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Section 2: Recipe No. 7 | Start a debate
• Add substance by researching and quoting independent reports or surveys, and provide a link to these reports too. Elicit opinions from industry blogs,
or email your peers for their opinions.
• To what extent has the media picked up on the debate? It’s perfectly
acceptable to quote articles from magazines or newspapers, but you should cite the title and the journalist — copying large chunks of text counts as plagiarism. Again, link to the news article.
• Look at publications online and read the comments they generate.
The views you read can provide a useful insight into how the debate is shaping up.
• Why not Tweet your debate question to test the opinion of your peers?
Inviting others to give their thoughts may help with the writing of your article.
Provide two points of view
Another way to approach the article is to ask a colleague to write from one point of view, while you provide a conflicting opinion. Taking this approach will mean you can focus on one side — and really let rip — in the knowledge that your organization will appear fair-minded. This is how a local politician and a scientist took opposing sides over plans for a new runway at Heathrow ’s airport in London. http://www.guardian. co.uk/environment/2008/jan/27/travelandtransport.carbonemissions1
Choose an appropriate tone
1. Look on this article as a conversation you’re having with a colleague.
It doesn’t need a complex structure, or a particularly corporate tone.
2. Remember, this is your website, your discussion, and it’s your voice you should be using. Some people find that recording out loud to a dictaphone,
and transcribing the results produces more natural text. This is especially useful if you aren’t used to writing.
3. Once you are happy that you have all the arguments covered, it’s time
to summarize. This is the best time to describe your own feelings and experiences.
4. When you have completed the article, let colleagues read it. Make
amendments and add in extra points, and edit stringently. Check for grammar and spelling.
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Section 2: Recipe No. 7 | Start a debate
5. Now the article’s published, invite others to take part in the debate.
Generating discussion not only widens the topic, but also generates valuable content. You should participate too. If someone leaves a comment asking a question or seeking clarification on a point you make then make sure you give reply.
Encourage discussion amongst your visitors by adding a piece of software, such as the ‘ Subscribe to Comments ’ plugin from Wordpress, to your site. It allows commenters to choose to receive an email notification when someone responds to one of their comments.
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Review of the year
A review of the year is a great way of creating keyword rich content.
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Resist the temptation to write about your company and its achievements.
As always, write from your customers’ perspective. How has the year affected your customers’ businesses?
Organize a brainstorming session with colleagues to pinpoint the year ’s important events. You may want to flick through industry publications to help jog your memory.
There are several useful websites that will throw up ideas. Check out the The Way Back Machine , a digital library that contains website archives. You’ll be able to track how the internet has changed over the past 12 months.
Another great resource for casting your mind back is the Economist’s forecast , which will help you work out whether last year ’s economic forecasts matched reality.
The Economist provides forecasts for the year ahead.
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What can you write about?
There are many topics you could cover. If you were selling digital cameras you could look at:
• The way the technologies and industry standards have changed
• How prices have varied
• How changing customer attitudes are affecting the market for photography
equipment — are more customers using cameras on
their phones?
• The equipment reviews that have been published
• Changing market share figures
• Projections of future sales
• Major industry events
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Section 2: Recipe No. 8 | Review of the year
• Product launches and models that have been discontinued
Hot Tip
Save any industry publications you
receive. They are likely to be a useful source of information and ideas when you write your review.
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• The results of industry awards
• News from related sectors — how have changes on the internet affected digital
photography?
Alternatively, let’s pretend you are an organic vegetable grower. If sales of organic vegetables have gone up, describe why and let readers know what vegetables are now more popular. How have health issues affected interest in your products? And what about your relationships with the major supermarkets — are they stocking more organic vegetables?
Other factors to consider:
• The effect of different media: Which television programs have been
successful and how have they affected your business? Which are the articles and newspaper reports that have brought extra customers and inquiries to your market?
• Governmental changes: Your industry may have been affected by regulatory
changes or international events. Most have. Has the government released grants, tax breaks, or new health and safety measures? Always be thinking and writing about how your customers have been affected.
• At the end of the article , Take the time to look to the future. If you’re due to
launch a new product, you can speculate about how it might improve your customers’ lives.
Do you talk about yourself more than your customers?
Always write from your customers’ perspective. Internet consultancy, Future Now, provides a ‘ We-We Monitor ’ on it site, a free tool that evaluates the text on a web page and calculates how customer-centric it is.
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Report on an event
Every year, companies spend thousands of marketing dollars sending their employees to exhibitions, seminars, and training courses. Make the most of your marketing spend by turning an event experience into interesting web copy.
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Whether you are delivering a speech, attending an exhibition, or taking a course, there are great opportunities for creating keyword rich content for your website.
When I have been asked to report on international conferences, I’ve usually had only a little knowledge of the subjects being discussed. Yet, by asking questions — lots of good, open questions — and fitting in as much research and preparation as I could, it was usually possible to write good, informative stories.
Always take notes
During the event, keep a daily diary or Twitter updates.
• Who did you talk to? What kinds of people
attended the event?
• Was there anything interesting said?
• Which elements of the discussion irritated or excited you?
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• Did any of the speakers make
announcements. A new advertising campaign,
product launch, or sales figures?
Answer any of these questions and you could have an article or a good short piece for your blog.
Do your research beforehand and if possible, find out what the keynote speakers look like. Usually
conferences have networking sessions, so use this as an opportunity to strike up conversation.
What should you publish?
Think twice about what you publish. If someone gives you new information in a one-to-one conversation, check that they ’re happy for you to publish it before doing so. There’s a difference between making an announcement on-stage to a packed audience and exchanging gossip at the buffet or in the bar.
If there’s a presentation you particularly enjoyed, you may be able to get permission to reproduce it on your blog. But the presenter owns the copyright, so only republish with permission.
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