I decided to unsubscribe from Air Canada's onAir newsletter several issues ago. When my issue arrived, I clicked to unsubscribe and landed on a 'No Update' error page. No big deal, the internet can be glitchy, I would just do it the next issue. This went on for 4 or 5 issues at which point, I started to feel like they were sending me to the error page on purpose. I was getting a little hot under the collar. Last week, on a bad day for me, the current issue arrived and I landed on the same error page. I then went back to the newsletter and clicked the "contact us" link which took me to a form on their website called 'Let Us Know'. It was a lengthy form and the first section was my contact information in which I had to fill out my address, email, phone number and ...
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Resist the Impulse

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Every day I’m faced with opportunities to offer a deal. I receive calls asking me to invest in print ads. I can easily tweet a deal or insert it in our newsletter. I can offer an added bonus. I can low-ball requests for quotes. It would be like standing up and waving my arms and yelling, “Look over here. Have I got a deal for you!” It would be so easy to do. Every day I resist the impulse. Easy is not always better. A recent article by Bernadette Jiwa at The Story of Telling reminded me why. Take a minute to read it . It’s short, I promise. You need to remember why, too, and she’s a much better writer than I am. The ending is perfect: “…build your brand around being chosen on purpose.” Photo:  elvissa  / Flickr Click to Tweet this Article
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No Love from your Newsletter? Here's Why

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"My newsletter isn't doing anything for me." Over the years I've heard many different versions of this same sentiment, usually accompanied by a big sigh. A month or so later, the newsletters stop. A newsletter does not make a marketing plan. And sending out a newsletter is only a small part of a content marketing strategy . To be successful, there are other related things you need to be doing. Here's a checklist to help you identify what actions to take to improve your results. If you're not doing these things, that's why success is eluding you. Have a sign-up form on a landing page you can promote (i.e. with its own url) so you can actually get complete strangers as new subscribers. Promote your newsletter on social media, your blog, your website and everywhere else, including not online. If you don't actively build your list, it will stagnate. Actively share your newsletter issues on social media multiple times to extend your readersh...
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Crafting a Title to Get Read

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Whether it's an article title, a blog post title, a subject line or a call to action, there is no doubt that crafting a good one takes a little art and a little science. "The job of the headline is to get the first line of your copy read." ~ CopyBlogger For every article, I could write 4 titles: the simple straightforward one that says what it's all about - it's useful and truthful the catchy or clever one - the content adds context to the title once you start reading the teaser that hints at the content, but is meant to garner opens rather than be useful the version for SEO using keywords and phrases that people might search for I tend to start with #1 because it's often the idea that I jotted down to write about. After I finish writing, I might come up with a couple of choices that are more like #2. I tend to avoid #3 except in certain circumstances. Then a friend started talking about #4. I resisted because it kind of felt like selli...
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The Colours of Your Christmas Campaign

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If you are looking for new palette options for your Christmas marketing campaign, once again the image is the best place to start. Choose an image that is obviously holiday themed but in colours outside of the traditional red and green colour combinations. Pull the colours out of the image to create a palette that is exciting but non-traditional. Here are a few ideas that might spark something for you. You can pair almost any colour with gold or silver metallics to make it festive. So it stands to reason that the non-metallic versions of gold and grey would pair well. Together they create a feeling of warm elegance that is very inviting. Pair blue with silver and you get the same elegance with a cool tone. A little more formal or a little more relaxed depending what your text is. This palette can evoke cool breezes and festive nights or it can be used to trigger thoughts of grey, relaxed cottage days. It will be all in the word smithing. Purple and gold, pai...
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