Top 3 Compliance Concerns When Writing Your Blog

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Compliance expert Cindi Hill very kindly reviewed the compliance section of my Financial Blogging book from the perspective of a registered investment advisor (RIA). I’m delighted to share her guest post on compliance and your blog. It seems to me that most of her advice also applies to other forms of advisor writing that might be considered marketing or advertising.

Top 3 Compliance Concerns When Writing Your Blog

By Cindi R. Hill

Let’s explore the compliance side of writing your blog. What are the things you should avoid or be concerned about when planning what you will write in your blog?

1. Understand who will need to review your blog

Is it simply the chief compliance officer or will your blog post need to go through a complete review cycle? How much lead time is needed for the review? If you have something that includes breaking news, you don’t want it tied up in review for days. In some states, like Idaho, all advertising items are required to be reviewed and approved by the state prior to being published.

2. Learn the guidelines for discussing performance

If you discuss investment performance, you need to follow guidelines. There are disclosures that may be required as part of your blog footer, the text that runs immediately under the body of each post. Which guidelines and disclosures depends on if you are registered with the SEC, your state, or FINRA. Be aware of these before you start to write.

3. Use words carefully

When reviewing any advertising/marketing piece I look at the words used. Some I discourage from use are “no bias” or “no conflicts of interest.” Just because you are a fee-only advisor does not mean that you have no biases.

This leads me to other types of words you should avoid, starting with definitive descriptors like “all” or “will.” Use “may” when you are tempted to use “will.” On a similar note, the word “exact” in a blog will get my immediate attention.

Another type of word I suggest staying away from—adjectives. For example, “excellent” or “superior” when referring to returns. This may seem obvious, but I have had to remove them from a reviewed document in the past. Also “highly” as in highly experienced. Or another one: “ultra-low cost.” You get the picture.

Remember that your blog is an advertisement. Compliance around any advertisement applies to your blog. No testimonials. This prohibition appears to apply to non-investment advisory activities as well.

Cindi R. Hill, CFP®, IACCPTM of Hill Compliance Advisors provides comprehensive compliance services and solutions for the financial professional who is a Registered Financial Advisor (RIA). You can follow her blog at https://hilladvisors.wordpress.com.

Confessions of a lousy writer—and 6 tips for you

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I was a lousy writer. It’s true. I wince when I read selections from my Ph.D. thesis, Bureaucracy and Politics in the 1930s: The Career of Goto Fumio.

Goto Fumio

Goto Fumio, the subject of my Ph.D. thesis

Wordy sentences and examples of the passive voice abound. However, over the many years since I earned my doctorate from Harvard, I’ve revamped my style, using techniques that you, too, can adopt.

1. Get someone to edit you

It’s hard for most people to identify their writing’s weaknesses. That’s why it’s so valuable to have someone edit you. My writing improved the most in the 1990s, when I was a staff reporter for Dalbar’s Mutual Fund Market News (now Money Management Executive). I had the luxury of being edited by professionals. If you work with a professional editor, look for patterns in the changes they make to your text. If certain corrections or changes occur repeatedly, you can create a checklist that you can apply yourself to future drafts. You’ll find a sample checklist, the “Blog Post Review Checklist” in my book, Financial Blogging: How to Write Powerful Posts That Attract Clients.

If a professional editor isn’t in your budget, consider asking colleagues, family members, friends, or even clients for feedback. Members of your target audience can help you assess whether your content appeals to them.

2. Take writing classes

Take a writing class—any kind of writing class. I’ve never taken a journalism or financial writing class. However, I’ve taken many adult education classes on writing essays, memoir, and even poetry in the adult ed programs of Boston, Cambridge, and Newton, Mass. These classes helped me learn how to organize my writing, write more economically, and use words with greater power. You might wonder at my inclusion of poetry on my list, but those classes remind me of how important each word is in my writing.

You may be able to find business writing classes, especially if you look at a local college that offers business administration classes. On June 26, 2014, I’ll lead a webinar on “How to Write Investment Commentary People Will Read,” shortly after presenting on that topic to the Boston Security Analysts Society on June 17. I have taught “How to Write Blog Posts People Will Read: Class for Financial Advisors” in addition to presentations on investment commentary, email, and other topics.

The rise of online instruction means that you should be able to find a class no matter where you live.

3. Write a lot

The more you write, the better you’ll become, especially if you get your writing critiqued. One benefit of blogging is that it gives you an incentive to write and publish frequently.

4. Read and analyze other people’s writing

When you read and enjoy other people’s work, take the time to figure out what you like about it. Is it their catchy titles and headings? The way they hit their readers’ hot spots? Their streamlined prose?

You can also learn from analyzing pieces that you dislike. These examples can yield a “don’t” list for you. Avoiding terrible mistakes is worthwhile.

Classes, which I mentioned above, are one way to get practice critiquing other people’s work constructively. Another way is to join a writing group, where members take turns giving and receiving feedback. My book, Financial Blogging: How to Write Powerful Posts That Attract Clients  came from my creative writing group. I don’t know how I would have finished my book without group members’ encouragement and feedback. Plus, I found my book’s project manager in the group.

5. Read about writing

While learning by doing is most powerful, you can also learn by reading about writing techniques. I recommend books on this blog. I also blog about techniques. While my monthly newsletter usually includes a writing tip, you may also enjoy my “Weekly Tip,” which includes just one communications or marketing tip from my archives. You can subscribe or adjust your subscription settings. In addition, you will find step-by-step instructions for writing blog posts in my Financial Blogging book.

6. Experiment

Take risks. Experiment with writing using techniques and formats you’ve never used before. You’re bound to learn something from the results.

What else works?

If you can suggest additional techniques for improving people’s writing, I’d love to hear from you.

Guide your readers better than this trail guided me

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I got lost. A poorly marked hiking trail sent my husband and me in one wrong direction and then another before we found our way. This reminded me of how writing that lacks trail markers sends readers astray.

The best trail markers for your writing are topic sentences. A strong topic sentence—the first sentence of any paragraph—summarizes the information covered by the rest of the paragraph.

Let me illustrate with an example of bad writing.

Factor #1 affects your investment performance. It can make a big difference in your investment returns. Factor #2 is important, too. So is Factor #3. #2 acts independently of #1 and #3. Factor #3 interacts with Factor #1, but not #2.

This would make more sense with a new topic sentence and some rearranging.

Three factors have a big impact on your investment returns: #1, #2, and #3. #1 and #3 work together, while #2 is independent of them.

To learn more about how topic sentences can help you, read “Quick check for writers, with an economic commentary example.”

If you don’t want to fix examples like this on your own, consider hiring me to help with your firm’s market or portfolio performance commentary. Or check out my June 26 webinar, “How to Write Investment Commentary People Will Read.”

 

Please edit like a traitor

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As a writer, your first loyalty should not be to yourself. Instead, you should betray yourself, as Donald Murray suggests in Writing to Deadline: The Journalist at Work.Writing to Deadline by Donald Murray

Here’s what Murray says:

Effective writers turn traitor to their own copy, reading what they have written through the eyes of an enemy reader who has no loyalty to the writer, little interest in the subject, no concern with form or style but with an aggressive skepticism and an eagerness to turn the page. Writers must detach themselves from intent, not reading what is supposed to be on the page, but what is on the page.

I like Murray’s assertion that you should assume that readers are eager to “turn the page,” although in today’s world that equates to web-surfing away from your page. Your job is to provide reader-friendly content that is compelling, clear, and concise.

The best solution to edit your content as if you were a member of your target audience. Betray yourself and go over to the other side. I’ll be interested to hear about your results.

Disclosure: If you click on the Amazon link in this post and then buy something, I will receive a small commission. I only link to books in which I find some value for my blog’s readers.
Note: I edited this on April 22, 2014, after noticing a typo.

Say “No” to jargon!

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Jargon hurts your communications. I found a great quote about this in Simple: Conquering the Crisis of Complexity by Alan Siegel and Irene Etzkorn.

Here it is:

To connect with people, you have to speak their language. The use of jargon represents a decision on the part of companies and governments to speak in a language that they understand and you don’t.

Jargon can lead to your messages becoming “lost in translation,” as the authors say.

Writing wisdom from novelist Gish Jen

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A conversational writing style helps your blog appeal to readers. But “conversational” does not mean “exactly as in a conversation.”

Novelist Gish Jen says in Why We Write:

When you tell a story in the kitchen to a friend, it is full of infelicities. I try to edit those out in literature but keep the feeling of a story being told.

When you’re blogging, this may mean that you

  • Cut irrelevant details
  • Tighten the structure of your story, making it flow more quickly and logically

Why We Write offers nuggets of advice and inspiration for writers. While it tilts toward fiction, there’s something for everyone.

 

Disclosure: If you click on the Amazon link in this post and then buy something, I will receive a small commission. I only link to books in which I find some value for my blog’s readers.

Your “lollipop” doesn’t say what you think

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Choose your words with attention to the many ways they may be interpreted. As a hike in the Rhode Island woods reminded me, your terminology may not convey the message you intend.

On a muggy summer day, my husband and I set off on a “2.3-mile lollipop” hike. Quickly eyeballing the trail description, my husband assumed that “lollipop” meant it was an easy hike, appropriate for little kids of a lollipop-loving age. Not so.

It turned out that lollipop referred to the trail’s shape. A path as straight as a Tootsie Pop’s stick led to a circular trail. As you can tell, the author’s lollipop image was misinterpreted by a reader in a hurry.

The author could suggest to my husband that he read more carefully. After all, if my husband had read the trail summary, and compared it to the map that appeared four pages later, he could have grasped the analogy. But it’s not realistic to expect everyone to read at such length and with such attention to detail.

In this case, writing “lollipop-shaped” trail could have guided my husband to the right conclusion, which making the trail’s shape memorable through the use of an analogy.

What are YOUR lollipops?

Are there financial terms that your readers find just as confusing as lollipop was in my example?

Do you find “lollipops” in writing about investments and personal finance? What are they, and how can we describe them better?

How to give feedback to your ghostwriter

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Farming out writing to a ghostwriter can make the difference between ideas that remain stuck in your head and ideas that become persuasive prose.

This may involve some give-and-take between you and your ghostwriter. I have some suggestions to help.

1. Give feedback promptly

Ghostwriters can edit your drafts most effectively when your content is fresh in their minds. Take advantage of this by quickly commenting on drafts. Responding within one week is ideal. However, this may not be practical if you’re dealing with a very long document, vacation schedules, or other constraints. Work out a schedule with your ghostwriter.

2. Consolidate feedback in one document

So your ghostwriter can accurately absorb feedback from multiple sources on your end, combine all of that feedback in one document. That reduces the chance that your ghostwriter will overlook an important change while juggling multiple documents.

Combining feedback into one document also lets you see if people at your company disagree about any aspects of the document. That’s something you should sort out before responding to your ghostwriter.

3. Be specific

The more specific you make your feedback, the more likely your ghostwriter will meet your needs. For example, instead of writing that “We need more on topic X,” write “Please add the three main points from page 13 of our handbook,” list the main points you’d like the ghostwriter to add, or simply insert them yourself.

4. Use “Track Changes” and “comments”

Microsoft Word’s “Track Changes” and “Comments” features make it easy for your ghostwriter to see what you’ve changed and what you want them to change. This clarity helps them implement your wishes.

“Track Changes” also cues your ghostwriter that he or she should review new text for stylistic consistency and errors of grammar, punctuation, or usage. I often smooth out my clients’ additions.

 

Follow these tips and your ghostwriting revisions will go smoothly. I’ve tested and refined these tips through years of experience ghostwriting white papers and articles for leading investment and wealth management firms.

 

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

 

Looks matter when you present numbers, says “Painting with Numbers” author

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Painting with Numbers by Randall BoltenNumbers are critical when financial professionals communicate with the clients and colleagues. However, poorly crafted communications with numbers can sabotage you. Randall Bolten’s Painting with Numbers: Presenting Financials and Other Numbers So People Will Understand You will improve your effectiveness.

I was particularly taken with Bolten’s chapter called “Looks Matter.”

As Bolten says, your use of white space, font styles, and other visual cues can make a big difference in readers’ understanding. These cues tell your readers “how they should group your information and what’s not important, and where you want them to focus first.”

Here are some chart and spreadsheet tips from Bolten’s “Looks Matter” chapter.

Tip 1: “Put the important numbers where they’re easy for the reader to find, which is usually around the edges.” Think about it. The eye will seek the “bottom line” when looking at financial statements.

Tip 2: Use white space to set off the main elements. This could mean setting off groups of rows, such as revenues or cost of sales. It might also mean breaking 12 months of data into clusters of three months.

Tip 3: Show time periods across the top of the report. This takes advantage of the English-speaking world’s habit of reading from left to right. Plus, the numbers in an income statement then fall into a mathematically logical order of revenues, expenses, and profits.

Tip 4: Use font and cell formatting choices wisely. This means highlighting the most important numbers using boldface, colored or italicized text, borders or cell shading. Don’t go overboard with special effects. As Bolten says, “Not only is an overdressed report hard to understand, but the impact of the visual effects that do have a valid purpose becomes diluted because the reader can’t tell which effects are meaningful and which aren’t.”

 Useful book for numbers people

I’m more of a word person than a numbers person. If I ever had to dig more deeply into spreadsheets, I’d study Bolten’s book closely for its tips on designing and using Microsoft Excel to create reader-friendly output. Bolten’s philosophy of “painting with numbers” lines up nicely with my approach to working with words.

Disclosures: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher. If you click on the Amazon link in this post and then buy something, I will receive a small commission. I only link to books in which I find some value for my blog’s readers.

7 steps toward picking your self-published financial book’s formats and formatter

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book cover: Financial Blogging: How to Write Powerful Posts That Attract Clients

I learned some lessons as I struggled through getting my book formatted.

When you self publish your book, you get more control over the final product. The downside? You must sink time and money into the production process, starting with choosing your book’s formats and formatter. I learned firsthand about this when I published Financial Blogging: How to Write Powerful Posts That Attract Clients.

So many format choices

Do you want to publish electronically, produce a physical product, or do both?

Electronic formats include PDFs; formatting for the most popular e-readers, the Kindle and the Nook, and many other less widely used formats. As for physical producers, you can choose between paperback and hardcover as well as print-on-demand vs. printing and buying a batch of books before you sell them. The choices can feel overwhelming.

Step 1. Ask readers for their preferences

In the beginning, I thought I’d publish Financial Blogging as an e-book. After all, they’re the wave of the future. I figured I’m a dinosaur in my preference for printed books.

However, I dutifully surveyed my social media connections after a savvy friend suggested I ask whether people read “how to” books as e-books, PDFs, or printed books. I was surprised by the enthusiasm expressed for printed books.

Step 2. Consider your book’s demands

The nature of your book may influence its format. For example, an interactive book won’t work if it’s printed on paper.

In my case, my book included multi-page worksheets and special layouts that work best on 81/2” x 11″ paper. They wouldn’t display well on e-reader screens. This is what drove my decision to produce two versions of my book—PDF and print-on-demand paperback—formatted with 81/2” x 11″ pages.

Step 3. Decide on DIY vs. outsourcing

It’s possible to do it yourself, especially if you’re creating a text-only mini e-book PDF. My annual Investment Writing Top Tips compilation in PDF format is a DIY job, except for the professionally designed cover.

E-books are more complicated. I had my virtual assistant convert Investment Writing Top Tips 2012 to the Kindle and Nook formats following the instructions the the string of blog posts by Guido Henkel that starts with “Take pride in your ebook formatting.” It took her roughly 9.5 hours to complete.

You can also try automated formatting, following the instructions on Kindle Direct Publishing or Nook Press for the Nook. However, you may run into format glitches. Plus, the quality of your layout in the e-book will be limited to the quality of the layout and coding in your original.

I’m not an expert on the DIY approach, so please do research before you pursue this approach.

If you’re a busy financial professional, you should outsource. Fighting with formatting wastes your valuable time.

Step 4. Ask for recommendations

I’m a big believer in the power of recommendations. However, I suggest that you get specific in your recommendation request. Tell your colleagues the formats you’re targeting and whether your book involves any challenges, such as the inclusion of images or other complex formatting.

Step 5. Investigate pricing and turnaround times

Pricing varies greatly for formatting your book. The ultimate price will depend on factors including:

  • Your page count
  • Special formatting requirements
  • The need to convert from one format to another—for example, my designer prefers to format for print publication before he converts to an e-book format
  • How many edits or other changes you make after you submit your manuscript for formatting
  • Timing—if you have a rush job, your designer may charge a premium price
  • Your book cover requirements—prices vary greatly depending on your source of cover images
  • Nature of services included—the designer I initially hired included consulting on book page size, pricing, and other marketing services in her flat price, but most designers don’t offer such services or charge a la carte.

You may find it hard to compare designers’ price estimates for your book. In my experience, few designers quote flat fees that include everything you want. Instead, they may say $x per page and $y per hour for services such as inserting images or designing graphics.

In “The Real Costs of Self-Publishing a Book,” Miral Sattar says you can pay $150-$3,500 for cover design and from $0-$2,500+ for print and e-book formatting.

By the way, if you pick a book formatter who won’t design your book’s cover, you can pick up tips from “Your Book Cover is Like a Highway Billboard” by Scott Lorenz.

Step 6. Ask for references and samples

If I had been more diligent about Step 6, perhaps I could have avoided my book designer fiasco in which my designer quit partway through the design process because she wasn’t up to formatting mind maps and sidebars.

You should look at samples of work your designer has done in your genre and with formatting challenges such as photos and graphs. Do you like how they look? Also, ask for references so you can learn about the designer’s responsiveness and other characteristics.

However, even good references are no guarantee. After all, nobody gives out names of people who disliked his or her work. In my case, my initial mistake stemmed from relying on the assessment of a consultant who’d had great experiences with the designer who let me down.

What’s the worst that can happen?

I had a book fiasco. My book designer quit without warning, making it impossible for me to launch my book at my May 2013 flurry of speaking engagements. That was a big disappointment.

However, with the help of my book consultant, I hired Jerry Dorris of AuthorSupport.com to design my book’s cover and interior. He did an amazing job. His design is far superior to that of my original designer. My book came out three months later than planned, but it wasn’t the end of the world.

Step 7. Take the big leap

Once you complete Steps 1 to 6, it’s time to hire your designer and move closer to sharing your book with the world. But you have more work to do.

In a future post, I’ll write about managing the book design process.

 

If you’d like to see the book design I ended up with, check out Financial Blogging: How to Write Powerful Posts That Attract Clients. You can peek inside the book on Amazon to see the great work Jerry did on the interior design.