Idea Generator

Write Well, Write Now!

Welcome to the Idea Generator blog - designed to spark your creativity and make your great ideas come alive.

Whether you're writing new content for your blog, website or newsletter, recycling content to create a special report, e-book or printed book or putting together ANY product that includes written words, you're in the right place.

Check back for new writing prompts and marketing ideas. Or better still, use the subscription box in the top right-hand corner so you never miss a new post.

Don't forget to pick up your FREE copy of the Top 10 Article Generator at http://www.writeatop10article.com

Direct traffic is golden, SEO traffic is a bonus

In a website statistics tool like Google Analytics, direct traffic, literally, refers to website visitors who actually typed your website or blog address right into the address bar of their Internet browser.

Direct traffic is pretty special. It means someone remembered the URL of my website and used it specifically when they were looking for help with writing or editing.

Next, Google Analytics tracks traffic from referring sites, which is also very special. When a visitor has come from a referring site, it means that someone thinks enough of my work to include a link to my site from their website or blog, or maybe they've even sent the link in a direct email message to a client, colleague, friend or family member.

Or maybe the referral came out of my article marketing efforts at sites like Ezine Articles. Someone read one of my articles and liked my ideas enough to find out more about what I offer.

Direct traffic and traffic from referral sites both represent people who have already warmed up to the idea of finding out more about you. That's much different from just having your website pop up in a list of search results.

I really like what Rick Spence writes in the June 2008 issues of Profit magazine, "... the Web isn't always about the masses. For many niche businesses, Web marketing means drawing your best customers closer and closer." (Read Rick's article)

So do what you can to keep search engine optimization (SEO) on your side - write a lot of fresh content, and write for your niche by using the language they'll use when they're looking for information and help.

Then, turn your attention back to cultivating your relationships, because that's what will send direct traffic and referring site traffic your way.

Writing Prompt: How can you greet your website visitors as if they've all come as direct traffic or from referral sites? How can you treat strangers (search engine traffic) like friends?

P.S. There are also such things as human search engines (Mahalo) and social bookmarking sites (del.icio.us), both of which allow Web users to access search results that are based on human entries versus computer-generated ones.

Getting out my fine-toothed comb

A quick update on the progress on my upcoming book, The Customizable Style Guide for Coaches Who Write: Look Smarter, Write Faster and Get Better Results from Your Writing - the design is done and I'm just in the proofreading stage.

Of course, I'm also finding things I want to change in the content. Here's where perfectionism starts to seep in. That's why I'm making sure to tell a lot of people how close the book is to being complete. I know you all won't let me dissect it for too much longer.

Watch for a pre-sales offer very soon, and the official launch coming shortly after.

Thanks for your support and good wishes!

Remember the Lighthouse Test?

Please note: I am a proud affiliate of Perfect Customers and so I will earn a commission if you follow these links and decide to make any purchases from their site in the future. You can go straight to their website at www.perfectcustomers.com if you'd prefer to bypass my affiliate code.

Do you remember the Lighthouse Test, from the folks at Perfect Customers?

I've mentioned it several times already, as I talked about writing for your niche, taking a stand and attracting success.

Well, they've come out with another incredible (and free) resource, a special report called, "Invoking YOUR power of Strategic Attraction™: Transform your business into a powerful magnet to attract more perfect customers."

Read about how "work is love made visible," how you don't have to settle for anything less than perfect customers (I know I don't - all of my clients are wonderful!) and much, much more!

Click the image below to claim your free copy now:

Unleashing the Goddess Within

To follow-up on my Website Manifesto, I'm going to tell the story of a website sales page that I recently edited. Watch for another website story next month!

Sharon Turnbull, PhD, of GoddessGift.com hired me to edit the sales page for her Goddess Quiz. I was really intrigued by her product, impressed by her knowledge and eager to step into her Goddess world.

The existing page was way longer than she wanted it be, because she was trying to explain some pretty complex topics - archetypal psychology and personality assessments. She also has a huge wealth of information to share and she didn't want her readers to miss out on any of it! Maybe she was trying to write the sales page of a lifetime?

In an effort to keep the page to a manageable length, Sharon had included links to a lot of different pages with more information, inviting her website visitors on a long and fascinating journey. The problem was that it was too easy for them to get lost or distracted along the way.

We worked together to bring the focus back to one purpose: encouraging website visitors to buy the Goddess Quiz.

The result? Sharon's Goddess Quiz sales page is now much more focused. There are three outbound links that open as small new windows; one has more information about each of the Goddess types, and the other two are personal stories of how others have benefited from the Goddess Quiz.

I asked Sharon about the difference it made to have my help with her sales page, and here's what she told me:

“Though I was initially dreading having to ‘brain dump’ on someone who knew nothing about my unusual product, everything about you and your process quickly reassured me I'd made the right decision. You listened carefully and took my concerns to heart while gracefully introducing original ideas that literally rejuvenated that tired old sales page I'd been using. You reconnected me to my story and gave it momentum.

Somehow you knew exactly what to change and what to keep in the copy to make it clear and concise. And the tone was perfect – not hard sell, but not too “woo-woo” either. Your powerfully crafted page was right-on-target and you delivered it in a way that was phenomenal . . . not only prompt and efficient, but actually instructive and enjoyable. Linda, you were Goddess-sent!”

P.S. The results are in! My own Goddess Quiz results showed that I am a Persephone. Check out Sharon's Goddess page to find out what that means about me, or take the quiz yourself!

20 Free Communication Tools

There's a party going on at http://www.effectivecommunicationsgiveaway.com and you're invited!

In honor of Effective Communications Month, Felicia Slattery has pulled together some of the world's best and brightest to give you a one-stop shop of free communication tools, all designed to give you the results you want.

And there's a little something from me about making your writing more readable.

Head on over to http://www.effectivecommunicationsgiveaway.com and let these experts shower you with gifts!

June is Effective Communications Month!

In honor of this official holiday I’ve teamed up with Felicia Slattery, communication coach, and more than 15 other experts to celebrate. 

We're all putting together some special gifts for you, especially designed to help you communicate effectively with your target market, niche, ideal clients, or audience. 

Everything is under wraps for another two day until Thursday, June 5. THEN, watch for an invitation to discover how to:

• organize your small business and office
• write articles for list-building and profit
• podcast
• write and publish a book to market your business
• use search engine optimization
• use public speaking to market your business
• and so much more! 

There will even be a little something from me, about how to make your writing more readable.  Everything in this fabulous package is completely free and won’t cost you a penny!

I’ll send you the link this Thursday so you can get in on all the fun goodies.

Have you been to the library lately?

In the post Want to write more? Read more - RSS can help, I focused on reading newsletters, websites and blogs. Because I have an Internet-based business and do 98% of my work on the computer, that's naturally the first place I go to do some reading.

But, do you remember books?

There's always a book on my nightstand that I read for pleasure, though it can take me months to get through one, at only a few pages a night.

When it comes to business books, because I know that I simply don't have a lot of time offline that I want to spend reading, I tend not to want to invest in buying my own copies.

So when someone recommends a book, the first thing I do is head over to the Toronto Public Library website.

From there, I can browse books, then log in and reserve the ones I want. They ship the books to my nearest branch and call me when they arrive. Then I have a week to go pick them up before they put them back into circulation.

When I do get my hands on the book, I tend to skim, not read. Usually I find at least one golden nugget that I can write about here and/or apply immediately to my business.

I've used the library a lot as I've been working on the Customizable Style Guide for Coaches who Write. Not too long ago, I was walking out of the library on a sunny Saturday afternoon. I'd just picked up two resource books for the style guide, and I had a huge rush of gratitude that the library is there for me and others who have a passion for knowledge and reading.

Writing Prompt: Writing book reviews is a great way to stay on top of the issues facing your prospective clients. Consult websites, blogs and trade magazines that attract members of your target market, to see what books they're talking about. And when you get the book, check out who the authors list as references and key influences. You don't have to write a formal review, you can just share your impressions of the book, summarize the main lessons you took away, or tell a story about how the book influenced your business or your life.

P.S. Of course, another way for busy people to access business books is to listen to them. My sister is a big fan of audio books, though I haven't really explored those yet. Away from the computer, my life is surpisingly low-tech. I finally have a CD player in the car, but still no .MP3 player ;)

More about story telling

In her article, Telling a Good Story [this link doesn't seem to be working, hopefully that's temporary], blogger Michelle Miller (of Wonder Branding: Marketing to Women), tells us how three big companies have used authentic and consistent story-telling as a marketing strategy, and describes the positive results they've gotten.

People love to hear stories, and Miller also makes the point that as consumers we love to feel "in the know" about what's behind the brand, company or service professional we're dealing with.

In another post at GrokDotCom, Michelle shares her own hilarious story about going into the garage for a hammer (and later pulling the hammer out of the fridge) to illustrate a key reason that female shoppers sometimes abandon an online purchase before they're finished (read the story).

In my blog post, Look Around and Make Connections, there are a few other examples of how a quirky personal story can help make your point and keep readers coming back.

Writing Prompt: Your readers want to hear more about what goes on behind-the-scenes of your business. Let them in by sharing a story.

The Confidence to Write and Write and Write

Mary Wollard is an attorney/mediator, and we met following a tele-class series I did for the members of Dina Lynch's ADR Practice Builder community in the summer of 2007. Now a long-term editing client, Mary tells me that since we've been working together, she has so much more confidence and enthusiasm about writing.

She loves to write and has no shortage of great ideas, but in the past she's always been held up by worries about the quality of her writing.

Now, she just writes (and writes, and writes), with the confidence and reassurance that another set of eyes will go over her blog posts before she publishes them.

Mary specializes in co-parenting issues following divorce, and her articles are amazing! Her blog is at http://cofamilysolutions.blogspot.com/. Have a look, and please pass it along to anyone who could benefit from her sage wisdom.

When I asked Mary about the difference it makes having me as her editor, she had this to say:

"It is such a relief to know that I can concentrate on getting my ideas down and not on perfecting the final product. Linda's edits are always so thoughtful and make everything I write more readable without changing the original intent or flavor. Having Linda on my team is an essential part of my business plan."

Seth Godin on How to Write Like a Blogger

Last month, Seth Godin offered up some writing gems from the blogging world in his post, "Write Like a Blogger."

I especially like point #3, "Drip, drip, drip," about how we can introduce a theme or idea in pieces, over time. It gets back to when I asked if you're "trying the write the article of a lifetime?"

Point #4, "It's ok if you leave," challenges my practice of setting up outside links from my blog posts to open in a new window. He suggests that if my writing is interesting enough, you'll come back - no matter how many other interesting places I send you.

What do you think about that? What do you do in your own blog? Does having links open up in a new window keep you reading my blog longer? Do you appreciate not losing your place and having to find your way back, or does it simply annoy you and clutter up your desktop? Please submit your comments below!

Writing Prompt: Take out a recent piece of writing, or even better, something you're finishing up right now. How could writing like a blogger improve it?