LAUNCH YOUR VOICE THE WRITE WAY
Finding Your Voice THE COMMUNICATIONS TRAINING SERIES FOR SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS
YOUR STORY
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And tips to getting it heard
Volume 1 - 2011
YOUR STORY
And 7 Tips to getting it heard
How do you get your voice heard?
We have moved from the information age into information overload. Getting YOUR STORY noticed isn’t easy - messages are everywhere. Yours has to meet a need, be presented effectively and instigate results…otherwise, all you are doing is adding to the megabytes of information thrown around the universe on a daily basis.
The 7 Tips
1 Identify your voice
Find the right voice that will give all written communications a consistent sound. This will enhance readability and help establish a connection with readers. A compelling voice will create competitive advantage. With websites, for example, one which is user friendly, more informative, easier to read, more entertaining or credible than your competitors will create better results for your business.
2 Find YOUR STORY
In business, you have to tell your story or someone else will. Don’t let people assume what you do, who you are, what you believe and then make opinions off that. Tell them, over and over, using different mediums and channels but always reinforcing YOUR STORY.
3 Know your audience
Do your research, identify your ideal audience and check out the competition. You need to understand the people you want to talk/sell to, what they need and how they go about getting it. Then you need to bridge the gap between yourself and that person. Use the right voice and tone to speak to them in a language they can relate to and understand.
LAUNCH YOUR VOICE THE WRITE WAY
© COPYRIGHT – Your Story Communications 2011 – Sandy Galland
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YOUR STORY
And 7 Tips to getting it heard
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KISS – Keep it short and simple
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Say what you have to say in short, straight and simple sentences. The structure of your message is vital – have only one or two ideas per paragraph. Frontload all content which means putting most important points first and do not be ambiguous – be clear, concise and literal.
Place signposts
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Use effective headings and subheadings to guide the reader. If writing for online ask yourself - how do people read online? Put simply – they don’t. They skim; scanning a page, picking out individual words or groups of words, so make sure headings and subheading tell a story all on their own. This allows people to make quick judgement calls about whether they want to read your body text.
Bring your words alive
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Always ask for action
Exploit the magic of words – they are pregnant with meaning and rich with connotations. Caress and cajole them to entice your audience! Use active verbs. Don’t use slang, make assumptions or talk down to people. You want to be uplifting, positive and informative. Be grammatically correct, use punctuation correctly and proofread. Then proofread AGAIN! Invite the reader to take action – without it, why did you communicate with them? This might be as simple as asking them (or enticing them) to visit your website or it might be to order your product now. Either way, they will take action because you have offered up a solution to their problem. Have a clear goal before you start writing and a system to evaluate the success of your message. You will then know if your call to action produced the right results. Have you signed up to receive notification of new e-books as we publish them?
www.facebook.com/yourstorycommunications We choose to use Facebook as our main web presence. It’s a place to tell OUR STORY and learn about yours too. LAUNCH YOUR VOICE THE WRITE WAY
© COPYRIGHT – Your Story Communications 2011 – Sandy Galland
Your Story Communications
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Our passion is to get your voice heard
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Who are we?
Your Story Communications is a boutique communications agency, which empowers your business to take YOUR STORY to the people who matter, in a way that produces maximum results. Through a programme of communications strategies, training and using a team of expert writers, we ensure every piece of your company’s written communication, be it digital or hard copy, is effective, professional and true to your voice and brand. Chief Communicator, Sandy Galland brings a strategic, pragmatic yet creative approach to all she does. Having owned several diverse and successful businesses, she has the aptitude, empathy and ability to capture the essence of your story, the culture of your company and the vision of your goals and deliver it in a meaningful way. As a communications specialist and writer, Sandy brings the skill to listen, understand and then present the relevant information in a way which produces results and is appropriate to the audience.
sandy@yourstory.co.nz
www.facebook.com/yourstorycommunications We choose to use Facebook as our main web presence – it’s a place to tell our story and learn about yours too.
Sandy: 027 479 3205
More About Sandy I have a Diploma in Journalism and I am currently studying at Massey University towards a Graduate Diploma in Business Studies (Communications Management) and also hold a Contented Diploma in Online Writing.
I have owned, created and managed a diverse range of businesses, and have worked in the media, event management and within sales and marketing.
All of this provides me with a first-hand insight into the challenges you face every day in your business. The lessons learned, provide me with the empathy, diligence and tenacity to advise on and implement communications strategies that have relevance and produce results. LAUNCH YOUR VOICE THE WRITE WAY
© COPYRIGHT – Your Story Communications 2011 – Sandy Galland