"Personal Branding for the Business Professional"

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Your personal branding can help you find a job, new clients or a promotion. But developing a personal brand has become much more complicated in the age of social networking. Check out the free e-book on personal branding offered by Chris Brogan for a nice combination of traditional and new techniques for personal branding.

I’m checking out some of the websites and other resources that Brogan mentions. Like Website Grader, which will generate a free report on your website’s marketing effectiveness.


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Susan B. Weiner, CFA

Check out my website at www.InvestmentWriting.com or sign up for my free monthly e-newsletter.

Copyright 2008 by Susan B. Weiner All rights reserved

Get to the point quickly, or lose your web readers

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“Web content must be brief and get to the point quickly, because users are likely to be on a specific mission.”

I agree with this assertion by Jakob Nielsen, a guru of website usability, in “Writing Style for Print vs. Web.” 

Nielsen gives good pointers for web writing in “How Users Read on the Web.” 

If you don’t please your readers, your website will suffer from a high bounce rate. In other words, readers will quickly desert your website. In “Reduce Bounce Rates: Fight for the Second Click,” Nielsen suggests solutions. They boil down to providing links to relevant information on your website.
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Susan B. Weiner, CFA
Investment Writing
Writing that’s an investment in your success

Check out my website at www.InvestmentWriting.com or sign up for my free monthly e-newsletter.

"Let Content Determine Podcast Length"

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The best podcasts tend to run 5-7 minutes long, according to “Let Content Determine Podcast Length” on MarketingSherpa (paid registration may be required for article access). However, longer podcasts can work if the content is compelling.

Another key characteristic:  they focus on one topic. 

So, if you’re considering adding podcasts to your menu of investment or wealth management communications, keep them short and focused.

How to boost your website’s rank in Internet searches

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Use keywords well and you boost the odds that potential clients will find you in their Internet searches.

“Fifteen places you must place your Keyword Phrase and the why behind it” provides some helpful hints. At a minimum, make sure the person putting up your website knows the “behind the scenes” tricks for placing keywords. 

Tread more carefully when it comes to inserting keywords into your text. Excessive use of keywords can make your writing clunky. It can drive away the very people you want to attract.

"Tool: Google Trends"

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Google Trends will help you figure out which of your key words are searched most frequently.

Learn more in “Tool: Google Trends” on Erik Sherman’s Writer Biz blog.

Your website’s "About Us" page could make the sale

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The company information in your website’s “About Us” page could make the difference between winning or losing a new client.

“Although it might not solely make a purchase, a bad ‘About Us’ page can definitely stop a purchase from happening,” according to “Why You Must Pay More Attention to Your ‘About Us’ Page” on the MarketingSherpa website.

Keep your “About Us” page up-to-date and filled with information that will convince your prospects’ executives of your firm’s reliability, advises MarketingSherpa.