11
SHAWENON COMMUNICATIONS   
Effective Messaging
No. 67
October, 2011 
Greetings!

It's nice to be appreciated. And I was by Constant Contact at a lovely event for leading business partners at Davio's in Boston's Back Bay. It was like being back in the dot com boom of the 90's when spirits were high and technology was close to our hearts. Thanks again, CC.

And thanks to all who sent anniversary well wishes. The vacation was wonderful.

This month's Web Words is all about living online. In the first article, I tackle my nemesis--subject lines--in the hopes that the assembled wisdom will help you create better titles for your written communications. The second article raises some weighty questions about how we interact online. I share my struggle and am eager to hear how you shoulder yours.

I've been invited back to speak at the SUNY New Paltz American Marketing Association's Annual Business Day Conference later this month. My topic: Building personal brand.

I'm on Facebook and Twitter. Follow me.
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In This Issue
King of Kings
In the Beginning
Web Tips
New Programs
King of Kings

KingIf content is king  as Bill Gates said in 1996, then subject lines are the king of kings. That makes me feel better, because they are the bane of my existence. At least I struggle with something big.

How Big?

The assumption is that people open your email or read your blog entry based on previous value and the subject line. Some people open every issue of Web Words. Blessings to my loyal readers. But others--most I suspect--open an issue depending on a combination of their available time and the subject line.

Here are some useful tips I found online:

Copyblogger offers the law of 4 U's. Your subject line should be: 

  • Useful: Is the promised message valuable to the reader?
  • Ultra-specific: Does the reader know what's being promised?
  • Unique: Is the promised message compelling and remarkable?
  • Urgent: Does the reader feel the need to read now?

Here's a chilling recommendation: You should spend at least half as long creating the headline as you spend writing the piece itself.

6 Questions

Early to Rise copywriter Clayton Makepeace suggests you ask yourself six questions before you publish your headline: 

  1. Does your headline offer the reader a reward for reading?
  2. What specifics could you add to make your headline more intriguing and believable?
  3. Does your headline trigger a strong, actionable emotion the reader already has about the subject at hand?
  4. Does your headline present a proposition that will instantly get your prospect nodding his or her head?
  5. Could your headline benefit from the inclusion of a proposed transaction?
  6. Could you add an element of intrigue to drive the prospect into your opening copy?

For more on the topic, check out "Attention Grabber" from March, 2010.

I leave you with this classic headline from Psychology Today magazine:

Do You Close the Bathroom Door Even When You're the Only One Home?

Now there, indeed, is a weighty question.

In the Beginning
Printing Terminal

Apple computers have been a part of my life since 1984. Like millions of others on the planet, I have Steve Jobs to thank for my first computer. Even before the news of his passing last week, I was planning to write about the early days of computers.

Amazing Progress

I was reminded of that era in a meeting recently when someone demonstrated a new collaborative work tool. In minutes, everyone accessed the site via the Web, and we were using the application.

My early days of using computer supported collaborative work, as it was then called, required lugging a 30-lb. printing terminal across the US on my ski vacation so I could keep in touch with my clients. It involved moving beds in hotels so I could reach the phone connection to connect my modem cups. That's right, in those days, you got online by attaching the telephone receiver to two rubber connectors that fit over the phone's earpiece and speaker. It was slow and awkward, but it was thrilling. We were able to communicate no matter where we were.

I had a dream in those days. It was that everyone on the planet could connect to everyone else on the planet. I thought, perhaps naively, that if we could all talk to each other, we would realize we have the same fundamental values, and we'd stop killing each other.

Why?

So now here we are in constant touch with our friends and relatives on Facebook, our business connections on LinkedIn and anyone and everyone on Twitter. And I'm not happy. Why?

Maybe it's a generation thing. Oh how I hate to consider that. But I must. Sharing the details of what I had for breakfast just doesn't feel right. Not only do I think no one would care; more importantly, I don't think it's any of their business. I scan my personal Facebook page daily and delight in seeing what's going on with the people I care about. I also appreciate being part of a community--as in the shared comments about Steve Jobs or updates on local issues. But I'm a lurker.

If you had told me in the mid 1980's when I was pioneering this kind of communication that I would be a lurker today, I would have denied the possibility. And yet, true confessions, I am. Why?

If you resonate with my position or want to talk me down, please let me know your thoughts. I'll share what I learn in the November issue of Web Words.
Web Tips

Tips2Remember when you got your news from newspapers and TV? Today news is everywhere and nowhere. Enter Digg--a collective community of over 20 million that will crawl to the far corners of the Web to find valuable information.

Newsrooms--a recently introduced feature--are designed to find the most meaningful news for a given topic--to separate valuable from popular.

You can personalize your news to follow topics of interest. My News is where you'll find a list of stories chosen specifically for you. Stories in My News are selected based upon the people you choose to follow, the stories you like to read and the stories that are trending across the entire Digg community.

And Finally . . .

Shawenon Communications collaborates with small businesses, solopreneurs, professionals and not-for-profits to get their messages across in the written word.

We specialize in electronic communications, including e-zines and other forms of email marketing, Web sites and social media.  We also ghostwrite articles and other business communications. As a solution provider, we resell Constant Contact's email marketing service.

 

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www.shawenon.com



Sincerely,
First name
Susanna Opper
Shawenon Communications
413-528-6494
New Programs   
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There's lots going on at Constant Contact as I learned from my recent visit to headquarters in Waltham.

You can now get started with email marketing with a money back guarantee. The free trial is still available, but there are limitations. With the money back arrangement, the sky's the limit.

The company is continuing its push to integrate social media into email marketing. Constant Contact has launched a Playbook to step companies through a structured marketing process that spans social platforms to garner business success. Contact me for more information.
   

Be in touch to talk about how you can use Constant Contact to boost your business with very little effort.

 


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