I know I haven’t written a post for my blog in over a year. That’s because I’m now at the tail end of my recovery from breast cancer, which has taken me all that time. Last Oct. 24 (my birthday, no less), I was on the operating table, having a small tumor removed and discovering that that’s all it was, and nothing more, thank goodness. A few days ago, I passed my current mammogram with flying colors. I have two more infusion treatments to go, and by Dec. 5, I’ll be done. At the beginning of this process, I thought I would use my blog to write about my experience of being a business owner with cancer, and how it changed the way I had to conduct myself. Once I started writing, I realized it was too difficult to share that journey publicly and instead used CaringBridge to write a monthly journal. It’s an online application specifically for people with disease challenges, to allow private communication with friends and colleagues as opposed to the world of Facebook. It worked out well … [Read more...]
Six Degrees of (Someone): Tips for growing your client list
Here’s a little story for you. Once upon a time, an editor sat at her computer and looked over her client list. Over the years, she had carefully kept track of who referred each of her clients, or how else each had followed the crumbs and arrived on her virtual doorstep. She was amazed to find this: after nine years in business, almost 75% of her clients had been referred to her by some other happy camper. One client had referred 14 other clients to her. Others, when they were satisfied with the work done for them, had the editor do work for each of their children. Still others sent their office colleagues or friends, some of whom in turn sent their colleagues or friends. Yeah—by now, you have guessed I’m that editor. And I am pleased to say these connections are the number one way I have been able to build my business. This is not just because I live in a small town where everyone knows my name. Many of these referrals have come from all over the country, and lately from … [Read more...]
Employment Gaps: What’s Missing from Your Résumé?
Maybe your gap in employment wasn't as bad as this fellow's (I don't think there's much I can do for him)—but it's an issue I very often encounter with my clients. It may be an extended period of unemployment, a return to work from family leave, or a move from current employment back to an earlier career. Whatever the reason, well-constructed resumes can help to address gaps effectively. Try these tips Here are some quick tips from career experts, which I have used myself: Create what’s called a “hybrid” résumé, which includes both your skills and your job history. Start out with the transferable skills you can offer a employer and examples of your most notable and relevant accomplishments, rather than with your chronological job history. Use terms that are most relevant to the jobs you are applying for, not so much those of your past positions. Describe volunteer or temp work, special projects, training courses, memberships or self-improvement during … [Read more...]
Disciplined Learning and Growth
By Janice Beetle of Beetle Press and The Creative Thanks to Janice for answering my call for guest bloggers. She talks about the craft of writing and the importance of continuing one’s professional growth. My third grade teacher, Mrs. Lambson, wore her graying hair in a thick bun snug at the nape of her neck. She was a bit of a scowler, the kind of teacher you could imagine shaking a ruler at you to make a point. I remember walking to her desk one day to ask her how to spell a certain word. “Look it up in the dictionary,” she told me without making eye contact. She did not explain how one looks up a word one does not know how to spell. So, I went back to my desk, and I did not look up the word in the dictionary. Mrs. Lambson could have suggested that I come up with my best guess at spelling the word in question and look that creative spelling up in the dictionary. She could have suggested that I continue to refine my guess until I found the correct spelling. Instead, I … [Read more...]
Importance of Personal Brand in Marketing Your Business
My thanks to colleague and mentor Susan Finn, for rising to my call for guest bloggers! Her post continues the personal brand theme I started last month, with the importance of using a professional headshot. You probably think that you are in the business of ______ (fill in the blank: jewelry making, selling insurance, massage therapy, graphic arts). But really, you are in the business of marketing your business. Right now, there are people who need your goods or services. It is up to you to help them find you. Therefore, marketing is not what you do to sell your goods or services, it’s something you do FOR your potential clients. As we all know, with the internet, social media and the constant pace of 24/7 business, it is more critical than ever that a person or company brands and promotes effectively. Your personal brand, product or service might be the most awesome on the face of this earth, but if customers can’t find the value—the unique value—they are unlikely to … [Read more...]
“You oughta be in pictures …”
The classic 1934 song was never more true than it is today for social media. As a résumé writer, I help many people develop content for their LinkedIn profiles and Facebook pages, and I always recommend that people get a professional “headshot” to show who they are. I understand the concern some may have about identity theft. But if you choose to use social media to market yourself or your business (and you should—see some stats below), you are shortchanging yourself by not including a photo to show the world who they would be hiring. Most professional photographers don’t charge huge amounts for this—I paid $175 for a sitting and a disc with my photo on it—and it adds to the “story” you create about who you are and what you have to offer your prospects. If you can’t afford it, then spiff up and find a friend who will take your picture against a neutral, uncluttered background. And using bad photos can hurt you almost as much as not using one at all. Don’t use your latest Facebook … [Read more...]
How I succeeded in business…without really trying
If you’re a small biz owner—or if you are just thinking about opening a business--you need to know this important piece of info: almost 50% of all businesses fail within their first five years. >Gulp<. How did I ever survive? Lately, I have been thinking about this, because I have done some mentoring with college alumni, other young editors just starting their own businesses, and a small business group I once helped to lead. Folks are always asking me how I got started and to share my suggestions for success. Here’s a few. Take a workshop. They don’t have to cost too much, or take too long. In fact, when I first started, I took a free SEED workshop from my local Small Business Development Center that was only a couple of weeks long. I learned how to write a business plan and to figure out what to charge for my services, and I got to meet and talk with other entrepreneurs like me. Network, network, network. And did I mention networking? Yeah, I know. You’ve heard it … [Read more...]
Soft Cell
Although I have a website, a LinkedIn page, a Facebook personal page, a Facebook biz page, a Twitter account and a blog, I am still somewhat of a closet Luddite when it comes to certain technology. One night in 2011 was a good example of how it catches up with me. I had been enjoying a sensual dream about my mother’s baked stuffed artichokes, soft hearts oozing with Pastene’s olive oil and generous chunks of garlic. I woke suddenly to the sound of my dog barking. Boop! That sound—kind of like an electronic sound, maybe. I raised my head up immediately and sniffed the air, while the dog continued to bark. Boop! Yes, it was a faint electronic sound occurring at a regular interval. Smoke alarm wearing out its battery? Better check. I got up and started my patrol of our one-floor ranch. Jean came out of her nightly coma to mumble, “Let the dog out—it must be the bear in the back yard again,” and then went back to sleep. Boop! It became a game of hot/cold. As I … [Read more...]
Web Copy Redux
Got some helpful feedback on my Oct. 18 web post, WWW.What the Heck?, which attempts to talk about what makes good copy for your website. One person asked: How about some examples of good and bad web copy, Fran? OK—can do! It just so happens that a couple of years ago, I made a presentation to another group on the same topic. Here are the two websites I used as my examples, with the URLs and other identifiers of the guilty held back (in case they are your first cousins). I’ll just share the first two paragraphs from their respective home pages. Take a look at them and compare each to my points about being brief, using informal language, and getting to the heart of what your client cares about. Both websites are for companies doing home inspections. This one I don’t like—it uses we/you point of view, but it’s mostly about the company, not the customer. On the site itself, you can’t even find this text until you’ve “paged down” twice past too many uninformative stock … [Read more...]
Writer’s Block Unblocked
Ever have to write something, and find yourself putting it off until it’s too late to do it at all? Ever get the sweats looking at a blank screen, then say to yourself, “Hmmm, where’s that sewing project I’ve been meaning to do for the last six months, I need to get it done NOW”? Don’t worry, you are not alone. Every author, no matter how experienced, faces writer’s block from time to time. Here are some things I do to cope. Step One: Warm Up. The more you write, the easier it gets, like any other practical skill. The trick I follow when I’m challenged by a topic is to just sit down at my computer and start writing what I know about the topic, even if it sounds weird. It physically and mentally loosens me up, like a warm-up exercise. I also find that it captures what I really feel about the topic, and it helps me get excited about it. Step Two: Research. Then, I research online what I don’t know about the topic and add to the piece. Before I know it, I have several pages … [Read more...]