(3380,4,'2016-10-27 08:52:18','2016-10-27 12:52:18','Even though it\'s hard to believe we are days away from Halloween (and thus two months away from the end of the year, yikes!), here we are, on the last Thursday of October, which is means it\'s time for the On Writing interview. This month is asked PR pro Todd Van Hoosear to share his thoughts. Todd writes and consults for a living, and he has spent several semesters teaching students at Boston University all about social media. Read on to see how Todd uses and hones his writing skills.\r\n\r\n<strong> </strong>\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_3372\" align=\"alignright\" width=\"280\"]<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/VanHoosear_Todd.jpg\"><img class=\"wp-image-3372\" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/VanHoosear_Todd.jpg\" alt=\"Todd Van Hoosear\" width=\"280\" height=\"280\" /></a> Todd Van Hoosear[/caption]\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://morethanmarketing.net/contact/\" target=\"_blank\">Todd Van Hoosear</a> is a public relations professional with 20 years of experience under his belt – most of it agency work, but with stints in IT and product marketing. He recently moved from Boston to Gainesville, Florida, where he is still working remotely for a few EMA Boston clients, but also contemplating his next move.\r\n\r\n<strong>Twitter:</strong> <a href=\"https://twitter.com/vanhoosear\" target=\"_blank\">@vanhoosear</a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<strong> 1.</strong> <strong>What role does writing play in your work and how important a skill is it?</strong>\r\n\r\nAs a PR pro, I regularly vacillate between stressing the importance of writing and that of selling when it comes to putting the right team together to serve my clients. Public relations is, at its essence, a combination of the art of storytelling and the science of influence. Writing plays into both of these. So do interpersonal skills, organizational skills, and yes, even math!\r\n\r\n<strong>2. Does writing well still matter in a digital/text/emoji world?</strong>\r\n\r\nTo quote Blaise Pascal (and Mark Twain and Lord knows how many more authors it’s also been attributed to), “I would have written a shorter letter, but I did not have the time.” Writing is hard. Writing concisely is even harder. Writing good tweets and texts may be the hardest of all. Except maybe for Donald Trump. He’s got it down. He makes it look easy when it’s not. I’ll give him credit: he writes like he speaks, which is a critical skill in today’s world. For most people, it takes years to forget all their formal writing training. <strong> </strong>\r\n\r\n<strong>3.</strong> <strong>What’s the best advice you’ve received or would give on how to improve writing skills? </strong>\r\n\r\nI can’t remember where I heard this, but it’s stuck with me all these years: good writers are like magicians, and the readers are their audience. The readers want to be tricked. They love the mystery, even when they know it isn’t real. Your job as a writer isn’t to fill their heads, it’s to give them what they need to fill their own heads, and then messing with them just a little. Maybe not quite as much as George RR Martin does, though. That’s just cruel. I’m still mourning Ned Stark!\r\n\r\n<strong>4.What are your top three writing resources or references (digital or paper-based)?</strong>\r\n\r\nI listen to the <a href=\"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/grammar-girl-quick-dirty-tips/id173429229?mt=2\" target=\"_blank\">Grammar Girl podcast</a> religiously. I also read<a href=\"http://www.copyblogger.com/\" target=\"_blank\"> Copyblogger</a> on a regular basis, as it’s very relevant to my day-to-day. Finally, I’ll go old school and recommend a book: <em>Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion</em> by Robert Cialdini. It’s my writing bible.\r\n\r\n<strong>5. Do you follow a style guide, and if so, which one?  </strong>\r\n\r\nI am <em>AP Stylebook</em> 100%, as are most PR pros I would imagine.\r\n\r\n<strong>6</strong>. <strong>What’s your top—most cringe-worthy--writing/grammar/usage pet peeve? </strong>\r\n\r\nTo quote Faith No More: “What is it?” Ambiguous pronouns drive me absolutely crazy. Who is he? Who are they? People say? Which people, exactly? This was near the top of the list of pet peeves I shared with my students every semester at Boston University.\r\n\r\n<strong>7. What’s your favorite word and what’s your least favorite? </strong>\r\n\r\nThank you for giving me the excuse to use the word epeolatry in a sentence. Poorly, yes; but it’s there. It’s how I feel about words, especially when I find the right ones. I’m not sure I have a least favorite word. They’re all great. But I do have a least favorite non-word: irregardless.\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>I love Todd\'s view that writing concisely is hard. And even more so, that writing well is like a magic trick. Making concise writing look easy is definitely a trick worth learning. On Writing will be back, but not on the last Thursday of November since that is Thanksgiving Day and I think you\'ll have better things to do than read this blog, but on Thursday, December 1. Don\'t miss it!</strong></span>','On writing: Todd Van Hoosear works magic against ambiguity','','inherit','open','open','','3371-revision-v1','','','2016-10-27 08:52:18','2016-10-27 12:52:18','',3371,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/10/3371-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3381,4,'2016-10-27 08:56:45','2016-10-27 12:56:45','Even though it\'s hard to believe we are days away from Halloween (and thus two months away from the end of the year, yikes!), here we are, on the last Thursday of October, which means it\'s time for the On Writing interview. This month I asked Todd Van Hoosear to share his thoughts. Todd is a professional communicator, who focuses on technology and social media. He has spent several semesters teaching students at Boston University all about social media. Read on to see how Todd uses and hones his writing skills.\r\n\r\n<strong> </strong>\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_3372\" align=\"alignright\" width=\"280\"]<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/VanHoosear_Todd.jpg\"><img class=\"wp-image-3372\" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/VanHoosear_Todd.jpg\" alt=\"Todd Van Hoosear\" width=\"280\" height=\"280\" /></a> Todd Van Hoosear[/caption]\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://morethanmarketing.net/contact/\" target=\"_blank\">Todd Van Hoosear</a> is a public relations professional with 20 years of experience under his belt – most of it agency work, but with stints in IT and product marketing. He recently moved from Boston to Gainesville, Florida, where he is still working remotely for a few EMA Boston clients, but also contemplating his next move.\r\n\r\n<strong>Twitter:</strong> <a href=\"https://twitter.com/vanhoosear\" target=\"_blank\">@vanhoosear</a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<strong>1.</strong> <strong>What role does writing play in your work and how important a skill is it?</strong>\r\n\r\nAs a PR pro, I regularly vacillate between stressing the importance of writing and that of selling when it comes to putting the right team together to serve my clients. Public relations is, at its essence, a combination of the art of storytelling and the science of influence. Writing plays into both of these. So do interpersonal skills, organizational skills, and yes, even math!\r\n\r\n<strong>2. Does writing well still matter in a digital/text/emoji world?</strong>\r\n\r\nTo quote Blaise Pascal (and Mark Twain and Lord knows how many more authors it’s also been attributed to), “I would have written a shorter letter, but I did not have the time.” Writing is hard. Writing concisely is even harder. Writing good tweets and texts may be the hardest of all. Except maybe for Donald Trump. He’s got it down. He makes it look easy when it’s not. I’ll give him credit: he writes like he speaks, which is a critical skill in today’s world. For most people, it takes years to forget all their formal writing training. <strong> </strong>\r\n\r\n<strong>3.</strong> <strong>What’s the best advice you’ve received or would give on how to improve writing skills? </strong>\r\n\r\nI can’t remember where I heard this, but it’s stuck with me all these years: good writers are like magicians, and the readers are their audience. The readers want to be tricked. They love the mystery, even when they know it isn’t real. Your job as a writer isn’t to fill their heads, it’s to give them what they need to fill their own heads, and then messing with them just a little. Maybe not quite as much as George RR Martin does, though. That’s just cruel. I’m still mourning Ned Stark!\r\n\r\n<strong>4.What are your top three writing resources or references (digital or paper-based)?</strong>\r\n\r\nI listen to the <a href=\"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/grammar-girl-quick-dirty-tips/id173429229?mt=2\" target=\"_blank\">Grammar Girl podcast</a> religiously. I also read<a href=\"http://www.copyblogger.com/\" target=\"_blank\"> Copyblogger</a> on a regular basis, as it’s very relevant to my day-to-day. Finally, I’ll go old school and recommend a book: <em>Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion</em> by Robert Cialdini. It’s my writing bible.\r\n\r\n<strong>5. Do you follow a style guide, and if so, which one?  </strong>\r\n\r\nI am <em>AP Stylebook</em> 100%, as are most PR pros I would imagine.\r\n\r\n<strong>6</strong>. <strong>What’s your top—most cringe-worthy--writing/grammar/usage pet peeve? </strong>\r\n\r\nTo quote Faith No More: “What is it?” Ambiguous pronouns drive me absolutely crazy. Who is he? Who are they? People say? Which people, exactly? This was near the top of the list of pet peeves I shared with my students every semester at Boston University.\r\n\r\n<strong>7. What’s your favorite word and what’s your least favorite? </strong>\r\n\r\nThank you for giving me the excuse to use the word epeolatry in a sentence. Poorly, yes; but it’s there. It’s how I feel about words, especially when I find the right ones. I’m not sure I have a least favorite word. They’re all great. But I do have a least favorite non-word: irregardless.\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>I love Todd\'s view that writing concisely is hard. And even more so, that writing well is like a magic trick. Making concise writing look easy is definitely a trick worth learning. On Writing will be back, but not on the last Thursday of November since that is Thanksgiving Day and I think you\'ll have better things to do than read this blog, but on Thursday, December 1. Don\'t miss it!</strong></span>','On writing: Todd Van Hoosear works magic against ambiguity','','inherit','open','open','','3371-revision-v1','','','2016-10-27 08:56:45','2016-10-27 12:56:45','',3371,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/10/3371-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3382,4,'2016-10-27 09:01:10','2016-10-27 13:01:10','Even though it\'s hard to believe we are days away from Halloween (and thus two months away from the end of the year, yikes!), here we are, on the last Thursday of October, which means it\'s time for the On Writing interview. This month I asked Todd Van Hoosear to share his thoughts. Todd is a professional communicator, who focuses on technology and social media. He has spent several semesters teaching students at Boston University all about social media. Read on to see how Todd uses and hones his writing skills.\r\n\r\n<strong> </strong>\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_3372\" align=\"alignright\" width=\"280\"]<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/VanHoosear_Todd.jpg\"><img class=\"wp-image-3372\" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/VanHoosear_Todd.jpg\" alt=\"Todd Van Hoosear\" width=\"280\" height=\"280\" /></a> Todd Van Hoosear[/caption]\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://morethanmarketing.net/contact/\" target=\"_blank\">Todd Van Hoosear</a> is a public relations professional with 20 years of experience under his belt – most of it agency work, but with stints in IT and product marketing. He recently moved from Boston to Gainesville, Florida, where he is still working remotely for a few EMA Boston clients, but also contemplating his next move.\r\n\r\n<strong>Twitter:</strong> <a href=\"https://twitter.com/vanhoosear\" target=\"_blank\">@vanhoosear</a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<strong>1.</strong> <strong>What role does writing play in your work and how important a skill is it?</strong>\r\n\r\nAs a PR pro, I regularly vacillate between stressing the importance of writing and that of selling when it comes to putting the right team together to serve my clients. Public relations is, at its essence, a combination of the art of storytelling and the science of influence. Writing plays into both of these. So do interpersonal skills, organizational skills, and yes, even math!\r\n\r\n<strong>2. Does writing well still matter in a digital/text/emoji world?</strong>\r\n\r\nTo quote Blaise Pascal (and Mark Twain and Lord knows how many more authors it’s also been attributed to), “I would have written a shorter letter, but I did not have the time.” Writing is hard. Writing concisely is even harder. Writing good tweets and texts may be the hardest of all. Except maybe for Donald Trump. He’s got it down. He makes it look easy when it’s not. I’ll give him credit: he writes like he speaks, which is a critical skill in today’s world. For most people, it takes years to forget all their formal writing training. <strong> </strong>\r\n\r\n<strong>3.</strong> <strong>What’s the best advice you’ve received or would give on how to improve writing skills? </strong>\r\n\r\nI can’t remember where I heard this, but it’s stuck with me all these years: good writers are like magicians, and the readers are their audience. The readers want to be tricked. They love the mystery, even when they know it isn’t real. Your job as a writer isn’t to fill their heads, it’s to give them what they need to fill their own heads, and then messing with them just a little. Maybe not quite as much as George RR Martin does, though. That’s just cruel. I’m still mourning Ned Stark!\r\n\r\n<strong>4.What are your top three writing resources or references (digital or paper-based)?</strong>\r\n\r\nI listen to the <a href=\"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/grammar-girl-quick-dirty-tips/id173429229?mt=2\" target=\"_blank\">Grammar Girl podcast</a> religiously. I also read<a href=\"http://www.copyblogger.com/\" target=\"_blank\"> Copyblogger</a> on a regular basis, as it’s very relevant to my day-to-day. Finally, I’ll go old school and recommend a book: <em>Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion</em> by Robert Cialdini. It’s my writing bible.\r\n\r\n<strong>5. Do you follow a style guide, and if so, which one?  </strong>\r\n\r\nI am <em>AP Stylebook</em> 100%, as are most PR pros I would imagine.\r\n\r\n<strong>6</strong>. <strong>What’s your top writing/grammar/usage pet peeve? </strong>\r\n\r\nTo quote Faith No More: “What is it?” Ambiguous pronouns drive me absolutely crazy. Who is he? Who are they? People say? Which people, exactly? This was near the top of the list of pet peeves I shared with my students every semester at Boston University.\r\n\r\n<strong>7. What’s your favorite word and what’s your least favorite? </strong>\r\n\r\nThank you for giving me the excuse to use the word e<a href=\"http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/epeolatry\" target=\"_blank\">peolatry </a>in a sentence. Poorly, yes; but it’s there. It’s how I feel about words, especially when I find the right ones. I’m not sure I have a least favorite word. They’re all great. But I do have a least favorite non-word: irregardless.\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>Just so you know, I had to look up epeolatry and it means \"a worship of words.\" I love Todd\'s view that writing concisely is hard. And even more so, that writing well is like a magic trick. Making concise writing look easy is definitely a trick worth learning. On Writing will be back, but not on the last Thursday of November since that is Thanksgiving Day and I think you\'ll have better things to do than read this blog, but on Thursday, December 1. Don\'t miss it!</strong></span>','On writing: Todd Van Hoosear works magic against ambiguity','','inherit','open','open','','3371-revision-v1','','','2016-10-27 09:01:10','2016-10-27 13:01:10','',3371,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/10/3371-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3383,4,'2016-10-27 09:03:36','2016-10-27 13:03:36','Even though it\'s hard to believe we are days away from Halloween (and thus two months away from the end of the year, yikes!), here we are, on the last Thursday of October, which means it\'s time for the On Writing interview. This month I asked Todd Van Hoosear to share his thoughts. Todd is a professional communicator, who focuses on technology and social media. He has spent several semesters teaching students at Boston University all about social media. Read on to see how Todd uses and hones his writing skills.\r\n\r\n<strong> </strong>\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_3372\" align=\"alignright\" width=\"280\"]<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/VanHoosear_Todd.jpg\"><img class=\"wp-image-3372\" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/VanHoosear_Todd.jpg\" alt=\"Todd Van Hoosear\" width=\"280\" height=\"280\" /></a> Todd Van Hoosear[/caption]\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://morethanmarketing.net/contact/\" target=\"_blank\">Todd Van Hoosear</a> is a public relations professional with 20 years of experience under his belt – most of it agency work, but with stints in IT and product marketing. He recently moved from Boston to Gainesville, Florida, where he is still working remotely for a few EMA Boston clients, but also contemplating his next move.\r\n\r\n<strong>Twitter:</strong> <a href=\"https://twitter.com/vanhoosear\" target=\"_blank\">@vanhoosear</a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<strong>1.</strong> <strong>What role does writing play in your work and how important a skill is it?</strong>\r\n\r\nAs a PR pro, I regularly vacillate between stressing the importance of writing and that of selling when it comes to putting the right team together to serve my clients. Public relations is, at its essence, a combination of the art of storytelling and the science of influence. Writing plays into both of these. So do interpersonal skills, organizational skills, and yes, even math!\r\n\r\n<strong>2. Does writing well still matter in a digital/text/emoji world?</strong>\r\n\r\nTo quote Blaise Pascal (and Mark Twain and Lord knows how many more authors it’s also been attributed to), “I would have written a shorter letter, but I did not have the time.” Writing is hard. Writing concisely is even harder. Writing good tweets and texts may be the hardest of all. Except maybe for Donald Trump. He’s got it down. He makes it look easy when it’s not. I’ll give him credit: he writes like he speaks, which is a critical skill in today’s world. For most people, it takes years to forget all their formal writing training. <strong> </strong>\r\n\r\n<strong>3.</strong> <strong>What’s the best advice you’ve received or would give on how to improve writing skills? </strong>\r\n\r\nI can’t remember where I heard this, but it’s stuck with me all these years: good writers are like magicians, and the readers are their audience. The readers want to be tricked. They love the mystery, even when they know it isn’t real. Your job as a writer isn’t to fill their heads, it’s to give them what they need to fill their own heads, and then messing with them just a little. Maybe not quite as much as George RR Martin does, though. That’s just cruel. I’m still mourning Ned Stark!\r\n\r\n<strong>4.What are your top three writing resources or references (digital or paper-based)?</strong>\r\n\r\nI listen to the <a href=\"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/grammar-girl-quick-dirty-tips/id173429229?mt=2\" target=\"_blank\">Grammar Girl podcast</a> religiously. I also read<a href=\"http://www.copyblogger.com/\" target=\"_blank\"> Copyblogger</a> on a regular basis, as it’s very relevant to my day-to-day. Finally, I’ll go old school and recommend a book: <em>Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion</em> by Robert Cialdini. It’s my writing bible.\r\n\r\n<strong>5. Do you follow a style guide, and if so, which one?  </strong>\r\n\r\nI am <em>AP Stylebook</em> 100%, as are most PR pros I would imagine.\r\n\r\n<strong>6</strong>. <strong>What’s your top writing/grammar/usage pet peeve? </strong>\r\n\r\nTo quote Faith No More: “What is it?” Ambiguous pronouns drive me absolutely crazy. Who is he? Who are they? People say? Which people, exactly? This was near the top of the list of pet peeves I shared with my students every semester at Boston University.\r\n\r\n<strong>7. What’s your favorite word and what’s your least favorite? </strong>\r\n\r\nThank you for giving me the excuse to use the word <a href=\"http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/epeolatry\" target=\"_blank\">epeolatry </a>in a sentence. Poorly, yes; but it’s there. It’s how I feel about words, especially when I find the right ones. I’m not sure I have a least favorite word. They’re all great. But I do have a least favorite non-word: irregardless.\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>Just so you know, I had to look up epeolatry and it means \"a worship of words.\" That\'s a good one to know! I love Todd\'s view that writing concisely is hard. And even more so, that writing well is like a magic trick. Making concise writing look easy is definitely a trick worth learning. On Writing will be back, but not on the last Thursday of November since that is Thanksgiving Day and I think you\'ll have better things to do than read this blog, but on Thursday, December 1. Don\'t miss it!</strong></span>','On writing: Todd Van Hoosear works magic against ambiguity','','inherit','open','open','','3371-revision-v1','','','2016-10-27 09:03:36','2016-10-27 13:03:36','',3371,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/10/3371-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3384,4,'2016-10-27 09:05:37','2016-10-27 13:05:37','Even though it\'s hard to believe we are days away from Halloween (and thus two months away from the end of the year, yikes!), here we are, on the last Thursday of October, which means it\'s time for the On Writing interview. This month I asked Todd Van Hoosear to share his thoughts. Todd is a professional communicator, who focuses on technology and social media. He has spent several semesters teaching students at Boston University all about social media. Read on to learn how Todd uses and hones his writing skills (and you may also learn a new word--I did).\r\n\r\n<strong> </strong>\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_3372\" align=\"alignright\" width=\"280\"]<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/VanHoosear_Todd.jpg\"><img class=\"wp-image-3372\" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/VanHoosear_Todd.jpg\" alt=\"Todd Van Hoosear\" width=\"280\" height=\"280\" /></a> Todd Van Hoosear[/caption]\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://morethanmarketing.net/contact/\" target=\"_blank\">Todd Van Hoosear</a> is a public relations professional with 20 years of experience under his belt – most of it agency work, but with stints in IT and product marketing. He recently moved from Boston to Gainesville, Florida, where he is still working remotely for a few EMA Boston clients, but also contemplating his next move.\r\n\r\n<strong>Twitter:</strong> <a href=\"https://twitter.com/vanhoosear\" target=\"_blank\">@vanhoosear</a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<strong>1.</strong> <strong>What role does writing play in your work and how important a skill is it?</strong>\r\n\r\nAs a PR pro, I regularly vacillate between stressing the importance of writing and that of selling when it comes to putting the right team together to serve my clients. Public relations is, at its essence, a combination of the art of storytelling and the science of influence. Writing plays into both of these. So do interpersonal skills, organizational skills, and yes, even math!\r\n\r\n<strong>2. Does writing well still matter in a digital/text/emoji world?</strong>\r\n\r\nTo quote Blaise Pascal (and Mark Twain and Lord knows how many more authors it’s also been attributed to), “I would have written a shorter letter, but I did not have the time.” Writing is hard. Writing concisely is even harder. Writing good tweets and texts may be the hardest of all. Except maybe for Donald Trump. He’s got it down. He makes it look easy when it’s not. I’ll give him credit: he writes like he speaks, which is a critical skill in today’s world. For most people, it takes years to forget all their formal writing training. <strong> </strong>\r\n\r\n<strong>3.</strong> <strong>What’s the best advice you’ve received or would give on how to improve writing skills? </strong>\r\n\r\nI can’t remember where I heard this, but it’s stuck with me all these years: good writers are like magicians, and the readers are their audience. The readers want to be tricked. They love the mystery, even when they know it isn’t real. Your job as a writer isn’t to fill their heads, it’s to give them what they need to fill their own heads, and then messing with them just a little. Maybe not quite as much as George RR Martin does, though. That’s just cruel. I’m still mourning Ned Stark!\r\n\r\n<strong>4.What are your top three writing resources or references (digital or paper-based)?</strong>\r\n\r\nI listen to the <a href=\"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/grammar-girl-quick-dirty-tips/id173429229?mt=2\" target=\"_blank\">Grammar Girl podcast</a> religiously. I also read<a href=\"http://www.copyblogger.com/\" target=\"_blank\"> Copyblogger</a> on a regular basis, as it’s very relevant to my day-to-day. Finally, I’ll go old school and recommend a book: <em>Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion</em> by Robert Cialdini. It’s my writing bible.\r\n\r\n<strong>5. Do you follow a style guide, and if so, which one?  </strong>\r\n\r\nI am <em>AP Stylebook</em> 100%, as are most PR pros I would imagine.\r\n\r\n<strong>6</strong>. <strong>What’s your top writing/grammar/usage pet peeve? </strong>\r\n\r\nTo quote Faith No More: “What is it?” Ambiguous pronouns drive me absolutely crazy. Who is he? Who are they? People say? Which people, exactly? This was near the top of the list of pet peeves I shared with my students every semester at Boston University.\r\n\r\n<strong>7. What’s your favorite word and what’s your least favorite? </strong>\r\n\r\nThank you for giving me the excuse to use the word <a href=\"http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/epeolatry\" target=\"_blank\">epeolatry </a>in a sentence. Poorly, yes; but it’s there. It’s how I feel about words, especially when I find the right ones. I’m not sure I have a least favorite word. They’re all great. But I do have a least favorite non-word: irregardless.\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>Just so you know, I had to look up epeolatry and it means \"a worship of words.\" That\'s a good one to know! I love Todd\'s view that writing concisely is hard. And even more so, that writing well is like a magic trick. Making concise writing look easy is definitely a trick worth learning. On Writing will be back, but not on the last Thursday of November since that is Thanksgiving Day and I think you\'ll have better things to do than read this blog, but on Thursday, December 1. Don\'t miss it!</strong></span>','On writing: Todd Van Hoosear works magic against ambiguity','','inherit','open','open','','3371-revision-v1','','','2016-10-27 09:05:37','2016-10-27 13:05:37','',3371,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/10/3371-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3385,4,'2016-10-27 09:10:05','2016-10-27 13:10:05','Even though it\'s hard to believe we are days away from Halloween (and thus two months away from the end of the year, yikes!), here we are, on the last Thursday of October, which means it\'s time for the On Writing interview. This month I asked Todd Van Hoosear to share his thoughts. Todd is a professional communicator who focuses on technology and social media. He has spent several semesters teaching students at Boston University all about social media. Read on to learn how Todd uses and hones his writing skills (and you may also learn a new word--I did).\r\n\r\n<strong> </strong>\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_3372\" align=\"alignright\" width=\"280\"]<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/VanHoosear_Todd.jpg\"><img class=\"wp-image-3372\" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/VanHoosear_Todd.jpg\" alt=\"Todd Van Hoosear\" width=\"280\" height=\"280\" /></a> Todd Van Hoosear[/caption]\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://morethanmarketing.net/contact/\" target=\"_blank\">Todd Van Hoosear</a> is a public relations professional with 20 years of experience under his belt – most of it agency work, but with stints in IT and product marketing. He recently moved from Boston to Gainesville, Florida, where he is still working remotely for a few EMA Boston clients, but also contemplating his next move.\r\n\r\n<strong>Twitter:</strong> <a href=\"https://twitter.com/vanhoosear\" target=\"_blank\">@vanhoosear</a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<strong>1.</strong> <strong>What role does writing play in your work and how important a skill is it?</strong>\r\n\r\nAs a PR pro, I regularly vacillate between stressing the importance of writing and that of selling when it comes to putting the right team together to serve my clients. Public relations is, at its essence, a combination of the art of storytelling and the science of influence. Writing plays into both of these. So do interpersonal skills, organizational skills, and yes, even math!\r\n\r\n<strong>2. Does writing well still matter in a digital/text/emoji world?</strong>\r\n\r\nTo quote Blaise Pascal (and Mark Twain and Lord knows how many more authors it’s also been attributed to), “I would have written a shorter letter, but I did not have the time.” Writing is hard. Writing concisely is even harder. Writing good tweets and texts may be the hardest of all. Except maybe for Donald Trump. He’s got it down. He makes it look easy when it’s not. I’ll give him credit: he writes like he speaks, which is a critical skill in today’s world. For most people, it takes years to forget all their formal writing training. <strong> </strong>\r\n\r\n<strong>3.</strong> <strong>What’s the best advice you’ve received or would give on how to improve writing skills? </strong>\r\n\r\nI can’t remember where I heard this, but it’s stuck with me all these years: good writers are like magicians, and the readers are their audience. The readers want to be tricked. They love the mystery, even when they know it isn’t real. Your job as a writer isn’t to fill their heads, it’s to give them what they need to fill their own heads, and then messing with them just a little. Maybe not quite as much as George RR Martin does, though. That’s just cruel. I’m still mourning Ned Stark!\r\n\r\n<strong>4.What are your top three writing resources or references (digital or paper-based)?</strong>\r\n\r\nI listen to the <a href=\"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/grammar-girl-quick-dirty-tips/id173429229?mt=2\" target=\"_blank\">Grammar Girl podcast</a> religiously. I also read<a href=\"http://www.copyblogger.com/\" target=\"_blank\"> Copyblogger</a> on a regular basis, as it’s very relevant to my day-to-day. Finally, I’ll go old school and recommend a book: <em>Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion</em> by Robert Cialdini. It’s my writing bible.\r\n\r\n<strong>5. Do you follow a style guide, and if so, which one?  </strong>\r\n\r\nI am <em>AP Stylebook</em> 100%, as are most PR pros I would imagine.\r\n\r\n<strong>6</strong>. <strong>What’s your top writing/grammar/usage pet peeve? </strong>\r\n\r\nTo quote Faith No More: “What is it?” Ambiguous pronouns drive me absolutely crazy. Who is he? Who are they? People say? Which people, exactly? This was near the top of the list of pet peeves I shared with my students every semester at Boston University.\r\n\r\n<strong>7. What’s your favorite word and what’s your least favorite? </strong>\r\n\r\nThank you for giving me the excuse to use the word <a href=\"http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/epeolatry\" target=\"_blank\">epeolatry </a>in a sentence. Poorly, yes; but it’s there. It’s how I feel about words, especially when I find the right ones. I’m not sure I have a least favorite word. They’re all great. But I do have a least favorite non-word: irregardless.\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>Just so you know, I had to look up epeolatry and it means \"a worship of words.\" That\'s a good one to know! I love Todd\'s view that writing concisely is hard. And even more so, that writing well is like magic. Making concise writing look easy is definitely a trick worth learning. On Writing will be back, but not on the last Thursday of November, since that is Thanksgiving Day and I think you\'ll have better things to do than read this blog, instead it will publish on Thursday, December 1. Don\'t miss it!</strong></span>','On writing: Todd Van Hoosear works magic against ambiguity','','inherit','open','open','','3371-revision-v1','','','2016-10-27 09:10:05','2016-10-27 13:10:05','',3371,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/10/3371-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3387,4,'2016-11-03 10:25:26','2016-11-03 14:25:26','A few weeks ago an acquaintance was coming to town from the West Coast. She posted on Facebook (along with about another five posts the same day) that she was free on a given afternoon and if people wanted to see her, to please message her. Now, I hadn\'t seen this person in a couple of years, and since I was free on the afternoon she mentioned, I would have liked to get together. But, I hadn\'t seen her post until it was too late.  By the time I messaged her, she had already made other plans since she said that nobody responded to her post.\r\n\r\nIn my opinion, she failed to communicate effectively. There are several potential reasons why.\r\n\r\n<strong>Why #1: Not understanding how social media works.</strong>\r\n\r\nChances are good that only a few people in your network will see what you post.  First, social media is a continual flow of information from many sources. Nowhere is this more obvious than on Twitter, which shows you everything from everybody in real time. If you missed it, you missed it (unless someone re-tweeted it and it gained traction). And to make that more complicated, the different networks use algorithms to show you what the network thinks you want to see. On Facebook, the default algorithm is set to show \"top posts,\" which are the posts that more people have \"liked.\" LinkedIn has a similar algorithm, also showing what it deems are \"top\" posts.\r\n\r\nAdditionally, social media provides controls for people to \"hide\" or \"mute\" certain users. It\'s quite possible you\'ve been hidden and thus your posts won\'t be seen at all.\r\n\r\nIn order to work around social media\'s constraints, you have to provide relevant content that gets liked and shared, and therefore becomes \"top\" content.\r\n\r\n<strong>Why# 2: Not using the right channel for your message and audience.</strong>\r\n\r\nIn this case, this woman was trying to communicate with a handful of her Facebook friends (the ones who live in this area). She may have had better luck by using a more targeted approach. For example, she could have used Facebook messenger to talk directly to those people. Or she could have (gasp) emailed or texted the people she wanted to see.\r\n\r\nDifferent channels and media have different audiences. You probably wouldn\'t put an announcement that you are giving away your kittens on LinkedIn, but you might post on Facebook. LinkedIn is about business opportunities, and Facebook is more personal. You could also try sharing a picture on Instagram of those cute kitties looking for a home.\r\n\r\nYou have to choose the right channel to make sure you message reaches the right (more receptive) audience.\r\n\r\n<strong>Why #3: Forgetting that social media is only one communications channel.</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you were trying to, say, promote a new product, chances are good you would use a mix of channels to reach different target audiences. You would also adjust your messaging accordingly. You might choose use an email campaign. Or you could do media outreach. Or you could run some advertising, including Google Ads. Or you could try promotional give-aways. Or sponsorships. You get my drift.\r\n\r\nFor social media to work, it can\'t be your only communication channel. It has to be part of a larger communication plan. Social media is just that--a medium that has social aspects that help amplify your message. It is not a substitute for other media.\r\n\r\n<strong>You want to get your message to the right people at the right time. </strong>\r\n\r\nFor any communication plan to be effective in this way, you have to use a mix of media depending on who you are trying to reach and when. You need to understand each medium, and what type of audience responds best to that channel. And you will need to adjust your messaging (e.g., length, complexity, benefits you highlight, etc.) for each medium.<strong>\r\n</strong>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Why you are failing to communicate on social media','','publish','open','open','','why-you-are-failing-to-communicate-on-social-media','','','2016-11-03 10:25:26','2016-11-03 14:25:26','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3387',0,'post','',0),
(3388,4,'2016-11-03 09:51:52','2016-11-03 13:51:52','A few weeks ago an acquaintance was coming to town from the West Coast. She posted on Facebook (along with about another five posts the same day) that she was free on a given afternoon and if people wanted to see her, to please message her. Now, I hadn\'t seen this person in a couple of years, and since I was free on the afternoon she mentioned, I would have liked to get together. But, I hadn\'t seen the post until it was too late.  By the time I messaged her, she had already made other plans since she said that nobody responded to her post.\r\n\r\nIn my opinion, she failed to communicate appropriately. There are several potential reasons why.\r\n\r\n<strong>Why #1: She doesn\'t understand how social media works</strong>\r\n\r\nChances are good that only a few people in your network will see what you post.  First, social media is a continual flow of information from many sources. Nowhere is this more obvious than on Twitter, which shows you everything from everybody in real time. If you missed it, you missed (unless someone re-tweeted it and it gained traction). And to make that more complicated, the different networks use algorithms to show you what the network thinks you want to see. On Facebook, the default algorithm is set to show \"top posts,\" which are the posts that more people have \"liked.\" LinkedIn has a similar algorithm, also showing what it deems are \"top\" posts.\r\n\r\nAdditionally, social media provides controls for people to \"hide\" or \"mute\" certain users. It\'s quite possible you\'ve been hidden and thus your posts won\'t be seen at all.\r\n\r\n<strong>In order to work around social media\'s constraints, you have to provide relevant content that gets liked and shared, and therefore becomes \"top\" content. </strong>\r\n\r\n<strong>Why# 2: She wasn\'t using the right channel for her message and audience</strong>\r\n\r\nIn this case, this woman was trying to communicate with a handful of her Facebook friends (the ones who live in this area). She may have had better luck by using a more targeted approach. For example, she could have used Facebook messenger to talk directly to those people. Or she could have (gasp) emailed or texted the people she wanted to see.\r\n\r\nDifferent channels and media have different audiences. You probably wouldn\'t put an announcement that you are giving away your kittens on LinkedIn, but you might post on Facebook. LinkedIn is about business opportunities, and Facebook is more personal. You could also try sharing a picture on Instagram of those cute kitties looking for a home.\r\n\r\n<strong>You have to choose the right channel to make sure you message reaches the right (more receptive) audience.</strong>\r\n\r\n<strong>Why #3: She forgot that social media is only one communications channel.</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you were trying to, say, promote a new product, chances are good you would use a mix of channels to reach different target audiences. You would also adjust your messaging accordingly. You might choose use an email campaign. Or you could do media outreach. Or you could run some advertising, including Google Ads. Or you could try promotional give-aways. Or sponsorships. You get my drift.\r\n\r\nFor social media to work, it can\'t be your only communication channel. It has to be part of a larger communication plan. Social media is just that--a medium that has social aspects that help amplify your message. It is not a substitute for other media.\r\n\r\n<strong>For any communication plan to work, you have to use a mix of media depending on who you are trying to reach and when. </strong>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Why you are failing to communicate on social media','','inherit','open','open','','3387-revision-v1','','','2016-11-03 09:51:52','2016-11-03 13:51:52','',3387,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/11/3387-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3405,4,'2016-12-01 06:30:28','2016-12-01 11:30:28','We\'ve arrived to the last On Writing interview of the year, and this month, I\'ve turned to public relations maven (check out her Twitter handle below) Ami Neiberger-Miller. I met Ami at a PRSA conference a few years back where we both were presenting. Ami truly understands how PR works, and how important writing is to communicating effectively.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_3406\" align=\"alignleft\" width=\"239\"]<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Ami-Neiberger.jpg\"><img class=\"wp-image-3406 size-medium\" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Ami-Neiberger-239x300.jpg\" alt=\"Pic of Ami Neiberger-Miller\" width=\"239\" height=\"300\" /></a> Ami Neiberger-Miller[/caption]\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nAmi Neiberger-Miller is a public relations strategist specializing in nonprofit organizations, associations and small businesses. She is the founder of <a href=\"http://steppingstonellc.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Steppingstone, LLC,</a> a communications and public relations agency. She has written educational curricula, a book, feature articles, press releases, infographics, training materials, websites, style guides, policy manuals, and much more.\r\n\r\nFind her on Twitter at <a href=\"https://twitter.com/amazingprmaven\" target=\"_blank\">@AmazingPRMaven</a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<strong>1. What role does writing play in your work and how important a skill is it?</strong>\r\n\r\nWriting is the lifeblood of my work in public relations and advocacy. I am constantly writing for news releases, feature articles, emails, strategic plans, social media and much more. Writing is an important skill because of the electronic age in which we operate. Even though people are reading content online, they are often reading written text when they view content online. And written text plays a role in shaping visual media now too – in the form of scripts, graphics and video.\r\n\r\n<strong>2. Does writing well still matter in a digital/text/emoji world?</strong>\r\n\r\nThe craft of writing is very much alive and well today. Writing well matters even more in a digital world. Writing the right words has never been more important than it is today – because attention spans are shrinking. We have to share information much faster now and it’s even more challenging to get people to pay attention. There is still space for longer form writing, and with the internet, more opportunities to attract attention and be published. Digital options also offer writing opportunities – because scripts have to be created for videos, and copy has to be written for infographics, flipbooks, and all sorts of other materials.\r\n\r\n<strong>3. What’s the best advice you’ve received or would give on how to improve writing skills?</strong>\r\n\r\nTo me one of the best skills you can develop in writing is delivering quality copy quickly. I am typically the person who tries to muscle through to finish the job and reach my word count for the day (and then some). But I’ve found that I do better if I take breaks when I get stuck or reach a point where copy is just not flowing. Taking a break can be as simple as going for a walk, making some tea, or packing up and working in a new environment. Returning with fresh eyes to your work can make a big difference. Just a short break can refresh your spirit.\r\n\r\nI also find that I tend to do better with longer writing projects if I focus on them in the morning. By the end of the day, my creative juices are spent. While I can do “sausage-grinding” types of writing fairly late in the day and into the evening, I find I am typically more focused and creative in the morning. One of my favorite time slots for writing is 4-6:00 a.m. (yes, I know that sounds insane) because it’s a time of day that\'s quiet and distraction free. It’s also when my mind is freshest. If I wake up on a mission for a particular project – early morning is the time I want to use to write and pour out the words.\r\n\r\nI also think it’s important to develop the ability to \"free write.\" Just getting what you want to say out is a triumph, even if it’s messy. Far too often, I see writers get paralyzed by wanting to be sure that what they write initially is correct or concise. I may be the kind of person who proofreads restaurant menus for typos, but I can’t apply that same eagle eye to newborn writing as it’s pouring out. Getting the initial “brain dump” done can be cathartic and help you organize. Editing can come later. Respect the process so you don’t lose a great thought or element because you got caught up in the details. Being able to just sit down and “free write” without judging yourself is a really helpful practice to develop.\r\n\r\n<strong>4. What are your top three writing resources or references?</strong>\r\n\r\nI am old-fashioned in that I still keep on the shelf near my desk a red Webster’s New World Dictionary (that I won for an essay I wrote in sixth grade so it is horribly out of date but beloved). Next to it are a thesaurus and a Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations. To me, those are the big three. But I readily admit that I don’t take them out very often. I keep a lot of writing books nearby too. I have some favorite online resources, such as <a href=\"https://owl.english.purdue.edu/\" target=\"_blank\">Purdue University’s Online Writing Lab </a>and <a href=\"http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-girl\" target=\"_blank\">Grammar Girl</a>. I also like Ann Wylie’s writing workshops (which I take as webinars through my PRSA membership). On Twitter, I search for #writing #quote when I need an inspirational pick me up. I also subscribe to <a href=\"http://www.wow-womenonwriting.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Women on Writing.</a>\r\n\r\n<strong>5. Do you follow a style guide, and if so, which one?</strong>\r\n\r\nI don’t really follow a style guide with my own writing. If I am doing a project for a client, I use whatever style guide they prefer. Increasingly, clients are issuing their own style guides and making variations from the major style guides, as style has become tightly linked to branding. I keep on my shelf the following: the Associated Press Stylebook, the Chicago Manual of Style, the Elements of International English Style and the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association.\r\n\r\n<strong>6. What’s your top writing/grammar/usage pet peeve?</strong>\r\n\r\nMy most cringe-worthy writing gaffe is when I double up a sentence, as in \"today we are going to announce that XYZ is today.\" It’s an easy mistake that can be caught by proofreading. For some reason though, it\'s one of my bad habits.\r\n\r\n<strong>7. What’s your favorite word and what’s your least favorite?</strong>\r\n\r\nFavorite word: partner\r\nLeast favorite word: innovate\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">It\'s always good practice to keep tried and true resources at your fingertips. Like Ami, every writer should have a dictionary and thesaurus nearby. The various style guides are invaluable, and AP and Chicago both have very good online versions by subscription. </span>\r\n\r\n<strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">Coming up later in December will be a recap of the On Writing advice. Please keep an eye out for it here and/or on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.</span></strong>','On writing: Ami Neiberger-Miller sticks to the tried and true','','publish','open','open','','on-writing-ami-neiberger-miller-sticks-to-the-tried-and-true','','','2016-11-29 10:58:05','2016-11-29 15:58:05','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3405',0,'post','',0),
(3390,4,'2016-11-03 10:25:26','2016-11-03 14:25:26','A few weeks ago an acquaintance was coming to town from the West Coast. She posted on Facebook (along with about another five posts the same day) that she was free on a given afternoon and if people wanted to see her, to please message her. Now, I hadn\'t seen this person in a couple of years, and since I was free on the afternoon she mentioned, I would have liked to get together. But, I hadn\'t seen her post until it was too late.  By the time I messaged her, she had already made other plans since she said that nobody responded to her post.\r\n\r\nIn my opinion, she failed to communicate effectively. There are several potential reasons why.\r\n\r\n<strong>Why #1: Not understanding how social media works.</strong>\r\n\r\nChances are good that only a few people in your network will see what you post.  First, social media is a continual flow of information from many sources. Nowhere is this more obvious than on Twitter, which shows you everything from everybody in real time. If you missed it, you missed it (unless someone re-tweeted it and it gained traction). And to make that more complicated, the different networks use algorithms to show you what the network thinks you want to see. On Facebook, the default algorithm is set to show \"top posts,\" which are the posts that more people have \"liked.\" LinkedIn has a similar algorithm, also showing what it deems are \"top\" posts.\r\n\r\nAdditionally, social media provides controls for people to \"hide\" or \"mute\" certain users. It\'s quite possible you\'ve been hidden and thus your posts won\'t be seen at all.\r\n\r\nIn order to work around social media\'s constraints, you have to provide relevant content that gets liked and shared, and therefore becomes \"top\" content.\r\n\r\n<strong>Why# 2: Not using the right channel for your message and audience.</strong>\r\n\r\nIn this case, this woman was trying to communicate with a handful of her Facebook friends (the ones who live in this area). She may have had better luck by using a more targeted approach. For example, she could have used Facebook messenger to talk directly to those people. Or she could have (gasp) emailed or texted the people she wanted to see.\r\n\r\nDifferent channels and media have different audiences. You probably wouldn\'t put an announcement that you are giving away your kittens on LinkedIn, but you might post on Facebook. LinkedIn is about business opportunities, and Facebook is more personal. You could also try sharing a picture on Instagram of those cute kitties looking for a home.\r\n\r\nYou have to choose the right channel to make sure you message reaches the right (more receptive) audience.\r\n\r\n<strong>Why #3: Forgetting that social media is only one communications channel.</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you were trying to, say, promote a new product, chances are good you would use a mix of channels to reach different target audiences. You would also adjust your messaging accordingly. You might choose use an email campaign. Or you could do media outreach. Or you could run some advertising, including Google Ads. Or you could try promotional give-aways. Or sponsorships. You get my drift.\r\n\r\nFor social media to work, it can\'t be your only communication channel. It has to be part of a larger communication plan. Social media is just that--a medium that has social aspects that help amplify your message. It is not a substitute for other media.\r\n\r\n<strong>You want to get your message to the right people at the right time. </strong>\r\n\r\nFor any communication plan to be effective in this way, you have to use a mix of media depending on who you are trying to reach and when. You need to understand each medium, and what type of audience responds best to that channel. And you will need to adjust your messaging (e.g., length, complexity, benefits you highlight, etc.) for each medium.<strong>\r\n</strong>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Why you are failing to communicate on social media','','inherit','open','open','','3387-revision-v1','','','2016-11-03 10:25:26','2016-11-03 14:25:26','',3387,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/11/3387-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3391,4,'2016-11-10 10:58:49','2016-11-10 15:58:49','&nbsp;\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_3394\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"596\"]<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/kaboompics.com_Modern-comterporary-concrete-buliding.jpg\"><img class=\"wp-image-3394 \" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/kaboompics.com_Modern-comterporary-concrete-buliding-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"Photo by Kaboompics.com\" width=\"596\" height=\"397\" /></a> Photo by Kaboompics.com[/caption]\r\n\r\nIt seems obvious that you should always write your marketing and communications materials with your readers in mind. After all, if you are trying to communicate with them, you have to understand what they need to know.\r\n\r\nAnd yet, how many times have you received a letter that doesn\'t say anything? Or an email that lacks crucial information? How many times have you had to call up a company because you didn\'t understand something it sent you? I bet you\'ve had many a moment like this, which left you frustrated.\r\n\r\n<strong>Missing information</strong>\r\n\r\nI had such a moment last week. I had signed up for an editing workshop from the American Copy Editors Society (ACES) being given on November 5 in Washington, DC.  Here\'s the email I received a few days before the event (note that I blocked out the names of presenters and a phone number for privacy):\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">This message is to confirm that you are registered for the American Copy Editors Society (ACES) Boot Camp from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. this Saturday, Nov. 5, at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. The workshop will take place in the Funger Hall auditorium, room 103, located on the Foggy Bottom campus.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">Lunch will be provided by the local chapter of ACES.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">Presenters XX, XX and XX look forward to welcoming you on Saturday.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">If you have any questions or find yourself lost on Nov. 5, please feel free to call 571-xxx-xxxx for assistance.</span></p>\r\nNotice anything missing from this email? How about the address for the building? Or how about directions and parking information (or links to those)? How about an agenda and/or schedule for the day? Is there any information about what you need to bring with you?\r\n\r\n<strong>Trying again</strong>\r\n\r\nThe next day, ACES sent another email, regarding parking information. It is basically the same email as before, except for the addition of parking and Metro information, which I bolded for you to see more clearly.\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">We look forward to seeing you at the American Copy Editors Society (ACES) Boot Camp from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. tomorrow at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. The workshop will take place in the Funger Hall auditorium, room 103, located on the Foggy Bottom campus.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">Lunch will be provided by the local chapter of ACES.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">Parking</span></strong></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">The closest garage to Funger Hall is the University Parking Garage/G Street Garage, located at 2028 G Street, NW Washington, DC 20052. There is access from both 20th Street and 21st Street between F and G Streets. The self-service garage is open 24/7, accepting MasterCard, Visa and American Express for payments (no cash). The full day rate is $12.</span></strong></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">The closest Metro stop is Foggy Bottom-GWU, with service on the  Blue, Orange and Silver lines.</span></strong></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">If you find yourself lost on Nov. 5, please feel free to call 571-XXX-XXXX for assistance.</span></p>\r\nThis attempt was a better than the prior email, but still, no address for Funger Hall. It\'s as if ACES thinks that everyone is intimately familiar with GW\'s Foggy Bottom Campus. For those of you who aren\'t in the DC area, GW\'s campus is a city campus. Buildings have street addresses--they are not in quads as in traditional colleges.\r\n\r\nI looked up Funger Hall on Google, but  I forgot to note the address, and when I got to the parking garage on Saturday, I didn\'t know where to go. I looked it up on my phone and the address I got did not correspond to the building. I called the number on the email, but there was no response.  I was able to get directions from a student I saw on the street, and I then got to the workshop several minutes late.\r\n\r\n<strong>How helpful are you being to your reader?</strong>\r\n\r\nIf ACES had started with the reader\'s needs in mind when writing this email, it would have realized that providing an address and links to maps and directions would have helped recipients of this email.\r\n\r\n<strong>It\'s about the 5 Ws</strong>\r\n\r\nWhen you write a press release, you should think like a journalist and answer the five Ws: what, why, where, who and when. You should also answer the how.  This advice is also applicable to most any communications material you create.\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>If you need help creating effective communications materials, <a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" title=\"Contact\" href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/contact/\">contact</a> me!</strong></span>','Always start with the reader in mind','','publish','open','open','','always-start-with-the-reader-in-mind','','','2016-11-10 10:58:49','2016-11-10 15:58:49','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3391',0,'post','',2),
(3393,4,'2016-11-10 10:41:15','2016-11-10 15:41:15','It seems obvious that you should always write your marketing and communications materials with your readers in mind. After all, if you are trying to communicate with them, you have to understand what they need to know.\r\n\r\nAnd yet, how many times have you received a letter that doesn\'t say anything? Or an email that lacks crucial information? How many times have you had to call up a company because you didn\'t understand something it sent you? I bet you\'ve had many a moment like this, which left you frustrated.\r\n\r\nI had such a moment last week. I had signed up for an editing workshop from the American Copy Editors Society (ACES) being given on November 5 in Washington, DC.  Here\'s the email I received a few days before the event (note that I blocked out the names of presenters and a phone number for privacy):\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">This message is to confirm that you are registered for the American Copy Editors Society (ACES) Boot Camp from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. this Saturday, Nov. 5, at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. The workshop will take place in the Funger Hall auditorium, room 103, located on the Foggy Bottom campus.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">Lunch will be provided by the local chapter of ACES.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">Presenters XX, XX and XX look forward to welcoming you on Saturday.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">If you have any questions or find yourself lost on Nov. 5, please feel free to call 571-xxx-xxxx for assistance.</span></p>\r\nNotice anything missing from this email? How about the address for the building? Or how about directions and parking information (or links to those)? How about an agenda and/or schedule for the day? Is there any information about what you need to bring with you?\r\n\r\nThe next day, ACES sent another email, regarding parking information. It is basically the same email as before, except for the addition of parking and Metro information, which I bolded for you to see more clearly.\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">We look forward to seeing you at the American Copy Editors Society (ACES) Boot Camp from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. tomorrow at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. The workshop will take place in the Funger Hall auditorium, room 103, located on the Foggy Bottom campus.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">Lunch will be provided by the local chapter of ACES.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">Parking</span></strong></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">The closest garage to Funger Hall is the University Parking Garage/G Street Garage, located at 2028 G Street, NW Washington, DC 20052. There is access from both 20th Street and 21st Street between F and G Streets. The self-service garage is open 24/7, accepting MasterCard, Visa and American Express for payments (no cash). The full day rate is $12.</span></strong></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">The closest Metro stop is Foggy Bottom-GWU, with service on the  Blue, Orange and Silver lines.</span></strong></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">If you find yourself lost on Nov. 5, please feel free to call 571-XXX-XXXX for assistance.</span></p>\r\nBetter than the prior email, but still, no address for Funger Hall. It\'s as if ACES thinks that everyone is intimately familiar with GW\'s Foggy Bottom Campus. For those of you who aren\'t in the DC area, GW\'s campus is a city campus. Buildings have street addresses--they are not in quads as in traditional colleges.\r\n\r\nWell, I had to look up Funger Hall. Unfortunately, I forgot to note the address and when I got to the parking garage on Saturday, I didn\'t know where to go. I looked it up on my phone and the address I got did not correspond to the building. I called the number on the email, but there was no response.  I was able to get directions from a student I saw on the street, and I then got to the workshop several minutes late.\r\n\r\nIf ACES had started with the reader\'s needs in mind when writing this email, it would have realized that providing an address and links to maps and directions would have helped recipients of this email.\r\n\r\n<strong>It\'s about the 5 Ws</strong>\r\n\r\nWhen you write a press release, you should think like a journalist and answer the five Ws: what, why, where, who and when. You should also answer the how.  This advice is applicable to most any communications material you are putting out.','Always start with the reader in mind','','inherit','open','open','','3391-revision-v1','','','2016-11-10 10:41:15','2016-11-10 15:41:15','',3391,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/11/3391-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3394,4,'2016-11-10 10:51:30','2016-11-10 15:51:30','','kaboompics-com_modern-comterporary-concrete-buliding','Photo by Kaboompics.com','inherit','open','open','','kaboompics-com_modern-comterporary-concrete-buliding','','','2016-11-10 10:51:48','2016-11-10 15:51:48','',3391,'http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/kaboompics.com_Modern-comterporary-concrete-buliding.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),
(3395,4,'2016-11-10 10:52:13','2016-11-10 15:52:13','&nbsp;\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_3394\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"4027\"]<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/kaboompics.com_Modern-comterporary-concrete-buliding.jpg\"><img class=\"wp-image-3394 size-full\" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/kaboompics.com_Modern-comterporary-concrete-buliding.jpg\" alt=\"Photo by Kaboompics.com\" width=\"4027\" height=\"2685\" /></a> Photo by Kaboompics.com[/caption]\r\n\r\nIt seems obvious that you should always write your marketing and communications materials with your readers in mind. After all, if you are trying to communicate with them, you have to understand what they need to know.\r\n\r\nAnd yet, how many times have you received a letter that doesn\'t say anything? Or an email that lacks crucial information? How many times have you had to call up a company because you didn\'t understand something it sent you? I bet you\'ve had many a moment like this, which left you frustrated.\r\n\r\n<strong>Missing information</strong>\r\n\r\nI had such a moment last week. I had signed up for an editing workshop from the American Copy Editors Society (ACES) being given on November 5 in Washington, DC.  Here\'s the email I received a few days before the event (note that I blocked out the names of presenters and a phone number for privacy):\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">This message is to confirm that you are registered for the American Copy Editors Society (ACES) Boot Camp from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. this Saturday, Nov. 5, at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. The workshop will take place in the Funger Hall auditorium, room 103, located on the Foggy Bottom campus.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">Lunch will be provided by the local chapter of ACES.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">Presenters XX, XX and XX look forward to welcoming you on Saturday.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">If you have any questions or find yourself lost on Nov. 5, please feel free to call 571-xxx-xxxx for assistance.</span></p>\r\nNotice anything missing from this email? How about the address for the building? Or how about directions and parking information (or links to those)? How about an agenda and/or schedule for the day? Is there any information about what you need to bring with you?\r\n\r\n<strong>Trying again</strong>\r\n\r\nThe next day, ACES sent another email, regarding parking information. It is basically the same email as before, except for the addition of parking and Metro information, which I bolded for you to see more clearly.\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">We look forward to seeing you at the American Copy Editors Society (ACES) Boot Camp from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. tomorrow at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. The workshop will take place in the Funger Hall auditorium, room 103, located on the Foggy Bottom campus.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">Lunch will be provided by the local chapter of ACES.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">Parking</span></strong></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">The closest garage to Funger Hall is the University Parking Garage/G Street Garage, located at 2028 G Street, NW Washington, DC 20052. There is access from both 20th Street and 21st Street between F and G Streets. The self-service garage is open 24/7, accepting MasterCard, Visa and American Express for payments (no cash). The full day rate is $12.</span></strong></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">The closest Metro stop is Foggy Bottom-GWU, with service on the  Blue, Orange and Silver lines.</span></strong></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">If you find yourself lost on Nov. 5, please feel free to call 571-XXX-XXXX for assistance.</span></p>\r\nBetter than the prior email, but still, no address for Funger Hall. It\'s as if ACES thinks that everyone is intimately familiar with GW\'s Foggy Bottom Campus. For those of you who aren\'t in the DC area, GW\'s campus is a city campus. Buildings have street addresses--they are not in quads as in traditional colleges.\r\n\r\nWell, I had to look up Funger Hall. Unfortunately, I forgot to note the address and when I got to the parking garage on Saturday, I didn\'t know where to go. I looked it up on my phone and the address I got did not correspond to the building. I called the number on the email, but there was no response.  I was able to get directions from a student I saw on the street, and I then got to the workshop several minutes late.\r\n\r\n<strong>How helpful are you being to your reader?</strong>\r\n\r\nIf ACES had started with the reader\'s needs in mind when writing this email, it would have realized that providing an address and links to maps and directions would have helped recipients of this email.\r\n\r\n<strong>It\'s about the 5 Ws</strong>\r\n\r\nWhen you write a press release, you should think like a journalist and answer the five Ws: what, why, where, who and when. You should also answer the how.  This advice is applicable to most any communications material you create.\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>If you need help creating effective communications materials, <a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" title=\"Contact\" href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/contact/\">contact</a> me!</strong></span>','Always start with the reader in mind','','inherit','open','open','','3391-revision-v1','','','2016-11-10 10:52:13','2016-11-10 15:52:13','',3391,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/11/3391-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3396,4,'2016-11-10 10:54:17','2016-11-10 15:54:17','&nbsp;\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_3394\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"596\"]<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/kaboompics.com_Modern-comterporary-concrete-buliding.jpg\"><img class=\"wp-image-3394 \" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/kaboompics.com_Modern-comterporary-concrete-buliding-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"Photo by Kaboompics.com\" width=\"596\" height=\"397\" /></a> Photo by Kaboompics.com[/caption]\r\n\r\nIt seems obvious that you should always write your marketing and communications materials with your readers in mind. After all, if you are trying to communicate with them, you have to understand what they need to know.\r\n\r\nAnd yet, how many times have you received a letter that doesn\'t say anything? Or an email that lacks crucial information? How many times have you had to call up a company because you didn\'t understand something it sent you? I bet you\'ve had many a moment like this, which left you frustrated.\r\n\r\n<strong>Missing information</strong>\r\n\r\nI had such a moment last week. I had signed up for an editing workshop from the American Copy Editors Society (ACES) being given on November 5 in Washington, DC.  Here\'s the email I received a few days before the event (note that I blocked out the names of presenters and a phone number for privacy):\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">This message is to confirm that you are registered for the American Copy Editors Society (ACES) Boot Camp from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. this Saturday, Nov. 5, at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. The workshop will take place in the Funger Hall auditorium, room 103, located on the Foggy Bottom campus.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">Lunch will be provided by the local chapter of ACES.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">Presenters XX, XX and XX look forward to welcoming you on Saturday.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">If you have any questions or find yourself lost on Nov. 5, please feel free to call 571-xxx-xxxx for assistance.</span></p>\r\nNotice anything missing from this email? How about the address for the building? Or how about directions and parking information (or links to those)? How about an agenda and/or schedule for the day? Is there any information about what you need to bring with you?\r\n\r\n<strong>Trying again</strong>\r\n\r\nThe next day, ACES sent another email, regarding parking information. It is basically the same email as before, except for the addition of parking and Metro information, which I bolded for you to see more clearly.\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">We look forward to seeing you at the American Copy Editors Society (ACES) Boot Camp from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. tomorrow at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. The workshop will take place in the Funger Hall auditorium, room 103, located on the Foggy Bottom campus.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">Lunch will be provided by the local chapter of ACES.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">Parking</span></strong></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">The closest garage to Funger Hall is the University Parking Garage/G Street Garage, located at 2028 G Street, NW Washington, DC 20052. There is access from both 20th Street and 21st Street between F and G Streets. The self-service garage is open 24/7, accepting MasterCard, Visa and American Express for payments (no cash). The full day rate is $12.</span></strong></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">The closest Metro stop is Foggy Bottom-GWU, with service on the  Blue, Orange and Silver lines.</span></strong></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">If you find yourself lost on Nov. 5, please feel free to call 571-XXX-XXXX for assistance.</span></p>\r\nBetter than the prior email, but still, no address for Funger Hall. It\'s as if ACES thinks that everyone is intimately familiar with GW\'s Foggy Bottom Campus. For those of you who aren\'t in the DC area, GW\'s campus is a city campus. Buildings have street addresses--they are not in quads as in traditional colleges.\r\n\r\nWell, I had to look up Funger Hall. Unfortunately, I forgot to note the address and when I got to the parking garage on Saturday, I didn\'t know where to go. I looked it up on my phone and the address I got did not correspond to the building. I called the number on the email, but there was no response.  I was able to get directions from a student I saw on the street, and I then got to the workshop several minutes late.\r\n\r\n<strong>How helpful are you being to your reader?</strong>\r\n\r\nIf ACES had started with the reader\'s needs in mind when writing this email, it would have realized that providing an address and links to maps and directions would have helped recipients of this email.\r\n\r\n<strong>It\'s about the 5 Ws</strong>\r\n\r\nWhen you write a press release, you should think like a journalist and answer the five Ws: what, why, where, who and when. You should also answer the how.  This advice is applicable to most any communications material you create.\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>If you need help creating effective communications materials, <a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" title=\"Contact\" href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/contact/\">contact</a> me!</strong></span>','Always start with the reader in mind','','inherit','open','open','','3391-revision-v1','','','2016-11-10 10:54:17','2016-11-10 15:54:17','',3391,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/11/3391-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3397,4,'2016-11-10 10:58:49','2016-11-10 15:58:49','&nbsp;\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_3394\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"596\"]<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/kaboompics.com_Modern-comterporary-concrete-buliding.jpg\"><img class=\"wp-image-3394 \" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/kaboompics.com_Modern-comterporary-concrete-buliding-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"Photo by Kaboompics.com\" width=\"596\" height=\"397\" /></a> Photo by Kaboompics.com[/caption]\r\n\r\nIt seems obvious that you should always write your marketing and communications materials with your readers in mind. After all, if you are trying to communicate with them, you have to understand what they need to know.\r\n\r\nAnd yet, how many times have you received a letter that doesn\'t say anything? Or an email that lacks crucial information? How many times have you had to call up a company because you didn\'t understand something it sent you? I bet you\'ve had many a moment like this, which left you frustrated.\r\n\r\n<strong>Missing information</strong>\r\n\r\nI had such a moment last week. I had signed up for an editing workshop from the American Copy Editors Society (ACES) being given on November 5 in Washington, DC.  Here\'s the email I received a few days before the event (note that I blocked out the names of presenters and a phone number for privacy):\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">This message is to confirm that you are registered for the American Copy Editors Society (ACES) Boot Camp from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. this Saturday, Nov. 5, at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. The workshop will take place in the Funger Hall auditorium, room 103, located on the Foggy Bottom campus.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">Lunch will be provided by the local chapter of ACES.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">Presenters XX, XX and XX look forward to welcoming you on Saturday.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">If you have any questions or find yourself lost on Nov. 5, please feel free to call 571-xxx-xxxx for assistance.</span></p>\r\nNotice anything missing from this email? How about the address for the building? Or how about directions and parking information (or links to those)? How about an agenda and/or schedule for the day? Is there any information about what you need to bring with you?\r\n\r\n<strong>Trying again</strong>\r\n\r\nThe next day, ACES sent another email, regarding parking information. It is basically the same email as before, except for the addition of parking and Metro information, which I bolded for you to see more clearly.\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">We look forward to seeing you at the American Copy Editors Society (ACES) Boot Camp from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. tomorrow at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. The workshop will take place in the Funger Hall auditorium, room 103, located on the Foggy Bottom campus.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">Lunch will be provided by the local chapter of ACES.</span></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">Parking</span></strong></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">The closest garage to Funger Hall is the University Parking Garage/G Street Garage, located at 2028 G Street, NW Washington, DC 20052. There is access from both 20th Street and 21st Street between F and G Streets. The self-service garage is open 24/7, accepting MasterCard, Visa and American Express for payments (no cash). The full day rate is $12.</span></strong></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">The closest Metro stop is Foggy Bottom-GWU, with service on the  Blue, Orange and Silver lines.</span></strong></p>\r\n<p style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span style=\"font-size: 10.5pt; font-family: \'Arial\',sans-serif;\">If you find yourself lost on Nov. 5, please feel free to call 571-XXX-XXXX for assistance.</span></p>\r\nThis attempt was a better than the prior email, but still, no address for Funger Hall. It\'s as if ACES thinks that everyone is intimately familiar with GW\'s Foggy Bottom Campus. For those of you who aren\'t in the DC area, GW\'s campus is a city campus. Buildings have street addresses--they are not in quads as in traditional colleges.\r\n\r\nI looked up Funger Hall on Google, but  I forgot to note the address, and when I got to the parking garage on Saturday, I didn\'t know where to go. I looked it up on my phone and the address I got did not correspond to the building. I called the number on the email, but there was no response.  I was able to get directions from a student I saw on the street, and I then got to the workshop several minutes late.\r\n\r\n<strong>How helpful are you being to your reader?</strong>\r\n\r\nIf ACES had started with the reader\'s needs in mind when writing this email, it would have realized that providing an address and links to maps and directions would have helped recipients of this email.\r\n\r\n<strong>It\'s about the 5 Ws</strong>\r\n\r\nWhen you write a press release, you should think like a journalist and answer the five Ws: what, why, where, who and when. You should also answer the how.  This advice is also applicable to most any communications material you create.\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>If you need help creating effective communications materials, <a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" title=\"Contact\" href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/contact/\">contact</a> me!</strong></span>','Always start with the reader in mind','','inherit','open','open','','3391-revision-v1','','','2016-11-10 10:58:49','2016-11-10 15:58:49','',3391,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/11/3391-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3436,4,'2017-02-09 10:03:02','2017-02-09 15:03:02','A couple of weeks ago, I went to a panel discussion about the \"hot\"trends in digital marketing. The panelists talked about they are successfully using Snapchat. A couple said the big thing coming is Alexa (Amazon\'s \"Siri\" for your home). They weren\'t too keen on influencer marketing.','You have to understand what you are doing','','inherit','open','open','','3435-revision-v1','','','2017-02-09 10:03:02','2017-02-09 15:03:02','',3435,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/02/3435-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3400,4,'2016-11-18 09:17:54','2016-11-18 14:17:54','<strong>Of books and how people just want to talk about themselves</strong>\r\n\r\nLast night I attended my first meeting of a book group. Around the table were a dozen women. One lady, who had also never attended the group, decided she would take the reins and introduce herself. And so she did--telling us her story, her children\'s stories and her grand kid\'s stories.\r\n\r\nAs we went around the table, some women shared their name, occupation and where they live, while some women went into great autobiographical detail, even into the TMI (too much information) territory. We heard about what high school they attended, family secrets, divorce, how their ancestors got to America, angst about the kids (there was a lot of emphasis on their children), and very little about their reading or book interests.\r\n\r\n<strong>But, let\'s get back to me</strong>\r\n\r\nWhen we finally got around to discussing the book, one (self-absorbed) woman kept bringing it back to her experiences, her life, her likes, her dislikes. Everything someone else said made her want to share something irrelevant to the book and only relevant to herself. At one point, she digressed into discussing whether her second son (who is probably in his early 30s) had attachment issues because he spent a few weeks in the NICU after being born prematurely. (Yes, this really happened.)\r\n\r\nI began to think I had mistakenly attended a group therapy session.\r\n\r\n<strong>Are you being social?</strong>\r\n\r\nImagine that instead of a book group, this was Twitter or Facebook. Among the stuff in your feed is a bunch of self-promoting, self-analyzing, self-absorbed stuff. Do you pay attention? I bet you don\'t. Because when you are in a social setting, like a book group or social media, you are there to share and discuss and<em> interact</em>. It is a multi-sided conversation--not a one-sided discourse.\r\n\r\nNow, take a look at your marketing materials. How much is about how great you are, and how many awards you\'ve won? How much shows you understand and empathize with your readers (customers, donors, etc.)? If the balance is tipped in your favor instead of your reader, then you are talking way too much about yourself.\r\n\r\n<strong>Who cares?</strong>\r\n\r\nTo be a more successful communicator (or book group participant), start listening more and talking less. And when you do talk, make sure you aren\'t being self-absorbed.\r\n\r\n<strong>Here\'s the thing: Nobody cares as much about you as you do.</strong>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Please, don\'t tell me more about you','','publish','open','open','','please-dont-tell-me-more-about-you','','','2016-11-18 09:17:54','2016-11-18 14:17:54','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3400',0,'post','',0),
(3401,4,'2016-11-18 09:15:25','2016-11-18 14:15:25','<strong>Of books and how people just want to talk about themselves</strong>\r\n\r\nLast night I attended my first meeting of a book group. Around the table were a dozen women. One lady, who had also never attended the group, decided she would take the reins and introduce herself. And so she did--telling us her story, her children\'s stories and her grandkid\'s stories.\r\n\r\nAs we went around the table, some women shared their name, occupation and place of residence, while some women went into great autobiographical detail, even into the TMI (too much information) territory. We heard about family secrets, divorce, how their ancestors got to America, angst about the kids (there was a lot of emphasis on their children), and very little about their reading or book interests.\r\n\r\n<strong>But, let\'s get back to me</strong>\r\n\r\nWhen we finally got around to discussing the book, one (self-absorbed) woman kept bringing it back to her experiences, her life, her likes, her dislikes. Everything made her want to share something irrelevant to the book and only relevant to herself. At one point, she digressed into discussing whether her second son (who is probably in his early 30s) had attachment issues because he spent a few weeks in the NICU after being born prematurely. (Yes, this really happened.)\r\n\r\nI began to think I had mistakenly attended a group therapy session.\r\n\r\n<strong>Are you being social?</strong>\r\n\r\nImagine that instead of a book group, this was Twitter or Facebook. Among the stuff in your feed is a bunch of self-promoting, self-analyzing, self-absorbed stuff. Do you pay attention? I bet you don\'t. Because when you are in a social setting, like a book group or social media, you are there to share and discuss and<em> interact</em>. It is a multi-sided conversation--not a one-sided discourse.\r\n\r\nNow, take a look at your marketing materials. How much is about how great you are, and how many awards you\'ve won? How much shows you understand and empathize with your readers (customers, donors, etc.)? If the balance is tipped in your favor instead of your reader, then you are talking way too much about yourself.\r\n\r\n<strong>Who cares?</strong>\r\n\r\nTo be a more successful communicator (or book group participant), start listening more and talking less. And when you do talk, make sure you aren\'t being self-absorbed.\r\n\r\nHere\'s the thing: Nobody cares as much about you as you do.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Please, don\'t tell me more about you','','inherit','open','open','','3400-revision-v1','','','2016-11-18 09:15:25','2016-11-18 14:15:25','',3400,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/11/3400-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3402,4,'2016-11-18 09:17:54','2016-11-18 14:17:54','<strong>Of books and how people just want to talk about themselves</strong>\r\n\r\nLast night I attended my first meeting of a book group. Around the table were a dozen women. One lady, who had also never attended the group, decided she would take the reins and introduce herself. And so she did--telling us her story, her children\'s stories and her grand kid\'s stories.\r\n\r\nAs we went around the table, some women shared their name, occupation and where they live, while some women went into great autobiographical detail, even into the TMI (too much information) territory. We heard about what high school they attended, family secrets, divorce, how their ancestors got to America, angst about the kids (there was a lot of emphasis on their children), and very little about their reading or book interests.\r\n\r\n<strong>But, let\'s get back to me</strong>\r\n\r\nWhen we finally got around to discussing the book, one (self-absorbed) woman kept bringing it back to her experiences, her life, her likes, her dislikes. Everything someone else said made her want to share something irrelevant to the book and only relevant to herself. At one point, she digressed into discussing whether her second son (who is probably in his early 30s) had attachment issues because he spent a few weeks in the NICU after being born prematurely. (Yes, this really happened.)\r\n\r\nI began to think I had mistakenly attended a group therapy session.\r\n\r\n<strong>Are you being social?</strong>\r\n\r\nImagine that instead of a book group, this was Twitter or Facebook. Among the stuff in your feed is a bunch of self-promoting, self-analyzing, self-absorbed stuff. Do you pay attention? I bet you don\'t. Because when you are in a social setting, like a book group or social media, you are there to share and discuss and<em> interact</em>. It is a multi-sided conversation--not a one-sided discourse.\r\n\r\nNow, take a look at your marketing materials. How much is about how great you are, and how many awards you\'ve won? How much shows you understand and empathize with your readers (customers, donors, etc.)? If the balance is tipped in your favor instead of your reader, then you are talking way too much about yourself.\r\n\r\n<strong>Who cares?</strong>\r\n\r\nTo be a more successful communicator (or book group participant), start listening more and talking less. And when you do talk, make sure you aren\'t being self-absorbed.\r\n\r\n<strong>Here\'s the thing: Nobody cares as much about you as you do.</strong>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Please, don\'t tell me more about you','','inherit','open','open','','3400-revision-v1','','','2016-11-18 09:17:54','2016-11-18 14:17:54','',3400,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/11/3400-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3406,4,'2016-11-28 09:38:47','2016-11-28 14:38:47','','ami-neiberger','Ami Neiberger-Miller','inherit','open','open','','ami-neiberger','','','2016-11-28 09:39:18','2016-11-28 14:39:18','',3405,'http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Ami-Neiberger.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),
(3407,4,'2016-11-28 09:40:46','2016-11-28 14:40:46','&nbsp;\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_3406\" align=\"alignleft\" width=\"239\"]<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Ami-Neiberger.jpg\"><img class=\"wp-image-3406 size-medium\" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Ami-Neiberger-239x300.jpg\" alt=\"Pic of Ami Neiberger-Miller\" width=\"239\" height=\"300\" /></a> Ami Neiberger-Miller[/caption]\r\n\r\nAmi Neiberger-Miller is a public relations strategist specializing in nonprofit organizations, associations and small businesses. She has written educational curricula, a book, feature articles, press releases, infographics, training materials, websites, style guides, policy manuals, and much more. She Organization: Steppingstone LLC\r\nWebsite: www.SteppingstoneLLC.com.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n@AmazingPRMaven\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<strong>1. What role does writing play in your work and how important a skill is it?</strong>\r\n\r\nWriting is the lifeblood of my work in public relations and advocacy. I am constantly writing for news releases, feature articles, emails, strategic plans, social media and much more. Writing is an important skill because of the electronic age in which we operate. Even though people are reading content online, they are often reading written text when they view content online. And written text plays a role in shaping visual media now too – in the form of scripts, graphics and video.\r\n\r\n<strong>2. Does writing well still matter in a digital/text/emoji world?</strong>\r\n\r\nThe craft of writing is very much alive and well today. Writing well matters even more in a digital world. Writing the right words has never been more important than it is today – because attention spans are shrinking. We have to share information much faster now and it’s even more challenging to get people to pay attention. There is still space for longer form writing, and with the internet, more opportunities to attract attention and be published. Digital options also offer writing opportunities – because scripts have to be created for videos, and copy has to be written for infographics, flipbooks, and all sorts of other materials.\r\n\r\n<strong>3. What’s the best advice you’ve received or would give on how to improve writing skills?</strong>\r\n\r\nTo me one of the best skills you can develop in writing is delivering quality copy quickly. I am typically the person who tries to muscle through to finish the job and reach my word count for the day (and then some). But I’ve found that I do better if I take breaks when I get stuck or reach a point where copy is just not flowing. Taking a break can be as simple as going for a walk, making some tea, or packing up and working in a new environment. Returning with fresh eyes to your work can make a big difference. Just a short break can refresh your spirit.\r\n\r\nI also find that I tend to do better with longer writing projects if I focus on them in the morning. By the end of the day, my creative juices are spent. While I can do “sausage-grinding” types of writing fairly late in the day and into the evening, I find I am typically more focused and creative in the morning. One of my favorite time slots for writing is 4:00am-6am (yes, I know that sounds insane) because it’s a time of day that is quiet and distraction free. It’s also when my mind is freshest. If I wake up on a mission for a particular project – early morning is the time I want to use to write and pour out the words.\r\n\r\nI also think it’s important to develop the ability to free write. Just getting what you want to say out is a triumph, even if it’s messy. Far too often, I see writers get paralyzed by wanting to be sure that what they write initially is correct or concise. I may be the kind of person who proofreads restaurant menus for typos, but I can’t apply that same eagle eye to newborn writing as it’s pouring out. Getting the initial “brain dump” done can be cathartic and help you organize. Editing can come later. Respect the process so you don’t lose a great thought or element because you got caught up in the details. Being able to just sit down and “free write” without judging yourself is a really helpful practice to develop.\r\n\r\n<strong>4. What are your top three writing resources or references?</strong>\r\n\r\nI am old-fashioned in that I still keep on the shelf near my desk a red Webster’s New World Dictionary (that I won for an essay I wrote in sixth grade so it is horribly out of date but beloved). Next to it are a thesaurus and a Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations. To me, those are the big three. But I readily admit that I don’t take them out very often. I keep a lot of writing books nearby too. I have some favorite online resources, such as Purdue University’s Online Writing Lab and Grammar Girl. I also like Ann Wylie’s writing workshops (which I take as webinars through my PRSA membership). On Twitter, I search for #writing #quote when I need an inspirational pick me up. I also subscribe to Women on Writing.\r\n\r\n<strong>5. Do you follow a style guide, and if so, which one?</strong>\r\n\r\nI don’t really follow a style guide with my own writing. If I am doing a project for a client, I use whatever style guide they prefer. Increasingly, clients are issuing their own style guides and making variations from the major style guides, as style has become tightly linked to branding. I keep on my shelf the following: the Associated Press Stylebook, the Chicago Manual of Style, the Elements of International English Style and the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association.\r\n\r\n<strong>6. What’s your top writing/grammar/usage pet peeve?</strong>\r\n\r\nMy most cringe-worthy writing gaffe is when I double up a sentence, as in \"today we are going to announce that XYZ is today.\" It’s an easy mistake that can be caught by proofreading. For some reason though, it is one of my bad habits.\r\n\r\n<strong>7. What’s your favorite word and what’s your least favorite?</strong>\r\n\r\nFavorite word: partner\r\nLeast favorite word: innovate','On writing: Ami Neiberger-Miller sticks to the tried and true','','inherit','open','open','','3405-revision-v1','','','2016-11-28 09:40:46','2016-11-28 14:40:46','',3405,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/11/3405-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3408,4,'2016-11-28 16:26:25','2016-11-28 21:26:25','We\'ve arrived at the last On Writing interview of the year, and this month, I\'ve turned to public relations maven (check out her Twitter handle below) Ami Neiberger-Miller. I met Ami at a PRSA conference a few years back where we both were presenting. Ami understands how PR works and how important writing is to communicating effectively.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_3406\" align=\"alignleft\" width=\"239\"]<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Ami-Neiberger.jpg\"><img class=\"wp-image-3406 size-medium\" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Ami-Neiberger-239x300.jpg\" alt=\"Pic of Ami Neiberger-Miller\" width=\"239\" height=\"300\" /></a> Ami Neiberger-Miller[/caption]\r\n\r\nAmi Neiberger-Miller is a public relations strategist specializing in nonprofit organizations, associations and small businesses. She is the founder of <a href=\"http://steppingstonellc.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Steppingstone, LLC,</a> a communications and public relations agency. She has written educational curricula, a book, feature articles, press releases, infographics, training materials, websites, style guides, policy manuals, and much more.\r\n\r\nFind her on Twitter at <a href=\"https://twitter.com/amazingprmaven\" target=\"_blank\">@AmazingPRMaven</a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<strong>1. What role does writing play in your work and how important a skill is it?</strong>\r\n\r\nWriting is the lifeblood of my work in public relations and advocacy. I am constantly writing for news releases, feature articles, emails, strategic plans, social media and much more. Writing is an important skill because of the electronic age in which we operate. Even though people are reading content online, they are often reading written text when they view content online. And written text plays a role in shaping visual media now too – in the form of scripts, graphics and video.\r\n\r\n<strong>2. Does writing well still matter in a digital/text/emoji world?</strong>\r\n\r\nThe craft of writing is very much alive and well today. Writing well matters even more in a digital world. Writing the right words has never been more important than it is today – because attention spans are shrinking. We have to share information much faster now and it’s even more challenging to get people to pay attention. There is still space for longer form writing, and with the internet, more opportunities to attract attention and be published. Digital options also offer writing opportunities – because scripts have to be created for videos, and copy has to be written for infographics, flipbooks, and all sorts of other materials.\r\n\r\n<strong>3. What’s the best advice you’ve received or would give on how to improve writing skills?</strong>\r\n\r\nTo me one of the best skills you can develop in writing is delivering quality copy quickly. I am typically the person who tries to muscle through to finish the job and reach my word count for the day (and then some). But I’ve found that I do better if I take breaks when I get stuck or reach a point where copy is just not flowing. Taking a break can be as simple as going for a walk, making some tea, or packing up and working in a new environment. Returning with fresh eyes to your work can make a big difference. Just a short break can refresh your spirit.\r\n\r\nI also find that I tend to do better with longer writing projects if I focus on them in the morning. By the end of the day, my creative juices are spent. While I can do “sausage-grinding” types of writing fairly late in the day and into the evening, I find I am typically more focused and creative in the morning. One of my favorite time slots for writing is 4:00am-6am (yes, I know that sounds insane) because it’s a time of day that is quiet and distraction free. It’s also when my mind is freshest. If I wake up on a mission for a particular project – early morning is the time I want to use to write and pour out the words.\r\n\r\nI also think it’s important to develop the ability to free write. Just getting what you want to say out is a triumph, even if it’s messy. Far too often, I see writers get paralyzed by wanting to be sure that what they write initially is correct or concise. I may be the kind of person who proofreads restaurant menus for typos, but I can’t apply that same eagle eye to newborn writing as it’s pouring out. Getting the initial “brain dump” done can be cathartic and help you organize. Editing can come later. Respect the process so you don’t lose a great thought or element because you got caught up in the details. Being able to just sit down and “free write” without judging yourself is a really helpful practice to develop.\r\n\r\n<strong>4. What are your top three writing resources or references?</strong>\r\n\r\nI am old-fashioned in that I still keep on the shelf near my desk a red Webster’s New World Dictionary (that I won for an essay I wrote in sixth grade so it is horribly out of date but beloved). Next to it are a thesaurus and a Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations. To me, those are the big three. But I readily admit that I don’t take them out very often. I keep a lot of writing books nearby too. I have some favorite online resources, such as Purdue University’s Online Writing Lab and Grammar Girl. I also like Ann Wylie’s writing workshops (which I take as webinars through my PRSA membership). On Twitter, I search for #writing #quote when I need an inspirational pick me up. I also subscribe to Women on Writing.\r\n\r\n<strong>5. Do you follow a style guide, and if so, which one?</strong>\r\n\r\nI don’t really follow a style guide with my own writing. If I am doing a project for a client, I use whatever style guide they prefer. Increasingly, clients are issuing their own style guides and making variations from the major style guides, as style has become tightly linked to branding. I keep on my shelf the following: the Associated Press Stylebook, the Chicago Manual of Style, the Elements of International English Style and the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association.\r\n\r\n<strong>6. What’s your top writing/grammar/usage pet peeve?</strong>\r\n\r\nMy most cringe-worthy writing gaffe is when I double up a sentence, as in \"today we are going to announce that XYZ is today.\" It’s an easy mistake that can be caught by proofreading. For some reason though, it is one of my bad habits.\r\n\r\n<strong>7. What’s your favorite word and what’s your least favorite?</strong>\r\n\r\nFavorite word: partner\r\nLeast favorite word: innovate','On writing: Ami Neiberger-Miller sticks to the tried and true','','inherit','open','open','','3405-revision-v1','','','2016-11-28 16:26:25','2016-11-28 21:26:25','',3405,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/11/3405-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3409,4,'2016-11-28 16:30:20','2016-11-28 21:30:20','We\'ve arrived at the last On Writing interview of the year, and this month, I\'ve turned to public relations maven (check out her Twitter handle below) Ami Neiberger-Miller. I met Ami at a PRSA conference a few years back where we both were presenting. Ami understands how PR works and how important writing is to communicating effectively.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_3406\" align=\"alignleft\" width=\"239\"]<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Ami-Neiberger.jpg\"><img class=\"wp-image-3406 size-medium\" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Ami-Neiberger-239x300.jpg\" alt=\"Pic of Ami Neiberger-Miller\" width=\"239\" height=\"300\" /></a> Ami Neiberger-Miller[/caption]\r\n\r\nAmi Neiberger-Miller is a public relations strategist specializing in nonprofit organizations, associations and small businesses. She is the founder of <a href=\"http://steppingstonellc.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Steppingstone, LLC,</a> a communications and public relations agency. She has written educational curricula, a book, feature articles, press releases, infographics, training materials, websites, style guides, policy manuals, and much more.\r\n\r\nFind her on Twitter at <a href=\"https://twitter.com/amazingprmaven\" target=\"_blank\">@AmazingPRMaven</a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<strong>1. What role does writing play in your work and how important a skill is it?</strong>\r\n\r\nWriting is the lifeblood of my work in public relations and advocacy. I am constantly writing for news releases, feature articles, emails, strategic plans, social media and much more. Writing is an important skill because of the electronic age in which we operate. Even though people are reading content online, they are often reading written text when they view content online. And written text plays a role in shaping visual media now too – in the form of scripts, graphics and video.\r\n\r\n<strong>2. Does writing well still matter in a digital/text/emoji world?</strong>\r\n\r\nThe craft of writing is very much alive and well today. Writing well matters even more in a digital world. Writing the right words has never been more important than it is today – because attention spans are shrinking. We have to share information much faster now and it’s even more challenging to get people to pay attention. There is still space for longer form writing, and with the internet, more opportunities to attract attention and be published. Digital options also offer writing opportunities – because scripts have to be created for videos, and copy has to be written for infographics, flipbooks, and all sorts of other materials.\r\n\r\n<strong>3. What’s the best advice you’ve received or would give on how to improve writing skills?</strong>\r\n\r\nTo me one of the best skills you can develop in writing is delivering quality copy quickly. I am typically the person who tries to muscle through to finish the job and reach my word count for the day (and then some). But I’ve found that I do better if I take breaks when I get stuck or reach a point where copy is just not flowing. Taking a break can be as simple as going for a walk, making some tea, or packing up and working in a new environment. Returning with fresh eyes to your work can make a big difference. Just a short break can refresh your spirit.\r\n\r\nI also find that I tend to do better with longer writing projects if I focus on them in the morning. By the end of the day, my creative juices are spent. While I can do “sausage-grinding” types of writing fairly late in the day and into the evening, I find I am typically more focused and creative in the morning. One of my favorite time slots for writing is 4:00am-6am (yes, I know that sounds insane) because it’s a time of day that is quiet and distraction free. It’s also when my mind is freshest. If I wake up on a mission for a particular project – early morning is the time I want to use to write and pour out the words.\r\n\r\nI also think it’s important to develop the ability to free write. Just getting what you want to say out is a triumph, even if it’s messy. Far too often, I see writers get paralyzed by wanting to be sure that what they write initially is correct or concise. I may be the kind of person who proofreads restaurant menus for typos, but I can’t apply that same eagle eye to newborn writing as it’s pouring out. Getting the initial “brain dump” done can be cathartic and help you organize. Editing can come later. Respect the process so you don’t lose a great thought or element because you got caught up in the details. Being able to just sit down and “free write” without judging yourself is a really helpful practice to develop.\r\n\r\n<strong>4. What are your top three writing resources or references?</strong>\r\n\r\nI am old-fashioned in that I still keep on the shelf near my desk a red Webster’s New World Dictionary (that I won for an essay I wrote in sixth grade so it is horribly out of date but beloved). Next to it are a thesaurus and a Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations. To me, those are the big three. But I readily admit that I don’t take them out very often. I keep a lot of writing books nearby too. I have some favorite online resources, such as Purdue University’s Online Writing Lab and Grammar Girl. I also like Ann Wylie’s writing workshops (which I take as webinars through my PRSA membership). On Twitter, I search for #writing #quote when I need an inspirational pick me up. I also subscribe to Women on Writing.\r\n\r\n<strong>5. Do you follow a style guide, and if so, which one?</strong>\r\n\r\nI don’t really follow a style guide with my own writing. If I am doing a project for a client, I use whatever style guide they prefer. Increasingly, clients are issuing their own style guides and making variations from the major style guides, as style has become tightly linked to branding. I keep on my shelf the following: the Associated Press Stylebook, the Chicago Manual of Style, the Elements of International English Style and the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association.\r\n\r\n<strong>6. What’s your top writing/grammar/usage pet peeve?</strong>\r\n\r\nMy most cringe-worthy writing gaffe is when I double up a sentence, as in \"today we are going to announce that XYZ is today.\" It’s an easy mistake that can be caught by proofreading. For some reason though, it is one of my bad habits.\r\n\r\n<strong>7. What’s your favorite word and what’s your least favorite?</strong>\r\n\r\nFavorite word: partner\r\nLeast favorite word: innovate\r\n\r\nIt\'s always good practice to keep tried and true resources at your fingertips. Like Ami, every writer should have a dictionary and thesaurus nearby.\r\n\r\nComing up will be a recap of the On Writing advice. Keep checking here and on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.','On writing: Ami Neiberger-Miller sticks to the tried and true','','inherit','open','open','','3405-revision-v1','','','2016-11-28 16:30:20','2016-11-28 21:30:20','',3405,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/11/3405-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3410,4,'2016-11-29 10:51:26','2016-11-29 15:51:26','We\'ve arrived to the last On Writing interview of the year, and this month, I\'ve turned to public relations maven (check out her Twitter handle below) Ami Neiberger-Miller. I met Ami at a PRSA conference a few years back where we both were presenting. Ami truly understands how PR works, and how important writing is to communicating effectively.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_3406\" align=\"alignleft\" width=\"239\"]<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Ami-Neiberger.jpg\"><img class=\"wp-image-3406 size-medium\" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Ami-Neiberger-239x300.jpg\" alt=\"Pic of Ami Neiberger-Miller\" width=\"239\" height=\"300\" /></a> Ami Neiberger-Miller[/caption]\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nAmi Neiberger-Miller is a public relations strategist specializing in nonprofit organizations, associations and small businesses. She is the founder of <a href=\"http://steppingstonellc.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Steppingstone, LLC,</a> a communications and public relations agency. She has written educational curricula, a book, feature articles, press releases, infographics, training materials, websites, style guides, policy manuals, and much more.\r\n\r\nFind her on Twitter at <a href=\"https://twitter.com/amazingprmaven\" target=\"_blank\">@AmazingPRMaven</a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<strong>1. What role does writing play in your work and how important a skill is it?</strong>\r\n\r\nWriting is the lifeblood of my work in public relations and advocacy. I am constantly writing for news releases, feature articles, emails, strategic plans, social media and much more. Writing is an important skill because of the electronic age in which we operate. Even though people are reading content online, they are often reading written text when they view content online. And written text plays a role in shaping visual media now too – in the form of scripts, graphics and video.\r\n\r\n<strong>2. Does writing well still matter in a digital/text/emoji world?</strong>\r\n\r\nThe craft of writing is very much alive and well today. Writing well matters even more in a digital world. Writing the right words has never been more important than it is today – because attention spans are shrinking. We have to share information much faster now and it’s even more challenging to get people to pay attention. There is still space for longer form writing, and with the internet, more opportunities to attract attention and be published. Digital options also offer writing opportunities – because scripts have to be created for videos, and copy has to be written for infographics, flipbooks, and all sorts of other materials.\r\n\r\n<strong>3. What’s the best advice you’ve received or would give on how to improve writing skills?</strong>\r\n\r\nTo me one of the best skills you can develop in writing is delivering quality copy quickly. I am typically the person who tries to muscle through to finish the job and reach my word count for the day (and then some). But I’ve found that I do better if I take breaks when I get stuck or reach a point where copy is just not flowing. Taking a break can be as simple as going for a walk, making some tea, or packing up and working in a new environment. Returning with fresh eyes to your work can make a big difference. Just a short break can refresh your spirit.\r\n\r\nI also find that I tend to do better with longer writing projects if I focus on them in the morning. By the end of the day, my creative juices are spent. While I can do “sausage-grinding” types of writing fairly late in the day and into the evening, I find I am typically more focused and creative in the morning. One of my favorite time slots for writing is 4-6:00 a.m. (yes, I know that sounds insane) because it’s a time of day that\'s quiet and distraction free. It’s also when my mind is freshest. If I wake up on a mission for a particular project – early morning is the time I want to use to write and pour out the words.\r\n\r\nI also think it’s important to develop the ability to \"free write.\" Just getting what you want to say out is a triumph, even if it’s messy. Far too often, I see writers get paralyzed by wanting to be sure that what they write initially is correct or concise. I may be the kind of person who proofreads restaurant menus for typos, but I can’t apply that same eagle eye to newborn writing as it’s pouring out. Getting the initial “brain dump” done can be cathartic and help you organize. Editing can come later. Respect the process so you don’t lose a great thought or element because you got caught up in the details. Being able to just sit down and “free write” without judging yourself is a really helpful practice to develop.\r\n\r\n<strong>4. What are your top three writing resources or references?</strong>\r\n\r\nI am old-fashioned in that I still keep on the shelf near my desk a red Webster’s New World Dictionary (that I won for an essay I wrote in sixth grade so it is horribly out of date but beloved). Next to it are a thesaurus and a Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations. To me, those are the big three. But I readily admit that I don’t take them out very often. I keep a lot of writing books nearby too. I have some favorite online resources, such as <a href=\"https://owl.english.purdue.edu/\" target=\"_blank\">Purdue University’s Online Writing Lab </a>and <a href=\"http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-girl\" target=\"_blank\">Grammar Girl</a>. I also like Ann Wylie’s writing workshops (which I take as webinars through my PRSA membership). On Twitter, I search for #writing #quote when I need an inspirational pick me up. I also subscribe to <a href=\"http://www.wow-womenonwriting.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Women on Writing.</a>\r\n\r\n<strong>5. Do you follow a style guide, and if so, which one?</strong>\r\n\r\nI don’t really follow a style guide with my own writing. If I am doing a project for a client, I use whatever style guide they prefer. Increasingly, clients are issuing their own style guides and making variations from the major style guides, as style has become tightly linked to branding. I keep on my shelf the following: the Associated Press Stylebook, the Chicago Manual of Style, the Elements of International English Style and the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association.\r\n\r\n<strong>6. What’s your top writing/grammar/usage pet peeve?</strong>\r\n\r\nMy most cringe-worthy writing gaffe is when I double up a sentence, as in \"today we are going to announce that XYZ is today.\" It’s an easy mistake that can be caught by proofreading. For some reason though, it\'s one of my bad habits.\r\n\r\n<strong>7. What’s your favorite word and what’s your least favorite?</strong>\r\n\r\nFavorite word: partner\r\nLeast favorite word: innovate\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">It\'s always good practice to keep tried and true resources at your fingertips. Like Ami, every writer should have a dictionary and thesaurus nearby. The various style guides are invaluable, and AP and Chicago both have very good online versions by subscription. </span>\r\n\r\n<strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">Coming up later in December will be a recap of the On Writing advice. Keep checking here and on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.</span></strong>','On writing: Ami Neiberger-Miller sticks to the tried and true','','inherit','open','open','','3405-revision-v1','','','2016-11-29 10:51:26','2016-11-29 15:51:26','',3405,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/11/3405-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3411,4,'2016-11-29 10:53:28','2016-11-29 15:53:28','We\'ve arrived to the last On Writing interview of the year, and this month, I\'ve turned to public relations maven (check out her Twitter handle below) Ami Neiberger-Miller. I met Ami at a PRSA conference a few years back where we both were presenting. Ami truly understands how PR works, and how important writing is to communicating effectively.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_3406\" align=\"alignleft\" width=\"239\"]<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Ami-Neiberger.jpg\"><img class=\"wp-image-3406 size-medium\" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Ami-Neiberger-239x300.jpg\" alt=\"Pic of Ami Neiberger-Miller\" width=\"239\" height=\"300\" /></a> Ami Neiberger-Miller[/caption]\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nAmi Neiberger-Miller is a public relations strategist specializing in nonprofit organizations, associations and small businesses. She is the founder of <a href=\"http://steppingstonellc.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Steppingstone, LLC,</a> a communications and public relations agency. She has written educational curricula, a book, feature articles, press releases, infographics, training materials, websites, style guides, policy manuals, and much more.\r\n\r\nFind her on Twitter at <a href=\"https://twitter.com/amazingprmaven\" target=\"_blank\">@AmazingPRMaven</a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<strong>1. What role does writing play in your work and how important a skill is it?</strong>\r\n\r\nWriting is the lifeblood of my work in public relations and advocacy. I am constantly writing for news releases, feature articles, emails, strategic plans, social media and much more. Writing is an important skill because of the electronic age in which we operate. Even though people are reading content online, they are often reading written text when they view content online. And written text plays a role in shaping visual media now too – in the form of scripts, graphics and video.\r\n\r\n<strong>2. Does writing well still matter in a digital/text/emoji world?</strong>\r\n\r\nThe craft of writing is very much alive and well today. Writing well matters even more in a digital world. Writing the right words has never been more important than it is today – because attention spans are shrinking. We have to share information much faster now and it’s even more challenging to get people to pay attention. There is still space for longer form writing, and with the internet, more opportunities to attract attention and be published. Digital options also offer writing opportunities – because scripts have to be created for videos, and copy has to be written for infographics, flipbooks, and all sorts of other materials.\r\n\r\n<strong>3. What’s the best advice you’ve received or would give on how to improve writing skills?</strong>\r\n\r\nTo me one of the best skills you can develop in writing is delivering quality copy quickly. I am typically the person who tries to muscle through to finish the job and reach my word count for the day (and then some). But I’ve found that I do better if I take breaks when I get stuck or reach a point where copy is just not flowing. Taking a break can be as simple as going for a walk, making some tea, or packing up and working in a new environment. Returning with fresh eyes to your work can make a big difference. Just a short break can refresh your spirit.\r\n\r\nI also find that I tend to do better with longer writing projects if I focus on them in the morning. By the end of the day, my creative juices are spent. While I can do “sausage-grinding” types of writing fairly late in the day and into the evening, I find I am typically more focused and creative in the morning. One of my favorite time slots for writing is 4-6:00 a.m. (yes, I know that sounds insane) because it’s a time of day that\'s quiet and distraction free. It’s also when my mind is freshest. If I wake up on a mission for a particular project – early morning is the time I want to use to write and pour out the words.\r\n\r\nI also think it’s important to develop the ability to \"free write.\" Just getting what you want to say out is a triumph, even if it’s messy. Far too often, I see writers get paralyzed by wanting to be sure that what they write initially is correct or concise. I may be the kind of person who proofreads restaurant menus for typos, but I can’t apply that same eagle eye to newborn writing as it’s pouring out. Getting the initial “brain dump” done can be cathartic and help you organize. Editing can come later. Respect the process so you don’t lose a great thought or element because you got caught up in the details. Being able to just sit down and “free write” without judging yourself is a really helpful practice to develop.\r\n\r\n<strong>4. What are your top three writing resources or references?</strong>\r\n\r\nI am old-fashioned in that I still keep on the shelf near my desk a red Webster’s New World Dictionary (that I won for an essay I wrote in sixth grade so it is horribly out of date but beloved). Next to it are a thesaurus and a Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations. To me, those are the big three. But I readily admit that I don’t take them out very often. I keep a lot of writing books nearby too. I have some favorite online resources, such as <a href=\"https://owl.english.purdue.edu/\" target=\"_blank\">Purdue University’s Online Writing Lab </a>and <a href=\"http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-girl\" target=\"_blank\">Grammar Girl</a>. I also like Ann Wylie’s writing workshops (which I take as webinars through my PRSA membership). On Twitter, I search for #writing #quote when I need an inspirational pick me up. I also subscribe to <a href=\"http://www.wow-womenonwriting.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Women on Writing.</a>\r\n\r\n<strong>5. Do you follow a style guide, and if so, which one?</strong>\r\n\r\nI don’t really follow a style guide with my own writing. If I am doing a project for a client, I use whatever style guide they prefer. Increasingly, clients are issuing their own style guides and making variations from the major style guides, as style has become tightly linked to branding. I keep on my shelf the following: the Associated Press Stylebook, the Chicago Manual of Style, the Elements of International English Style and the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association.\r\n\r\n<strong>6. What’s your top writing/grammar/usage pet peeve?</strong>\r\n\r\nMy most cringe-worthy writing gaffe is when I double up a sentence, as in \"today we are going to announce that XYZ is today.\" It’s an easy mistake that can be caught by proofreading. For some reason though, it\'s one of my bad habits.\r\n\r\n<strong>7. What’s your favorite word and what’s your least favorite?</strong>\r\n\r\nFavorite word: partner\r\nLeast favorite word: innovate\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">It\'s always good practice to keep tried and true resources at your fingertips. Like Ami, every writer should have a dictionary and thesaurus nearby. The various style guides are invaluable, and AP and Chicago both have very good online versions by subscription. </span>\r\n\r\n<strong><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">Coming up later in December will be a recap of the On Writing advice. Please keep an eye out for it here and/or on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook.</span></strong>','On writing: Ami Neiberger-Miller sticks to the tried and true','','inherit','open','open','','3405-revision-v1','','','2016-11-29 10:53:28','2016-11-29 15:53:28','',3405,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/11/3405-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3412,4,'2016-11-29 13:28:54','2016-11-29 18:28:54','If you\'re like me, you\'ve been bombarded by email for the past several days. First, it was all about Black Friday deals. Then it was the Cyber Monday deals. And today, it\'s about Giving Tuesday.\r\n\r\nNow, I am not against getting deals or giving to good causes. And I think using email marketing is very effective given that people generally opt-in, and are willing to receive your stuff.\r\n\r\n<strong>But I am against email marketing <em>abuse</em>.</strong>\r\n\r\nBecause it\'s an absolute abuse of your list to send too many emails in too short a time span. It overwhelms people.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-partner=\"tweetdeck\">\r\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\"><a href=\"https://twitter.com/DBMC\">@DBMC</a> my inbox is vomiting. It\'s bad</p>\r\n— Jan-Michael Sacharko (@JanMichaelDC) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/JanMichaelDC/status/803632850763296769\">November 29, 2016</a></blockquote>\r\n<script src=\"//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script>\r\n\r\nEnough said.\r\n\r\nThe bottom line with abusing your email marketing privileges is that it will be counterproductive. Too much email (especially from the same sender) makes people hit delete. And some may even unsubscribe.\r\n\r\nUse email wisely. Don\'t abuse it or your list\'s good faith.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Use email, don\'t abuse it','','publish','open','open','','use-email-dont-abuse-it','','','2016-11-29 13:28:54','2016-11-29 18:28:54','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3412',0,'post','',0),
(3413,4,'2016-11-29 12:30:28','2016-11-29 17:30:28','If you\'re like me, you\'ve been bombarded by email for the past several days. First, it was all about Black Friday deals. Then it was the Cyber Monday deals. And today, it\'s about Giving Tuesday.\r\n\r\nNow, I am not against getting deals or giving to good causes. And I think using email marketing is very effective given that people generally opt-in, and are willing to receive your stuff.\r\n\r\n<strong>But I am against email marketing <em>abuse</em>.</strong>\r\n\r\nBecause it\'s an absolute abuse of your list to send too many emails in too short a time span. It overwhelms people. As one of my Twitter friends said--\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nIt makes people delete your email.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Use email, don\'t abuse it','','inherit','open','open','','3412-revision-v1','','','2016-11-29 12:30:28','2016-11-29 17:30:28','',3412,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/11/3412-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3414,4,'2016-11-29 13:16:32','2016-11-29 18:16:32','If you\'re like me, you\'ve been bombarded by email for the past several days. First, it was all about Black Friday deals. Then it was the Cyber Monday deals. And today, it\'s about Giving Tuesday.\r\n\r\nNow, I am not against getting deals or giving to good causes. And I think using email marketing is very effective given that people generally opt-in, and are willing to receive your stuff.\r\n\r\n<strong>But I am against email marketing <em>abuse</em>.</strong>\r\n\r\nBecause it\'s an absolute abuse of your list to send too many emails in too short a time span. It overwhelms people.\r\n\r\nAs one of my Twitter friends said--\r\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-partner=\"tweetdeck\">\r\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\"><a href=\"https://twitter.com/DBMC\">@DBMC</a> my inbox is vomiting. It\'s bad</p>\r\n— Jan-Michael Sacharko (@JanMichaelDC) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/JanMichaelDC/status/803632850763296769\">November 29, 2016</a></blockquote>\r\n<script src=\"//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script>\r\n\r\nThe bottom line with abusing your email marketing priviliges is that it will be counterproductive. Too much email (especially from the same sender) makes people hit delete. And some may even unsubscribe.\r\n\r\nUse email wisely. Don\'t abuse it or your list\'s good faith.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Use email, don\'t abuse it','','inherit','open','open','','3412-revision-v1','','','2016-11-29 13:16:32','2016-11-29 18:16:32','',3412,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/11/3412-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3415,4,'2016-11-29 13:19:30','2016-11-29 18:19:30','If you\'re like me, you\'ve been bombarded by email for the past several days. First, it was all about Black Friday deals. Then it was the Cyber Monday deals. And today, it\'s about Giving Tuesday.\r\n\r\nNow, I am not against getting deals or giving to good causes. And I think using email marketing is very effective given that people generally opt-in, and are willing to receive your stuff.\r\n\r\n<strong>But I am against email marketing <em>abuse</em>.</strong>\r\n\r\nBecause it\'s an absolute abuse of your list to send too many emails in too short a time span. It overwhelms people.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-partner=\"tweetdeck\">\r\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\"><a href=\"https://twitter.com/DBMC\">@DBMC</a> my inbox is vomiting. It\'s bad</p>\r\n— Jan-Michael Sacharko (@JanMichaelDC) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/JanMichaelDC/status/803632850763296769\">November 29, 2016</a></blockquote>\r\n<script src=\"//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script>\r\n\r\nEnough said.\r\n\r\nThe bottom line with abusing your email marketing privileges is that it will be counterproductive. Too much email (especially from the same sender) makes people hit delete. And some may even unsubscribe.\r\n\r\nUse email wisely. Don\'t abuse it or your list\'s good faith.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Use email, don\'t abuse it','','inherit','open','open','','3412-revision-v1','','','2016-11-29 13:19:30','2016-11-29 18:19:30','',3412,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/11/3412-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3418,4,'2016-12-14 09:39:28','2016-12-14 14:39:28','In case you\'ve missed a newsletter, just check this archive:\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/792b39\" target=\"_blank\">December 2016</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/a051e8\" target=\"_blank\">October 2016</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"August 2016 newsletter\" href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/359a88\" target=\"_blank\">August 2016</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/d841f7\" target=\"_blank\">June 2016</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"March 2016 newsletter\" href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/a50a67\" target=\"_blank\">March 2016</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/d7ed27\" target=\"_blank\">January 2016</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/987fe6\" target=\"_blank\">November 2015</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"September 2015 newsletter\" href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/2f17a6\" target=\"_blank\">September 2015</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/f0dc46\" target=\"_blank\">June 2015</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/83c206\" target=\"_blank\">March 2015</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"January 2015 newsletter\" href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/594ec5\" target=\"_blank\">January 2015</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/p/9a6295?fe=1&amp;pact=26384901049\" target=\"_blank\">November 2014</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/f95d35\" target=\"_blank\">September 2014</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/c3e405\" target=\"_blank\">July 2014</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://mad.ly/3625c4\" target=\"_blank\">April 2014</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"February newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/dc2584\" target=\"_blank\">February 2014</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"December 2013 newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/bb9454\" target=\"_blank\">December 2013</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"October 2013 newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/f27424\" target=\"_blank\">October 2013</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"July 2013 newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/eb30f3\" target=\"_blank\">July 2013</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"May 2013 newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/9003c3\" target=\"_blank\">May 2013</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"March 2013 newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/d82a93\" target=\"_blank\">March 2013</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"January 2013 newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/a12873\" target=\"_blank\">January 2013</a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Newsletters','','inherit','open','open','','2509-revision-v1','','','2016-12-14 09:39:28','2016-12-14 14:39:28','',2509,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/12/2509-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3419,4,'2016-12-15 09:44:38','2016-12-15 14:44:38','[caption id=\"attachment_3421\" align=\"alignleft\" width=\"300\"]<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/kaboompics.com_Woman-writing-in-her-work-space.jpg\"><img class=\"wp-image-3421 size-medium\" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/kaboompics.com_Woman-writing-in-her-work-space-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"Kaboompics.com\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" /></a> Kaboompics.com[/caption]\r\n<h3>Pens, t-shirts and apple butter?</h3>\r\nRight now, I have a pen on my desk from a design studio in Washington, DC. I like the way it writes. But I don\'t think I will be using that design studio for any work any time soon.\r\n\r\nI have another pen that I picked up a conference a couple of weeks ago. I also like the way it writes, but I don\'t like web hosting company whose name is on it. I used to host my website there and had nothing but problems. I would never take my business back there or recommend the company to anyone. But I do use that pen.\r\n\r\nAnd then there\'s the t-shirt I picked for a service I don\'t even understand, but hey, this t-shirt is super soft and comfy. Or the magnetic calendar I got from the local realtor, who has also delivered apple butter (in a branded jar) to my door.\r\n<h3>Is your promotional item really promoting you?</h3>\r\nAll of these are promotional items, sometimes called advertising specialties. Some cost pennies each and some cost much more. The question is, no matter how little or a lot you spend on these items, is it money well spent? I believe the answer lies on your expectations.\r\n<h3>Sales?</h3>\r\nIf you expect to gain sales from a promotional item that you have given away without any type of qualification, then you are probably wasting your money. If instead, you ask people to provide an email address or fill a questionnaire, then you will at least have generated a potential lead. However, it\'s also true most people are willing to give you some information in return for a good item (t-shirt, notebook, etc.) without having the slightest intention of buying from you.\r\n<h3>Brand recognition?</h3>\r\nIf you expect to gain name/brand recognition, and nothing else, and that\'s all you want, then you will have spent your money well. Promotional items are designed by nature to boost brand recognition. Generally, they are items that you use regularly, like pens or mugs, making the name on the item very familiar to you.\r\n\r\n<strong> </strong>\r\n<h3>Bottom line</h3>\r\nIf you want to boost your name recognition, and you have money to spend, it may work in your favor to produce some promotional items. My advice is to choose useful items that people keep around for a while.\r\n\r\nIf you want to boost your sales, you have to do more than hand out stuff with your name on it. The decision to buy is not simply based on name recognition. It is based on need, trust and perception of value. There are better ways to accomplish that then spending money on pens and other items. Especially if that pen is never used to write you a check.\r\n\r\n<strong>In order to allocate your marketing budget wisely, you must be clear on your goals and how much you are willing to spend to accomplish them.</strong>','Not using my [name] pen to write you a check','','publish','open','open','','not-using-my-name-pen-to-write-you-a-check','','','2016-12-15 09:44:38','2016-12-15 14:44:38','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3419',0,'post','',0),
(3420,4,'2016-12-15 09:39:05','2016-12-15 14:39:05','<h3>Pens, t-shirts and apple butter?</h3>\r\nRight now, I have a pen on my desk from a design studio in Washington, DC. I like the way it writes. But I don\'t think I will be using that design studio for any work any time soon.\r\n\r\nI have another pen that I picked up a conference a couple of weeks ago. I also like the way it writes, but I don\'t like web hosting company whose name is on it. I used to host my website there and had nothing but problems. I would never take my business back there or recommend the company to anyone. But I do use that pen.\r\n\r\nAnd then there\'s the t-shirt I picked for a service I don\'t even understand, but hey, this t-shirt is super soft and comfy. Or the magnetic calendar I got from the local realtor, who has also delivered apple butter (in a branded jar) to my door.\r\n<h3>Is your promotional item really promoting you?</h3>\r\nAll of these are promotional items, sometimes called advertising specialties. Some cost pennies each and some cost much more. The question is, no matter how little or a lot you spend on these items, is it money well spent? I believe the answer lies on your expectations.\r\n<h3>Sales?</h3>\r\nIf you expect to gain sales from a promotional item that you have given away without any type of qualification, then you are probably wasting your money. If instead, you ask people to provide an email address or fill a questionnaire, then you will at least have generated a potential lead. However, it\'s also true most people are willing to give you some information in return for a good item (t-shirt, notebook, etc.) without having the slightest intention of buying from you.\r\n<h3>Brand recognition?</h3>\r\nIf you expect to gain name/brand recognition, and nothing else, and that\'s all you want, then you will have spent your money well. Promotional items are designed by nature to boost brand recognition. Generally, they are items that you use regularly, like pens or mugs, making the name on the item very familiar to you.\r\n\r\n<strong>In order to allocate your marketing budget wisely, you must be clear on your goals and how much you are willing to spend to accomplish them.</strong>\r\n<h3>Bottom line</h3>\r\nIf you want to boost your name recognition, and you have money to spend, it may work in your favor to produce some promotional items. My advice is to choose useful items that people keep around for a while.\r\n\r\nIf you want to boost your sales, you have to do more than hand out stuff with your name on it. The decision to buy is not simply based on name recognition. It is based on need, trust and perception of value. There are better ways to accomplish that then spending money on pens and other items. Especially if that pen is never used to write you a check.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Not using my [name] pen to write you a check','','inherit','open','open','','3419-revision-v1','','','2016-12-15 09:39:05','2016-12-15 14:39:05','',3419,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/12/3419-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3421,4,'2016-12-15 09:42:52','2016-12-15 14:42:52','','kaboompics-com_woman-writing-in-her-work-space','Kaboompics.com','inherit','open','open','','kaboompics-com_woman-writing-in-her-work-space','','','2016-12-15 09:43:08','2016-12-15 14:43:08','',3419,'http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/kaboompics.com_Woman-writing-in-her-work-space.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),
(3422,4,'2016-12-15 09:43:38','2016-12-15 14:43:38','[caption id=\"attachment_3421\" align=\"alignleft\" width=\"300\"]<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/kaboompics.com_Woman-writing-in-her-work-space.jpg\"><img class=\"wp-image-3421 size-medium\" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/kaboompics.com_Woman-writing-in-her-work-space-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"Kaboompics.com\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" /></a> Kaboompics.com[/caption]\r\n<h3>Pens, t-shirts and apple butter?</h3>\r\nRight now, I have a pen on my desk from a design studio in Washington, DC. I like the way it writes. But I don\'t think I will be using that design studio for any work any time soon.\r\n\r\nI have another pen that I picked up a conference a couple of weeks ago. I also like the way it writes, but I don\'t like web hosting company whose name is on it. I used to host my website there and had nothing but problems. I would never take my business back there or recommend the company to anyone. But I do use that pen.\r\n\r\nAnd then there\'s the t-shirt I picked for a service I don\'t even understand, but hey, this t-shirt is super soft and comfy. Or the magnetic calendar I got from the local realtor, who has also delivered apple butter (in a branded jar) to my door.\r\n<h3>Is your promotional item really promoting you?</h3>\r\nAll of these are promotional items, sometimes called advertising specialties. Some cost pennies each and some cost much more. The question is, no matter how little or a lot you spend on these items, is it money well spent? I believe the answer lies on your expectations.\r\n<h3>Sales?</h3>\r\nIf you expect to gain sales from a promotional item that you have given away without any type of qualification, then you are probably wasting your money. If instead, you ask people to provide an email address or fill a questionnaire, then you will at least have generated a potential lead. However, it\'s also true most people are willing to give you some information in return for a good item (t-shirt, notebook, etc.) without having the slightest intention of buying from you.\r\n<h3>Brand recognition?</h3>\r\nIf you expect to gain name/brand recognition, and nothing else, and that\'s all you want, then you will have spent your money well. Promotional items are designed by nature to boost brand recognition. Generally, they are items that you use regularly, like pens or mugs, making the name on the item very familiar to you.\r\n\r\n<strong> </strong>\r\n<h3>Bottom line</h3>\r\nIf you want to boost your name recognition, and you have money to spend, it may work in your favor to produce some promotional items. My advice is to choose useful items that people keep around for a while.\r\n\r\nIf you want to boost your sales, you have to do more than hand out stuff with your name on it. The decision to buy is not simply based on name recognition. It is based on need, trust and perception of value. There are better ways to accomplish that then spending money on pens and other items. Especially if that pen is never used to write you a check.\r\n\r\n<strong>In order to allocate your marketing budget wisely, you must be clear on your goals and how much you are willing to spend to accomplish them.</strong>','Not using my [name] pen to write you a check','','inherit','open','open','','3419-revision-v1','','','2016-12-15 09:43:38','2016-12-15 14:43:38','',3419,'http://deborahbrody.com/2016/12/3419-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3427,4,'2017-01-11 09:56:46','2017-01-11 14:56:46','The <em>Washington Post</em> runs an advertising campaign with the slogan \"if you don\'t get it, you don\'t get it.\" And on Monday, I did not get my print copy of the <em>Post</em>. I called the re-delivery number and left a message. Five hours later, I had not yet received a replacement copy so I called again, and left another message, asking for a call back. Then I went to the online complaints, and left two messages--one about the missed delivery and one about another delivery issue I had during my end-of-year vacation.\r\n\r\n<strong>I didn\'t get it</strong>\r\n\r\nI heard nothing from the <em>Post</em>. Not one word. No call back and no redelivered paper. No apology. No credit. No nothing.\r\n\r\n<strong>Subscriptions matter</strong>\r\n\r\nThe <em>Washington Post</em> has seen an increase in digital subscribers and a decrease in print subscribers. This isn\'t surprising since most people seem to prefer to read their news online. However, in terms of advertising sales, which is what pays the bills at the <em>Post</em> and most every other newspaper, circulation numbers are what sets advertising rates. Fewer print subscribers means smaller circulation numbers, which means lower advertising rates. Obviously, the less the <em>Post</em> charges Macy\'s and the various other advertisers, the less revenue it generates.\r\n\r\n<strong>Disregard is disrespect</strong>\r\n\r\nSo subscriptions matter. And yet the Post continues to treat its subscribers with, if not outright disdain, complete disregard. Prices are increased every few months, credits are no longer given even though the print subscription charges for delivery costs, and customer service has been outsourced to Asia, where the agents barely speak English and don\'t know K Street from Pennsylvania Avenue.\r\n\r\nThe Washington Post would prefer if you never called them, so they\'ve created an online account/customer service portal. Except it sucks. Every time you want to do something, you  have to sign in, and then somehow, you are signed out of your digital subscription. And not everything works. I tried to change my vacation hold dates, and was not able to. I had to call an unhelpful customer service agent.\r\n\r\nWhen I got home from vacation, I discovered that of the six days I was gone, four days of newspapers were delivered. My vacation stop was not honored. I complained online and nothing. Again, no apology, no credit, no acknowledgment of a mix-up.\r\n\r\nHere\'s the bottom line: The Washington Post can advertise for new subscribers all it wants, but until it fixes its broken customer service, it will continue to lose print subscribers (and by extension advertising revenue).\r\n\r\nCustomer service matters more than marketing in retaining customers. Marketing is about acquisition and customer service is about retention. If you acquire customers just to lose them because of poor service, you are wasting money marketing and you are threatening your bottom line.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','If you don\'t get it, you don\'t get it.','','publish','open','open','','if-you-dont-get-it-you-dont-get-it','','','2017-01-11 09:56:46','2017-01-11 14:56:46','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3427',0,'post','',0),
(3428,4,'2017-01-11 09:56:46','2017-01-11 14:56:46','The <em>Washington Post</em> runs an advertising campaign with the slogan \"if you don\'t get it, you don\'t get it.\" And on Monday, I did not get my print copy of the <em>Post</em>. I called the re-delivery number and left a message. Five hours later, I had not yet received a replacement copy so I called again, and left another message, asking for a call back. Then I went to the online complaints, and left two messages--one about the missed delivery and one about another delivery issue I had during my end-of-year vacation.\r\n\r\n<strong>I didn\'t get it</strong>\r\n\r\nI heard nothing from the <em>Post</em>. Not one word. No call back and no redelivered paper. No apology. No credit. No nothing.\r\n\r\n<strong>Subscriptions matter</strong>\r\n\r\nThe <em>Washington Post</em> has seen an increase in digital subscribers and a decrease in print subscribers. This isn\'t surprising since most people seem to prefer to read their news online. However, in terms of advertising sales, which is what pays the bills at the <em>Post</em> and most every other newspaper, circulation numbers are what sets advertising rates. Fewer print subscribers means smaller circulation numbers, which means lower advertising rates. Obviously, the less the <em>Post</em> charges Macy\'s and the various other advertisers, the less revenue it generates.\r\n\r\n<strong>Disregard is disrespect</strong>\r\n\r\nSo subscriptions matter. And yet the Post continues to treat its subscribers with, if not outright disdain, complete disregard. Prices are increased every few months, credits are no longer given even though the print subscription charges for delivery costs, and customer service has been outsourced to Asia, where the agents barely speak English and don\'t know K Street from Pennsylvania Avenue.\r\n\r\nThe Washington Post would prefer if you never called them, so they\'ve created an online account/customer service portal. Except it sucks. Every time you want to do something, you  have to sign in, and then somehow, you are signed out of your digital subscription. And not everything works. I tried to change my vacation hold dates, and was not able to. I had to call an unhelpful customer service agent.\r\n\r\nWhen I got home from vacation, I discovered that of the six days I was gone, four days of newspapers were delivered. My vacation stop was not honored. I complained online and nothing. Again, no apology, no credit, no acknowledgment of a mix-up.\r\n\r\nHere\'s the bottom line: The Washington Post can advertise for new subscribers all it wants, but until it fixes its broken customer service, it will continue to lose print subscribers (and by extension advertising revenue).\r\n\r\nCustomer service matters more than marketing in retaining customers. Marketing is about acquisition and customer service is about retention. If you acquire customers just to lose them because of poor service, you are wasting money marketing and you are threatening your bottom line.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','If you don\'t get it, you don\'t get it.','','inherit','open','open','','3427-revision-v1','','','2017-01-11 09:56:46','2017-01-11 14:56:46','',3427,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/01/3427-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3431,4,'2017-01-26 11:37:44','2017-01-26 16:37:44','Email marketing is still an incredibly effective marketing tool, <em>if</em> you are doing it correctly. Sadly, that\'s a big if. Often, marketers make the following five mistakes. Are you?\r\n\r\nHere are five email marketing mistakes that may be affecting your campaign\'s performance.\r\n<h3>1. Not getting permission</h3>\r\nAre you sending out your email marketing that haven\'t signed up for it? Then not only are you making a crucial mistake, you are also running afoul of the CAN-SPAM law.  This is huge mistake that you must stop right away.\r\n<h3>2. Sending image-only emails</h3>\r\nDid you know that Outlook and many other email programs do not show images until the use authorizes their download? This means that if your email is all images, and no plain text, your recipients will not see anything except a bunch of red xes. Don\'t make your recipients work so hard! Send both text and images.\r\n<h3>3. Sending too frequently or too many emails</h3>\r\nWhen people sign up for your email marketing, they are indicating interest in getting information from you. However, they are not indicating they want their email box to be flooded with your stuff. And yet, some marketing feel that reach is not enough to cut through the clutter, and frequency is needed. Excessive frequency will not cut through the clutter, instead it may get you cut off entirely.\r\n<h3> 4. Not checking your analytics</h3>\r\nHow many people open your emails? How many click on links? How many bounces are you getting? If you don\'t know the answers to these questions, you aren\'t checking your analytics. You are missing out on valuable information that can help guide your future email marketing efforts.\r\n<h3>5. Not cleaning up your list</h3>\r\nPeriodically, you should go through your list. You should pay special attention to recipients that are not opening your email. If they\'ve been on your list for a long time, keeping them on does not improve your email marketing. You could try sending them an email asking them if they wish to remain on your list or whether there is information that they need from you and aren\'t getting. If you get no response, then delete them from your list. Getting rid of these users will actually help increase your open rate.\r\n\r\nHow many of these email marketing mistakes are you committing? Which mistakes would you add?','5 Email Marketing Mistakes You Need To Fix Right Now','','publish','open','open','','5-email-marketing-mistakes-you-need-to-fix-right-now','','','2018-05-31 15:21:45','2018-05-31 19:21:45','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3431',0,'post','',0),
(3432,4,'2017-01-26 11:25:09','2017-01-26 16:25:09','Email marketing is still an incredibly effective marketing tool--if you are doing it correctly.\r\n\r\nHere are five email marketing mistakes that may be affecting your campaign\'s performance.\r\n\r\n1. Not getting permission\r\n\r\nAre you sending out your email marketing that haven\'t signed up for it? Then not only are you making a crucial mistake, you are also running afoul of the CAN-SPAM law.  This is huge mistake that you must stop right away.\r\n\r\n2. Sending image-only emails\r\n\r\nDid you know that Outlook and many other email programs do not show mages until the use authorizes their download? This means that if your email is all images, and no plain text, your recipients will not see anything except a bunch of red xes. Don\'t make your recipients work so hard! Send both text and images.\r\n\r\n3. Sending too frequently or too many emails\r\n\r\nWhen people sign up for your email marketing, they are indicating interest in getting information from you. However, they are not indicating they want their email box to be flooded with your stuff. And yet, some marketing feel that reach is not enough to cut through the clutter, and frequency is needed. Excessive frequency will not cut the clutter but may actually get you cut off entirely.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','5 Email Marketing Mistakes You Need To Fix Right Now','','inherit','open','open','','3431-revision-v1','','','2017-01-26 11:25:09','2017-01-26 16:25:09','',3431,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/01/3431-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3433,4,'2017-01-26 11:37:14','2017-01-26 16:37:14','Email marketing is still an incredibly effective marketing tool, <em>if</em> you are doing it correctly. Sadly, that\'s a big if. Often, marketers make the following five mistakes. Are you?\r\n\r\nHere are five email marketing mistakes that may be affecting your campaign\'s performance.\r\n<h3>1. Not getting permission</h3>\r\nAre you sending out your email marketing that haven\'t signed up for it? Then not only are you making a crucial mistake, you are also running afoul of the CAN-SPAM law.  This is huge mistake that you must stop right away.\r\n<h3>2. Sending image-only emails</h3>\r\nDid you know that Outlook and many other email programs do not show mages until the use authorizes their download? This means that if your email is all images, and no plain text, your recipients will not see anything except a bunch of red xes. Don\'t make your recipients work so hard! Send both text and images.\r\n<h3>3. Sending too frequently or too many emails</h3>\r\nWhen people sign up for your email marketing, they are indicating interest in getting information from you. However, they are not indicating they want their email box to be flooded with your stuff. And yet, some marketing feel that reach is not enough to cut through the clutter, and frequency is needed. Excessive frequency will not cut through the clutter, instead it may get you cut off entirely.\r\n<h3> 4. Not checking your analytics</h3>\r\nHow many people open your emails? How many click on links? How many bounces are you getting? If you don\'t know the answers to these questions, you aren\'t checking your analytics. You are missing out on valuable information that can help guide your future email marketing efforts.\r\n<h3>5. Not cleaning up your list</h3>\r\nPeriodically, you should go through your list. You should pay special attention to recipients that are not opening your email. If they\'ve been on your list for a long time, keeping them on does not improve your email marketing. You could try sending them an email asking them if they wish to remain on your list or whether there is information that they need from you and aren\'t getting. If you get no response, then delete them from your list. Getting rid of these users will actually help increase your open rate.\r\n\r\nHow many of these email marketing mistakes are you committing? Which mistakes would you add?','5 Email Marketing Mistakes You Need To Fix Right Now','','inherit','open','open','','3431-revision-v1','','','2017-01-26 11:37:14','2017-01-26 16:37:14','',3431,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/01/3431-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3435,4,'2017-02-09 10:03:02','0000-00-00 00:00:00','A couple of weeks ago, I went to a panel discussion about the \"hot\"trends in digital marketing. The panelists talked about they are successfully using Snapchat. A couple said the big thing coming is Alexa (Amazon\'s \"Siri\" for your home). They weren\'t too keen on influencer marketing.','You have to understand what you are doing','','draft','open','open','','','','','2017-02-09 10:03:02','2017-02-09 15:03:02','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3435',0,'post','',0),
(3461,4,'2017-03-27 11:42:35','2017-03-27 15:42:35','It was the best of times and the worst of times....\r\n\r\nAs the famous opening line to Charles Dickens\' classic A Tale of Two Cities indicates, you can have two opposite situations going on at the same time. So was my experience with two different organizations.\r\n\r\nIn the past few weeks, I\'ve attended two remarkable similar events put on by two different organizations. Both organizations are membership-based, advocacy/non-profits, and are local affiliates of a national organization. I am not a member of either organization (yet).\r\n\r\nEach organization handled the sign-up and follow-through for the event in diametrically opposed ways. One organization has\r\n\r\nOrganization A (worst)\r\n\r\nEvent: Luncheon featuring a Washington Post reporter discussing the challenges of covering the Trump Administration. Cost was $35.\r\n\r\nSign up: On the organization website, taken directly to PayPal. No information or email list sign up captured.\r\n\r\nReminder for the event: None.\r\n\r\nFollow up after the event: None.\r\n\r\nOrganization B (best)\r\n\r\nEvent: Cocktail reception followed by panel discussion featuring three White House correspondents about the challenges of covering the Trump Administration.\r\n\r\nSign up: Through EventBrite, which allows for email capture,\r\n\r\nReminder: EventBrite sends a reminder two days ahead of the event.\r\n\r\nFollow up: Personalized thank you email from development director, including a program survey, and encouraging involvement in the organization and attendance at future events.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','A tale of two organizations and one good outcome','','inherit','open','open','','3458-revision-v1','','','2017-03-27 11:42:35','2017-03-27 15:42:35','',3458,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/03/3458-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3438,4,'2017-02-14 13:09:42','2017-02-14 18:09:42','<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/kaboompics.com_Padlock-with-heart-shape-on-rope-bridge.jpg\"><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-3439\" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/kaboompics.com_Padlock-with-heart-shape-on-rope-bridge-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"kaboompics.com_Padlock with heart shape on rope bridge\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" /></a>\r\n\r\nOn this day in which we celebrate love and friendship (by buying overpriced roses and boxes of chocolate natch), I wish that more marketers would show love for their customers. Instead, we see many of the following behaviors :\r\n<h3>1. Not delivering what you promise</h3>\r\nSpecial discount? \"Free\" consultation? These are some of the promises that marketers make and then don\'t deliver on. Another is the \"bait and switch\" blog post/article, in which the marketer tells you that you will learn something or get something, but instead it\'s a sales pitch for a webinar or a product. And one that I have been seeing a lot is when you go to the \"fees\" tab on a website only to find some gobbledygook about value or some such, but nothing showing firm numbers.\r\n\r\nWhen you don\'t deliver what you promise you are not showing love for your customers, but rather the opposite.\r\n<h3>2. Not providing essential information or making it very hard to find</h3>\r\nI am talking about restaurant websites that don\'t include hours or menus, businesses that don\'t list customer service numbers or emails, brochures or business cards without addresses, telephones, website URLs or other essential contact information.\r\n\r\nWhen you don\'t provide information your customers need to do business with you, it shows you don\'t value them at all.\r\n<h3>3. Using small or otherwise hard to read fonts</h3>\r\nEven if you have a wonderfully informative website or brochure, which includes all the right information, if  your customer can\'t read it, it\'s for naught. It\'s a waste, and it shows that you haven\'t taken your customers needs into consideration.\r\n<h3>4. Sending too many emails</h3>\r\nHow many times are you going to tell your customers about your sale? I\'d say twice a day every day is probably too much. So is sending ten emails urging potential donors to please give before some deadline (end of the year, your fiscal year, full moon). I\'d add that too many asks in general are not good business (I am looking at you PBS with the constant pledge weeks that in reality are pledge months).\r\n\r\nWhen you don\'t consider that you overwhelming your customers with information, you are showing very little regard for them. That\'s not loving.\r\n<h3>5. Not remembering who already is a customer</h3>\r\nHave you ever received an email, clicked on a link on that email which takes you to a website that has a form as a gatekeeper? The marketer who sent that email didn\'t care that you were already a customer and had already signed up for emails. That\'s lazy and uncaring. Also, it isn\'t very effective because it doesn\'t promote more signups, in fact, it could do the opposite.\r\n\r\n<strong>This is by no means a complete list of ways in which marketers fail to show their love for customers. Which would you add?</strong>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>With that,  I wish my dear readers a very happy Valentine\'s Day. May it be full of all that makes<em> you</em> happy.</strong></span>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','5 Ways You Aren\'t Showing Love for Your Customers','','publish','open','open','','5-ways-you-arent-showing-love-for-your-customers','','','2017-02-14 13:09:42','2017-02-14 18:09:42','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3438',0,'post','',1),
(3439,4,'2017-02-14 13:07:31','2017-02-14 18:07:31','','kaboompics.com_Padlock with heart shape on rope bridge','','inherit','open','open','','kaboompics-com_padlock-with-heart-shape-on-rope-bridge','','','2017-02-14 13:07:31','2017-02-14 18:07:31','',3438,'http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/kaboompics.com_Padlock-with-heart-shape-on-rope-bridge.jpg',0,'attachment','image/jpeg',0),
(3440,4,'2017-02-14 13:07:44','2017-02-14 18:07:44','<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/kaboompics.com_Padlock-with-heart-shape-on-rope-bridge.jpg\"><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-3439\" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/kaboompics.com_Padlock-with-heart-shape-on-rope-bridge-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"kaboompics.com_Padlock with heart shape on rope bridge\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" /></a>\r\n\r\nOn this day in which we celebrate love and friendship (by buying overpriced roses and boxes of chocolate natch), I wish that more marketers would show love for their customers. Instead, we see many of the following behaviors :\r\n<h3>1. Not delivering what you promise</h3>\r\nSpecial discount? \"Free\" consultation? These are some of the promises that marketers make and then don\'t deliver on. Another is the \"bait and switch\" blog post/article, in which the marketer tells you that you will learn something or get something, but instead it\'s a sales pitch for a webinar or a product. And one that I have been seeing a lot is when you go to the \"fees\" tab on a website only to find some gobbledygook about value or some such, but nothing showing firm numbers.\r\n\r\nWhen you don\'t deliver what you promise you are not showing love for your customers, but rather the opposite.\r\n<h3>2. Not providing essential information or making it very hard to find</h3>\r\nI am talking about restaurant websites that don\'t include hours or menus, businesses that don\'t list customer service numbers or emails, brochures or business cards without addresses, telephones, website URLs or other essential contact information.\r\n\r\nWhen you don\'t provide information your customers need to do business with you, it shows you don\'t value them at all.\r\n<h3>3. Using small or otherwise hard to read fonts</h3>\r\nEven if you have a wonderfully informative website or brochure, which includes all the right information, if  your customer can\'t read it, it\'s for naught. It\'s a waste, and it shows that you haven\'t taken your customers needs into consideration.\r\n<h3>4. Sending too many emails</h3>\r\nHow many times are you going to tell your customers about your sale? I\'d say twice a day every day is probably too much. So is sending ten emails urging potential donors to please give before some deadline (end of the year, your fiscal year, full moon). I\'d add that too many asks in general are not good business (I am looking at you PBS with the constant pledge weeks that in reality are pledge months).\r\n\r\nWhen you don\'t consider that you overwhelming your customers with information, you are showing very little regard for them. That\'s not loving.\r\n<h3>5. Not remembering who already is a customer</h3>\r\nHave you ever received an email, clicked on a link on that email which takes you to a website that has a form as a gatekeeper? The marketer who sent that email didn\'t care that you were already a customer and had already signed up for emails. That\'s lazy and uncaring. Also, it isn\'t very effective because it doesn\'t promote more signups, in fact, it could do the opposite.\r\n\r\nThis is by no means a complete list of ways in which marketers fail to show their love for customers. Which would you add?\r\n\r\nWith that,  I wish my dear readers a very happy Valentine\'s Day. May it be full of all that makes<em> you</em> happy.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','5 Ways You Aren\'t Showing Love for Your Customers','','inherit','open','open','','3438-revision-v1','','','2017-02-14 13:07:44','2017-02-14 18:07:44','',3438,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/02/3438-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3441,4,'2017-02-14 13:09:21','2017-02-14 18:09:21','<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/kaboompics.com_Padlock-with-heart-shape-on-rope-bridge.jpg\"><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-3439\" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/kaboompics.com_Padlock-with-heart-shape-on-rope-bridge-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"kaboompics.com_Padlock with heart shape on rope bridge\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" /></a>\r\n\r\nOn this day in which we celebrate love and friendship (by buying overpriced roses and boxes of chocolate natch), I wish that more marketers would show love for their customers. Instead, we see many of the following behaviors :\r\n<h3>1. Not delivering what you promise</h3>\r\nSpecial discount? \"Free\" consultation? These are some of the promises that marketers make and then don\'t deliver on. Another is the \"bait and switch\" blog post/article, in which the marketer tells you that you will learn something or get something, but instead it\'s a sales pitch for a webinar or a product. And one that I have been seeing a lot is when you go to the \"fees\" tab on a website only to find some gobbledygook about value or some such, but nothing showing firm numbers.\r\n\r\nWhen you don\'t deliver what you promise you are not showing love for your customers, but rather the opposite.\r\n<h3>2. Not providing essential information or making it very hard to find</h3>\r\nI am talking about restaurant websites that don\'t include hours or menus, businesses that don\'t list customer service numbers or emails, brochures or business cards without addresses, telephones, website URLs or other essential contact information.\r\n\r\nWhen you don\'t provide information your customers need to do business with you, it shows you don\'t value them at all.\r\n<h3>3. Using small or otherwise hard to read fonts</h3>\r\nEven if you have a wonderfully informative website or brochure, which includes all the right information, if  your customer can\'t read it, it\'s for naught. It\'s a waste, and it shows that you haven\'t taken your customers needs into consideration.\r\n<h3>4. Sending too many emails</h3>\r\nHow many times are you going to tell your customers about your sale? I\'d say twice a day every day is probably too much. So is sending ten emails urging potential donors to please give before some deadline (end of the year, your fiscal year, full moon). I\'d add that too many asks in general are not good business (I am looking at you PBS with the constant pledge weeks that in reality are pledge months).\r\n\r\nWhen you don\'t consider that you overwhelming your customers with information, you are showing very little regard for them. That\'s not loving.\r\n<h3>5. Not remembering who already is a customer</h3>\r\nHave you ever received an email, clicked on a link on that email which takes you to a website that has a form as a gatekeeper? The marketer who sent that email didn\'t care that you were already a customer and had already signed up for emails. That\'s lazy and uncaring. Also, it isn\'t very effective because it doesn\'t promote more signups, in fact, it could do the opposite.\r\n\r\n<strong>This is by no means a complete list of ways in which marketers fail to show their love for customers. Which would you add?</strong>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>With that,  I wish my dear readers a very happy Valentine\'s Day. May it be full of all that makes<em> you</em> happy.</strong></span>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','5 Ways You Aren\'t Showing Love for Your Customers','','inherit','open','open','','3438-revision-v1','','','2017-02-14 13:09:21','2017-02-14 18:09:21','',3438,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/02/3438-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3444,4,'2017-03-02 08:42:17','2017-03-02 13:42:17','<strong>\"Your sport is reserved.\"</strong>\r\n\r\nThat was the headline in an email I got from a marketing agency confirming my attendance at an event it was hosting. Obviously, it should have read \"your spot is reserved.\" Is this an egregious mistake? Not really, but it is careless. It shows nobody bothered to proofread this email. And remember, this is coming from a marketing agency, which presumably creates accurate copy for its clients.\r\n\r\nMore careless yet was a letter I received from my HOA\'s management company regarding board elections. The letter stated that the elections would be held on February 7. The accompanying ballot said the elections would take place on February 28. Every homeowner was welcomed to attend (if only we knew which the correct date was).\r\n<h3>Mistakes are everywhere</h3>\r\nI\'ve been noticing these types of mistakes more and more. Yesterday, a tweet from a leading women\'s organization talked about principals instead of principles. Another letter from my HOA referenced the wrong community.\r\n\r\nI am sure you\'ve noticed it too because it has become rampant. I am not sure what\'s causing this but I believe it has to do with the expectations of instant communication and the ongoing rush we are experiencing. We\'ve seen news organizations that rush to be first instead of taking the time to ensure accuracy.\r\n<h3>Avoiding mistakes takes a bit of effort</h3>\r\nIt takes time to proofread documents. It takes time to ensure all information (dates, times, locations) is accurate. It involves an extra step and perhaps another person.\r\n<h3>And not making the effort communicates lack of care</h3>\r\nRemember, not taking the appropriate steps to make sure your communications are clear and accurate shows that you don\'t care about your reader.\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>What do you do to make sure your communications materials are accurate? Do you follow a checklist? Enlist a proofreader? Please let me know in the comments.</strong></span>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','How to show you really don\'t care','','publish','open','open','','how-to-show-you-really-dont-care','','','2017-03-02 08:42:17','2017-03-02 13:42:17','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3444',0,'post','',0),
(3445,4,'2017-03-02 08:38:51','2017-03-02 13:38:51','\"Your sport is reserved.\"\r\n\r\nThat was the headline in an email I got from a marketing agency confirming my attendance at an event it was hosting. Obviously, it should have read \"your spot is reserved.\" Is this an egregious mistake? Not really, but it is careless. It shows nobody bothered to proofread this email. And remember, this is coming from a marketing agency, which presumably creates accurate copy for its clients.\r\n\r\nMore careless yet was a letter I received from my HOA\'s management company regarding board elections. The letter stated that the elections would be held on February 7. The accompanying ballot said the elections would take place on February 28. Every homeowner was welcomed to attend if only we knew which the correct date was.\r\n<h3>Mistakes are everywhere</h3>\r\nI\'ve been noticing these types of mistakes more and more. Yesterday, a tweet from a leading women\'s organization talked about principals instead of principles. Another letter from my HOA referenced the wrong community.\r\n\r\nI am sure you\'ve noticed it too because it has become rampant. I am not sure what\'s causing this but I believe it has to do with the expectations of instant communication and the ongoing rush we are experiencing. We\'ve seen news organizations that rush to be first instead of taking the time to ensure accuracy.\r\n<h3>Avoiding mistakes takes a bit of effort</h3>\r\nIt takes time to proofread documents. It takes time to ensure all information (dates, times, locations) is accurate. It involves an extra step and perhaps another person.\r\n<h3>And not making the effort communicates lack of care</h3>\r\nRemember, not taking the appropriate steps to make sure your communications are clear and accurate shows that you don\'t care about your reader.\r\n\r\nWhat do you do to make sure your communications materials are accurate? Do you follow a checklist? Enlist a proofreader? Please let me know in the comments.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','How to show you really don\'t care','','inherit','open','open','','3444-revision-v1','','','2017-03-02 08:38:51','2017-03-02 13:38:51','',3444,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/03/3444-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3446,4,'2017-03-02 08:40:58','2017-03-02 13:40:58','<strong>\"Your sport is reserved.\"</strong>\r\n\r\nThat was the headline in an email I got from a marketing agency confirming my attendance at an event it was hosting. Obviously, it should have read \"your spot is reserved.\" Is this an egregious mistake? Not really, but it is careless. It shows nobody bothered to proofread this email. And remember, this is coming from a marketing agency, which presumably creates accurate copy for its clients.\r\n\r\nMore careless yet was a letter I received from my HOA\'s management company regarding board elections. The letter stated that the elections would be held on February 7. The accompanying ballot said the elections would take place on February 28. Every homeowner was welcomed to attend if only we knew which the correct date was.\r\n<h3>Mistakes are everywhere</h3>\r\nI\'ve been noticing these types of mistakes more and more. Yesterday, a tweet from a leading women\'s organization talked about principals instead of principles. Another letter from my HOA referenced the wrong community.\r\n\r\nI am sure you\'ve noticed it too because it has become rampant. I am not sure what\'s causing this but I believe it has to do with the expectations of instant communication and the ongoing rush we are experiencing. We\'ve seen news organizations that rush to be first instead of taking the time to ensure accuracy.\r\n<h3>Avoiding mistakes takes a bit of effort</h3>\r\nIt takes time to proofread documents. It takes time to ensure all information (dates, times, locations) is accurate. It involves an extra step and perhaps another person.\r\n<h3>And not making the effort communicates lack of care</h3>\r\nRemember, not taking the appropriate steps to make sure your communications are clear and accurate shows that you don\'t care about your reader.\r\n\r\nWhat do you do to make sure your communications materials are accurate? Do you follow a checklist? Enlist a proofreader? Please let me know in the comments.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','How to show you really don\'t care','','inherit','open','open','','3444-revision-v1','','','2017-03-02 08:40:58','2017-03-02 13:40:58','',3444,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/03/3444-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3447,4,'2017-03-02 08:42:17','2017-03-02 13:42:17','<strong>\"Your sport is reserved.\"</strong>\r\n\r\nThat was the headline in an email I got from a marketing agency confirming my attendance at an event it was hosting. Obviously, it should have read \"your spot is reserved.\" Is this an egregious mistake? Not really, but it is careless. It shows nobody bothered to proofread this email. And remember, this is coming from a marketing agency, which presumably creates accurate copy for its clients.\r\n\r\nMore careless yet was a letter I received from my HOA\'s management company regarding board elections. The letter stated that the elections would be held on February 7. The accompanying ballot said the elections would take place on February 28. Every homeowner was welcomed to attend (if only we knew which the correct date was).\r\n<h3>Mistakes are everywhere</h3>\r\nI\'ve been noticing these types of mistakes more and more. Yesterday, a tweet from a leading women\'s organization talked about principals instead of principles. Another letter from my HOA referenced the wrong community.\r\n\r\nI am sure you\'ve noticed it too because it has become rampant. I am not sure what\'s causing this but I believe it has to do with the expectations of instant communication and the ongoing rush we are experiencing. We\'ve seen news organizations that rush to be first instead of taking the time to ensure accuracy.\r\n<h3>Avoiding mistakes takes a bit of effort</h3>\r\nIt takes time to proofread documents. It takes time to ensure all information (dates, times, locations) is accurate. It involves an extra step and perhaps another person.\r\n<h3>And not making the effort communicates lack of care</h3>\r\nRemember, not taking the appropriate steps to make sure your communications are clear and accurate shows that you don\'t care about your reader.\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><strong>What do you do to make sure your communications materials are accurate? Do you follow a checklist? Enlist a proofreader? Please let me know in the comments.</strong></span>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','How to show you really don\'t care','','inherit','open','open','','3444-revision-v1','','','2017-03-02 08:42:17','2017-03-02 13:42:17','',3444,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/03/3444-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3452,4,'2017-03-16 14:00:03','2017-03-16 18:00:03','Yesterday, Bill Walsh, a copy editor for the<em> Washington Pos</em>t and author of three books on language, died. He was far too young--only 55--and a victim of cancer. He was liked and respected by his colleagues, copy editors everywhere, and by people who appreciate clean, readable copy (myself included).  His <a href=\"https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/bill-walsh-copy-editor-and-witty-authority-on-language-dies-at-55/2017/03/15/6bf9dea4-002e-11e7-8ebe-6e0dbe4f2bca_story.html?utm_term=.d4a1e9589dd4\" target=\"_blank\">obituary in the Post</a> is a worthwhile read.\r\n\r\nA couple of years ago, I had the good fortune to attend a copy editing workshop that Mr. Walsh was leading. He talked about his pet peeves (\"armed gunmen\" for example) and talked extensively about comma and hyphen use, among other topics. After the session, somebody asked him why there were so many copy errors in the <em>Washington Post</em>. He lamented that the shear quantity of copy (all that digital stuff) made it impossible to keep up. And of course, his department had suffered cuts.\r\n\r\nMore and more, news outlets have fewer copy editors or even none at all. Writers/reporters are expected to edit their own work, which, as anybody who has written anything, is damn near impossible to do successfully.\r\n\r\nCopy editing is not proofreading. Proofreading is about making sure that words are spelled correctly and/or are in the right place. Copy editing is far more than that. Copy editing is about making sure that the work makes sense and that it is accurate. It strives to improve readability and accessibility.\r\n\r\nBill Walsh was a celebrity copy editor (he had a following!). His insight and wit are irreplaceable. I hope that his main skill--copy editing--does not die along with him. He certainly transmitted his knowledge through his books and his workshops. But he couldn\'t stop the powers that be from making cuts to copy editing staff.\r\n\r\nWithout copy editors, readers are shortchanged with text that can be mistake-ridden and inaccurate. Copy editors are valuable and perform necessary work inside news organizations and indeed, any organization that puts out \"content.\"\r\n\r\nRest in peace, Bill Walsh. You and your skills will be be sorely missed.\r\n\r\nP.S. I don\'t have a copy editor, so any mistakes (and I am sure there are a few) are mine and mine alone.','The death of copy editing?','','publish','open','open','','the-death-of-copy-editing','','','2017-03-16 14:00:03','2017-03-16 18:00:03','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3452',0,'post','',0),
(3449,4,'2017-03-07 13:24:11','2017-03-07 18:24:11','A mantra is defined by<a href=\"https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mantra\" target=\"_blank\"> Merriam-Webste</a>r as a mystical formula of invocation or incantation. In Sanskrit, a mantra is a phrase, word, or sound that is repeated during meditation to help practitioners focus.\r\n\r\nIf you want to increase your website\'s performance and focus, I have come up with a mantra for you:\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Make it easier to find.</strong></p>\r\nIf you concentrate on this mantra, you will have a website where people have an easier time finding the information they want.\r\n\r\nIf you don\'t, you will make your website users so frustrated that they will leave your website and will end up not doing business with you.\r\n\r\n<strong>Searching and searching</strong>\r\n\r\nThis morning, I decided to research CD rates at a local bank. First, I had to put in my zip code \"to get localized results.\" Then, I had to navigate to a \"Savings and CDs\" page. Then, I had to click on \"Savings Accounts and CD Options.\" Then, I had to click on \"Certificates of Deposit,\" and then scroll down to find the link for \"Interest Rates.\" To sum it up, I had to go through five different steps/clicks to find the information I was seeking.\r\n\r\n<strong>What do most people need and want to know?</strong>\r\n\r\nI think  going through five steps to find simple information is too many steps. It can be discouraging to have to keep clicking through various pages to get what you need. In the case of the bank, I assume the one thing most people research are rates. Every industry and business has to answer some questions more frequently than others. Restaurants, for example, may need to provide their menu, hours and location. Banks need to provide a list of services, current rates, hours and locations.\r\n\r\n<strong>The information your website visitors request the most, and need the most, needs to be easiest to find. It\'s that simple.</strong>\r\n\r\nSo repeat after me: make it easier to find. There, are you feeling a bit more zen?\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','A website mantra to help you achieve marketing nirvana','','publish','open','open','','a-website-mantra-to-help-you-achieve-marketing-nirvana','','','2017-03-07 13:24:11','2017-03-07 18:24:11','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3449',0,'post','',0),
(3450,4,'2017-03-07 13:23:25','2017-03-07 18:23:25','A mantra is defined by<a href=\"https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mantra\" target=\"_blank\"> Merriam-Webste</a>r as a mystical formula of invocation or incantation. In Sanskrit, a mantra is a phrase, word, or sound that is repeated during meditation to help practitioners focus.\r\n\r\nIf you want to increase your website\'s performance and focus, I have come up with a mantra for you:\r\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Make it easier to find.</strong></p>\r\nIf you concentrate on this mantra, you will have a website where people have an easier time finding the information they want.\r\n\r\nIf you don\'t, you will make your website users so frustrated that they will leave your website and will end up not doing business with you.\r\n\r\n<strong>Searching and searching</strong>\r\n\r\nThis morning, I decided to research CD rates at a local bank. First, I had to put in my zip code \"to get localized results.\" Then, I had to navigate to a \"Savings and CDs\" page. Then, I had to click on \"Savings Accounts and CD Options.\" Then, I had to click on \"Certificates of Deposit,\" and then scroll down to find the link for \"Interest Rates.\" To sum it up, I had to go through five different steps/clicks to find the information I was seeking.\r\n\r\n<strong>What do most people need and want to know?</strong>\r\n\r\nI think  going through five steps to find simple information is too many steps. It can be discouraging to have to keep clicking through various pages to get what you need. In the case of the bank, I assume the one thing most people research are rates. Every industry and business has to answer some questions more frequently than others. Restaurants, for example, may need to provide their menu, hours and location. Banks need to provide a list of services, current rates, hours and locations.\r\n\r\n<strong>The information your website visitors request the most, and need the most, needs to be easiest to find. It\'s that simple.</strong>\r\n\r\nSo repeat after me: make it easier to find. There, are you feeling a bit more zen?\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','A website mantra to help you achieve marketing nirvana','','inherit','open','open','','3449-revision-v1','','','2017-03-07 13:23:25','2017-03-07 18:23:25','',3449,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/03/3449-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3453,4,'2017-03-16 09:47:28','2017-03-16 13:47:28','Yesterday, Bill Walsh, a copy editor for the Washington Post and author of three books on language, died. He was young--only 55. And he was liked and respected by his colleagues, copy editors everywhere, and by people who appreciate clean, readable copy.','The death of copy editing?','','inherit','open','open','','3452-revision-v1','','','2017-03-16 09:47:28','2017-03-16 13:47:28','',3452,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/03/3452-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3454,4,'2017-03-16 14:00:03','2017-03-16 18:00:03','Yesterday, Bill Walsh, a copy editor for the<em> Washington Pos</em>t and author of three books on language, died. He was far too young--only 55--and a victim of cancer. He was liked and respected by his colleagues, copy editors everywhere, and by people who appreciate clean, readable copy (myself included).  His <a href=\"https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/bill-walsh-copy-editor-and-witty-authority-on-language-dies-at-55/2017/03/15/6bf9dea4-002e-11e7-8ebe-6e0dbe4f2bca_story.html?utm_term=.d4a1e9589dd4\" target=\"_blank\">obituary in the Post</a> is a worthwhile read.\r\n\r\nA couple of years ago, I had the good fortune to attend a copy editing workshop that Mr. Walsh was leading. He talked about his pet peeves (\"armed gunmen\" for example) and talked extensively about comma and hyphen use, among other topics. After the session, somebody asked him why there were so many copy errors in the <em>Washington Post</em>. He lamented that the shear quantity of copy (all that digital stuff) made it impossible to keep up. And of course, his department had suffered cuts.\r\n\r\nMore and more, news outlets have fewer copy editors or even none at all. Writers/reporters are expected to edit their own work, which, as anybody who has written anything, is damn near impossible to do successfully.\r\n\r\nCopy editing is not proofreading. Proofreading is about making sure that words are spelled correctly and/or are in the right place. Copy editing is far more than that. Copy editing is about making sure that the work makes sense and that it is accurate. It strives to improve readability and accessibility.\r\n\r\nBill Walsh was a celebrity copy editor (he had a following!). His insight and wit are irreplaceable. I hope that his main skill--copy editing--does not die along with him. He certainly transmitted his knowledge through his books and his workshops. But he couldn\'t stop the powers that be from making cuts to copy editing staff.\r\n\r\nWithout copy editors, readers are shortchanged with text that can be mistake-ridden and inaccurate. Copy editors are valuable and perform necessary work inside news organizations and indeed, any organization that puts out \"content.\"\r\n\r\nRest in peace, Bill Walsh. You and your skills will be be sorely missed.\r\n\r\nP.S. I don\'t have a copy editor, so any mistakes (and I am sure there are a few) are mine and mine alone.','The death of copy editing?','','inherit','open','open','','3452-revision-v1','','','2017-03-16 14:00:03','2017-03-16 18:00:03','',3452,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/03/3452-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3456,4,'2017-03-21 10:12:13','2017-03-21 14:12:13','Perhaps you have a great tagline or you have a fantastic, limited time offer, and yet you are getting no response. It could be that few people are enticed by your offer, or that there is little demand for your product, or, maybe, just maybe, it is that that they (quite literally)<em> can\'t </em>see it.\r\n\r\n<strong>What is it that you do?</strong>\r\n\r\nYesterday,  I was in my car driving behind a commercial SUV, which had the name of the company written in green letters on the back of the truck. But for the life of me, I couldn\'t, make out what this company did because I could not read the line below the company name. I kept trying to figure out as I was driving a car length or so behind the truck. I finally came to a stop right behind this SUV, and it was only then that I was able to read the line saying it did plumbing. This company probably spent some money to have their company name, telephone and website painted on the back of their company SUV, and yet, it was done with such small letters that it was practically useless. Unless you were stopped right behind it, you would not know what it was.\r\n\r\nIf you\'ve driven around during the day, you will have seen any number of commercial trucks and cars, each with the name of the company painted on the side of the vehicle. If the name and service are prominent, and easy to read from a distance, there can be big benefits. It  creates brand recognition. It can also be free advertising. Say your heating system is on the fritz, and you see a truck for a heating company, you may make note of the name, and even the website and/or telephone number.\r\n\r\n<strong>Crammed with content, harder to read</strong>\r\n\r\nVerizon FIOS recently redesigned its On Demand screen. Everything is now more compact (about half of the previous iteration), and all sorts of information is crammed on the screen. To be able to fit all this stuff on the screen, the font size was reduced. The result is that it is hard to read the titles of the movies. And they also added the extra step of making you click on each title to see more information, including cost. It has become very frustrating for me to deal with this new On Demand screen, and as a result, I am no longer going there to see what movies are available.\r\n\r\nI am pretty certain that Verizon embarked on this redesign without consulting its users. I wonder if the company has seen any change in the amount of On Demand content users rent/buy now. Based on my experience, I would bet fewer people are getting stuff On Demand.\r\n\r\n<strong>Can your audience see it? Can they read it?</strong>\r\n\r\nYou must keep <strong>readability and visibility</strong> top of mind when you design or redesign any marketing material. If your audience cannot read your material, or cannot see it properly, then they cannot interact with it.','Can they read it?','','publish','open','open','','can-they-read-it','','','2017-03-21 10:12:13','2017-03-21 14:12:13','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3456',0,'post','',0),
(3457,4,'2017-03-21 10:12:13','2017-03-21 14:12:13','Perhaps you have a great tagline or you have a fantastic, limited time offer, and yet you are getting no response. It could be that few people are enticed by your offer, or that there is little demand for your product, or, maybe, just maybe, it is that that they (quite literally)<em> can\'t </em>see it.\r\n\r\n<strong>What is it that you do?</strong>\r\n\r\nYesterday,  I was in my car driving behind a commercial SUV, which had the name of the company written in green letters on the back of the truck. But for the life of me, I couldn\'t, make out what this company did because I could not read the line below the company name. I kept trying to figure out as I was driving a car length or so behind the truck. I finally came to a stop right behind this SUV, and it was only then that I was able to read the line saying it did plumbing. This company probably spent some money to have their company name, telephone and website painted on the back of their company SUV, and yet, it was done with such small letters that it was practically useless. Unless you were stopped right behind it, you would not know what it was.\r\n\r\nIf you\'ve driven around during the day, you will have seen any number of commercial trucks and cars, each with the name of the company painted on the side of the vehicle. If the name and service are prominent, and easy to read from a distance, there can be big benefits. It  creates brand recognition. It can also be free advertising. Say your heating system is on the fritz, and you see a truck for a heating company, you may make note of the name, and even the website and/or telephone number.\r\n\r\n<strong>Crammed with content, harder to read</strong>\r\n\r\nVerizon FIOS recently redesigned its On Demand screen. Everything is now more compact (about half of the previous iteration), and all sorts of information is crammed on the screen. To be able to fit all this stuff on the screen, the font size was reduced. The result is that it is hard to read the titles of the movies. And they also added the extra step of making you click on each title to see more information, including cost. It has become very frustrating for me to deal with this new On Demand screen, and as a result, I am no longer going there to see what movies are available.\r\n\r\nI am pretty certain that Verizon embarked on this redesign without consulting its users. I wonder if the company has seen any change in the amount of On Demand content users rent/buy now. Based on my experience, I would bet fewer people are getting stuff On Demand.\r\n\r\n<strong>Can your audience see it? Can they read it?</strong>\r\n\r\nYou must keep <strong>readability and visibility</strong> top of mind when you design or redesign any marketing material. If your audience cannot read your material, or cannot see it properly, then they cannot interact with it.','Can they read it?','','inherit','open','open','','3456-revision-v1','','','2017-03-21 10:12:13','2017-03-21 14:12:13','',3456,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/03/3456-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3458,4,'2017-03-28 11:24:57','2017-03-28 15:24:57','To paraphrase the opening line of <em>A Tale of Two Cities</em>, it was the best of practices and the worst of practices. Let me explain.\r\n\r\nIn the past few weeks, I\'ve attended two remarkably similar events put on by two different organizations. Both organizations are membership-based, advocacy/non-profits, and are local affiliates of a national organization. One organization clearly followed best practices, while the other appeared to have no idea how to make the most of a successful event.\r\n\r\n<strong>Organization A</strong>\r\n\r\nEvent description: Luncheon featuring a <em>Washington Post</em> reporter discussing the challenges of covering the Trump Administration. Cost was $35.\r\n\r\nSign up: On the organization\'s website, taken to an outside website (PayPal) for payment. Receipt sent from PayPal but no acknowledgment from organization. No information or email list sign up captured.\r\n\r\nReminder for the event: None.\r\n\r\nFollow up after the event: None.\r\n\r\n<strong>Organization B</strong>\r\n\r\nEvent: Cocktail reception followed by panel discussion, featuring three White House correspondents, about the challenges of covering the Trump Administration. Cost was $36.\r\n\r\nSign up: Through Eventbrite, which allows for email capture, branding, and payment on one page. (There are other benefits to using Eventbrite, including ability to sign in people, print labels, be listed on an events page, and others.) Tickets with event information sent from Eventbrite.\r\n\r\nReminder: Eventbrite sends a reminder two days ahead of the event.\r\n\r\nFollow up: Personalized thank you email from the organization\'s development director, including a program survey, and encouraging involvement in the organization and attendance at future events.\r\n<h3><strong>Five best practices </strong></h3>\r\n<strong>1. Have a hook</strong>\r\n\r\nKudos to both these organizations for their choice of speakers. Both events were very informative, lively and interesting. <strong>Hosting an interesting, topical event is a big draw for members and is attractive to non-members</strong>.\r\n\r\n<strong>2. Use the right online tools</strong>\r\n\r\nThere are lots of online tools available to organizations, at all different prices, for various functions (event management, surveys, time management). They offer functionality such as being able to generate reports, charge credit cards, build email lists, communicate with attendees, and so forth. <strong>Using the right online tool will let you increase your organization\'s efficiency through automation and increased functionality.</strong>\r\n\r\n<strong>3. Build your email list</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you are a membership or donor-based organization it becomes extremely important to build and expand your email list. Having an event is a great way to attract new people, so it makes sense to get their email address so you can keep in touch. <strong>Automatically adding people that have signed up for an event to your email list is easy and smart.</strong>\r\n\r\n<strong>4. Follow up after the event</strong>\r\n\r\nPresumably, by hosting an event, you have a goal for it. This goal could be to increase awareness, or increase your membership, or attract donations, etc. <strong>Following up after the event, reminding people of what you do and how they can be involved will go a long way to achieving your goal.</strong>\r\n\r\n<strong>5. Survey your audience</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you want to continue to have successful programs, you\'ll need to know what attendees liked and didn\'t like. <strong>Asking attendees to rate your program and give suggestions is a great way to improve your future events.</strong>\r\n<h3><strong>It really was the best of times and the worst of times</strong></h3>\r\nOrganization B was much more sophisticated and tech-savvy than Organization A. It used online tools to make things easier, and it seemed to be clearer on the outcomes it wanted. Even though both organizations advocate, only Organization B had the foresight to build their email list to make advocacy happen.\r\n\r\nOrganization A, in effect, has put the onus on me if I want to be more involved in the future. If I want to see what programs are coming up, I will have to visit their website. Organization B is making my involvement and support easier. Since I will be getting B\'s emails about advocacy and events, I will be able to involved if I choose, without having to take an extra step to do it.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','A tale of two organizations and five best practices','','publish','open','open','','a-tale-of-two-organizations-and-five-best-practices','','','2017-03-28 11:24:57','2017-03-28 15:24:57','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3458',0,'post','',0),
(3459,4,'2017-03-24 10:23:49','2017-03-24 14:23:49','In the past few weeks, I\'ve attended two remarkable similar events put on by two different organizations. Both organizations are membership-based, advocacy/non-profits, and are local affiliates of a national organization. I am not a member of either organization (yet).\r\n\r\nOrganization A\r\n\r\nEvent: Luncheon featuring a Washington Post reporter discussing the challenges of covering the Trump Administration. Cost was $35.\r\n\r\nSign up: On the organization website, taken directly to PayPal. No information or email list sign up captured.\r\n\r\nReminder for the event: None.\r\n\r\nFollow up after the event: None.\r\n\r\nOrganization B\r\n\r\nEvent: Cocktail reception followed by panel discussion featuring three White House correspondents about the challenges of covering the Trump Administration.\r\n\r\nSign up: Through EventBrite, which allows for email capture,\r\n\r\nReminder: EventBrite sends a reminder two days ahead of the event.\r\n\r\nFollow up: Personalized thank you email from development director, including a program survey, and encouraging involvement in the organization and attendance at future events.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','A tale of two organizations and one good outcome','','inherit','open','open','','3458-revision-v1','','','2017-03-24 10:23:49','2017-03-24 14:23:49','',3458,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/03/3458-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3460,4,'2017-03-24 11:34:36','2017-03-24 15:34:36','It was the best of times and the worst of times....\r\n\r\nAs the famous opening line to Charles Dickens\' classic A Tale of Two Cities indicates, you can have two opposite situations going on at the same time. So was my experience with two different organizations.\r\n\r\nIn the past few weeks, I\'ve attended two remarkable similar events put on by two different organizations. Both organizations are membership-based, advocacy/non-profits, and are local affiliates of a national organization. I am not a member of either organization (yet).\r\n\r\nOrganization A (worst)\r\n\r\nEvent: Luncheon featuring a Washington Post reporter discussing the challenges of covering the Trump Administration. Cost was $35.\r\n\r\nSign up: On the organization website, taken directly to PayPal. No information or email list sign up captured.\r\n\r\nReminder for the event: None.\r\n\r\nFollow up after the event: None.\r\n\r\nOrganization B (best)\r\n\r\nEvent: Cocktail reception followed by panel discussion featuring three White House correspondents about the challenges of covering the Trump Administration.\r\n\r\nSign up: Through EventBrite, which allows for email capture,\r\n\r\nReminder: EventBrite sends a reminder two days ahead of the event.\r\n\r\nFollow up: Personalized thank you email from development director, including a program survey, and encouraging involvement in the organization and attendance at future events.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','A tale of two organizations and one good outcome','','inherit','open','open','','3458-revision-v1','','','2017-03-24 11:34:36','2017-03-24 15:34:36','',3458,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/03/3458-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3547,4,'2017-08-15 11:35:52','2017-08-15 15:35:52','<strong>We need your support and we will interrupt you viewing until you give us money!</strong>\r\n\r\nThis seems to be the PBS mission during its pledge drive\r\n\r\nCurrently, it\'s the upteenth day during the upteenth time this year that my local PBS station, WETA, is looking for support from viewers. It may not be endless, but it sure feels like it.\r\n\r\nPledge month (?) is the time when the station starts playing \"specials\" that have been played dozens of times before, and interrupting them every fifteen minutes to ask for your support. In return, you will get any number of mugs/bags/videos/books based on the size of your contribution. Also, every other show seems to get interrupted--the Newshour, Washington Week, and most egregiously, the finale of the Great British Baking Show.\r\n\r\n<strong>Enough!</strong>\r\n\r\nViewers like me do not like to watch tired, old \"specials.\" Viewers like me hate having shows interrupted multiple times by the same talking heads giving repetitious pitches on why to give to the station. Viewers like me do not want mugs or tote bags. Viewers like me click off PBS the instant this pledge madness starts.\r\n\r\n<strong>How can this model work today?</strong>\r\n\r\nHere\'s a newsflash for PBS: Times have changed.\r\n\r\n<em>Hundreds of viewing options</em>\r\n\r\nAll TV channels are under intense competition—both for viewers and for advertising dollars. This is because viewers have many more options for entertainment than ever before: There are hundreds of cable and streaming channels, and also an internet chock-full of stuff to watch, read, react to and interact with.\r\n\r\n<em>It\'s an on-demand world</em>\r\n\r\nWith DVRs and/or access to content on demand, people can watch shows on whatever schedule they choose. They can ignore advertising (and pledge drives).\r\n\r\n<em>There\'s a streaming channel for that</em>\r\n\r\nIt used to be that you could only watch British shows like Downton Abbey or Inspector Morse on PBS. Now, you can stream them on specialized British TV/movies channels, and even watch them on Netflix.\r\n\r\n<em>Watch TV wherever you are, whenever you want</em>\r\n\r\nSmartphones and tablets can access the internet anywhere and everywhere. And users of these devices can buy/rent/download all sorts of entertainment to watch even when there is no internet access.\r\n\r\n<strong>Interrupting viewer with a push-message is really old school</strong>\r\n\r\nThese days, inbound marketing is in favor. That\'s when potential customers/supporters come to you because you are providing great content/reasons for them to interact and buy/support from you. Forcing yourself on viewers, like the pledge drive on PBS does, is the complete opposite. It assumes a static audience that does not have any option but to sit there and listen to a sales pitch. It assumes that pushing a message is the best way to get action. It\'s the old way of doing things. And it may help PBS shed viewers, not gain them.\r\n\r\n<strong>Is annoying viewers for a $60 donation the best way to keep PBS afloat?</strong>\r\n\r\nWhen you are aiming for lots of small donations, you have to do a lot more work. In this case, it means interrupting viewing more times, more often. It gets annoying. It\'s a turn-off. And I don\'t believe it\'s effective. I think it would be far more effective to concentrate on getting and retaining big, corporate or foundation sponsorships.\r\n\r\nI understand PBS wants community support too. Perhaps instead of asking viewers to donate, PBS could emphasize obtaining a yearly membership with (real) special benefits (currently this is not clear on the PBS website). Instead of having pledge drives, PBS could include a 15-second ad/message for membership before popular shows.\r\n\r\nWhat do you think? Do you watch PBS? Do you support PBS? Why or why not?\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Does PBS get the support of viewers like you? ','','inherit','open','open','','3546-revision-v1','','','2017-08-15 11:35:52','2017-08-15 15:35:52','',3546,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/08/3546-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3463,4,'2017-03-28 11:05:09','2017-03-28 15:05:09','To paraphrase the opening line of <em>A Tale of Two Cities</em>, it was the best of practices and the worst of practices. Let me explain.\r\n\r\nIn the past few weeks, I\'ve attended two remarkably similar events put on by two different organizations. Both organizations are membership-based, advocacy/non-profits, and are local affiliates of a national organization. One organization clearly followed best practices, while the other appeared to have no idea how to make the most of a successful event.\r\n\r\n<strong>Organization A</strong>\r\n\r\nEvent description: Luncheon featuring a <em>Washington Post</em> reporter discussing the challenges of covering the Trump Administration. Cost was $35.\r\n\r\nSign up: On the organization\'s website, taken directly to PayPal. No information or email list sign up captured.\r\n\r\nReminder for the event: None.\r\n\r\nFollow up after the event: None.\r\n\r\n<strong>Organization B</strong>\r\n\r\nEvent: Cocktail reception followed by panel discussion, featuring three White House correspondents, about the challenges of covering the Trump Administration. Cost was $36.\r\n\r\nSign up: Through EventBrite, which allows for email capture, branding, and payment on one page. (There are other benefits to using EventBrite, including ability to sign in people, print labels, be listed on an events page, and others.)\r\n\r\nReminder: EventBrite sends a reminder two days ahead of the event.\r\n\r\nFollow up: Personalized thank you email from the organization\'s development director, including a program survey, and encouraging involvement in the organization and attendance at future events.\r\n<h3><strong>Four best practices </strong></h3>\r\n<strong>1. A hook</strong>\r\n\r\nKudos to both these organizations for their choice of speakers. Both events were very interesting. <strong>Hosting an interesting, topical event is a big draw for members and is attractive to non-members</strong>.\r\n\r\n<strong>2. Building an email list</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you are a membership or donor-based organization it becomes extremely important to build and expand your email list. Having an event is a great way to attract new people, so it makes sense to get their email organization. <strong>Automatically adding people that have signed up for an event to your email list is easy and smart.</strong>\r\n\r\n<strong>3. Following up after the event</strong>\r\n\r\nPresumably, by hosting an event, you have a goal for it.  This goal could be to increase awareness, or increase your membership, or attract donations, etc. <strong>Following up after the event, reminding people of what you do and how they can be involved will go a long way to achieving your goal.</strong>\r\n\r\n<strong>4. Program surveys</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you want to continue to have successful programs, you\'ll need to know what attendees liked and didn\'t like. <strong>Asking attendees to rate your program and give suggestions is a great way to improve your future events.</strong>\r\n<h3><strong>It really was the best of times and the worst of times</strong></h3>\r\nOrganization B was much more sophisticated than Organization A. It used online tools to make things easier, and it seemed to be clearer to the outcomes it wanted. Even though both organizations advocate, only one organization had the foresight to build their email list to make advocacy happen.\r\n\r\nOrganization A, in effect, has put the onus on me if I want to be more involved in the future. If I want to see what programs are coming up, I will have to visit their website. Organization B is making my involvement and support easier. Since I will be getting B\'s emails about advocacy and events, I will be able to involved if I choose, without having to think about it.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','A tale of two organizations and one good outcome','','inherit','open','open','','3458-revision-v1','','','2017-03-28 11:05:09','2017-03-28 15:05:09','',3458,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/03/3458-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3464,4,'2017-03-28 11:24:17','2017-03-28 15:24:17','To paraphrase the opening line of <em>A Tale of Two Cities</em>, it was the best of practices and the worst of practices. Let me explain.\r\n\r\nIn the past few weeks, I\'ve attended two remarkably similar events put on by two different organizations. Both organizations are membership-based, advocacy/non-profits, and are local affiliates of a national organization. One organization clearly followed best practices, while the other appeared to have no idea how to make the most of a successful event.\r\n\r\n<strong>Organization A</strong>\r\n\r\nEvent description: Luncheon featuring a <em>Washington Post</em> reporter discussing the challenges of covering the Trump Administration. Cost was $35.\r\n\r\nSign up: On the organization\'s website, taken to an outside website (PayPal) for payment. Receipt sent from PayPal but no acknowledgment from organization. No information or email list sign up captured.\r\n\r\nReminder for the event: None.\r\n\r\nFollow up after the event: None.\r\n\r\n<strong>Organization B</strong>\r\n\r\nEvent: Cocktail reception followed by panel discussion, featuring three White House correspondents, about the challenges of covering the Trump Administration. Cost was $36.\r\n\r\nSign up: Through Eventbrite, which allows for email capture, branding, and payment on one page. (There are other benefits to using Eventbrite, including ability to sign in people, print labels, be listed on an events page, and others.) Tickets with event information sent from Eventbrite.\r\n\r\nReminder: Eventbrite sends a reminder two days ahead of the event.\r\n\r\nFollow up: Personalized thank you email from the organization\'s development director, including a program survey, and encouraging involvement in the organization and attendance at future events.\r\n<h3><strong>Five best practices </strong></h3>\r\n<strong>1. Have a hook</strong>\r\n\r\nKudos to both these organizations for their choice of speakers. Both events were very informative, lively and interesting. <strong>Hosting an interesting, topical event is a big draw for members and is attractive to non-members</strong>.\r\n\r\n<strong>2. Use the right online tools</strong>\r\n\r\nThere are lots of online tools available to organizations, at all different prices, for various functions (event management, surveys, time management). They offer functionality such as being able to generate reports, charge credit cards, build email lists, communicate with attendees, and so forth. <strong>Using the right online tool will let you increase your organization\'s efficiency through automation and increased functionality.</strong>\r\n\r\n<strong>3. Build your email list</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you are a membership or donor-based organization it becomes extremely important to build and expand your email list. Having an event is a great way to attract new people, so it makes sense to get their email address so you can keep in touch. <strong>Automatically adding people that have signed up for an event to your email list is easy and smart.</strong>\r\n\r\n<strong>4. Follow up after the event</strong>\r\n\r\nPresumably, by hosting an event, you have a goal for it. This goal could be to increase awareness, or increase your membership, or attract donations, etc. <strong>Following up after the event, reminding people of what you do and how they can be involved will go a long way to achieving your goal.</strong>\r\n\r\n<strong>5. Survey your audience</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you want to continue to have successful programs, you\'ll need to know what attendees liked and didn\'t like. <strong>Asking attendees to rate your program and give suggestions is a great way to improve your future events.</strong>\r\n<h3><strong>It really was the best of times and the worst of times</strong></h3>\r\nOrganization B was much more sophisticated and tech-savvy than Organization A. It used online tools to make things easier, and it seemed to be clearer on the outcomes it wanted. Even though both organizations advocate, only Organization B had the foresight to build their email list to make advocacy happen.\r\n\r\nOrganization A, in effect, has put the onus on me if I want to be more involved in the future. If I want to see what programs are coming up, I will have to visit their website. Organization B is making my involvement and support easier. Since I will be getting B\'s emails about advocacy and events, I will be able to involved if I choose, without having to take an extra step to do it.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','A tale of two organizations and five best practices','','inherit','open','open','','3458-revision-v1','','','2017-03-28 11:24:17','2017-03-28 15:24:17','',3458,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/03/3458-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3466,4,'2017-04-05 13:44:18','2017-04-05 17:44:18','There\'s a real estate guy who specializes in selling homes in my neighborhood. He is very eager to work with me. I know this because I receive marketing stuff from him constantly. I get a jar of (branded) apple butter on my doorstep every fall. I get a property report, hung on my doorknob on a quarterly basis. I get a magnetic calendar every December. All told, I get at least six direct marketing pieces from this guy every year. As does everyone in my community.\r\n\r\nAs a communications consultant, I understand what his rationale and motivations may be:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Gain/retain name recognition</li>\r\n	<li>Stand out from the crowd</li>\r\n	<li>Appear neighborly</li>\r\n	<li>Show he is local and understands the community.</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nOn a personal basis, I feel this guy is making way too much of an effort to get my business. And I feel his marketing efforts are intrusive.\r\n\r\nBut is this real estate guy doing too much marketing? The answer comes down to doing some calculations (yes, there\'s math involved).\r\n\r\n<strong>The true test of whether you are doing too much marketing has to do with the value of a customer and how much you are willing to spend to acquire said customer.</strong>\r\n<h3>The value of a customer</h3>\r\nYour first calculation will be to determine the value of a customer. To do this, you, will have to calculate how much money a customer\'s business generates for you, in terms of current transaction, future transactions, and also including the potential value of any referred business.\r\n<h3>Your marketing costs</h3>\r\nThe second calculation you will have to do is to figure out how much you are spending on marketing. To do this tally up all marketing related costs such as printing, advertising spending, distribution, consulting/design fees, website, memberships, and so forth. You may also want to include your time.\r\n<h3>Cost per acquisition</h3>\r\nYour final calculation is to figure out your acquisition cost per customer. So say you spent $10,000 on marketing in a year. You obtained five customers from that marketing effort. That means  you spent $2,000 per customer acquired.\r\n<h3>Which means</h3>\r\nIf the spending to acquire each customer exceeds the value of the customer to your business, you acquisition cost may be too high.\r\n\r\nI don\'t know how much the real estate guy spends on his marketing, nor do I know what value his customers generate, but I sure hope he has done this calculation. If not, he may be doing too much marketing.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Doing too much marketing?','','publish','open','open','','doing-too-much-marketing','','','2017-04-05 13:44:18','2017-04-05 17:44:18','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3466',0,'post','',0),
(3467,4,'2017-04-05 13:41:57','2017-04-05 17:41:57','There\'s a real estate guy who specializes in selling homes in my neighborhood. He is very eager to work with me. I know this because I receive marketing stuff from him constantly. I get a jar of (branded) apple butter on my doorstep every fall. I get a property report, hung on my doorknob on a quarterly basis. I get a magnetic calendar every December. All told, I get at least six direct marketing pieces from this guy every year. As does everyone in my community.\r\n\r\nAs a communications consultant, I understand what his rationale and motivations may be:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Gain/retain name recognition</li>\r\n	<li>Stand out from the crowd</li>\r\n	<li>Appear neighborly</li>\r\n	<li>Show he is local and understands the community.</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nBut on a personal basis, I feel this guy is making way too much of an effort to get my business. And I feel his marketing efforts are intrusive.\r\n\r\nBut is this real estate guy doing too much marketing? The answer comes down to doing some calculations (yes, there\'s math involved).\r\n\r\n<strong>The true test of whether you are doing too much marketing has to do with the value of a customer and how much you are willing to spend to acquire said customer.</strong>\r\n<h3>The value of a customer</h3>\r\nYour first calculation will be to determine the value of a customer. To do this, you, will have to calculate how much money a customer\'s business generates for you, in terms of current transaction, future transactions, and also including the potential value of any referred business.\r\n<h3>Your marketing costs</h3>\r\nThe second calculation you will have to do is to figure out how much you are spending on marketing. To do this tally up all marketing related costs such as printing, advertising spending, distribution, consulting/design fees, website, memberships, and so forth. You may also want to include your time.\r\n<h3>Cost per acquisition</h3>\r\nYour final calculation is to figure out your acquisition cost per customer. So say you spent $10,000 on marketing in a year. You obtained five customers from that marketing effort. That means  you spent $2,000 per customer acquired.\r\n<h3>Which means</h3>\r\nIf the spending to acquire each customer exceeds the value of the customer to your business, you acquisition cost may be too high.\r\n\r\nI don\'t know how much the real estate guy spends on his marketing, nor do I know what value his customers generate, but I sure hope he has done this calculation. If not, he may be doing too much marketing.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Doing too much marketing?','','inherit','open','open','','3466-revision-v1','','','2017-04-05 13:41:57','2017-04-05 17:41:57','',3466,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/04/3466-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3468,4,'2017-04-05 13:44:18','2017-04-05 17:44:18','There\'s a real estate guy who specializes in selling homes in my neighborhood. He is very eager to work with me. I know this because I receive marketing stuff from him constantly. I get a jar of (branded) apple butter on my doorstep every fall. I get a property report, hung on my doorknob on a quarterly basis. I get a magnetic calendar every December. All told, I get at least six direct marketing pieces from this guy every year. As does everyone in my community.\r\n\r\nAs a communications consultant, I understand what his rationale and motivations may be:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Gain/retain name recognition</li>\r\n	<li>Stand out from the crowd</li>\r\n	<li>Appear neighborly</li>\r\n	<li>Show he is local and understands the community.</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nOn a personal basis, I feel this guy is making way too much of an effort to get my business. And I feel his marketing efforts are intrusive.\r\n\r\nBut is this real estate guy doing too much marketing? The answer comes down to doing some calculations (yes, there\'s math involved).\r\n\r\n<strong>The true test of whether you are doing too much marketing has to do with the value of a customer and how much you are willing to spend to acquire said customer.</strong>\r\n<h3>The value of a customer</h3>\r\nYour first calculation will be to determine the value of a customer. To do this, you, will have to calculate how much money a customer\'s business generates for you, in terms of current transaction, future transactions, and also including the potential value of any referred business.\r\n<h3>Your marketing costs</h3>\r\nThe second calculation you will have to do is to figure out how much you are spending on marketing. To do this tally up all marketing related costs such as printing, advertising spending, distribution, consulting/design fees, website, memberships, and so forth. You may also want to include your time.\r\n<h3>Cost per acquisition</h3>\r\nYour final calculation is to figure out your acquisition cost per customer. So say you spent $10,000 on marketing in a year. You obtained five customers from that marketing effort. That means  you spent $2,000 per customer acquired.\r\n<h3>Which means</h3>\r\nIf the spending to acquire each customer exceeds the value of the customer to your business, you acquisition cost may be too high.\r\n\r\nI don\'t know how much the real estate guy spends on his marketing, nor do I know what value his customers generate, but I sure hope he has done this calculation. If not, he may be doing too much marketing.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Doing too much marketing?','','inherit','open','open','','3466-revision-v1','','','2017-04-05 13:44:18','2017-04-05 17:44:18','',3466,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/04/3466-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3470,4,'2017-04-12 13:09:56','2017-04-12 17:09:56','This week featured two highly publicized and far-reaching media crises. One was the United Airlines situation, where a passenger was forcibly removed (and hurt in the process) from the plane, after he had been seated and had not agreed to \"voluntarily\" leave the aircraft. And the other involved White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer, who clumsily compared Syria\'s Bashar al-Assad to Adolf Hitler, and then showed great ignorance about just what Hitler did during World War II.\r\n<h3>Twitter outrage</h3>\r\nI saw both these situations unfold on social media (specifically, Twitter), and was able to add my observations to many others, both using hashtags and Twitter handles. Social media outrage appears to have caused both United and Sean Spicer to apologize profusely for their mistakes. In today\'s <em>Washington Post</em>, <a href=\"https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-twitter-mob-serves-a-purpose-bill-oreilly-and-united-prove-it/2017/04/11/812f5242-1ef9-11e7-be2a-3a1fb24d4671_story.html?utm_term=.91cfc106ec8d\" target=\"_blank\">Kathleen Parker argues</a> that in the United case, the Twitter outrage (or \"mob\" as she calls it) was able to bring the situation to light and make change happen.\r\n\r\nIt seems that we have more media crises these days than before--but like Parker argues, what has changed is the ability to get these situations in front of more people, more quickly, through social media. So, in fact, we may not be having more crises, but rather more exposure for and to these crises.\r\n<h3>Changes...</h3>\r\nIt seems that United, and to some degree Sean Spicer, have still not adapted or recognized that the media landscape has changed dramatically. Anyone with internet access and a social media account can share their ideas, opinions, facts and more damning, their video. Also, anyone with a smartphone has the ability to create video on the spot, and then share it immediately.\r\n\r\nTen years ago, if a passenger had been dragged off a plane, there would have been no record of it outside of the memories of the other passengers on the plane. Similarly, Sean Spicer\'s words would have received criticism later (if at all), not during his press briefing. Fewer people would\'ve been exposed to these situations.\r\n<h3>More \"eyeballs\" available</h3>\r\nToday\'s media crises are happening not because spokespeople and companies are screwing up more, but because more people are seeing it happen. It would behoove any public relations/communications practitioner to internalize that most everything can be publicized very quickly, and may even have incontrovertible visual proof with it.','Are we seeing more media crises?','','publish','open','open','','are-we-seeing-more-media-crises','','','2017-04-12 13:09:56','2017-04-12 17:09:56','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3470',0,'post','',0),
(3471,4,'2017-04-12 12:53:27','2017-04-12 16:53:27','This week featured two highly publicized and far-reaching media crises. One was the United Airlines situation, where a passenger was forcibly removed (and hurt in the process) from the plane, after he had been seated and had not agreed to \"voluntarily\" leave the aircraft. And the other involved White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer, who clumsily compared Syria\'s Bashar al-Assad to Adolf Hitler, and then showed great ignorance about just what Hitler did during World War II.\r\n\r\nI saw both these situations unfold on social media (specifically, Twitter), and was able to add my observations to many others, both using hashtags and Twitter handles.','Are we seeing more media crises?','','inherit','open','open','','3470-revision-v1','','','2017-04-12 12:53:27','2017-04-12 16:53:27','',3470,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/04/3470-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3472,4,'2017-04-12 13:08:53','2017-04-12 17:08:53','This week featured two highly publicized and far-reaching media crises. One was the United Airlines situation, where a passenger was forcibly removed (and hurt in the process) from the plane, after he had been seated and had not agreed to \"voluntarily\" leave the aircraft. And the other involved White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer, who clumsily compared Syria\'s Bashar al-Assad to Adolf Hitler, and then showed great ignorance about just what Hitler did during World War II.\r\n<h3>Twitter outrage</h3>\r\nI saw both these situations unfold on social media (specifically, Twitter), and was able to add my observations to many others, both using hashtags and Twitter handles. Social media outrage appears to have caused both United and Sean Spicer to apologize profusely for their mistakes. In today\'s <em>Washington Post</em>, <a href=\"https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-twitter-mob-serves-a-purpose-bill-oreilly-and-united-prove-it/2017/04/11/812f5242-1ef9-11e7-be2a-3a1fb24d4671_story.html?utm_term=.91cfc106ec8d\" target=\"_blank\">Kathleen Parker argues</a> that in the United case, the Twitter outrage (or \"mob\" as she calls it) was able to bring the situation to light and make change happen.\r\n\r\nIt seems that we have more media crises these days than before--but like Parker argues, what has changed is the ability to get these situations in front of more people, more quickly, through social media. So, in fact, we may not be having more crises, but rather more exposure for and to these crises.\r\n<h3>Changes...</h3>\r\nIt seems that United, and to some degree Sean Spicer, have still not adapted or recognized that the media landscape has changed dramatically. Anyone with internet access and a social media account can share their ideas, opinions, facts and more damning, their video. Also, anyone with a smartphone has the ability to create video on the spot, and then share it immediately.\r\n\r\nTen years ago, if a passenger had been dragged off a plane, there would have been no record of it outside of the memories of the other passengers on the plane. Similarly, Sean Spicer\'s words would have received criticism later (if at all), not during his press briefing. Fewer people would\'ve been exposed to these situations.\r\n<h3>More \"eyeballs\" available</h3>\r\nToday\'s media crises are happening not because spokespeople and companies are screwing up more, but because more people are seeing it happen. It would behoove any public relations/communications practitioner to internalize that most everything can be publicized very quickly, and may even have incontrovertible visual proof with it.','Are we seeing more media crises?','','inherit','open','open','','3470-revision-v1','','','2017-04-12 13:08:53','2017-04-12 17:08:53','',3470,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/04/3470-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3473,4,'2017-04-19 12:30:31','2017-04-19 16:30:31','In case you\'ve missed a newsletter, just check this archive:\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/75c3f9\" target=\"_blank\">April 2017</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/792b39\" target=\"_blank\">December 2016</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/a051e8\" target=\"_blank\">October 2016</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"August 2016 newsletter\" href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/359a88\" target=\"_blank\">August 2016</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/d841f7\" target=\"_blank\">June 2016</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"March 2016 newsletter\" href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/a50a67\" target=\"_blank\">March 2016</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/d7ed27\" target=\"_blank\">January 2016</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/987fe6\" target=\"_blank\">November 2015</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"September 2015 newsletter\" href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/2f17a6\" target=\"_blank\">September 2015</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/f0dc46\" target=\"_blank\">June 2015</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/83c206\" target=\"_blank\">March 2015</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"January 2015 newsletter\" href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/594ec5\" target=\"_blank\">January 2015</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/p/9a6295?fe=1&amp;pact=26384901049\" target=\"_blank\">November 2014</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/f95d35\" target=\"_blank\">September 2014</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/c3e405\" target=\"_blank\">July 2014</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://mad.ly/3625c4\" target=\"_blank\">April 2014</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"February newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/dc2584\" target=\"_blank\">February 2014</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"December 2013 newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/bb9454\" target=\"_blank\">December 2013</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"October 2013 newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/f27424\" target=\"_blank\">October 2013</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"July 2013 newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/eb30f3\" target=\"_blank\">July 2013</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"May 2013 newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/9003c3\" target=\"_blank\">May 2013</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"March 2013 newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/d82a93\" target=\"_blank\">March 2013</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"January 2013 newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/a12873\" target=\"_blank\">January 2013</a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Newsletters','','inherit','open','open','','2509-revision-v1','','','2017-04-19 12:30:31','2017-04-19 16:30:31','',2509,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/04/2509-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3474,4,'2017-04-21 08:56:37','2017-04-21 12:56:37','<em>THIS POST HAS BEEN UPDATED.</em>\r\n\r\nWhat is good communication? In essence, it\'s getting your point across to the people who need to hear it. It\'s having those people (your audience) understand what you are saying, and be able to act on that information if necessary. Also, the information you pass on must be credible. Good communication, therefore, is built on clarity and trust.\r\n\r\nIf anything, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer has shown us that some people are better communicators than others. Spicer is not example of how to do communications well, but rather, of what not to do. Thankfully, we can draw lessons from his ineptitude. Following are five points to being a better communicator.\r\n\r\n<strong>Understand your subject matter very well</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you don’t understand something yourself, you have zero chance of explaining it (well) to someone else. Yes, this means you have to do some studying (or cramming). It means you have to ask people who know more about the subject to explain it to you. It may even mean looking at charts and graphs.\r\n\r\nIf you don\'t know what you are talking about, someone will be quick to point it out to you. Recently, this happened to Sean Spicer. During a press conference last week, Spicer showcased his ignorance about Hitler and the Holocaust by saying that Hitler didn\'t use chemical weapons (he did), and then when questioned, corrected himself by saying Hitler only used gas at \"holocaust centers\" but not against his own people (they are called concentration camps and many Germans were killed there). When his errors were pointed out, Spicer had to apologize often and profusely. The Anti-Defamation League even sent him a letter offering to conduct a private Holocaust education training for him and his staff. I don\'t know if Spicer took the ADL up on its offer, but I think he would greatly benefit from it and/or a visit to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.\r\n\r\n<strong>Use only words that you completely understand and can define</strong>\r\n\r\nSpicer regularly uses the wrong words. He recently said something couldn\'t be <em>quantified</em>, when he meant that it couldn\'t be <em>qualified</em>. In his defense, this is a  common mistake, especially in speaking. When you write, you have a bit more time to figure out the words you are using.  The bottom line is this: If you <em>think</em> you know what a word means, but you can’t define it, don’t use it.  Also, remember that using big words, especially incorrectly, will make you appear to be trying too hard, and being ignorant too boot.\r\n\r\n<strong>Check your facts and statistics</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you are going to use any numbers or other facts that can be easily looked up, make sure that they are accurate and correct. Sean Spicer famously trotted out some made up statistics about Trump’s inauguration crowds. Those things can be verified, and if you are using incorrect numbers, you are threatening your own credibility.\r\n\r\n<strong>Don’t exaggerate</strong>\r\n\r\nWith a boss who is fond of hyperbole, Spicer also tends to exaggerate. Everything is the best or the worst, terrible or fantastic. As any communicator knows, exaggeration also threatens credibility.\r\n\r\n<strong>Be likeable</strong>\r\n\r\nSean Spicer is a very combative person. This may have served him well when he was the spokesperson for the party out of power, but it is making him unlikeable. By constantly fighting with the White House press corps, or by belittling their questions, or by refusing to answer questions, or by mocking people, Spicer is ensuring that his attitude becomes the story.\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<strong>It\'s really important.</strong>\r\n\r\nTrustworthy and reliable communications have become even more important and necessary in this world of fake news, where bots and fringe political groups are working hard to muck up the information that is available. Taking the time to study your subject and work on your credibility will go a long way to making you a better communicator than our current White House press secretary.\r\n\r\nIs there anything you would add to the five points I have listed above? Please share in the comments.\r\n\r\n<strong>UPDATE:</strong>\r\n\r\nI am not the only one who thinks Spicer is bad at what he does. Today, New York Magazine had this post: <a href=\"http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2017/04/by-being-bad-at-his-job-spicer-nearly-causes-market-panic.html?mid=facebook_nymag\" target=\"_blank\">By Being Bad at His Job, Sean Spicer Nearly Causes Market Panic. </a>Because Spicer does not bother to learn his subject well, he says inaccurate things, and in his role, his statements have consequences.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','How to be better at communication than Sean Spicer','','publish','open','open','','how-to-be-better-at-communication-than-sean-spicer','','','2017-04-28 09:31:17','2017-04-28 13:31:17','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3474',0,'post','',0),
(3475,4,'2017-04-20 10:35:30','2017-04-20 14:35:30','If anything, Sean Spicer has shown us that some people are better practitioners of communication than others. Spicer is not an example of how to do it well, but rather, of what not to do. Thankfully, we can draw lessons from his ineptitude.\r\n\r\n<strong>Understand your subject matter very well</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you don’t understand something yourself, you have zero chance of explaining it (well) to someone else. Yes, this means you have to do some studying (or cramming). It means you have to ask people who know more about the subject to explain it to you. It may even mean looking at charts and graphs.\r\n\r\nIf you don\'t know what you are talking about, someone will be quick to point it out to you. Recently, this happened to Sean Spicer. During a press conference last week, Spicer showcased his ignorance about Hitler and the Holocaust by saying that Hitler didn\'t use chemical weapons (he did), and then corrected himself by saying Hitler only used gas at \"holocaust centers\" but not against his own people (they are called concentration camps and many Germans were killed there).  When his errors were pointed out, Spicer had to apologize often and profusely. The Anti-Defamation League even sent him a letter offering to conduct a private Holocaust education training for Spicer and his staff. I don\'t know if Spicer took the ADL up on its offer, but I think he would greatly benefit from it and/or a visit to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.\r\n\r\n<strong>Use only words that you completely understand and can define</strong>\r\n\r\nSpicer regularly uses the wrong words. He recently said something couldn\'t be <em>quantified</em>, when he meant that it couldn\'t be <em>qualified</em>. In his defense, this is a  common mistake, especially in speaking. When you write, you have a bit more time to figure out the words you are using. If you think you know what a word means, but you can’t define it, don’t use it.\r\n\r\n<strong>Check your facts and statistics</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you are going to use any numbers or other facts that can be easily looked up, make sure that they are accurate and correct. Sean Spicer famously trotted out some made up statistics about Trump’s inauguration crowds. Those things can be verified, and if you are using incorrect numbers, you are threatening your own credibility.\r\n\r\n<strong>Don’t exaggerate</strong>\r\n\r\nWith a boss who is fond of hyperbole, Spicer also tends to exaggerate. Everything is the best or the worst, terrible or fantastic. As any communicator knows, exaggeration also threatens credibility. Unless you have the numbers to back it up (the best solution according to 100% of respondents), it’s best to leave the hyperbole to the\r\n\r\n<strong>Be likeable</strong>\r\n\r\nSean Spicer is a very combative person. This may have served him well when he was the spokesperson for the party out of power, but it is making him unlikeable. By constantly fighting with the White House press corps, or by belittling their questions, or by refusing to answer questions, or by mocking people, Spicer is ensuring that he becomes the story.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','How to be better at communication than Sean Spicer','','inherit','open','open','','3474-revision-v1','','','2017-04-20 10:35:30','2017-04-20 14:35:30','',3474,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/04/3474-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3476,4,'2017-04-20 10:38:47','2017-04-20 14:38:47','If anything, Sean Spicer has shown us that some people are better practitioners of communication than others. Spicer is not an example of how to do it well, but rather, of what not to do. Thankfully, we can draw lessons from his ineptitude.\r\n\r\n<strong>Understand your subject matter very well</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you don’t understand something yourself, you have zero chance of explaining it (well) to someone else. Yes, this means you have to do some studying (or cramming). It means you have to ask people who know more about the subject to explain it to you. It may even mean looking at charts and graphs.\r\n\r\nIf you don\'t know what you are talking about, someone will be quick to point it out to you. Recently, this happened to Sean Spicer. During a press conference last week, Spicer showcased his ignorance about Hitler and the Holocaust by saying that Hitler didn\'t use chemical weapons (he did), and then when questioned, corrected himself by saying Hitler only used gas at \"holocaust centers\" but not against his own people (they are called concentration camps and many Germans were killed there). When his errors were pointed out, Spicer had to apologize often and profusely. The Anti-Defamation League even sent him a letter offering to conduct a private Holocaust education training for Spicer and his staff. I don\'t know if Spicer took the ADL up on its offer, but I think he would greatly benefit from it and/or a visit to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.\r\n\r\n<strong>Use only words that you completely understand and can define</strong>\r\n\r\nSpicer regularly uses the wrong words. He recently said something couldn\'t be <em>quantified</em>, when he meant that it couldn\'t be <em>qualified</em>. In his defense, this is a  common mistake, especially in speaking. When you write, you have a bit more time to figure out the words you are using.  The bottom line is this: If you <em>think</em> you know what a word means, but you can’t define it, don’t use it.  Also, remember that using big words, especially incorrectly, will make you appear to be trying too hard, and being ignorant too boot.\r\n\r\n<strong>Check your facts and statistics</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you are going to use any numbers or other facts that can be easily looked up, make sure that they are accurate and correct. Sean Spicer famously trotted out some made up statistics about Trump’s inauguration crowds. Those things can be verified, and if you are using incorrect numbers, you are threatening your own credibility.\r\n\r\n<strong>Don’t exaggerate</strong>\r\n\r\nWith a boss who is fond of hyperbole, Spicer also tends to exaggerate. Everything is the best or the worst, terrible or fantastic. As any communicator knows, exaggeration also threatens credibility. Unless you have the numbers to back it up (the best solution according to 100% of respondents), it’s best to leave the hyperbole to the\r\n\r\n<strong>Be likeable</strong>\r\n\r\nSean Spicer is a very combative person. This may have served him well when he was the spokesperson for the party out of power, but it is making him unlikeable. By constantly fighting with the White House press corps, or by belittling their questions, or by refusing to answer questions, or by mocking people, Spicer is ensuring that his attitude becomes the story.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','How to be better at communication than Sean Spicer','','inherit','open','open','','3474-revision-v1','','','2017-04-20 10:38:47','2017-04-20 14:38:47','',3474,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/04/3474-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3478,4,'2017-04-20 13:27:39','2017-04-20 17:27:39','What is good communication? In essence, it\'s getting your point across to the people who need to hear it. It\'s having those people (your audience) understand what you are saying, and be able to act on that information. Also, the information you pass on must be credible. Good communication, therefore, is built on clarity and trust.\r\n\r\nIf anything, Sean Spicer has shown us that some people are better communicators than others. Spicer is not example of how to do communications well, but rather, of what not to do. Thankfully, we can draw lessons from his ineptitude.\r\n\r\n<strong>Understand your subject matter very well</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you don’t understand something yourself, you have zero chance of explaining it (well) to someone else. Yes, this means you have to do some studying (or cramming). It means you have to ask people who know more about the subject to explain it to you. It may even mean looking at charts and graphs.\r\n\r\nIf you don\'t know what you are talking about, someone will be quick to point it out to you. Recently, this happened to Sean Spicer. During a press conference last week, Spicer showcased his ignorance about Hitler and the Holocaust by saying that Hitler didn\'t use chemical weapons (he did), and then when questioned, corrected himself by saying Hitler only used gas at \"holocaust centers\" but not against his own people (they are called concentration camps and many Germans were killed there). When his errors were pointed out, Spicer had to apologize often and profusely. The Anti-Defamation League even sent him a letter offering to conduct a private Holocaust education training for him and his staff. I don\'t know if Spicer took the ADL up on its offer, but I think he would greatly benefit from it and/or a visit to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.\r\n\r\n<strong>Use only words that you completely understand and can define</strong>\r\n\r\nSpicer regularly uses the wrong words. He recently said something couldn\'t be <em>quantified</em>, when he meant that it couldn\'t be <em>qualified</em>. In his defense, this is a  common mistake, especially in speaking. When you write, you have a bit more time to figure out the words you are using.  The bottom line is this: If you <em>think</em> you know what a word means, but you can’t define it, don’t use it.  Also, remember that using big words, especially incorrectly, will make you appear to be trying too hard, and being ignorant too boot.\r\n\r\n<strong>Check your facts and statistics</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you are going to use any numbers or other facts that can be easily looked up, make sure that they are accurate and correct. Sean Spicer famously trotted out some made up statistics about Trump’s inauguration crowds. Those things can be verified, and if you are using incorrect numbers, you are threatening your own credibility.\r\n\r\n<strong>Don’t exaggerate</strong>\r\n\r\nWith a boss who is fond of hyperbole, Spicer also tends to exaggerate. Everything is the best or the worst, terrible or fantastic. As any communicator knows, exaggeration also threatens credibility. Unless you have the numbers to back it up (the best solution according to 100% of respondents), it’s best to leave the hyperbole to the\r\n\r\n<strong>Be likeable</strong>\r\n\r\nSean Spicer is a very combative person. This may have served him well when he was the spokesperson for the party out of power, but it is making him unlikeable. By constantly fighting with the White House press corps, or by belittling their questions, or by refusing to answer questions, or by mocking people, Spicer is ensuring that his attitude becomes the story.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','How to be better at communication than Sean Spicer','','inherit','open','open','','3474-revision-v1','','','2017-04-20 13:27:39','2017-04-20 17:27:39','',3474,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/04/3474-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3479,4,'2017-04-21 08:53:14','2017-04-21 12:53:14','What is good communication? In essence, it\'s getting your point across to the people who need to hear it. It\'s having those people (your audience) understand what you are saying, and be able to act on that information if necessary. Also, the information you pass on must be credible. Good communication, therefore, is built on clarity and trust.\r\n\r\nIf anything, Sean Spicer has shown us that some people are better communicators than others. Spicer is not example of how to do communications well, but rather, of what not to do. Thankfully, we can draw lessons from his ineptitude.\r\n\r\n<strong>Understand your subject matter very well</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you don’t understand something yourself, you have zero chance of explaining it (well) to someone else. Yes, this means you have to do some studying (or cramming). It means you have to ask people who know more about the subject to explain it to you. It may even mean looking at charts and graphs.\r\n\r\nIf you don\'t know what you are talking about, someone will be quick to point it out to you. Recently, this happened to Sean Spicer. During a press conference last week, Spicer showcased his ignorance about Hitler and the Holocaust by saying that Hitler didn\'t use chemical weapons (he did), and then when questioned, corrected himself by saying Hitler only used gas at \"holocaust centers\" but not against his own people (they are called concentration camps and many Germans were killed there). When his errors were pointed out, Spicer had to apologize often and profusely. The Anti-Defamation League even sent him a letter offering to conduct a private Holocaust education training for him and his staff. I don\'t know if Spicer took the ADL up on its offer, but I think he would greatly benefit from it and/or a visit to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.\r\n\r\n<strong>Use only words that you completely understand and can define</strong>\r\n\r\nSpicer regularly uses the wrong words. He recently said something couldn\'t be <em>quantified</em>, when he meant that it couldn\'t be <em>qualified</em>. In his defense, this is a  common mistake, especially in speaking. When you write, you have a bit more time to figure out the words you are using.  The bottom line is this: If you <em>think</em> you know what a word means, but you can’t define it, don’t use it.  Also, remember that using big words, especially incorrectly, will make you appear to be trying too hard, and being ignorant too boot.\r\n\r\n<strong>Check your facts and statistics</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you are going to use any numbers or other facts that can be easily looked up, make sure that they are accurate and correct. Sean Spicer famously trotted out some made up statistics about Trump’s inauguration crowds. Those things can be verified, and if you are using incorrect numbers, you are threatening your own credibility.\r\n\r\n<strong>Don’t exaggerate</strong>\r\n\r\nWith a boss who is fond of hyperbole, Spicer also tends to exaggerate. Everything is the best or the worst, terrible or fantastic. As any communicator knows, exaggeration also threatens credibility. Unless you have the numbers to back it up (the best solution according to 100% of respondents), it’s best to leave the hyperbole to the\r\n\r\n<strong>Be likeable</strong>\r\n\r\nSean Spicer is a very combative person. This may have served him well when he was the spokesperson for the party out of power, but it is making him unlikeable. By constantly fighting with the White House press corps, or by belittling their questions, or by refusing to answer questions, or by mocking people, Spicer is ensuring that his attitude becomes the story.\r\n\r\nIt\'s really important.\r\n\r\nTrustworthy and reliable communications have become even more important and necessary in this world of fake news, where bots and fringe political groups are working hard to muck up the information that is available. Taking the time to study your subject and work on your credibility will go a long way to making you a better communicator than our current White House press secretary.\r\n\r\nIs there anything you would add to the five points I have listed before? Please share in the comments.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','How to be better at communication than Sean Spicer','','inherit','open','open','','3474-revision-v1','','','2017-04-21 08:53:14','2017-04-21 12:53:14','',3474,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/04/3474-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3480,4,'2017-04-21 08:54:03','2017-04-21 12:54:03','What is good communication? In essence, it\'s getting your point across to the people who need to hear it. It\'s having those people (your audience) understand what you are saying, and be able to act on that information if necessary. Also, the information you pass on must be credible. Good communication, therefore, is built on clarity and trust.\r\n\r\nIf anything, Sean Spicer has shown us that some people are better communicators than others. Spicer is not example of how to do communications well, but rather, of what not to do. Thankfully, we can draw lessons from his ineptitude.\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li><strong>Understand your subject matter very well</strong></li>\r\n</ul>\r\nIf you don’t understand something yourself, you have zero chance of explaining it (well) to someone else. Yes, this means you have to do some studying (or cramming). It means you have to ask people who know more about the subject to explain it to you. It may even mean looking at charts and graphs.\r\n\r\nIf you don\'t know what you are talking about, someone will be quick to point it out to you. Recently, this happened to Sean Spicer. During a press conference last week, Spicer showcased his ignorance about Hitler and the Holocaust by saying that Hitler didn\'t use chemical weapons (he did), and then when questioned, corrected himself by saying Hitler only used gas at \"holocaust centers\" but not against his own people (they are called concentration camps and many Germans were killed there). When his errors were pointed out, Spicer had to apologize often and profusely. The Anti-Defamation League even sent him a letter offering to conduct a private Holocaust education training for him and his staff. I don\'t know if Spicer took the ADL up on its offer, but I think he would greatly benefit from it and/or a visit to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li><strong>Use only words that you completely understand and can define</strong></li>\r\n</ul>\r\nSpicer regularly uses the wrong words. He recently said something couldn\'t be <em>quantified</em>, when he meant that it couldn\'t be <em>qualified</em>. In his defense, this is a  common mistake, especially in speaking. When you write, you have a bit more time to figure out the words you are using.  The bottom line is this: If you <em>think</em> you know what a word means, but you can’t define it, don’t use it.  Also, remember that using big words, especially incorrectly, will make you appear to be trying too hard, and being ignorant too boot.\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li><strong>Check your facts and statistics</strong></li>\r\n</ul>\r\nIf you are going to use any numbers or other facts that can be easily looked up, make sure that they are accurate and correct. Sean Spicer famously trotted out some made up statistics about Trump’s inauguration crowds. Those things can be verified, and if you are using incorrect numbers, you are threatening your own credibility.\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li><strong>Don’t exaggerate</strong></li>\r\n</ul>\r\nWith a boss who is fond of hyperbole, Spicer also tends to exaggerate. Everything is the best or the worst, terrible or fantastic. As any communicator knows, exaggeration also threatens credibility. Unless you have the numbers to back it up (the best solution according to 100% of respondents), it’s best to leave the hyperbole to the\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li><strong>Be likeable</strong></li>\r\n</ul>\r\nSean Spicer is a very combative person. This may have served him well when he was the spokesperson for the party out of power, but it is making him unlikeable. By constantly fighting with the White House press corps, or by belittling their questions, or by refusing to answer questions, or by mocking people, Spicer is ensuring that his attitude becomes the story.\r\n\r\n<strong>It\'s really important.</strong>\r\n\r\nTrustworthy and reliable communications have become even more important and necessary in this world of fake news, where bots and fringe political groups are working hard to muck up the information that is available. Taking the time to study your subject and work on your credibility will go a long way to making you a better communicator than our current White House press secretary.\r\n\r\nIs there anything you would add to the five points I have listed before? Please share in the comments.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','How to be better at communication than Sean Spicer','','inherit','open','open','','3474-revision-v1','','','2017-04-21 08:54:03','2017-04-21 12:54:03','',3474,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/04/3474-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3481,4,'2017-04-21 08:56:01','2017-04-21 12:56:01','What is good communication? In essence, it\'s getting your point across to the people who need to hear it. It\'s having those people (your audience) understand what you are saying, and be able to act on that information if necessary. Also, the information you pass on must be credible. Good communication, therefore, is built on clarity and trust.\r\n\r\nIf anything, Sean Spicer has shown us that some people are better communicators than others. Spicer is not example of how to do communications well, but rather, of what not to do. Thankfully, we can draw lessons from his ineptitude. Following are five points to being a better communicator.\r\n\r\n<strong>Understand your subject matter very well</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you don’t understand something yourself, you have zero chance of explaining it (well) to someone else. Yes, this means you have to do some studying (or cramming). It means you have to ask people who know more about the subject to explain it to you. It may even mean looking at charts and graphs.\r\n\r\nIf you don\'t know what you are talking about, someone will be quick to point it out to you. Recently, this happened to Sean Spicer. During a press conference last week, Spicer showcased his ignorance about Hitler and the Holocaust by saying that Hitler didn\'t use chemical weapons (he did), and then when questioned, corrected himself by saying Hitler only used gas at \"holocaust centers\" but not against his own people (they are called concentration camps and many Germans were killed there). When his errors were pointed out, Spicer had to apologize often and profusely. The Anti-Defamation League even sent him a letter offering to conduct a private Holocaust education training for him and his staff. I don\'t know if Spicer took the ADL up on its offer, but I think he would greatly benefit from it and/or a visit to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.\r\n\r\n<strong>Use only words that you completely understand and can define</strong>\r\n\r\nSpicer regularly uses the wrong words. He recently said something couldn\'t be <em>quantified</em>, when he meant that it couldn\'t be <em>qualified</em>. In his defense, this is a  common mistake, especially in speaking. When you write, you have a bit more time to figure out the words you are using.  The bottom line is this: If you <em>think</em> you know what a word means, but you can’t define it, don’t use it.  Also, remember that using big words, especially incorrectly, will make you appear to be trying too hard, and being ignorant too boot.\r\n\r\n<strong>Check your facts and statistics</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you are going to use any numbers or other facts that can be easily looked up, make sure that they are accurate and correct. Sean Spicer famously trotted out some made up statistics about Trump’s inauguration crowds. Those things can be verified, and if you are using incorrect numbers, you are threatening your own credibility.\r\n\r\n<strong>Don’t exaggerate</strong>\r\n\r\nWith a boss who is fond of hyperbole, Spicer also tends to exaggerate. Everything is the best or the worst, terrible or fantastic. As any communicator knows, exaggeration also threatens credibility. Unless you have the numbers to back it up (the best solution according to 100% of respondents), it’s best to leave the hyperbole to the\r\n\r\n<strong>Be likeable</strong>\r\n\r\nSean Spicer is a very combative person. This may have served him well when he was the spokesperson for the party out of power, but it is making him unlikeable. By constantly fighting with the White House press corps, or by belittling their questions, or by refusing to answer questions, or by mocking people, Spicer is ensuring that his attitude becomes the story.\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<strong>It\'s really important.</strong>\r\n\r\nTrustworthy and reliable communications have become even more important and necessary in this world of fake news, where bots and fringe political groups are working hard to muck up the information that is available. Taking the time to study your subject and work on your credibility will go a long way to making you a better communicator than our current White House press secretary.\r\n\r\nIs there anything you would add to the five points I have listed above? Please share in the comments.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','How to be better at communication than Sean Spicer','','inherit','open','open','','3474-revision-v1','','','2017-04-21 08:56:01','2017-04-21 12:56:01','',3474,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/04/3474-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3482,4,'2017-04-24 10:22:02','2017-04-24 14:22:02','What is good communication? In essence, it\'s getting your point across to the people who need to hear it. It\'s having those people (your audience) understand what you are saying, and be able to act on that information if necessary. Also, the information you pass on must be credible. Good communication, therefore, is built on clarity and trust.\r\n\r\nIf anything, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer has shown us that some people are better communicators than others. Spicer is not example of how to do communications well, but rather, of what not to do. Thankfully, we can draw lessons from his ineptitude. Following are five points to being a better communicator.\r\n\r\n<strong>Understand your subject matter very well</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you don’t understand something yourself, you have zero chance of explaining it (well) to someone else. Yes, this means you have to do some studying (or cramming). It means you have to ask people who know more about the subject to explain it to you. It may even mean looking at charts and graphs.\r\n\r\nIf you don\'t know what you are talking about, someone will be quick to point it out to you. Recently, this happened to Sean Spicer. During a press conference last week, Spicer showcased his ignorance about Hitler and the Holocaust by saying that Hitler didn\'t use chemical weapons (he did), and then when questioned, corrected himself by saying Hitler only used gas at \"holocaust centers\" but not against his own people (they are called concentration camps and many Germans were killed there). When his errors were pointed out, Spicer had to apologize often and profusely. The Anti-Defamation League even sent him a letter offering to conduct a private Holocaust education training for him and his staff. I don\'t know if Spicer took the ADL up on its offer, but I think he would greatly benefit from it and/or a visit to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.\r\n\r\n<strong>Use only words that you completely understand and can define</strong>\r\n\r\nSpicer regularly uses the wrong words. He recently said something couldn\'t be <em>quantified</em>, when he meant that it couldn\'t be <em>qualified</em>. In his defense, this is a  common mistake, especially in speaking. When you write, you have a bit more time to figure out the words you are using.  The bottom line is this: If you <em>think</em> you know what a word means, but you can’t define it, don’t use it.  Also, remember that using big words, especially incorrectly, will make you appear to be trying too hard, and being ignorant too boot.\r\n\r\n<strong>Check your facts and statistics</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you are going to use any numbers or other facts that can be easily looked up, make sure that they are accurate and correct. Sean Spicer famously trotted out some made up statistics about Trump’s inauguration crowds. Those things can be verified, and if you are using incorrect numbers, you are threatening your own credibility.\r\n\r\n<strong>Don’t exaggerate</strong>\r\n\r\nWith a boss who is fond of hyperbole, Spicer also tends to exaggerate. Everything is the best or the worst, terrible or fantastic. As any communicator knows, exaggeration also threatens credibility.\r\n\r\n<strong>Be likeable</strong>\r\n\r\nSean Spicer is a very combative person. This may have served him well when he was the spokesperson for the party out of power, but it is making him unlikeable. By constantly fighting with the White House press corps, or by belittling their questions, or by refusing to answer questions, or by mocking people, Spicer is ensuring that his attitude becomes the story.\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<strong>It\'s really important.</strong>\r\n\r\nTrustworthy and reliable communications have become even more important and necessary in this world of fake news, where bots and fringe political groups are working hard to muck up the information that is available. Taking the time to study your subject and work on your credibility will go a long way to making you a better communicator than our current White House press secretary.\r\n\r\nIs there anything you would add to the five points I have listed above? Please share in the comments.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','How to be better at communication than Sean Spicer','','inherit','open','open','','3474-revision-v1','','','2017-04-24 10:22:02','2017-04-24 14:22:02','',3474,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/04/3474-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3483,4,'2017-04-27 10:00:41','2017-04-27 14:00:41','<strong>United learns the hard way what\'s important</strong>\r\n\r\nAs you no doubt have seen by now, United Airlines has been forced to make several changes in the wake of the customer abuse incident seen around the world (where a passenger was forcibly removed from a plane and injured in the process). United has now released a report that concludes it let company policies trump customer\'s rights, and is now making changes to focus on the customer. You can read more details in this Washington Post article: <a href=\"https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/dr-gridlock/wp/2017/04/27/united-dragging-report-our-review-shows-that-many-things-went-wrong-that-day/?hpid=hp_rhp-top-table-main_united145am%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&amp;utm_term=.a75c489f1172\" target=\"_blank\">United dragging report: \'Our review shows that many things went wrong that day.\'</a>  Also, today, United placed a full-page ad in the Washington Post (and I assume other large dailies) apologizing for its actions and outlining the policy changes.\r\n\r\nIt took very negative publicity and its consequences to make United realize that customers are the reason for being of any company. Without customers, a company simply does not exist. We know that companies that are more customer focused are also better regarded and therefore more successful. Southwest Airlines comes to mind.\r\n\r\n<strong>UX is about your customers</strong>\r\n\r\nAll this brings me to UX (user experience) and how important it is. UX is being customer- focused when it comes to designing your website/app. If you don\'t consider UX when you design, you are not being customer-friendly. It\'s that simple.\r\n\r\n<strong>Verizon FIOS On Demand versus Fandango Movies on Roku</strong>\r\n\r\nTake the example of Verizon FIOS\' On Demand screen versus  Roku\'s Fandango Movies  screen.\r\n\r\nVerizon re-designed their On Demand screen a couple of months ago. They made fonts and images smaller, they crowded the images together and they changed the categories. Adding to that, the background is dark, making it hard to see the writing. To find out whether a movie is available for purchase or rental, you have to click on the title and only then will you be able to see what it costs.\r\n\r\nFandango has several categories on the left hand side of the screen, starting with \"New movies to buy\" and New movies to rent.\" The background is a light color, the images are slightly bigger than Verizon\'s, and easy to read. Just by scrolling through the titles you can see the price of the movie, its Rotten Tomatoes rating, its MPAA rating, and its length.\r\n\r\nFandango most definitely considered UX when designing its movie screen. It\'s clear they thought about how customers search for movies, and what information (cost, time commitment, ratings) they need to make a decision. In contrast, the Verizon On Demand screen UX is plain horrible. It\'s hard to search, hard to find the information you need, and in my opinion, it\'s just ugly. Oh, and Fandango movie rentals cost less than Verizon\'s.\r\n\r\n<strong>Think about your customers, and it will pay off</strong>\r\n\r\nIn my case, I have been renting movies from Fandango and not from Verizon. I definitely find the Fandango interface easier to deal with. Additionally, I voiced my concerns to Verizon, and so far, they\'ve made no changes. I don\'t know if the redesign has affected sales, but I wouldn\'t be surprised.\r\n\r\nYour customers and their experience with your company/brand/organization has to be your first concern. If customers are mistreated, they simply will not come back. And in this age of social media, any negative publicity is amplified. Your customer\'s bad experience can be shared over and over.\r\n\r\n<strong>Being customer-focused and thinking about their user experience will go a long a way in making any organization successful.</strong>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Successful companies are customer-focused','','publish','open','open','','successful-companies-are-customer-focused','','','2017-04-27 10:00:41','2017-04-27 14:00:41','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3483',0,'post','',0),
(3484,4,'2017-04-27 08:59:23','2017-04-27 12:59:23','As you have no doubt seen by now, United Airlines has been forced to make several changes in the wake of the customer abuse incident seen around the world (where a passenger was forcibly removed from a plane and injured in the process).  United has now released a report that concludes it let company policies trump customer\'s rights, and is now making changes to focus on the customer. You can read more details in this Washington Post article: <a href=\"https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/dr-gridlock/wp/2017/04/27/united-dragging-report-our-review-shows-that-many-things-went-wrong-that-day/?hpid=hp_rhp-top-table-main_united145am%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&amp;utm_term=.a75c489f1172\" target=\"_blank\">United dragging report: \'Our review shows that many things went wrong that day.\'</a>  Also, today, United placed a full-page ad in the Washington Post (and I assume other large dailies) apologizing for its actions and outlining the policy changes.\r\n\r\nIt took very negative publicity and its consequences to make United realize that customers are the reason for being of any company. Without customers, a company simply does not exist. We know that companies that are more customer focused are also better regarded and therefore more successful. Southwest Airlines comes to mind.\r\n\r\nAll this brings me to UX (user experience) and how important it is. UX is being customer focused when it comes to designing your website/app. If you don\'t consider UX when you design, you are not being customer friendly. It\'s that simple.\r\n\r\nTake for example Verizon FIOS\' On Demand screen versus Fandango\'s Movie screen.  Verizon\r\n\r\nI\'ve written before about Verizon and how it seems to be not focused on its customers.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Successful companies are customer focused','','inherit','open','open','','3483-revision-v1','','','2017-04-27 08:59:23','2017-04-27 12:59:23','',3483,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/04/3483-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3485,4,'2017-04-27 09:53:03','2017-04-27 13:53:03','<strong>United learns the hard way what\'s important</strong>\r\n\r\nAs you have no doubt seen by now, United Airlines has been forced to make several changes in the wake of the customer abuse incident seen around the world (where a passenger was forcibly removed from a plane and injured in the process).  United has now released a report that concludes it let company policies trump customer\'s rights, and is now making changes to focus on the customer. You can read more details in this Washington Post article: <a href=\"https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/dr-gridlock/wp/2017/04/27/united-dragging-report-our-review-shows-that-many-things-went-wrong-that-day/?hpid=hp_rhp-top-table-main_united145am%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&amp;utm_term=.a75c489f1172\" target=\"_blank\">United dragging report: \'Our review shows that many things went wrong that day.\'</a>  Also, today, United placed a full-page ad in the Washington Post (and I assume other large dailies) apologizing for its actions and outlining the policy changes.\r\n\r\nIt took very negative publicity and its consequences to make United realize that customers are the reason for being of any company. Without customers, a company simply does not exist. We know that companies that are more customer focused are also better regarded and therefore more successful. Southwest Airlines comes to mind.\r\n\r\n<strong>UX is about your customers</strong>\r\n\r\nAll this brings me to UX (user experience) and how important it is. UX is being customer focused when it comes to designing your website/app. If you don\'t consider UX when you design, you are not being customer friendly. It\'s that simple.\r\n\r\n<strong>Verizon FIOS On Demand versus Fandango Movies on Roku</strong>\r\n\r\nTake the example of Verizon FIOS\' On Demand screen versus  Roku\'s Fandango Movies  screen.\r\n\r\nVerizon re-designed their On Demand screen a couple of months ago. They made fonts and images smaller, they crowded the images together and they changed the categories. Adding to that, the background is dark, making it hard to see the writing. To find out whether a movie is available for purchase or rental, you have to click on the title and only then will you be able to see what it costs.\r\n\r\nFandango has several categories on the left hand side of the screen, starting with \"New movies to buy\" and New movies to rent.\" The background is a light color, the images are a bigger than Verizon\'s, and easy to read. Just by scrolling through the titles you can see the price of the movie, its Rotten Tomatoes rating, its MPAA rating and its length.\r\n\r\nFandango most definitely considered UX when designing this screen. It\'s clear they thought about how customers search for movies, and what information (cost, time commitment, ratings) they need to make a decision. In contrast, the Verizon On Demand screen UX is plain horrible.It\'s hard to search, hard to find the information you need and in my opinion, it\'s a turn-off. Oh, and Fandango movie rentals cost less than Verizon\'s.\r\n\r\n<strong>Think about your customers, and it will pay off</strong>\r\n\r\nIn my case, I have been renting movies from Fandango and not from Verizon. I definitely find the Fandango interface easier to deal with. Additionally, I voiced my concerns to Verizon, and so far, they\'ve made no changes. I don\'t know if the redesign has affected sales, but I wouldn\'t be surprised.\r\n\r\nYour customers and their experience with your company/brand/organization has to be your first concern. If customers are mistreated, they simply will not come back. And in this age of social media, any negative publicity is amplified. Your customer\'s bad experience can be shared over and over. Being customer focused goes a long a way in making any organization successful.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Successful companies are customer-focused','','inherit','open','open','','3483-revision-v1','','','2017-04-27 09:53:03','2017-04-27 13:53:03','',3483,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/04/3483-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3486,4,'2017-04-27 10:00:41','2017-04-27 14:00:41','<strong>United learns the hard way what\'s important</strong>\r\n\r\nAs you no doubt have seen by now, United Airlines has been forced to make several changes in the wake of the customer abuse incident seen around the world (where a passenger was forcibly removed from a plane and injured in the process). United has now released a report that concludes it let company policies trump customer\'s rights, and is now making changes to focus on the customer. You can read more details in this Washington Post article: <a href=\"https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/dr-gridlock/wp/2017/04/27/united-dragging-report-our-review-shows-that-many-things-went-wrong-that-day/?hpid=hp_rhp-top-table-main_united145am%3Ahomepage%2Fstory&amp;utm_term=.a75c489f1172\" target=\"_blank\">United dragging report: \'Our review shows that many things went wrong that day.\'</a>  Also, today, United placed a full-page ad in the Washington Post (and I assume other large dailies) apologizing for its actions and outlining the policy changes.\r\n\r\nIt took very negative publicity and its consequences to make United realize that customers are the reason for being of any company. Without customers, a company simply does not exist. We know that companies that are more customer focused are also better regarded and therefore more successful. Southwest Airlines comes to mind.\r\n\r\n<strong>UX is about your customers</strong>\r\n\r\nAll this brings me to UX (user experience) and how important it is. UX is being customer- focused when it comes to designing your website/app. If you don\'t consider UX when you design, you are not being customer-friendly. It\'s that simple.\r\n\r\n<strong>Verizon FIOS On Demand versus Fandango Movies on Roku</strong>\r\n\r\nTake the example of Verizon FIOS\' On Demand screen versus  Roku\'s Fandango Movies  screen.\r\n\r\nVerizon re-designed their On Demand screen a couple of months ago. They made fonts and images smaller, they crowded the images together and they changed the categories. Adding to that, the background is dark, making it hard to see the writing. To find out whether a movie is available for purchase or rental, you have to click on the title and only then will you be able to see what it costs.\r\n\r\nFandango has several categories on the left hand side of the screen, starting with \"New movies to buy\" and New movies to rent.\" The background is a light color, the images are slightly bigger than Verizon\'s, and easy to read. Just by scrolling through the titles you can see the price of the movie, its Rotten Tomatoes rating, its MPAA rating, and its length.\r\n\r\nFandango most definitely considered UX when designing its movie screen. It\'s clear they thought about how customers search for movies, and what information (cost, time commitment, ratings) they need to make a decision. In contrast, the Verizon On Demand screen UX is plain horrible. It\'s hard to search, hard to find the information you need, and in my opinion, it\'s just ugly. Oh, and Fandango movie rentals cost less than Verizon\'s.\r\n\r\n<strong>Think about your customers, and it will pay off</strong>\r\n\r\nIn my case, I have been renting movies from Fandango and not from Verizon. I definitely find the Fandango interface easier to deal with. Additionally, I voiced my concerns to Verizon, and so far, they\'ve made no changes. I don\'t know if the redesign has affected sales, but I wouldn\'t be surprised.\r\n\r\nYour customers and their experience with your company/brand/organization has to be your first concern. If customers are mistreated, they simply will not come back. And in this age of social media, any negative publicity is amplified. Your customer\'s bad experience can be shared over and over.\r\n\r\n<strong>Being customer-focused and thinking about their user experience will go a long a way in making any organization successful.</strong>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Successful companies are customer-focused','','inherit','open','open','','3483-revision-v1','','','2017-04-27 10:00:41','2017-04-27 14:00:41','',3483,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/04/3483-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3487,4,'2017-04-28 09:30:38','2017-04-28 13:30:38','What is good communication? In essence, it\'s getting your point across to the people who need to hear it. It\'s having those people (your audience) understand what you are saying, and be able to act on that information if necessary. Also, the information you pass on must be credible. Good communication, therefore, is built on clarity and trust.\n\nIf anything, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer has shown us that some people are better communicators than others. Spicer is not example of how to do communications well, but rather, of what not to do. Thankfully, we can draw lessons from his ineptitude. Following are five points to being a better communicator.\n\n<strong>Understand your subject matter very well</strong>\n\nIf you don’t understand something yourself, you have zero chance of explaining it (well) to someone else. Yes, this means you have to do some studying (or cramming). It means you have to ask people who know more about the subject to explain it to you. It may even mean looking at charts and graphs.\n\nIf you don\'t know what you are talking about, someone will be quick to point it out to you. Recently, this happened to Sean Spicer. During a press conference last week, Spicer showcased his ignorance about Hitler and the Holocaust by saying that Hitler didn\'t use chemical weapons (he did), and then when questioned, corrected himself by saying Hitler only used gas at \"holocaust centers\" but not against his own people (they are called concentration camps and many Germans were killed there). When his errors were pointed out, Spicer had to apologize often and profusely. The Anti-Defamation League even sent him a letter offering to conduct a private Holocaust education training for him and his staff. I don\'t know if Spicer took the ADL up on its offer, but I think he would greatly benefit from it and/or a visit to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.\n\n<strong>Use only words that you completely understand and can define</strong>\n\nSpicer regularly uses the wrong words. He recently said something couldn\'t be <em>quantified</em>, when he meant that it couldn\'t be <em>qualified</em>. In his defense, this is a  common mistake, especially in speaking. When you write, you have a bit more time to figure out the words you are using.  The bottom line is this: If you <em>think</em> you know what a word means, but you can’t define it, don’t use it.  Also, remember that using big words, especially incorrectly, will make you appear to be trying too hard, and being ignorant too boot.\n\n<strong>Check your facts and statistics</strong>\n\nIf you are going to use any numbers or other facts that can be easily looked up, make sure that they are accurate and correct. Sean Spicer famously trotted out some made up statistics about Trump’s inauguration crowds. Those things can be verified, and if you are using incorrect numbers, you are threatening your own credibility.\n\n<strong>Don’t exaggerate</strong>\n\nWith a boss who is fond of hyperbole, Spicer also tends to exaggerate. Everything is the best or the worst, terrible or fantastic. As any communicator knows, exaggeration also threatens credibility.\n\n<strong>Be likeable</strong>\n\nSean Spicer is a very combative person. This may have served him well when he was the spokesperson for the party out of power, but it is making him unlikeable. By constantly fighting with the White House press corps, or by belittling their questions, or by refusing to answer questions, or by mocking people, Spicer is ensuring that his attitude becomes the story.\n\n<hr />\n\n&nbsp;\n\n<strong>It\'s really important.</strong>\n\nTrustworthy and reliable communications have become even more important and necessary in this world of fake news, where bots and fringe political groups are working hard to muck up the information that is available. Taking the time to study your subject and work on your credibility will go a long way to making you a better communicator than our current White House press secretary.\n\nIs there anything you would add to the five points I have listed above? Please share in the comments.\n\nUPDATE:\n\nI am not the only one who thinks Spicer is bad at what he does. Today, New York Magazine had this post: By Being Bad at His Job, Sean Spicer Nearly Causes Market Panic. Because Spicer does not bother to learn his subject well, he says inaccurate things, and in his role, his statements have consequences.\n\n&nbsp;\n\n&nbsp;','How to be better at communication than Sean Spicer','','inherit','open','open','','3474-autosave-v1','','','2017-04-28 09:30:38','2017-04-28 13:30:38','',3474,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/04/3474-autosave-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3488,4,'2017-04-28 09:31:17','2017-04-28 13:31:17','<em>THIS POST HAS BEEN UPDATED.</em>\r\n\r\nWhat is good communication? In essence, it\'s getting your point across to the people who need to hear it. It\'s having those people (your audience) understand what you are saying, and be able to act on that information if necessary. Also, the information you pass on must be credible. Good communication, therefore, is built on clarity and trust.\r\n\r\nIf anything, White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer has shown us that some people are better communicators than others. Spicer is not example of how to do communications well, but rather, of what not to do. Thankfully, we can draw lessons from his ineptitude. Following are five points to being a better communicator.\r\n\r\n<strong>Understand your subject matter very well</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you don’t understand something yourself, you have zero chance of explaining it (well) to someone else. Yes, this means you have to do some studying (or cramming). It means you have to ask people who know more about the subject to explain it to you. It may even mean looking at charts and graphs.\r\n\r\nIf you don\'t know what you are talking about, someone will be quick to point it out to you. Recently, this happened to Sean Spicer. During a press conference last week, Spicer showcased his ignorance about Hitler and the Holocaust by saying that Hitler didn\'t use chemical weapons (he did), and then when questioned, corrected himself by saying Hitler only used gas at \"holocaust centers\" but not against his own people (they are called concentration camps and many Germans were killed there). When his errors were pointed out, Spicer had to apologize often and profusely. The Anti-Defamation League even sent him a letter offering to conduct a private Holocaust education training for him and his staff. I don\'t know if Spicer took the ADL up on its offer, but I think he would greatly benefit from it and/or a visit to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.\r\n\r\n<strong>Use only words that you completely understand and can define</strong>\r\n\r\nSpicer regularly uses the wrong words. He recently said something couldn\'t be <em>quantified</em>, when he meant that it couldn\'t be <em>qualified</em>. In his defense, this is a  common mistake, especially in speaking. When you write, you have a bit more time to figure out the words you are using.  The bottom line is this: If you <em>think</em> you know what a word means, but you can’t define it, don’t use it.  Also, remember that using big words, especially incorrectly, will make you appear to be trying too hard, and being ignorant too boot.\r\n\r\n<strong>Check your facts and statistics</strong>\r\n\r\nIf you are going to use any numbers or other facts that can be easily looked up, make sure that they are accurate and correct. Sean Spicer famously trotted out some made up statistics about Trump’s inauguration crowds. Those things can be verified, and if you are using incorrect numbers, you are threatening your own credibility.\r\n\r\n<strong>Don’t exaggerate</strong>\r\n\r\nWith a boss who is fond of hyperbole, Spicer also tends to exaggerate. Everything is the best or the worst, terrible or fantastic. As any communicator knows, exaggeration also threatens credibility.\r\n\r\n<strong>Be likeable</strong>\r\n\r\nSean Spicer is a very combative person. This may have served him well when he was the spokesperson for the party out of power, but it is making him unlikeable. By constantly fighting with the White House press corps, or by belittling their questions, or by refusing to answer questions, or by mocking people, Spicer is ensuring that his attitude becomes the story.\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n<strong>It\'s really important.</strong>\r\n\r\nTrustworthy and reliable communications have become even more important and necessary in this world of fake news, where bots and fringe political groups are working hard to muck up the information that is available. Taking the time to study your subject and work on your credibility will go a long way to making you a better communicator than our current White House press secretary.\r\n\r\nIs there anything you would add to the five points I have listed above? Please share in the comments.\r\n\r\n<strong>UPDATE:</strong>\r\n\r\nI am not the only one who thinks Spicer is bad at what he does. Today, New York Magazine had this post: <a href=\"http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2017/04/by-being-bad-at-his-job-spicer-nearly-causes-market-panic.html?mid=facebook_nymag\" target=\"_blank\">By Being Bad at His Job, Sean Spicer Nearly Causes Market Panic. </a>Because Spicer does not bother to learn his subject well, he says inaccurate things, and in his role, his statements have consequences.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','How to be better at communication than Sean Spicer','','inherit','open','open','','3474-revision-v1','','','2017-04-28 09:31:17','2017-04-28 13:31:17','',3474,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/04/3474-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3490,4,'2017-05-02 14:06:42','2017-05-02 18:06:42','Over the weekend, I went on walking tour of Georgetown history. In case you don\'t know it, Georgetown is a historic neighborhood in Washington, D.C. and home to Georgetown University. Georgetown has been around for a long time--it even predates the city of Washington--since it was founded as a port on the Potomac River in 1751. As you can imagine, there\'s a lot of history there. A lot.\r\n\r\n(Check out this<a href=\"http://www.georgetowndc.com/about/photo-tour\" target=\"_blank\"> photo tour</a> from the Georgetown website)\r\n\r\n<strong>Lots of stuff has happened in and around here</strong>\r\n\r\nThe tour started on the Georgetown Waterfront, right on the banks of the Potomac River, not far from the Key Bridge. The guide pointed out the Kennedy Center and the Watergate Hotel (both of which are NOT in Georgetown, but are also on the banks of the Potomac). And he started talking about the scandals associated with both those buildings. Then he gave an anecdote about John Quincy Adams and how he nearly drowned in the Potomac River. Then we walked on, and the tour guide told us a story about a family that had traveled to Georgetown on the C&amp;O Canal in a barge, and how a fire broke out and killed three of their young children. He then showed pictures of the graves of these kids, graves which are located in Maryland. Then, we switched to 1985, and to discussing KGB spy Aldrich Ames and where he met his handlers (in a bar near the Waterfront). And to discussing the buildings along the Waterfront. And the construction of the C&amp;O Canal. And the unsolved murder of a purported lover of John F. Kennedy, whose body was found near the C&amp;O and who had lived in Ben Bradlee\'s home in Georgetown. And we went to the oldest structure in Georgetown, the Old Stone House. And then to a bank that had been a hospital during the Civil War, and where Louisa May Alcott was a nurse.\r\n\r\n(There was much, much more...)\r\n\r\n<strong>And he kept going</strong>\r\n\r\nAfter two and half hours we weren\'t done. The guide said we had a good 45 minutes left. As interesting as it was, the heat (it was near 90 and very humid) and the hour (it was near 6:00 p.m.) convinced me it was time to go home.\r\n\r\nWhen I got home, I was reflecting on the tour and decided it could have been much improved by some editing. The tour guide suffered from what many writers do--the desire to throw as much information as possible to show the breadth and depth of knowledge. But so much information can become amorphous--lacking in structure--to such an extent that it becomes irrelevant. He also had no overarching theme. There was little to connect the unresolved murder of a woman in the 1960s to the Old Stone House or to how divided Georgetown was during the Civil War. He also had too many asides--as important as the Watergate was to American politics, it does not belong in a Georgetown focused tour.\r\n\r\n<strong>In writing, editing means deciding what to leave in and what to take out. Editing means tightening up concepts and getting rid of wordiness. Editing means finding focus.</strong>\r\n\r\nFor the Georgetown walking tour, we could start editing by deciding to stick to a time period (Civil War or the 1800s), or to a specific type of event (murders, spying, politics) or to a specific area (Waterfront, N Street). This would give it a tighter focus and  more meaning. And in this case, it would\'ve also have shortened the tour.\r\n\r\nEditing does make everything better!\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Editing makes everything better!','','publish','open','open','','editing-makes-everything-better','','','2017-05-03 08:56:23','2017-05-03 12:56:23','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3490',0,'post','',0),
(3491,4,'2017-05-02 11:20:05','2017-05-02 15:20:05','Over the weekend, I attended a walking  tour of Georgetown history (a historic neighborhood of Washington, D.C.). Georgetown has been around for a long time--it even predates the city of Washington--since it was founded as port on the Potomac River in 1751. As you can imagine, there\'s a lot of history there. A lot.\r\n\r\nThe tour started on the Georgetown Waterfront. The guide pointed out the Kennedy Center and the Watergate Hotel (both of which are NOT in Georgetown, but are also on the banks of the Potomac).','Editing makes everything better!','','inherit','open','open','','3490-revision-v1','','','2017-05-02 11:20:05','2017-05-02 15:20:05','',3490,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/05/3490-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3492,4,'2017-05-02 13:57:53','2017-05-02 17:57:53','Over the weekend, I went on walking tour of Georgetown history. In case you don\'t know it, Georgetown is a historic neighborhood in Washington, D.C. and home to Georgetown University. Georgetown has been around for a long time--it even predates the city of Washington--since it was founded as a port on the Potomac River in 1751. As you can imagine, there\'s a lot of history there. A lot.\r\n\r\n<strong>Lots of stuff has happened in and around here</strong>\r\n\r\nThe tour started on the Georgetown Waterfront, right on the banks of the Potomac River, not far from the Key Bridge. The guide pointed out the Kennedy Center and the Watergate Hotel (both of which are NOT in Georgetown, but are also on the banks of the Potomac). And he started talking about the scandals associated with both those buildings. Then he gave an anecdote about John Quincy Adams and how he nearly drowned in the Potomac River. Then we walked on, and the tour guide told us a story about a family that had traveled to Georgetown on the C&amp;O Canal in a barge, and how a fire broke out and killed three of their young children. He then showed pictures of the graves of these kids, graves which are located in Maryland. Then, we switched to 1985, and to discussing KGB spy Aldrich Ames and where he met his handlers (in a bar near the Waterfront). And to discussing the buildings along the Waterfront. And the construction of the C&amp;O Canal. And the unsolved murder of a purported lover of John F. Kennedy, whose body was found near the C&amp;O and who had lived in Ben Bradlee\'s home in Georgetown. And we went to the oldest structure in Georgetown, the Old Stone House. And then to a bank that had been a hospital during the Civil War, and where Louisa May Alcott was a nurse.\r\n\r\n(There was much much more...)\r\n\r\n<strong>And he kept going</strong>\r\n\r\nAfter two and half hours we weren\'t done. The guide said we had a good 45 minutes left. As interesting as it was, the heat (it was near 90 and very humid) and the hour (it was near 6:00 p.m.) convinced me it was time to go home.\r\n\r\nWhen I got home, I was reflecting on the tour and decided it could have been much improved by some editing. The tour guide suffered from what many writers do--the desire to throw as much information as possible to show the breadth and depth of knowledge. But so much information can become amorphous--lacking in structure--to such an extent that it becomes irrelevant. He also had no overarching theme. There was little to connect the unresolved murder of a woman in the 1960s to the Old Stone House or to how divided Georgetown was during the Civil War. He also had too many asides--as important as the Watergate was to American politics, it does not belong in a Georgetown focused tour.\r\n\r\n<strong>In writing, editing means deciding what to leave in and what to take out. Editing means tightening up concepts and getting rid of wordiness. Editing means finding focus.</strong>\r\n\r\nFor the Georgetown Walking tour, you could start editing by deciding to stick to a time period (Civil War or the 1800s), or to a specific type of event (murders, spying, politics) or to a specific area (Waterfront, N Street). By \"editing\" the tour, you find focus and give it more meaning. And in this case, you would\'ve also have shortened the tour or at least not let it expand.\r\n\r\nEditing does make everything better!\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Editing makes everything better!','','inherit','open','open','','3490-revision-v1','','','2017-05-02 13:57:53','2017-05-02 17:57:53','',3490,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/05/3490-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3493,4,'2017-05-02 14:06:42','2017-05-02 18:06:42','Over the weekend, I went on walking tour of Georgetown history. In case you don\'t know it, Georgetown is a historic neighborhood in Washington, D.C. and home to Georgetown University. Georgetown has been around for a long time--it even predates the city of Washington--since it was founded as a port on the Potomac River in 1751. As you can imagine, there\'s a lot of history there. A lot.\r\n\r\n(Check of this<a href=\"http://www.georgetowndc.com/about/photo-tour\" target=\"_blank\"> photo tour</a> from the Georgetown website)\r\n\r\n<strong>Lots of stuff has happened in and around here</strong>\r\n\r\nThe tour started on the Georgetown Waterfront, right on the banks of the Potomac River, not far from the Key Bridge. The guide pointed out the Kennedy Center and the Watergate Hotel (both of which are NOT in Georgetown, but are also on the banks of the Potomac). And he started talking about the scandals associated with both those buildings. Then he gave an anecdote about John Quincy Adams and how he nearly drowned in the Potomac River. Then we walked on, and the tour guide told us a story about a family that had traveled to Georgetown on the C&amp;O Canal in a barge, and how a fire broke out and killed three of their young children. He then showed pictures of the graves of these kids, graves which are located in Maryland. Then, we switched to 1985, and to discussing KGB spy Aldrich Ames and where he met his handlers (in a bar near the Waterfront). And to discussing the buildings along the Waterfront. And the construction of the C&amp;O Canal. And the unsolved murder of a purported lover of John F. Kennedy, whose body was found near the C&amp;O and who had lived in Ben Bradlee\'s home in Georgetown. And we went to the oldest structure in Georgetown, the Old Stone House. And then to a bank that had been a hospital during the Civil War, and where Louisa May Alcott was a nurse.\r\n\r\n(There was much, much more...)\r\n\r\n<strong>And he kept going</strong>\r\n\r\nAfter two and half hours we weren\'t done. The guide said we had a good 45 minutes left. As interesting as it was, the heat (it was near 90 and very humid) and the hour (it was near 6:00 p.m.) convinced me it was time to go home.\r\n\r\nWhen I got home, I was reflecting on the tour and decided it could have been much improved by some editing. The tour guide suffered from what many writers do--the desire to throw as much information as possible to show the breadth and depth of knowledge. But so much information can become amorphous--lacking in structure--to such an extent that it becomes irrelevant. He also had no overarching theme. There was little to connect the unresolved murder of a woman in the 1960s to the Old Stone House or to how divided Georgetown was during the Civil War. He also had too many asides--as important as the Watergate was to American politics, it does not belong in a Georgetown focused tour.\r\n\r\n<strong>In writing, editing means deciding what to leave in and what to take out. Editing means tightening up concepts and getting rid of wordiness. Editing means finding focus.</strong>\r\n\r\nFor the Georgetown walking tour, we could start editing by deciding to stick to a time period (Civil War or the 1800s), or to a specific type of event (murders, spying, politics) or to a specific area (Waterfront, N Street). This would give it a tighter focus and  more meaning. And in this case, it would\'ve also have shortened the tour.\r\n\r\nEditing does make everything better!\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Editing makes everything better!','','inherit','open','open','','3490-revision-v1','','','2017-05-02 14:06:42','2017-05-02 18:06:42','',3490,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/05/3490-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3494,4,'2017-05-03 08:56:23','2017-05-03 12:56:23','Over the weekend, I went on walking tour of Georgetown history. In case you don\'t know it, Georgetown is a historic neighborhood in Washington, D.C. and home to Georgetown University. Georgetown has been around for a long time--it even predates the city of Washington--since it was founded as a port on the Potomac River in 1751. As you can imagine, there\'s a lot of history there. A lot.\r\n\r\n(Check out this<a href=\"http://www.georgetowndc.com/about/photo-tour\" target=\"_blank\"> photo tour</a> from the Georgetown website)\r\n\r\n<strong>Lots of stuff has happened in and around here</strong>\r\n\r\nThe tour started on the Georgetown Waterfront, right on the banks of the Potomac River, not far from the Key Bridge. The guide pointed out the Kennedy Center and the Watergate Hotel (both of which are NOT in Georgetown, but are also on the banks of the Potomac). And he started talking about the scandals associated with both those buildings. Then he gave an anecdote about John Quincy Adams and how he nearly drowned in the Potomac River. Then we walked on, and the tour guide told us a story about a family that had traveled to Georgetown on the C&amp;O Canal in a barge, and how a fire broke out and killed three of their young children. He then showed pictures of the graves of these kids, graves which are located in Maryland. Then, we switched to 1985, and to discussing KGB spy Aldrich Ames and where he met his handlers (in a bar near the Waterfront). And to discussing the buildings along the Waterfront. And the construction of the C&amp;O Canal. And the unsolved murder of a purported lover of John F. Kennedy, whose body was found near the C&amp;O and who had lived in Ben Bradlee\'s home in Georgetown. And we went to the oldest structure in Georgetown, the Old Stone House. And then to a bank that had been a hospital during the Civil War, and where Louisa May Alcott was a nurse.\r\n\r\n(There was much, much more...)\r\n\r\n<strong>And he kept going</strong>\r\n\r\nAfter two and half hours we weren\'t done. The guide said we had a good 45 minutes left. As interesting as it was, the heat (it was near 90 and very humid) and the hour (it was near 6:00 p.m.) convinced me it was time to go home.\r\n\r\nWhen I got home, I was reflecting on the tour and decided it could have been much improved by some editing. The tour guide suffered from what many writers do--the desire to throw as much information as possible to show the breadth and depth of knowledge. But so much information can become amorphous--lacking in structure--to such an extent that it becomes irrelevant. He also had no overarching theme. There was little to connect the unresolved murder of a woman in the 1960s to the Old Stone House or to how divided Georgetown was during the Civil War. He also had too many asides--as important as the Watergate was to American politics, it does not belong in a Georgetown focused tour.\r\n\r\n<strong>In writing, editing means deciding what to leave in and what to take out. Editing means tightening up concepts and getting rid of wordiness. Editing means finding focus.</strong>\r\n\r\nFor the Georgetown walking tour, we could start editing by deciding to stick to a time period (Civil War or the 1800s), or to a specific type of event (murders, spying, politics) or to a specific area (Waterfront, N Street). This would give it a tighter focus and  more meaning. And in this case, it would\'ve also have shortened the tour.\r\n\r\nEditing does make everything better!\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Editing makes everything better!','','inherit','open','open','','3490-revision-v1','','','2017-05-03 08:56:23','2017-05-03 12:56:23','',3490,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/05/3490-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3496,4,'2017-05-09 10:20:22','0000-00-00 00:00:00','','A communication','','draft','open','open','','','','','2017-05-09 10:20:22','2017-05-09 14:20:22','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3496',0,'post','',0),
(3497,4,'2017-05-11 09:59:18','2017-05-11 13:59:18','About a decade ago, I was on the board of a small nonprofit that provided educational programming. I lasted all of a few months since I was fighting a losing battle with the other board members and a spectacularly uninformed (and very young) executive director.\r\n\r\nThis nonprofit had very little money but insisted on a color brochure printed on heavy paper, listing their courses. The ED would then mail it first class (read, the expensive way) because it would take too long to prepare it for the cheaper, bulk/nonprofit rate.\r\n\r\nAmong the things I suggested was to print the brochure on cheaper paper (like newsprint), use the bulk rate, and to consider going all electronic instead. All these ideas were dismissed. One board member thought it was crucial to print the brochure on good paper because it made it seem more serious (?). The ED was balking at using the bulk rate because it meant pre-sorting the brochure. And another board member said that many people wanted the printed brochure and would never abide an electronic format.\r\n\r\nLike I said, it was a losing battle and I believe that there\'s no sense in discussing change with people who don\'t want to change.\r\n\r\nHere we are a good ten years later, and I just got their latest brochure. Yes, I am still on the mailing list even though I have not signed up for a class or donated any money or shown any interest whatsoever. It is still printed on heavy paper, and has full color (which adds to the expense). They are now using the nonprofit/bulk rate. When you use use the bulk rate, you have to be aware that delivery will take longer than using first class postage. Apparently, it is not something that this nonprofit understands. I got the brochure yesterday (May 10). The front cover has a banner telling me spring classes begin on April 26, 2017.\r\n\r\nThis nonprofit continues to print an expensive brochure. However, it doesn\'t print it out with enough lead time to be able to overcome the slower bulk delivery rate. In effect, this is a complete waste. If you are using a brochure as your only means to communicate your offering, then it better be timely.\r\n\r\nAnd, it seems this organization does not review its database. It continues sending out brochures to people that have not indicated any interest in years. Of course, this adds to the cost of the printing and mailing.\r\n\r\nCan you imagine if they had provided this brochure electronically? They would be able to send it out at precisely the right time. They would be able to gauge interest from the open and click rates. They would be able to scrub their lists of any bad addresses. They would increase their reach through the ability to share online. But why change?\r\n\r\n<strong>Here\'s how you run your organization to the ground: you waste your precious resources and keep doing it until you have nothing left. You keep doing things the way you always have even though it has never been cost-effective.  You don\'t adapt.</strong>\r\n\r\nSigh.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','How to run your organization into oblivion','','publish','open','open','','how-to-run-your-organization-into-oblivion','','','2017-05-11 09:59:18','2017-05-11 13:59:18','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3497',0,'post','',0),
(3498,4,'2017-05-11 09:59:18','2017-05-11 13:59:18','About a decade ago, I was on the board of a small nonprofit that provided educational programming. I lasted all of a few months since I was fighting a losing battle with the other board members and a spectacularly uninformed (and very young) executive director.\r\n\r\nThis nonprofit had very little money but insisted on a color brochure printed on heavy paper, listing their courses. The ED would then mail it first class (read, the expensive way) because it would take too long to prepare it for the cheaper, bulk/nonprofit rate.\r\n\r\nAmong the things I suggested was to print the brochure on cheaper paper (like newsprint), use the bulk rate, and to consider going all electronic instead. All these ideas were dismissed. One board member thought it was crucial to print the brochure on good paper because it made it seem more serious (?). The ED was balking at using the bulk rate because it meant pre-sorting the brochure. And another board member said that many people wanted the printed brochure and would never abide an electronic format.\r\n\r\nLike I said, it was a losing battle and I believe that there\'s no sense in discussing change with people who don\'t want to change.\r\n\r\nHere we are a good ten years later, and I just got their latest brochure. Yes, I am still on the mailing list even though I have not signed up for a class or donated any money or shown any interest whatsoever. It is still printed on heavy paper, and has full color (which adds to the expense). They are now using the nonprofit/bulk rate. When you use use the bulk rate, you have to be aware that delivery will take longer than using first class postage. Apparently, it is not something that this nonprofit understands. I got the brochure yesterday (May 10). The front cover has a banner telling me spring classes begin on April 26, 2017.\r\n\r\nThis nonprofit continues to print an expensive brochure. However, it doesn\'t print it out with enough lead time to be able to overcome the slower bulk delivery rate. In effect, this is a complete waste. If you are using a brochure as your only means to communicate your offering, then it better be timely.\r\n\r\nAnd, it seems this organization does not review its database. It continues sending out brochures to people that have not indicated any interest in years. Of course, this adds to the cost of the printing and mailing.\r\n\r\nCan you imagine if they had provided this brochure electronically? They would be able to send it out at precisely the right time. They would be able to gauge interest from the open and click rates. They would be able to scrub their lists of any bad addresses. They would increase their reach through the ability to share online. But why change?\r\n\r\n<strong>Here\'s how you run your organization to the ground: you waste your precious resources and keep doing it until you have nothing left. You keep doing things the way you always have even though it has never been cost-effective.  You don\'t adapt.</strong>\r\n\r\nSigh.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','How to run your organization into oblivion','','inherit','open','open','','3497-revision-v1','','','2017-05-11 09:59:18','2017-05-11 13:59:18','',3497,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/05/3497-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3507,4,'2017-06-06 16:53:19','2017-06-06 20:53:19','Yesterday, a friend and I met to have lunch at a new pupusa place in Bethesda that we\'d read about. (In case you don\'t know, pupusas are an absolutely delicious Salvadoran specialty of  stuffed thick corn tortillas that are griddled.)\r\n\r\nWhen the pupusa place first opened, it was covered in Bethesda Magazine online  (I don\'t know if it was in the print version). The article stated that the pupusa place was sharing the kitchen with a Japanese restaurant. I assumed it was next door to the Japanese restaurant, but it turns out that it is not separate at all.\r\n\r\nI looked up the address online, and set out. Once I got to the block the restaurant was supposed to be on, I walked up and down the street not seeing sign for it anywhere. I noticed a Japanese place, but there was no indication that they served pupusas there.  I called the number listed on the pupusa place\'s Facebook page. I said I was on their street but couldn\'t find them. The guy who answered told me he was INSIDE the Japanese restaurant, and that they normally only do take out, but that we could sit inside the restaurant.\r\n\r\nMy friend and I went in, and told the hostess that we wanted to eat pupusas. She told us that it was take out only, but when I told her I had spoken to the pupusa guy and he\'d told me we could sit inside, she let us sit in the bar area, and even took our order.\r\n\r\nWhen the pupusas came out, the waitress realized we needed forks and knives since it\'s kind of hard to eat stuffed tortillas with chopsticks. It took her another few minutes to reappear with forks for us.\r\n\r\nEven with all the hoops to jump through, these pupusas were absolutely delicious, and we both really enjoyed our lunch. We decided that the next time we\'d call it in as a takeout order, that is, if this place manages to stay in business.\r\n\r\nThis pupusa place faces many marketing challenges that are related to its business decision to be inside of a Japanese restaurant. Here are the top issues:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>No signage whatsoever</li>\r\n	<li>No clarity on its Facebook page indicating their physical location inside the Japanese restaurant</li>\r\n	<li>Not a natural fit in cuisines</li>\r\n	<li>No menu or any printed materials</li>\r\n	<li>No clarity on being a takeout business</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nI am not sure how this place can surmount these difficulties. An article in Bethesda Magazine, and one Yelp review are not sufficient publicity. This place has to rely on word of mouth and even more, on people specifically searching for pupusas in Bethesda.\r\n\r\nI\'d recommend that the \"restaurant\" seek out it\'s own space, even if only a food truck. Failing that, I would recommend it figure out a way of having a sign and a menu available within the Japanese restaurant. And definitely make it perfectly clear on its Facebook page that it\'s take out only.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Are you making the best business decisions for your marketing?','','publish','open','open','','are-you-making-the-best-business-decisions-for-your-marketing','','','2017-06-06 16:53:19','2017-06-06 20:53:19','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3507',0,'post','',0),
(3502,4,'2017-05-31 13:02:28','2017-05-31 17:02:28','<strong>Holiday marketing goes wrong</strong>\r\n\r\nThis past weekend, I got an email from retailer Eddie Bauer with the subject line \"Happy Memorial Day.\" Now, last time I checked, Memorial Day is a holiday that commemorates and honors soldiers who have died in battle. It\'s a solemn day, meant for reflection, gratitude, and mourning. It is not meant to be a happy occasion.\r\n\r\nAnd Eddie Bauer was hardly alone. Grammarly, purportedly a website/app about proper word usage, also wished its readers a \"happy Memorial Day.\" And Walgreens, the drugstore, had a TV commercial that wished viewers a happy Memorial Day and sent regards and gratitude to the troops. Again, Memorial Day is not about those currently serving, it is about those who died while serving.\r\n\r\nIvanka Trump\'s company got a bit of negative publicity because it tweeted how to make champagne popsicles to \"celebrate\" Memorial Day. You do not celebrate Memorial Day, you observe it.\r\n\r\n<strong>These are mistakes and missteps that come from <em>assuming</em> you know something rather than actually knowing it.</strong>\r\n\r\nThese sad examples of holiday marketing show a deep lack of knowledge and understanding. They are mistakes that seem to come from people who have little breadth and depth.  That\'s what I mean by junior staff. Junior staff members are not necessarily young, but they are inexperienced, have little knowledge, don\'t always understand context, and may make poorly thought out decisions. Junior staff may be aces at the tactics, like posting to social media, but they aren\'t versed on strategy and communications goals.\r\n\r\n<strong>When grownups handle communications</strong>\r\n\r\nOver the Memorial Day weekend, Budweiser was running a promotion in which a portion of beer sales proceeds would be given to Folds of Honor, a charity that provides educational scholarships to families of fallen service members. In all aspects, this is a smarter and much more appropriate marketing tactic than the Memorial Day greetings listed above. It shows an understanding of the meaning of the holiday, and does something to give back (and thus, honors).  Budweiser gets that people like to have cookouts and drink beer over the long holiday weekend, so it is taking advantage of a behavior and making it be worthwhile both for the bottom line and for what the holiday stands for.\r\n\r\n<strong>Understand what it means and how it\'s best acknowledged</strong>\r\n\r\nHolidays make easy marketing markers. Every store in this country uses the different holidays to sell something. If it\'s Fourth of July, get your flag themed whatever (t-shirts, cakes). If it\'s Thanksgiving buy some Pilgrim/turkey themed stuff. There are pastel colors and rabbits to celebrate Easter.\r\n\r\nYet, not all holidays are the same. Some are religious, some are patriotic, some are celebratory and some are solemn. Understanding what the meaning of a holiday is, and how people celebrate or commemorate it, goes a long way in ensuring that you won\'t be making a junior-level, major marketing mistake.\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">Did you notice any Memorial Day marketing missteps? How do you feel about using a solemn holiday like Memorial Day for marketing purposes? Let me know in the comments.</span>','The danger of letting junior staff handle your communications','','publish','open','open','','the-danger-of-letting-junior-staff-handle-your-communications','','','2017-05-31 13:02:28','2017-05-31 17:02:28','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3502',0,'post','',3),
(3503,4,'2017-05-31 08:36:38','2017-05-31 12:36:38','','The danger of letting junior staff handle your communications','','inherit','open','open','','3502-revision-v1','','','2017-05-31 08:36:38','2017-05-31 12:36:38','',3502,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/05/3502-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3504,4,'2017-05-31 09:21:50','2017-05-31 13:21:50','<strong>Holiday Marketing Goes Wrong</strong>\r\n\r\nThis past weekend, I got an email from retailer Eddie Bauer with the subject line \"Happy Memorial Day.\" Now, last time I checked, Memorial Day is a holiday that commemorates and honors soldiers who have died in battle. It\'s a solemn day, meant for reflection, gratitude, and mourning. What it is not is happy.\r\n\r\nAnd Eddie Bauer was hardly alone. Grammarly, purportedly a website/app about proper word usage, also wished its readers a \"happy Memorial Day.\" And Walgreens, the drugstore, had a TV commercial that wished a happy Memorial Day and wished the best to the troops. Again, Memorial Day is not about those currently serving, it is about those who died.\r\n\r\nIvanka Trump\'s company got a bit of negative publicity because it tweeted how to make champagne popsicles to \"celebrate\" Memorial Day.\r\n\r\n<strong>These are mistakes and missteps that come from assuming you know something rather than actually knowing it.</strong>\r\n\r\nThese sad examples of holiday marketing show a deep lack of knowledge and understanding. They are mistakes that seem to come from people who have little breadth and depth.  That\'s what I mean by junior staff. Junior staff members are not necessarily young, but they are inexperienced, have little knowledge and context, and make poorly thought out decisions. Junior staff may know how to use social media but they don\'t understand the consequences of making a misstep on social media.\r\n\r\n<strong>When grownups handle communications</strong>\r\n\r\nOver the Memorial Day weekend, Budweiser was running a promotion in which a portion of the proceeds of beer sales would be given to Folds of Honor, a charity that provides educational scholarships to families of fallen service members. In all aspects, this is a smarter and much more appropriate marketing tactic. It shows an understanding of the meaning of the holiday, and does something to give back.  Budweiser gets that people like to have cookouts and drink beer over the long holiday weekend, so it is taking advantage of a behavior and making it be worthwhile both for the bottom line and for what the holiday stands for.\r\n\r\nHolidays make easy marketing markers. Every store in this country uses the different holidays to sell something. If it\'s Fourth of July, get your flag themed whatever (t-shirts, cakes). If it\'s Thanksgiving buy some Pilgrim/turkey themed stuff. There are pastel colors and rabbits to celebrate Easter.\r\n\r\nNot all holidays are the same. Understanding what the meaning of a holiday is, and how people celebrate or commemorate it, goes a long way in ensuring that you won\'t be making a junior-level, major marketing mistake.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','The danger of letting junior staff handle your communications','','inherit','open','open','','3502-revision-v1','','','2017-05-31 09:21:50','2017-05-31 13:21:50','',3502,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/05/3502-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3506,4,'2017-05-31 13:02:12','2017-05-31 17:02:12','<strong>Holiday marketing goes wrong</strong>\r\n\r\nThis past weekend, I got an email from retailer Eddie Bauer with the subject line \"Happy Memorial Day.\" Now, last time I checked, Memorial Day is a holiday that commemorates and honors soldiers who have died in battle. It\'s a solemn day, meant for reflection, gratitude, and mourning. It is not meant to be a happy occasion.\r\n\r\nAnd Eddie Bauer was hardly alone. Grammarly, purportedly a website/app about proper word usage, also wished its readers a \"happy Memorial Day.\" And Walgreens, the drugstore, had a TV commercial that wished viewers a happy Memorial Day and sent regards and gratitude to the troops. Again, Memorial Day is not about those currently serving, it is about those who died while serving.\r\n\r\nIvanka Trump\'s company got a bit of negative publicity because it tweeted how to make champagne popsicles to \"celebrate\" Memorial Day. You do not celebrate Memorial Day, you observe it.\r\n\r\n<strong>These are mistakes and missteps that come from <em>assuming</em> you know something rather than actually knowing it.</strong>\r\n\r\nThese sad examples of holiday marketing show a deep lack of knowledge and understanding. They are mistakes that seem to come from people who have little breadth and depth.  That\'s what I mean by junior staff. Junior staff members are not necessarily young, but they are inexperienced, have little knowledge, don\'t always understand context, and may make poorly thought out decisions. Junior staff may be aces at the tactics, like posting to social media, but they aren\'t versed on strategy and communications goals.\r\n\r\n<strong>When grownups handle communications</strong>\r\n\r\nOver the Memorial Day weekend, Budweiser was running a promotion in which a portion of beer sales proceeds would be given to Folds of Honor, a charity that provides educational scholarships to families of fallen service members. In all aspects, this is a smarter and much more appropriate marketing tactic than the Memorial Day greetings listed above. It shows an understanding of the meaning of the holiday, and does something to give back (and thus, honors).  Budweiser gets that people like to have cookouts and drink beer over the long holiday weekend, so it is taking advantage of a behavior and making it be worthwhile both for the bottom line and for what the holiday stands for.\r\n\r\n<strong>Understand what it means and how it\'s best acknowledged</strong>\r\n\r\nHolidays make easy marketing markers. Every store in this country uses the different holidays to sell something. If it\'s Fourth of July, get your flag themed whatever (t-shirts, cakes). If it\'s Thanksgiving buy some Pilgrim/turkey themed stuff. There are pastel colors and rabbits to celebrate Easter.\r\n\r\nYet, not all holidays are the same. Some are religious, some are patriotic, some are celebratory and some are solemn. Understanding what the meaning of a holiday is, and how people celebrate or commemorate it, goes a long way in ensuring that you won\'t be making a junior-level, major marketing mistake.\r\n\r\n<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\">Did you notice any Memorial Day marketing missteps? How do you feel about using a solemn holiday like Memorial Day for marketing purposes? Let me know in the comments.</span>','The danger of letting junior staff handle your communications','','inherit','open','open','','3502-revision-v1','','','2017-05-31 13:02:12','2017-05-31 17:02:12','',3502,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/05/3502-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3508,4,'2017-06-06 16:53:19','2017-06-06 20:53:19','Yesterday, a friend and I met to have lunch at a new pupusa place in Bethesda that we\'d read about. (In case you don\'t know, pupusas are an absolutely delicious Salvadoran specialty of  stuffed thick corn tortillas that are griddled.)\r\n\r\nWhen the pupusa place first opened, it was covered in Bethesda Magazine online  (I don\'t know if it was in the print version). The article stated that the pupusa place was sharing the kitchen with a Japanese restaurant. I assumed it was next door to the Japanese restaurant, but it turns out that it is not separate at all.\r\n\r\nI looked up the address online, and set out. Once I got to the block the restaurant was supposed to be on, I walked up and down the street not seeing sign for it anywhere. I noticed a Japanese place, but there was no indication that they served pupusas there.  I called the number listed on the pupusa place\'s Facebook page. I said I was on their street but couldn\'t find them. The guy who answered told me he was INSIDE the Japanese restaurant, and that they normally only do take out, but that we could sit inside the restaurant.\r\n\r\nMy friend and I went in, and told the hostess that we wanted to eat pupusas. She told us that it was take out only, but when I told her I had spoken to the pupusa guy and he\'d told me we could sit inside, she let us sit in the bar area, and even took our order.\r\n\r\nWhen the pupusas came out, the waitress realized we needed forks and knives since it\'s kind of hard to eat stuffed tortillas with chopsticks. It took her another few minutes to reappear with forks for us.\r\n\r\nEven with all the hoops to jump through, these pupusas were absolutely delicious, and we both really enjoyed our lunch. We decided that the next time we\'d call it in as a takeout order, that is, if this place manages to stay in business.\r\n\r\nThis pupusa place faces many marketing challenges that are related to its business decision to be inside of a Japanese restaurant. Here are the top issues:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>No signage whatsoever</li>\r\n	<li>No clarity on its Facebook page indicating their physical location inside the Japanese restaurant</li>\r\n	<li>Not a natural fit in cuisines</li>\r\n	<li>No menu or any printed materials</li>\r\n	<li>No clarity on being a takeout business</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nI am not sure how this place can surmount these difficulties. An article in Bethesda Magazine, and one Yelp review are not sufficient publicity. This place has to rely on word of mouth and even more, on people specifically searching for pupusas in Bethesda.\r\n\r\nI\'d recommend that the \"restaurant\" seek out it\'s own space, even if only a food truck. Failing that, I would recommend it figure out a way of having a sign and a menu available within the Japanese restaurant. And definitely make it perfectly clear on its Facebook page that it\'s take out only.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Are you making the best business decisions for your marketing?','','inherit','open','open','','3507-revision-v1','','','2017-06-06 16:53:19','2017-06-06 20:53:19','',3507,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/06/3507-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3511,4,'2017-06-13 10:45:37','2017-06-13 14:45:37','At an event last week, I met the owner of a local pizza shop. This pizza shop, which opened about a year ago, is located near me, and seems pretty busy, especially on weekends. I asked him how it\'s doing. The pizza shop owner immediately said it was doing poorly, and  he  said the parking situation was to blame. That seemed strange to me since there\'s plenty of garage parking, which, with validation, is free for two hours. He told me that it doesn\'t matter, because psychologically, people don\'t like to pay for parking. And here\'s a direct quote from him: \"I have friends who can spend $500 on dinner but they won\'t pay for parking.\"\r\n\r\nOK. I am sure there are people who avoid going places where they have to pay for parking. But I also don\'t think free parking with validation, and a couple bucks an hour after is the one reason people will avoid going out to dinner.\r\n\r\nI have been thinking about this situation for a few days, and I have concluded that this shop owner is looking for an easy excuse  for what may be poor business and marketing decisions on his part.\r\n\r\nHere are three possible mistakes he has made:\r\n\r\n<strong>Not scouting or researching the location carefully enough.</strong> This particular location has several other restaurants, and the parking situation has not changed in several years. He could have asked the other restaurants if they felt the parking was a challenge. He could have determined how many people walk or take public transportation to get here and how many people drive, and from where. He could have checked out if people complain about parking.\r\n\r\n<strong>Biting off more than he can chew.</strong> This particular restaurant took over two spaces (one had been a restaurant and the other a shoe store). It is a very large place with both indoor and outdoor seating. Perhaps the space is too big with a rent that is too high to support the amount of people that will eat out here.\r\n\r\n<strong>Not doing enough marketing (and marketing poorly)</strong>. When the place opened, I joined the Facebook page for it. It seems that they are doing a few things to entice the community, like a trivia night and a pet adoption event. Now, I am not sure how having a pet adoption event at a restaurant is even a legal idea, and at best is a bit strange idea that may attract pet lovers. I have seen little to promote events in the community and very little creativity. Also, and I kid not, the sponsored Facebook ads promote their top sirloin beef burgers. This is a pizza joint and they should focus on their area of expertise. If you want a burger while everyone else wants pizza, it\'s good they have alternatives for you. But if you want a really great burger, you are not going to a pizza restaurant for it.\r\n\r\nPerhaps this pizza place owner\'s gut told him that parking is the real issue. But a gut feeling does not mean that it\'s the correct reason to explain a situation. If he truly wants to improve his situation, he\'d commission market research and/or  hire a restaurant marketing consultant. He needs facts and actions rather than the feeling that parking, something that will not change and he cannot control, is hurting his business.\r\n\r\nWhat do you think? Does it all amount to parking or may there be other reasons?\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','You need more than a gut feeling','','publish','open','open','','you-need-more-than-a-gut-feeling','','','2017-06-13 10:45:37','2017-06-13 14:45:37','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3511',0,'post','',0),
(3512,4,'2017-06-13 10:45:37','2017-06-13 14:45:37','At an event last week, I met the owner of a local pizza shop. This pizza shop, which opened about a year ago, is located near me, and seems pretty busy, especially on weekends. I asked him how it\'s doing. The pizza shop owner immediately said it was doing poorly, and  he  said the parking situation was to blame. That seemed strange to me since there\'s plenty of garage parking, which, with validation, is free for two hours. He told me that it doesn\'t matter, because psychologically, people don\'t like to pay for parking. And here\'s a direct quote from him: \"I have friends who can spend $500 on dinner but they won\'t pay for parking.\"\r\n\r\nOK. I am sure there are people who avoid going places where they have to pay for parking. But I also don\'t think free parking with validation, and a couple bucks an hour after is the one reason people will avoid going out to dinner.\r\n\r\nI have been thinking about this situation for a few days, and I have concluded that this shop owner is looking for an easy excuse  for what may be poor business and marketing decisions on his part.\r\n\r\nHere are three possible mistakes he has made:\r\n\r\n<strong>Not scouting or researching the location carefully enough.</strong> This particular location has several other restaurants, and the parking situation has not changed in several years. He could have asked the other restaurants if they felt the parking was a challenge. He could have determined how many people walk or take public transportation to get here and how many people drive, and from where. He could have checked out if people complain about parking.\r\n\r\n<strong>Biting off more than he can chew.</strong> This particular restaurant took over two spaces (one had been a restaurant and the other a shoe store). It is a very large place with both indoor and outdoor seating. Perhaps the space is too big with a rent that is too high to support the amount of people that will eat out here.\r\n\r\n<strong>Not doing enough marketing (and marketing poorly)</strong>. When the place opened, I joined the Facebook page for it. It seems that they are doing a few things to entice the community, like a trivia night and a pet adoption event. Now, I am not sure how having a pet adoption event at a restaurant is even a legal idea, and at best is a bit strange idea that may attract pet lovers. I have seen little to promote events in the community and very little creativity. Also, and I kid not, the sponsored Facebook ads promote their top sirloin beef burgers. This is a pizza joint and they should focus on their area of expertise. If you want a burger while everyone else wants pizza, it\'s good they have alternatives for you. But if you want a really great burger, you are not going to a pizza restaurant for it.\r\n\r\nPerhaps this pizza place owner\'s gut told him that parking is the real issue. But a gut feeling does not mean that it\'s the correct reason to explain a situation. If he truly wants to improve his situation, he\'d commission market research and/or  hire a restaurant marketing consultant. He needs facts and actions rather than the feeling that parking, something that will not change and he cannot control, is hurting his business.\r\n\r\nWhat do you think? Does it all amount to parking or may there be other reasons?\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','You need more than a gut feeling','','inherit','open','open','','3511-revision-v1','','','2017-06-13 10:45:37','2017-06-13 14:45:37','',3511,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/06/3511-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3513,4,'2017-06-13 14:40:03','2017-06-13 18:40:03','<h3>Project</h3>\r\nPerhaps you want to hire us to work on a single project. You\'ll give us all the relevant information, including target audience for the project, timelines and existing materials. Once we\'ve assessed what you need, we will provide you with a written time and cost estimate before beginning.\r\n\r\nProjects are payable with a 30% deposit to start, and the balance due once the project is complete.\r\n<h3>Retainer</h3>\r\nIf you require ongoing marketing help or know you will have many projects over two months or more, we will set up a retainer agreement. We will estimate how many hours of time you will require per month. We will agree on a cost and number of hours. Retainer agreements are payable on a bi-weekly schedule. Retainers can be dissolved in writing.\r\n<h3>Payment</h3>\r\nWe accept business or personal checks, credit cards via PayPal, cash and money orders. Paying by credit card incurs an additional 3% surcharge.  Our policy is 14 days net for most invoices. As a small business, we cannot afford to extend credit to our clients, and we respectfully request full payment as and when invoiced. All jobs require an initial 30% deposit.\r\n<h3>No work on spec</h3>\r\nFinally, DBMC does not provide spec work. If you require a sample, we will provide you with work done for previous clients. If you want us to produce something specifically for you, we require payment.','How We Work','','inherit','open','open','','42-revision-v1','','','2017-06-13 14:40:03','2017-06-13 18:40:03','',42,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/06/42-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3515,4,'2017-06-21 09:48:27','2017-06-21 13:48:27','In case you\'ve missed a newsletter, just check this archive:\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/45625a\" target=\"_blank\">June 2017</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/75c3f9\" target=\"_blank\">April 2017</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/792b39\" target=\"_blank\">December 2016</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/a051e8\" target=\"_blank\">October 2016</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"August 2016 newsletter\" href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/359a88\" target=\"_blank\">August 2016</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/d841f7\" target=\"_blank\">June 2016</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"March 2016 newsletter\" href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/a50a67\" target=\"_blank\">March 2016</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/d7ed27\" target=\"_blank\">January 2016</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/987fe6\" target=\"_blank\">November 2015</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"September 2015 newsletter\" href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/2f17a6\" target=\"_blank\">September 2015</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/f0dc46\" target=\"_blank\">June 2015</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/83c206\" target=\"_blank\">March 2015</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"January 2015 newsletter\" href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/594ec5\" target=\"_blank\">January 2015</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/p/9a6295?fe=1&amp;pact=26384901049\" target=\"_blank\">November 2014</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/f95d35\" target=\"_blank\">September 2014</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://madmimi.com/s/c3e405\" target=\"_blank\">July 2014</a>\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://mad.ly/3625c4\" target=\"_blank\">April 2014</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"February newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/dc2584\" target=\"_blank\">February 2014</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"December 2013 newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/bb9454\" target=\"_blank\">December 2013</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"October 2013 newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/f27424\" target=\"_blank\">October 2013</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"July 2013 newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/eb30f3\" target=\"_blank\">July 2013</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"May 2013 newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/9003c3\" target=\"_blank\">May 2013</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"March 2013 newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/d82a93\" target=\"_blank\">March 2013</a>\r\n\r\n<a title=\"January 2013 newsletter\" href=\"http://mad.ly/a12873\" target=\"_blank\">January 2013</a>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Newsletters','','inherit','open','open','','2509-revision-v1','','','2017-06-21 09:48:27','2017-06-21 13:48:27','',2509,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/06/2509-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3516,4,'2017-06-22 09:49:45','0000-00-00 00:00:00','I bet you are assuming lots of stuff when it comes to your audience. You might assume they understand the words you use,','Just what are you assuming?','','draft','open','open','','','','','2017-06-22 09:49:45','2017-06-22 13:49:45','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3516',0,'post','',0),
(3517,4,'2017-06-22 09:49:45','2017-06-22 13:49:45','I bet you are assuming lots of stuff when it comes to your audience. You might assume they understand the words you use,','Just what are you assuming?','','inherit','open','open','','3516-revision-v1','','','2017-06-22 09:49:45','2017-06-22 13:49:45','',3516,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/06/3516-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3518,4,'2017-06-23 10:50:44','2017-06-23 14:50:44','In the past several weeks, I\'ve noticed a bunch of small communications issues with different organizations. None of them is big enough to merit a blog post, but they do cause bigger communications problems.\r\n\r\n<strong>Making it extra hard to reach you</strong>\r\n\r\nI met a graphic designer at an event a couple of weeks ago. I sent her a follow up email, and got an automated reply back from her email service telling me it didn\'t recognize me and I would have to reply to the reply, so that I could be whitelisted. I\'ve never seen that before, and I get why she does it. We are all bombarded by spam and other unsolicited email. But when you add an extra step to contacting you, especially when you\'ve given me your personal email on a card, you are creating an obstacle to communication and slowing down any potential business. You have to balance accessibility with the desire for less email. I think if you are a business, you must be accessible.\r\n\r\n<strong>Not including crucial information</strong>\r\n\r\nThe other day I visited microsite for an upcoming conference. It did not list the venue where the conference would be taking place, just the city and state. I\'ve seen some conference websites that don\'t list the full date of the conference. And many don\'t list the price, but force you to hit the register button to find out how much it costs. If you are considering attending any event, you need certain information--where, when, how much and why. If your event page or site does not include crucial information, you are just making it hard for people to decide to attend your event.\r\n\r\n<strong>Email from unknown senders</strong>\r\n\r\nThe other day I got an email from someone named Orlando. My first instinct was to delete, but something about the headline made me open it. It turns out that Orlando is a new employee at an organization from which I get a newsletter. And it was an organizational newsletter. I will never understand why organizations think it\'s a good idea to send email from individuals rather than the organization. Unless you\'re well known already, most people will not recognize you as the new CEO or communications director of an organization.\r\n\r\nIf your organization recently rebranded or changed its name, you may have to send an initial email from your old name. Last year,  I received an email from an organization I had never heard of and I was on the brink of hitting delete. It was communications related, so I figured I must have met someone from that organization at some point, but I wasn\'t sure. It turns out that it was a new name for an old organization.\r\n\r\n<strong>Opening external links in the same window</strong>\r\n\r\nFor the life of me, I don\'t understand why so many organizations want to lose visitors to their websites. And yet, it happens more often than not than when you click on a link, such as the Twitter feed or LinkedIn profile, you are transported out of the organization\'s website to the other website. It doesn\'t take too much coding knowledge to have links open in new windows. That way, visitors can still be on your site and view the outside site.\r\n\r\n<strong>Remember user experience, always.</strong>\r\n\r\nAll of these issues point to one overarching theme: user experience. What do users (visitors to your website, potential customers, potential supporters) experience when they interact with your communications? Are you considering what users need in order to do business with you? As the small issues I described above show, many organizations are not considering their users at all. And that\'s a big communications problem.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Small issues ==> bigger communications problems','','publish','open','open','','small-issues-bigger-communications-problems','','','2017-06-23 10:54:36','2017-06-23 14:54:36','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3518',0,'post','',0),
(3519,4,'2017-06-23 10:50:30','2017-06-23 14:50:30','In the past several weeks, I\'ve noticed a bunch of small communications issues with different organizations. None of them is big enough to merit a blog post, but they do cause communications problems.\r\n\r\n<strong>Making it extra hard to reach you</strong>\r\n\r\nI met a graphic designer at an event a couple of weeks ago. I sent her a follow up email, and got an automated reply back from her email service telling me it didn\'t recognize me and I would have to reply to the reply, so that I could be whitelisted. I\'ve never seen that before, and I get why she does it. We are all bombarded by spam and other unsolicited email. But when you add an extra step to contacting you, especially when you\'ve given me your personal email on a card, you are creating an obstacle to communication and slowing down any potential business. You have to balance accessibility with the desire for less email. I think if you are a business, you must be accessible.\r\n\r\n<strong>Not including crucial information</strong>\r\n\r\nThe other day I visited microsite for an upcoming conference. It did not list the venue where the conference would be taking place, just the city and state. I\'ve seen some conference websites that don\'t list the full date of the conference. And many don\'t list the price, but force you to hit the register button to find out how much it costs. If you are considering attending any event, you need certain information--where, when, how much and why. If your event page or site does not include crucial information, you are just making it hard for people to decide to attend your event.\r\n\r\n<strong>Email from unknown senders</strong>\r\n\r\nThe other day I got an email from someone named Orlando. My first instinct was to delete, but something about the headline made me open it. It turns out that Orlando is a new employee at an organization from which I get a newsletter. And it was an organizational newsletter. I will never understand why organizations think it\'s a good idea to send email from individuals rather than the organization. Unless you\'re well known already, most people will not recognize you as the new CEO or communications director of an organization.\r\n\r\nIf your organization recently rebranded or changed its name, you may have to send an initial email from your old name. Last year,  I received an email from an organization I had never heard of and I was on the brink of hitting delete. It was communications related, so I figured I must have met someone from that organization at some point, but I wasn\'t sure. It turns out that it was a new name for an old organization.\r\n\r\n<strong>Opening external links in the same window</strong>\r\n\r\nFor the life of me, I don\'t understand why so many organizations want to lose visitors to their websites. And yet, it happens more often than not than when you click on a link, such as the Twitter feed or LinkedIn profile, you are transported out of the organizations website to the other website. It doesn\'t take too much coding knowledge to have links open in new windows. That way, visitors can still be on your site and view the outside site.\r\n\r\n<strong>Remember user experience, always.</strong>\r\n\r\nAll of these issues point to one overarching theme: user experience. What do users (visitors to your website, potential customers, potential supporter) experience when they interact with your communications? Are you considering what users need in order to do business with you? As the small issues I described above show, many organizations are not considering their users at all. And that\'s a big communications problem.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Small issues ==> bigger communications problems','','inherit','open','open','','3518-revision-v1','','','2017-06-23 10:50:30','2017-06-23 14:50:30','',3518,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/06/3518-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3520,4,'2017-06-23 10:54:04','2017-06-23 14:54:04','In the past several weeks, I\'ve noticed a bunch of small communications issues with different organizations. None of them is big enough to merit a blog post, but they do cause bigger communications problems.\n\n<strong>Making it extra hard to reach you</strong>\n\nI met a graphic designer at an event a couple of weeks ago. I sent her a follow up email, and got an automated reply back from her email service telling me it didn\'t recognize me and I would have to reply to the reply, so that I could be whitelisted. I\'ve never seen that before, and I get why she does it. We are all bombarded by spam and other unsolicited email. But when you add an extra step to contacting you, especially when you\'ve given me your personal email on a card, you are creating an obstacle to communication and slowing down any potential business. You have to balance accessibility with the desire for less email. I think if you are a business, you must be accessible.\n\n<strong>Not including crucial information</strong>\n\nThe other day I visited microsite for an upcoming conference. It did not list the venue where the conference would be taking place, just the city and state. I\'ve seen some conference websites that don\'t list the full date of the conference. And many don\'t list the price, but force you to hit the register button to find out how much it costs. If you are considering attending any event, you need certain information--where, when, how much and why. If your event page or site does not include crucial information, you are just making it hard for people to decide to attend your event.\n\n<strong>Email from unknown senders</strong>\n\nThe other day I got an email from someone named Orlando. My first instinct was to delete, but something about the headline made me open it. It turns out that Orlando is a new employee at an organization from which I get a newsletter. And it was an organizational newsletter. I will never understand why organizations think it\'s a good idea to send email from individuals rather than the organization. Unless you\'re well known already, most people will not recognize you as the new CEO or communications director of an organization.\n\nIf your organization recently rebranded or changed its name, you may have to send an initial email from your old name. Last year,  I received an email from an organization I had never heard of and I was on the brink of hitting delete. It was communications related, so I figured I must have met someone from that organization at some point, but I wasn\'t sure. It turns out that it was a new name for an old organization.\n\n<strong>Opening external links in the same window</strong>\n\nFor the life of me, I don\'t understand why so many organizations want to lose visitors to their websites. And yet, it happens more often than not than when you click on a link, such as the Twitter feed or LinkedIn profile, you are transported out of the organization\'s website to the other website. It doesn\'t take too much coding knowledge to have links open in new windows. That way, visitors can still be on your site and view the outside site.\n\n<strong>Remember user experience, always.</strong>\n\nAll of these issues point to one overarching theme: user experience. What do users (visitors to your website, potential customers, potential supporter) experience when they interact with your communications? Are you considering what users need in order to do business with you? As the small issues I described above show, many organizations are not considering their users at all. And that\'s a big communications problem.\n\n&nbsp;','Small issues ==> bigger communications problems','','inherit','open','open','','3518-autosave-v1','','','2017-06-23 10:54:04','2017-06-23 14:54:04','',3518,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/06/3518-autosave-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3521,4,'2017-06-23 10:54:36','2017-06-23 14:54:36','In the past several weeks, I\'ve noticed a bunch of small communications issues with different organizations. None of them is big enough to merit a blog post, but they do cause bigger communications problems.\r\n\r\n<strong>Making it extra hard to reach you</strong>\r\n\r\nI met a graphic designer at an event a couple of weeks ago. I sent her a follow up email, and got an automated reply back from her email service telling me it didn\'t recognize me and I would have to reply to the reply, so that I could be whitelisted. I\'ve never seen that before, and I get why she does it. We are all bombarded by spam and other unsolicited email. But when you add an extra step to contacting you, especially when you\'ve given me your personal email on a card, you are creating an obstacle to communication and slowing down any potential business. You have to balance accessibility with the desire for less email. I think if you are a business, you must be accessible.\r\n\r\n<strong>Not including crucial information</strong>\r\n\r\nThe other day I visited microsite for an upcoming conference. It did not list the venue where the conference would be taking place, just the city and state. I\'ve seen some conference websites that don\'t list the full date of the conference. And many don\'t list the price, but force you to hit the register button to find out how much it costs. If you are considering attending any event, you need certain information--where, when, how much and why. If your event page or site does not include crucial information, you are just making it hard for people to decide to attend your event.\r\n\r\n<strong>Email from unknown senders</strong>\r\n\r\nThe other day I got an email from someone named Orlando. My first instinct was to delete, but something about the headline made me open it. It turns out that Orlando is a new employee at an organization from which I get a newsletter. And it was an organizational newsletter. I will never understand why organizations think it\'s a good idea to send email from individuals rather than the organization. Unless you\'re well known already, most people will not recognize you as the new CEO or communications director of an organization.\r\n\r\nIf your organization recently rebranded or changed its name, you may have to send an initial email from your old name. Last year,  I received an email from an organization I had never heard of and I was on the brink of hitting delete. It was communications related, so I figured I must have met someone from that organization at some point, but I wasn\'t sure. It turns out that it was a new name for an old organization.\r\n\r\n<strong>Opening external links in the same window</strong>\r\n\r\nFor the life of me, I don\'t understand why so many organizations want to lose visitors to their websites. And yet, it happens more often than not than when you click on a link, such as the Twitter feed or LinkedIn profile, you are transported out of the organization\'s website to the other website. It doesn\'t take too much coding knowledge to have links open in new windows. That way, visitors can still be on your site and view the outside site.\r\n\r\n<strong>Remember user experience, always.</strong>\r\n\r\nAll of these issues point to one overarching theme: user experience. What do users (visitors to your website, potential customers, potential supporters) experience when they interact with your communications? Are you considering what users need in order to do business with you? As the small issues I described above show, many organizations are not considering their users at all. And that\'s a big communications problem.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Small issues ==> bigger communications problems','','inherit','open','open','','3518-revision-v1','','','2017-06-23 10:54:36','2017-06-23 14:54:36','',3518,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/06/3518-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3523,4,'2017-06-28 13:30:19','2017-06-28 17:30:19','At a communications event last week, the three panelists were asked what communications channel they felt was overrated. The answer that stood out to me the most was the panelist who said she just wanted to see the corporate blog die already because, in her opinion, nobody visits/reads corporate blogs.\r\n\r\nI disagree. Here are a few reasons why:\r\n\r\nThe corporate/organizational blog is an integral part of any <strong>content marketing strategy</strong>.\r\n\r\nIt\'s <strong>owned media</strong> that can help with your SEO, though leadership, lead generation and so much more.\r\n\r\nFor smaller organizations, blogs are an <strong>easy way to add fresh content</strong> regularly.\r\n\r\nBlogs are <strong>flexible and media friendly</strong>--you can post images, graphics, video, audio and/or text.\r\n\r\nRegularly updated blogs serve as a clue to your website visitors that your website (and your organization) is<strong> current</strong>.\r\n\r\nBlog posts are a great <strong>opportunity to respond</strong> to current events/situations/policies in a timely manner, and in more depth that on other social media outlets.\r\n\r\nOrganizational blogs serve a purpose, when done thoughtfully and strategically. But far too many organizations don\'t consider what they wish to achieve with the blog that they feel they must have.\r\n\r\nSo yes, corporate blogs without a strategy or purpose behind them should die. But they can and should be resurrected to achieve one of the many things I have pointed out above. What do you think? What\'s your experience with corporate/organizational blogs? When do you read them?\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Is it time for the corporate blog to die?','','publish','open','open','','is-it-time-for-the-corporate-blog-to-die','','','2017-06-28 13:30:19','2017-06-28 17:30:19','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3523',0,'post','',0),
(3524,4,'2017-06-28 13:05:40','2017-06-28 17:05:40','','Is it time for the corporate blog to die?','','inherit','open','open','','3523-revision-v1','','','2017-06-28 13:05:40','2017-06-28 17:05:40','',3523,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/06/3523-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3525,4,'2017-06-28 13:30:19','2017-06-28 17:30:19','At a communications event last week, the three panelists were asked what communications channel they felt was overrated. The answer that stood out to me the most was the panelist who said she just wanted to see the corporate blog die already because, in her opinion, nobody visits/reads corporate blogs.\r\n\r\nI disagree. Here are a few reasons why:\r\n\r\nThe corporate/organizational blog is an integral part of any <strong>content marketing strategy</strong>.\r\n\r\nIt\'s <strong>owned media</strong> that can help with your SEO, though leadership, lead generation and so much more.\r\n\r\nFor smaller organizations, blogs are an <strong>easy way to add fresh content</strong> regularly.\r\n\r\nBlogs are <strong>flexible and media friendly</strong>--you can post images, graphics, video, audio and/or text.\r\n\r\nRegularly updated blogs serve as a clue to your website visitors that your website (and your organization) is<strong> current</strong>.\r\n\r\nBlog posts are a great <strong>opportunity to respond</strong> to current events/situations/policies in a timely manner, and in more depth that on other social media outlets.\r\n\r\nOrganizational blogs serve a purpose, when done thoughtfully and strategically. But far too many organizations don\'t consider what they wish to achieve with the blog that they feel they must have.\r\n\r\nSo yes, corporate blogs without a strategy or purpose behind them should die. But they can and should be resurrected to achieve one of the many things I have pointed out above. What do you think? What\'s your experience with corporate/organizational blogs? When do you read them?\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Is it time for the corporate blog to die?','','inherit','open','open','','3523-revision-v1','','','2017-06-28 13:30:19','2017-06-28 17:30:19','',3523,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/06/3523-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3528,4,'2017-07-13 16:27:23','2017-07-13 20:27:23','A couple of months ago, I found out that Kramerbooks, an independent bookstore in Washington, had started doing book events. After checking their events website, I saw an author I wanted to see (Derek Thompson, author of Hitmakers). I went to the  Thompson event, which took place in Kramerbook\'s new and pretty tight \"event\" space, with enough seating for about 20 or so, and standing space for about 20 or so more.  I thought Thompson was very interesting, and I actually went home and got his book from the library (and I will be sharing thoughts on it in a future blog post).\r\n\r\nBased on my positive experience, I kept tabs on the Kramerbook\'s online event calendar. Soon, there was another event I wanted to attend. It was three journalists who cover the White House (and being a politics and news junkie, this was totally up my alley). So I put it in my calendar. In the back of my mind I thought this would be a very crowded event, this being DC and the space being so small. Well, I took the Metro from Rockville, and got there around 5:20. Even though the event wasn\'t scheduled to start until 6:30p.m., there was a line around the block.  It was very hot, and based on the space constraints, I knew I wouldn\'t get in, so I decided not to stand in line for an hour in the sun and heat.\r\n\r\nIt costs $6 to ride Metro from where I live to Dupont Circle, where Kramerbooks is. I basically wasted $12 and well over an hour. I was not happy.\r\n\r\nThe next day, I noticed that Kramerbooks had tweeted about a livestream. I tweeted back that had I known I would have skipped going down there. I got back a reply that they tweeted it, and put it on Facebook and Instagram, and they were sorry (more like sorry, not sorry) that I hadn\'t seen it. I asked why they hadn\'t included this information on their event page. And I got no response back.\r\n\r\nBased on this experience, I may never attend try to attend an event at Kramerbooks again. Transportation is just too costly and time-consuming, and getting a seat is too much of a crapshoot. I also didn\'t care for their social media response. A much better response to empathize and then to send me a link to the recording of the event.\r\n\r\nEvents can be great marketing tools. In this case, Kramer\'s gets people in the door, and hopefully, checking out their book selection or eating at their restaurant. Events can also generate publicity. But when done poorly, events can have a negative effect.\r\n\r\nThere\'s another independent bookstore in Washington, Politics and Prose, which has been holding author events for years. They have an event nearly every single day, mostly free and in their bookstore (which has way more space than Kramerbooks). When they have a big author or an event likely to draw large crowds, they sell tickets and hold the events at  Sixth and I (a synagogue and event space in D.C.), which can seat hundreds. This tactic has made Politics and Prose a leader in author and literary events, and probably also has generated considerable book sales.\r\n\r\nThe difference between these two bookstores and their event marketing strategies is stark. One has the experience to understand that some talks require larger spaces, and have partnered with another organization to address the need while also generating ticket and book sales. The other is still learning what to do with their space.\r\n\r\nHave you ever attended an event that ended up being terrible? What made it so and what were the consequences for  you? Let me know in the comments.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Events can be great marketing, or not','','publish','open','open','','events-can-be-great-marketing-or-not','','','2017-07-13 16:27:39','2017-07-13 20:27:39','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3528',0,'post','',0),
(3529,4,'2017-07-13 09:22:09','2017-07-13 13:22:09','A couple of months ago, I found out that Kramer Books, an independent bookstore in DC, had started doing book events. I took the postcard listing the events and the website URL, and went to the website. Soon, I saw an author I wanted to see (Derek Thompson, author of Hitmakers). I went to the event, which took place in a pretty tight space, with enough seating for about 20 or so, and standing space for about 20 or so more. Kramer\'s was selling $5 wine, which I believe was part of draw. I thought Thompson was very interesting, and I actually went home and got his book from the library (and I will be sharing thoughts on it in a future blog post).\r\n\r\nBased on my positive experience, I kept tabs on the Kramer Book\'s online event calendar. Soon, there was another event I wanted to attend. It was three journalists who cover the White House (and being a politics and news junkie). So I put it in my calendar. In the back of my mind I thought this would be a very crowded event, this being DC and the space being so small. Well, I took the Metro from Rockville, and got there around 5:20. There was a line around the block. The event didn\'t start until 6;30. It was very hot, and based on the space, I knew I wouldn\'t get in, so I decided not to stand in line for an hour. It costs $6 to ride Metro from where I live to Dupont Circle, where Kramer Books is. I basically wasted $12. And well over an hour. I was not happy. The next day, I noticed that Kramer Books had tweeted about a livestream. I tweeted back that had I known I would have skipped going down there. I got back a reply that they tweeted it, and put it on Facebook and Instagram, and they were sorry (more like sorry, not sorry) that I hadn\'t seen it. I asked why they hadn\'t included this on their event page. And I got no response back.\r\n\r\nThe thing is I will most likely never attend an event at Kramer Books again. It is too costly and too much of a crapshoot. And their social media response was not good. A better response would\'ve been to send me a link to the recording.\r\n\r\nEvents can be great marketing tools. In this case, Kramer\'s gets people in the door, and hopefully, checking out their book selection or eating at their restaurant. Events can also generate publicity.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Events can be great marketing, or not','','inherit','open','open','','3528-revision-v1','','','2017-07-13 09:22:09','2017-07-13 13:22:09','',3528,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/07/3528-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3530,4,'2017-07-13 16:27:23','2017-07-13 20:27:23','A couple of months ago, I found out that Kramerbooks, an independent bookstore in Washington, had started doing book events. After checking their events website, I saw an author I wanted to see (Derek Thompson, author of Hitmakers). I went to the  Thompson event, which took place in Kramerbook\'s new and pretty tight \"event\" space, with enough seating for about 20 or so, and standing space for about 20 or so more.  I thought Thompson was very interesting, and I actually went home and got his book from the library (and I will be sharing thoughts on it in a future blog post).\r\n\r\nBased on my positive experience, I kept tabs on the Kramerbook\'s online event calendar. Soon, there was another event I wanted to attend. It was three journalists who cover the White House (and being a politics and news junkie, this was totally up my alley). So I put it in my calendar. In the back of my mind I thought this would be a very crowded event, this being DC and the space being so small. Well, I took the Metro from Rockville, and got there around 5:20. Even though the event wasn\'t scheduled to start until 6:30p.m., there was a line around the block.  It was very hot, and based on the space constraints, I knew I wouldn\'t get in, so I decided not to stand in line for an hour in the sun and heat.\r\n\r\nIt costs $6 to ride Metro from where I live to Dupont Circle, where Kramerbooks is. I basically wasted $12 and well over an hour. I was not happy.\r\n\r\nThe next day, I noticed that Kramerbooks had tweeted about a livestream. I tweeted back that had I known I would have skipped going down there. I got back a reply that they tweeted it, and put it on Facebook and Instagram, and they were sorry (more like sorry, not sorry) that I hadn\'t seen it. I asked why they hadn\'t included this information on their event page. And I got no response back.\r\n\r\nBased on this experience, I may never attend try to attend an event at Kramerbooks again. Transportation is just too costly and time-consuming, and getting a seat is too much of a crapshoot. I also didn\'t care for their social media response. A much better response to empathize and then to send me a link to the recording of the event.\r\n\r\nEvents can be great marketing tools. In this case, Kramer\'s gets people in the door, and hopefully, checking out their book selection or eating at their restaurant. Events can also generate publicity. But when done poorly, events can have a negative effect.\r\n\r\nThere\'s another independent bookstore in Washington, Politics and Prose, which has been holding author events for years. They have an event nearly every single day, mostly free and in their bookstore (which has way more space than Kramerbooks). When they have a big author or an event likely to draw large crowds, they sell tickets and hold the events at  Sixth and I (a synagogue and event space in D.C.), which can seat hundreds. This tactic has made Politics and Prose a leader in author and literary events, and probably also has generated considerable book sales.\r\n\r\nThe difference between these two bookstores and their event marketing strategies is stark. One has the experience to understand that some talks require larger spaces, and have partnered with another organization to address the need while also generating ticket and book sales. The other is still learning what to do with their space.\r\n\r\nHave you ever attended an event that ended up being terrible? What made it so and what were the consequences for  you? Let me know in the comments.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Events can be great marketing, or not','','inherit','open','open','','3528-revision-v1','','','2017-07-13 16:27:23','2017-07-13 20:27:23','',3528,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/07/3528-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3536,4,'2017-07-27 13:58:23','2017-07-27 17:58:23','This past Saturday, Jim Vance died after being diagnosed with cancer back in May. Jim Vance was the long-time (45 years!) anchor at Washington\'s NBC affiliate, WRC (channel 4). His death created a tremendous outpouring of grief, from his colleagues, and from the many people in the area who watched him on TV. You can see how NBC4 reported it <a href=\"http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/News4-Anchor-Jim-Vance-Dies-at-75-436001373.html\" target=\"_blank\">here.</a>\r\n\r\nWhen I first read the news of Vance\'s death on Saturday morning I was not surprised (he had announced on air he had cancer and I hadn\'t seen him on the news desk in several weeks even though he had said he would work as his treatment allowed), but I was incredibly saddened. I\'ve watched NBC4\'s evening news for many years, and liked watching him and his anchor partner Doreen Gentzler. I liked how they interacted, how genuinely friendly they were with each other and with the other reporters. I especially remember how Vance paid tribute to Doreen when she celebrated her 25 years of sharing the anchor desk with him.\r\n\r\nSince his death, I have come to learn more about Jim Vance. He was incredibly active in his community—speaking at high school graduations, funding scholarships, mentoring others. Many of his colleagues said he lived life to the fullest. A friend of mine told me that as a teen, he met Vance. In other words, Vance was accessible. He was not a distant celebrity, but was part and parcel of his community.\r\n\r\nEvery night on NBC4 this week, they have paid tribute to Vance. You can see how deeply they feel his loss. And what is interesting is how the community misses Vance too. What\'s more, his competitors at other TV stations also paid tribute to him. The news community in DC is tightly-knit. Many reporters have worked at more than one local station. Bruce Johnson, who now anchors at the CBS affiliate, WUSA-9, had been friends with Vance. He devoted his show, Off Script, on Monday night to Jim Vance and to helping people quit smoking, an addiction which most likely caused Vance\'s cancer.\r\n\r\n<strong>Local TV news still matters.</strong> Whether you watch at 6:00 a.m. to get a read on the day\'s traffic and weather, or at 11:00 p.m. to see what happened in your community, you watch the local TV news to connect to where you live. And because you probably do this habitually, you connect to the people who deliver the news to you. They also live here. They know how hot or how cold or how rainy it is, because they too had to deal with it on their way to work.  Local news anchors care about traffic and construction and local crime, because it affects them personally and their families. And because they care about what is going on here, we care about them.\r\n\r\nIn this age where it seems social media dominates, it\'s important to realize that people still watch TV news, and they connect with the people they see on the anchor desk.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Proof that local TV news still matters','','publish','open','open','','proof-that-local-tv-news-still-matters','','','2017-07-27 13:58:43','2017-07-27 17:58:43','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3536',0,'post','',0),
(3532,4,'2017-07-18 09:27:23','2017-07-18 13:27:23','This past weekend, I attended my sixth WordCamp (!). This time I only had to travel as far as Washington, D.C., which (finally) was hosting its first WordCamp. The past few times I\'ve been to Baltimore and Philadelphia. In case you don\'t know, WordCamp is a volunteer-led conference featuring talks and workshops on various WordPress and website/blog related issues. Since this website/blog is built on WordPress, and WordPress is also a platform for so many other websites big and small, I find it extremely useful to learn more about WordPress and attend WordCamp.\r\n\r\nThis time, I made it to about 11 presentations out of a total 60. As usual, some of the presentations were really useful and/or interesting.  Although I picked up several nuggets, I had four big take-aways.\r\n\r\n<strong>Be generous</strong>\r\n\r\nHave you ever clicked on a blog post that promised you some good information, but found out instead that the post was a sales pitch for the book/webinar/course where you could pay to access the information? I hate that and so does Tracy Schorn, who is the author of the very popular <a href=\"https://www.chumplady.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Chump Lady blog</a>. Her main advice from “How to Build a Popular Blog and Master WordPress Even If You Are a Liberal Arts Major” is to <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">be generous</span>. Tracy says you should offer solutions, help people and be a resource for your readers.\r\n\r\nOf course, Tracy works hard at her blog too. She writes a post every weekday, and answers her readers\' questions. Tracy is definitely on to something, as she is living the blogger\'s dream. Her blog became so popular that she was able to write a book, get it published and then get it optioned for a TV series! Oh, and she makes money of her blog too.\r\n\r\n<strong>Many ways to improve your SEO</strong>\r\n\r\nJohn Victoria runs a SEO/digital marketing agency and his talk was “10 Reasons Why Your Site is Nowhere to be Found on Google (and what to do about it).” The answer to getting your site to be found on Google is SEO—search engine optimization. Being in the first page of Google\'s organic search results is crucial if you want potential customers to find you.\r\n\r\nAmong his suggestions:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Check your site loading speed---a slow load will turn off readers</li>\r\n	<li>Submit your URL to Google</li>\r\n	<li>Backlinks to your site matter. But, do not, under any circumstances, pay to get lots of backlinks to your site. Focus on quality not quantity.</li>\r\n	<li>Submitting an article to a leading publication/site in your field is a great way to build quality backlinks and third-party credibility</li>\r\n	<li>Use your keywords judiciously—do not keyword stuff and think of other ways of saying the same thing (e.g., dentist, dental practice).</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<strong>Take a step now toward enhanced website security</strong>\r\n\r\nWebsites get hacked all the time. Sometimes the hackers are trying to make money by redirecting your traffic to another site. Sometimes they are trying to spread malware. Whatever the reason, this is something you, as a website/blog owner, need to work hard to avoid. And it  does take work and know-how. According to Adam Warner of SiteLock, from his talk \"5 Steps to Personal and Website Security,\" even taking one step helps. Some of what he recommended:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Have strong passwords, do not repeat them and consider using a password manager</li>\r\n	<li>Install SSL on your website, which, as a bonus, gives you an SEO boost</li>\r\n	<li>Use a plug-in to limit the amount of logins into your site</li>\r\n	<li>Do not use public Wi-Fi networks that are not password protected</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<strong>Design matters</strong>\r\n\r\nI really liked Annie Smidt’s talk \"Easy Design Tips for Non Designers.\" She says (and I completely agree) that design can make your site look credible, and can also help visitors like your site. We all know how important it is to make a good first impression.\r\n\r\nSome things Annie suggested non-designers should consider:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Have a hierarchy—the most important message must stand out</li>\r\n	<li>Consistency is important</li>\r\n	<li>Your color palette should match your audience and the mood you are trying to create (Annie provided some great sites/ideas on how to come up with palettes too)</li>\r\n	<li>Typography increases comprehension, so choose typefaces carefully and don’t use too many fonts (she says having two is good: one serif, one sans serif)</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nOne important tidbit I learned from Annie was how to make em-dashes on WordPress. All you have to do is use the Omega button to access special characters. I\'ve already done it in this post!\r\n\r\nYou can read her slides <a href=\"http://www.durablecreative.com/wc17/\" target=\"_blank\">here</a>, and see her excellent suggestions on where to get color palette ideas.\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nThere were dozens of other sessions on three different tracks.  Some were targeted to developers and some to those who work in government or big institutions. Most of them should be available on <a href=\"https://wordpress.tv/category/wordcamptv/\" target=\"_blank\">Wordpress TV.</a>\r\n\r\nI highly recommend attending a WordCamp in person. It’s fun, you’ll learn new stuff and great hacks, meet new people, and not to mention, you\'ll get a t-shirt. For a list of upcoming WordCamps, just check <a href=\"https://central.wordcamp.org/\" target=\"_blank\">WordCamp Central</a>. There are WordCamps everywhere!','4 lessons from WordCamp DC that will improve your website','','publish','open','open','','4-lessons-from-wordcamp-dc-that-will-improve-your-website','','','2017-07-18 09:27:46','2017-07-18 13:27:46','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3532',0,'post','',0),
(3533,4,'2017-07-18 09:25:34','2017-07-18 13:25:34','This past weekend, I attended my sixth WordCamp (!). This time I only had to travel as far as Washington, D.C., which (finally) was hosting its first WordCamp. The past few times I\'ve been to Baltimore and Philadelphia. In case you don\'t know, WordCamp is a volunteer-led conference featuring talks and workshops on various WordPress and website/blog related issues. Since this website/blog is built on WordPress, and WordPress is also a platform for so many other websites big and small, I find it extremely useful to learn more about WordPress and attend WordCamp.\r\n\r\nThis time, I made it to about 11 presentations out of a total 60. As usual, some of the presentations were really useful and/or interesting.  Although I picked up several nuggets, I had four big take-aways.\r\n\r\n<strong>Be generous</strong>\r\n\r\nHave you ever clicked on a blog post that promised you some good information, but found out instead that the post was a sales pitch for the book/webinar/course where you could pay to access the information? I hate that and so does Tracy Schorn, who is the author of the very popular <a href=\"https://www.chumplady.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Chump Lady blog</a>. Her main advice from “How to Build a Popular Blog and Master WordPress Even If You Are a Liberal Arts Major” is to <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">be generous</span>. Tracy says you should offer solutions, help people and be a resource for your readers.\r\n\r\nOf course, Tracy works hard at her blog too. She writes a post every weekday, and answers her readers\' questions. Tracy is definitely on to something, as she is living the blogger\'s dream. Her blog became so popular that she was able to write a book, get it published and then get it optioned for a TV series! Oh, and she makes money of her blog too.\r\n\r\n<strong>Many ways to improve your SEO</strong>\r\n\r\nJohn Victoria runs a SEO/digital marketing agency and his talk was “10 Reasons Why Your Site is Nowhere to be Found on Google (and what to do about it).” The answer to getting your site to be found on Google is SEO—search engine optimization. Being in the first page of Google\'s organic search results is crucial if you want potential customers to find you.\r\n\r\nAmong his suggestions:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Check your site loading speed---a slow load will turn off readers</li>\r\n	<li>Submit your URL to Google</li>\r\n	<li>Backlinks to your site matter. But, do not, under any circumstances, pay to get lots of backlinks to your site. Focus on quality not quantity.</li>\r\n	<li>Submitting an article to a leading publication/site in your field is a great way to build quality backlinks and third-party credibility</li>\r\n	<li>Use your keywords judiciously—do not keyword stuff and think of other ways of saying the same thing (e.g., dentist, dental practice).</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<strong>Take a step now toward enhanced website security</strong>\r\n\r\nWebsites get hacked all the time. Sometimes the hackers are trying to make money by redirecting your traffic to another site. Sometimes they are trying to spread malware. Whatever the reason, this is something you, as a website/blog owner, need to work hard to avoid. And it  does take work and know-how. According to Adam Warner of SiteLock, from his talk \"5 Steps to Personal and Website Security,\" even taking one step helps. Some of what he recommended:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Have strong passwords, do not repeat them and consider using a password manager</li>\r\n	<li>Install SSL on your website, which, as a bonus, gives you an SEO boost</li>\r\n	<li>Use a plug-in to limit the amount of logins into your site</li>\r\n	<li>Do not use public Wi-Fi networks that are not password protected</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<strong>Design matters</strong>\r\n\r\nI really liked Annie Smidt’s talk \"Easy Design Tips for Non Designers.\" She says (and I completely agree) that design can make your site look credible, and can also help visitors like your site. We all know how important it is to make a good first impression.\r\n\r\nSome things Annie suggested non-designers should consider:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Have a hierarchy—the most important message must stand out</li>\r\n	<li>Consistency is important</li>\r\n	<li>Your color palette should match your audience and the mood you are trying to create (Annie provided some great sites/ideas on how to come up with palettes too)</li>\r\n	<li>Typography increases comprehension, so choose typefaces carefully and don’t use too many fonts (she says having two is good: one serif, one sans serif)</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nOne important tidbit I learned from Annie was how to make em-dashes on WordPress. All you have to do is use the Omega button to access special characters. I\'ve already done it in this post!\r\n\r\nYou can read her slides <a href=\"http://www.durablecreative.com/wc17/\" target=\"_blank\">here</a>, and see her excellent suggestions on where to get color palette ideas.\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nThere were dozens of other sessions on three different tracks.  Some were targeted to developers and some to those who work in government or big institutions. Most of them should be available on <a href=\"https://wordpress.tv/category/wordcamptv/\" target=\"_blank\">Wordpress TV.</a>\r\n\r\nI highly recommend attending a WordCamp in person. It’s fun, you’ll learn new stuff and great hacks, meet new people, and not to mention, you will get a t-shirt. For a list of upcoming WordCamps, just check <a href=\"https://central.wordcamp.org/\" target=\"_blank\">WordCamp Central</a>. There are WordCamps everywhere!','4 lessons from WordCamp DC that will improve your website','','inherit','open','open','','3532-revision-v1','','','2017-07-18 09:25:34','2017-07-18 13:25:34','',3532,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/07/3532-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3534,4,'2017-07-18 09:27:23','2017-07-18 13:27:23','This past weekend, I attended my sixth WordCamp (!). This time I only had to travel as far as Washington, D.C., which (finally) was hosting its first WordCamp. The past few times I\'ve been to Baltimore and Philadelphia. In case you don\'t know, WordCamp is a volunteer-led conference featuring talks and workshops on various WordPress and website/blog related issues. Since this website/blog is built on WordPress, and WordPress is also a platform for so many other websites big and small, I find it extremely useful to learn more about WordPress and attend WordCamp.\r\n\r\nThis time, I made it to about 11 presentations out of a total 60. As usual, some of the presentations were really useful and/or interesting.  Although I picked up several nuggets, I had four big take-aways.\r\n\r\n<strong>Be generous</strong>\r\n\r\nHave you ever clicked on a blog post that promised you some good information, but found out instead that the post was a sales pitch for the book/webinar/course where you could pay to access the information? I hate that and so does Tracy Schorn, who is the author of the very popular <a href=\"https://www.chumplady.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Chump Lady blog</a>. Her main advice from “How to Build a Popular Blog and Master WordPress Even If You Are a Liberal Arts Major” is to <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">be generous</span>. Tracy says you should offer solutions, help people and be a resource for your readers.\r\n\r\nOf course, Tracy works hard at her blog too. She writes a post every weekday, and answers her readers\' questions. Tracy is definitely on to something, as she is living the blogger\'s dream. Her blog became so popular that she was able to write a book, get it published and then get it optioned for a TV series! Oh, and she makes money of her blog too.\r\n\r\n<strong>Many ways to improve your SEO</strong>\r\n\r\nJohn Victoria runs a SEO/digital marketing agency and his talk was “10 Reasons Why Your Site is Nowhere to be Found on Google (and what to do about it).” The answer to getting your site to be found on Google is SEO—search engine optimization. Being in the first page of Google\'s organic search results is crucial if you want potential customers to find you.\r\n\r\nAmong his suggestions:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Check your site loading speed---a slow load will turn off readers</li>\r\n	<li>Submit your URL to Google</li>\r\n	<li>Backlinks to your site matter. But, do not, under any circumstances, pay to get lots of backlinks to your site. Focus on quality not quantity.</li>\r\n	<li>Submitting an article to a leading publication/site in your field is a great way to build quality backlinks and third-party credibility</li>\r\n	<li>Use your keywords judiciously—do not keyword stuff and think of other ways of saying the same thing (e.g., dentist, dental practice).</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<strong>Take a step now toward enhanced website security</strong>\r\n\r\nWebsites get hacked all the time. Sometimes the hackers are trying to make money by redirecting your traffic to another site. Sometimes they are trying to spread malware. Whatever the reason, this is something you, as a website/blog owner, need to work hard to avoid. And it  does take work and know-how. According to Adam Warner of SiteLock, from his talk \"5 Steps to Personal and Website Security,\" even taking one step helps. Some of what he recommended:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Have strong passwords, do not repeat them and consider using a password manager</li>\r\n	<li>Install SSL on your website, which, as a bonus, gives you an SEO boost</li>\r\n	<li>Use a plug-in to limit the amount of logins into your site</li>\r\n	<li>Do not use public Wi-Fi networks that are not password protected</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<strong>Design matters</strong>\r\n\r\nI really liked Annie Smidt’s talk \"Easy Design Tips for Non Designers.\" She says (and I completely agree) that design can make your site look credible, and can also help visitors like your site. We all know how important it is to make a good first impression.\r\n\r\nSome things Annie suggested non-designers should consider:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Have a hierarchy—the most important message must stand out</li>\r\n	<li>Consistency is important</li>\r\n	<li>Your color palette should match your audience and the mood you are trying to create (Annie provided some great sites/ideas on how to come up with palettes too)</li>\r\n	<li>Typography increases comprehension, so choose typefaces carefully and don’t use too many fonts (she says having two is good: one serif, one sans serif)</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nOne important tidbit I learned from Annie was how to make em-dashes on WordPress. All you have to do is use the Omega button to access special characters. I\'ve already done it in this post!\r\n\r\nYou can read her slides <a href=\"http://www.durablecreative.com/wc17/\" target=\"_blank\">here</a>, and see her excellent suggestions on where to get color palette ideas.\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nThere were dozens of other sessions on three different tracks.  Some were targeted to developers and some to those who work in government or big institutions. Most of them should be available on <a href=\"https://wordpress.tv/category/wordcamptv/\" target=\"_blank\">Wordpress TV.</a>\r\n\r\nI highly recommend attending a WordCamp in person. It’s fun, you’ll learn new stuff and great hacks, meet new people, and not to mention, you\'ll get a t-shirt. For a list of upcoming WordCamps, just check <a href=\"https://central.wordcamp.org/\" target=\"_blank\">WordCamp Central</a>. There are WordCamps everywhere!','4 lessons from WordCamp DC that will improve your website','','inherit','open','open','','3532-revision-v1','','','2017-07-18 09:27:23','2017-07-18 13:27:23','',3532,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/07/3532-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3537,4,'2017-07-27 13:58:23','2017-07-27 17:58:23','This past Saturday, Jim Vance died after being diagnosed with cancer back in May. Jim Vance was the long-time (45 years!) anchor at Washington\'s NBC affiliate, WRC (channel 4). His death created a tremendous outpouring of grief, from his colleagues, and from the many people in the area who watched him on TV. You can see how NBC4 reported it <a href=\"http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/News4-Anchor-Jim-Vance-Dies-at-75-436001373.html\" target=\"_blank\">here.</a>\r\n\r\nWhen I first read the news of Vance\'s death on Saturday morning I was not surprised (he had announced on air he had cancer and I hadn\'t seen him on the news desk in several weeks even though he had said he would work as his treatment allowed), but I was incredibly saddened. I\'ve watched NBC4\'s evening news for many years, and liked watching him and his anchor partner Doreen Gentzler. I liked how they interacted, how genuinely friendly they were with each other and with the other reporters. I especially remember how Vance paid tribute to Doreen when she celebrated her 25 years of sharing the anchor desk with him.\r\n\r\nSince his death, I have come to learn more about Jim Vance. He was incredibly active in his community—speaking at high school graduations, funding scholarships, mentoring others. Many of his colleagues said he lived life to the fullest. A friend of mine told me that as a teen, he met Vance. In other words, Vance was accessible. He was not a distant celebrity, but was part and parcel of his community.\r\n\r\nEvery night on NBC4 this week, they have paid tribute to Vance. You can see how deeply they feel his loss. And what is interesting is how the community misses Vance too. What\'s more, his competitors at other TV stations also paid tribute to him. The news community in DC is tightly-knit. Many reporters have worked at more than one local station. Bruce Johnson, who now anchors at the CBS affiliate, WUSA-9, had been friends with Vance. He devoted his show, Off Script, on Monday night to Jim Vance and to helping people quit smoking, an addiction which most likely caused Vance\'s cancer.\r\n\r\n<strong>Local TV news still matters.</strong> Whether you watch at 6:00 a.m. to get a read on the day\'s traffic and weather, or at 11:00 p.m. to see what happened in your community, you watch the local TV news to connect to where you live. And because you probably do this habitually, you connect to the people who deliver the news to you. They also live here. They know how hot or how cold or how rainy it is, because they too had to deal with it on their way to work.  Local news anchors care about traffic and construction and local crime, because it affects them personally and their families. And because they care about what is going on here, we care about them.\r\n\r\nIn this age where it seems social media dominates, it\'s important to realize that people still watch TV news, and they connect with the people they see on the anchor desk.\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Proof that local TV news still matters','','inherit','open','open','','3536-revision-v1','','','2017-07-27 13:58:23','2017-07-27 17:58:23','',3536,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/07/3536-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3539,4,'2017-08-01 10:18:08','2017-08-01 14:18:08','I was going to write a post about how Anthony Scaramucci, the shortest-lived White House Communications Director in history, embodies the problem at the core of the Trump administration\'s communications failures, and then the \"Mooch\" got fired after 10 days on the job.\r\n\r\nBasically, Scaramucci got fired because he failed at Communications 101. He was bound to fail also because he was not the right person for the job. He had no experience in communications, and his actions showed it. As the wrong person for the job, he got hired by a boss and an administration that don\'t understand communications fundamentals.\r\n\r\n<strong>The communications person is never the story</strong>\r\n\r\nFirst, Scaramucci failed because he broke the cardinal rule for communications pros: he became the story. As anybody who has worked in public relations/communications knows, the comms person is there to help get the story out. Under no circumstances are you to become the story.\r\n\r\n<strong>You have to know how news reporters work</strong>\r\n\r\nSecond, Scaramucci did not seem to understand that unless you explicitly state otherwise, everything you say can be quoted. If you have not said something is off the record, it\'s on the record. Period. Reporters are always looking for quotes. That\'s what they do.\r\n\r\n<strong>Just because you feel that you are simpatico, does not mean you are pals hanging out at a bar</strong>\r\n\r\nThird, Scaramucci made himself look extremely crass and stupid by using obscenities where none were needed. We all curse, but we know that in certain circumstances we don\'t. Scaramucci also seems to lack imagination—and here it is—an ability to communicate, in order to convey his thoughts without resorting to obscenities.\r\n\r\n<strong>But the larger problem is a White House that doesn\'t get it</strong>\r\n\r\nIn TrumpWorld, it seems communications is <em>all</em> about marketing. It\'s<em> all</em> about persuasion. <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">And it\'s not about sharing information and facts.</span> I don\'t think this country has ever seen such a fact-averse White House ever.\r\n\r\nWhen you practice communications you are aiming to inform, and yes, to persuade. But persuasion is not something to be done with threats and alternative facts. As I have written before, Sean Spicer (the former communications director/press secretary) thought he was in a fight with the White House press corps. He berated them and belittled them and even refused to provide them with information they requested. He turned the cameras off for briefings, thinking that by cutting off video he would be able to control the narrative. He cherry-picked media outlets to respond to that were sympathetic to the president and would not ask any hard questions.\r\n\r\n<strong>Communications is not a one-way street</strong>\r\n\r\nTo communicate, you must inform. You can\'t simply try to force your viewpoint on everyone. We see Trump using Twitter to talk directly to the people. What you don\'t see is Trump using Twitter to respond to questions from the people. To Trump, communication is a one-way street (sort of how he views loyalty too): push your message out and steamroll anyone who questions it.\r\n\r\n<strong>Scaramucci\'s failure is indicative of a much larger problem that does not seem to have a solution: a White House that does not value real communication.</strong>','Why Scaramucci failed','','publish','open','open','','why-scaramucci-failed','','','2017-08-01 10:18:08','2017-08-01 14:18:08','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3539',0,'post','',0),
(3540,4,'2017-08-01 10:05:53','2017-08-01 14:05:53','I was going to write a post about how Scaramucci embodies the problem at the core of the Trump administration\'s communications failures, and then the \"Mooch\" got fired after 10 days on the job.\r\n\r\nBasically, Scaramucci got fired because he failed at Communications 101. He was bound to fail also because he was not the right person for the job. He had no experience in communications, and his actions showed it. As the wrong person for the job, he got hired by a boss and an administration that don\'t understand communications fundamentals.\r\n\r\n<strong>The communications person is never the story</strong>\r\n\r\nFirst, Scaramucci failed because he broke the cardinal rule for communications pros: he became the story. As anybody who has worked in public relations/communications knows, the comms person is there to help get the story out. Under no circumstances are you to become the story.\r\n\r\n<strong>You have to know how news reporters work</strong>\r\n\r\nSecond, Scaramucci did not seem to understand that unless you explicitly state otherwise, everything you say can be quoted. If you have not said something is off the record, it\'s on the record. Period. Reporters are always looking for quotes. That\'s what they do.\r\n\r\n<strong>Just because you feel that you are simpatico, does not mean you are pals hanging out at a bar</strong>\r\n\r\nThird, Scaramucci made himself look extremely crass and stupid by using obscenities where none were needed. We all curse, but we know that in certain circumstances we don\'t. Scaramucci also seems to lack imagination—and here it is—an ability to communicate, in order to convey his thoughts without resorting to obscenities.\r\n\r\nBut the larger problem is a White House that doesn\'t get it\r\n\r\nIn TrumpWorld, it seems communications is all about marketing. It\'s all about persuasion. And it\'s not about sharing information and facts. I don\'t think this country has ever seen such a fact-averse White House ever.\r\n\r\nWhen you practice communications you are aiming to inform, and yes, to persuade. But persuasion is not something to be done with threats and alternative facts. Sean Spicer (as I have written before) thought he was in a fight with the White House press corps. He berated them and belittled them and even refused to provide information. He turned the cameras off for briefings when he did have them. He cherrypicked media outlets that were sympathetic to the president and would not ask any hard questions.','Why Scaramucci failed','','inherit','open','open','','3539-revision-v1','','','2017-08-01 10:05:53','2017-08-01 14:05:53','',3539,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/08/3539-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3541,4,'2017-08-01 10:18:08','2017-08-01 14:18:08','I was going to write a post about how Anthony Scaramucci, the shortest-lived White House Communications Director in history, embodies the problem at the core of the Trump administration\'s communications failures, and then the \"Mooch\" got fired after 10 days on the job.\r\n\r\nBasically, Scaramucci got fired because he failed at Communications 101. He was bound to fail also because he was not the right person for the job. He had no experience in communications, and his actions showed it. As the wrong person for the job, he got hired by a boss and an administration that don\'t understand communications fundamentals.\r\n\r\n<strong>The communications person is never the story</strong>\r\n\r\nFirst, Scaramucci failed because he broke the cardinal rule for communications pros: he became the story. As anybody who has worked in public relations/communications knows, the comms person is there to help get the story out. Under no circumstances are you to become the story.\r\n\r\n<strong>You have to know how news reporters work</strong>\r\n\r\nSecond, Scaramucci did not seem to understand that unless you explicitly state otherwise, everything you say can be quoted. If you have not said something is off the record, it\'s on the record. Period. Reporters are always looking for quotes. That\'s what they do.\r\n\r\n<strong>Just because you feel that you are simpatico, does not mean you are pals hanging out at a bar</strong>\r\n\r\nThird, Scaramucci made himself look extremely crass and stupid by using obscenities where none were needed. We all curse, but we know that in certain circumstances we don\'t. Scaramucci also seems to lack imagination—and here it is—an ability to communicate, in order to convey his thoughts without resorting to obscenities.\r\n\r\n<strong>But the larger problem is a White House that doesn\'t get it</strong>\r\n\r\nIn TrumpWorld, it seems communications is <em>all</em> about marketing. It\'s<em> all</em> about persuasion. <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">And it\'s not about sharing information and facts.</span> I don\'t think this country has ever seen such a fact-averse White House ever.\r\n\r\nWhen you practice communications you are aiming to inform, and yes, to persuade. But persuasion is not something to be done with threats and alternative facts. As I have written before, Sean Spicer (the former communications director/press secretary) thought he was in a fight with the White House press corps. He berated them and belittled them and even refused to provide them with information they requested. He turned the cameras off for briefings, thinking that by cutting off video he would be able to control the narrative. He cherry-picked media outlets to respond to that were sympathetic to the president and would not ask any hard questions.\r\n\r\n<strong>Communications is not a one-way street</strong>\r\n\r\nTo communicate, you must inform. You can\'t simply try to force your viewpoint on everyone. We see Trump using Twitter to talk directly to the people. What you don\'t see is Trump using Twitter to respond to questions from the people. To Trump, communication is a one-way street (sort of how he views loyalty too): push your message out and steamroll anyone who questions it.\r\n\r\n<strong>Scaramucci\'s failure is indicative of a much larger problem that does not seem to have a solution: a White House that does not value real communication.</strong>','Why Scaramucci failed','','inherit','open','open','','3539-revision-v1','','','2017-08-01 10:18:08','2017-08-01 14:18:08','',3539,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/08/3539-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3543,4,'2017-08-08 09:07:26','2017-08-08 13:07:26','The other night, I heard a loud, scratching noise in my chimney. It sounded as if  an animal had gotten in. My first thought (and fear) was that a small bat was in there and it would then come into the house. Since it was close to midnight, there was nothing I could do except check the website for the local animal trapping company that I\'ve see working in my neighborhood. According to Google results, their office opened at 7:00 a.m. The website listed an 800 number, and four local-area numbers. I decided to call first thing to see if they would send someone right away.\r\n\r\nAt 7:00 the next morning I called up the company. I got a message saying their offices opened at 8:00 a.m. Their Google My Business listing was wrong and their website did not list hours at all.\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nSometimes companies spend more time and money on developing new marketing or on sales pitches, and they forget to check the basics. So, before you do anything else marketing-related, check your current stuff for accuracy. Do it now. Seriously.\r\n\r\n<strong>What to check:</strong>\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Business name (is it complete, spelled correctly?)</li>\r\n	<li>Address/es (accurate, current?)</li>\r\n	<li>Telephone number/s (accurate, current?)</li>\r\n	<li>Website URL</li>\r\n	<li>Hours/days of operation</li>\r\n	<li>Staff names/positions/contact information</li>\r\n	<li>Email addresses</li>\r\n	<li>Pricing information</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<strong>Where to check:</strong>\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Your website</li>\r\n	<li>Your social media pages (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, etc.)</li>\r\n	<li>Google results/Google maps/Google My Business</li>\r\n	<li>Yelp and other review or listing sites (e.g., Angie\'s List) you appear in</li>\r\n	<li>Printed materials (business cards, brochures, letterhead, postcards, etc.)</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nIn the end, I was able to get the animal trapping company to come to my house later in the day. They checked the chimney and nothing was there (thank goodness!). They put some mesh on the chimney cap to prevent bats or birds from getting in.\r\n\r\nThis company has plenty of business around here. I\'ve seen their trucks before as squirrels are constantly getting into attics (and bats are always in the belfry). They certainly have developed brand recognition. But you only call them when you need them and it is usually an urgent situation. Having multiple phone numbers and inaccurate hours is not helpful for anybody needing their services.\r\n\r\n<strong>Any organization needs to consider what information potential users/customers/donors need to have, and then make sure that information is easily <em>available and accurate</em>. It just makes good marketing/communications sense.</strong>','Check for accuracy STAT','','publish','open','open','','check-for-accuracy-stat','','','2017-08-08 09:07:26','2017-08-08 13:07:26','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3543',0,'post','',0),
(3544,4,'2017-08-08 09:04:00','2017-08-08 13:04:00','The other night, I heard a loud, scratching noise in my chimney. It sounded as if  an animal had gotten in. My first thought (and fear) was that a small bat was in there and it would then come into the house. Since it was close to midnight, there was nothing I could do except check the website for the local animal trapping company that I\'ve see working in my neighborhood. According to Google results, their office opened at 7:00 a.m. The website listed an 800 number, and four local-area numbers. I decided to call first thing to see if they would send someone right away.\r\n\r\nAt 7:00 the next morning I called up the company. I got a message saying their offices opened at 8:00 a.m. Their Google My Business listing was wrong and their website did not list hours at all.\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nSometimes companies spend more time and money on developing new marketing or on sales pitches, and they forget to check the basics. So, before you do anything else marketing-related, check your current stuff for accuracy. Do it now. Seriously.\r\n\r\n<strong>What to check:</strong>\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Business name (is it complete, spelled correctly?)</li>\r\n	<li>Address/es (accurate, current?)</li>\r\n	<li>Telephone number/s (accurate, current?)</li>\r\n	<li>Website URL</li>\r\n	<li>Hours/days of operation</li>\r\n	<li>Staff names/positions/contact information</li>\r\n	<li>Email addresses</li>\r\n	<li>Pricing information</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<strong>Where to check:</strong>\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Your website</li>\r\n	<li>Your social media pages (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, etc.)</li>\r\n	<li>Google results/Google maps/Google My Business</li>\r\n	<li>Yelp and other review or listing sites (e.g., Angie\'s List) you appear in</li>\r\n	<li>Printed materials (business cards, brochures, letterhead, postcards, etc.)</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nIn the end, I was able to get the animal trapping company to come to my house later in the day. They checked the chimney and nothing was there (thank goodness!). They put some mesh on the chimney cap to prevent bats or birds from getting in.\r\n\r\nThis company has plenty of business around here. I\'ve seen their trucks before as squirrels are constantly getting into attics (and bats are always in the belfry). They certainly have developed brand recognition. But you only call them when you need them and it is usually an urgent situation. Having multiple phone numbers and inaccurate hours is not helpful.\r\n\r\nAny organization needs to consider what information potential users/customers/donors need to have and then make sure that information is easily available and accurate. It just makes good marketing/communications sense.','Check for accuracy STAT','','inherit','open','open','','3543-revision-v1','','','2017-08-08 09:04:00','2017-08-08 13:04:00','',3543,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/08/3543-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3545,4,'2017-08-08 09:06:53','2017-08-08 13:06:53','The other night, I heard a loud, scratching noise in my chimney. It sounded as if  an animal had gotten in. My first thought (and fear) was that a small bat was in there and it would then come into the house. Since it was close to midnight, there was nothing I could do except check the website for the local animal trapping company that I\'ve see working in my neighborhood. According to Google results, their office opened at 7:00 a.m. The website listed an 800 number, and four local-area numbers. I decided to call first thing to see if they would send someone right away.\r\n\r\nAt 7:00 the next morning I called up the company. I got a message saying their offices opened at 8:00 a.m. Their Google My Business listing was wrong and their website did not list hours at all.\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nSometimes companies spend more time and money on developing new marketing or on sales pitches, and they forget to check the basics. So, before you do anything else marketing-related, check your current stuff for accuracy. Do it now. Seriously.\r\n\r\n<strong>What to check:</strong>\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Business name (is it complete, spelled correctly?)</li>\r\n	<li>Address/es (accurate, current?)</li>\r\n	<li>Telephone number/s (accurate, current?)</li>\r\n	<li>Website URL</li>\r\n	<li>Hours/days of operation</li>\r\n	<li>Staff names/positions/contact information</li>\r\n	<li>Email addresses</li>\r\n	<li>Pricing information</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n<strong>Where to check:</strong>\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Your website</li>\r\n	<li>Your social media pages (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, etc.)</li>\r\n	<li>Google results/Google maps/Google My Business</li>\r\n	<li>Yelp and other review or listing sites (e.g., Angie\'s List) you appear in</li>\r\n	<li>Printed materials (business cards, brochures, letterhead, postcards, etc.)</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\nIn the end, I was able to get the animal trapping company to come to my house later in the day. They checked the chimney and nothing was there (thank goodness!). They put some mesh on the chimney cap to prevent bats or birds from getting in.\r\n\r\nThis company has plenty of business around here. I\'ve seen their trucks before as squirrels are constantly getting into attics (and bats are always in the belfry). They certainly have developed brand recognition. But you only call them when you need them and it is usually an urgent situation. Having multiple phone numbers and inaccurate hours is not helpful for anybody needing their services.\r\n\r\n<strong>Any organization needs to consider what information potential users/customers/donors need to have, and then make sure that information is easily <em>available and accurate</em>. It just makes good marketing/communications sense.</strong>','Check for accuracy STAT','','inherit','open','open','','3543-revision-v1','','','2017-08-08 09:06:53','2017-08-08 13:06:53','',3543,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/08/3543-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3546,4,'2017-08-15 11:37:38','2017-08-15 15:37:38','<strong>We need your support and we will interrupt your viewing until you give us money!</strong>\r\n\r\nThis seems to be the PBS mission during its pledge drive\r\n\r\nCurrently, it\'s the upteenth day during the upteenth time this year that my local PBS station, WETA, is looking for support from viewers. It may not be endless, but it sure feels like it.\r\n\r\nPledge month (?) is the time when the station starts playing \"specials\" that have been played dozens of times before, and interrupting them every fifteen minutes to ask for your support. In return, you will get any number of mugs/bags/videos/books based on the size of your contribution. Also, every other show seems to get interrupted--the Newshour, Washington Week, and most egregiously, the finale of the Great British Baking Show.\r\n\r\n<strong>Enough!</strong>\r\n\r\nViewers like me do not like to watch tired, old \"specials.\" Viewers like me hate having shows interrupted multiple times by the same talking heads giving repetitious pitches on why to give to the station. Viewers like me do not want mugs or tote bags. Viewers like me click off PBS the instant this pledge madness starts.\r\n\r\n<strong>How can this model work today?</strong>\r\n\r\nHere\'s a newsflash for PBS: Times have changed.\r\n\r\n<em>Hundreds of viewing options</em>\r\n\r\nAll TV channels are under intense competition—both for viewers and for advertising dollars. This is because viewers have many more options for entertainment than ever before: There are hundreds of cable and streaming channels, and also an internet chock-full of stuff to watch, read, react to and interact with.\r\n\r\n<em>It\'s an on-demand world</em>\r\n\r\nWith DVRs and/or access to content on demand, people can watch shows on whatever schedule they choose. They can ignore advertising (and pledge drives).\r\n\r\n<em>There\'s a streaming channel for that</em>\r\n\r\nIt used to be that you could only watch British shows like Downton Abbey or Inspector Morse on PBS. Now, you can stream them on specialized British TV/movies channels, and even watch them on Netflix.\r\n\r\n<em>Watch TV wherever you are, whenever you want</em>\r\n\r\nSmartphones and tablets can access the internet anywhere and everywhere. And users of these devices can buy/rent/download all sorts of entertainment to watch even when there is no internet access.\r\n\r\n<strong>Interrupting viewer with a push-message is really old school</strong>\r\n\r\nThese days, inbound marketing is in favor. That\'s when potential customers/supporters come to you because you are providing great content/reasons for them to interact and buy/support from you. Forcing yourself on viewers, like the pledge drive on PBS does, is the complete opposite. It assumes a static audience that does not have any option but to sit there and listen to a sales pitch. It assumes that pushing a message is the best way to get action. It\'s the old way of doing things. And it may help PBS shed viewers, not gain them.\r\n\r\n<strong>Is annoying viewers for a $60 donation the best way to keep PBS afloat?</strong>\r\n\r\nWhen you are aiming for lots of small donations, you have to do a lot more work. In this case, it means interrupting viewing more times, more often. It gets annoying. It\'s a turn-off. And I don\'t believe it\'s effective. I think it would be far more effective to concentrate on getting and retaining big, corporate or foundation sponsorships.\r\n\r\nI understand PBS wants community support too. Perhaps instead of asking viewers to donate, PBS could emphasize obtaining a yearly membership with (real) special benefits (currently this is not clear on the PBS website). Instead of having pledge drives, PBS could include a 15-second ad/message for membership before popular shows.\r\n\r\nWhat do you think? Do you watch PBS? Do you support PBS? Why or why not?\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Does PBS get the support of viewers like you? ','','publish','open','open','','does-pbs-get-the-support-of-viewers-like-you','','','2017-08-15 11:37:38','2017-08-15 15:37:38','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3546',0,'post','',0),
(3548,4,'2017-08-15 11:37:38','2017-08-15 15:37:38','<strong>We need your support and we will interrupt your viewing until you give us money!</strong>\r\n\r\nThis seems to be the PBS mission during its pledge drive\r\n\r\nCurrently, it\'s the upteenth day during the upteenth time this year that my local PBS station, WETA, is looking for support from viewers. It may not be endless, but it sure feels like it.\r\n\r\nPledge month (?) is the time when the station starts playing \"specials\" that have been played dozens of times before, and interrupting them every fifteen minutes to ask for your support. In return, you will get any number of mugs/bags/videos/books based on the size of your contribution. Also, every other show seems to get interrupted--the Newshour, Washington Week, and most egregiously, the finale of the Great British Baking Show.\r\n\r\n<strong>Enough!</strong>\r\n\r\nViewers like me do not like to watch tired, old \"specials.\" Viewers like me hate having shows interrupted multiple times by the same talking heads giving repetitious pitches on why to give to the station. Viewers like me do not want mugs or tote bags. Viewers like me click off PBS the instant this pledge madness starts.\r\n\r\n<strong>How can this model work today?</strong>\r\n\r\nHere\'s a newsflash for PBS: Times have changed.\r\n\r\n<em>Hundreds of viewing options</em>\r\n\r\nAll TV channels are under intense competition—both for viewers and for advertising dollars. This is because viewers have many more options for entertainment than ever before: There are hundreds of cable and streaming channels, and also an internet chock-full of stuff to watch, read, react to and interact with.\r\n\r\n<em>It\'s an on-demand world</em>\r\n\r\nWith DVRs and/or access to content on demand, people can watch shows on whatever schedule they choose. They can ignore advertising (and pledge drives).\r\n\r\n<em>There\'s a streaming channel for that</em>\r\n\r\nIt used to be that you could only watch British shows like Downton Abbey or Inspector Morse on PBS. Now, you can stream them on specialized British TV/movies channels, and even watch them on Netflix.\r\n\r\n<em>Watch TV wherever you are, whenever you want</em>\r\n\r\nSmartphones and tablets can access the internet anywhere and everywhere. And users of these devices can buy/rent/download all sorts of entertainment to watch even when there is no internet access.\r\n\r\n<strong>Interrupting viewer with a push-message is really old school</strong>\r\n\r\nThese days, inbound marketing is in favor. That\'s when potential customers/supporters come to you because you are providing great content/reasons for them to interact and buy/support from you. Forcing yourself on viewers, like the pledge drive on PBS does, is the complete opposite. It assumes a static audience that does not have any option but to sit there and listen to a sales pitch. It assumes that pushing a message is the best way to get action. It\'s the old way of doing things. And it may help PBS shed viewers, not gain them.\r\n\r\n<strong>Is annoying viewers for a $60 donation the best way to keep PBS afloat?</strong>\r\n\r\nWhen you are aiming for lots of small donations, you have to do a lot more work. In this case, it means interrupting viewing more times, more often. It gets annoying. It\'s a turn-off. And I don\'t believe it\'s effective. I think it would be far more effective to concentrate on getting and retaining big, corporate or foundation sponsorships.\r\n\r\nI understand PBS wants community support too. Perhaps instead of asking viewers to donate, PBS could emphasize obtaining a yearly membership with (real) special benefits (currently this is not clear on the PBS website). Instead of having pledge drives, PBS could include a 15-second ad/message for membership before popular shows.\r\n\r\nWhat do you think? Do you watch PBS? Do you support PBS? Why or why not?\r\n\r\n&nbsp;\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Does PBS get the support of viewers like you? ','','inherit','open','open','','3546-revision-v1','','','2017-08-15 11:37:38','2017-08-15 15:37:38','',3546,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/08/3546-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3676,4,'2018-02-22 10:39:05','2018-02-22 15:39:05','Are you a spy or a spying organization? If so, this post does not apply to you. You definitely want to keep secrets, and be known for your secrecy.\r\n\r\n<strong>Secretive is <em>not</em> a great attribute for non-spy organizations</strong>\r\n\r\nHowever, in general, most businesses should not aim to be known as secretive. And let\'s be clear, I am not talking about being known as an organization that keeps its customer information private and confidential. That\'s a good attribute. I am talking about organizations that don\'t tell you stuff you need to know, like how much things cost or whether pricing has changed. Or what the return/refund policy is. Or who to contact if something is wrong.\r\n\r\n<strong>Changing prices is not something you should be secretive about</strong>\r\n\r\nThere\'s a yoga studio I had been going to most of last year. I was taking a noon class (perfect for my schedule) known as \"value vinyasa\" because it cost $12 instead of the usual $20 (perfect for my budget). I missed a couple classes due to vacation, and when I went to check the schedule when I returned, I noticed that the noon class I had been taking is now known as \"vinyasa flow.\" In the pricing section of the studio\'s website there\'s no mention of the \"value\" classes. The studio sends a weekly newsletter and there was no mention of the change. The value classes had been very quietly (secretively) eliminated.  Does the studio owner think we won\'t notice?\r\n\r\nThere\'s a hiking group I belong to on Meetup.com. The group had been charging $2 for each hike as a way to ensure attendance (people tend to show up for something they\'ve paid for), and to cover the costs of running the group. Without any announcement, the group began charging $5 per hike. There was a lot of questions and outrage posted by  members on the Meetup\'s discussion boards. There was an answer saying that this hiking group is really a nonprofit that now supports various causes, and that the fees were going to be used to raise money for said causes. That was the end of the discussion, and the discussion boards were disabled. The group leader could have easily sent a note to all the members explaining the price hike and the reason for it, but chose to be secretive and not forthcoming. She also chose to shut down discussion, to tamp down discontent with the sudden, unexplained policy change. This is not a good luck for this group, and I have noticed that where hikes used to get filled up really quickly, there are now several spots open.\r\n\r\n<strong>Being secretive, and imposing changes without notification, could backfire.</strong>\r\n\r\nIf your organization is planning to make a change that will affect  your customer\'s interaction with you, you must make sure to announce it. Being secretive may seem like a good way to avoid customer discontent, but it actually increases it. Being secretive communicates to your customer that you are hiding something, or not being upfront, or just don\'t care to keep your customer up to date.\r\n\r\nIn my case, I have stopped going to that yoga studio because I want to pay less than $20 per class, and because I think the studio is not well run. I usually don\'t do hikes until the weather is warmer, but I think I will look for other hiking groups that are more upfront about their policies.\r\n\r\nBeing secretive can cost you customers. Most people value transparency and honesty. If you are being secretive, you are not being transparent or honest. You are hiding something or perhaps you are just being thoughtless in not letting your customers know your policies, costs, etc.\r\n\r\n<strong>Here\'s the bottom line: when you are being secretive, you are not communicating.</strong>\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Secretive is a good brand attribute for a spy','','inherit','open','open','','3675-revision-v1','','','2018-02-22 10:39:05','2018-02-22 15:39:05','',3675,'http://deborahbrody.com/2018/02/3675-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3551,4,'2017-08-31 13:16:33','0000-00-00 00:00:00','No doubt you\'ve seen the many reports about how Donald Trump and his wife Melania visited Texas a couple days ago. Presumably, they were there to tour the disaster spawned by Hurricane/Tropical Storm Harvey. Harvey dumped more than 50 inches of rain on the greater Houston area, an unprecedented amount, causing massive flooding and displacement of thousands of people.\r\n\r\nTrump and his wife were both panned and criticized. Trump for his boasts and supreme lack of empathy, and Melania for what she was wearing (stilettos to get on the plane, as if she were taking a walk to the nearest fashion show). I agree with the criticism, but this is not a political post. It\'s a post about what is commonly called optics—how things look to others. Controlling optics is one of the many jobs a communicator, especially a public relations person, can do.','How to tour a disaster zone','','draft','open','open','','','','','2017-08-31 13:16:33','2017-08-31 17:16:33','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3551',0,'post','',0),
(3552,4,'2017-08-31 13:12:51','2017-08-31 17:12:51','No doubt you\'ve seen the many reports about how Donald Trump and his wife Melania visited Texas a couple days ago. Presumably, they were there to tour the disaster spawned by Hurricane/Tropical Storm Harvey. Harvey dumped more than 50 inches of rain on the greater Houston area, an unprecedented amount, causing massive flooding and displacement of thousands of people.\r\n\r\nTrump and his wife were both panned and criticized. Trump for his boasts and supreme lack of empathy, and Melania for what she was wearing (stilettos to get on the plane, as if she were taking a walk to the nearest fashion show). I agree with the criticism, but this is not a political post. It\'s a post about what is commonly called optics—how things look to others. Controlling optics is one of the many jobs a communicator, especially a public relations person, can do.','How to tour a disaster zone','','inherit','open','open','','3551-revision-v1','','','2017-08-31 13:12:51','2017-08-31 17:12:51','',3551,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/08/3551-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3554,4,'2017-09-04 13:17:14','2017-09-04 17:17:14','<h3>Project</h3>\r\nPerhaps you want to hire us to work on a single project. You\'ll give us all the relevant information, including target audience for the project, timelines and existing materials. Once we\'ve assessed what you need, we will provide you with a written time and cost estimate before beginning.\r\n\r\nProjects are payable with a 30% to 50% deposit to start, and the balance due once the project is complete.\r\n<h3>Retainer</h3>\r\nIf you require ongoing marketing help or know you will have many projects over two months or more, we will set up a retainer agreement. We will estimate how many hours of time you will require per month. We will agree on a cost and number of hours. Retainer agreements are payable on a monthly or bi-weekly schedule. Retainers can be dissolved in writing.\r\n<h3>Payment</h3>\r\nWe accept business or personal checks, credit cards via PayPal, cash and money orders. Paying by credit card incurs an additional 3% surcharge.  Our policy is 30 days net for most invoices. As a small business, we cannot afford to extend credit to our clients, and we respectfully request full payment as and when invoiced.\r\n<h3>Late Fees</h3>\r\n<strong></strong>Invoices that are not paid after 30 days from date of invoice are subject to late fees on the following schedule:\r\n\r\n31-60 days: 20% late fee\r\n\r\n61-90 days: 25% late fee\r\n\r\n91-120 days: 30% late fee\r\n\r\nAny invoice that is unpaid after 121 days will be subject to a 50% late fee, remitted to immediate collection, and the client relationship will be immediately terminated.\r\n<h3>No work on spec</h3>\r\nFinally, DBMC does not provide spec work. If you require a sample, we will provide you with work done for previous clients. If you want us to produce something specifically for you, we require payment.','How We Work','','inherit','open','open','','42-revision-v1','','','2017-09-04 13:17:14','2017-09-04 17:17:14','',42,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/09/42-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3555,4,'2017-09-04 13:18:27','2017-09-04 17:18:27','Written materials are the cornerstone of marketing communications. Clear, concise and convincing writing will make your marketing materials and your business stand out.\r\n\r\nDeborah Brody Marketing Communications writes:\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Website content</li>\r\n	<li>Blog posts</li>\r\n	<li>Marketing collateral\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Brochures</li>\r\n	<li>Flyers</li>\r\n	<li>Taglines</li>\r\n	<li>Ebooks</li>\r\n	<li>Newsletter copy</li>\r\n	<li>Email copy</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n</li>\r\n	<li>Advertising copy</li>\r\n	<li>Public relations materials\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Press releases</li>\r\n	<li>Executive biographies</li>\r\n	<li>Position papers</li>\r\n	<li>White papers</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n</li>\r\n	<li>Messaging materials\r\n<ul>\r\n	<li>Key messages</li>\r\n	<li>Company descriptions</li>\r\n	<li>Boilerplate</li>\r\n</ul>\r\n</li>\r\n</ul>\r\nWriting fee: $125 per hour','Writing/Copywriting','','inherit','open','open','','49-revision-v1','','','2017-09-04 13:18:27','2017-09-04 17:18:27','',49,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/09/49-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3556,4,'2017-09-04 13:19:03','2017-09-04 17:19:03','Where does your brochure or website fit in with your marketing and communications plan? Every marketing piece you put out should be a tactic in the larger strategy of marketing your product, service or company. Deborah Brody Marketing Communications will give you specific, creative marketing ideas, tactics and strategies.\r\n<h3>Blog consulting</h3>\r\nWhere does your blog fit in your overall communications plan? Is it achieving results?\r\n<h3>Social media consulting</h3>\r\nAre you using social media effectively? Are you reaching your goals? We\'ll help you determine what is working and what is not, and how to fix it.\r\n<h3>Communications audits</h3>\r\nAre your key messages relevant? What marketing collateral do you need and which could you get rid of? We will assess your materials and provide recommendations.\r\n\r\nCommunications consulting fee: $125 per hour','Consulting','','inherit','open','open','','51-revision-v1','','','2017-09-04 13:19:03','2017-09-04 17:19:03','',51,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/09/51-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3557,4,'2017-09-04 13:19:28','2017-09-04 17:19:28','Copy editing helps bring clarity, consistency and accuracy to your documents.\r\n\r\nDepending on the document, you may need more or less editing. In all cases, your document will be checked for clarity (what you really mean to say), grammar, spelling,  punctuation, usage, and consistency.\r\n\r\nCopy editing fee: $60 per hour\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Copy Editing','','inherit','open','open','','2850-revision-v1','','','2017-09-04 13:19:28','2017-09-04 17:19:28','',2850,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/09/2850-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3558,4,'2017-09-04 13:19:56','2017-09-04 17:19:56','Copy editing helps bring clarity, consistency, and accuracy to your documents.\r\n\r\nDepending on the document, you may need more or less editing. In all cases, your document will be checked for clarity (what you really mean to say), grammar, spelling,  punctuation, usage, and consistency.\r\n\r\nCopy editing fee: $60 per hour\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Copy Editing','','inherit','open','open','','2850-revision-v1','','','2017-09-04 13:19:56','2017-09-04 17:19:56','',2850,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/09/2850-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3559,4,'2017-09-07 15:56:31','2017-09-07 19:56:31','A few weeks ago, I dropped my old Samsung smartphone, rendering it useless. Panicked at the thought of not being able to check Facebook on the fly (kidding), I ran over to the ATT store nearest me. There, a very young person pretending to be a customer service agent, did <em>not</em> help me get a phone.\r\n\r\n<strong>Here\'s why care matters</strong>\r\n\r\nFirst, I had a contact lens emergency. I asked to use the restroom to deal with it. The young lady said no restroom was available. Evidently, ATT does not care about the well being and comfort of visitors to its stores.\r\n\r\nSecond, I asked her to see a Galaxy S7. She told me they don\'t have them in stock. Only the more expensive Galaxy S8s. I don\'t want to spend the extra money I told her. She then said maybe it could be shipped to me, but that it would take a week. A week? Without a phone? I asked her if  she could check availability at nearby retailers. No, she said, she couldn\'t possibly do that. Could she expedite shipping then? No, she couldn\'t do that either.\r\n\r\nThird, and finally, I said: \"What if I go over to the Sprint or T-Mobile store then? I am not under contract with ATT.\" She shrugged. She didn\'t care. I left.\r\n\r\n<strong>Another young person without a clue</strong>\r\n\r\nI drove up the street to BestBuy. There, the store did have some Galaxy S7s in stock. However, the young (notice a theme here) \"sales\" person was not super helpful. He did get me a phone, but only after telling me several times that I should get the S8. He also tried to scare me into getting GeekSquad protection. And into getting a screen protector, case, charger, etc. In short, he was being a real pain. And to boot, he would not even try to get my contacts and other information off my old phone. I am not even going into the whole story but suffice it to say that the 24-year-old had a horrible attitude.\r\n\r\n<strong>Being helpful  and trying to resolve problems goes a very long way</strong>\r\n\r\nI ended up speaking to the kid\'s manager, who promised to speak to him and to help me out. The next day, the much nicer (and older) manager spent nearly two hours with me, getting the stuff off the old phone and transferring it to my new phone and to a flash drive. He saved the day for me, and gave me a much more positive view of BestBuy.\r\n\r\n<strong>Complaining to ATT garnered zero action</strong>\r\n\r\nI called ATT and after dealing with the most annoying robot, I got through to a customer care agent. I told her I had a complaint about the store I went to. She put me through to a manager who didn\'t see a problem, didn\'t even ask what store it was or the name of the employee. I then tweeted the wrongly named @attcares. No care there either.\r\n\r\n<strong>Is all well that ends well?</strong>\r\n\r\nIn the end, I have a working phone. I have my contacts. I have my photos. I don\'t have voice mail but that is the subject for another day.\r\n\r\nATT can market all they want but unless they start showing some care, I will not stick with them as a customer. Their Twitter \"customer service\" is slow to respond, and that makes it nearly useless. Their customer service via phone has gonedown hill. If you have a problem with ATT, it seems you are on your own.\r\n\r\nWe are fine with any company until there is a problem that the company will not<em> try t</em>o solve. If a company shows genuine care (like the BestBuy manager did), you are willing to overlook the problem. If a company does not show care (like ATT), you are not willing to give it a second chance.\r\n\r\nWhat do you think? Do you stick with companies that treat you poorly? How important for you is it to get good customer service?\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Care matters more than marketing','','publish','open','open','','care-matters-more-than-marketing','','','2017-09-07 15:56:31','2017-09-07 19:56:31','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3559',0,'post','',0),
(3560,4,'2017-09-07 15:56:31','2017-09-07 19:56:31','A few weeks ago, I dropped my old Samsung smartphone, rendering it useless. Panicked at the thought of not being able to check Facebook on the fly (kidding), I ran over to the ATT store nearest me. There, a very young person pretending to be a customer service agent, did <em>not</em> help me get a phone.\r\n\r\n<strong>Here\'s why care matters</strong>\r\n\r\nFirst, I had a contact lens emergency. I asked to use the restroom to deal with it. The young lady said no restroom was available. Evidently, ATT does not care about the well being and comfort of visitors to its stores.\r\n\r\nSecond, I asked her to see a Galaxy S7. She told me they don\'t have them in stock. Only the more expensive Galaxy S8s. I don\'t want to spend the extra money I told her. She then said maybe it could be shipped to me, but that it would take a week. A week? Without a phone? I asked her if  she could check availability at nearby retailers. No, she said, she couldn\'t possibly do that. Could she expedite shipping then? No, she couldn\'t do that either.\r\n\r\nThird, and finally, I said: \"What if I go over to the Sprint or T-Mobile store then? I am not under contract with ATT.\" She shrugged. She didn\'t care. I left.\r\n\r\n<strong>Another young person without a clue</strong>\r\n\r\nI drove up the street to BestBuy. There, the store did have some Galaxy S7s in stock. However, the young (notice a theme here) \"sales\" person was not super helpful. He did get me a phone, but only after telling me several times that I should get the S8. He also tried to scare me into getting GeekSquad protection. And into getting a screen protector, case, charger, etc. In short, he was being a real pain. And to boot, he would not even try to get my contacts and other information off my old phone. I am not even going into the whole story but suffice it to say that the 24-year-old had a horrible attitude.\r\n\r\n<strong>Being helpful  and trying to resolve problems goes a very long way</strong>\r\n\r\nI ended up speaking to the kid\'s manager, who promised to speak to him and to help me out. The next day, the much nicer (and older) manager spent nearly two hours with me, getting the stuff off the old phone and transferring it to my new phone and to a flash drive. He saved the day for me, and gave me a much more positive view of BestBuy.\r\n\r\n<strong>Complaining to ATT garnered zero action</strong>\r\n\r\nI called ATT and after dealing with the most annoying robot, I got through to a customer care agent. I told her I had a complaint about the store I went to. She put me through to a manager who didn\'t see a problem, didn\'t even ask what store it was or the name of the employee. I then tweeted the wrongly named @attcares. No care there either.\r\n\r\n<strong>Is all well that ends well?</strong>\r\n\r\nIn the end, I have a working phone. I have my contacts. I have my photos. I don\'t have voice mail but that is the subject for another day.\r\n\r\nATT can market all they want but unless they start showing some care, I will not stick with them as a customer. Their Twitter \"customer service\" is slow to respond, and that makes it nearly useless. Their customer service via phone has gonedown hill. If you have a problem with ATT, it seems you are on your own.\r\n\r\nWe are fine with any company until there is a problem that the company will not<em> try t</em>o solve. If a company shows genuine care (like the BestBuy manager did), you are willing to overlook the problem. If a company does not show care (like ATT), you are not willing to give it a second chance.\r\n\r\nWhat do you think? Do you stick with companies that treat you poorly? How important for you is it to get good customer service?\r\n\r\n&nbsp;','Care matters more than marketing','','inherit','open','open','','3559-revision-v1','','','2017-09-07 15:56:31','2017-09-07 19:56:31','',3559,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/09/3559-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3562,4,'2017-09-14 10:04:45','2017-09-14 14:04:45','Yesterday, I was browsing through books in my favorite used bookstore (where you can get most soft cover books for $2 each, a real bargain, and most books are in great shape to boot). As I was making my way through the Fiction section, I came across Diane Ackerman\'s <em>The Zookeeper\'s Wife</em>, which is the <em>real</em> life story of a Polish woman who saved Jews during World War II, thus making it a non-fiction book. I came across a Denise Mina book that should\'ve been housed in the Mystery section. I came across memoirs and biographies. In short, there were a lot of books that were not classified correctly and therefore shelved in the wrong place.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_3565\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"600\"]<a href=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/kaboompics_Rows-of-different-colorful-books-lying-on-the-shelves-in-the-modern-urban-bookshop.jpg\"><img class=\"wp-image-3565\" src=\"http://deborahbrody.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/kaboompics_Rows-of-different-colorful-books-lying-on-the-shelves-in-the-modern-urban-bookshop-682x1024.jpg\" alt=\"bookstore shelves\" width=\"600\" height=\"900\" /></a> Bookstore picture courtesy of Kaboompics[/caption]\r\n\r\n<strong>Being in the wrong place makes it hard to be found.</strong>\r\n\r\nThe used bookstore is volunteer-run, and it may be too much to ask volunteers  to know what each book is or where it belongs. Since books are donated, there is no inventory. On the other hand, in a regular bookstore, books are shelved by ISBN numbers and inventories are computerized. It\'d be rare that book was shelved in the wrong place, unless a customer put it back where it didn\'t belong. If you were looking for a particular book, you could ask someone to look it up to see if it is available and if so, where it is located.\r\n\r\n<strong>Classification is important, especially on the internet.\r\n</strong>\r\n\r\nThe internet is more like the used bookstore than it is like the organized world of Barnes &amp; Noble. The internet is pretty much volunteer-run and the volunteers are each website\'s owners. In other words, on the internet you self-classify—you put yourself on the right (or wrong) shelf.\r\n\r\nAs the website owner or manager, you choose how you want your site to look, what content to include, and what keywords to use. You choose whether you will optimize your site to be found on search engines (SEO) and whether you will do it well  (use the right tools, or hire a professional) or not.\r\n\r\nWhen  you want to be found, especially online,  you have to know how to describe yourself and where people would look for you. You have to know how you are classified and what keywords people use to find you.\r\n\r\n<strong>You must understand yourself and your market.</strong>\r\n\r\nIn the used bookstore, there are some volunteers who are avid readers, some who are aces as alphabetization and organization, and some who just want to help but have no clues. The volunteers who can alphabetize, organize <em>and</em> know books well what are the ones who know the right place to shelve a book.\r\n\r\nYou have to understand exactly what to do, and how the world classifies you. You may think that you do one thing (like Mattress Firm thinks it sells \"sleep solutions\") while  most customers see you differently (customers shop for mattresses not sleep solutions). It may be tempting to figure out some fancy description to help you stand out, but unless you classify yourself correctly and use the more common keywords searchers would use, you will not be found.\r\n\r\n<strong>Don\'t be the memoir languishing in the fiction section. Classify your website correctly and use the right keywords.</strong>','When you want to be found','','publish','open','open','','when-you-want-to-be-found','','','2017-09-14 10:04:45','2017-09-14 14:04:45','',0,'http://deborahbrody.com/?p=3562',0,'post','',0),
(3563,4,'2017-09-13 09:16:49','2017-09-13 13:16:49','Yesterday, I was browsing through books in my favorite used bookstore (where you can get most soft cover books for $2 each, a real bargain, and most books are in great shape to boot). As I was making my way through the Fiction section, I came across Diane Ackerman\'s <em>The Zookeeper\'s Wife</em>, which the real life story of a Polish woman who saved Jews during World War II, making it a non-fiction book. I came across a Denise Mina book that should\'ve been housed in the Mystery section. I came across memoirs and biographies. In short, there were a lot of books that were shelved incorrectly.\r\n\r\nBeing in the wrong place makes it hard to be found.\r\n\r\nWhen  you want to be found, you have to know how to describe yourself and where people would look for you.','When you want to be found','','inherit','open','open','','3562-revision-v1','','','2017-09-13 09:16:49','2017-09-13 13:16:49','',3562,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/09/3562-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
(3564,4,'2017-09-13 10:13:29','2017-09-13 14:13:29','Yesterday, I was browsing through books in my favorite used bookstore (where you can get most soft cover books for $2 each, a real bargain, and most books are in great shape to boot). As I was making my way through the Fiction section, I came across Diane Ackerman\'s <em>The Zookeeper\'s Wife</em>, which the <em>real</em> life story of a Polish woman who saved Jews during World War II, thus making it a non-fiction book. I came across a Denise Mina book that should\'ve been housed in the Mystery section. I came across memoirs and biographies. In short, there were a lot of books that were not classified correctly and therefore shelved in the wrong place.\r\n\r\n<strong>Being in the wrong place makes it hard to be found.</strong>\r\n\r\nThe used bookstore is volunteer-run, and it may be too much to ask volunteers  to know what each book is or where it belongs. Since books are donated, there is no inventory. In a regular bookstore, books are shelved by ISBN numbers and inventories are computerized. It\'d be rare that book was mis-shelved unless a customer put it back where it didn\'t belong. If you were looking for a particular book, you could ask someone to look it up to see if it is available and if so, where it is located.\r\n\r\n<strong>Classification is important.</strong>\r\n\r\nWhen  you want to be found, especially online,  you have to know how to describe yourself and where people would look for you. In other words, you have to know how you are classified and what keywords people use to find you.','When you want to be found','','inherit','open','open','','3562-revision-v1','','','2017-09-13 10:13:29','2017-09-13 14:13:29','',3562,'http://deborahbrody.com/2017/09/3562-revision-v1/',0,'revision','',0),
