Write Now Editing

Professionalism: Offensive Posts (and Other Mistakes)

by Leave a Comment

Bill O’Reilly. Rachel Maddow. Howard Stern.

These folks make a living by unapologetically giving their opinions – the louder they are and the more people they offend, the better their ratings and the more attention they attract.

That’s a great strategy for political analysts and shock jocks. It’s probably not the most effective technique for lawyers, electricians, and other small business owners. When it comes to your online presence, remember this simple truth: what you say, do, and post online will reflect your business! You want to make sure you’re sending the right message, so consider these things:

  1. If you wouldn’t say it face-to-face, don’t post it online. You never know who’s going to see your social media accounts. If you wouldn’t call someone an ignorant putz to his/her face, don’t put it online – you never know who’s going to see it (and just because you take it down doesn’t mean people won’t see it).
  2. If you wouldn’t hang it in your office or lobby, don’t post it. Yes, you look amazing in the bikini, or with those bikini-clad girls clinging to you and licking your face, but is that the professional image you want people to envision? If not, then safe that photo for your personal account.
  3. If you don’t want it published in the New York Times, don’t send it. In case you’ve been living under a rock, here’s the scoop – emails are no longer personal. It doesn’t matter that you sent it from one work address to another work address, people around the world are snapping pictures of emails and letters and posting them online. If you work in the public sector, your emails are fair game (just look at what’s happened politically in the past 10 years). It may seem innocent to you, but not everyone thinks the same way you do.

Does this mean you can’t ever share personal pictures and stories? Of course not, but know where you’re sharing them – if you keep your work and personal life separate IRL (in real life), then do the same online.

Not sure if you’re content is biased or not? Contact me now and I can help you review your posts to see what kind of message you’re sending.

Entrepreneur Interview: Shari Sant

by Leave a Comment

How many of you would like to free up a few minutes each day? Maybe you hate posting to social media, or you’re tired of trying to think of new topics for your newsletters. Shari Sant has made a career out of helping people like you – by working as a Virtual Assistant she’s providing for her family and helping small business owners focus on what they really want to do. Here’s how Shari does it:

Hi, and thanks for your willingness to appear on my blog! I’m looking forward to sharing your knowledge and advice with the rest of the world (at least with the small portion of it that follows my blog). Please tell us about your business: what do you do, when did you start your own business, and why?
Hi Karin, 5 years ago (so 2012) I started proof reading and copy typing, as well as a touch of data entry for some family friends as a way of doing something with my day. In 2013, I walked away from a bad situation and needed to start making a living for myself and three kids, so I pulled my socks up and started taking my business seriously and built it up. I love that I can be there for my kids and not worry about taking time off for medical reasons, my kids love it too and cannot wait to start their own businesses now. I slowly added in more services, and today I offer a very wide variety of virtual administration/business support services. From full business support, email management, social media management, content creation to simple tasks such as data entry and proof reading.

What has been your biggest struggle in launching your business/career?
My biggest challenge has been confidence in myself. It held me back from pushing my business further and taking the necessary steps to grow.

How did/are you overcoming it?
Taking risks. I decided to step out of my boundaries and even paired up with another local VA who would drag me along to meetings. If I ever second guess myself I will reach out to her, or to family and friends who encourage me to take the risks, and re-enforce that I can do it.

What’s surprised you the most about working for yourself?
How little people actually understand about self-employed individuals. In a corporate career you have set hours, and go in to an office every day so people know when they can get in touch with you, or where. Working for your yourself you have to set clear guidelines on when you are available and through what channels. Sometimes particular roles, such as VA work, are not quite understood either, so you spend more time explaining what you do rather than obtaining business.

What’s your favorite part of this kind of work?
My passion is helping people, and working as a VA allows me to fullfil that passion. I love it when my clients make that sigh of relief because weights are lifted off their shoulders and they can start to see a way to grow easier.

Is there any one event/moment that helped you move from starting your own business to making a living with your own business?
I couldn’t possibly name just one event/moment. It is all the little things – the happy reviews and thank yous from clients, the references those happy clients share and thus gaining the confidence in myself to grow.

If you could give a new freelance workers/entrepreneurs one piece of advice, what would it be?
Believe in yourself! It can be hard to get knocked back when working for yourself, and when work is slow-coming you can start to worry about providing for yourself. If you keep at it and believe in yourself and the goals you have set yourself then you will go far.

If you could do one thing differently in your career, what would it be?
I would have started earlier and taken risks a little earlier than I did. I spent years wasting time wondering what to do with my life, swearing I wouldn’t be a receptionist or customer care worker. Yet I love my life now and the work I do.

What’s your favorite kind of work? Why?
I love the content creation (for blogs and newsletters). Each new article is different, each needing their own research which then opens my mind to more. It is a constant learning curve and I love to learn!

What does your work space/office look like?
I work from an alcove in my living. I have a simple desk with plenty of files and folders filled with necessary information. I also have images of my kids and a photo frame we gave my Grandad just before he died (as a memory).

What does your work day look like?
I spend about 30 minutes at 7 a.m. working through messages and emails. Then I don’t actually start until about 10 a.m., once the kids are at school. I will have a to do list each week with the tasks I need to complete and I will work my way through them ticking them off one at a time. I break at 3 p.m. until between 4-6 p.m. (depending on the day) before I start work again in the evening. I try to finish around 8-9 p.m. so I can sit and study for my degree. Three times a week I take a break to go to the gym and clear my mind – it helps keep me motivated.

What’s your go-to snack when you need one?
CHOCOLATE! I always have some sort of chocolate in the house that I nibble on when I work. I occasionally try to be healthy and eat crackers instead. Chocolate tends to win though.

Is there anything else you’d like to add?
There will always be people out there who claim to do your work cheaper, or just do the same as you – DON’T let them get to you. A phrase I learnt last year was ‘People Buy People,’ and that is very true. As long as you stay true to yourself and be respectable at all times to people then no matter what others do, or how cheap they do it you will win the business. Never undercut yourself to beat them, just stay true to you.

—

You can connect with Shari online here:

Copywriting: 3 Steps to a Better FAQ Page

by Leave a Comment

As soon as people find out what you do for a living – whether it’s writing, finances, or exterminating – they will inevitably start asking for tips and wondering about best practices. After a while, you’ll start hearing many of the same questions. Those are your frequently asked questions, and they’re the perfect questions to add to your website on a FAQ page.

So how do you put together a good FAQ page? It takes a little more than just knowing the questions. You want to make sure your page not only presents the questions, but also answers them in a way that helps people. Here’s how you can create an effective FAQ page in three quick steps:

  • Compile your list of questions. To create an exhaustive list, include the questions you’ve heard, but also ask people what they want to know. There may be some questions out there that many people have but have been afraid to ask.
  • Answer the questions, then edit them. Chances are, your first answers will be more technical and professional than you want them to be. When you read through your answers, try to read them from the point-of-view of a person who’s doesn’t know anything about your business – that includes cutting (or explaining) any specialized terms or phrases that you frequently use (those definitions may even work as separate FAQs).
  • Get an outside opinion. When it comes to FAQs, it’s extremely important (and helpful) to have someone else read the questions and answers for you. Since your target audience is people who don’t understand your profession, make sure you talk without someone outside of your profession. They’ll help you spot confusion and inconsistencies that you may not see.

When you take these three steps, you’ll see your FAQ page come together in a way that will reach the people you need it to reach.

Are there any questions you still have about putting together an FAQ page?

Service: Mind Your P’s and Q’s

by Leave a Comment

For several years, I worked as a customer service manager. I didn’t like bossing people around, so I often gave them options – work on task A, B, or C. I thought it was working, but after a couple of weeks, one of the employees asked if it would kill me to say ‘please.’

Boy did that sting, but it also helped me see how differently people can perceive the same situation. I thought I was being nice by providing options, but no amount of options were a good substitute for ‘please’ and ‘thank you.’ Since then, I’ve made it my mission to make manners an everyday expectation at the office.

Regardless of how well you think you’re treating people, don’t neglect the basics of good manners. Those include:

  1. Please and Thank You. (See above.)
  2. Excuse Me. If you need to interrupt, do it politely.
  3. Sincerely. I’ve heard some people say this isn’t appropriate for business emails, but I disagree. It means free of dissimulation (honest); marked by genuineness (true). I don’t know about you, but I’d love for people to associate me with those descriptions. If you don’t like this word, select an appropriate sign off for your emails and letters.
  4. Thank You Cards. Don’t underestimate the power of a thank you card. Send one after meetings, interviews, presentations – any time you’d say thank you is a good opportunity to send a thank you card.
  5. Dress Appropriately. Whether it’s an interview, dinner meeting, or golf outing, be respectful and dress for the occasion. In addition to looking nice, it will show that you cared enough to find out what’s appropriate for the situation.
  6. Be on Time. Never make anyone wait for you. Ever. Do whatever it takes to be on time (early if you can).
  7. Listen. Nothing shows you care quite like taking the time to listen to your clients and employees. Don’t have answers and responses prepared beforehand. Listen to the conversation and respond appropriately.

By knowing and practicing good manners, you’ll set yourself apart as someone people will want to do business with.

Website Issues: Let Me Be Your Cautionary Tale

by 1 Comment

banner-1165975_1920When you hire someone to do work for you – when that person owns a business and presents herself as a professional – you expect professionalism and results. Unfortunately that doesn’t always happen, as is the case with this website and blog. I’ll give you the short version of the story, then tell you what I’ve learned.

In 2014 I met a web designer. She seemed nice enough. Being a local business owner, I wanted to support her local business, so I met with her to discuss what I needed: to expand my original website (karinbeery.com) into two websites (karinbeery.com and writenow-editing.com). Having run my original site for several years, I wanted her to create this site for me: register the domain, design the graphics, and set up the pages I needed.

Several weeks later, she had minimally designed a live page that said Write Now Editing and Copy-writing Services (yes, a typo on an editor’s website). The page also didn’t look anything like what I’d asked her to design. I emailed several times and never heard back from her. Having no idea what was going on – I had not seen any designs, had no idea what work was done, and didn’t know when she’d be finished – I fired her.

Though I’d already paid half of her fee, I refused to pay for anything else, as I didn’t even know what/if she was working on anything. I hired a new designer and moved on.

Then my website went down. She’d put my domain in her name. I had no access to it. I asked her to transfer it to me so I could pay the registration, but she refused. Instead, she paid the fee and kept ownership of my site. Life got busy and I forgot about things until my site went down again. This time she didn’t pay the hosting, so my site again disappeared. I contacted her again requesting that she transfer the domain to me. She still owns it.

It’s been almost two years now. I’ve consulted another web designer, done my own research, consulted an attorney, and called Go Daddy several times. The consensus is clear: she’s either completely incompetent (at this point even I know how to transfer a domain) or she’s vengeful, refusing to give me ownership of my website because I fired her/upset her/annoyed her – I’m not really sure.

Here’s what I’ve learned:

  1. Put it in writing. No matter how much you like someone – no matter how much you know someone – put everything in writing. Because we met in person and didn’t work out a contract, I have nothing to prove that the original agreement was for her to buy the domain for me, not keep it forever. Put everything in writing.
  2. When it comes to websites, register the domain and hosting yourself. It’s incredibly difficult (without a written agreement) to prove ownership of a website. If your designer turns out to be untrustworthy, as in this case, you may be forced to essentially shut down your business and start over.

Save yourself some headaches (and sleepless nights). Let my struggle be your cautionary tale.

ABOUT ME

Editor. Teacher. Novelist.
A passionate lover of fiction, Karin doesn't just write novels, she helps others write their best stories! A certified substantive editor with the Christian Editor Connection, her goal is to help authors to put her out of business by equipping them with the tools they need to become better writers.

Connect

Copywriting

Karin understood my advertising and marketing writing needs and accomplished the project in record time. She asked all the right questions up front to equip herself with enough … [more]

Editing

Substantive Fiction Editing: A substantive edit looks at the big picture. Start here to tackle the big issues before moving on to the nit-picky details. Substantive edits not only point out … [more]

Author Page

Lover of all things fiction, I also love University of Michigan football, the Detroit Lions, Tigers, and Red Wings, kayaking, gluten-free cupcakes, and my husband.

Resources

Press Release Tool Kit Stop waiting and hoping for people to notice you and your organization! With this Press Release Tool Kit, you’ll learn to apply the step-by-step process I use to … [more]