A Special Report for RCI Members Only Ten Steps to Writing an Outstanding Article by RCI newsletter editor Tara Alexandra Kachaturoff Writing articles is a great way to market your business while at the same time offering your reader valuable and useful information. There are many benefits to writing and publishing your articles. As a business owner your marketing success is dependent upon your marketing message, your credibility and your visibility. While the purpose of your article is not to market your business outright, it can serve that purpose, though perhaps in a more subtle way. Writing an article will build your credibility by showcasing your expertise to potential clients and customers. Once you take your article to the public, whether by publishing it online, in a newspaper, or in a magazine, you l be gaining the visibility or recognition that any business owner would be happy to have. So don t delay, start writing today. Here are 8 great reasons to start writing articles: 1. To advertise your business 2. To provide information 3. To create visibility 4. To gain credibility 5. To start a writing career www.virtualleverage.com. 2005 by Tara Kachaturoff. All rights reserved in all media. 1
6. To drive readers to your website or to your brick and mortar establishment 7. To expand your network and market reach 8. To introduce your new business, service or product By folowing these ten simple steps, you l be on your way to positioning yourself as an expert in your field. Step 1: Define your target audience Before setting pen to paper it is important to have a clear idea about WHO you want to reach with your article. An effective article must be focused towards a specific group of people. Who is your target audience? Defining your audience in as much detail as possible will help you to craft an article that speaks directly to them. Think about their age range, whether they are male or female, their income, as well as their lifestyle and interests. When you write your articles you need to keep their characteristics in mind so that you can hone in on who they are, how they think, and some of the attitudes they might possess. Write with the reader in mind. Step 2: Problems and solutions After defining your target audience, identify WHAT you plan to write about. Life is all about problems and finding solutions to them. Think about your target audience. What types of problems or issues do they have? What kind of information do they need most that you can supply? Write down at least seven to ten distinct problems. www.virtualleverage.com. 2005 by Tara Kachaturoff. All rights reserved in all media. 2
Clearly identifying the WHO and WHAT underlying your article project will serve to keep you focused. Remember you need to write about things that speak specifically to your target audience. Step 3: Focus in on an idea Once you have established the WHO and the WHAT, it s time to FOCUS inon an idea. Once you ve compiled a list of problems or issues, select one or more to focus on as a topic for your article. From there, you can break the idea into several lesser points which will become your basic article content. For example, Jane owns a lawn and garden shop. Its late winter and she wants to appeal to the folks in the local community who are looking forward to starting their spring home and garden projects. She might decide on one of two ideas preparing roses for Spring or Spring cleaning tips. Jane might write an article on the Top Ten Steps to Preparing Your Roses for Spring or The Seven Seven-minute Spring Cleaning Tips that will Save You Hours of Work. When Jane actually writes the articles, she will write about the individual steps or tips to explain her subject in more detail. Before you write Define WHO you are writing for. Who comprises your target audience and what are their characteristics? www.virtualleverage.com. 2005 by Tara Kachaturoff. All rights reserved in all media. 3
Identify WHAT you plan to write about. What problems are frequently faced by your target audience? FOCUS on a topic-- perhaps one specific problem for which you can provide the solution. Step 4: Do your research Doing research is fundamental to crafting an article readers will find interesting and worthwhile. To draw readers to your article, you need to provide value and that comes as a result of doing your research. Your own level of background and experience with a topic determines how much research you need to do. In all cases, do enough investigation to make it sound like you know what you re talking about. One way to do that is to provide interesting and informative facts, figures, statistics and quotations. Your readers will love it. You can do most, if not all of your research quickly and easily on the internet. Research might include facts, interesting statistics, quotations, stories, or results of studies. To provide even more up-todate or human interest content, consider adding some brief quotations from interviews that you do yourself. Also, you can create your own research by crafting a simple survey, distributing it to people you know, and then publishing the results. Try out some free survey systems offered by http://www.zoomerang.com or http://www.surveymonkey.com www.virtualleverage.com. 2005 by Tara Kachaturoff. All rights reserved in all media. 4
Make sure that you always check with and receive express permission to use any material that you will quote directly in your article, including the right to use quotations from any personal interviews. Be aware everything on the internet is considered copyrighted even if you don t see a copyright mark (by the way, the same thing applies to any written work). Bring your writing alive and make it memorable by doing your research. Keep in mind that research done well and done once can yield multiple articles going forward. Step 5: Define 5, 7, or 10 key points You ve picked a topic, done the research, now what? The next step, simple as it is, is probably one of the most important. Human beings like structure. With that being the case, find some way to organize your information into a structure people will find not only easy to understand, but also easy to read. My favorite way to organize an article is by breaking down the material into 3, 5, 7, or 10 key discussion points. I write a lot of top ten articles, so I frequently pick ten items. Pick whatever number of points you want to make, but studies have shown that people are attracted to odd numbers with the exception of 10! Communicating your ideas in 5, 7 or 10 points is much more compelling than writing a solid paragraph of text. Reading key points is much more attractive and easier for the reader. People like to skim and if you don t makeit easy for them to do that, they will merely ignore what you have written. Making clear points, with a few short sentences after each, is www.virtualleverage.com. 2005 by Tara Kachaturoff. All rights reserved in all media. 5
the best way for people to take in and process your article information. And, because you make it easy for them to read, it is more likely that they will continue to read the article to completion. Use short, succinct sub-headlines to capture attention. When a reader is hurried, he or she will probably read the headlines for each paragraph. Make sure they are descriptive and interesting enough to draw the reader in or, at least, to compel them to return later to finish reading your article. Step 6: Use simple language, avoiding jargon Unless you re writing a technical article or something for a specialized journal, make sure to use simple language. The hallmark of an attractive article is one that is easy to read. Avoid using long, convoluted words like the word convoluted. The most effective words are shorter words one and two syllable words. Instead of writing accommodate, try the word serve. Rather than write demonstrate, write the word show. Avoid jargon unless it is important to the point you re trying to make, otherwise you risk alienating readers who might not have a familiarity with a particular way of speaking or writing. Finally, write short sentences. Short sentences have more power and impact than long ones. They are also much quicker to read. To provide a sense of rhythm and variety, sprinkle in some longer sentences here and there. Step 7: Provide value www.virtualleverage.com. 2005 by Tara Kachaturoff. All rights reserved in all media. 6
Your article must provide value. The only reason someone will read it is because they think you will provide them with a solution to their problem or issue. You only have one opportunity to make a good first impression, so make sure that every article you write provides a solution or at least the beginnings of a solution. Include information the reader can take away today and use. You can provide added value by providing links to interesting websites (including one to your own business) or to other resources where they can obtain more information. Not only will these simple additions make your article more memorable, but you will also increase the chances that your article will be retained or passed along because it offers so much more. Every point in your article doesn t need to be information rich; however, it is a good idea to provide at least one or two items that the reader can use today that will make a difference. Beginning an article with a captivating quotation or a startling statistic might be the very thing that draws the reader into wanting to experience the rest of your article. You can also provide added value by providing links to interesting websites (including one to your own business) or other resources where they can obtain more information. Not only will these simple additions make your article more memorable, but you will also increase the chances that your article will be retained or passed along because it offers so much more. Step 8: Craft a compelling title www.virtualleverage.com. 2005 by Tara Kachaturoff. All rights reserved in all media. 7
The importance of a great title cannot be underestimated as it s the title that sells someone on reading the rest of the article. Make sure you title addresses some sort of solution while subtly reminding the reader about the problem that drew them to it initially. So what types of words should you use in your title? One simple title-creating model is my own invention the Change Content Reminder model. People want change. They re interested in changing themselves or some aspect of their lives. So think about words that indicate change. Use words like increase, improve, maximize, reduce, minimize, or lower. At the same time, you need to indicate there is content in your article that it includes some hearty information worth reading. Content can be communicated through words like steps, methods, strategies, ways, secrets, or tips. Finally, remind your reader about the problem they want solved. This is where you re making the 100%, buls-eye contact with your reader. You can remind them of their problem by merely stating it in the title, or you can ask it as a question. Here are some examples: Title 1: Ten Simple Stress Relieving Exercises You Can Do at Your Desk Title 2: Hate to Date? The Seven Secrets of Irresistible Attraction www.virtualleverage.com. 2005 by Tara Kachaturoff. All rights reserved in all media. 8
Title 3: Five Ways to Lower Your Cholesterol without Giving Up Your Favorite Foods Step 9: Write a captivating opening sentence This step may be optional depending on how the article is structured. One option is to write a lead-in paragraph followed by your tips or points. The other option is to simply start listing your key points and content. If you use a lead-in paragraph, include a quotation or a startling statistic to grab the reader s atention. After crafting a couple strong sentences to follow, immediately start in with the main article content. Step 10: Don t forget to check speling and grammar Edit, edit and edit again. Once you write your article, set it aside for a while an entire day, if possible. When you re too close to it, it s dificult to catch any erors or omissions. Nothing says unprofessional like spelling and grammar mistakes. Make sure that you use your computer spell checker. Since your spel check won t catch everything and computerized grammar checking isn t that welperfected, either hire an editor or find someone who will review your article. Always make sure someone else reads your work before you publish it. www.virtualleverage.com. 2005 by Tara Kachaturoff. All rights reserved in all media. 9