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Posting with purpose

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As much as I’m a fan of blog posts and other longform content, I’m always thinking about (and prompting clients to think about) why I’m creating them. Why that topic? Why this interviewee? Here are the main reasons why and how these reasons can prompt deeper thinking as you write: Educate blog posts are great […]

Personalization overload

CodeWord blog - laptop - writing business

A newsletter that I enjoy for its sassy writing style recently called me by my last name. When it had always used my first. By now, we’re all used to newsletters and their false personalization. With <insert name here> creating the magic of direct address that, upon first read, felt really personal. But I think […]

A post without strategy is just…

CodeWord blog - laptop - strategy

Last year a client was experimenting with AI and posted a blog post written by you know who. As the resident blog post writer, I initiated a conversation on how we would use AI productively in our editorial schedule. But while I felt a bit offended to see a post written by a robot, I […]

Communications differences in small vs big organizations

CodeWord blog - laptop - writing tips

Working for organizations of different sizes, I’m always thinking about the priorities that each should have when reaching out to their audiences. Of course, this is highly dependent on niche, growth goals (does a small organization want to become big) and audience type. But I think there are different approaches depending on size. Here are […]

Thought leadership through content

CodeWord blog - laptop - content

Writers have been thrown into crisis this year due to AI. By this late month, I’ve explored the tools, read articles, written articles, and even started keeping a list of smart prompts. I’ve also used AI to write some posts for clients on common topics in their business. But what reassures me against AI putting […]

Insta quitting and why I’m not

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Like many, I have a love-hate relationship with social media. As an introvert-in-recovery, I’m shy to share all of my life online. I also find the platforms a bit performative, to put it politely. Yet I also get some good ideas from places like X/Twitter and find it useful to connect with people. I know […]

Slow down thinking

CodeWord blog - laptop - writing tips

I’m a fan and advocate of brainstorming: nothing like a good ten- to twenty-minute sesh to spill all your dumb ideas onto a page in order to harvest the diamonds later. But lately, I’ve also started to do something that I think of as the opposite, “slow down thinking”. This is where instead of rushing […]

Thought patterns behind communications plans

CodeWord blog - laptop - content

You wouldn’t go somewhere new without pulling out the good old map, or these days firing up Google maps. This is what I tell my clients when it comes to their communications output. As a result, I’m increasingly creating communications and content plans rather than just the content itself, which I think is a much […]

Time for a content audit?

CodeWord blog - laptop - writing tips

July is not only a great time to go on vacation but also to take a break from your daily work in the interest of your long-term workplan. We business owners refer to that as working ON your business rather than IN your business. Summer slowdowns can be ideal for this – a sleepy Friday […]

Strategy in experimentation

CodeWord blog - laptop - strategy

Whether recommending a new platform for my clients or testing out a new niche myself, I like to approach experiments strategically. After all, it’s not like time suddenly expands just because you decided to try something new (although dropping another routine task to make time for the new thing is a good approach). Here are […]