Here’s another installment in my continuing my series on the 7 Habits of Highly Effective Communicators.

HABIT 2: BEGIN WITH THE END IN MIND
Know what you want to say and what point you’re trying to make before you communicate it. Begin with the End in Mind means to make a conscious effort to visualize what you’re trying to communicate and how you’d like it to be received. It means spending time collecting your thoughts before communicating and envisioning the gist of your message.

How to incorporate it:
One of the best ways to do this is to create what I call “one sentence to clarity.” It means stepping back, either literally or figuratively, from the words to create a single-topic sentence that quickly, clearly and succinctly explains what you’re trying to communicate. Create a headline, if you will, that will help you keep your message and thoughts on track and, consequently, make it easier for your listener or reader to understand. For example, my one sentence to clarity for this blog post might be: “Give my readers practical steps for better communication based on Stephen Covey’s Seven Habits book.”

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After a short spring break, I’m back today to continue my series on relevant content.

Let’s take a closer look at the second of my four characteristics of relevant content: timely.

There are plenty among us who subscribe to the belief that, when it comes to content, “once done, always done.” By this I mean they seem to think that creating content and posting it for all eternity is a good idea. I suspect that’s because they think of content as a one-time investment.

Wrong. I’m here to debunk that myth.

In order for content to be relevant (remember that relevant means meaningful, memorable and useful), it also must be fluid. It must change and grow and expand and shrink and live and breathe and … well, you get the idea. As I’ve said, people change and so should the content that’s geared toward those very same people.

Even content that’s relatively “static” — meaning the facts don’t really change – should still get a refresh now and then. Trust me, there’s more than one way to tell your “About Us” story.  A good writer can write it 15 or 100 different ways.

So, for the sake of argument, let’s just say that there is no need to keep content timely. What might that look like to a site visitor?

Well, a first-time visitor will likely not notice anything. But a repeat visitor, well, that’s a different animal altogether. They will notice same-old, same-old content. And because they look to you to be the expert in whatever field, industry or service you provide, you’ll look like a yam-head if you don’t. (And nobody wants that!)

By not refreshing your content, you’re essentially telling your site visitors that you know all there is to know and that there’s absolutely nothing new to know — or to share. That kind of thinking, I believe, is dangerous. It leads to your customers and potential customers thinking you’re out of touch or worse, not credible.

Blogs and social media are so popular, in part, because they provide fresh and TIMELY information. Not only do people want the latest and greatest news, product information, opinions and more, they EXPECT and DEMAND it.

Now it’s up to you to give it to them.

How, then, do you keep your content timely? Here’s my 3-step plan:

1. Dedicate resources. Everyone in the company ought to be charged with keeping up with trends and writing about them. Have an in-house or freelance writer/editor use their findings to create web copy, sales literature, marcom, etc.

2. Create a content strategy. Decide who does what, when, and why. How will you manage content, archive it and how often and when will you update it? All of this should be part of your content strategy.

3. Although this is an extension of my point above, I want to call it out special just in case you skip step #2. Conduct a yearly audit and refresh (minimum). Schedule time for your dedicated resource(s) to review content and revise it. Create a timeline and stick to it.

Remember, timely content is relevant content and it’s part of what will keep you relevant to your customers, readers, clients, whomever. It’s an opportunity to differentiate, to serve and to lead.

P.S. Here’s a link to a related post on making a commitment to your copy: http://www.janodaniel.com/blog/2009/01/old-new/.

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Previously on “The Search for Relevant Content” I shared a definition and some characteristics of valuable content.

In this edition, I’d like to share some real-life examples of relevant content that demonstrate the first characteristic of relevancy: accessibility.

Here are just a few I think do it well (and why).

• Zappos.com – Not a pretty site by almost anyone’s standard but this site is loaded with lots and lots of clearly labeled, relevant content. Their gold-standard free shipping policy is prominently displayed, customer testimonials are front and center, and shoe shopping by style, size or brand abounds.
• HomeDepot.com - Multiple pathways make finding content super-simple for a variety of site visitors, from shoppers to learners to DIYers.
• Entrepreneur.com – No-think navigation labels make content easy to find.
• The Nature Conservancy – Relevant content is located above-the-fold and features prominent calls-to-action.

Of course there are plenty of other good examples, but I hope this randomly selected short list will inspire those who hide relevant content behind cute and clever tabs or bury it six pages deep to bring it out from under wraps.

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This post inspired today’s topic.

So let’s get to it … What kind of writer are you?

Procrastinator: You do everything BUT write. Delay tactics are your specialty and writing is a chore and a bore. Solution? Chunk your writing time into smaller, more manageable segments; use a voice recorder to capture your thoughts instead of facing a blank document; and hire it out.

Perfectionist: You spend ridiculous amounts of time trying to find “just the right word.” You’ve never met a deadline (at least not without tearing your hair out) and you’re highly critical of yours and everyone else’s writing. Solution? Keep your high standards but temper them with realism; limit your rewrites to three; and ask an objective party to review your copy.

Free spirit: You love the written word and enjoy crafting amazing sentences. Trouble is you sometimes don’t get to the core message quick enough. Solution? Write a synopsis of the main message and keep it in front of you; read your copy through the lens of “How does this relate to the main message”; and start a personal blog as an outlet for all that creativity.

Rule follower: You pride yourself on knowing the correct placement of every dot and tiddle. End a sentence with a preposition? Never! Problem is your writing is difficult to read and perhaps too formal for your audience. Solution? Make a list of which rules you’ll never break and which rules you’ll agree to bend; videotape yourself in conversation and note how often the rules don’t apply; and become the go-to grammar guy or gal in the office (people will love you for worrying about such things on their behalf).

Bottom line? Your writing style is a lot like your natural hair texture: Stop fighting against it and start working with it. You don’t have to force a drastic change but you can learn how to mold and shape your writing style so that it’s less angst-ridden for you and more pleasing to your reader.

Other writing types? Share them here.

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