Article Writing Mistakes: How to Turn Your Worst Mistakes Into Online Gold
You'll earn respect from your peers and you'll gain more credibility in the process. That is, if you handle it correctly. Here's what I did to recover from a major mistake when I published a recent issue of my e-mail newsletter.
The scenario: I wanted to write an article about avoiding typos. So I did. It was a good article on how to squeeze the most out of your spellcheck software before sending something off to another set of eyes for final proofing.
The mistake: I wrote the introductory paragraph to the newsletter in which the article would appear and I went back to rewrite it. Not once, not twice but three times. And I did this after my whole routine of spellchecking, getting others to proofread and then re-reading it myself. Only one word was misspelled and it was one word too many. I didn't know of the slip-up until two of my subscribers let me know what happened. By then, it was too late to change it. The entire list had my dire mistake. As a copywriter, I should know how to spell the word "speaking."
The solution: I sent out a follow-up e-mail and turned my mistake into a credibility-building lesson. In the follow-up e-mail I told readers how they could avoid the same mistake I did. I owned up to the mistake, told the readers how to avoid it in their practices and thanked them for continuing to be loyal readers. The subject line of the e-mail was "Copy Quickie" and here's what I wrote:
Jill,
I have a quick piece of information to add on to this month's "Copywriting Secrets." In the introduction to this month's newsletter I wrote "Speakging of questions, a reader from Coral Gables . . ." I misspelled "speaking." How embarrassing!
And this in an issue where I extol the virtues of zapping typos.
Let's turn this snafu into something special.
If I can do it, anyone can do it. Here's how to avoid it.
Set a re-write limit. That's right. Tell yourself you'll only re-write your copy two or three times. (More than that and you could be asking for the rather unfortunate mistake I just made.)
If you're like me you add small bits of info just before deadline to give your copy extra oomph. Sit on your hands if you have to, but don't add anything at the last minute.
By using the technique I just mentioned even the most skillfully hidden typos will come into the blazing sunlight - before you hit send!
Thanks for reading. And have a great week.
Lisa Sparks
The result: I received a flood of e-mails from clients, prospects and friends congratulating me on having the "guts" to send out the follow-up message. I received requests to write more articles and my business kept chugging along without fail. Yes, I had two unsubscribes. And yes I saw an uptick in subscriptions in the weeks afterwards. I chalk that up to the ebb and flow of any e-mail marketing campaign and not to my unfortunate misstep.
Bottom line: Own up to your mistake. If you notice it and other readers notice it, then most likely everyone else on your list has seen it, too. No sense in hiding. Turn the mistake into a lesson for your audience. That way, they see that you're looking out for them and you're not afraid to put your credibility on the line to spare them the trouble of going through the same mistake you just made.
Related Tags: article, articles, writing, marketing, success, secrets, revealed, formula, steps
Boost traffic, get more leads and increase sales by learning the secrets to writing well and writing fast. Get Lisa Sparks' no-cost special report on the secrets to making article marketing work for you by visiting: http://www.ArticleSecretsRevealed.com
Your Article Search Directory : Find in ArticlesRecent articles in this category:
- Small Business Consulting That Actually Counts
Small business consulting providers can be present in nearly any respectable sized metropolis or cit - 3 Things All Affiliate Marketers Need To Know About Affiliate Mail
Affiliate Mail3 Things All Affiliate Marketers Need To Know About Affiliate MailEvery affiliate mark - Proven Article Marketing Tips In Terms Of Article Titles
The first article marketing tip that you need to look at when drafting a post is the title. This is - Magnetic Sponsoring Review-is It Worth The Money
I truly believe Magnetic Sponsoring has been responsible for many success stories, as evidenced by t - Hand Truck Use In And Around The House
When using a Hand truck in your house, you have to take precautions that one does not have to be con - Article Writing For Fun And Profit - Part 1
Writing articles can seem like a chore, especially if you are in a mind set of needing to do it. The - Internet Marketing: Problems And Issues
The funny thing about this business is the business itself. Never before has there been opportunitie - Great Twitter Advertising Programs
It's difficult to find a good piece of Twitter marketing software. You need to understand which feat - Getting Good Twitter Promotional Software
It's difficult to find a good piece of Twitter marketing software. You need to understand which feat - Geographical Marketing For Geographical Businesses
Geographical businesses are in a majority of cases are missing out on vast numbers of potential clie
Most viewed articles in this category:
- How To Find Ghostwriters Online
You might have already known that article writing is vital to your business. This is off course with - Article Marketing - How to Use Articles to Build Your List
This is one of my favorite topics to write about, for three reasons:1) I have generated the bulk of - Boost Response Rates with This Under-Used Article Secret
No matter what you write to your clients or customers benefits have to be up front. That's the rule - How Not to Article Market
Article marketing is one of the most cost-effective, efficiently viral ways to generate one-way link - Article Marketing - Why I Use Article Marketing for My List Building
Article marketing is one of the most effective methods of lead generation and list building that I h - Thoughts on Article Directory Oddities
If you publish articles to promote your site, you have probably noticed the directories evolve. Som - Make Money with Articles by Using Free Articles Directories
Amongst the many ways of making money with articles, the use of free articles directories is one of - Article Marketing - How to Create a Steady Stream of Traffic to Your Website
Article marketing is, and has been for some time now, my primary method of traffic generation. Why? - Do Your Readers Wish You Would Stop Writing Articles?
For a lot of us, writing articles can be a chore. Even if you don't gnaw on your nails in the fear o - Article Writing is the Best Method of Getting Backlinks
Article writing is the best method of getting backlinks. You can write thousands of articles and sub