Keyboard Conversationalist: Let Your Fingers Do The Talking

When I go to a social media site of an organisation I am following, I am not hoping to get their 30-page newsletter dumped on the page. If that was my intention, I would just read the newsletter, or attempt to read it as the case may be, depending on where it falls on the snoozemeter.

Writing for social media is diferent than writing for more traditional channels. Where a magazine or newsletter or press release typically used to be one way, the tools we use today have given readers a greater voice and have empowered them to speak up positively or negatively about a brand. Where writing used to be very business-like, a bit stuffy and in some cases, downright boring, writing for social media, as the name itself suggests is more social, more personable, more conversational - bringing the reader into the conversation and rather than persuading, it engages. Be familiar, but this does not mean "dumbing down" your content either. I don't advocate your English going to the dogs just because it's social media. The same rules apply, but it's your tone and your level of engagement that sets it apart from your Annual Report summary or your quarterly digest. It's pretty much like meeting your readers for drinks and having a conversation. Use bridges to connect your point with their experiences. I used Ellen's iPhone commercial here, not only cause I thought it was hilarious, but also it was a nice segue to the rest of the post. Don't be afraid to talk about yourself, an experience, something you observed at the supermarket etc, once it has relevance to your business point. You're writing for real people, who go to the supermarket and who may have gone through something quite similar and then they can better relate to it. But your witing should be infused with some life...real life.

Twitter is the ultimate space killer and focus enabler, with brands only having 140 characters to get to the point. So you message has to be really concise. I think this is generally indicative of communicating online. I would sit with that 30-page newsletter on my time, maybe on the weekend, if at all and give it the 2 hours of my life that it may require - 2 hours of my life I can never get back. The average person spends around 20-35 minutes a day online (note  said average, and not addicts!), so your content cannot rival the Nile in length. It means you need to be concise, to the point since you now have to write to adapt to people's time, their attention spans online and the space allotted in some cases. The "back" button is a serious thing and you should recognise that where a customer may be trapped for long stretches of time in your waiting room, with just a dozen copies of your newsletter on the rack, and no choice, the internet allows them to "put down" your article and find something else. So, while blogs are fab for expounding, noone wants to read your 5000 word entry, especially when they're networking on the down-low at work or taking a break from screaming babies at home. God knows when I am stealing time before I get ready for work to catch up on my reading, I don't have time to sit and read sermons - not when my toast is burning!

And for heaven's sakes, yes we are using social media to sell and that's how we convince our bosses to let us use it. However, your tweets and updates and blogs don't have to be a 24/7, non-stop commercial about your products. The continuous hard sell gets real old and can seriously come across as spam if you're not careful. Let your readers see the other side of your brand as well - staff, company activities, employee stories, customer events. And ask them questions. It's about engagement, it's about conversation. What do THEY have to say? Do you ever ask? What they say can be great content. It's not really about you as much as it is about you and them. Get excited about everything that makes your brand unique, and get your readers excited as well.



Photo credits: www.evisibility.com; www.mikeurbonas.com

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Communication Nazis: A Term of "un-Endearment"

A guy I know met me in the mall a couple weekends ago and as he kept me back from perfume shopping, he told me about his plans to visit the UK soon.

Him: Going to help my cousin with his business for a little while. He does exonerations.
Me: (utter bafflement)
Him: You don't know what exonerating is?
Me: (utter bafflement, followed by reflection, then by more bafflement, then more reflection and mind searching: Exonerate means, ummm...to free from blame or guilt, right?)

I was baffled because I knew what I thought exonerating was, but the dude clearly was not in the legal profession, nor was he a P.I. but I could have been wrong!

Him: He digs up dead bodies so they can do autopsies.

It took everything in my physical and mental being to not laugh, and I feigned edification, with an "Ohhhhh". Poor guy was so confident in what he was peddling, and so pleased that he taught me something, that I did not have the heart to tell him the word was exhumation, from the word, exhume. Maybe next time.

As confused as I was during that brief conversation, so too are some of the people we write for. Show of hands if you have started reading something that just went right over your head because it was either chock full of jargon, or just written with the simple objective of baffling you. A gentleman I do not even know this week, accused people like me, communicators working in finance, of being Nazis when it came to communications. Now the dude does not know me or what I do or even how I do it, and calling me a Nazi was not going to get you listed in my good books, but sadly, dude has a general point. Some of these financial documents you pick up in a bank can just turn your grey matter green, and while there is an audience for that hardcore communication, not all clients are the same.

Now to be honest, when I write for work, I am also learning because I hardly know what these people are talking about when they start to get all technical with the financial terms and jargon. The extent of my money vocab is "pay me" (kidding kidding). But again, it comes down to knowing the audience I am trying to write for - people who are probably just like me or worse, and don't quite get the really hardcore moneyspeak. I am a purist writer at times - anal about spelling, grammar and abbreviations, but over the years I have come to grips with my reality and the reality of the different audiences I have had to communicate with in various roles. So...

1. Think of the audience and not yourself when writing. You may enjoy writing with lots of colloquial terms or use a lot of big words, and that may work for you. It may not work for your audience. And ask yourself, what is it that THEY want to know about this topic, not what I want to write. Don't be so self absorbed that you miss the point of who you're trying to reach. Think of them sitting in front of you, because you are indeed writing directly for them. If you don't approach it this way, you can very easily lose them before they even hit the second sentence.

2. Use simple language. Don't be a Nazi. That is not even a cute term (take note, don't ever use it), so don't force the technical terms down the consciousness of your readers. Sometimes even if the audience is very savvy, simple is still always better. Simple works. Less is more. The writing is clearer and to the point. It was @Trini_Mitz who pointed out an example in a local media article where the journalist used a huge word and then put the meaning in parentheses (brackets). I mean, if you know the word may not be understood, why use it?

3. Be correct. Get both your facts and your language straight. Good articles are well researched and structured, and reflect on you.The dictionary and thesauraus are your friends. Use them. Please.

Please.

3. Don't be daft. If you write for your pleasure, chances are you're writing about something you're passionate and knowledgeable about. However, if you're part of a comms team somewhere in some place where you don't know what the heck they're talking about half the time, wouldn't it be super if you actually started reading and learning about the industry you're now in? Don't let your writing come off as ignorant or fluffy. I still grapple with some of this dry financial stuff, but I read a lot (a lot!) and ask questions if I am not too sure and of course, you can let a subject matter expert review it and contribute. I mean, what's the worse that can happen? You learn something new? The horror!

4. Edit. If your subject matter expert is doing the writing and we know sometimes they can do the whole jargon thing, because they are not thinking like a communicator, then do the needful and apply the first two tips when editing the article cause most times it will need that human touch. Lend YOUR expertise to theirs.

So next time you're writing for Jill or Jack Brown, don't take it for granted that someone out there REALLY wants to read your stuff just because you're writing it. It's a bit more involved than that. Aim for more head nodding as opposed to blank stares of confusion.

Photo credit: http://fysop.wordpress.com

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I Heart Putting Words Together

Chris Brogan wrote about his love for blogging and it's been something I have been thinking about myself for a couple weeks. I have been blogging for about 8 years now, though this blog is a recent one, a public one and more work-related in comparison to my others.

I love writing in general. I think I always have. I was never good at Mathematics or science based subjects (blech!) but I always loved English (later French) and writing stories and expressing myself in words. I first realised I was kinda good at it when I was in primary school and I would get gold stars in Composition and would have my teacher read my essays to the class. I  conducted my very first interview for print back then as well. I was 10.

When the borough of San Fernando was elevated to city status, there was an essay competition and while the details are now foggy (c'mon now...you expect me to propel my grey matter that far back??), my teacher selected me to be one of the 2 girls to enter. The essay had to be about the city, its people, its history and my essay was going to be on Rodney Wilkes, who sadly, was not well known (probably still isn't, which is a travesty). We all knew about Hasely Crawford (also from San Fernando) being the first Olympic gold medallist (and only thus far) for Trinidad and Tobago, but Rodney Wilkes was the first T&T medallist ever. Period. I remember going to his house one lunchtime, which was not too far from school, sitting in his living room, asking him lots of questions, seeing his medals and trophies, and old photos and hearing his story. I wrote it all down, put it in an essay and on City Day I was awarded a certificate, presented to me by the Mayor, in front of hundreds of people, for having one of the best essays from all the entries. I would love to read that essay today, if it even exists still. Maybe one day I will go find it, if they have not burnt all those City Day memorabilia.

But, yes. I love writing and as Chris said, it's something you have to do regularly, if you want to keep your mind constantly regenerating itself and creating new ideas, and to improve. It's like anything else - sports, music, cooking. It takes practice to get better. And when you write, you ultimately have to read. I don't know of anyone who writes in a vacuum. With this blog, even though it's my ramblings, I still have to read - I am forced to make time to read and keep up with the world because sometimes work...life gets in the way of little things like that. So kudos to my blog for keeping me less ignorant in the face of early mornings, busy days, tired weekends.

At work, it's not always the stuff I am passionate about writing about, but I do have to write at work.  Still, with communications one has to be mindful of who the audience is, and adapt to suit their knowledge level, their background and other intrinsic details that can make or break the message. It gets a little more complicated at work, but I guess it still comes a little easier to me than to most.

I have encouraged friends to blog because experiences are so varied and can make for such great stories, sharing, networking. Some have gotten married and moved away, to new environments, experiencing culture shock even. I (via my blog) would be all over that! Sometimes time is against us but it is probably my one passion - writing. I use my breakfast time to scribble, or in this new age, type. Some people claim blogging is dead, with the advent of micro blogging but I don't agree at all. Microblogging is great, but for those who want more than 140 characters and who are restricted by 140 characters or status updates, blogging is an outlet and a conduit for self expression and illumination.

I also get to meet interesting people and have met different people through blogging. It's something that's mine as well. On my blog, I don't have to get approval from higher powers or permission. It's my self expression, and my little space on the web to say what I want, though of course I still use tact, discretion and try to respect others. It's something I can do anywhere and at anytime. It is a stress buster, lemme tell ya and can be therapy. It's fun and I like, in other spaces, making my friends laugh cause sometimes I am just hilarious when tickled. And even if one person reads my junk and enjoys reading it, it is really something special to know that. I appreciate my 1.5 readers who keep coming back! Thank you.

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