Business Tips: Hire a Professional

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Five Reasons to Hire a Writing Professional

Fabulous content on your website or blog is critical. Strong copy in advertising, e-mails and other communication is the difference between getting your message across and blending in with the crowd. 

Focus your energy

You have a particular passion and talent. Whatever that is, that is what you want to do. That’s how you make your money. That’s how you want to spend your time, not writing copy for e-mails, blogs, ads, flyers, newsletters and other business communications. By hiring a writing professional (copywriter) you can concentrate on the things you do fabulously.

Develop ideas

Your time is valuable. Your business relies on you. When you hire a professional you stop worrying about getting your message across to your customers in a creative and consistent way because the added value of a professional writer is the ideas they bring to the table. 

The job done right

When you have a problem with your car you take it to a reliable, professional mechanic. Car repair isn’t your thing, nor do you want it to be. You trust the mechanic to do the work that needs to be done. Turning your written communication needs over to a professional assures the work will be done correctly, creatively and on time.

Target and tailor your message

You know who your customers are. How do you reach them? That’s where a professional writer can help you by identifying strategies for reaching the people with money to spend for the products or services you offer. Target marketing isn't a catch phrase, it's a must for the savvy entrepreneur.

Best foot forward

Written communication is a reflection of your professionalism. The best selling point for your business is how you are perceived based on several factors, among them how you appear in print. Whether you are sending out a press release or posting a sign on your door correct spelling and grammar say a lot about your respect for your customers and attention to detail.

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Inspired Writing

Swervé: Prompted to Write; Inspired to Create 
 

A loverly bunch of writer-nuts.

I recently attended a writers’ workshop, the first I’d ever been to. I know, it’s hard to believe, but in all my years of working as a writer I’ve never attended a workshop. I’ve been to newspaper conferences and one writers’ conference (years ago in Albuquerque hosted by Southwest Writers), but never to a workshop. The Green River Writer’s Workshop was intimate, energizing and inspiring, and the only people who will understand the title of this post are the people who were there… at least I hope they will get it. 

Interestingly the energy and inspiration didn’t come from writing, which one would expect from a writers’ workshop. It came from participants, all of whom were writing in different genres, some for publication, some for the pure pleasure of writing, and from event facilitators, Alice Winston Carney, Gerald Hausman and Lorry Hausman.

Initially I was a little disappointed that I didn’t get to write more, but I found the discussions interesting and thought provoking, and I loved hearing people read their work. I would have liked a little more of that, but with 13 attendees and three days to work with, time was at a premium.

The comments following each reading were intended to be targeted on the writing—what works, what doesn’t, what you like, what could have been written more clearly—but we did go off on tangents that also gave us food for thought.

The variety of writing and the background of those attending added flavor to a stew of enlightening experiences. We even had a fellow from Japan, Kenji Okuhira, who is on the brink of having his photo book published, Floating Stone : 21 Thoughts of Kenji Miyazawa. The book is translated by Gerald Hausman and Kenji. These sayings are beautiful, a word that seems lacking when you see the book with its stunning photos and the Japanese characters that mirror the English translation. It is more than a book; it’s a work of art.

Others were working on memoirs, works of fiction and poetry. Another author, Fran Jenner, will have her book published by fall.

Her tale is of 12 year-old Savannah and her family, who are uprooted because of failed farm land in Missouri, and hopes for a better life 2000 miles away in California. It’s 1850 and the journey will take months in a covered wagon pulled by oxen. Prairie Journey tells of Savannah’s resistance to change and the story of her long journey, during which she discovers the trail’s hardships and perils hold a gift for her she never imagined. When Prairie Journey is published I hope to have Fran on the air to talk about the book, which she has devoted ten years of her life to writing.

A highlight of the workshop was a book signing at Tome on the Range featuring the Green River Anthology of stories. Among the featured writers are four Las Vegans: Petey Salman, Joseph Baca, Carole Gonynor and Maggie Romigh. The other authors are Lyn Searfoss, Ursula Nizalowski, Megan Carney, Mary Kate McTeigue, Elizabeth Sieren, Jo-Ellen Bosson, Jane Janson, Ana June, Frances Bonney Jenner, Laura Ice, Gayanne Leachman, Virginia Kidd and Jean Whitehead.

It was a delight to hear the authors read their work and receive high praise from the audience. The stories are as varied as the authors, each “turning memory into story,” in unique and entertaining ways.

My thanks to Alice, Gerry and Lorry for their skillful facilitation, and to my fellow workshop attendees: Patty Buckley, Lin Chibante, Carole Gonynor, Fran Jenner, Alice Kolb, George Kolb, Ron Maltais, Kenji Okuhira, Chris Reidel, Petey Salman, Lynn Searfoss, and Sevigne. I learned something from all of you, and the best part is creating new relationships with other people as crazy as I am, writing and loving it.

Thanks as well to Mina Yamashita, who discussed her memoir about growing up Japanese American following World War II. She is a writer, graphic designer and creative spirit. Her insight into tools for e-publishing puts into perspective what it takes to get one’s work into digital print. Among her recommendations was smashwords.com, a user-friendly model for uploading and managing text for e-book publication.

I hope to attend future workshops, this one and others. The benefit comes more from listening than from talking, which I have found in life is usually the case.


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Business Tips

7 Business Affirmations: Release the Bellyaching Beast

If I was 12 inches taller I'd be skinny

 

How many times have you looked in the mirror and found a flaw? If you say never, good grief, what planet do you live on? Most of us are self-critical, sometimes to the point of being oblivious to what makes us unique. We seem to have a beast inside bent on bellyaching about our multiple deficiencies. Do you obsess about being too tall or not tall enough? Too thin or too heavy? Not pretty/handsome enough? Too pushy? Not pushy enough?

You have your list and so do I. Do you apply that self-critical flaw-finding attitude to your business?

• I can't succeed.
• The economy is against me!
• I can't afford to carry enough inventory.
• Everybody shops out of town!
• I'm afraid of the competition.
• Advertising costs too much and it's a waste of my limited resources.
• Marketing eludes me. I can't figure it out.

When you add your own night terrors to this list do you start to sweat? Are you on the brink of throwing in the towel, going to bed and covering up your head? STOP! Before you lie down with a cold compress... or knock back a numbing libation, get a grip! Perhaps you're thinking is getting in the way of your business success.

But I'm only 60 inches tall, that's not going to change

Challenges are real and can't be ignored. There is something to be said for critical evaluation. SWOT (strength, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis exists for a reason. The list above clearly represents the outcome of looking at weaknesses.

So how do you bring your future, the future of your business and the future of your community's economy into perspective? Let the bellyaching beast off his leash and listen up. Evaluation does not mean you must find every flaw. Yes, you need to know what your weaknesses are, but also be certain you know and embrace your strengths. I may only be five foot tall and nowhere near thin, but anyone who knows me will tell you it has rarely held me back, even when standing still might have been wiser.

I'm writing this because I've spent a good bit of time in recent months dithering about whether to get back into freelance work as a writer, e-zine/newsletter developer and graphic designer. My poor-me bellyaching beast has held me at bay, snapping at my heels, preventing me from seeing the value my skills have for others.

You are a star, and don’t you forget it

After several weeks of hearing the bellyaching beast whining and begging for the scraps of uncertainty and fear left behind in the wake of my mental self-abuse, I gave him his freedom, opened the door to release negativity and let him go. When I saw his tail wagging as he crested the horizon, I took pen and paper in hand and started writing down why my skills would have benefit for others. It was doggone freeing. It reminded me of my successes and put my failures into perspective.

As an entrepreneur I recommend you take stock. Go somewhere quiet, where you will be able to think uninterrupted. Take pad and pen. There is something to be said for the tactile feel of the implements in your hand and to see your entrepreneurial spirit coming to life through the words flowing onto the page.

Affirm your commitment to success:

I started this business/service (aside from money) because____________.

There is never any one reason entrepreneurs go into business. While earning a profit is likely at the top of the list there are other compelling reasons that fired and inspired you to put out your shingle. Name those reasons. Embrace them.

My business/service is unique in these ways_____________.

If you don't have a response to this perhaps it’s time to think carefully about what you offer that no one else does, or think of an add-in that will make you stand out from the crowd.

Investing in my business through promotion has value because_________.

There is a rule of thumb that you should commit a percentage of your annual income to advertising and promotion. I would add use that money wisely and well. No matter how much you want to support every publication and cause that "represents youth," consider what you do in context of your business success. There are other ways to donate that don't involve spending your much-needed promotional dollars.

My business has loyal customers. I'm going to reward them by______________.

When was the last time you e-mailed, called or in some way communicated with your customers? It's less expensive to retain a satisfied customer and get them to buy again than it is to draw new customers to your door. And remember this – activity begets activity. If you have your old customers coming in the door, new customers will follow.

I will make sure my employees like their jobs and convey that to our customers.

If your employees aren't on your side and don't enjoy their jobs it will show in your bottom line. Take care of your employees (even if the only employee you have is you). If employees are not confident in their ability to take care of customers, if they feel inadequate, if they feel you don't care about them, they will not do their best. They'll do the minimum and not very well.

I will participate actively in associations that advocate for independent entrepreneurs.

Belonging to a business association is an opportunity for networking, yes, absolutely. Aside from that, you have something to offer. What can you contribute that will improve/promote all businesses? Rising water lifts all boats. Be part of the rising tide.
 

I will post a list of my business successes where I can see it every day, beginning with the day I opened, my first success.

Remember your successes. That first big sale. Meeting your first payroll (including paying yourself!). The "thank you" from a customer who benefited from your service. Keep track of the positive influence and impact your business has had and continues to have.

When life gets a little testy and business is stagnant or beginning to slide, you must remember this is a bump in the road, not a wall. Small business continues to be the backbone of the economy. Your success determines the health of the local economy and the national economy. Take time to celebrate your entrepreneurial strengths. It will be good for you, and it will be good for your business.

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Sharon Vander Meer is an entrepreneur, author, host of Writer's Block and blogger. To tap into her skills to your benefit e-mail fsvandermeer@gmail.com.

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Travel: Pismo Beach, CA

Ocean breezes, clear skies, and a little wind, perfect in every way

Pismo Beach, Calif., is one of our favorite places to visit. Perhaps because we live so far inland we appreciate the ocean sounds and clean sands littered only with what the tides leave behind: sand dollars, broken shells and seaweed. 

We’ve traveled up and down the coast and like all the little towns along the way, but Pismo is special. We’ve been going there off and on since our boys were small, back when there were half as many houses and sixty percent less traffic. Our favorite place to stay is the first place we went to all those years ago, Kon Tiki Inn. You cannot get a bad room in this place. The structure is crescent shaped and every room faces the ocean. It has a lot of amenities, complimentary continental breakfast and a wonderful restaurant, Steamers, right next door. 

Getting to the beach was a snap when we were younger, but now it takes a little longer and a few rest stops along the way, but there is direct access from the Kon Tiki property to the beach down a stairway with, I think 128 steps. Going down is a breeze; going up is a wheeze.

Our favorite activity is walking on the beach and strolling out on the pier. This is not a commercialized pier like Monterey Bay or San Francisco, largely because this isn’t a place where boats dock and commercial fishermen are everywhere selling tickets for fishing excursions.

Pismo is very much a charming Oceanside town. It has shops and wonderful restaurants, and if you want to fish off the pier you can do so for free, no license necessary.

From the pier you get a panoramic view of magnificent and mystifying water. How does that massive cauldron of teeming life stay in place? The curvature of the horizon sometimes makes me dizzy and I look away because I feel like it might cut loose and wash over me if I don’t. The surge of the waves against the support pilings is thrilling, but only because I know the structure has stood the test of time. Below us surfers try to catch a wave. On the days we were there the waves weren’t all that challenging so we got to see some of the surfers actually ride out minor curls that took them onto the beach. It looked like great fun, and a lot of work.

Our time was mostly spent walking along the ocean. Every night we left the sliding glass door open so we could hear the sounds of the ocean and smell that unique tangy aroma found only where briny sea meets land.

Our one outing was to Oceanside for the Great American Melodrama. We never miss it when were there and while I was a little disappointed that it was a vaudeville show (I wanted to see a play), we enjoyed it immensely. If you plan to go with the idea of eating the fare, expect a limited menu of hot dogs, popcorn, beer and soda.

There are a lot of things to do if being busy is what you want. For us rest and relaxation was in order and we treasured every minute of it.

We always make it a point to eat at our favorite restaurants. Giuseppe’s, Chele’s Food and Spirits, Splash Café and Steamers have great atmosphere, wonderful food and exceptional service. There are many more, but with only five days to work with, we couldn’t get to them all! Besides, I didn’t really want to come back looking like blimp. Of course we found a Starbucks, which we managed to get to every day while we were there. 

We got to Pismo by train, by way of Los Angeles and San Luis Obispo, and although there were a few “bumps” along the way, it was a great option for us. The pace was slower than I expected but the attendants and other Amtrak staff members were courteous and helpful. We were assisted in making our connections by cheerful station attendants who made sure we made it from one train to the next. The best part was that Bob didn’t have to drive all that way, I didn’t have to get on an airplane and we really did see the countryside. The food on the train was quite good and the breakfasts substantial.

It will probably be a while before we get out to Pismo again, but I’m already looking forward to it, and we will likely ride the rails to get there.

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Travel

Riding the Rails, the Challenges and Joys

Our First Vacation in Six Years: The Trip

Amtrak arrives at the Las Vegas, NM historic train depot

Amtrak is a great option for anyone who wants to get from here to there, hates airports and doesn’t want to drive. You can indeed see the country as it lurches by and if you are in a roomette or deluxe room, you get an unending number of meals. Well, not unending, but it seems one meal service is barely over before the steward starts taking reservations for the next one.

In our little corner of the world—Las Vegas, NM—we still have an Amtrak station. When we decided to take a trip to Pismo Beach, Calif., one of our favorite destinations, we decided the rail was the way to go. Realizing there would be challenges, like getting a rental car, we decided to go to AAA Travel in Santa Fe, NM, (thank you Teodora!) for help in planning the trip.

All Aboard!

I’ll say right up front AAA was most helpful. I highly recommend their services.

It had been at least 15 years since we took a train trip, also to Pismo Beach. For that trip we got off the train in Pasadena, boarded an Amtrak bus, and arrived in Bakersfield, where one of our sons was living. Knowing he would pick us up at the bus terminal took care of concerns about getting to the car rental agency located at the Bakersfield airport.

This time we didn’t have that advantage. We had to rely on AAA to make arrangements for us to get from the San Luis Obispo depot, where we got off the train, to the SLO airport car rental agency. On the return trip we had to get the car back and find transportation to the SLO train station before the Pacific Surfliner left at 6:45 a.m. for our connection at Union Station in Los Angeles. Thanks to AAA we got the car rented in advance (of course) and an agreement from Hertz to pick us up at the train station. To make life easier on our return date, AAA located the phone number of a 24-hour cab company that would pick us up at the airport and get us to the train station. Am I making this too complicated? Perhaps, but we are at a point in our lives when things like tight schedules and the possibility of missing our connections makes us nervous, VERY nervous.

The on-board portion of the trip went like clockwork (or as much as train travel can) and I’m pleased to say the trip was flawless. Well, maybe not the part where we had to wait for three hours for the coroner to release the track ahead because someone had been hit by a train coming the other way, but that’s another story.

Travel on the whole—moving down the track—was fine. Sleeping on the train? Yikes. We took a roomette (which we did the last time we went by train) believing this would be more comfortable than going by coach. We were on the train overnight going and coming and it made sense to have the privacy of a roomette and a bed to sleep on. Having a bathroom down the hall was a bit inconvenient (I’m being kind here) but we managed, sort of.

I can tell you my bones still ache. My husband is still recovering from a crack on the head and a fall from the top bunk. It happened when he tried to get up in the middle of the night, forgot there was no head room, and then missed the step on his way to floor level. Between knocking himself silly and a bruised and swollen leg he refused to get back on that precarious perch, and wouldn’t let me get up there either. We spent the rest of the night wedged like two sardines on the bottom bunk. That, my friends, is true love.

Even though there was a shower down the passageway, the idea of using it was pretty off putting when I thought about the jerky movement of the train and a slight discomfort (outright terror?) that the lock wouldn’t hold and someone would walk in on me. Grimy doesn’t begin to describe how both of us felt after getting off the train going and coming.

We had traveled this way before and didn’t remember it being so uncomfortable. It finally dawned on me that the real difference is that we’re both 15 years older and 15 to 20 pounds heavier. Those roomettes are not designed for anyone with any meat on them at all!

Using the toilet was a whole other adventure, and forget brushing your teeth, trying to freshen your makeup (this is where guys definitely have an advantage) and organizing your hair when you’ve been sleeping (more or less) on it all night.

There are options to the roomette of course. The coach cars do have quite comfortable seats that recline. We have friends who have traveled this way and found it perfectly acceptable. Others have said it’s fine as long as everyone in the car agrees to settle down and sleep, but that doesn’t always happen. One friend told us of a trip to Chicago. “At about midnight one family hauled out their sandwiches and wine and made a party of it.”

The other option is a “deluxe” room, which has a bathroom and a foldout bed at floor level that will accommodate two people so no one has to ride the rails suspended on something the size of a half-panel of a folding door.

Would we do it again? Yes. Does that surprise you? It’s an adventure. There is something wonderful about riding on a train, but only if you’re not in a hurry. Maybe that’s it. You are forced to relax and reset you internal mad rush to nice and easy, slow but sure.

What I liked:

• Train travel is affordable.
• You do get to see the country.
• The slower pace (if you’re ready for it).
• The attendants, conductors, red caps, and other staff members affiliated with the train are wonderful.  
• The food is okay and there is no lack of it. (Coach pays for meals; roomette and deluxe travelers meals are complimentary, except for alcohol).
• Seating in the dining car is family style so you get to meet interesting people.
• On the whole other passengers are courteous and respectful.
• The train depots are wonderful, harking back to another era.
• There is no hassle related to terrorist and security issues (ala airport TSA craziness)

What I didn’t like (or wasn’t prepared for)

• The “crossover” from one car to the next
• Beds
• Bathrooms

Overall the experience was enjoyable.

More about the journey next time.

Aging Gratefully

Five ways to Find Inner Peace

Beauty is everywhere. When you come upon it unexpectedly it makes your heart sing and brings you a moment of peace. The photo in this blog was taken on my morning walk with friends. I’ve been seeing these lovely flowers for several days, heartened by their purity and surprised by where they were growing. Okay, they’re weeds (wild and invasive morning glories I think) but amid the gravel and dry soil these sturdy plants are flourishing and blooming.    

Finding beauty in life is one way to find inner peace. How do you relax at the end of a harried and hurried day? Here are five suggestions for ways to calm your spirit and put the bloom back in your life.

Walking:

A morning or evening walk is a good place to start. Walking releases tension and helps you relax. Unless we are by nature athletic, we tend to spend entirely too much time indoors. Reports show that people who walk regularly maintain their weight, are healthier and have a more positive outlook.

Prayer:

Whatever form your prayer or spiritual life takes, the oneness with the Creator brings calm in ways nothing else can. Studies indicate that those who attend worship services and meditate regularly are happier and more able to cope with day to day problems.

Friends:

Connections to friends are almost as important as time with family. Those who have a network of people they can call on, even if it’s just to say, “Hi,” are more well-adjusted and less apt to let stress rule their lives.

Family:

Time with family keeps us centered. We have a sounding board for our ideas and dreams. Try to have at least an hour a day when you and your family sit down and share a meal or have a conversation.

Leisure Time:

We tend to think we have to be busy, busy, busy. That only works until you run out of time and energy, and then what? Make time to do what you like to do, whether it is reading, watching television, listening to music… whatever allows you to relax your body and get outside your head now and then.

When you bring peace into your chaotic life, you – like those wild morning glories – will blossom.

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Rambling Prose: Writers Write

To Blog or Not to Blog

I've been dithering. Not uncommon for me, just ask my husband. I have a gazillions things I want to do and not enough time in the day to get them done, not because I can't but because I dither. That isn't to say I don't get things done, it's just that I must wade through the litter of dither to get there.

I haven't  always been that way. I am by nature a take-charge woman, and not always a sensitive one, so Katie-bar-the-door or I'll run over you. I don't mean to, but focus at some point becomes obsession. An agenda is meant to be followed.

I've written about this before, so I won't go into detail here, but a to do list at this point in my life is essential. (Check here for prior post). There are days when even a to do list doesn't help. Sometimes I stare at it, my eyes glaze over and I turn to my iPad and play Word W.E.L.D.E.R. Work? You're kidding, right? Who am I trying to impress? What do I think will happen to the thousands of words I've written and published over the years? 

So begins procrastination and self-doubt. I have to give myself a swift kick in the posterior to get off the pity pot and move on.  

 

So What?

 The dither deal today is that I'm seriously thinking about going back to publishing an e-zine. I did on off a year or so ago, but I didn't have the patience to give it time to build a readership, and I couldn't figure out how to make money at it. This is nothing unusual. I've done a fair number of the things in my life that either lost money or never made a dime. I guess getting and being and maintaining a rich lifestyle isn't a driving factor behind my choices.

So the dilemma is this. I've been working diligently at building a web presence with the idea of selling my books: Tiger Lilly, Not Just Another Day, The Ballad of Bawdy McClure, and Future Imperfect. Why I believed creating three blogs and maintaining a website would accomplish this I'll never know. To my knowledge not one single book has been sold as a consequence of all this effort. It doesn't help that two of them are sci-fi, one is daily devotional and another is contemporary fiction about family relationships. Does anyone see the problem here? Try creating SEO protocol for that mess.

Back to the Topic 

I stopped publishing the e-zine about eight months ago. For the effort I was putting into it, I saw no measurable indicators that any but a handful of family and friends were actually reading it. I'm doing the blogs because... Well there you go, I'm not sure why I'm doing the blogs. I THINK it's building my web presence and my author platform, however I'm seeing no measurable indicators to prove that it is.

Bear with me folks, I'm on a ramble here, not to mention a dither.

One of the blogs is tied to my radio show, Writer's Block, which airs each Tuesday morning at 9 a.m MST. It is a program about writing and writers. I invite authors (published and want to be published)  to be interviewed in-studio or as call-in guests. Following the program I summarize the discussion and do a review of the program in my Writer's Block blog.

Joy inthe Morning is a blog of brief inspirational readings or poems. It is tied to my spirituality and will likely lead to a second book of daily devotionals.

The blog you're reading is the third blog. Rambling Prose is about what ever strikes my fancy, kind of like my now dormant e-zine, Happenstance, life happens. Even so, it doesn't have the flexibility of an e-zine, or if it does I haven't figured out how to make it work.

Still with me?

And then there is the Sharon Vander Meer website, which remains fairly static with general information, only updated once a week with links to Writer's Block program summaries.

Coming from print media I still think in terms of graphic design, popping pix and writing to section demands. Is it food and lifestyle? Does it fit in features? Sports? Trends? Books? Travel? Commentary?

For what I want to do, an e-zine makes more sense because my interests vary and as much as I want to be a writing machine punching out books by the dozens, the truth is my curiosity and dithering eclectic tastes do not contribute to finishing yet another manuscript, and I'm not much good at marketing the books I've already written! Still, I forge ahead.

And – this is a biggie folks – I love talking to writers. I enjoy promoting their work. It tickles me silly to publish words crafted by talented people. I enjoy reading and doing book reviews. 

That doesn't  leave a lot of time for additional writing, but I forge ahead.

Now What?

So, the questions for me are, "Do I continue to maintain three blogs and a website – none of which are doing what I want them to do (sell books), or do I go back to e-zine publishing creating something on the order of a literary journal? And if I do, is it possible to have an income stream?"

The question for you as a follower or reader is, what do you think? Check out the published e-zines at this link and the one above, and give me your feedback in the comments section below. I'm sort of looking for a better understanding of what will work in the web environment we are now living in. To blog or not to blog, that is the question.

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