How to Make B2B Content Pop.

How can you reach, engage and persuade internal and B2B audiences in a cluttered, fast-moving information world?

With the same kind of fun, interactive content that was once reserved for consumer marketing, ays Tom Yorton, CEO of tThe Second City Communications.

Forget staid. Forget safe.

Inside think punchy. Think edgy.

Re-think.

Just Do It.

Today's affirmations from www.thedailylove.com seem especially apt:

I create when I don't want to.

 

I exercise when I don't want to.

 I create now and no longer wait for inspiration.

 

But Then You Already Knew That, Right?

Good writing requires clear thinking. That's why it's so hard. Author David McCullough

Write Your Novel--In a Month.

Completing a novel in just 30 days sounds like an impossible task, right?

The folks behind National Novel Writing Month challenge you to rethink your timetable with tips, tools and timelines. You can also meet fellow writers online and in your community.

Good luck!

http://www.nanowrimo.org/

Out of Alignment?

When it comes to hospitality, I think of the South, not the Southwest.

Which is why, even though the folks are Sky Harbor in Phoenix are perfectly pleasant, the airport's tagline "America's Friendliest Airport" doesn't ring true.

Phoenix is my home and I'm a city booster, but the alignment is off. As a result, the slogan is not believable.

Most associate Arizona with sunshine and golf and sunsets and cactus.

Should someone in city marketing rethink our brand?

http://skyharbor.com/customerservice/americasFriendliestAirport.html

Beautiful Voice.

Truly gifted writers bring their own unique voice to whatever they write, in whatever format.

Cheryl Strayed, author of the best-seller Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail is once such writer.

Her voice is distinctive and authentic, powerful and moving.

Her book Tiny Beautiful Things, Advice on Love and Life From Dear Sugar, a collection of advice columns, wrest the form from frumpiness.

To wit, in a multi-page reply to a devastated woman who miscarried: "It's a place of montrous beauty and endless dark and glimmering light. You have to work really, really hard to get there, but you can do it. Your ability to get there is evident to me in every word of your bright shining grief star of a letter."

Those words are a balm, a healing balm, from a fierce writer with an unmistakable voice.  

 

When the Words are the Picture.

I'm loving Crate & Barrel's new TV ads. 

They are free of visuals, using only words and great music to telegraph their branding.  And, of course, their recognizeable typeface.

Like Target, they can do less with more.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/24/business/media/a-crate-barrel-campaign-with-an-emphasis-on-the.html?_r=0
  

Cool Words.

The latest list of words that impress includes:

Scurrilous

Devoid

Surreptitious

Sodden

Micturated

Library Love.

According to the American Library Association, the average number of books an individual checks out annually is just 7.

Last year, I checked out 179 books from 3 public libraries.

I know: I'm an over achiever.

I have loved reading and, by extension, libraries since I was a school-aged girl.  I continue to love them today.

September is Library Card Sign-up Month.http://www.ala.org/conferencesevents/celebrationweeks/card

Get in the stacks.

Both Donkeys & Elephants Like a Swig.

I'm tired of political coverage, aren't you?

This witty campaign for Maker's Mark bourbon capitalizes on voter fatigue.

http://www.makersmark.com/#!/cocktail-party/platform

In the Beginning.

Grabbers are what entice readers into your story.

It doesn't matter if your story is told as a blog or in novel, in a marketing brochure or as a direct mail piece.

Here's a great example of a grabber, from the critically acclaimed best-seller The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker:

"We didn't notice right away.  We couldn't feel it."

Don't you want to know more?  Wouldn't you keep reading?

Mental Push-Ups.

Tiger Woods and Bill Gates do it.

Shouldn't you?

http://www.openforum.com/articles/boost-your-brain-and-give-it-a-breakat-the-same-time?intlink=us-openf-nav-ymal-manual 

The Right Way to Write.

Write when you want to. Or when you don't.

Write quickly. Or slowly.

Write in longhand. Or on a device.

Write inside. Or outside.

Write to surprise yourself.

Write in short sentences. Or write in long sentences.

Write when you are sick. Or when you are well.

Write when it is chaotic. Or when all is serene.

Write lying down. Or propped up in bed.

Read what you write. Or don't.

There's no right way to write.

Whole Lotta Words.

My cool word pix of the week include some old, but underused gems, and some more arcane choices. Happy weekend!
Mulish
Conurbation
Midden
Petulant

Imprecation

Debased
Leviathan
Middens 

Developing the Perfect Pitch.

Pitching is a part of all our professional lives, even if our title isn't sales representative. 

Whether you are selling your services, a VC, a new hire or your boss, effective pitching is a critical business skill.  It's the art of putting your ideas across.

And there are so many ways a pitch can go wrong.

Here's what NOT to do:

* Don't assume everyone knows what you do. Introduce yourself--without jargon. Make sure your mom understands your job.

* Don't be too familiar. A little small talk goes a long way.

* Don't be rigid. You may have spent days on your PowerPoint presentation, but when peppered with questions, you need to be nimble. Forgo the slide for a conversation.
* Don't pass the buck. The people in your audience assume you understand how you derived your data. Resist the urge to use the all-purpose "I'll get back to you" retort.

* Don't be afriad to show concern. Yes, you're large and in charge, but owning up to your challenges or areas of concern makes you more believable. Control the conversation before your competitors do.

The 80% Idea.

Speaking to Fast Company, Cofounder and Creative Director Masashi Kawamura of the ad agency Party, observed that a "great idea to pitch is one that's only 80% there. We love to have that 20 extra space. It's a good space."

Kawamura says the 100% idea in your head "only gets smaller from there."

That's a liberating way to think about creativity: that it doesn't have to arrive fully formed.

How NOT to Design a Logo.

Although I am best known for my writing skills, I have also honed a critical design eye over the years.

I regularly receive compliments for my own logo, Writesquared, which was designed by the talented Stephen Walker. Check it out: http://writesquared.com/.

If you need to develop a logo, I have three easy-to-follow pieces of advice which can streamline the process, saving you time and money and yielding a better result:

* Don't go with your gut.  Hire--and then trust--a qualified design professional.

* Don't over assess.  When it comes to design, everyone and their brother is a so-called expert. Don't try to include all this input in the decision-making process or you end up with schlock.

*  Don't be a copycat. Nike, GM and Apple all have memorable logos. You are not any of those companies. Create your own editorial and design footprint.

Creativity & Drudgery Are Not Mutually Exclusive.

Do creatives balk at rules?  Does it matter?

http://www.inc.com/magazine/201111/stan-richards-unique-management-style_pagen_2.html 

Big Mouthing.

On a recent episode of the ABC TV show Cougar Town, Courtney Cox's character Jules admonished one of her friends not to "big mouth her."

Big mouthing in her world means using an obscure word when a familiar one will do.

On a recnet hike at Pinnacle Peak, I big mouthed a ranger. He and his colleague needled me about "talking fancy."

I've written before about the danger of using $10 words when $5 ones will suffice.

So, let this serve as a reminder: in life as in art, the lesson is to check your big fancy mouth--most of the time.

More Cool Words.

Time to hit the dictionary:
Delirium
Romp
Sanguine
Intractable
Volupine

Act, Learn, Refine. Repeat.

In the book Now, Discover Your Strengths, authors Marcus Buckingham and Donald Clifton advocate building strengths, not correcting weaknesses.

In doing so, you'll make great progress, but you'll sometimes slip.

The process is simple:  act, learn, refine. Act, learn, refine.They call it the essence of strong living.

Carl Jung captured this spirit, "Fidelity to the law of your own being is...an act of high courage flung in the face of life."

The book is focused on work-related success, but the mantra applies to all of life.

So, here's to stumbling with grace.

http://www.amazon.com/Discover-Your-Strengths-Marcus-Buckingham/dp/0743201140/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1336754514&sr=8-1

Word Nerds.

You might be a word nerd if:

* You own a word-a-day calender
* You're on a first name basis with a librarian
* You buy books of poetry
* You own a Knidle or Nook
* You were a high school debator
* You correct your friends' grammar
* You once won a spelling bee

Lessons Learned From The Voice.

Like much of TV-watching America, I am hooked on The Voice.

What I am most struck by is the repeated advice from the judges to the artists to maintain their originality.

Contestants who morph into copycat performers get axed; those who continue to challenge the contours of their own unique style succeed.

The same sage advice can be applied to writing: stick with your authentic voice. Explore its edges, but keep it your own.

Take Time to Waste Time.

That's the advice of Jonah Lehrer in his new book Imagine: How Creativity Works.

New science shatters the myth that a select few are creative.

Instead he recommends taking a break when you feel stuck: get outside, take in a movie, tour an art gallery. He also talks about embracing the rut and pooh-poohs brainstorming.

http://www.amazon.com/Imagine-Creativity-Works-Jonah-Lehrer/dp/0547386079/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1335192250&sr=8-1

Relentless Change Requires Reinvention

The Wall Street Journal recently ranked consultant Gary Hamel as the world’s most influential business thinker.  Fortune magazine has called him “the world’s leading expert on business strategy.”

Hamel has some compelling ideas about how reinventing management.

http://www.youtube.com/das_captcha?next=/watch%3Fv%3Daodjgkv65MM

Where Creativity, Culture and Commerce Intersect.

"Creativity is the biggest mandate in business today," says Teressa Iezzi, editor of Cocreate.

Fast Company's snappy blog is must reading for creative folks.

 http://www.fastcocreate.com/

19 Outstanding Words.

Mental Floss has rounded up some doozies, as my dad used to say that will impress your friends and colleagues.

My favorite: Kummerspeck (German): Excess weight gained from emotional overeating. Literally, grief bacon.

http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/110995#ixzz1qvXOLUNU

The Power of Certainty Anchors. In Uncertain Times

Uncertainty can freeze you in place.  It's something many of us have learned over the last few years.

The book Uncertainty: How Turning Fear & Doubt into Fuel for Brilliance by Jonathan Fields shows you how to use it to your advantage.

From finding your certainty anchors to refueling your brain, this is essential reading for those who want to use uncertainty as a creative catalyst.

http://www.amazon.com/Uncertainty-Turning-Fear-Doubt-Brilliance/dp/159184424X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1332975854&sr=1-1

A Better Way to Succeed in Business.

Pick a Fight. Reasons to Quit. Inspiration is Perishable. Meetings are Toxic.

These are the new rules of business according to authors Jason Fried and David Hansson in their terrific book Rework.

It's a plain-spoken playguide to doing business now.

http://37signals.com/rework/

Find Your (Inner) Voice.

Feeling burdened?  Creatively stuck? 

Proprioceptive writing is a method that synthesizes emotion and imagaintion, heightening perception through inner listening.

Prioprioceptive comes from the latin "proprius" meaning one's own.

With daily practice, you can quiet the mind, focus thoughts, clarify feelings and ignite imagination. 

Learn more at http://www.pwriting.org/.

Bad Writing Advice?

"Write what you know" as been oft-repeated,iron-clad advice to would-be writers.

But is it necessary?

See what blogger Nathan Englander has to say on the subject.

http://bigthink.com/think-tank/write-what-you-know-nil-the-most-misunderstood-piece-of-good-advice-ever

Books Open Worlds & Heal Wounds.

It's not even been released yet, but author Cheryl Strayed's new book, Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail, about her year-long personnel odyssey--and the healing it provided--had me hooked with this paragraph:

"But later I returned and bought the book. I couldn't explain it. Something bloomed inside me as I traced the jagged line of the trail with my finger."

What a wonderful description of the the worlds we can travel by reading.

Since I was a small girl, books have stirred my dreams, dreams that inspired action.

They still do.   

Love this Commercial.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9L-8372A3w

Five Words for Wednesday.

Taut
Galvanizing
Rigorous
Audacity
Measured

Soulful Agitation.

I am lucky to call Marcia Reynolds a colleague and luckier still that she is a new friend.

Her book, Wander Woman: How High Achieving Women Find Contentment and Direction, is resonating with me.

I just celebrated a birthday, I've moved to the Southwest and I am re-evaluating my career direction.

New chapters, all.  Plenty of agitation--soulful and otherwise.

Reading Marcia's introduction about how "soulful agitation" leads us to accomplish great things but ache for what's missing, captures what many of us--and not just women--feel.

I look forward to an insightful, inspiring read.   

http://www.amazon.com/Wander-Woman-High-Achieving-Contentment-Direction/dp/1605093513/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1327870769&sr=1-1

Did you know that vocation is Latin for "voice?"

A vocation means a calling that one can hear. 

But before any of us can respond to our inner voice--whether its writing or preaching or selling or cooking or woodworking--we must listen. 

In the listening, we become wise.

And that wisdom, in turn, allows us to listen to others.  Actively listening is a gift we can give our family, friends, colleagues and clients. 

As writers, we try to ferret out a client's voice with word choices that reflect a company's unique character. 

That's why the most succeessful writers are superb listeners.

The Art of Storytelling.

In a review of director Angelina Jolie's new movie, In the Land of Blood & Honey, Entertainment Weekly columnist Owen Gleiberman praises her diligence in recounting the facts, but writes that "there's still a big difference between telling it like it is and telling it compellingly."

The film earned only a C+ from him.

Even when it is reality-based, the best storytelling is anything but average.

The Power of Intention.

New Year's Resolutions are so last year.

Wha't current are your intentions.

So, instead of saying "I want to lose 10 pounds," try "I will eat better and exercise more, so I believe I will lose the weight." 

It's a small shift in thinking that can make a big difference in results.

Happy 2012.