May
18
9 Easy Ways to Write an Outstanding Blog Post
May 18, 2009 | 1 Comment | Written by Lindsay Talsness
- Do you hate writing blog entries?
- Is it a challenge to come up with new topics?
- Are you admittedly baffled by blogging?
Blogging can be easy, enjoyable, AND increase your business - if you do it the right way.
Here are 9 easy ways to dramatically improve your blog.
1. Write articles that readers will benefit from.
For example, Kraft Foods doesn’t write articles for their website entitled, “Buy more Kraft Foods products”. Instead, they post simple, delicious recipes1 that use Kraft ingredients.
If your blog articles are informative and helpful, instead of a direct sales pitch, more people will visit and revisit your blog.
Additional benefit: Writing informative articles builds your reputation as being an expert in your field.
2. Keep it short and focused.
According to research by Nielson Online2, Americans spend an average of 56 seconds on a webpage. Taking into consideration that the average person reads about 300 words per minute, I recommend blog articles be 250 - 500 words in length.
3. Watch your paragraph length.
Have you attempted to read extremely long paragraphs online? It’s difficult.
In fact, eye-tracking studies show that online readers tend to skip large blocks of text. It’s visually overwhelming for readers to see long paragraphs online, so break them up into shorter ones.
4. Use bullet points when providing a series of information.
Bullet points:
- Attract a readers’ eye.
- Highlight important information.
- Help readers’ find what they’re looking for more quickly.
5. Provide detailed subtitles throughout the article.
This technique helps draw readers into paragraphs farther down the page. A note of caution: I don’t consider “My conclusion” to be an interesting subtitle3.
6. Include links to your website in your article.
This will drive readers to key information on your website. Plus, clicking on links is fun!
7. If including an image, make sure it has a purpose.
Most people come to a website looking for information, not images. Make sure that key points of your text are most prominent.
8. Don’t be afraid to show some personality!
Don’t hide behind the company you’re writing for – people want to know that a real person (like Lindsay Talsness) is writing the article. I strongly encourage using pronouns like, “we” or “I” instead of “the company”.
9. Include a call to action.
Such as, “Don’t have a blog yet? Looking for ways to grow your business online? At Metro Studios, we’d love to help you. Contact us today to get started!”
1. Polynesian-glazed meatballs are a favorite at my house.
2. Nielsen Online (2009). Nielsen Online provides topline U.S. Data for March 2009 [Electronic version]. Retrieved May 8, 2009, from http://nielsen-online.com/pr/pr_090414.pdf
3. However, this subtitle is interesting.
May
18
Metro Studios Got Caught Reading!
May 18, 2009 | Leave a Comment | Written by Lindsay Talsness
May is “Get Caught Reading Month” and we thought we’d give you an inside look at what a few of us at Metro Studios have been reading in our free time.
We hope our recommendations will help you find your next summer read!
Keith Hindman
Chief Operating Officer
Selling the Invisible
"This book is my marketing bible. It has great down to earth lessons on improving the service your company provides – from each employee’s responsibility for customer service to building your brand through building relationships."
Amanda Schadt
Administrative Assistant
The First 30 Days: Your Guide to Any Change (and Loving Your Life More)
"This is a fabulous book about being successful at making positive changes in every area of your life. I highly recommend it!"
Andrew Miller
Director of Application Development
I, Robot
"I read the original – not the movie adaptation with Will Smith, for the love of pete! I love that this is a book from 50 years ago which provides an intriguing perspective on the implications of artificial intelligence."
Kendra Smith
Project Coordinator
Twilight
"Would it be totally embarrassing if I admitted that I am reading the Twilight series right now? I never expected to like this book, but I’m absolutely hooked! The author does a great job of writing an intense vampire love story."
John Whaley
Director of Internet Marketing
Watch This, Listen Up, Click Here
"This book provides an inside look at the $300 billion advertising business. It also describes current advertising trends and predicts their future. This is a great book for people interested in media trends."
Lindsay Talsness
Sr. Web Content Developer
Sense and Sensibility
"I’m revisiting this classic and falling in love with it all over again. Jane Austen wrote this novel almost 200 years ago, yet she manages to write about society with the same witty, insightful, and humorous tone that so many authors today try to achieve."
May
18
Is this Heaven? No, it’s Metro Studios.
May 18, 2009 | 2 Comments | Written by Lindsay Talsness
It’s not everyday you get to help make dreams come true. Especially a dream that’s been 20 years in the making. But this spring, that’s exactly what Metro Studios had the privilege of doing.
In 1988, Field of Dreams, thought to be one of the greatest sports movies ever made, was filmed in Dyersville, Iowa. Following the movie’s release, an unlikely group of men came together to continue the Field of Dreams legacy as a traveling baseball team, performing at military bases and family-oriented events around the world. They became the Ghostplayers.
For the past 20 years, Joe Scherrman, owner of Dreamcatcher Productions and a Ghostplayer himself, has chronicled their adventures on video. His documentary tells the story of how this zany team ranging from a hog farmer to a state representative moved audiences around the world and changed the players’ lives forever.
Dreamcatcher Productions enlisted the help of Aaron Spears, one of our Metro Studios video editors, to take more than 200 hours of Ghostplayers video and cut it into an hour documentary spanning the team’s 20 year journey. This included organizing the raw footage, writing a screenplay, conducting interviews and editing it all together.
From January through April, Metro Studios worked to create the film, and the results have been phenomenal. The documentary was shown to a sold-out preview in April, with an official premiere taking place in July. What’s more, Iowa Public Television plans to broadcast the documentary in July.
Metro Studios is proud to have a part in showcasing this Iowa legacy. We’re also glad to say that Aaron isn’t trapped in the editing suite surrounded by more than 200 hours of video footage.
If you’d like to learn more about the Ghostplayers documentary, check it out online at http://ghostplayer.us Or, watch them play their final game July 19 in Dyersville, Iowa against the U.S. Military All-Stars.
Or, if you’d like to learn more about how you can benefit from Metro Studio’s video editing services whether in Iowa or Arizona, visit our website.
