Mary Shaw

Everyone’s writing ebooks. It’s an easy way to get information products out quickly to prospects and customers. They’re also a great way to add backend links to other products, services or promotions you may have. In this post I’ll show you how to format an ebook for easy reading and proper delivery to your customers. Giving your readers a good ebook experience is good business. The more value you give them the more you will receive in sales.

Get The Right Tools

Microsoft Word is the standard for developing ebooks, but it’s just as easy to use free tools such as Open Office or Google Docs. Select the software that’s right for you and open a new document. If you’re in the U.S., set the page to a standard 8 1/2 by 11 sheet. If your reader prints out your ebook this is the paper they will most likely have in their printer. Many people will be reading your epic onscreen, so you’ll also want to use a screen-friendly font, such as Arial, Verdana or Trebuchet MS. A 12-point font for text is usually a good choice.

Cover Up

There’s lots of debate on this, but I believe a well-designed cover leads to more sales. Even though customers are just buying electrons, you want to create the image of a tangible product in their mind’s eye. I’ve hired designers for ebook covers and also used software called Cover Action Pro to do them myself in Photoshop. Either is a good option. You’ll want to create several images of the ebook cover; one for your website sales page, a thumbnail image for the shopping cart, and a full size image for the ebook cover itself. You’ll add the full-size cover to the ebook file when you create the final PDF version.

Title Page

The first written page of your ebook should be a title page featuring your book’s title, author credit and copyright info. Center your title about halfway down the page and make it a larger font than your author and copyright details.

Disclaimer

I’m no lawyer, but it’s a good idea to include a disclaimer at the start of your ebook. We live in a sue-happy world, so protect yourself with a short disclaimer holding you and your business harmless against any claims.

Table of Contents

A neatly formatted, clickable table of contents makes it easy for readers to quickly find the information they’re most interested in.

Header and Footer

Use your word processor’s header and footer features to add a professional polish to your pages. Put the title of your ebook in the header. Use the footer to restate your copyright details, post a link to your website, and insert page numbers.

Headlines and Subheads

Just like a blog, many of your readers will be viewing your ebook onscreen. So write your copy for easy scanning with liberal use of headlines, subheads, and bullet points. Try to create a natural pathway for the eyes. Draw your reader in so they’ll read all or most of your text.

Paragraphs

Marketing plans are critical for any size company, especially in this economy. An effective marketing plan helps you identify your sales goals and position your product or service within the overall competitive landscape. Over time the plan can become an ongoing blueprint for business development.

A well-written marketing plan helps you think through how you will reach prospects and customers with your message. It demonstrates how you will acquire leads and convert them into paying customers. While high-end Harvard MBA-type marketing plans have their appropriate place, I’m going to show you how to create a quick n’ dirty marketing plan that you can use right now. Assuming you have already developed your product or service, this very basic plan will help you get your business going and growing.

Writing for the web is vastly different than writing for other media. The constant flow of instant information means your competition is always just a click away. Whether it’s for a site, email or blog, here are 5 tips to help you create clean, crisp web copy so your audience stays with you and keeps asking for more.

1. Write For Scanning Instead Of Reading

People don’t read on the web. They scan. You’re scanning this article right now, aren’t you? I know you’re busy and want to see if reading the whole post is worth your time. That’s why each tip is numbered and in bold text.  It helps you scan better. Bullet points also help text scanning by:

• Breaking up text blocks
• Adding white space
• Providing contrast

2. Spell Check and Grammar Check

I cringe whenever I see a typo on the front page of the New York Times. Lately it seems to happen almost every day. As copywriters we have a professional responsibility to check spelling, grammar, and facts before we publish. Sure, I’ve had my share of typos in occasional emails, but my client work always goes through a spelling and grammar check before release. With word processing software like Microsoft Word it’s just common sense. So please take an extra minute and use these simple tools.

3. Keep It Conversational

Write like you talk. How many times have you read corporate web pages that sounded corporate? Did it make you feel a little distant from the company? If you want to reach your readers, you need to clearly communicate with them in a way they can understand. A clear, conversational approach is your best bet. Don’t alienate them with marketing speak, giant vocabulary words or jargon. Read your draft out loud and see if it makes sense to you. You’ll be amazed how this one simple exercise will help you find edits you might otherwise miss.

4. Cut It In Half – Then Half Again

I learned this tip from Steve Krug’s great book, Don’t Make Me Think: A Common Sense Approach To Web Usability (2nd Edition). Every word has to have a purpose. If it doesn’t, delete it. Now.

5. Provide A Clear Call To Action

What do you want your audience to do when they’re done reading your stuff? Click away and never come back? Of course not! You probably want them to buy something, sign up for future communications, give you some information, or come back to your site when it’s updated. Let your readers know what to do next by giving them a clear call to action. Here’s mine for this post:

What do you think are the 5 most important tips for web copywriting? Were these helpful? Let me know in the comments. Here’s to happy clients and snappy copy.

In 10 Online Tools For Remote Working, we discussed how to work anywhere with internet access, regardless of whether or not you own a laptop. In this post, we’ll look at the flip side and show you how to be a completely self-contained digital nomad. This comes in handy if you want to avoid working at a client’s site, the library, internet cafes, or on your mom’s ancient desktop. This basic setup will help you fulfill your dream of working freely at the beach, poolside, or anywhere you want.

Assuming you have a web-based email account such as Gmail or Mobile Me, here’s the kit:

1. Laptop 

A laptop is an absolute must. I do everything on a souped-up old black Intel MacBook crammed with as much memory as it can stand. It’s small enough to fit in a backpack and does whatever I need, including Photoshop and Visio. When I’m in the office it’s connected to a large 20″ monitor. Your application needs will vary depending on what you do, but try to strike a balance between power, portability and cost.

2. Reliable Mobile Internet Connection

There’s lots of options for mobile internet connectivity, from cell phone tethering to dedicated peripherals such as USB modems and internal PC cards. Whatever you choose, make sure it is reliable, rugged, and compatible with your operating system. I’m currently using a Verizon Wireless USB Modem. It works like a charm despite being dropped, thrown, and stepped on. The monthly plan is expensive at $60 per month, but my annual investment of $720 has yielded thousands of dollars of location-independent income, so to me it’s totally worth it.

3. Cell Phone 

This one is obvious so just make sure you have a decent plan and a charger handy. To work effectively with your clients and partners you’ll need to be able to make and receive calls from anywhere. Lots of small business how-to books stress the importance of having a separate business line. My cell phone IS my separate business line and has been for years. My service provider is rock solid and clients know  if they leave a voicemail I’ll get back to them in a reasonable amount of time.

4. Cell Phone Headset

A quality bluetooth headset will enhance your mobility, help you focus on the person calling and keep you safe while driving. Hopefully it will also remind you that not everyone on the train or in that cafe wants to hear about your fantastic win of the XYZ Widget job. It’s best to respect yourself and others and make phonecalls in private. 

5. A Fast Backup Solution

USB keys have been commoditized to the point where they really are a dime a dozen, so you get what you pay for. If you go this route, make sure yours is high quality and speedy. You’ll want to make quick data back-ups on the go. The OCZ Rally 16GB provides plenty of speed and storage for a reasonable cost. An alternative is to use an online storage solution such as Box.net or Dropbox. For total system backup, Mozy is an excellent online service offering unlimited storage at $4.95 a month. I used to make monthly backups on a cumbersome 500 GB drive, but now Mozy quietly makes daily backups in the background and I feel much better knowing my data is safe and secure off site.

6. Notebook and Pens

Paper is where all ideas begin for me, and I love that it is low-tech. My choice is a Moleskine Large Sketchbook. I’ve used all sizes and types of Moleskines. This one feels the best and holds up well to constant wear and tear. While any notebook will do, I purposely avoid spiral notebooks since they tend to get torn up in transit.

7. Post-It Notes

If you do any type of creative, project management or user experience design work, a small packet of square Post-It notes is like having a portable whiteboard anywhere you go. They are great for arranging and re-arranging ideas or notes on a tabletop, wall or any flat surface. They can be assembled, dis-assembled, and re-assembled anywhere. When I’m working on a project with Post-its, I’ll number each one and take a photograph of the resulting arrangement and import it to Evernote later for easy searching.

8. Laptop Lock

While I believe most people are honest and good, I know better than to leave my laptop alone and vulnerable at a coffee shop. If I need to step away I lock it up with a Kensington notebook lock. It’s extremely portable and fits in a tiny drawstring bag.

9. Digital Camera (optional)

If your cell phone doesn’t have a decent camera, a good digital camera is very useful to capture Post-It notes, business cards, or any printed material you find on the go that you want to reference later. It’s almost like carrying a mini-scanner with you, and the images can be ported over to your computer later for easy reference.

10. High Quality Backpack or Messenger Bag

Finally, ya gotta gave a place to keep all this stuff that doesn’t weigh you down. Rickshaw Bags offers a fine selection of laptop messenger bags and accessories for Digital Nomads. also check out the great selection of laptop backpacks from North Face, Victorinox and ebags.com.

Combine this with the online tools discussed in the previous post and you will be unstoppable. Now go out there and get busy!

What’s A Wireframe?

Hold A Requirements Gathering Work Session

The first step is to schedule a requirements gathering work session. This is usually a 90-minute to two-hour meeting that includes everyone working on the project, especially senior decision makers. If that’s not possible, make sure everyone understands the potential downstream impact of leaving that person (or persons) out of the discussion. These meetings can be done in person or remotely using an online collaboration tool such as GoToMeeting. If it’s a remote gathering make sure everyone has a good Internet/phone connection and can view your presentation link. If it’s an in person meeting bring snacks and get a decent sized conference room. A large whiteboard in a conference room is great. If you can’t get that bring a pad of oversize post its and stick ‘em up all around the room. Online or live, make sure you’re ready to rock at the appointed start time.  

Start by asking some basic questions. Who’s the audience? What makes them pay attention, and what will make them take action? Some organizations will have a creative brief available. For others this may be their first opportunity to explore this critical question. Try to find out as much as you can about who the site is for and what makes them tick. If time allows, sketch out rough personas representing each user type. Make sure everyone is in agreement on this. Knowing your audience and their hot buttons is the most important place to start. 

Copywriters are expected to be able to write about any given topic a client needs, often against a very short deadline. While that’s a tall order for anyone, it’s also a major part of what makes copywriting such a fun and interesting field. On any particular day you could be writing about software, baby food, credit card processing, a new miracle drug, or a non-profit’s latest mission to the Amazon. The list goes on.

What Is A Swipe File?

My copywriting took a major leap forward when I started using project-specific swipe files on a regular basis. A traditional “swipe file” is a collection of previously written, tested and proven copy that helps you generate new ideas. You don’t copy it directly – that would be plagiarism. Instead you use it to study and learn from other writers and to spark new ideas. Having access to swipe files is so much better than staring at a blank page. Most copywriters, including me, arrange swipe files by content type, such as headlines, subheads, call to action, P.S., etc. They make great productivity tools and are a solid defense against writer’s block. Lots of copywriters keep hard copy swipe files in large folders. That doesn’t work for me since I prefer to keep everything digital, so my swipe file collection is based largely on simple text files. Text files pop up quickly on the desktop and don’t have any formatting, which makes them ideal.

Project-Specific Swipe Files

Late last year I realized the swipe file concept might also be useful to better organize my specific writing projects. It was Christmas week, and I had two simultaneous and unexpected project requests – a brochure and a website. We were traveling to visit relatives and it was critical for me to be extremely organized since my deadline for both was the day after New Year’s. Fortunately all the research materials for both projects were available online, so all I needed was a laptop and an internet connection. I started a simple text file for each project based on my rough outlines and started adding relevant content. Within each file I also created rough headlines with a single paragraph of text for easy scanning. As I worked on my drafts, I kept my swipe files open for easy access. This sped up my workflow and helped me make my deadlines without upsetting my family for working over the holidays (I did it while everyone was sleeping!).

Evernote Makes It Easier

While I originally used text files, I have since migrated to Evernote, a fantastic online tool that allows me to include pictures and audio in my swipe files. It’s almost as fast as my text editor, and everything I need for a given project is right there. The best part is I can access it later from my laptop, the web or even my iPhone. Having access on my phone makes it especially useful to capture ideas on the go.

Wrap-Up

A basic requirement for successful copywriting is being a quick study. Project-specific swipe files can really help you quickly ramp up and get your head around a client’s new product or service. Now whenever I start a new project, the first thing I do is create a swipe file just for that topic. It’s a great way to sift through my research and really dive into the subject matter. While I still use my traditional swipe file collection, I depend on my project swipe files for increased productivity and effectiveness.

I started working from home/working from anywhere almost three years ago in 2006, thanks in large part to advances in web and communications technology. Today I manage my entire business from my laptop and a cell phone, with full backup and security. In this post I’ll show you how you can manage your operation from anywhere in the world, even without a laptop or a cell phone. While a laptop and cell phone are great bonuses, all you really need is an internet connection and these 10 great online tools. It also helps to have a basic understanding of online banking & payment services, and access to Skype or a similar VOIP telephone service. Imagine being free to roam the globe and making a good living while you do it. These days you really can. So let’s get busy.