Avoid the Five Most Common Article Writing Mistakes

Nothing turns off readers more than typos, misspelled words and long sentences lacking punctuation. Here are some tips to help you avoid the five most common article writing mistakes.

1. Lack of content. The single biggest mistake you can make is to dilute content by drumming up keyword content. While keywords are important, they should be used sparingly and not at the expense of your content. Ensure that your subject material is well developed and organized efficiently.

2. Grammar and Spelling. Simple grammatical and spelling mistakes can make even the most knowledgeable author appear ignorant or uneducated. To convince the reader of your expertise, it is imperative that your article be articulate, authoritative and error-free. Take full advantage of your word processing Spell and Grammar Check utilities or have the article professionally proofread.

3. Punctuation. Improper use of punctuation (lack of punctuation, improper use of exclamation points, etc.) will detract from the overall quality of the article.

4. EXCESSIVE CAPITAL LETTERS. Using Caps Lock to emphasize a certain word may be appropriate, but overuse of capital letters tends to make the reader question the device: is this article a sales gimmick? Is the author an amateur?

5. Poor formatting. One-sentence paragraphs, run-on or nonsensical sentences, sentence fragments, and excessively long bulleted lists will all reflect negatively on the article’s quality. A properly formatted article will contain, at minimum, an introduction, followed by several paragraphs of 5-7 sentences, each separated by a blank line, with paragraph headings appropriately delineated from the text following, and ending with a conclusion paragraph.

Use of these tips in your article will further enhance your online image, cementing you in your client’s mind as the professional to whom they should entrust their business.

Virtually Yourz,
Dana Neuts

Elements of good writing

On Linked In, I responded to a post from someone who wanted to know how to benchmark his own writing. Here is my response, which can apply to just about anyone and almost any type of writing:

"When I write anything whether it is for a client or for publication, I concentrate on the following:

1) Quality content: Content should be clear and concise, or "tight" as our editors like to say. In other words, say what you need to say and make it interesting, but avoid unnecessary words that don't add to the story.

2) Grammar, spelling and punctuation: If something is poorly written, I won't read it, so I won't ask my readers to sift through mistakes. After you've given a piece your best proofreading eyes, ask a friend or colleague or hire a line editor to give it a look.

3) Flow: This is an element of writing that is hard to teach, but when you read your work, you'll know if it flows. For example, does each sentence seem independent of all the others, or is there a nice transition from one idea to the next?

4) Read it aloud: I always test my work 3 ways: I read it on screen, I print off a copy to read and make editing notes on, and I read it out loud. Each perspective, no matter how minutely different, gives me a different way to look at and hear my words.

5) Sleep on it: Whenever time allows, I like to sleep on a particular piece or project, particularly if it is for publication. Sometimes I'll notice things on day 2 that weren't readily apparent to me the day before, and sometimes I realize that I conveyed exactly what I intended to, so I feel more confident in my work when submitting it to a client or magazine.

6) Fact check: Make sure your basic facts are correct. I like to follow up on key information such as dates, spellings of proper names, geographical facts, etc. This may be as simple as double-checking your typed version against your notes, or it may involve a little more research to confirm your data. Also, because it can be edited by anyone, Wikipedia sources are helpful for general background, but I would always fact check that data with another reliable source. For example, if quoting the population of City A in Country A, Wikipedia might give you a close enough figure for you to start writing, but before publishing or posting, I'd go to the country's official census source. In the US, for example, I'd go to the U.S. Census Bureau website to double-check a fact.

I hope that helps. Good luck with your project!"

(first posted 12/26/08 on Linked In)

Virtually Yourz,
Dana Blozis

The marketing and PR solution for small business

Newsletter Success Secrets from Virtually Yourz

E-mail marketing is growing in popularity for two main reasons: (1) business owners need affordable opportunities to market their products and services to prospective customers, and (2) prospective customers are more often surfing the Web to find the products and services they want and need. As more and more companies use e-newsletters, or e-zines, to market to their target audience, however, we find our Inboxes filled each morning and we have to sift through those that we want to read now, will read later or will simply delete. To make sure that your e-zine gets opened now and read, follow these newsletter success secrets:

Content

- Keep it short and sweet. Whether you insert outside content or write your own, offer one or two main ideas with each issue. If you offer too much content, it is likely to be ignored.

- Add interesting tidbits, quotes or “how to” tips for the reader who skims.

- If you including lengthy articles in your newsletter, abbreviate them to one or two paragraphs and then link to the full article on your website. This not only keeps your newsletter brief, but it leads the reader to your website…where you can track the pages they visit.

- Tailor your newsletter to your readers by asking them for feedback. What do they like, dislike, want to read about, etc.? What topics are important to them? What problems do they have that you can help solve?

- Create an interactive newsletter that includes questions, polls, surveys or asks for specific feedback. By engaging the reader, you are more likely to turn him or her into a site visitor and possibly a client.

- Your last paragraph should include a call to action or an offer to initiate a call or an e-mail request.

Design

- Brand your newsletter so that it matches your other marketing materials. Include your logo, company colors and perhaps your photo.

- Make it visually appealing. Include photos, clip art, charts, graphs or other visual elements that complement the content.

- Choose an e-mail newsletter service that allows you design flexibility that is easily readable by multiple e-mail programs (Outlook, Eudora, Thunderbird, etc.).

Mechanics

- Make subscribing to your newsletter easy…and free.

- Provide “jump to” links in the top of the newsletter so readers can go right to the article or idea that most interests them.

- Send your newsletter at regular intervals—weekly, biweekly, monthly, quarterly— rather than sporadically. This is the best way to ensure that readers (aka prospective clients) remember you and look forward to getting your e-zine.

- Use an e-mail newsletter service that automatically creates an archive for your newsletters. This creates a history for you, but also for website visitors who might want to read past issues.

- Choose an e-mail newsletter service (e.g., Constant Contact, Your Mailing List Provider) that tracks user statistics and tells you who opened your newsletter and which links they clicked on. You can use this information to tailor future newsletters to your readers.

If you're unsure about any of these elements, consider the e-mail newsletters that you enjoy reading. What do you like about them? What makes them stand out? Why are you reading them? Jot down some notes about the elements that impress you and consider borrowing those ideas for your next newsletter!

Copyright © 2008 by Dana E. Blozis. All rights reserved.