Susan B. Weiner Investment Writing - Susan B. Weiner Blog

“Investment Writing Spotlight,” my critiques of financial blog posts, disappeared when Facebook eliminated its Discussion tab. However, its lessons live on in this list of recommendations that I made on some of my volunteers’ blog posts.

1. Identify your topic, and possibly your audience in your title

Your title can attract or repel your audience. Catchy titles perform better when they also at least hint at your topic. If you’re writing about the challenges of a narrow audience – for example, municipal pension administrators in the state of Illinois – it’s good to work that into your title. If that makes your title too long, then put it in your introduction.

2. Focus on “you” the client, not “we” the firm

People love to read about themselves, as I’ve said many times before. So, use “you” in your blog posts and write from the client’s perspective on your topic. Make sure you identify the benefit of the topic to your client.

Focusing on the client also means challenging some of your assumptions. Explain some of the vocabulary and relationships that are clear to you. They may mystify your clients.

3. Make your content easy to skim

Everybody’s busy, so make it easier for readers to capture your main points by using, as appropriate

• Headings that make points rather than just noting topics
• Topic sentences that convey each paragraph’s main point
• Short paragraphs
• Bullet points

4. Edit yourself

Strong topic sentences are a great framework, but you may still be able to strengthen your paragraphs by

• Deleting or minimizing information that doesn’t support your topic sentence
• Deleting excess words
• Shortening sentences or varying sentence length

Thank you, blogger volunteers!

The folks who volunteered their blog posts for my critique were extremely gracious, so I’d like to thank them with links to their blogs and Twitter accounts.

• Brian Plain, oakparkplanner.com, @oakarkplanner
• Chuck Rylant, chuckrylant.com, @chuckrylant
• Eric McClain, wesban.com, @ewesban
• John Feketekuty, Campion Wealth Management
• John Lowell, johnhlowell.blogspot.com, @johnhlowell
• Jonathan Smith, jonathansmith.com, @jonathanwsmith
• Nathan Gehring, livingfinanciallyaware.blogspot.com, @nathangehring

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Need to write better? Register for my next class on “How to Write Blog Posts People Will Read: A 5-Week Writing Class for Financial Advisors” starting May 16. You won’t get another chance to take this class until 2013.

Receive a free 32-page e-book with client communications tips when you sign up for my free monthly newsletter.

Are you a financial professional, writer, or marketer with questions about whether “How to Write Blog Posts People Will Read: A 5-Lesson Writing Class for Financial Advisors” will work for you?

You’ll find answers to common questions below. Do you have questions I haven’t answered below? Leave them as a comment or call me at 617-969-4509.

Q. Is this a webinar?

A. No, it’s a relatively low-tech approach. Students told me they enjoyed not being tied to their computer during the lecture part of the class. This reinforced my instinct to keep the technology simple.

Q. How are classes taught?

A. Each of the classes consists of a recorded audio file (.mp3 format) and a handout (.pdf or Word file) for you to print or view on-screen, complemented by homework assignments, discussion posted to a private website, and a weekly telephone conference call. You’ll download the files from the private website, and then review the lesson at your convenience. You will post your homework assignment and any questions to the private website. You will receive my feedback through the website.

Q. What if I don’t see myself as a “financial advisor”? Can I still take your class?

A. I use the term “financial advisor” as shorthand for my target audience, which includes employees of investment, wealth management, and financial planning firms as well as the vendors who support them. You could be a marketer or writer, not just a financial professional.

Q. I can’t commit to a class that meets at a specific time. Will you work around my schedule?

A. I’ve tweaked the class format so you can listen to the class on YOUR schedule, not mine.

1. Lessons are prerecorded. This way, you can listen when it’s convenient for you.
2. You can post your homework–and receive my individualized feedback–any time between the posting of the lesson and two weeks following the end of the class. Students who did their homework and then revised it following my feedback told me that doing the homework–and getting my feedback–was incredibly valuable.
3. Class discussion sessions will be recorded and may be downloaded. Listening to a recording isn’t the same as participating “live” but at least you’ll hear your classmates’ questions and comments.

You can save all the audio and handout files to give yourself a refresher course months or even years after your formal training ends.

Q. Why is the class limited to 16 students?

A. You’ll learn more when you get the personal attention that comes with a small class. You’ll have plenty of opportunities to ask questions during our group telephone calls. Plus, you’ll get written feedback on your homework assignments.

Q. Do we get any live interaction with you and other students?

A.  Yes, there will be five live conference calls for May 17, May 24, and June 7, June 14, and June 21 at 1 p.m. Eastern. These calls will focus on your comments and questions. They will be recorded in case you can’t attend “live.”

Q. What do students say about your class?

A. Please read What students say about “How to Write Blog Posts People Will Read.” You’ll also find a brief selection of testimonials if you scroll down the registration form.

Register TODAY to learn a step-by-step process to

• Generate and refine ideas for blog posts that will engage your readers
• Organize your thoughts before you write, so you can write more quickly and effectively
• Edit your writing, so it’s reader-friendly and appealing

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Need to write better? Register for my next class on “How to Write Blog Posts People Will Read: A 5-Week Writing Class for Financial Advisors” starting May 16. You won’t get another chance to take this class until 2013.

Receive a free 32-page e-book with client communications tips when you sign up for my free monthly newsletter.

This sentence cries out for improvement. I’d like to know how YOU would fix it.

If you think this sentence is fine as is, you’re also welcome to comment.

We thought Best Buy was expensive; however, investors viewed online competitors as presenting a structural issue and Best Buy’s valuation declined dramatically during the year.

This sentence was copied from a mutual fund’s annual report.

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Need to write better? Register for my next class on “How to Write Blog Posts People Will Read: A 5-Week Writing Class for Financial Advisors” starting May 16. You won’t get another chance to take this class until 2013.

Receive a free 32-page e-book with client communications tips when you sign up for my free monthly newsletter.

I HATE videos. As a lover of the written word, it annoys the heck out of me when people share information only in video or audio. However, there are steps you can take

photo: Bethan

to make video and audio more palatable to cranky folks like me. You’ll find three suggestions below.

Technique 1: Add minute markers

Looking for the easiest, fastest solution? Then, list your video’s major shifts of topic accompanied by the time the shift occurs.

For example, imagine a Q&A on investing in emerging markets. The text accompanying your video might look something like this:

00:00     Introducing Ms. EM Expert

00:30     What are emerging markets?

01:40     Reasons to invest in emerging markets

03:25     Risks of investing in emerging markets

This format lets me figure out what, if anything interests me. Then I can fast-forward to the good stuff.

Technique 2: Summarize the key points

A written summary of your video’s key points will make people like me even happier. However, you’ll find it more time consuming than Technique 1.

Your write-up need not be comprehensive. Just give me the highlights. For example, if we continue to use the emerging markets example, you could give a brief definition of emerging markets, followed by a list of the pros and cons of emerging-markets investing.

Technique 3: Provide a transcript

A transcript — a word-by-word record of your video conversation — is the most time consuming, but it also provides the most information of the three techniques I discuss in this blog post. I like that I can search the transcript for specific words and phrases.

You can make transcripts less time-consuming by outsourcing to a professional transcriptionist. To improve the transcriptionist’s accuracy, provide a list of terms and names that may not be familiar to someone outside your field.

Even with a list of terms, don’t expect your transcript to be perfect. Transcription isn’t easy. Also, human beings don’t speak in perfect sentences. You’ll need to review and edit the transcript word-by-word. This is why I’m not a big fan of publishing transcripts.

If your video features your voice exclusively, you may be able to get it transcribed using voice recognition software. Dragon Naturally Speaking is one option. Again, you’ll need to make corrections.

What’s your favorite?

Of the three options I’ve presented, #1 is my favorite. But I’ll be grateful for whatever you do to help me.

How do YOU make your videos user-friendly?

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Need to write better? Register for my next class on “How to Write Blog Posts People Will Read: A 5-Week Writing Class for Financial Advisors” starting May 16. You won’t get another chance to take this class until 2013.

Receive a free 32-page e-book with client communications tips when you sign up for my free monthly newsletter.

“If you have chosen a topic that is of general concern, and if genuine feeling and intelligence come through, you will be interesting.”

-Thomas S. Kane
The Oxford Essential Guide to Writing, p. 5

This is good news for advisors who write about dry topics or topics that many others have covered. You can still stand out by letting your personality shine.

Here are a few ways you can do this:

• Use distinctive language or images.
• Write about one part of the topic that you feel strongly about.
• Tell a story from your personal experience.

As Kane writes,

“Don’t be afraid to express your own opinions and feelings. You are a vital part of the subject. No matter what the topic, you are really writing about how you understand it, how you feel about it.”

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Need to write better? Register for my next class on “How to Write Blog Posts People Will Read: A 5-Week Writing Class for Financial Advisors” starting May 16. You won’t get another chance to take this class until 2013.

Receive a free 32-page e-book with client communications tips when you sign up for my free monthly newsletter.

If you’re an introverted perfectionist like me, you never feel as if you make enough great contacts at networking meetings. These occasions felt like Olympic-sized failures until I
became more creative and forgiving of myself.

Here are some of the strategies that have helped me.

1. Seek out people who are by themselves.

They may also suffer pangs of shyness.

2. Focus your conversation on the other people.

People love to talk about themselves. Asking questions is a great way to soften them up. Also, you’ll be most memorable if you can offer some information that helps them.

3. Introduce people.

Take the initiative to introduce people who may not know one another. A variation on this is to take a friend and focus on introducing him or her.

4. Use unusual techniques to attract attention.

My favorite is the tag technique I discussed in “Introverts, steal this idea for your next conference!”

5. Lower your expectations.

These days I attend meetings with the goal of making two or three good contacts. This takes the pressure off my perfectionist self.

6. Find out ahead of time who’s attending the meeting, so you can arrange to meet.

This sounds like a great idea, but it hasn’t worked well for me. Invariably, something derails these plans.

Bonus tip

Follow up promptly after meeting people. It’s best to contact them before they forget who you are. I recommend that you do not add them to your e-newsletter list without asking first.

What’s your favorite networking survival strategy? Please answer the poll in this blog’s right-hand column. I’ll report on the results in my next newsletter.

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Need to write better? Register for my next class on “How to Write Blog Posts People Will Read: A 5-Week Writing Class for Financial Advisors” starting May 16. You won’t get another chance to take this class until 2013.

Receive a free 32-page e-book with client communications tips when you sign up for my free monthly newsletter.

The topic of proper word usage matters to my readers. So I perked up when Kim Blanton told me over coffee that she had a great explanation of how to use “only” properly. I immediately asked her to guest-blog for me.

By the way, if you haven’t read Kim’s Squared Away blog, it’s a terrific example of plain English writing about financial behavior.

Only

By Kim Blanton

You may want to ignore this column. After all, it’s only about improper placement of the word “only.”

But this common error distorts a writer’s meaning – and can even imply the opposite of what you intended.

I am ever-mindful of this issue when writing my blog about financial behavior and psychology, Squared Away. But here’s a fun example, involving March Madness. It appeared in an article about a win by my alma mater, Indiana University, titled, “Indiana Beats New Mexico State.”

Just to set up the game first. IU finished in the middle of the pack in the Big 10 season rankings. But they played well in a rebuilding year against the New Mexico State Aggies in the first round of the NCAA playoffs, winning 79-66. The Hoosiers forced turnovers, nearly matched the Aggies in rebounds, and disabled the Aggies’ secret weapon: its ability to get to the free-throw line an average of 30 times per game.

Here’s what the Herald-Times in Bloomington, Indiana, had to say about that: The Aggies also shot more free throws this season (1,048) than any other Division 1 team. But the Hoosiers only sent them to the line 10 times.

Only? You gotta be kidding! IU freshman Cody Zeller put it better than I could: “That was huge for us (italics added).”

The misplacement of “only” made it sound as though containing the Aggies’ free throws was unimportant (on closer scrutiny, maybe the sentence doesn’t make any sense). Here’s where the writer would’ve planted his “only” if he’d written what he meant:

The Hoosiers sent them to the line only 10 times.

The rule: “only” must be next to or as close possible to the word or phrase that it modifies – in this case, the number of free-throw attempts. [IU went on to beat Virginia Commonwealth University and faces powerhouse ranked Kentucky in the Sweet 16 – but that’s another issue altogether.]

It can be difficult to explain syntax, but here’s an easier example. Car keys in hand, you announce to your roommate or spouse, “I’m only going to the store to buy milk and bread.”

This means that you’re not going to Tahiti or the megamall – or the moon for that matter. As in: it’s not a big deal and I’ll be back in 15 minutes.

But if you mean that you’ll buy milk and bread but not salsa and chips, avocados, beer and chili fixings, you’d say:  “I’m going to the store to buy only milk and bread.” Note that “only” follows the rule, sitting next to the words it modifies: bread and milk.

In conversation, proper placement doesn’t seem to matter much – things tend to work themselves out. But precision in writing is critical to clarity. Readers seeking to understand your meaning will re-read a sentence closely – sometimes more than once. You don’t want that careful reader to reach the wrong conclusion.

In her blog, Squared Away, Kim Blanton demystifies financial behavior for everyone, from young adults to retirees. 

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Need to write better? Register for my next class on “How to Write Blog Posts People Will Read: A 5-Week Writing Class for Financial Advisors” starting May 16. You won’t get another chance to take this class until 2013.

Receive a free 32-page e-book with client communications tips when you sign up for my free monthly newsletter.

BlackRock is running an eye-catching ad campaign. You can’t miss it if you read publications such as The Wall Street Journal or The New York Times.

Screen shot from BlackRock's Investing for a New World website--Click on the image to visit the site.

Ad appeals to the analytical

The ad campaign takes an analytical rather than an emotional approach to appealing to readers. It basically says, “you’ve got an investment problem, we’ve got an answer.” The problem is defined in terms of yields, volatility, and confidence.

This befits an asset manager that has “embraced a new standard of analytical rigor,” as stated in the firm’s ad in the March 15, 2012 Wall Street Journal (all references below are to this ad because it’s the one I saved). It’s also good for reaching financial advisors and institutional investors who favor the analytical.

Emotions sneak in

There’s a bit of an emotional appeal in this BlackRock ad. The fourth line in the headline says “Confidence is scarce.” This may attract the attention of readers who worry about their financial future.

There’s more text that appeals to emotions. “So what do I do with my money?” is a question that evokes anxiety. The next block of the ad ties this question to widely held concerns including

• When will I be able to retire?
• Will I be able to pay for my children’s education?
• Will I outlive my savings?

However, these questions aren’t in large type, so a casual viewer may miss them.

Still, this ad stands out from the crowd of ads that use hackneyed images of happy families and retirees. The graphics don’t look like anything I remember seeing.

Your opinion?

What do YOU think of this ad? I’d like to hear your opinions.

If you didn’t catch the ads, check out BlackRock’s Investing for a New World website that’s tied to the ad campaign. If you’d like to learn more about the firm’s strategy, see BlackRock’s press release about its new initiative.

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Need to write better? Register for my next class on “How to Write Blog Posts People Will Read: A 5-Week Writing Class for Financial Advisors” starting May 16. You won’t get another chance to take this class until 2013.

Receive a free 32-page e-book with client communications tips when you sign up for my free monthly newsletter.

Pinterest puzzles me. How the heck can “pinning” pictures in albums work as a marketing technique? But then I read guest-blogger Caitlin Zucal’s post and thought about how it’s pictures, not words, that most easily go viral on Facebook. So perhaps financial marketers should think of Pinterest as “Facebook without words” or another way to share their products their products, personality, and common interests with clients and prospects. As a writer, I’m a big fan of communicating with words. But even I acknowledge that some people respond better to images.

I’ve had the pleasure of working with Caitlin on a project. It’s nice to add her guest blog to our relationship, especially because she’s helping me figure out Pinterest. By the way, you can check out Arkovi’s Pinterest page at Arkovi Social Media Archiving on Pinterest.

Make It a Worthwhile Experience–Marketing Your Brand on Pinterest

By Caitlin Zucal

No platform reaches audiences like the new social media kid on the block, Pinterest.  With a mosaic of images covering every topic from recipes and dream destinations to fashion and technology, Pinterest is quickly grabbing consumers’ attentions.  So, what does this mean for your business?

Showcase Your Products While Showing Your Personal Side

With its endless supply of images and followers dying to “pin” them, Pinterest can effectively drive traffic to your website by showcasing your products and your personality.  Think of pins not only as ways to increase SEO, but also as new channels to reach clients and broadcast what you have offer. Post photos of your logos, your products, staff and more.  Every pin you have is like an ad for your business that contains a link back to your company website.  Therefore, each “re-pin” can lead to more website interaction.  An excellent example of doing Pinterest correctly is Whole Foods Market.  Their boards show recipes, fresh produce the store sells, and cooking gadgets.  However, Whole Foods also has boards highlighting personal wellness and the Whole Planet Foundation, which tie their company mission into their profile as well.

Sharing Your Products and Mission

Furthermore, by showing the fun side to your business, maybe by adding a board with quotes you love or pictures of each staff member’s favorite movie, you help users to connect with your brand on a personal level.  A perfect example of this is Southwest Airlines. Their Pinterest account not only shows their staff and destinations, but also has board for plane party ideas, vintage travel photos, and fun plane crafts.

Having Fun with Board Ideas

An Extra Bonus: Facebook and Twitter Integration

Another great feature is Pinterest’s integration with Facebook and Twitter.  Every time a user repins an image, they have the option of sharing that pin on their Facebook or Twitter accounts.  If you’re creating an engaging Pinterest atmosphere and your fans are responding by repinning your photos, your exposure is growing.  Not only can customers and prospects see your products and brand personality on Pinterest, but they may share your pins with others on Facebook and Twitter as well.

Make It a Worthwhile Experience

You are not just on Pinterest to market your business and sell your products – you’re there to make a memorable experience for your customers and prospects.  So think outside of the box. Companies such as Bath & Body Works have held contests where they have invited fans to create a board showing their road trip of their dreams that also ties in one of the company’s signature fragrances.  Or, pin a QR code that holds a special discount for your fans on Pinterest.

Pinterest Contest by Bath and Body Works

The possibilities are endless.  By hopping on Pinterest, you’re already thinking outside of the box.  Just remember to keep those creative juices flowing.

A Note on Copyright

There has been new debate and discussion regarding issues of copyright and publishing content to Pinterest. As with all things legal – it comes down to the language of the Pinterest Terms of Service. The paragraph of concern states:

“By making available any Member Content through the Site, Application or Services, you hereby grant to Cold Brew Labs a worldwide, irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive, transferable, royalty-free license, with the right to sublicense, to use, copy, adapt, modify, distribute, license, sell, transfer, publicly display, publicly perform, transmit, stream, broadcast, access, view, and otherwise exploit such Member Content only on, through or by means of the Site, Application or Services.” (full terms of service are at http://pinterest.com/about/terms/)

This alone sounds threatening to your content – and the legal profession will sort this out. However – in layman’s terms it can also be attributed to the fact that Pinterest needs this sublicense to push your content around the site, allow it to go into mashups and otherwise be used and re-used across the Pinterest platform. Note the “only on, through or by means of the Site, Application or Services.”

In addition they disclaim any ownership to content you publish, as they do not hold the copyright. This is somewhat similar discussion to the one over Facebook’s terms of service in 2009-2010 around uploading of photographs.

A good rule of thumb – pinning content that is publicly published and available without restriction is likely fair use. Certainly more clarity will come on this issue.

Caitlin Zucal is the Marketing Coordinator for Arkovi Social Media Archiving. A graduate of The Ohio State University, Caitlin joined Arkovi in early 2011 and manages Arkovi’s social media presence. She is an admitted serial Facebook and Pinterest contributor and can be found on Twitter at @Caitlin_Zucal.

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Need to write better? Register for my next class on “How to Write Blog Posts People Will Read: A 5-Week Writing Class for Financial Advisors” starting May 16. You won’t get another chance to take this class until 2013.

Receive a free 32-page e-book with client communications tips when you sign up for my free monthly newsletter.

A good story or analogy can boost the power of your communications. It will linger long after the rest of your conversation fades.

Photo: Tony Crider

I like the following example, which I found in “Tuning up implementation of modern portfolio theory” by Scott MacKillop:

Now let’s talk about combining managers in portfolios. The legendary football coach Knute Rockne said: “As a coach, I play not my 11 best but my best 11.”

This is how we should build portfolios.

I’m no football fan. I won’t even watch the Super Bowl. But this quote resonated with me. I threw my copy of Investment News, where this appeared, into my office so I could share it with you.

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Need to write better? Register for my next class on “How to Write Blog Posts People Will Read: A 5-Week Writing Class for Financial Advisors” starting May 16. You won’t get another chance to take this class until 2013.

Receive a free 32-page e-book with client communications tips when you sign up for my free monthly newsletter.