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Two simple tips for better speeches

By Scott Flood on July 7, 2020 in General rants, Marketing Wisdom 0

Did you know that public speaking is a bigger source of fear for most people than the idea of dying? Fortunately, most people die only once, but you may face multiple occasions in your career or civic life in which you’re forced to share important information in front of a crowd. There’s a lot of […]

Are you misusing quotation marks?

By Scott Flood on July 1, 2020 in Online Words, Writing Advice

We’d have a tough time surviving without quotation marks. A famous writer once observed, “Quotation marks allow us to identify what someone actually says, as opposed to simple statements being made by the writer.” Okay, I’m that writer, but the quote illustrates one of the primary roles of quotation marks. The other is to denote […]

Improve your writing by starting in the middle

By Scott Flood on June 23, 2020 in Online Words, Writing Advice

Many people regard having to write as sheer torture. Unfortunately, nearly every job or business endeavor demands a certain amount of that torture. The good news is that there’s a simple trick that can make your writing easier and more effective. That trick is starting somewhere in the middle. If that sounds odd, consider that […]

What color is your copy?

By Scott Flood on June 17, 2020 in Marketing Wisdom, Writing Advice

Want to know how effective your copy is likely to be? To find out, highlight it in two different colors. Whether you’re developing a blog post, a brochure, a web page, or any other channel, take a few moments to highlight all of the sentences that are really about your customer and his or her […]

Seven steps for dealing with the media

By Scott Flood on June 9, 2020 in Anything else, Marketing Wisdom

Business owners and managers who find themselves in the media spotlight often complain they’re being harassed, persecuted, or treated unfairly. However, many of them suffer that treatment because of their own actions in dealing with reporters and editors. To keep from becoming your own worst enemy, follow a few common-sense strategies. Take control. Reporting the […]

Contractions really aren’t painful

By Scott Flood on June 3, 2020 in General rants, Online Words

One of the biggest misconceptions about writing involves those handy word combinations we call contractions. You’re familiar: cannot becomes can’t, will not shortens to won’t, and so forth. When professional writers insert those contractions into their work, clients are often confused. Some doubt the competence of the writer they’ve hired or assume that the writer […]

Recent webinar on web writing

By Scott Flood on May 28, 2020 in Uncategorized

Recently presented a webinar on writing for the web for Level Two Coworking in Plainfield. I appreciate the opportunity to educate businesses about making their online presence more effective! Webinar presented in May 2020 for Level Two Coworking

Are you after fame or notoriety?

By Scott Flood on May 20, 2020 in General rants, Online Words

Many words have been misused so often that their meanings have started to blur – and writers who should know better start using the wrong words in the wrong places. A recent national magazine article reported that a particular musician had earned his notoriety by producing a couple albums. In this case, “notoriety” was the […]

When someone complains about your ad

By Scott Flood on May 6, 2020 in General rants, Marketing Wisdom

You think your new ad (or email, or mailing, or commercial) is a good one, and based on the early response, your target audience appears to agree. Then the phone rings or an email shows up in your inbox. Someone is clearly upset with you. They don’t understand why you ran such an offensive message. […]

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