But I’ve always sat here…

For some people moving desks is a really big deal. They’ve created their territory, put up their pictures, moved their phone and adjusted the height of their screen and chair so they’re perfectly aligned.

All of this is a good thing. And should be encouraged.

But.

Becoming so entrenched in one space can become less like creating a home and more like building an empire.

It might sound a tad dramatic but it’s a common enough sight that people resist the filing cabinets or photocopier being moved because of NIMBYism – or they don’t want the new guy sitting next to them because they’ve always sat with Pete.

The trouble here is that in an environment where things rarely alter, the smallest change can become a major issue. Demanding the focus of too much management time and sucking the energy out of a team as factions form and people get frustrated over the pettiness of the issue – that very frustration being the thing that helps blow it out of all  proportion.

And what happens when something big appears on the horizon and really shakes the status quo?

But what’s the solution? Well, you could just leave Pete where he is…

OR

Do it more.

Small regular changes to seating plans or team structures can help prepare people for how to tackle bigger issues. Of course, it’s essential that we don’t just change for change’s sake – the alterations need to have a purpose. And we all need some level of constancy in our lives. But, when people understand that change isn’t intrinsically ‘bad’, you can create a more fluid, adaptable and successful workforce.

For example, when a business sells to another organisation, the disruption to both workforces is immense and intense. Everyone feels threatened, uneasy, uncomfortable.To be honest, it doesn’t even matter if no one’s job is at risk or if little actually changes, bar the footer on the letterhead.

When things change we all, albeit unwittingly, move into Bruce Tuckman’s four stage forming, storming, norming, performing model. In a business it means we have to expend resources to help our people work through what’s happening around (and to) them.

We can’t avoid this. But we can make it easier to bear. We can make the stages flow quicker and encourage early adoption of new ideas.

Our own experiences directing the HR and brand management during mergers and acquisitions has shown this time and again.

Small change is key.

The organisations that help their people learn to adapt in an unthreatening environment are the ones that reach the ‘performing’ stage quickest. With forward planning they reduce stress, management time and conflict.

And they create effective, confident employees who can cope when the big stuff looms.

As Heraclitus said: “change is the only constant”. Things simply work better when we’re used to it.

]]> http://www.winthecrowd.co.uk/index.php/2012/04/01/small-change/feed/ 0 http://www.winthecrowd.co.uk/index.php/2012/02/16/making-your-web-copy-sing/ http://www.winthecrowd.co.uk/index.php/2012/02/16/making-your-web-copy-sing/#comments Thu, 16 Feb 2012 22:57:32 +0000 admin http://www.winthecrowd.co.uk/?p=912 This article was first written for an online magazine to advise artisan businesses on how to write good web copy…

Who are you? What do you do? How can I find you? Do I trust you?

You call them words, we call it copy. Whatever you call it, writing a website in a way that makes people engage with your product or service can be harder than it seems.

But worry not.

Even if you find it difficult to hit the high notes, the following will at least make your website sound in tune. And it will help ensure your audience is more likely to listen.

A picture tells a thousand words

Great websites generally have great imagery. But alongside taking a few classic snaps, there are some key points worth keeping in mind:

• Ensure your visuals are consistent and appropriate for your brand
• Be sure you have the right to share the images on your website
• Use a professional photographer if possible – even if it’s just for your main shots
• And make sure you’ve got the right metadata connected to your images – this means attaching key words behind them to get them working hard so Google and other search engines can find you.

But pictures don’t tell the whole story…

Read all about it!

Headlines. Use them.

Website users scan text rather than read thoroughly. So headings need to be effective as they are the first thing they’ll notice. Make sure you include some of your key words – it’s important for Search Engine Optimisation (SEO).

They need to catch people’s eye and give a hint as to what comes next. If they’re funny and/or clever then all the better – but be sure they’re not so obscure that only you and an intimate few can understand them.

And keep them short. And snappy.

Rules are there to be broken

In this age of mass multi-media communication, many of the language rules we learnt at school have gone out of the window.

Now, this don’t mean badly writings’ or; adding in – random bits of! Punctuation.

But, it does mean you can start paragraphs with but. And you can begin sentences with and.

Use the language to your advantage. It works when you break up text or create visual interest by using short sentences or one word paragraphs.

See?

What you mustn’t do is forget the rules that form the bedrock of good writing. Things like the correct usage of possessive apostrophes* or that classic of modern writing… the three dots.

It’s three. Not four. Or ten. Just three.

It’s not what you say, it’s the way that you say it

Your tone of voice (TOV) represents the personality of your brand/company through words.

One way to approach how to write is to think what your business would sound like if it was a person. How we express ourselves in words speaks volumes about us. If you met your brand at a party would you want to talk to them again?

Think about your competitors. What is their TOV like? Warm and chatty or rather formal? Decide which  approach appeals to you and apply it consistently. It forms part of your brand.

Obviously you will vary your TOV depending on who you’re talking to and the medium you’re using, but a single personality should still be coming through.

Be yourself

Finding the right voice gives all your communications their own distinct flavour and demonstrates congruence. Congruence is when how you behave and look matches what you say. Looking the part is only half the story. Your website needs to look the part and sound the part. That’s congruence and it helps customers trust you.

We often use brand values to help clients develop their distinct TOV. This is fine as far as it goes. But saying you’re ‘approachable’ and an ‘expert’ in your field isn’t enough. What makes you sound approachable and expert is about a subtle mix of your use of register, vocabulary and grammar.

Compare Newsround with News at 10.

They’re both seen as trusted experts. They both share the same news stories. But how they do it… that’s the difference.

Take the following example from a food company. One of their brand values is ‘delicious’.

To express this they use language like: mouth-watering, satisfying, indulge, fabulous, enjoy, lovely, ripe, juicy.

So… ’A lettuce, tomato and cucumber salad’ becomes… ‘Crisp lettuce and cucumber salad with juicy tomato.’

One sounds plain and drab, the other fresh and appetising.

For the web it’s crucial to remember that TOV mustn’t get in the way of writing good web-friendly copy. Usability and SEO rule the roost – but really good web copy manages to combine them all.

Write right

So you’ve got some good headlines and have decided how you want to come across. The next bit is the hardest of all. The stuff that comes under the headlines and explains the detail. The stuff you want people to read.

It’s a bit like doing the high jump at school. If you’ve seen the Fosbury Flop then you should be able to do it. But we all know how hard it really is to clear the bar. And the odds are there will be people who are better at it than you are.

Luckily there are some tricks you can learn to help you jump higher. And it’s the same for good web copy too.

Here are our top twelve web copy tips:

1. Get people’s attention. And keep it. Keep your text short and to the point. Optimum word count per page is around 250. Obviously this can vary but if you’re worried it’s too long it probably is.
2. Structure and format are crucial. Make it easy on the eye using distinct paragraphs with headings and bullets. People read websites in an F pattern. Make your key points clear and don’t lose them on the bottom right on the page.
3. Do sweat the small stuff – make sure paragraphs and images are all aligned correctly and don’t use random capitals or suddenly change fonts, colours or text size.
4. Think about sentence length. Try to keep sentences under 15 words, and no more than 20.
5. Paragraphs – again keep them short and to the point with 1 idea in each. Show don’t tell.
6. Research the key words people are using and weave this into your copy.
7. Look at what your competitors are doing. What do you like? What don’t you like?
8. Make the reader feel like you are talking to them – use ‘you’.
9. It’s crucial to be honest. Don’t try and be something you’re not.
10. Always think of your audience. Getting their attention is one thing. Keeping it another. Are you indulging yourself or engaging them? Remember that as humans we’re programmed to love a good story. You’ve got to sell the story. Stories sell.
11. Use the active rather than the passive voice to make things personal. [See comment about using ‘You’ above.]
12. Update your site often to keep content fresh for visitors. Google also likes this. One of the best ways of doing this is through a blog.

You’re brilliant

Of course you are.

That’s why you’re building a business and developing your brand. But even you can’t do everything. It’s always good to get a trusted friend (ideally several) to read through your site. Listen to them – without forgetting your opinion is finally what counts!

Or get a professional in. You can get someone to write the whole thing from scratch or just cast an eye over your finished piece and give it a light edit. Neither needs to cost the earth but it could really help you express yourself the way you want to sound.

And, finally, be your own best critical friend. Plan it. Write it. Review it. Cut it down. Tear it up. Have another think. And start again.

As Blaise Pascal said: “I have made this letter longer than usual, only because I haven’t had the time to make it shorter.”

Exactly.

Nash Matthews is a partnership of European Patent and Trade Mark Attorneys.

Thay are dedicated to providing a first rate intellectual property service, encompassing patents, trade marks, designs and other related rights.

The concept

We interviewed one of their key clients, John Clamp of Ultravision, to write a vox pop piece highlighting the key benefits of working with Nash Matthews.

The film forms part of a portfolio of client profiles in multi-media formats.

The conclusion

It was critical to adopt John’s natural language and create a script that he would be comfortable with.

By talking to John, and listening carefully to his tone of voice, we were able to create a piece that gets across the key points required by the client while ensuring that he still sounds like John!

The film was shot by a specialist media agency and is shown on Nash Matthews’ You Tube channel and their website.

The client

Scampers are an award-winning petcare superstore based in East Anglia.

They have recently remodelled their business and we have supported them throughout the journey to becoming the UK’s leading retailer of biologically appropriate pet foods – revolutionising the way people care for their pets.

The concept

For this part of the project, we were asked to produce a short stills film to show in store beside the RAW foods section.

The film needed to explain the key benefits of RAW feeding, one aspect of feeding biologically appropriate dog and cat foods, and encourage owners to find out more.

The conclusion

We used Norman and Fish, the owners’ dogs, as our models, as they are a recognised part of the Scampers team.

We wanted customers to relate to the film and to see the real benefits that RAW feeding has brought to dogs they know.

The film will be shown on Scampers’ You Tube channel, their website and in store.

Right, so I know I need to start twittering but… what is it exactly?

We were recently asked to give a 10 minute social media blasterclass for one of our clients.

They knew they needed Twitter – at least, they’d been told they did and believed whoever it was they were talking to… They also knew they needed Facebook and had set up a page and then… weren’t really sure what to do with it…

So, we held hands, took deep breaths and helped them dive into the social sphere.

We talked about the importance of  listening to their market place. We talked about congruence and being true to yourself. We talked about not just using the social media channels as hard sales tools but to nurture followers to create a more subtle route to market. We talked about lots of things.

And, by the end of it all, they were happy to swim alone.

They’ve set up their Twitter accounts, they’re using their Facebook pages and they’re getting ready for their shiny new website (courtesy of us).

But, what we would have really liked is this. A perfect guide to social media – despite the doh!nut misspell.

All credit to Firebox (and David Donnan) for pointing it out on… yes, their Facebook pages.

There are many occasions in the life of a business where difficult decisions have to be made. And it’s simply not possible to declare that ‘there will never be any redundancies’ or that there will never be any challenging changes to deal with in the future. Many mergers and acquisitions fall down because promises that can never be kept are made at the outset and then broken with impunity.

Resolving not to say things that can not be true is a key aspect of acting for the Greater Good.

In this context, it simply means having the best outcome for all concerned at the heart of all actions.

From another angle, if the business strategy has to entail making half the workforce redundant then acting for the Greater Good means approaching that potentially personally devastating piece of communication with empathy and understanding. Certain that you are treating each individual with respect and humanity. Following rules and procedures isn’t enough – do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

Implementing change is an essential part of any business. And worrying about whether people like the change or not is not the issue.

Engendering a collective respect, knowledge and appreciation of the greater good goes a long way to helping a business behave as a single entity. It helps avoid those situations where people fight necessary change or simply fight for their own end. It’s something which has to reach from the very top of the business throughout all the layers, so that, as far as possible, everyone is truly working together. For the greater good.