Tag: ulrike hill

Categories
Business Writers

The Language of Meaningful Content

Create an emotional connection with your customer. Image source: www.enetworks.co.za

“I don’t know the rules of grammar. If you’re trying to persuade people to do something, or buy something, it seems to me you should use their language.” David Ogilvy

Writers use words with intent. They understand that the language needs to support the purpose of the document: informing, entertaining, persuading or educating. Ad people realise that certain words have an emotional connection and will use it when they communicate with their target market. Using these words in your company communication will go a long way to connecting with your customers.

According to many websites and writers who position themselves as language specialists, there are top words that you should use to persuade people to buy your product or service.

These words are (in descending order of importance or popularity):

  1. You
  2. Money
  3. Save
  4. New
  5. Results
  6. Health
  7. Easy
  8. Safety
  9. Love
  10. Discovery
  11. Proven
  12. Guarantee

I have seen these words on many blogs and training manuals. The list has been accredited to a Yale University research. (FYI: I am not sure where these people received their information. Yale did not conduct any research and the origins of this list is unclear.) However, looking through this list, it is obvious that they are relevant in creating an emotional connection.

Top of the list, YOU, is an important word to keep in mind when trying to persuade people to use your product or service. For example, FNB’s “How can we help YOU” is direct and answers the question to the problem many people have with banking.

David Ogilvy, well-known advertising executive, put together a list of words used in persuasive language in his book Confessions of an Advertising Man (1963). These words still have relevance in today’s world of competitive wordsmithing.

Suddenly                           now                               announcing
introducing                       improvement              amazing
sensational                        remarkable                  revolutionary
startling                             miracle                         magic
offer                                    quick                             easy
wanted                               challenge                      compare
bargain                               hurry

According to Ogilvy, ‘The two most powerful words you can use in a headline are FREE and NEW. You can seldom use FREE but you can almost always use NEW – if you try hard enough’.

Unfortunately, the modern customer knows that there is no such thing as FREE so this word will have limited influence unless used in the correct context. And even then, I wonder how many people will connect with the word with anything other than scepticism.

Although both lists contain different words (except for NEW and EASY), the words all have positive connections and persuasive qualities.

Although you have a list of persuasive words, this does not mean that they will always be effective. It is important to follow Ogilvy’s advice given in the quote at the beginning of this post: ‘use your customer’s language’.

Ask the following questions to determine which words will work for your copy:

  1. What are the benefits of your product or service?
  2. How will your customer connect emotionally to your value offering (that is, how will they feel using your product or service)?
  3. Does your value offering deliver on your promise (that is, if your product is EASY to use it must be EASY to use)?

With practise, you should discover which words will work for your business and which will connect emotionally with your customers.

Ulrike Hill is a business and creative facilitator. She also helps companies inject creativity into their business documents. 
Contact writer@ulrikehill or call +27 71 636 8028.

Categories
Creative Writers

The Pen is Mightier than the Sword

image source: www.hdwallpaper.nu
image source: www.hdwallpaper.nu

“I am writing a story about my ex-husband who was a real bastard,” the attractive read-head tells me. I am facilitating a memoirs workshop and I ask each delegate why they are writing their story. “Really?” I respond to the redhead. I am curious about her story especially as this is nothing new to me. I tell her that many divorced people think their exes are bastards.

“Well not many people have gone through the traumatic experience of the husband sleeping with her best friend on their wedding day,” she tells me. I can see the memory is still painful.

I suggest she rather turns her story into fiction. Not only could it cause problems for people in the story but she faces the probability of legal actions if she publishes the book. Unfortunately, the scorned red-head is not interested in my advice and proceeds to write the story. A few months later I receive her manuscript for a critique. I turned her down. The book displayed the names of her ex-husband (who incidentally is now married with kids) as well as her ex-best friend.  Obviously, publishers will never accept this book (unless she was a famous person).

I see the reason for this type of story as narcissistic.

The narcissistic writer’s reason for writing is a selfish one; she wants the world to know how she was rejected, despite the fact that innocent people may be affected by the story. It has nothing to do with the desire to become a published writer.

Narcissism is a personality disorder, loosely defined as ‘extreme selfishness, with a grandiose view of one’s own talents and a craving for admiration’.

If a pre-published writer has this personality disorder it can spell disaster in the current self-publishing trend that is sweeping through the book-world. No longer does this type of manuscript need to go through a gatekeeping process. Just write your story, upload it onto any e-book platform and the world has access to your world.

image source: www.ilovestatus.com
image source: www.ilovestatus.com

The breaking up of a long term relationship or a messy divorce are painful life events. Many published romance

writers incorporate this as themes into their fiction. Obviously the story will have a happy ending and is far more beneficial for the reader who may have experienced similar life experiences as the protagonist.

Don’t misunderstand. Writing about the experience can be a cathartic experience for the wounded soul. In fact, I encourage it.

Here is one piece of advice I give out free of charge to any person writing about an ex. When you type in the words THE END, the manuscript should be shelved in a dark place – never to see daylight again. Hopefully by writing your story, you will gain some perspective about the break-up and will be ready to face the world and open yourself to new relationships. Perhaps one day you can use your story as inspiration for a scene or character if you are serious about becoming a published writer. You could adapt it as a work of fiction, something based on real life events but changed enough so that details and characters are not recognisable should someone from your past read the story.

The sword inflicts a wound that heals quickly and may leave a superficial scar. The pen creates a wound that is much deeper. Although it is not visible it does manifest itself through intentions and behaviour.

Self-publishing provides the stage for the narcissistic writer to make a statement to the world. The problem is that the only people who will read the book are the people connected to the narcissist. The rest will avoid this type of writer like the plague.

Serious about becoming a published writer? Send in your manuscript for an appraisal. Contact: writer@ulrikehill.co.za or call 071 636 8026.

Categories
Business Writers

Make Your Point

Lynne Truss’s book Eats Shoots & Leaves is an entertaining book about punctuation. The blurb of the book provides a humorous anecdote about the misuse of punctuation.

It explains that a panda walks into a café, orders a sandwich, eats it, draws a gun and fires shots in the air. The waiter is confused and asks why. The panda gives him a badly punctuated wildlife manual and asks him to look up panda in the manual.

The waiter does and this is what he reads:

Panda. Large black-and-white bear-like mammal, native to China. Eats, shoots and leaves. Obviously, the panda shoots_emaze_commanual was explaining the culinary habits of the panda. The comma got in the way. Shoots and leaves became verbs in this context instead of nouns.

Many communicators may understand the basic punctuation rule: start a sentence with a capital letter and end with a full stop, question or exclamation mark. Somehow, business writers seem to have forgotten how and when to use the end-of-sentence punctuation mark correctly and effectively.

This is especially true with the exclamation mark.

For the more creative mind, the exclamation mark is the mark for self-expression. Rule number one: exclamation marks should be used after true exclamations (What a show!) or imperatives (Stop!). One exclamation mark is sufficient and not to be overused like this!!! Or this?! Your writing will sound more like a squeaky cheerleader.

In creative writing the full stop can be used effectively to show excitement. Consider the following sentence: Oh. My. God. He. Looked. At. Me.  Reserve this style for storytelling. It has no value in the business world. This style will capture the attention of teenagers who are rebellious and hate their English teachers. Business readers want credibility. They need to feel secure that the company they are investing their money with has the ability to understand simple things like when to use a full stop or not depend on the exclamation mark to express urgency.

Many communicators seem to have forgotten the uses of the comma and the difference between a colon and a semi colon. The best advice? Register for a grammar refresher course. Invest in books that explain the principles of punctuation in a clear and concise manner. (Ed: or keep reading  these posts.)

The last thought: if you are not sure, keep it simple. Stick to the basics. Short sentences make more sense. If it does not sound right, then rewrite.

Punctuation giving you headaches? Don’t know your commas from your semi-colon?
Writer’s Support provides a consulting service and business writing workshops.
Contact writer@ulrikehill or call +27 71 636 8028.
This article was first published on inov8t online magazine.

Categories
Book Releases

Tackling the Brickwall

Tackling the Brickwall by Ulrike Hill

Rugby inspires dreams. But, it is a controversial game. Rugby shows life at its best… and worst. Many schoolboys who play rugby understand this. So do their parents.

 

Sometimes the biggest challenges are faced off the field rather than on it. Schoolboys have faced many disappointments. Like team selections or an injury that smashes chances of playing in that all-important game. These challenges make tackling the opposition’s prop seem small in comparison. The brickwalls faced by schoolboys and their parents can be daunting.

 

Rugby is more than a game and Tackling the Brickwall is more than a book. It is about finding the guts to discover the hero within and to discover that it is all about developing the necessary life skills. Tackling the Brickwall is the book that parents and their sons should read to develop potential on and off the rugby field.

 

ISBN 978-0620-45485-8

To purchase this book, please click here.

 

Categories
Book Releases

Debbie Calitz: 20 Months of Hostage Hell

By Debbie Calitz and Ulrike Hill.

When Debbie Calitz and her partner, Bruno Pelizzari, set sail from Dar es Salaam in October 2010, they could never have guessed that they would be making a voyage into the depths of hell.

Three days into their journey as crew on board the yacht Choizel, it was captured by Somali pirates who held Debbie and Bruno for ransom. For twenty months the pair was made to live in dark rooms while they were moved countless times between different locations and captors who subjected them – but especially Debbie – to untold  horrors. Yet Debbie’s spiritual awareness, her sense of humanity and, ironically, her past history of being the victim of abuse, helped her to stay alive as she remained positive in the belief that she and Bruno would be rescued.

In this compelling book right from the depths of depravity Debbie Calitz reveals the details of their ordeal and their eventual rescue. It is a story of overwhelming courage from a woman who overcame all odds when freedom and dignity were a distant memory.

 

ISBN: 9780143530589
Format: Paperback / softback
Recommended Price: R220.00
Published: October 31, 2012

Buy online at:
Exclus1ve Books
Categories
Reviews

City of Bones

City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

 

There is a dark side to New York, the city that never sleeps. The mundanes (otherwise known as humans) cannot see the supernaturals that roam the streets and fight in wars. The shadow masters are a group of supernaturals who have to clear the city of demons.

 

Fifteen-year-old Clary Clay witnesses a murder at the Pandemonium Club committed by three teenagers. The problem is that she has no proof. The body has disappeared into thin air. Worse still, her friend Simon cannot see the murderers.

 

When Clary returns home, her house is ransacked and her mother has disappeared. When she is attacked by a demon, she knows that she is in trouble. No-one can help her but the shadow masters. She meets Jace, a skilled shadow master. He is arrogant and attractive but he has scars that are not only caused by the demons he has fought.

He decides to help Clary find her mother. Fighting side by side, they discover that they have a strong attraction. The problem is that their love is forbidden.

 

I loved this book. The characters are believable, heroic and memorable. The plot is interesting and keeps the reader in suspense. The ending was unexpected. Although I was initially disappointed, it has me panting for the next book – the second in the The Mortal Instruments series. Definitely a book to curl up with until late at night.

 

 

Reviewer: Ulrike Hill
Score: 4/5
Review Date: 10 September 2012

(Walker Books)
ISBN: 978-1-4063-0762-7

Categories
Business Writers

Watch Your Words

WORDS HAVE THE POWER

Many people cannot understand why they do not achieve. They look at successful people and believe that these people have all the luck. But is it really all about luck? Not according to Gary Player. He has often been quoted as saying: “The more I practise, the luckier I get.” And, the beauty about luck is that it is so easy to get. So how do you improve your luck?

[box] “A serious problem with reactive language is that it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.” Robert Heller[/box]

Step One: Develop self-awareness

One way of gaining self-awareness is to look at your everyday language. What type of words are you using? The words you use will show how you perceive your world. Do the following words sound familiar? “I can’t do anything about it” or “I don’t care”.

People under perform because they limit their ambitions. These limitations are shown through language that they use.

Analyse your language to see in what way you are holding yourself back. Here is an exercise for you. Look at your language and the language of those around you for a whole day. Write down the words you hear or words you use.  What does this reveal about you and these people?

For example, “He makes me angry.” This is illogical. You choose to be angry. The other person did not force you to be angry. He may have said something that you did not like but he does not have control over your emotions. Only you do.

Step Two: Develop a habit

Successful people have good habits. It takes 21 days to develop a habit. Not all habits are bad.  You can develop good ones. You have to focus on developing a good habit. Decide today that your language will always be positive. The glass is not half-empty. It is half-full.

The language of someone who is control of their life is about being proactive. Reflect on the things that you can do something about and accept the things you cannot change.

Examine the following reactive and proactive phrases:

Reactive Proactive
That’s just the way that I am I can choose a different approach
There’s no use asking, he will say no I’ll make an offer he cannot refuse
I couldn’t do that, it’s not my sort of thing I’ve never done that before but I’d love to try
If only I will
I have to I choose to

Every time your thoughts become negative turn them into positive thoughts. Before you know it, you will become a positive person. When someone presents you with a problem, see it as a challenge: something to test your abilities rather than setting up for failure.

Step Three: Become a better you

Now that you are thinking positive thoughts and using positive words, you will find that people will enjoy your company. You will no longer be the person with a dark cloud around your head. And, when the going gets tough? Well you know what positive people say? “The tough get going!”