13 Lessons From an Epic Book Tour

 

Months before my book, Tides: The Science and Spirit of the Ocean, came out, I teamed with several publicists to build a twelve-month, 100-event tour. Yes – 100!

We targeted the coastal regions of North America, including Canada and Alaska. We booked events at universities, book stores, grammar schools, breweries, museums, aquariums, libraries, Audubon Societies, surf shops, outdoor stores (L.L.Bean, REI), land trusts, literary conferences and festivals, science centers, and specialty clubs (yacht clubs, book clubs, and the Explorers Club). The tour was shaped, of course, by the fact that my book is non-fiction and about the ocean.

None of the publishing professionals I worked with had seen a tour this large, or even close. They thought I was crazy.

It’s now August. The book has been out six months and I’ve given 75 talks in about 60 cities and towns. Here are 13 things I’ve learned:

1. Events drive media; media drives sales

The speaking event itself is important, but what happens around it is even more important. My publicist often described events as “anchoring,” because they’re the foundation on which media attention is built. Even if your event itself draws a small audience, hundreds of people — maybe thousands or tens of thousands — will learn about your book through event-driven media – radio, newspaper, or TV. The event is the pebble thrown into the pond.

2. Plan ahead

Many of the best speakers series are planned six or eight months in advance. If you get in early, you’ll have more flexibility in scheduling. Be open and persistent. Sometimes good things take a long time to happen, and sometimes they don’t. Don’t force it: your event will be more successful if the organizers are excited about having you and claim full ownership for it.

3. Find good partners

If you schedule events with groups that have well-established and well-attended speaker programs, they’ll have nice venues, good tech support, and an ability and willingness to spread the word. (Don’t be your own producer or schedule with a group that hasn’t done this before!) Some groups are nationwide, like The Audubon Society, so once you get in with one, the door opens to others.

Some of my best events involved multiple partners. In Port Angeles, Washington, for example, we encouraged the local bookstore to partner with the library, college, local science center, and the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). We got lots of publicity and a hundred people turned out for the talk. One organization takes the lead; the rest help spread the word (they get their name on it, which should make them happy). Another good partner was the Nature Conservancy of Canada, who sponsored four great events in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick (around the Bay of Fundy). The events were scheduled, catered, and well publicized by the NCC.

4. The Goldilocks Scenario

Medium-sized cities are often easier to book an event, get media attention, and attract a good-sized audience. In the big cities you’re competing with many other worthy events. We scheduled talks at most of the major coastal cities – LA, Seattle, Boston, New York, D.C, etc. — but had some of our most successful events in mid-sized towns like Port Townsend, WA, Astoria, OR, and Santa Barbara, CA, on the west coast, and Camden, ME, Boothbay, ME, Woods Hole, MA, and Martha’s Vineyard, MA on the east coast. This doesn’t mean you should focus only on mid-size and smaller towns. It’s not either/or; it’s both/and.

5. Midweek evenings are the sweet spot

Weekend or day events tend to draw smaller crowds.

6. Universities, no. Bookstores, maybe

If your goal is to sell books and get the word out, I recommend staying away from universities. The audiences are usually small, less attentive, and made up mostly of students who don’t have the money to buy books (nor the time to read outside their assigned texts). Bookstores are a natural, but your event will almost certainly be scheduled during business hours, which can be distracting to both you and your audience. Additionally, bookstores tend to schedule a lot of author events, which means yours will not get special attention from either the bookstore staff or the media. The good thing about a bookstore event, however, is it allows you to meet the staff. If they like you, they’ll recommend your book.

7. Intangibles matter, too

I agreed to give a talk at the Library of Congress because, well, an author just doesn’t say no to that. I flew to LA to be on a panel exploring “Memoir and Travel” with Mark Kurlansky at the LA Times Book Festival. I think I sold three books, but I wouldn’t trade the experience for anything. And, for a favor and because I like kids, I agreed to meet with 80 grammar school kids in Santa Cruz.

8. You’ll pay – literally

Don’t expect anyone to care as much about your book as you do. And don’t expect anyone to work as hard as you will. For free. You won’t get paid for giving talks (occasionally you’ll receive a token $100 or $200), and most publishers have limited funds to support a tour.

9. Treat your presentation seriously

Develop it with the same care you gave your book. Keep it to 35-40 minutes and allow time for questions afterward. Memorize it. Read from the book, but no more than five minutes. Don’t give everything away; leave them wanting more. Send a suggested script for your introduction, as well as a press kit with links and photos for the venue to use for advertising. If you have technical needs (I have images and a short video), bring a kit of connectors that will allow you to plug into any system, and show up an hour early for testing. I even brought my own speaker (small but powerful) that saved me many times.

10. Sometimes you’re lucky and sometimes you’re not

Luck has many dimensions, and it always plays a role. A blizzard blew up on the eve of my talk at the Harvard Bookstore. Only fifteen people showed up. At Providence Library, Rhode Island, my event landed on the first sunny day of spring. It was my smallest audience – nine. On the other hand, The Oregonian printed a review two days before my talk at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, and I was interviewed on NPR the day of. We sold out the 320-seat theater and turned away 70

Every author has a story of reading to an audience of one or two. It happens. Don’t fret or judge. See the big picture. Do your job. In setting up my tour, we aimed for audiences of 50 or more. In the end, we ranged from 9-320, with an average of 70. One advantage of having lots of events is that you’re less inclined to get attached to the success or failure of any one of them.

11. Booksellers and books sold

Don’t handle books yourself, if possible. Have a local bookstore do it (you have enough to do!). So far, actual book sales have varied wildly from event to event, with no apparent reason. Sometimes 10% of the audience bought them, and sometimes 100%, with an average of about 25%. Remember that there will be couples in the audience who will buy just one, if they buy at all. Book sales tend to begin a couple weeks prior to an event (assuming there’s publicity) and continue for a couple weeks after, so total books sold for each appearance could be double or triple what you sell at the event itself.

12. Drink water. Swim at the YMCA

Touring is tough on the mind and body. It’s a workshop. A marathon. If you care about what you eat and drink and if you thrive on exercise, as I do, the road is especially challenging. I drink lots of water, especially when I’m on a plane. I also try to drink less alcohol, generally, and take walks and swim at the YMCA. They saved me!

13. Why tour at all?

When a new book is released, authors traditionally embark on a 10-15 event tour, covering 4-6 major cities. With the growth of social media, where you can reach thousands of people at a key-tap, some say tours are a thing of the past. My experience is otherwise. The key-tap approach is important, but there’s nothing more valuable than engaging with people face to face, especially about a subject you – and they – care about. The results of even the briefest encounter can be surprising and far-reaching.

Almost every author I know complains about how little their publisher did to promote their book. My experience with my first book, Talking on the Water, was so disappointing that I decided to hire an independent publicist for this one. My rationale was this: If I was going to spend seven years researching and writing this book, I wanted a publicity effort to match. From the start, I vowed that I would leave no crumbs of regret on the table – either in the writing or in the promotion. By year’s end, I’ll have spent a lot of money and been away from home about 120 days. But I’ve left no crumbs.

Culled from Writers Digest

Top 3 Questions You Should Ask in Writing Creative Design Proposal

 

Make yourself stand out from other designers by drafting a creative design proposal that will impress potential clients.

Leave no room for them to think twice.

By showing off your talent, experience, and professionalism early on, clients will have you at the top of their minds during the hiring stage. Make sure that they will remember your creative design proposal among all others by giving them something unique.

Before doing down to the details and technical information, it is important to ask yourself the following question before creating the creative design proposal. These questions include:

 

Who is the audience?

Early on, you should know who will read your creative design proposal. Are you targeting a Fortune 500 company, a small business, or a marketing agency? The needs of each can vary significantly, and so does their budget. In addition, you have to find out whether your proposal will be read by the business owner, marketing manager, or an assistant. In some cases, the reader may not be familiar with your services. It is important to clarify certain aspects of the work to keep them reading.

 

What impression do I want to leave?

The main goal of the creative design proposal is to get the reader’s approval. Even if the client is not yet ready to hire right now, they should take away something from going through the document. This is critical in landing projects. Be sure to state your assessment and recommendations upfront. This will let you leave a good impression. By projecting a professional image, prospective clients may even shortlist you for future work.

 

What can I do to get the job?

The creative design proposal you submit can either be accepted or rejected. Rejection doesn’t mean that your proposal isn’t good, it may just mean that the client doesn’t have the budget for it right now. In some cases, the timing may not be right but they intend to implement your ideas in the future. In writing the creative design proposal, you can only do your best. Follow solid guidelines in writing proposals and insert your own personality into it. The rest is up to the client.

Wring a creative design proposal is all about understanding what the client requires and building your recommendations around it. Don’t assume that you know better than prospective clients. After all, it is ultimately their decision whether to implement your ideas or not. In addition, always write the proposal from the reader’s point of view. Think about what the client’s reaction might be when going over your suggestions.

The little details matter as well. There are a lot of contractors and agencies which might be submitting similar creative design proposals to the same client. It is important to make the reader feel like they’re getting a good deal if they choose you. This may entail providing initial consultation, giving a small discount, and being communicative. Give them your full attention whenever you’re talking over the phone or chatting online over project details.

Culled from Bidsketch

Ways to Inject Some Fun in Your Social Media Marketing

 

Social media marketing is easy!

But it is also very easy to get it wrong when we fail to adjust to the platform. People are online to have fun and once we are in tune with that fact, our social media marketing will be more successful.

Here are ways to inject some fun into your social media marketing.

1. It’s social before media

The mistake many businesses make is that they forget that the platform is meant to enable people to get social. So they bring their traditional marketing techniques to social media and then wonder why they are not getting any attention.

You should know that people are not on social media for your product. The world does not revolve around your business. So when you acknowledge that people are online for social purposes - to connect with friends, meet new people and have fun, then you will get your social mask on before you market. Loosen up a bit!

Share jokes, spark a conversation. Help customers with valuable information and they will pay attention when you have something to market.

2. Run competitions

It does not have to be complicated. It can be just something that can spark a conversation. For instance, if you are a food vendor, you can post a picture of a spicy-looking plate of food and ask your friends or followers to mention those they can share that with. You can also run promos online and whoever wins, gets a discount.

3. Think of visuals

Those on social media are more inclined to watch a video than read a text. This is why most vendors employ the services of social media comedians who post short skits that make people laugh. When someone sees a funny video, he or she is more inclined to share it, so you will be wise to take advantage of this. Also, video advertising on platforms like YouTube can be very successful.

4. Give people something to remember

It does not need to have anything to do with your product, it only has to remain on people’s minds. Think of creating a funny character or slogan that people will use. Slangs work very well, especially in Nigeria, and musicians have taken advantage of this. Why can’t businesses do the same?

5. Be weird (a little) on social media

Do not go full-blown psycho but some of the online adverts that have done well in the past have been the weirdest. Many people are online to have fun, so you have to make them laugh. Think back at some of the weird campaigns you have seen and the amount of traction they have gotten. However, be cautious because this is a dangerous line to thread seeing as there is a thin line between being weird and offensive.

Social media allows us to reach out to more people than we would normally do, but for us to be successful, we have to speak the language of social media.

 

Publishers’ Insights You Should Know Before Writing Your Manuscript

 

There are publishers’ insights you should know before writing your manuscript, especially if you intend publishing your book for commercial purposes. Certainly, it is expected that your creativity should reflect in your writing, but you will need more than just your creativity to get ahead of the pack.

Below are the publishers’ insights you should know before writing your manuscript

Figure out what readers want:

If you are not writing for yourself, then you must figure out what readers want before writing, especially if you are writing for commercial purposes. You should find out the genre that gets talked about the most. More so, look out for what fascinates readers in the selected genre. Find out how to write a bestseller

Be your judge:

Ask yourself questions when writing. If you had visited a bookstore, would you have selected the same book you are writing over the books authored by other people? Once you can answer this question honestly, then you’ll be sure you are on the right path.

Research on the book genres that sell fast:

Take a market research dive into book stores. Visit print book stores as well as popular digital book stores such as Amazon, GoodReads, and others. Find out the genre that sells fast on each platform. That way, you would know the particular genre that sells fast, and consider writing spinning a good tale in that genre.

Find out books that earn a profitable income:

Some books are generally expensive compared to others. Academic books  tend to be more expensive due to the substantial amount of research put into place.  More so, depending on location and level of relevance, some books are likely to cost more than others. For instance, while a health book or journal on how to treat and prevent a certain endemic disease might sell at a higher price in the regions where the disease is most prevalent due to demand, it might not be as expensive in areas the disease is less prevalent.

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Having all these publishers’ insights in mind will help you with the self-awareness on how well your book would perform in the market.

Six Steps to Make Your Children's Story Sparkle

 

You never thought it possible, but you’ve finished your children’s story manuscript. You worked hard to create layered, believable characters, and the plot has an actual beginning, middle and end. Tonight, you plan to celebrate, then give your manuscript a quick run-through for spelling and punctuation errors. Tomorrow, you’ll send it off to a carefully chosen editor.

Not quite. Celebrate, certainly. But then print out your manuscript, stick it in a drawer, and walk away.

Too many authors make the mistake of submitting a manuscript before it’s ready. Getting the words down on paper is only the beginning. Editing those words turns that manuscript into a potential book. But you can’t adequately edit a story you poured your soul into without first removing some of your ego. So get a bit of distance. Put the manuscript aside for at least a week; two weeks is better. Then, as you read through the story from start to finish, pretend that someone else wrote it.

With this first, fresh reading, examine the story as a whole. Does the main character have qualities with which your target audience can identify? Does the plot take off early in the story with an incident that raises a problem for your character? Does that character resolve this problem in a dramatic, satisfying way near the end of the book? Did you throw enough obstacles in your character’s way, creating tension and forcing the reader to become emotionally invested in the story? If you answered “No” to any of these questions, you still don’t have a solid working draft of your story. Go back and continue to refine your plot and main character. But if you can honestly answer “Yes,” then now the real work begins. Here are six steps to help you flawlessly edit your manuscript.

1. Cut as many words as possible. Children’s book writers must adhere to strict industry standards for word counts. Picture books for children up to age eight average 1000 words (though many are shorter); easy readers for ages five to nine are 50-2500 words (depending on the publisher and level of reader); chapter books (short novels for ages seven to ten) typically are 10,000-12,000 words; middle grade novels (ages eight to twelve) hover around 20,000-25,000 words, and young adult novels (ages twelve and up) weigh in at 35,000 to 45,000 words. You’ll always find exceptions, but if you’re a new author, don’t stray too far from the norm. When writing for the younger ages especially, every word must count. Picture book writers are often tempted to add scenes and secondary characters that make the story unnecessarily complex. A good first step when editing any length of book is to go page by page and diligently cut every word, phrase, scene or character that doesn’t directly contribute to the plot.

Once you’ve trimmed the clutter, the remaining words will be more powerful. Now you’re ready for the fine-tuning. The next five steps will not only help you polish what’s left, but also allow you to “show” rather than “tell” the story to your readers.

2. Begin with a bang. Your readers will stick around for the first few sentences, but if they’re not hooked they’ll close the book. So make those sentences count. Start your story with action, dialogue, or set the mood in a way that’s so intriguing kids can’t walk away. You want to begin as close as possible to the story’s catalyst, that moment in which your character’s life changes from ordinary to extraordinary, and the plot takes off. Let’s look at some examples.

The first page Imogene’s Antlers, a picture book by David Small, reads: On Thursday, when Imogene woke up, she found she had grown antlers. Imogene’s untroubled reaction, reinforced by the illustrations, is just as intriguing as the antlers sprouting from her head.

Barbara Seuling’s chapter book, Oh No, It’s Robert, dives right into the type of conflict the main character will face: Robert Dorfman hated math. He hated it more than going to the dentist, or eating liver, or cleaning his room.

And the first chapter of Richard Peck’s novel A Long Way from Chicago (ages 9-12) sets the time and place in a manner that’s undeniably gripping: You wouldn’t think we’d have to leave Chicago to see a dead body. We were growing up there back in the bad old days of Al Capone and Bugs Moran. Just the winter before, they’d had the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre over on North Clark Street. The city had such an evil reputation that the Thompson submachine gun was better know as a “Chicago typewriter.”

3. Go on a low-modifier diet. A few adjectives and adverbs are fine, but if you feel you must pack your sentences with modifiers, you’re not getting the most out of your nouns and verbs. Strong verbs not only show action, they can also convey physical and emotional qualities. She went across the street only tells the reader that a character moved; adverbs are necessary to provide more information (went slowly, went quickly, went reluctantly). However, if you replace went with a more specific verb, that one word contains all the subtext you need (She trudged across the street. She scampered across the street. She stumbled across the street.)

Similarly, strong, exact nouns paint a particular picture in the reader’s mind. Adjectives such as big, little, beautiful, nice, old and great are too general to be of much use. All Sam’s friends thought he lived in a big, beautiful house doesn’t show the reader how big, or how beautiful, Sam’s house really is. Sam lived in a castle, or at least that’s what his friends thought gives the reader a specific point of reference, and also shows the contrast between Sam and his friends.

4. Reveal character with descriptions. Descriptions should reveal how your protagonist operates within the setting of the story, or feels about the other characters. If the action stops cold so you can wax poetic about a sunset, then the description is more about you than your main character. You have to remain invisible — interpret all details through the eyes of your protagonist. If your character is familiar with the book’s locale, she won’t remark upon the setting as if seeing it for the first time. In Sarah, Plain and Tall, Patricia MacLachlan’s novel for ages 8-10, Anna muses about her prairie home in the late 19th century:I wiped my hands on my apron and went to the window. Outside, the prairie reached out and touched the places where the sky came down. Though winter was nearly over, there were patches of snow and ice everywhere. I looked at the long dirt road that crawled across the plains, remembering the morning that Mama had died, cruel and sunny.

MacLachlan’s verbs — reached out, touched, crawled — are gentle, reflecting Anna’s love of her home. But the setting is also infused with loss. Because Anna sees more than just prairie when she looks out the window, the words embody her backstory as well as her surroundings.

Since picture books have illustrations on every page, their text contains very little description. Don’t waste precious words explaining that a character has “red, curly hair” unless the nature of her hair is a crucial plot element. But precise, sensory details can enhance the visual nature of the book while adding layers to the protagonist. Grandpa was an old, wrinkled, cranky man is a description that could come from any character that happened to spend a few minutes with Grandpa. Hannah thought Grandpa looked like the lemon she had left in the sun for her science experiment: brown, shriveled, and probably just as sour is a viewpoint that can only belong to Hannah.

5. Use triple-duty dialogue. Dialogue does three things: it supplies the reader with information about the plot, it gives insight into the speaker, and it shows the relationship between all the characters in the conversation. If your dialogue sounds too lifelike, full of pointless small talk or boring lists of the day’s activities, then you’ve cluttered the pages with conversational filler. First, whittle the dialogue down to the essence of the exchange. Then, add layers of subtext to what’s left. The use of body language, tone of voice, and bits of action that break up the dialogue (slurping a soda, staring out the window) clue the reader into how the characters feel about the what’s being said.

Each speaker has a distinct way of talking with unique speech patterns and phrasing. If you’re forced to identify the speaker for every line of dialogue in a running conversation, then you haven’t allowed your characters’ personalities to seep into their banter. This is just as true for talking animals as it is for people. In Let Sleeping Dogs Lie from the “Hank the Cowdog” series by John R. Erickson (ages 8-12), Hank, the ranch’s security dog, finds a dead chicken. In the following passage, speech patterns easily delineate the speakers. This dialogue jump-starts the plot, and clearly shows that Hank has a different attitude toward his job than does his sidekick Drover: “Drover,” I said after sifting the clues and analyzing the facts, “this was no ordinary murder. It’s the work of some kind of fiend. And he may still be on the ranch.”
“Oh my gosh! Maybe we better hide.” I caught him just as he was about to run for cover. “Hold on, son, I’ve got some bad news. We’re this ranch’s first line of defense. If there’s a murdering fiend on the loose, we have to catch him.”
Drover shivered and rolled his eyes. “You’re right about one thing.”
“And what would that be, Drover?”
“It’s bad news. I’m scared of murdering fiends.”

6. Pace yourself properly. Picture books are written in a series of scenes, each of which can be illustrated. The average picture book is 32 pages long, but the front matter (title page, copyright page, etc.) eats up about four pages. So assume you have 28 pages for your text. Mark up your manuscript where you think the page breaks might go, or place the text on 28 separate pages, staple them together like a book, and read the story as you turn the pages. Does each page of text inspire a different illustration? Is there something that occurs every other page (a tantalizing turn of phrase, a rise in the action) that makes the child want to turn the page and see what happens next? Is the plot’s resolution withheld until the end, or are the last few pages a letdown? Does the story as a whole have a satisfying rhythm that makes it easy to read aloud?

Easy readers, also heavily illustrated, are designed to be read by the child, and so the stories are conveyed through action and dialogue. Keep the pace moving. Chapter books have slightly longer paragraphs and short chapters (about four pages each), but are still heavy on the action.

Middle grade and young adult novels can contain sub-plots and more description, but in any book that has chapters, it’s wise to end the chapter on an emotional note. Breaking in the middle of a tension-filled scene is a good strategy: The scratching grew louder as Jake crept down the hall. He stopped in front of the coat closet. His hand shook as he reached for the knob to open the closet door. Run! screamed a voice inside his head, but Jake’s feet felt glued to the floor. Just before he touched the knob, the door slowly swung open on its own. End the chapter here, and your readers will have a hard time putting down your book and turning on the television.

Remember, you are your book’s first, and most important, editor. By using these six steps, you’ll whip your manuscript into shape and impress your next editor, the one who offers you a publishing contract.

Culled from Writing-World

The 3 Hiring Mistakes Most Small Businesses Make

 

Each and every employee is an investment made by the company they work for, and for a business to succeed it has to make the most of its investments.

This is especially true of smaller companies and startups, which typically have fewer employees and limited investment income with which to try and net a profit. In these cases, every single dollar a company spends on finding and hiring an employee can affect its longer term success, making it crucial that they avoid making any major mistakes while hiring.

The problem is that running a small business is hard work – very hard work. This means that those involved are often short of time, and when time is short mistakes happen.

The good news is that this means that your competitors are probably making these mistakes whilst hiring too, and an opportunity is present for you to close your own loose ends and employee a better hire whilst wasting less time and money.

The Most Common Hiring Mistakes:

Having Zero Interview Plan

The single greatest mistake that small and new businesses make when hiring is failing to have any type of interview plan. Many businesses go into the interview with little idea of what they are going to do, other than perhaps a few interview questions scribbled on a piece of paper.

Interviews should be treated like a science. You’ve selected the individuals with the best resumes, and you’re bringing them in for a job interview. How do you choose who to select unless you have a carefully measured way of determining who is going to bring value, and who is not.

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You do this by coming up with an interview plan. You find the most important questions to ask and make sure that you ask them to each candidate. You figure out what answers you’re looking for, and consider finding a way to score them objectively in order to ensure that you’re hiring the right people. You consider the amount you’re willing to pay, the factors that go into a great employee, and more.

It doesn’t necessarily have to be official, but there does need to be a plan in mind before you conduct your interview. If you wing each one of them, you risk asking some people more important questions than others, or not properly comparing those at the interview and letting your own natural biases kick in.

When it comes to recruitment, everything should be planned in some way, and although there is room for you to go off on some tangents (for example, if an applicant shares with you an interesting story), there should also be a methodology in place to make sure you’re hiring the right people.

Failing to Correctly Value Experience

This mistake goes two ways, and the best place to start is with an American baseball analogy. There are only 30 teams in all of major league baseball, each one employing a General Manager to run the entire team. When one general manager does a bad job (usually due to multiple seasons of hefty losses) that general manager is usually fired.

Some teams find up-and-coming stars to lead their organisation, and although sometimes those teams fail, other times they are wildly successful. Many of the most successful baseball organisations hired General Managers without any previous GM experience and reaped the rewards.

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But other teams are a lot more “old school” and risk adverse. They refuse to hire any general manager unless they have previous GM experience.

Experience can be a good thing. But remember that there are only 30 teams in baseball, and at any given time, 25 to 28 general managers are employed for multiple years. That means you’re limited to hiring the 2 or so general managers that are out of work, both of whom were likely already let go because they failed to bring turn their teams into winning organisations. With this “Experience Only” mindset, you’re potentially limited to hiring someone with a history of losing.

This is the fatal flaw in overvaluing experience. Your next great employee may be someone that has limited experience but significant aptitude. If you focus too heavily on experience (either by requiring a considerable list of “qualifications” in your job description or hiring the person most experienced without considering other factors), you may be overlooking or turning off someone that could have been a better contributor.

On the other side of this, however, is the recent trend of business owners to hire those without experience at all, hoping to find people that are “cheaper” and just as productive. Many individuals with excellent experience are being ignored in favour of saving a few thousand dollars a year on an unproven individual. While there is significant value to be found in those that may not have traditional experience, there is also nothing quite like good experience that relates directly to your company.

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Assuming Hiring Stops After the Job Offer

Finally, a very common mistake with small business owners is assuming that recruitment stops with the job offer. It doesn’t.

An employee’s productivity is 50% ability and 50% factors that occur after they have been hired. Employees need to be properly on-boarded, with excellent training (including not only their tasks, but also where to go to ask for office supplies, how to find files in folders on the network, etc.), programs in place to improve job satisfaction, and even smaller issues like opportunities for growth, objective job performance evaluation methods, and more.

You can hire the best employee available, but with poor training, no access to resources, and little in your office to ensure job satisfaction, that employee is going to struggle. Recruitment doesn’t stop after the job offer has been made, and no matter the size of your business you should be committed to making sure that employee adapts properly.

Avoid Costly Hiring Mistakes

Small businesses can’t afford to waste money on a bad hire. Always keep in mind the above hiring mistakes, and the tips that you’ll need to consider in order to avoid them in the future.

Culled from Recruit Shop

5 Reasons You Should Write (and Publish) Your Work

 

Ever since I can remember, I loved the idea of being a writer.

After all, how cool would it be to create something as epic as The Lord of the Rings, or The Chronicles of Narnia, or Gates of Fire and know that this amazing story came from you?

But time passed and I never did write my great novel…

Sure, I made some half-hearted attempts; a few paragraphs here, a few sketches there…but never anything substantial.

And certainly nothing I would actually “publish.”

Fast forward 15 years and I’ve finally written and self-published my first book (a couple actually), as well as published about a half-dozen books from other amazing artists and authors.

In these past two years since I finally hit the “publish” button on my work (and others), my life has improved dramatically (same for the authors I publish).

Below are the 5 most important reasons I’ve found for writing – AND publishing – my work…

Reasons that I hope inspire you to do the same.

Good luck.

5 Reasons to Write and Publish Your Work

#1. Become a Sought-After Authority

Before I published my first book, no one knew my name.

Or at least not the people I specifically wanted to know my name.

Since I’ve published, I’ve been interviewed on top-tiered shows like Growthhacker.tv, EntrepreneuronFire.com, and FirepoleMarketing.com. More importantly, people consider me an authority on the topics I write on.

The Complete Guide to Pay What You Want Pricing has given people a reason to call me an expert (and even guru) on the topic.

I don’t say this to brag – the point isn’t whether or not I’m the expert – the point is to show you how powerful this is.

Think about it: if you’re looking for help on a topic ("Pay What You Want" in my case), who do you go to? Probably the subject matter expert, right?

Exactly.

Because of this, my writing and publishing has allowed me to leverage my authority on the subject to create lucrative consulting gigs and get invitations to speak at conferences and meetups, and it has improved my credibility when the topic comes up.

#2. Conquer the Imposter

According to Psychology Today, over 70% of people suffer from imposter syndrome (at some point in their lives).

While there are lots of ways to overcome feeling like a fraud, the fastest way is to write and publish your work.

Why?

Because it forces you to get over yourself, get outside your own head, and come to grips with reality (that most people probably won’t read what you write anyway, so why not do it, right?).

In The War of Art, Steven Pressfield writes about “Resistance” – that nasty thing that keeps us from doing great things in life.

Well, imposter syndrome is just one element of “Resistance,” all of which can be defeated by the commitment to write (daily) and publish (as soon as you can).

#3. Create Additional Streams of Revenue

In my last year in the Army, I had no idea what I wanted to become after I left.

Lawyer? Wall Street broker? Real Estate Investor?

Because I had no idea, I figured the simplest thing I could do was test out various creative pursuits to see if they were economically feasible. Since I can’t program to save my life, I figured writing would be the thing I could legitimately test in the marketplace.

Sure enough, it only took 1 published book to show me what was possible (and that was PWYW!).

Since then, I’ve written and published more, and scaled that impact dramatically by publishing other people's work.

Now, with every new book, is another stream of income that will continue into the future (I try to only write and publish “evergreen” content – stuff that doesn’t fade over time). Best part is: all of this compounds.

So if you’re waiting around believing you’ll eventually finish and eventually publish. Stop.

Set a ship date and launch in the next 30 days (I dare you).

#4. Build Something That Lasts Forever

This is the reason I do what I do in the long run.

Money fades. Success fades. What’s cool or hipster or whatever fades.

But good books don’t fade.

Meditations by Marcus Aurelius is as applicable today as it was 1,000 years ago.

And through his writing, we get to experience a piece of what he was like. Certainly not the entirety of his personality, but better than nothing.

So when you question your writing, or your ability, or your worth, stop, and remember:

It’s not about you.

#5. We Become What We Do

In the past two years, since writing and publishing my first book, I’ve realized something important:

Envisioning myself as the person who has written a bestselling book is a lot different than actually writing one.

Too often we love the idea of being someone or something, but don’t embrace what it means to become that person (guilty).

It’s nice to envision oneself as a bestselling author.

It’s a different thing entirely to work every day to become one.

No, it’s not easy.

But then again, it’s not supposed to be.

The question is: what do you want to become 1 year from now?

And while the answer differs from person to person, the next step is always the same:

Start today.

11 Reasons Your Website Doesn’t Sell

 

A well-designed website organically grows a company’s business and reinforces branding.

A study by Nielsen Norman Group found that users stay on a website for an average of 10 to 20 seconds. Visitors hang around longer only if they find something worthwhile during those initial glances. For a business, every second counts.

Several factors may strip a website of value. Here are 11 problems that affect a site’s presentation alongside fixes to immediately apply to help drive greater user engagement and better traffic.

 

Why Is the Conversion Rate of Your Business Website Low?

 

1. Low-quality visuals.

Many have written about the power of visuals in communication. A 1986 study by the University of Minnesota’s Management Information Systems Research Center with 3M support found presentations using visual aids 43 percent more convincing. A website’s potential can be held back by the inclusion of low-quality visuals.

Marketing expert Govind Agarwal recommends having high-quality photos to grab viewers’ attention, increase social shares and even boost overall SEO if pictures are tagged appropriately. Labnol.org offers a list of places for finding free professional images.

2. Lack of reviews or testimonials.

If its website does not have testimonials, a business is missing out on an easy and effective marketing tool. Customers are discriminating. Merely telling them of the strength of the product or service is not enough anymore. Testimonials can help create trust in a company’s offerings and quell concerns customers might have about making a purchase. Derek Gehl, CEO of the Internet Marketing Center, has shared a guide to using testimonials and choosing ones that suit an audience.

3. Lacking color savvy.

Another factor that might cause weak sales on a company site is its color scheme. Much research is being done on visual information that’s hue-related. Many entrepreneurs probably already understand the importance of branding. A powerful brand sets the company apart from the competition and makes the business instantly recognizable to consumers. But it can lose credibility with users if its website is adorned with an unimpressive color scheme.

For a crash course on color theory, reference Smashing Magazine’s in-depth guide. Determine what the company’s brand should convey to customers and be sure the website has an appropriate color scheme to match.

4. Outdated information.

Scroll down to the bottom of a web page to where a copyright date is listed. Is it still recent? According to Small Business Trends, a website appearance that looks out of date is an instant turnoff to customers.

Clients want to see that a company has put in an effort to stay current. This includes regularly adding new content and refreshing existing copy.

5. Hard to find.

The best website in the world is useless if no one can find it. An entrepreneur need not know much about search engine optimization to develop pages that are easily discoverable by search engines and consumers. Gwen Moran has recommended a strong domain name, carefully optimized page titles to accurately reflect the content inside and using keywords effectively.

6. Not being mobile friendly.

A business website may resemble a work of art when opened on a desktop computer, but if it does not display well or function on a mobile device, the company will lose out on a growing segment of the online audience. Shopify, a leading e-commerce platform, looked at data from more than 100,000 websites that use its platform and found that slightly more than 50 percent of shopping is being done via mobile. To ensure that a website is mobile responsive, check these actionable tips.

7. Difficulty in finding contact information.

Ever needed assistance in a store just when all the sales associates seem to have disappeared? In retail, that should never be the case. Online, it shouldn’t be either. If a customer has a question or needs help, the site’s contact information should be easy to find. Being available on demand, such as via live chat, can also help a business better engage customers, reduce costs and boost sales.

8. Misdirected focus

Customers want their experience on a business website to be focused on them. This means including sections that answer their questions and address their needs. An easy fix is including a frequently-asked-questions, or FAQ, page. The Content Marketing Institute recommends highlighting top questions, with timely answers and making the archive searchable. When possible, simplify the user experience by making answers accessible within one click. Customers want fast, helpful information.

9. Requiring sign-ups first

Forcing users to sign up on a company site before they can access can deter engagement. It puts an artificial hurdle between customers and the company’s products. According to user-experience blog UX Movement, aggressive sign-up forms make readers hesitant to divulge personal information for fear of receiving spam. In many cases, consumers assume the value they’ll receive won’t be worth the price they pay in sharing an email address. Make each visit count and do not corner users into doing anything they’re not comfortable doing.

10. Audio or video the autoplays

One way to surely annoy a site’s visitors is to set audio and video on pages to autoplay. In an editorial, Troy Dreier, senior associate editor of StreamingMedia.com, wrote, “Sites are overusing autoplay, and it reflects badly on the whole online video industry.” Unfortunately, publishers, desperate for revenue, are still happy to deliver autoplay ads. To minimize disruptions to the reader experience, limit a clip to five seconds or less or offer a pause or stop button if it runs longer.

11. Painfully slow load times

Digital audiences are impatient. Even if a website is filled with incredibly captivating media, it may experience high bounce rates if pages take too long to load for readers. Visitors highly value their time, so build a fast website that caters to their needs at lightning speed. Compressing images and large files is an easy way to guarantee quicker load times. Use a tool like Smush.it to shrink files and optimize a site’s performance.

If you would like the TRW Consult team to just do your marketing for you, click here.

5 Simple Ways to Improve Your Writing

 

So you’ve been wanting to write—for your blog, for your company, for industry publications, or maybe just for fun. But you’re not sure where to get started. Or maybe you’ve never even considered writing (or never really liked it to begin with), but you’re quickly realizing that you’re going to have to do it (and do it well) for your career.

As with anything, writing is much less about being born with an innate “talent,” and much more about getting better with practice. So here are a few fun and simple ways to start incorporating writing into your everyday life—and get better at it in no time.

1. Look Around

Many writers cling tightly to the idea of a “muse,” a divine inspiration that hits when she fancies and provides you with the exalted insight for your most inspired piece.

Well, it doesn’t always work that way. While there’s no denying that great ideas can’t always be forced, the mood to write doesn’t always strike when it’s convenient. Instead, take advantage of the world around you for inspiration—your walk to the subway, the stories in your Facebook newsfeed, your interaction with the cashier at Starbucks in the morning (and the afternoon). As writer Henry Miller once said, “Develop interest in life as you see it; in people, things, literature, music—the world is so rich, simply throbbing with rich treasures, beautiful souls, and interesting people. Forget yourself.”

If you don’t think you have anything to write about, think again. There’s inspiration everywhere—you just have to be paying attention.

2. Find Your Space

How and where do you write best? For some people, it’s peace and quiet, while others need music or the chaotic hubbub of co-workers milling about. And most find that different places work for different types of writing: When you have to write for work, you may need to put in your headphones and listen to the crooning of Lana Del Rey, but when you’re blogging, you may prefer curling up on your couch with a glass of wine.

Instead of trying to force yourself to write at a specific location, try out a variety of different spaces until you find what works for you. Then, recreate that cozy, creative environment every time you need to write.

 

3. Write Now, Edit Later

Many times, your own worst critic—in writing and in life—is you. So, when you’re writing, it’s really important not to judge what you write down, at least at first. Even experienced writers don’t often crank out a perfect first draft, so setting your expectations too high from the outset is unrealistic (not to mention discouraging).

A good exercise in nonjudgmental writing is to set a timer for 10 minutes and just write. Write down what you know, what you feel, or whatever’s on your mind. Don’t try to write too carefully or too intelligently or too accurately. In fact, stop trying, period. Writing goes much better when you don’t work so hard at it or criticize your every word.

Even if you need to do some research for what you’re writing, start by just getting some thoughts on paper. Write down what you know, build a skeleton that you can add to, and then research the rest later. Don’t let a lack of immediate knowledge stop you.

 

4. Read it Out Loud

This tip is twofold. First, in most cases, you should write like you talk. Even if you tend to use a casual tone, that’s OK—it will help you sound more realistic and understandable to your readers. Try recording yourself talking for two minutes, then transcribing it. You can correct obvious mistakes later (and edit out the “likes” and “ums”!), but writing that reflects the way you speak often showcases the most authentic version of yourself.

Secondly, once you’ve written something down, actually read it out loud. As silly as you may feel, it’s the best way to make sure what you’ve written makes sense. Anything that doesn’t flow, is confusing, or is missing a word or two will quickly make itself apparent.

 

5. Just Write

If your goal is to truly improve, the more you do it, the better. There are so many ways to get words onto paper (or onto the screen)—so take advantage of these opportunities to hone your skills. Compose well-crafted emails and clever tweets, start a personal blog, or ask for more writing projects at work.

You can even make a game of it. At the beginning of every day, pick two or three words you want to use that day. Write them on post-it’s and stick them on the wall in front of you, and find a way to use them in your writing that day.

Today as much as ever, everyone needs to write—it’s an expected and actually quite useful form of communication. But being able to write well is a skill, and one that’s sought-after no matter what you do. The good news is you can get there. The first step is just getting started.

Culled from The Muse

Event Marketing vs. Experiential Marketing

 

Experiential marketing and event marketing are often used interchangeably by people inside and outside of the industry, but are they the same?

The short answer? No, not quite.

They may sound similar, but experiential and event marketing are two separate tactics that brands can use as part of a larger marketing plan. What exactly is the difference between the two? It has to do with engagement, experience, goals, and time.

Engagement

One of the most prominent differences between experiential and event marketing is how each of these tactics engages the audience. Event marketing uses one-way communication where the brand is speaking directly to the consumer, but the consumer does not have the opportunity to respond. Have you ever attended an event where you passed by multiple booths and were handed marketing brochures about a company? This is a form of one-way communication that is often used at events. The brand is passing along information to the attendee in the form of a promotional pamphlet, but the consumer is not an active participant in the conversation.

On the other hand, experiential marketing uses two-way communication. This allows a brand to interact with a customer to teach them more about the brand’s products and services, and then listen to what the customer has to say in response. Experiential marketers aim to create opportunities where the customer and the brand can come together to engage in conversation and form a strong relationship. For example, Sensodyne hosted an experiential marketing event that invited people with sensitive teeth to try new products, play games, and meet privately with a dentist. Each section of the event was staffed with knowledgeable professionals who were there to interact with guests on a personal level. Although Sensodyne did host an event, this is definitely an example of experiential marketing and not event marketing.

Experience

Guests also experience both event marketing and experiential marketing in different ways. Think of the last time you went to a concert. You and the thousands of other music fans that filled the arena simultaneously watched the same show and left after having the same experience. This is the typical experience people have when it comes to event marketing—all at once, all the same.

However, every guest at an experiential marketing event will walk away with a unique memory of the individual experience they had. To understand this concept, consider Delta’s experiential marketing event known as “Stillness in Motion.” To highlight how Delta promotes rest and relaxation for its travellers, Delta created a spa-like room where guests could come in and try to find stillness on their own. The room was equipped with various sensors that picked up the guest’s heartbeat and changed the surroundings based on its pace. As the heartbeat picked up, the room would flash different colours and create various noises, and as users finally found their stillness, the colours would begin to fade and gentle music would seep into the room. In this example, each user had a unique experience that was powered by his or her heartbeat. This is part of the magic of the experiential marketing.

Goals

Event marketing and experiential marketing are used to achieve different goals, which is one of the reasons why it’s so important to understand the difference between the two. Marketers turn to event marketing when they want to announce a new product, sell products, or get press coverage for the brand. It’s best to think of event marketing as a way to generate buzz around something happening with the brand.

Of course, experiential marketing can also be used to launch new products, sell merchandise, and get in the press, but those aren’t typically the goals of these events. Instead, marketers use experiential marketing to create positive brand associations and grow relationships with their audience. An increase in sales and awareness of a new product can certainly occur as a result of an experiential marketing event, but the focus during the planning process is usually on how to connect with consumers. Going back to the Sensodyne example, inviting guests to meet privately with a dentist will not necessarily lead to an increase in sales. After all, the dentist was not secretly a sales representative who was pitching Sensodyne products. But, when guests left the event, they probably had a more favourable impression of Sensodyne for creating such a memorable experience for them. As a result of this positive association and the knowledge about sensitive teeth that the dentist provided, more customers probably did purchase Sensodyne toothpaste.

Time

Event marketing typically has a start and end time so guests know when to arrive and when the event is over. Once the end time has passed, the event is officially done. Press may cover the event while it is happening or immediately after it is over, but besides this, the buzz tends to die down when the event comes to an end.

Experiential marketing tends to live on much longer than event marketing. Because each guest has a unique experience at an experiential marketing event, guests often feel compelled to share their stories on social media and blogs. The buzz around an experiential marketing campaign can continue to grow as more guests swap stories and discuss the details of the event. Do you remember Coca Cola’s famous “Share A Coke” campaign? Part of the marketing plan for this campaign was hosting experiential marketing events and inviting guests to attend so they could create their own custom bottle of Coca Cola. After making their own bottles, many guests shared pictures of them online, which drew more attention to the campaign and the brand as a whole. If you want to keep the focus on your brand and really make your efforts pay off, choose experiential marketing.

 

Credit: Factory360

7 Grammar and Copy Mistakes Almost Every Writer Makes

 

When it comes to demonstrating good grammar, writers and editors, or any other communications professional, must excel. Careless copy could be the difference between getting your article or pitch red-penned or just flat-out rejected.

“That written piece you turn in to your editor is your calling card,” said Sofia Romero, a managing editor based in Boston who blogs about the topic at Mighty Red Pen. “It gives the editor clues about whether you’re an attentive and diligent writer or a sloppy one.” The same can be said for those of you in marketing, PR and even sales. Using proper grammar and avoiding common mistakes help you look smarter.

Although style guides are ever changing and vary between fields, there are some common grammar pitfalls every media professional should just avoid.

 

7 Grammar Errors to Watch Out for

 

1. Misusing “lay” and “lie”

Let’s make it simple: “Lay” refers to a direct object and “lie” does not. You lie down on the sofa (no direct object there) and lay your favorite style guide on the table. Get it?

Mignon Fogarty, author of Grammar Girl’s Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing and founder of the Quick and Dirty Tips Network, thinks all the confusion started with the classic children’s prayer that starts, “Now I lay me down to sleep…”.

“In that children’s prayer, the way it’s worded, you’re laying yourself down as though you were an object. A lot of people just pick that up, and then even though you’re supposed to say ‘I want to lie down,’ they’ll say, ‘I want to lay down.'”

Lay should only be used when you’re talking about setting something else down, like a book or a blanket. However, it gets more perplexing when you bring in the fact that “lay” is the past tense of “lie.” So if you’re trying to state that you set yourself down in the past, you use “lay” (e.g., “I lay down an hour ago for a nap”). If you’re stating that you set something else down in the past, you use “laid.”

“I think the trick is to recognize why you get it wrong and then remind yourself it’s a common error,” she noted.

2. Misusing “who,” “whom” and “that”

To distinguish the first two, remember that you use “who” when you are referring to the subject of a clause and “whom” when you are referring to the object of a clause.

Fogarty’s got a trick for helping you remember which to use: Like “whom,” the pronoun “him” ends with “m.” When you’re trying to decide which word to use, ask yourself if the answer to the question would be “he” or “him.”

If you’re asking “Who (or whom) do you love?”, the answer would be “I love him.” “Him” ends with an “m,” so use “whom.” But if the question is “Who (or whom) drove the car?” the answer would be, “He drove the car.” There’s no “m,” so use “who.”

And just to clarify further, if you’re referencing a person, you have to choose between “who” and “whom,” because you should never use “that” to reference an individual, added Delia Cabe, an English professor at Emerson College in Boston.

3. Misusing “regardless” and (gasp!) “irregardless”

One final common word swap is “irregardless” for “regardless.” Both are listed in most dictionaries, but the former is often used by people who want to convey the meaning of “regardless.” The word “regardless” means “without regard” or “despite something” and is fine to use as is. The ir- prefix means without, so if you say “irregardless,” you are really saying “without without regard,” which is a double negative. Just use “regardless,” regardless of what you think.

4. Going overboard with em dashes

There are many ways to set off a clause in a sentence, but too many writers turn to the em dash over and over—and over and over again.

If an unwieldy clause or full sentence needs to be set apart, an em dash can be particularly useful in helping the reader follow along. For example:

The new brochure explains which houses are currently on the market—not just what was recently sold—along with information on the neighborhoods, school districts and property taxes.

But too many in one article (or worse, paragraph) can have the opposite effect and actually cause the reader to disengage. It’s the equivalent of extra exclamation points or writing in all caps. After a while, it’s just annoying and actually de-emphasizes your work instead of making it more compelling. For example:

The new brochure explains which houses are currently on the market—along with information on the neighborhoods, school districts and property taxes.

Unnecessary, right? So, when you’re tempted to slap on another em dash, think about alternatives. Would a semicolon work instead? What about an ellipsis? Or, can you break the prose up into sentences? Too often, we use the em dash as a crutch to make our words seem more poignant when, in reality, quality writing should be able to stand on its own.

5. Mixing up subject and verb agreement

A singular subject agrees with a singular verb, and a plural subject agrees with a plural verb. When the subject of a sentence includes two or more nouns or pronouns connected by “and,” use a plural verb:

He and his friends are at the fair.

In the event of two or more singular nouns or pronouns connected by “or” or “nor,” use a singular verb:

The journal or the pencil is in the desk.

Watch out for phrases that come between subjects and verbs:

One of the doors is open.

The verb agrees with the subject, not with a noun or pronoun in the phrase, so we use “is” because there is only “one” door.

6. Using commas instead of semicolons

Similar sentences should always be connected with semicolons, not commas. Fogarty says that semicolons are used to separate two main clauses that are related to each other yet can stand on their own as sentences if needed:

WRONG: I have an early appointment, I can’t stay out late tonight.

RIGHT: I have an early appointment; I can’t stay out late tonight.

RIGHT: I have an early appointment, and I can’t stay out late tonight.

To join like clauses, use a semicolon or a comma with a conjunction, or just create two separate sentences. But a comma by itself is a no-no.

7. Using modifiers incorrectly

If you don’t pay attention to the placement of modifiers, you could give a headline or sentence a completely different meaning.

“When you read about misplaced modifiers, you’ll often see simple examples that highlight how the word ‘only’ can be misplaced, even though most readers won’t actually think ‘I only have eyes for you,’ means anything other than ‘You’re the only one I see,'” explained Fogarty. “I’m guilty of using such simplistic examples myself.”

When a modifying prepositional phrase is added at the end of a sentence, it can spell disaster. But she said a good example of a modifier being used incorrectly is:

Over 400 people reported feeling the quake on their website.

Obviously, the website can’t shake, so the statement should be rewritten to better clarify where the reporting took place:

Over 400 people reported on their websites that they felt the quake.

 

 

Culled from Media Bistro