7 steps to effective interviews in my October newsletter
An interesting article usually starts with a conversation with a “subject matter expert,” as companies like to call them. Your job is to pull out the human side of the subject – sometimes against the instincts of the person you interview. How do you do it? Check out...
You still need a business card! Here are 9 reasons why
I recently met someone whose company had “gone totally digital” — no business cards. She admitted it was often awkward. Yes, a business card may seem unnecessary in a digital world where your contacts are easily found on LinkedIn. A business card may...
How to block the three biggest crimes against plain language
What better day than International Plain Language Day (Oct. 13) to talk about getting rid of jargon and wordiness? Plain Language Day is a way to let people know that plain language doesn’t mean “dumbing down” material or making it too elementary, a worry a...
Truly awful writing to inspire you
As my friend Sue once said, “Every time I start to lose a little faith in my fellow human beings, along come the Bulwer-Lytton awards.” This annual celebration of the best of the worst is the Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest. Writers apply their talents to...
In my Sept. newsletter: How often to publish
In this month’s newsletter, I’m revisiting a common question: How often should you publish an employee newsletter? A lot depends on whether you’re delivering news or providing background and perspective, how big it is and how many people are working on it, and...
Is it curtains for the ‘full stop’?
“[P]unctuation marks are the traffic signals of language: they tell us to slow down, notice this, take a detour, and stop.” – Lynne Truss, in Eats, Shoots & Leaves It’s almost National Punctuation Day (Sept. 24), that “celebration of the lowly comma, correctly...
How to harness the power of the inbox
Email marketing is a powerful tool. As proof, digital marketing expert Javed S. Khan shared these statistics at a recent meeting of IABC/Toronto’s Professional Independent Communicators: 91% of people check their email daily 88% regularly check email on their...
Lose the legalese to be understood
The plaintive opening drew me in immediately: “Why are many financial news releases and publicly filed documents written so poorly?” In A Plea for Plain English in Financial Documents, Steve Lipin and Adam Rosman make the case for good writing in financial...