The Importance of eBooks: Why You Should Give Away Info

Posted on 01/17/2012 by Chris Vanasdalan

The other day I met with a client looking to create an ebook for his potential customers to download free from his website.

This client owns a business in the IT field, and he really knows the medium. I asked him if he was comfortable giving away proprietary information, something that had taken his company months, if not years to develop.

He answer was a resounding yes. He knows that technology moves so fast these days, that there’s no sense in sitting on information and limiting who has access to it.

He knows that if he published this info in a traditional book, it would be outdated by the time it hit bookshelves. He knows that by pumping out the latest information and technology he positions his company as an innovator and a leader. He also knows anyone who reads his ebook is in the market for his services and will likely hire his company.

eBooks: Much more useful than a box of free stuff pulled from a moldy basement.

Creative Commons License photo credit: Ecstatic Mark

I wish more business owners thought this way.

Too often companies spend time and effort trying to protect their knowledge. What they don’t realize is that by sharing it they automatically rise to the top of their field as experts.

It’s important to let your customers and clients know that you’re up to date with the latest trends in the industry. It makes you an authority and customers will instinctively come to you first when they’re looking for answers.

Don’t sit on information. Get it out there. It doesn’t matter what field, industry or business you’re in. There will always be customers, clients or prospects searching for expertise. And they’ll likely do business with the first company that comes along and provides it.

And because a prospect isn’t paying for something it doesn’t mean you have to give it away for free. Ask them to submit an email address or sign up for your newsletter before they can download content. It’s is a simple way to build a database of potential new customers.

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Big Changes in 2012

Posted on 01/09/2012 by Chris Vanasdalan

2012 is here and it’s time for fresh starts, new beginnings, resolutions and all that jazz. I’m not big into making drastic changes simply because the calendar rolls over, but I do believe in trying to be a better person every single day.

That being said, the end of 2011 did bring some pretty major changes, not just for Write Now Indy, but for me personally.

First off, I’ve been flying pretty low under the radar recently. My wife and I welcomed our first child (a daughter named Ruby) at the end of November. This was a pretty big change in mindset for me, considering I have the self-diagnosed maturity level of an 8 year-old. I’m now responsible for a completely helpless human being and I’m still getting used to having to think about the well-being of something so freakishly tiny. (She just hit six pounds on the same day she turned six weeks old. Thankfully she’s healthy, just small… for now.)

She's also hungry? ... Gassy? ... having a seziure? Babies are hard to read.

Don’t get me wrong, I still giggle when I hear words like doodie, tufted titmouse, and cockamamie (that’s why I get along so well with kids), but I’m slowly accepting the idea of being somebody’s “old man.”

In addition to my new responsibilities as an all-star diaper changer, I’ve been working a lot. A LOT!

Warning: Things are about to get a little personal. Feel free to skip ahead until below the photo.

My wife lost her job as a full-time assistant manager at a major retail department store in her eighth month of pregnancy. (The timing was a bit suspicious and we’re weighing our options as far as possible legal recourse.)

We had health insurance through her company, so we were left scrambling to enroll in Cobra so we wouldn’t have to pay for the baby’s delivery out of pocket. Instead we get to pay more than $1000 a month just to continue our current coverage. Yippee!

Anyway, here’s the good news. My wife hated her job and was super stressed out. Now she’s able to stay home with our daughter, saving us money on child-care and helping to boost her mental health (although I’m still slowly driving her mad).

With the drop in income I’m currently splitting my time between four, yes four, different jobs. Who says the economy isn’t improving?

In addition to trying to build my freelance business, I’m working part-time as a news anchor/reporter for a talk radio station. I also pick up a few shifts a week as a server at a local steakhouse and I referee hockey games on the weekends. (By far my favorite of the 4 gigs).

It’s tough to work from a home office with a crying baby in the next room and all three of my other jobs pay more consistently than freelance writing, so sadly my marketing efforts have taken a back seat for the past few weeks. (Diapers aren’t cheap folks!)

Currently worth more than my retirement fund.

Now the good news. I’m rededicating myself to building my writing business (because nobody likes working four different jobs) and I did see a nice bump in the quality of my clients in the second half of 2011.

I wanted to take a moment to thank some of the great people and companies I’ve had a chance to work with over the past six months. Check out their websites and services. I was honored to work with them and it’s my pleasure to recommend them.

Thank you to…

Henry Pierson at SAS Staffing Group.

Douglas Karr and Jenn Lisak with DK New Media.

Lori Winkler at Working Dog Marketing, Inc.

Eghe Lenzi at Pride & Joy Baby Planners.

Ryan Krcmarich of Tacos Without Borders.

Without great folks like this I wouldn’t be able to develop real and meaningful working relationships that a successful freelance business is built upon.

I look forward to increasing my marketing efforts in the new year and working with more awesome people and companies in the Indianapolis area and beyond.

If you’re looking for a reliable and professional writer you can contact me via email at Chris@writenowindy.com or in the comment section below. You can also connect with me on Facebook or Twitter.

Posted in About Me, Being a dad, Branding, Freelance, Working from home | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off

You “Could Care Less.” Oh, So You DO Care?

Posted on 08/18/2011 by Chris Vanasdalan

I had to take a minute to record a quick rant about a big pet peeve of mine. It drives me nuts when people say they “could care less.” The phrase is “couldn’t care less,” meaning your level of caring is the lowest it can possibly be.

I’m not sure why this gets to me so much. Just watch the video and let me know if you agree. Or drop me a line about some of the grammar pet peeves that make you crazy.

Posted in Grammar | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT: What Working in Radio Has Taught Me About Interviewing

Posted on 07/20/2011 by Chris Vanasdalan

When it comes to reporting, I’ve worked in pretty much every medium out there… TV, newspaper, magazine, online, radio. Having a journalism background allowed me to hone my skills as an interviewer and that’s helped me in the copywriting world too. It helps me draw out the visions of my corporate clients, getting their ideas down on paper in ways they could never fully express.

I recently got back into radio, with a part-time gig that keeps me plugged in to the business without having to devote my life to it. I’ll admit I’m still a little rusty, having been away from the mic for nearly five years, but it’s a nice little side project.

Gathering sound and filing reports over the past few weeks reminded me about some of the skills that lead to a good interview, so I wanted to take a moment to share them.

A good interviewer needs to know more than just what type of questions to ask. He or she also needs to know how to ask them and when to …

Shut Up and Listen.

When they’re on deadline, reporters often go into an interview with a preconceived notion of what they want to write about, having already formed what they think is a good angle for the story. That’s okay to some extent, but it can lead to lazy interviewing. Sometimes reporters will ask questions they know will solicit a response tailored to the story they’re trying to write.

Quiet when the little red light is on.

Radio doesn’t let you do that. Radio forces you to ask questions and listen to what your subject has to say. If you try to prod, encourage, or draw more out of them, it can ruin the recording.

That’s what happened during my first interview after getting back into radio. I questioned several people for a story, returning to the station with nearly 30 minutes of sound. How much of it was usable you ask? About 40 seconds worth. The recording was chock full of me saying “uh-huh,” “oh really?” and “wow, you don’t say” during the middle of their answers. I was trying to draw longer responses out of them, but I couldn’t shut my fat mouth long enough to let them finish their initial thoughts.

Ask Open Ended Questions.

Another reason much of the sound was unusable was because I was asking questions my interviewees could answer in one word. Radio forces you to ask open ended questions. It’s not like newspaper where you can piece together a bunch of different quotes to form fully coherent ideas. It’s just sound. And one word answers don’t make good radio.

If you ask someone, “Are you enjoying this sunny day?” They’ll likely say “Yes” in response. Don’t let them off the hook that easily. Ask something open ended like, “what are your plans for enjoying this nice sunny day?”

That forces them to answer your question with a complete sentence, which makes for a much more interesting (and usable) sound bite.

These techniques are simple but they take a little bit of practice. They certainly help you ask better questions. Plus, they might open up new angles to a story you hadn’t thought about. By listening to the subject’s answers you’re following up with questions relating to what they actually said, not what you expected them to say or what you wanted to hear.

Shameless plug alert!! If you’d like to hear me stumble through a radio broadcast, you can listen to my reports on random Saturday mornings from 6 a.m. – 11 a.m. Streaming live at wibc.com.

Posted in Media Coverage | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments