See online: 5 PR Tips for Nurturing Your Written Communications, by Matthew Schwartz via www.prnewsonline.com
The proliferating number of media channels reminds us of Charles Dickens’ opening line from his classic novel, "A Tale of Two Cities": "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times." More channels means more opportunity to reach new audiences and spread your message. It also means more opportunity to mangle the message and, in the rush to beat the competition, water down what you were trying to say in the first place.
Sure, marketing communications is an increasingly fast game. But speed can kill an otherwise solid message. Better to take the extra time to focus on creating a distinct message that won’t be confused with those of competitors.
With that in mind, here are five tips on how to take a measured approach to your written communications, compliments of Barbara Bates, CEO and founder of Eastwick Communications.
1. It takes a combination of good journalistic skills and creative writing to build compelling narratives.
2. Think visually. The old adage of a picture telling a thousand words really does ring true. And with today’s information overload, visuals can often breakthrough the noise better than the written word.
3. Follow the journalistic practices of drawing from compelling story arcs that match your own story; the phoenix rising from the ashes, David vs. Goliath, the “can they make it,” story or the ones with unexpected consequences. These are storylines that contain drama, and drama entertains.
4. Take a page from your creative writing class (or from Nancy Duarte’s highly regarded book, "Resonate") and leverage the power of “the hero’s journey.” Based on the psychology of Carl Jung and the mythology research of Joseph Campbell, the hero’s journey reveals the basic structure of numerous stories, myths and movies.
5. Think about breaking your “story” into separate chapters. Avoid the need to tell everyone everything all at once.