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Writing without persuasion. 21ish tips

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People don't ‘read’ online, they scan. So be easy-to-read.

  • Trust is built slowly, over time. Persuasion makes you untrustworthy quickly

  • Features are facts. ‘Benefits’ (persuasion) are things that may happen in the future. Listing benefits, makes you assume (ass out of u and me) you know what your customer values. List the Features then ASK them what they value

  • Be personal not professional'. Write like you talk. Don’t be clever if it makes you message unclear

  • Explain the downside of what you sell AND how to avoid it. Instead of telling people how good you are, help customers by explaining typical problems they may experience. Example. Article Title - The 3 pros and cons of using CRM software and how I help you avoid the cons.

  • Don’t Hype. Example “We are the Best / Premier / Award Winning / Exceptional.” Make your customer feel good, instead of making yourself feel good.

  • Don’t flatter or exaggerate. It’s trickery

  • Don’t empathise. How can you if you don’t know them

  • Be useful. Don’t get caught up in impressing people. Because if you’re too Salsey or Fluffy, they’ll leave.

  • Have an opinion – and explain why

  • Guarantees. “We guarantee to respond to emails in 2 hours and always answer your calls, or it’s 20% off your monthly bill.” Now THAT’S a Guarantee.

  • Edit it a few times on different days

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  • Format is important. A visually hard-to-read, great article, gets ignored

  • Numbers in the title, (lists). ‘7 ways to surf better’, beats ‘How to surf better’. Because the reader can scroll past the information they know.

  • Plain English beats Corporate Speak. Example, “Try different ways to contact people” beats “Leveraging multiple vehicles of communication.”

  • Make your articles short

  • Use shorter words. Help not Assistance. Often not frequently. Built not constructed. Show not demonstrate.

  • Good at design? Make infographics

  • Lots of White Space (tiny paragraphs).

  • Headings and Subheadings.

  • Bolding.

  • Bullet points.

  • Sub-bullet points.

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Next article - Make a website

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