Month: November 2010

Use Social Media to Become a Thought Leader in Your Industry

using-social-media-to-position-yourself-as-a-thought-leader-in-your-industryI strongly believe that all small businesses should be using social media to position themselves as thought leaders within their industry.

In fact, as I get deeper and deeper into social media writing and social media consulting, this is the conversation I am having the most.

There are so many ways to effectively use social media to communicate with customers and increase brand recognition and sales. And most small businesses can do it without spending a penny. All you need nowadays is sweat equity.

However, the really smart businesses are not only using social media to communicate and connect, but to position themselves as an expert, as the “guru” of what they do.…

What to do When Your Brain is on Empty

what-to-do-when-your-brain-is-on-emptyTwo nights ago, I was woken up at 1:30am and again at 5:30am. The culprit?  Water was leaking into my apartment, setting off my carbon monoxide detector and potentially taking years off my life with that horrible noise. Is there anything worse than an alarm going off in the middle of the night? Yes, there are millions of things, I’m aware. I do read the newspaper. But somehow, in the moment, an alarm going off in the middle of the night really rates with the worse possible thing to happen in a long time.

Once the beeping stopped and I got another 30 minutes of sleep, I dragged myself out of bed at 7am to wait for the plumber. …

The Power of the Comma

the-power-of-the-comma

Do you know why the comma is so powerful? It makes your words readable. With out it you wouldn’t know when to pause and when to take a breath.

Simply: A comma is a punctuation mark that reads like a pause when speaking.

However, the use of the comma isn’t 100% black and white. There are times when it is 100% necessary and other times when it is a matter of taste and style.

For example, an introductory phrase is a matter of preference:

On October 31st I wore a Halloween costume.

On October 31st, I wore a Halloween costume.

The rest of the time, around 70%, you need to know when and where to use it.…

Social Media Gurus, Cont’d

social-media-gurusSo it’s been awhile since I did my social media guru post. I’ve found a few other blogs that I really enjoy and thought you might want to know about them. Without further ado, here are my social media guru updates. I still love the first 12, but here are another 5:

Site Sketch 101: A site all about the interwebs from blogging to websites to Facebook. Great article topics that are well written and informative.

We Blog Better: And not just because I’m a regular guest blogger! But because they have smart articles that are helpful and well researched.…

Is Proper Grammar Dead?

is-grammar-deadHave you heard the news? Nobody writes anymore! Grammar is going down the tubes! We might as well get rid of commas and apostrophes forever because nobody is going to know how to use them anyway.

Hi, my name is Rebecca, and I am a sensationalist. I would like to state for the record that I think people write more nowadays than they ever have in the past. We used to keep in touch via the phone, and now we keep in touch via email. You know what that means? We have to write!

In my line of work (writing), I tend to get a lot of questions on how important it is to have good grammar in this day and age of constant and instant communication.…