Do what I do, not what I say

Just been asked to give a web site a quick overview to see why it's not attracting many visitors, or turning visits into sales.

Reviewing someone else's business really reminds you of things you should have done for yourself...

1. Think hard about the name of your business. Our name – Wrightwell – seemed like a bit of fun when we coined it 20 years ago. After all, I do write well, IMHO. But:

• it's very easy to misspell, and the last thing you want is customers being directed to a site of similar name but different spelling (especially if that's a competitive site!) or just not finding you at all

• it's at the end of the alphabet – disastrous for directories!

2. Think hard about your customers. It's so easy to write a web site explaining what you do. Much harder to put together content focused on what your customers need. But if you look at it that way round, it will be much easier to determine the keywords you need in your copy so that potential customers find you.

Corporate e-books could be the next big thing

Once upon a time, getting published was tough. Now everyone can say what they want to say on the Internet.

Only got time for a few pithy words? Tweet on Twitter. Want to pontificate, inform or rant on a regular basis? A blog like this one is great. And now, you can publish your thoughts at length, in an e-book.

Today there are one million e-book readers at large on the Internet. In just five years, sales are going to grow 30-fold, according to a report from In-Stat. With e-books becoming commonplace, this is too good an opportunity for marketeers to miss, says BizReport, especially with rumours that the likes of Amazon will allow advertising in their books.

Of course, asking busy people to add book authorship to their job descriptions is likely to get nowhere. That's where expert copywriters and business journalists who can build a rappour with content owners, ask the right questions in the shortest time, and get ideas to publication can really help.

Top tips for newsletter writing

Newsletters are a great way to keep in touch with your customers and your colleagues. They require a bit of thought first though, to ensure you are providing useful and interesting information, and that everyone will benefit as a result. Here are some top tips for newsletter writing.

1. Who is your audience?

Customers or staff? This affects the sort of story you include. Staff changes are great for an internal audience, but do your customers really care?

2. What is the point of your newsletter?

Again, your goals will affect what you choose to put in the newsletter.

If you’re writing an internal newsletter, what role do you want it to play?

· As a management tool to explain strategy and changes?

· To promote a sense of community?

· As a bit of light relief for a Friday afternoon?

If you’re writing an executive customer newsletter, what are you hoping to achieve?

· To promote new products and services?

· To remind customers that you’re there – and promote the brand rather than particular products?

· To provide factual and helpful information to support their use of your products and services?

3. How often are you going to publish?

Make sure you will have enough to say to keep publishing regularly. People will notice if you produce two issues and run out of steam. Put together a realistic publication schedule, working backwards from delivery day, that gives you enough time to research, write and get approval for your articles.

4. Are you going to do this all by yourself?

Can you delegate regular columns or guest spots to other members of staff?

5. Who can you use to proofread?

Whether you are a confident writer or not, it is always, but always, a good idea to get someone else to read through your articles before you publish. When we read what we’ve written ourselves, we actually read what we think we’ve written, so we don’t pick up on our own mistakes as often as we should. Don’t rely on a spellchecker!