Archive for August, 2009

15 tips on writing & editing newsletters

August 30th, 2009

A newsletter is the paring knife of communication tools. It seems simple and is easy to take for granted. Handled well, however, it’s a highly capable tool.

1. Keep your strategic audiences in mind, always.
What is relevant to them? What is important?

2. Effective management involves planning and influence.
Develop a publication structure, an editorial calendar and written writers guidelines.

3. A newsletter must be sustainable.
Be realistic about the amount of content you can consistently produce.

4. Begin with good basics and build on solid ground.
The most basic newsletter should have a few lead stories, shorter news items, and a message from your leader. A more developed publication might include features, departments, columns, an editorial, cartoon, in-house news, news tidbits, regional round-ups, etc.

5. Deadlines are sacred.
Build in a safety cushion to allow for unexpected delays.

6. An editor, like a captain, needs to know where the ship is going.
When dealing with writers, negotiate topic, length, treatment and deadline before assigning an article. Include important sources and the key questions which the story will address.

7. Offer feature writers a byline and an author’s note.
Writers gain exposure and your publication gains credibility.

8. Be concerned about how your newsletter reads before you worry about how it looks.
Attractive graphics can obscure important content needs. Relevant and well-written content should be able to stand on its own, even as plain text.

9. If you’re doing an emailed newsletter, ‘clean and simple’ spells ‘effective’.
Keep it to plain text. Be concise, and put an ‘in-this-issue’ outline at the top. The footer should have complete ‘subscribe’ and ‘unsubscribe’ information. You should archive back issues, with an annotated index, on your website.

10. Good writing and good editing require direction and hard work.
Your copy should sing rather than drone. It should ring when tapped. Write compact copy in the active voice. Edit for clarity, conciseness, jargon, length, correctness. The bottom line is your readership; give them top priority.

11. Lead with strong items that have broad appeal.
Learn from the best daily newspapers: People decide within seconds whether or not to read. Your editorial or a message from the CEO should have a regular spot after the lead items. In-house or more parochial news should have a regular spot much further in. This gives you the best chance of competing for attention, while those familiar with your newsletter know where to find what they want.

12. Learn the distinction between simple information and a story.
Information comes to life as a story when someone talks about it. Try to cite sources as part of the way you do things.

13. Any successful newsletter depends on plentiful and reliable sources.
Consider an acknowledgment box that lists everyone who contributed to an issue. This will reward people for helping and encourage others to participate.

14. Look for reader feedback, always.
Watch to see how people scan your publication. Talk with a new sampling of readers after each issue. Do a formal readership survey on a regular basis. Track what’s happening.

15. The true test of performance is behavior.
You’ll know you have an effective publication when your strategic audiences clip and save articles and when people are eager to write for it.

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Work Smarter Not Harder

August 25th, 2009

businessDo you end the day wishing for more hours? If this describe you, there are ways to get more from your day without having to need more hours.

Time management is a very important skill for anyone working in a flex-based environment. For mobile workers it can be the difference between sanity and insanity.

Creating and keeping a schedule will require some effort initially but once you get into this routine, it will become second nature to make plans and stay organized. You will need to breakdown your activities based upon Work and Home/Chores.

If you analyze the time spent doing various activities over a period of one or two weeks, you will see patterns developing. Those patterns are what you need to track. They will be either time wasters or maximum use of time.

Work

  • Telephone calls and dealing with email can be two of the biggest time wasters we have.
  • Keep all calls short and on topic. It’s not the time for socializing and catching up on gossip.
  • Have separate email accounts for work and personal use. Leave reading the personal email until you are not on “the clock”.

Working in a remote environment it can be very easy to get side tracked and forget what your original purpose was.

  • Make sure you stay focused and if you have to, use a timer.
  • Set time limits for how long you have to work on a specific task.
  • Don’t set unreasonable limits, as you will frustrate yourself.
  • Keep favorite sites and search engines bookmarked. This will save valuable time. Save information in a text file that lists different sites and what information is found there.
  • Save your reading/writing/training for times when you know that you will not have to worry about interruptions. Nothing is worse than trying to learn something new and having the phone ringing from co-workers asking questions or looking for information.
    Chores

    Your first priority, especially when working from your home office is your job. Save chores for after work hours or for break times. If you allow yourself to get caught up in household chores, you will not get any work done.

    Don’t forget you still need regular breaks and time to eat. It is too easy to get caught up in work and miss meals or not take a break and you will pay for that later.

    Organizing your day to include regular breaks and scheduling your work tasks will enable you to work much smarter and it will also be lesss stressful.


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15 Blog Content Ideas for Realtors that have Nothing to Write About

August 17th, 2009

idea_bulbSo, what kind of blog content can a real estate agent find that will get quality links? That is the ultimate question, because the goal should not be to win over the world overnight – it should just be to slowly gain quality links one at a time and build the authority of your site. This will ultimately better your rankings in the search engines which is what will get you the additional business that you are looking for.

But what if you aren’t a Pulitzer-prize winning writer or a professional photographer? This is ok. Just find relevant topics for your area and the local real estate market (even if it’s just remotely related) that visitors to your site would find interesting, and even compelling.

Don’t worry about writing an article or finding a picture with the goal of gaining 100 new links to your site or getting so many hits that it crashes your server.

If you get one great link from a local college (.edu sites are great) to your site because you wrote a great article about how the market is affecting home prices in your city and recent college grads are unable to afford homes in the area, then you have achieved your goal.

Or what if your photos and write-up about how a local fire halted construction of a much needed infrastructure system to a densely populated subdivision and shut down schools for days – if a local news media links to your site, then you have achieved your goal.

So… here it is. 15 ideas for blog content to get links and traffic to your site. This is certainly not a complete list – there are many more where these came from but I do not want to overwhelm you.  Feel free to add your own, fresh ideas. This list may also spark some new ideas that would work well in your market.

1. Home prices in local market

2. Local subdivisions/ farm area prices, solds, actives, pendings, etc.

3. New construction plans in area

4. New businesses coming to area

5. Job market in local area

6. Local weather and how it affects lifestyles & local market (for example, in Phoenix, no natural disasters, so many companies put their data centers here because of low risk of physical destructions to computer and data equipment)

7. Create a helpful checklist for buyers and sellers

8. Create an ebook. Example: “(Your name)’s Guide to Buying Real Estate in (your area). Make it a step by step guide to let your clients know exactly what it’s going to be like to buy real estate in your state.

9. Mortgage rate updates

10. Dangers of certain types of loans (such as interest only, certain ARMS, etc.), and why they are not for everyone – be careful not to buy more house than you can afford

11. Advantages of going through a mortgage broker for your next loan as opposed to your local bank (i.e., more options for finding a lender to say yes, potential for better rates, competing lenders so can find the best program for your needs)

12. Buying your first investment property

13. Dos and don’ts of buying investment properties

14. Should you rent it or flip it?

15. Conduct an “Annual Profile of Homebuyers/Sellers” in your market. Here’s how it could work: Interview 100 folks who have recently or are currently buying or selling a home. Offer them a gift certificate or dinner for two for their time. Ask all kinds of questions such as how they ultimately found their home, how they chose their REALTOR, what other homes or areas did they consider, what was most important in selling their home, etc. Then, write a nice article about your findings and post the results (use photos, charts, graphs, etc.).

Some of you already have the light bulb going off about this last one. This is a biggie – just think about how you could use this same technique as a prospecting tool for FSBOs and Expireds. And about how many news stations or local universities may stumble across your report. Then, you’ve got interviews, links to your website, reprints or quotes from your article, and more. This is a key stealth marketing technique that could land more traffic to your website and numerous buyers and sellers lining up to do business to you.

On some of the unique and local ideas above such as the Christmas light show directory, this can help you rank immediately for some of the long tail searches because they are not as competitive. So, whenever someone searches for “Your Town Christmas Light Shows,” you now come up in the top of the search. Not only does this bring potential clients to your site, but it increases your name recognition and the authority of your site. You become a trusted source for valuable information – this is easily incorporated into your long-term strategy of becoming an authority in your marketplace (both on the web and in the neighborhoods you work). It is also very likely that various news media outlets will stumble on your website and want to quote you or interview you – another great way to get famous and get links.

Think of your website as the canvas and your expertise as the paintbrush. Pick up your brush, open your mind, and create a link-worthy masterpiece.


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Back to School Tips for Parents

August 14th, 2009

stress-picture-stress-relief-kit1Well it’s back to school time and for all your parents, here are some back to school tips .

Congratulate yourself. Especially if you have teenagers and you have made it through the summer resisting the urge to hit them, very gently of course, over the head with a baseball bat.

Going back to school can make any child nervous. They may be worried about new classmates, more homework, even where they will sit in the cafeteria, Be sensitive to their concerns. This means that you should hide the calendar where you have
been marking off the days until they return to school, and at least act attentive when they share your concerns. Saying “Get over it.” or ” I’m free , I’m free at last “, is probably not a sensitive response.

When your child comes home from his or her first day of school, act like you have been worried about them all day. Do not mention the leisurely bath you took in the morning, the coffee and your favorite book, your lunch date with your best friend and your shopping spree at the Mall. Instead, pretend you were lying around all day, hoping they had a good day.  And you are lying!

When your neighbor, the teacher, comes dragging home resist the temptation to say, ” I had a great day!!! And how was yours? “

Do not say to the bus driver, “You mean you bring them back EVERYDAY? “

Aw shucks, you sure miss making the little tykes lunch, It so nice and peaceful around the … whoops, you meant to say, Gosh I miss the screaming and the fighting with her brother and the whining and the “Take me to ….” But it is SO nice and QUIET.

Do not write to the School Board suggesting they think about year-round school or extending the school day by – hmm – five hours. That would give you time for cocktails , whoops! Remember you miss the little tykes…

Remember school supplies do NOT include a bottle of wine and a note to the teacher that says THANK YOU, thank you very, very, very much.

Isn’t it nice to sit at work and not worry about them drowning the cat, flooding the basement for a swimming pool, setting each other on fire, And you DO miss the hourly calls. “Mom, I am SO bored’. Mom can you leave the car at home so I can drive to …, Mom, can
I get a tattoo. I am 13 and I think…, Mom – he is picking on me again. Mom, hmm, the window got broken, but it’s NOT MY fault….Mom, is it okay if I have a boy over and we take a nap, just a nap, I promise, a nap together? “

You can actually talk to adults who don’t say, “Well, he started it.” Whoops , I mean, gosh you miss the little tykes.

And of course the kids have been sleeping late every morning and they have to get back on schedule. So it makes perfect sense to send them to bed at 8 p.m. the last two weeks before they go to school. After all, they do have to adjust to a new schedule and you have your husband have the candles and the wine and even the time!


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The Name Game

August 13th, 2009

nameDuring the early years of the Internet, there was furious competition for Web site domain names, accompanied by lawsuits and huge sums paid for well-known names. Last year the buying and selling of Web site domains amounted to a $77 million enterprise, says a recent study by Sedo.com, an international company that offers domain transfer and escrow services. At any given time, Sedo lists 12 million to 15 million domains for sale, says Chief Operating Officer Jeremiah Johnston, who runs the firm’s Boston office. He spoke recently to Smart Answers columnist Karen E. Klein about the domain market and how entrepreneurs can acquire, improve, and sell domains. Edited excerpts of their conversation follow.

Is the buying and selling of Web site domain names a viable business?

The days of the Internet pioneers who grabbed one-word, fantastic domains are largely over. Now, it’s a matter of recognizing opportunities and making shrewd decisions. But the buying and selling of domain names has remained one of the few bright spots during the global downturn. There are almost 174 million domain names worldwide and an annual growth rate of 30% over the last five years.

Do domain names automatically increase in value over time?

Online property typically increases in value over time, particularly generic or descriptive domains that have the enduring, evergreen quality that drives traffic. Similar to traditional real estate, if you invest in the right virtual property, and hold on to it for a while, you will likely see a solid ROI. However, by developing a lackluster Web site into a money-making portal, entrepreneurs and small businesses will not only be making a profit, but they’ll be making a business. They can put equity and worth into a ramshackle Web site and “flip” it for profit some time down the road.

What should individuals look for in domain names?

Look for domains that are generic, category-defining, and short, with one or two words. If you think about all the niches, verticals, and hobbies, the possibilities are infinite. Look for domains in categories where you have some knowledge and think about whether a particular domain is something you’d search for or type into a browser.

What else should entrepreneurs keep in mind?

Remember that domains are more than just dot-coms. The alternative extensions and foreign country domains, like .uk, are very popular despite the continued dominance of .com. Also, prices are significantly lower—maybe three to four times less—for the .tv, .net, .info, or .biz extensions, and they can help a business stand out and provide search engine optimization benefits.

What kind of price range are we talking about?

You hear stories about seven-figure deals, like vodka.com selling for $3 million. But the average price for a domain is under $2,000. If you coin a domain name and nobody else has ever thought of it, you can register it for about $10 annually. (You can check WhoIs to see if a domain name has already been registered.)

Why are there so many domains that sit empty or have no original content on them?

People buy domains and keep them because there’s not much cost associated with them. If they can make even a trickle of income from advertising, that offsets the annual fee, if nothing else. But there are also some really good domains, like sneakers.com, that naturally get hundreds of thousands of unique visitors a month. If you have a domain that gathers anywhere near that kind of traffic, you’ve got a money-making machine.

How much traffic do you need to make good money with a domain name?

It depends on what the going price is for the ads you have on the site.

If you are advertising cheap consumer goods, you’ll need a higher degree of traffic to make any real money. If your site is specialized in an industry where one sales lead is worth a lot, you could have substantially fewer visitors but still make a profit.

One of the nice things about Web sites is that you can analyze the traffic you’re getting. If it turns out that 70% of your visitors are coming from Canada, you’d adjust your content and advertising to take advantage of that.

What kinds of things should entrepreneurs consider if they’re in the market for a domain?

Of course they’ll want to know how much traffic it gets and what kind of search engine ranking it has. Check out the seller and see if that person is the original site registrant. You want to know if the site has changed hands many times and what was on the site in the past, which you can find out at Archive.org. If a site was used for something bad in the past, such as to infringe on somebody’s trademark, you don’t want to be associated with that.

You want to find a site that suits you and your long-term goals. It’s fairly easy to evaluate interest and site loyalty without having to do a lot of extensive research. Sites that offer products or direct services tend to be more profitable, since you aren’t solely relying on advertisers for your ROI.

What should you do with a domain once you purchase it?

Determine what you can do within your budget to improve the Web site and add value to the real estate. Define the Web site’s identity. If you can create a recurring audience by offering content in addition to advertisements, that gives you more valuable traffic quality.

For instance, some people own domains based around a sport that they know, so they put up content, photos, and updates to make the site dynamic.

How are domain sales prices evaluated?

Anything you can do to improve the domain adds value, so if you hold it for several years, if you increase the search engine ranking, if you develop content and audience, that’s all cash-flow positive. If you do nothing more than place advertisements on the site and rely on natural traffic to generate ‘click-thru’ revenue, you’d evaluate what you make annually and sell it for a multiple of that annual revenue.


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