Content Trends

Content Marketing, SEO and Digital Marketing

Style Guide – An Essential Tool in Your Content Strategy

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I was pleased and amazed at how passionate the web content community is on the topic of style guides. I shared my article on style guides, with one of my LinkedIn groups a few months ago. That post generated a lively discussion and some of the comments were the size of blog posts. Here is a screenshot:

Let’s revisit the purpose of style guides and determine how relevant they are today. Content marketing has changed in a big way in the last few years. Everything is geared to the customer’s tastes and an informal tone and voice to online communications is the norm. However, informal can easily meander towards being downright sloppy. Let’s discuss how we can draw the line, maintain an informal tone and voice but at the same time appear consistent across all our communication channels.

What is a Style Guide?

Your style guide’s primary function is to serve as a guide for anyone with web writing and editing responsibilities. If you are a single business owner running a blog, then a style guide could also help you set the tone for your site. At the macro level:

  • Your style guide could include the writing style you will use to set the overall tone of your site.
  • You could include a brief description of keywords that you are optimizing your site for and
  • It could also include a quick overview of your content driven seo strategies.

At the micro level, as a content writer or blogger, creating an editorial style guide will take the guess work out of the small editorial decisions you need to make everyday, such as:

  • How will you treat every day web terms: website, web-site or web site? Email or e-mail?
  • How will you handle headlines? Will you capitalize every word or only the first word?
  • How will you treat acronyms and abbreviations? What about industry-specific terms?

You could make your style guide, a small, basic 10 page document that’s easy to remember or an entire manifesto, with detailed instructions. In today’s day and age of quick thinking and deadlines, it’s not a good idea to make a style guide too restrictive.

Most corporate style guides include:

  • Official Reference Guides – CMS (Chicago Manual of Style), AP Stylebook (Associated Press) or any other reference guide
  • Grammar conventions
  • Syntax
  • Punctuation
  • Capitalization
  • Treatment of industry specific terms
  • Copyright issues
  • Treatment of numbers and numerals:
    • Dates
    • Numbers
    • Measurements
    • Currency
    • Format for phone numbers

    Main Objections to Style Guides

    Going back to my LinkedIn thread, the main discussion revolved around whether style guides were relevant anymore in this day and age of instant updates. Some content strategists and professionals had the following objections to style guides:

    • Style guides encourage a corporate monotone.
    • Style guides don’t produce uniformity in style, diction, or terminology usage, for the very obvious reason that they are far too big to hold in your head.
    • Social media has changed the way we communicate. Today’s communication world is about exchange, dialogue and interaction. It’s no longer a tightly controlled mechanism with a handful of experts at the reins.To be “real” and get as many people within a company engaged and interested in communicating they have to feel comfortable to do so. Fear that the language police will come down on their heads for hyphenating e-mail is not going to help.

    4 Reasons Why I Think that Style Guides are an Essential Tool in any Content Strategy

    In my experience, style guides are still relevant to our content marketing efforts today and here are some of the reasons why I think that they are an important tool in any content strategy:

    1. They help create a consistency in style

      A lot of the formality of yesterday has gone from our presentations but the number one reason for having a style guide for me is the consistency in style through the entire site.The most important objective for all web disciplines from design to architecture to content strategy is to create an awesome user experience. If you maintain consistency across all these disciplines, your site will automatically be user friendly. Even though blogs lend themselves to an informal style of writing, your blog will look more polished and professional with a basic style guide.

      Yes, communication has changed. Yes, it’s great to have employees interacting directly with customers and providing a human face to the company. But I don’t believe that these things and a style guide are mutually exclusive. Individual emails and communications sent out by employees don’t need to adhere to a style guide.

    2. Style Guides enhance the quality and professionalism of your site

      The fact is that if you don’t have a style guide, you don’t have rules. In a corporate environment, we may end up borrowing content from colleagues, or editing topics previously written by someone else. If the writers don’t follow the same rules, it can look sloppy and unprofessional.

      How would you view a company whose “official” marketing collateral, emails, press releases, websites, were inconsistent? Sometimes they used one term, and sometimes another? They used e-mail in one part of the data sheet and email in another? One transactional email used one voice, and another used a different one? For me, personally, that company would definitely lose a little credibility; I would question how much they care about quality and consistency in general.

    3. Style Guides save writers time, effort and research

      I’ve worked in several environments where having a basic style guide to refer to, has saved me time, effort and research. The style guide has spelled out for me the tone and voice of the site as well as basic rules of the style used that have helped me immensely to produce content in the voice of the client.

      Content authoring in many companies, is often outsourced, so a ‘style guide” – which is really a repository of agreed-upon style, grammar, spelling, and terminology usage – will help promote the one concept/one image/one brand idea which is essential to content marketing.

    4. Style Guides do not need to create a corporate monotone

      While I agree that in some cases style guides may dictate a corporate monotone, a style guide does not have to do that. I’ve worked in environments where the style guide was a 240-page master work, and in others where the style guide was a 10-page leaflet. You can decide what goes in the style guide, and what doesn’t.

      Many style guides don’t work. The problem stems from whether or not the users of the style guide (the writers) actually know what’s in the style guide, and whether the rules are usable in a regular, practical, day-to-day manner. If you find that your style guide is not usable, you should start anew with a basic, streamlined set of rules that that are easy to remember and incorporate and are not burdensome to writers with each and every grammatical rule.

    The bottom line is that style guides are not what they were 100 years ago or even a decade ago. Having a simple, basic, style guide today could make your content stand out, rise above the noise, look professional and above all be outstanding.

    Do you agree? Do you think style guides are an essential tool in your content marketing efforts? Please share your thoughts in the comments below. Thanks.

An Interview with Dino Dogan, Co-Founder of Triberr

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Last week, I had the opportunity to interview Dino Dogan, the co-founder of Triberr. I love Dino’s Twitter profile where he describes himself as a lousy martial artist & recovering engineer, a songwriter & biz blogger and a global force for badassery.

I was impressed with his charming, bubbly personality and his unsurmountable passion for Triberr which comes through in everything he says. My first impressions of Dino were that he’s amazingly talented, very accessible and really wants to make a difference to small bloggers – people who don’t have access to multiple networks nor big budgets to spread the word about their blogs. Our conversation revolved around blogging, Triberr and the impact of Triberr on the blogosphere.

Triberr has been a significant event in blogging history – Dino Dogan

The interview lasted 25 minutes in which we covered a lot of ground including:

  1. How Dino came up with the idea of Triberr
  2. Some future plans for Truberr
  3. The concept of Reblog and Triberr Commenting sytem
  4. Triberr Ad network and how small bloggers can earn money using Triberr

We are solving big problems for little bloggers – Dino Dogan

For those of you who are not familiar with Triberr, it’s a unique concept which takes advantage of tribes to share and promote a blogger’s content. You sign up for Triberr, become a member of a tribe and your tribe members share your posts around their social networks. You in turn, share their content within your networks, leading to a win-win situation all-around. You get access to a much broader audience and are able to efficiently spread your message and increase your reach. Social shares are also increasingly becoming an important element in ranking an artilce for search engines. I’ve explained Triberr in detail in this post on promoting your blog with these 3 twitter tools.

If you have a blog you’d like to promote and are not already on Triberr, I recommend that you join a tribe that shares your interests. You will be happy that you did. Your tribe members will be your ambassadors spreading the word about your blog to their audience.

Dino has planned a tribe-up event in New York on Saturday, September, 22, 2012. Highlights of the event include 5 speakers talking about how to move the blogging industry forward and a few hours of connecting and networking with talented bloggers. It sounds like an exciting event. Click on the graphic below for all the details of the event.

This was the very first interview for my YouTube channel and also my first interview using Google Hangouts. Setting up a Google Hangouts interview to stream on YouTube is the easiest way to interview and is definitely a topic for another blog post. I’ve been wanting to start a YouTube channel for Web Content Blog but have been procrastinating and am very happy that my first guest was Dino. I wish him all the success and hope that Triberr earns him a lot of success, fame and profits.

Here is the interview:

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5 Content Mistakes that Drive Away Prospects

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You have only 30 precious seconds (according to many reports) to capture your prospects’ attention, to engage and pull them into your copy. If a prospect does not find the info he is looking for on your site, he will exit quickly and continue searching until he finds the info on a competitor site.

Case studies reveal that prospects are looking for simple things especially on their first visit: How useful is your product to them? How much does it cost? Are there any problems that they need to know about in advance? Having that info easily available and avoiding certain key content mistakes would mean better conversion rates and happier customers.
Here are some top content mistakes that cause prospects to leave and visit the competitor’s website. I welcome comments and would be interested in your top web content peeves as well.

#1. About Page

Certain content mistakes are easy to avoid and also serve as best practices. Too many brands use About pages to incessantly talk and brag about their story.

About pages are content goldmines. They are perfect opportunities to advertise and increase conversion rates. An about page should be used as a selling tool to convince your prospects why your product is ideal for them. Will it make them rich? Will they lose weight? How is it going to enhance their life? Ideally, About pages should:

  • Give visitors a reason (several reasons, ideally) for doing whatever it is you want them to do: contact a sales lead, join a campaign, send money, buy a widget.
  • Make a strong case for what sets you apart from other businesses like you.
  • Give visitors context for the information they find elsewhere on the site.

#2. Drawbacks of Your Product

Certain content mistakes are hotly debated and not everyone agrees on their solutions in content marketing. Most businesses avoid talking about problems on their websites, thinking that it will turn customers away.

There are several case studies that have proved the opposite, Riverside Pools being a perfect example. Marcus Sheridan, (content marketing expert from thesaleslion.com) who also owns Riverside Pools, set up a blog post underlying all the problems with fiberglass pools. This one article, Top 5 Fiberglass Pool Problems and Solutions, on his website garnered 137 comments, 168 inbound links, and 25,589 views and an incredible amount of money in sales. Since, none of his competitors talked about the problems with fiberglass pools his post always came up first in search results.

According to Marcus, ever since his mantra has been, “He who gives consumers the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of a product will always be the content king.”

FAQ pages are invaluable in answering common customer questions. The sales and customer service team of your business are also resources who will be able to guide you on the problems customers are facing, so that you can address them in future content updates.

#3. Pricing Info

Pricing info is again on the list of content mistakes that don’t have a consensus. Some businesses will not have pricing info, thinking that they don’t want to turn off any customers. Here are the top reasons why it makes sense to always include pricing:

  • The first question on people’s mind after they are sold on your product is how much will this cost me? Can I afford it? If they can’t find that info, they will look it up elsewhere, probably on a competitor website in which case your competitor has won.
  • Putting your costs and pricing out there weeds out the customers who cannot afford your services or products. It increases conversion rates, helps to save your time and theirs as well.
  • It creates an atmosphere of transparency and trust, both essential for marketing on the web.

Some companies have a problem putting up fixed prices. Their pricing varies according to the type of service. This is also true for small business consultants. In that case, these two approaches work best:

  • It’s always fine to give a range.
  • Include a form on your website, where the prospect can put in details that you need such as scope etc. You then get back to the potential buyers with all the details over the telephone / email

#4. Only Evergreen Content

In the current global marketplace, your website is your virtual office. If you have only evergreen content on your website, it gives the impression of an abandoned website. It is the equivalent of an old store with yesterday’s products and mannequins that have dust gathering. I don’t know about you, but I would not like to buy or do business with a neglected storefront.

Nowadays, there is no one size fits all solution to content. Evergreen pages are also necessary, but you need to have a blog so customers keep returning. You need to have an email newsletter for loyal customers. You need to post content on social media sites for those customers who like to interact with you on social media. In other words you need to have constant action of some kind on your website, so prospects realize that yours is a thriving business.

#5. Not Incorporating Social Media into Your Content Marketing Mix

Research shows that customers prefer to interact with brands through social media channels and that while other forms of contact such as contact forms, emails, phones are still relevant, social media is quickly becoming the number one choice of customers especially for an answer to customer service questions and queries. It’s no surprise that having social media icons on your site greatly increases conversion rates.

The brands who are using social media to interact are doing well and in some cases have turned around people’s perception of their company. The early adopters are paying rich dividends. Mashable had an article with case studies showing the smartest brands using social media correctly.

  • Here are some examples from case studies:
    • Starbucks is a perfect example.To get a better handle on consumer feedback, Starbucks did just that with “My Starbucks Idea.”
      The site allows users to submit suggestions to be voted on by Starbucks consumers, and the most popular suggestions are highlighted and reviewed. Starbucks then took it a step further and added an “Ideas in Action” blog that gives updates to users on the status of changes suggested.
    • @comcastcares, a Twitter account setup to help Comcast users in need.
    • The dell social media initiative where Dell has set up social media command centers where they actively listen for comments on the company.

    Do you agree with these 5 mistakes? Do you have more to add? Please share in the comments below.

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    • High Quality Content: A Simple 4-Point Checklist for Creating the Best Content

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    Last year, Google’s Panda filter shook up the internet. The biggest losers were sites with duplicate content, plagiarized content, sites with obvious keyword stuffing and grammatical errors.
    The verdict was out: Google was cleaning up the internet and making it a great place to be once again. Panda brought about a much needed new awakening, a new search for high quality content among site owners. In the wake of Panda, several pundits weighed in on the definition of high quality content. I took this opportunity to ask a few experts what their views were on high quality content.

    I gleaned key pieces of insights from that discussion, my own experience and also through talking to several web content managers, directors and editors, over the years. These top 4 characteristics have been on everyone’s list as essential for creating the best content for your audience:

    # 1. Unique and Original Content

    All 4 experts in my interview unanimously agreed that quality content needs to be unique and original. Web writer and editor, Alan Eggleston summed it up eloquently when he said “The facts may be the same, but it is written with the style, voice, and tone that is unique and original to you as the author and with the interest of the audience in mind for the vehicle in which it will appear.”
    In a post Panda world, unique and original content is rewarded by coming up at the top of search results. Plagiarized and duplicate content have always been a no-no but Panda took care of enforcing this rule with heavy penalties for the non-conformists.
    The topic doesn’t have to be unique but your perspective does. For example if you have a recipe site, there are tons of recipes for chocolate cake, but what would make your chocolate cake recipe unique would be your own original recipe.

    #2. Extremely Articulate and Well Written

    High quality content is so well written that your audience will keep coming back for more. It flows well, sounds good and feels almost like a melody.
    Here are some key indicators of well written content:
    •Besides being free of grammatical errors, well written content is also succinct and to the point. Every word that doesn’t belong is eliminated.
    • High quality content is never vague. It paints a concrete picture and captures our imagination because we can picture it in our minds.
    • High quality content is never pretentious or pompous. Instead, it has a natural flow. If a sentence feels uncomfortable, it needs to be cut from your copy.

    #3. Easy to Understand

    The internet revolution has changed the way we communicate – less is always better, easier is always better.
    Gone are the days of bombastic language, hyperboles and exaggerated speech. They still work in poetry and prose but as a form of communication, they are passé. The high quality sites are usually where the most complex subject matters are explained (to their target audience) in a surprisingly easy way so that any lay person could understand. The Mayo Clinic is a perfect example. Even the most complex disease or condition is explained in simple terms. The Mayo Clinic has an Alexa ranking of 1,400 which is an indication that it’s an extremely high traffic site, because people who research their conditions can actually understand what is happening to them!

    #4. Educational

    High quality content always makes us think in a new way or rewards us for spending our time because we learn something new. It’s educational without being preachy. As content creators, if we strive to create at least one key takeaway we would greatly enhance the quality of our content.
    The following sites are perfect examples of educational content. They are at the top of their game, receive high rankings and plenty of traffic and subscribers, in large part, due to the quality of their content. These sites have interesting informative, educational stuff for content writers, bloggers and people with a passion for great content.

    To sum it up, high quality content is always unique and original, well written, educational and easy to understand.

    Do you agree with these 4 characteristics? Do you have more to add? Please share in the comments below.

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    High Quality Content – 4 Experts Share their Views

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    “Content rules” and will always rule as long as high quality content is in short supply. Savvy online entrepreneurs already know that consistently creating high quality content will increase traffic and audience engagement on their sites, lead to a higher ranking, more subscribers, greater brand awareness and ultimately more business. Copyblogger is a perfect example. Copyblogger gets tons of traffic, engagement, subscribers and business simply by adhering to this rule of creating high quality content. The site has an Alexa ranking of 2,100 and over 1,00,000 subscribers.

    So what is high quality content? Four web editors share their views to this all important question. All of them have spent their careers creating high quality content. They are regular contributors to the Web Editors blog, a blog that has some great tips on creating and editing quality content, seo and current trends in the web editing field.

    Keep reading for inspiration and advice from these top content creators.

    #1: High quality content isn’t available anywhere else on the web

    High quality content is highly readable material that isn’t available anywhere else on the Web. The facts may be the same, but it is written with the style, voice, and tone that is unique to you as the author and with the interest of the audience in mind for the vehicle in which it will appear.
    The best way to ensure top quality content is to begin every piece from scratch and write with the perspective that best drives the point home for that audience. The only thing I might copy and paste are quotes.
    Alan Eggleston, Web Writer and Editor at E-Messenger Internet Consulting, Inc.

    #2: High quality content answers questions, educates, is well researched and easy to read.


    High-quality content gives readers what they’re looking for. It answers questions, it educates, it is well researched and easy to read. It establishes you as a trusted source of good information and gets readers to come back for more.
    I work for a peer-reviewed publication, so we have a pool of advisers who review some of our articles and recommend them for publication (or not). For columns, blog posts and other content that doesn’t go through peer review, we vet the authors based on their expertise and seek authors out at professional conferences. We keep a close eye on what readers want to know by looking at our Google Analytics stats.
    Jennifer Ford, Writer, Copyeditor, and Website Editor.

    #3: Top 3 characteristics of high quality content: (1) usefulness (2) clarity and (3) brevity.


    This is a great question, and when I sat down to answer it, I quickly came up with a LONG list of attributes for quality content. Great content, of course, depends on your audience and your objective, so a deep understanding of those two items should drive your content choices.
    Upon reflection, my top 3 characteristics are: (1) usefulness (2) clarity and (3) brevity. Since I write and edit for green businesses, it has to be of value to those businesses – helping them better sell their services, broaden their audience, enhance their brand image, etc. The more useful tidbits they take away from my site, the more likely they are to return. Clarity means writing simply enough to get my message through all the noise that’s out there, and in terms that resonate with my customers. Brevity recognizes the reality that people are time-starved and often just scanning for key points. Minimizing words – or identifying just 3 attributes of quality content instead of my long list – respects my customers’ time.
    I know this is just the tip of the “quality content” iceberg, and I am interested to read what others think.
    Alison Lueders, Website Writer and Editor for Green Businesses, Principal at Great Green Editing.

    #4: Answering the audience’s questions is paramount for great content.

    Answering the audience’s questions: this is paramount for great content. It sounds simple, but it’s very hard to do well. And I think the difficulty is 1 part logistical—finding out what the audience needs—and 9 parts emotional—getting beyond what you want to say to reach the zone where you write or produce what the audience needs to know, and only that. It takes real practice and discipline to get out of the way.
    Anne Moreau, Editor and Proofreader for Publishers and Creative Professionals.

    What in your view, is high quality content? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below. If you like this post, please share it generously on all your social networks.