Susan Weiner, CFA, is a writer who works with financial advisors to help them better communicate with clients. She’s really thoughtful and smart, too. She has a new book out on financial blogging, and here, she shares her thoughts on how to improve your communications.
Improve your communications: 5 things to stop doing
To improve your communications, I propose five things you should stop doing.
1. Sending emails with missing or poorly written subject lines
For starters, never send an email with an empty subject line. People like me often delete those emails, assuming they’re spam. Another subject line “don’t”: keeping the same subject line even after the topic has changed.
If you’re writing to request an action, put that action in your subject line.
If your email is simply an FYI, say that in your subject line.
Whatever the purpose of your email, communicate that in your subject line.
For more on emails, see “Top four email mistakes to avoid when you’ve got a referral” and “Quick email tips for financial advisors and clients in my guest post.”
2. Publishing or sending any written communication without proofreading at least once
Mistakes, especially stupid mistakes, make people wonder about your intelligence and attention to details.
Even writer geeks make mistakes. I am the poster child for that. I was so excited about finding a Strunk and White grammar rap video, that I posted it to my blog without proofreading my post. Oops! An obvious typo sneaked in.
3. Not blogging because you think your writing isn’t good enough
If you have a valid reason to blog, you can find a way to make it work. Keep your blog posts short. Use audio or video, if you’re more comfortable in those media.
4. Avoiding social media
Social media isn’t going away. Dip your toes in the water. Get on LinkedIn and connect with as many people as possible, even if your compliance department limits your activity. You may be surprised by what you discover.
5. Ignoring your most common writing mistakes
You have lots of company if you’re making “Bloggers’ top two punctuation mistakes.” If you’ve moved beyond those mistakes, you may benefit from my favorite online resources for grammar, punctuation, and word usage help.
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Susan Weiner, CFA, is the author of Financial Blogging: How to Write Powerful Posts That Attract Clients, which is tailored to financial planners, wealth managers, investment managers, and the marketing and communications staff that supports them. Read her blog or follow her on Twitter, Google+ or the Investment Writing Facebook page.
That is genuinely helpful. I would like to ask if it would be Okay if I mentioned some of that on my own blog. Of course, I would credit you, and link back here also.
Stephanie,
You’ll need to contact Susan directly. This is her material.
Annie
Thank you for the advice. I’ve found your first point to be most effective.
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