Korilynn V. - Express Writers

How to Write a Press Release: 11 Tips to Fresh Copy

January 10, 2024February 7, 2023 by Korilynn V.

How to Write a Press Release (Featuring 5 Samples)

While press releases are an essential part of online marketing and digital communications, they’re tough to write, and few people understand their structure. Because of this, many companies and marketers hire expert writers or journalists to write press releases for them. However, understanding the format and how to write a press release important so you can recognize a good press release when you see it. Then you can always evaluate your press release content and be more successful when promoting your brand image and new products. While press releases can feel foreign, they all contain specific elements that should be present in every press release you issue. In the words of Robert Wyne, a prominent Forbes contributor, press releases “are formulaic, by nature, but so are poetry, tweets, columns, and other written communications. Everyone has constraints. Chefs work within an 8-inch pan to create an omelet, and the great ones know how to pick the best ingredients and mix them to create a savory sensation. Writers can season their sentences within the confines of a release.” When you know what to include in your press release and how to structure it, your PR material will be more official, credible, and useful for readers. This is true whether you plan to write your press releases yourself or hire someone else to do it for you. Follow along as we share the 11 steps required to create an expertly crafted press release. What Is a Press Release? A press release is an official statement from a business or organization that shares news with media outlets and the public. It is a formal document used to distribute relevant information in a simple, one-page format. The goal of a press release is to attract attention from the media and the public. When Should You Use a Press Release? As an official media document, press releases should be reserved for newsworthy events. If used too often for insignificant updates, your releases might get ignored. Press releases are commonly used for the following types of announcements or events: Product launches Significant service changes Hiring or leaving of company executives Funding announcements Breaking news Public and private events Grand openings and groundbreakings Press Releases vs. Company Announcements To the untrained reader, a press release might just seem like a fancy term for a company announcement. While a press release is technically an announcement, from a journalistic perspective, it’s viewed as a primary source that can be cited. Press releases are the source of official information. If a company shares the same news in another way, like a tweet or a blog, it will likely link back to the official press release. Since they are structured more formally, press releases also differ from other types of announcements because they are meant to be shared by media outlets. 11 Steps to Writing a Press Release No matter what kind of business you run, press releases are critical. They are an ideal medium for telling the media, Google, and your readers when something new and exciting has happened within your company. Use press releases to announce partnerships, product launches, new hires, and more. If your business has never written a press release before, don’t worry. Our 11 foundational tips will guide you through the process. 1. Use the Correct Release Language When submitting a press release to a news outlet, you must tell them when you would like it published. If you’re ready for your press release to go out to the public right now, use the words “FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE” at the top. However, if you need to hold the release until a certain date (this is common with product launches), put “HOLD RELEASE UNTIL” along with your specified date. This is an important piece of your press release article because it tells readers and journalists when you want to see your article on the web or in print. It also gives you control over when the press release hits the media, which can have a massive impact on the success of your press release efforts. 2. Use Your Company Logo and Colors Branding in a press release is crucial if you want your readers to know what your brand represents. To make your press releases more impactful and recognizable, use your company’s logos and colors in the headline section. Check out how the autonomous driving company Motional added their logo to the top of a recent press release: 3. Include Keywords in Your Press Release Headlines Just like in other types of online content, you should include SEO keywords in your press release headlines. This makes it easier for search engines to find and rank your press release while ensuring that the media and your readers understand what your press release is about. Remember: you don’t want to go overboard with keywords – just include them naturally throughout like you do with other content. Check out how Apple does this in a press release published on December 6, 2022. In this case, you could safely assume the keywords Apple targeted include “App Store pricing:” Another consideration is the capitalization of your headlines. If you are following official AP Style capitalization, all the words in your headline should be capitalized except for prepositions and words shorter than four letters. As you can see in the example above, Apple only capitalized proper nouns. However, they published the press release on their website. If they had published the press release on an official news website, choosing title case capitalization would be the better option. For best results, keep your headlines under 160 characters. Longer than that and readers may lose interest, and you risk having your headline truncated by Google. Your headline must pique the interest of a very limited demographic – journalists. While you might want to write for your customers, a press release is for the press. Make sure your headline is factual, informative, and attention-grabbing. Here are a few tips to help you write more effective press … Read more

Google’s Search Quality Evaluator Guidelines: What Does the E-E-A-T Update Mean?

January 18, 2024January 24, 2023 by Korilynn V.

Google is anything but transparent. As such, the inner workings of its algorithms have never been easy to interpret. This is especially true of Google’s search guidelines. So how do we properly interpret “SEO” (Search Engine Optimization) if that’s the case? SEO experts dedicate themselves to a sort of “algorithm watch.” They spend countless hours pouring over search metrics. They write novel-length blogs analyzing the changes they can only guess happened and how these changes may or may not affect search rankings. In the SEO world, Google’s “Search Quality Evaluator Guidelines” give us a glimpse into what Google’s algorithms choose to prioritize. This large-scale document offers clarity on what Google looks for in their ranking algorithms. It’s where the SEO acronyms EAT and YMYL (Your Money and Your Life) come from. However, in late 2022, Google added another E to its guidelines turning EAT into EEAT. While the Search Quality Evaluator Guidelines don’t lay out exactly what we need to know to jump to the top of the rankings, they do provide some valuable information: What kind of pages are viewed as high quality. Which factors influence high- and low-quality ratings (Important since these factors may be similar to how Google measures page quality for SERP rankings). We’ve taken an inside look at the guidelines to understand how they relate to your SEO and on-page site content, including the most recent updates. Read on to learn more about the crucial points from the Search Quality Evaluator Guidelines for your online content marketing and writing needs. What Are Google’s Search Guidelines All About? Google’s search guidelines document is over 170 pages long and broken into an overview, an introduction, three parts, and an appendix. The major parts are as follows: General Guidelines Overview Introduction to Search Quality Rating Part 1: Page Quality Rating Guideline Part 2: Understanding Search User Needs Part 3: Needs Met Rating Guideline Appendix 1: Using the Evaluation Platform Appendix 2: Guideline Change Log In addition to focusing heavily on mobile search, Google’s search guidelines focus on the importance of building trust and a good reputation for websites and/or content creators. This isn’t hugely surprising – it’s simply a variation on what Google has been saying for years – the best websites deliver relevant, trustworthy, quality information to users. Google focuses heavily on experimentation and continual algorithm improvements to improve web quality. These guidelines provide specific instructions on what Google engineers want people to do to improve individual site quality. These guidelines are dense. They cover everything from important definitions to duplicate landing pages and all the places in between. Google’s E-E-A-T Update In recent years, Google has put more emphasis on who is creating the content. This is emphasized with the addition of Experience as a factor in quality. Experience: This new word adds another layer of quality to its search results assessments. As far as experience is concerned, Google is looking for content that “demonstrate[s] that it was produced with some degree of experience, such as with actual use of a product, having actually visited a place, or communicating what a person experienced.” There are many times when a searcher would benefit from content produced by someone with real-world experience. For example, if someone is looking for information about traveling to Paris, a blog written by someone with a lot of Parisian travel experience would be more beneficial than a blog written by someone who has never been there. Expertise: The expertise criteria considers how much relevant knowledge or skill the creator seems to have on the topic. For example, if someone was searching for advice for filing their taxes, an accountant with 20 years of experience would have more expertise than someone with a mild interest in tax laws. Authoritativeness: There are some creators or websites that have established themselves as a “go-to source” in their area. While there may not always be one official, authoritative source for every topic, if there is, Google will prioritize that site over all others for relevant searches. For example, if someone is looking for information on how to renew their passport, the official government site is going to have the most authority. Trustworthiness: Google views trustworthiness as the most important factor in E-E-A-T. All other attributes contribute to a page being “accurate, honest, safe, and reliable.” The amount of trust a page needs depends on what kind of site it is. For example, social media sites on entertainment topics don’t need as must trust as informational pages on YMYL topics. When used together Experience, Expertise, and Authoritativeness all contribute to the overall Trustworthiness of a page. Source: Google Search Guidelines 10 Key SEO Content Factors in the Google Search Quality Evaluator Guidelines This document offers an expansive guide to Google’s preferences and the future of SEO. The guidelines lay out specifics about Google’s algorithms and how SEO experts can better predict changes to them in the future. Beneficial Purpose In 2018, Google updated its guidelines with the concept of “beneficial purpose.” This term defines websites that are created, first and foremost, for the user’s benefit. On the other hand, there are many pages created solely for the purpose of ranking on Google or created with no intention of helping users. Sometimes these pages are designed to defraud users. From Google’s perspective, these pages have zero beneficial purpose. According to the guidelines, Part 1 Section 3.0, pages that provide no benefit may earn the lowest Page Quality (PQ) rating. Source: Google Search Guidelines In stark contrast, pages that fulfill their intended purpose will receive a higher PQ rating. So if your content does not help your readers in some way, your content will have little to no value to Google. 2. Page Quality (E-E-A-T) Page quality has always been somewhat of a mystery. Google uses hundreds of ranking factors, and it’s often unclear how they all related to one another. We’ve always known unique, relevant, well-written content is crucial to producing a high-quality page. However, the guidelines have … Read more

Introducing Express Writers University: Understanding the Importance of Internal Training Content

August 10, 2023December 6, 2022 by Korilynn V.

Your team, no matter what they do for you, counts on your business for the training they need. Even the most educated and experienced workers need training, especially when processes change. Therefore, continually updating your internal training content is essential to creating a good employee environment. In fact, Henry Ford famously stated,” The only thing worse than training your employees and having them leave is not training them and having them stay.” This quote encapsulates the importance of training and why it is crucial for any business to be successful. No one wants to read about processes that are outdated or even obsolete. It wastes everyone’s time and is mostly useless for your workers. Read on as we explore strategies you can use to keep your internal training fresh and introduce you to Express Writers University. This is our new internal training site that we will use to make sure our writers always have the most up-to-date resources and skills. Why Is Internal Training Important? Whether you have two employees or two thousand, they need proper training to do their job effectively. Your business should have training available for roles from entry-level positions to high-level executives. Even having materials for those who train your employees is important. Developing effective training materials achieves several goals: Demonstrates and Defines Roles and Responsibilities While your new team members likely have a general idea of their responsibilities, you can’t ignore training them on in-house best practices. This training should clearly define your expectations for them and include real-world examples and demonstrations of their responsibilities. If they ever have any questions about their role and responsibilities, they should be able to refer to the training materials for clarification. You may need to consider updating your materials if you regularly hear from new hires that they can’t find the answers they need in your training guides. Establishes Best Practices Even if employees have experience in your industry, your company likely has some unique processes they need to learn. Effective training content should exemplify the best practices for your business. When employees know your expectations and have the best methods to achieve the goals you set, they will catch on faster. Plus, you’ll avoid having to slow down your tasks and spend time teaching someone a new way to do things. Improves Employee Compliance If employees don’t get the proper training to understand your expectations, how can you expect them to comply with your procedures and rules? When your training content clearly defines your business rules and practices, your employee compliance should improve. It’s worth noting that the material should also outline any consequences if employees ignore the rules. You clearly establish boundaries and ensure they understand what could happen before they make a mistake. Enhances Employee Performance and Satisfaction When your employees understand their roles and how to do their jobs, you should see a boost in employee performance. In turn, when employees feel confident and secure in their roles, which can improve employee satisfaction. If you create an environment that nurtures satisfied employees, you’re likely to notice lower turnover rates, less absenteeism, and more pride in the work they do. Provides Opportunities for Advancement Training new employees is something all businesses do. But do you offer training opportunities for your veteran employees? Internal training is an excellent way to give your loyal employees the skills they need to advance within your company. This is often called upskilling and helps increase employee retention, prepare employees for promotions, build on their current skills, and keep your business up-to-date on the latest industry trends. Types of Training Content You can produce training content in a wide range of formats. Some of the most common types of training materials include: Videos: Videos are an excellent source of training, especially if you need to demonstrate a specific activity or process. Checklists: You can give new employees checklists during their training to ensure they accomplish all their onboarding tasks. Presentations: Slide presentations are a great way to cover general topics. Worksheets or evaluations: Worksheets help employees practice their new skills, and evaluations let them prove their competency. Activities: For many employees, there is no better way to learn how to do something than by doing it yourself. Make sure your trainers follow specific procedures for any active, hands-on training to create consistency for all new employees. How to Improve Your Internal Training Content Whether your training materials are outdated, incomplete, or not applicable to your business, you should reevaluate them to keep your training relevant and helpful. Try these 4 strategies to improve your internal training content. Reflect Your Business Practices While generic “off-the-shelf” training materials are available online, these may not be the best fit for your business. By creating your own custom training content, you can incorporate your unique business practices into your training. This enables you to include real-world examples and data that directly correlate to what employees can expect to happen. As your business practices evolve, you can update your training to include these changes. For example, if you replace one software solution with another, you should update your training to include the new program. There is no point in training someone on procedures you no longer use. Using custom, up-to-date training materials can make onboarding easier for new hires. They can see exactly how to do their daily tasks instead of having to figure it out on their own. Use Staff Feedback An incredible resource for your training materials is your own staff. These are the people who use the training materials. If there is a major disconnect between the training procedures and the actual on-the-job experience, consider updating your training content. To prevent a disconnect from happening, you should regularly ask for feedback from your employees. Once they have completed their training and gotten experience in their new job, ask them if there was anything they were still unsure about or if anything was confusing or misleading. You should also ask for feedback … Read more

How and Why to Outsource Your Content Writing

January 13, 2024August 16, 2022 by Korilynn V.

When it comes to content creation, you have two options: do it yourself or outsource. While it’s certainly admirable to create content entirely on your own, it’s not feasible for everyone. That’s why many companies opt to have a mix of in-house or freelance writers, or they choose to outsource the task entirely. If you’ve been considering making the move to outsource content writing, you probably have a few questions you need answered. For instance, how do you know when it’s time to hire a writer? Will this investment really be worthwhile? How do you outsource anyway? This article shares everything you need to know if you want to get started with outsourcing. Knowing When it’s Time to Outsource Now that you understand how to outsource content writing efficiently, you may be wondering – is it time to hire someone or can I continue to manage my content on my own? This can be a difficult decision. Giving up control or seeking outside help isn’t always the easiest thing. However, sometimes it’s exactly what you need to propel your brand forward. Here are a couple of signs it’s time to outsource: 1. You’re Missing Publication Deadlines If you want to be successful with your content creation, you should consistently publish new. Doing this allows you to stay top-of-mind with your target audience. Plus, it helps you generate more organic traffic and will help position you as a thought leader over time. To be consistent, it’s helpful to have a set posting schedule. For instance, you could aim to publish a new article weekly. However, that’s often easier said than done. When building a business, there are typically tons of tasks on your plate. And sometimes, content creation takes a backseat to those other to-dos when you have limited time in your day to get things done. If you find you’ve been neglecting your content schedule by missing publication deadlines, it’s time to consider outsourcing. This will ensure you get back on track and have new content going out regularly. Then, you won’t have to risk being forgotten by your readers. 2. Writing Isn’t Your Strong Suit The truth is writing isn’t for everyone. Which is okay because you don’t need to be an expert writer or spend hours stressing about putting together a high-quality article. Instead of beating yourself up over it, call in the reinforcements. When you outsource content writing, you get to remove this task from your to-do list and focus on the things you enjoy doing for your business. Additionally, hiring someone who truly loves to write ensures you’re putting out better content than ever. 3. You Don’t Know SEO If you want to generate organic traffic, optimizing your content is a must. Search engines like Google are always evolving and updating their algorithms to better deliver users the content they’re searching for. And if you’re creating online content, you need to stay updated with these changes because they could impact the SEO strategies you’ve been implementing. But what if you don’t know a thing about SEO? Or what if you’re struggling to stay updated with what’s going on with Google? You don’t need to be an optimization expert. However, this is another good sign you may want to outsource content writing. A skilled writer will know how to effectively optimize your content so you can rank higher on Google. That will bring in more traffic and could increase engagement and conversions. 4. You Have the Budget Money is often one of the biggest roadblocks for businesses that want to outsource content. Sometimes they simply don’t have the extra funds to allocate to this. If you do, it might be time to move forward with outsourcing. Investing in content can help you make more money. In 2019, a HubSpot study revealed blogging alone can net you 13 times more in positive return on investment (ROI). But on top of that, you free up time to tackle other projects to grow your brand, so the investment only grows. The Benefits of Outsourcing Your Content Writing Even if you know you should outsource, there’s a good chance you’re probably a little hesitant too. Finding the perfect writer can be stressful. Plus, you need to create a new budget for this added expense. You might feel like that isn’t worthwhile, but you just need to understand the great things that can come along when you outsource content writing. Here are a few benefits that just might seal the deal for you: It’ll Save You Time:Instead of pouring hours into content creation, you can have someone else completely take over this task. Then, it’ll free up time in your day to focus on other things to drive your business forward. For example, you’ll be able to put more effort into creating new products and services. And relying on a skilled writer will often take less time than if you were creating the content. High-Quality, Optimized Content:An expert writer will deliver top-notch content carefully optimized so you can attract more organic traffic to your website. You’ll never have to question the quality of the content you receive, nor will you need to worry about staying updated with the latest SEO tactics. Your writer can handle that for you. Improved Rankings in the SERPs:Since you’ll now be publishing optimized content on your blog, there’s a good chance your content may start climbing up the SERPs. Landing on the first page of Google is quite a feat, and it’s something a skilled writer can help you accomplish. Higher rankings generate more visibility and lead to a boost in traffic. Increased Conversions and Engagement: A powerful article could be what leads someone to purchase with your business, especially if you include a well-written call to action at the end. You also may see engagement rates increase because of all this new content you’re publishing. Of course, those are just a few of the benefits you can experience when you outsource. Beyond that, you can feel confident knowing you’ll receive 100% original content every … Read more

Content as a Service: Everything You Wanted to Know

July 19, 2022 by Korilynn V.

Did you know that 82% of marketers actively use content marketing? That’s because brands see the value of consistently publishing quality content for their audiences to consume. Investing time and money into content and doing it well is essential because your audience often seeks content that educates or informs. You can also use content to build thought leadership. And most importantly, it can convert someone into a paying customer. So, it only makes sense to apply your resources toward content marketing. To provide their audience with the right content, at the right time, and via the right channels, many brands turn to content as a service to truly transform their overall content strategy. But what exactly is content as a service? If you’re not sure what that means or the benefits this practice offers, you’re in the right place. This article will help you get started. What is Content as a Service? Content as a service, often abbreviated to CaaS, is a way for you to provide content on-demand to your audience. It works by storing the content you’ve produced as raw data in a content repository. When uploaded, it’ll have tags and metadata to categorize it. Then, when the content is needed, it’s requested and displayed to your reader. And that content will be presented in a way that’s optimized for the reader’s device, whether it’s a computer, tablet, smartphone, or smartwatch. It can even factor in systems such as websites and apps. Something like this isn’t possible with a single CMS (content management system). If you wanted to publish the same piece of content on another channel, you need to duplicate it. With content as a service, however, it’s basically like a headless CMS. It offers the ability to deliver content to multiple channels by using an application programming interface (API). These days, offering an omnichannel experience (where you’re focused on serving and selling to customers across multiple channels) is essential. You should aim to reach your target audience where they’re at. And that’s why content as a service has become a popular move for many, as it allows effective management and repurposing of content across various channels. The Benefits of Content as a Service It all sounds appealing, right? Before you turn your content strategy upside down, you’re probably wondering how content as a service might benefit you. Since you know the time and money it requires, you need to know that making this move will be a worthwhile investment. Here are just a few of the benefits that’ll make CaaS more enticing: It Offers More Flexibility:Wouldn’t it be nice to create a piece of content once and publish it everywhere without manually republishing it across multiple platforms? That’s what content as a service does for you. This will save you time since it won’t require additional effort while your content gains more traction across various channels. You’ll Gain Better Insight into Content Performance:When it comes to your content strategy, you need to know what works and what doesn’t to generate the desired results. Implementing this practice will help you better understand the content your audience is most interested in so you can create more of what they’re searching for. Content Can be Personalized to Your Audience: With more insights into your audience, you can tailor your content based on their demographics and interests. Then you deliver exactly what they’re searching for at the right moment. Personalized content is a great way to increase loyalty and drive conversions, so it pays off in the long run. At the end of the day, you need to consider how this would impact your target audience. Is implementing content as a service going to improve their lives? Will it help provide a more user-friendly experience that’ll keep them coming back for more? How to Implement Content as a Service for Your Brand If you’re ready to switch to a more content-centric approach and want to implement content as a service, we need to discuss how to get started. Simply follow this advice to get the ball rolling. 1. Understand the Content Needs of Your Audience Before you begin writing content, research your target audience if you haven’t already. Having a clear understanding of what your audience is searching for when opening Google will allow you to brainstorm relevant content ideas. It’s crucial that you create the content they’re looking for, or your content will go largely unnoticed. To get in front of your target audience, you must give them what they need. This means you want to be strategic about your focus keywords and how those keywords are used within your content. It’ll increase the odds of ranking high in Google’s search results, ultimately attracting more people to your brand. Because if no one is accessing your content, the advice that follows will be useless. Once you’ve generated some relevant ideas, you can begin writing. You can do this in-house if you have a skilled content creator on your team. Or you might want to consider outsourcing your content creation to a team of expert writers (more on that in a moment). 2. Determine How the Content Will be Made Available First, you’ll need a content management user interface to host all your content in one place. There’s no need to worry about formatting or anything like that. Instead, you just want to focus on uploading your best content and tagging it with the appropriate metadata so it can be properly categorized. This will make it easier to access the content later. But as mentioned before, you won’t be solely relying on a traditional CMS (such as WordPress) when pursuing content as a service. Instead, you’ll be utilizing an application programming interface, also known as an API. This is commonly done with a REST API, but there are other options. It’s the API that will take your content and present it in whatever way is requested by your reader. That could be your desktop website, mobile website, or app. An API could … Read more

The No-BS Guide to High-Level Technical Writing

June 19, 2024June 28, 2022 by Korilynn V.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of technical writers is projected to grow 12% from 2020 to 2030. This is faster than the average for all other occupations. Also, approximately 5,500 job openings are expected for technical writers each year. If that data is any indication, technical writing is a lucrative career path if you have a passion for writing because the demand will only increase. So, if you’re interested in becoming a technical writer, that’s no better time than the present. But what exactly is technical writing? How can you get started and become a writer who lands jobs with ease? This guide has all the information you need to pursue this career path. What is Technical Writing? Technical writing requires the writer to communicate complex information in an easy-to-understand way. This spans a variety of industries, including computer hardware and software, engineering, chemistry, robotics, and the medical and financial fields. However, it’s worth noting that nearly every industry uses technical writing in some shape or form. It can cover a variety of mediums depending on what’s most appropriate for the topic at hand. For instance, technical writing can be reports, user manuals, instructions, documentation, and procedures, among other content types. As a result, writers need unique skillsets to have the ability and the confidence to craft accessible information. Why Technical Writers Are in Demand As mentioned above, jobs in the technical writing field are rising steadily, making it a worthwhile career path to pursue. But why is there such a need for writers in this field? One reason is that many jobs are becoming automated. It’s causing many people to worry about whether their job will become obsolete next. However, robots haven’t perfected content creation. We still need humans to craft and review content to ensure it’s done properly. And, in the technical writing field, there’s no room for error, making human writers and editors essential. Besides that, here are a few more reasons why technical writers are in demand: Their Skillset is Unique: Not every writer has a knack for technical writing. When a company is looking to hire someone to handle their technical writing needs, they want someone who has great writing skills, knowledge of these complex fields, and the ability to research and understand the topics at hand. Only a handful of writers fit those criteria. New Technology is Always Being Developed: The technology world is forever moving at a rapid pace. Every year, engineers develop new technologies and software, which means there’s a consistent need for technical writers to create content that corresponds to these new developments. That can include reports, instruction manuals, and more. If you have a knack for explaining things concisely technical writing could be a good fit for your next career move. And, with practice and experience in the field, you’ll have a truly in-demand skill. 6 Technical Writing Tips to Improve Your Content Technical writing is a great career path for those who love to write and are good at explaining complex ideas in simple language. However, it can still be a challenging field. Luckily, you can do a few things to improve your technical writing skills. Not only will these tips make your job more enjoyable, but they should help you land more opportunities as well. 1. Be Willing to Expand Your Knowledge It’s safe to say the worst thing anyone can do these days is to assume they know everything there is to know about a particular field. The reality is, there’s always more to learn and room for improvement. For that reason, you should be willing to expand your knowledge within your field by staying updated with the latest news and consuming other content in your industry. Doing this helps you better understand the topics you’ll write about and will boost your confidence as a writer. Now, the great thing about technical writing is that you don’t need to have hands-on experience writing about your preferred field. For example, you don’t need to be a surgeon to write about medical-related topics. You can take the time to research and learn everything there is to know so you can effortlessly bring a high-quality piece of content to life. 2. Practice Your Craft It’s not enough to just sit back and consume content from your industry. You need to put your knowledge and skills to use. That’s the only way you’ll become better at technical writing. A great piece of advice you can implement is to read other technical documents, then try to figure out what makes them great or what improvements can be made to enhance the content. Being able to identify the qualities of a great piece of content will help to strengthen your writing. From there, you can practice writing technical content of your own. You can even have a friend or a colleague review your work to offer their feedback. Because they likely won’t have experience or knowledge in the field you’re writing about, they can let you know if the content is easy to understand or if it’s still too complex for the average reader. 3. Get to Know Your Audience Every great writer knows that you need to understand who your audience is before you can begin creating. This advice applies to everyone, not just those in the technical writing field. Knowing your audience helps you choose topics that they’ll find appealing. Plus, it ensures you write in a way that speaks directly to them and their level of knowledge on the topic. For example, you’ll want to be mindful of the words you use. Instead of using specialized terms or complex jargon that will require your reader to break out the dictionary, use simple language they’ll understand without question. If you can’t explain something without the use of specialized terms, consider broadening your topic to explain it at a more general level. An easy way to better understand your audience would be to learn directly from them. … Read more

Your Guide to Home Office Optimization: 10 Tips and Tricks from a Work-at-Home Content Manager

January 1, 2021October 8, 2019 by Korilynn V.

This is a guest post from our content manager, Korilynn. Facts: An efficient workspace is more than just moving some papers and keeping your desk tidy. In my role as a Content Manager for Express Writers, I juggle multiple tasks, manage a busy team of writers and editors, and entertain a three-year-old who is at home with me every day too. There’s no way I could pull off my daily to-do list without implementing a few home office optimization techniques. I am an organizational freak of sorts. Papers have a place, my desk cannot have a speck of dust, or it will annoy me until I whip out the Pledge and remove it. I also have a checklist for just about anything and everything. By staying so organized, I’m more efficient and productive at work, and I still get to enjoy the number one benefit of working from home: flexibility. When you’re not glued to your computer working tirelessly to meet deadlines that are around the corner, life is so much easier. You don’t have to be OCD organized either. In my blog, I’m sharing my best tips with you so you can learn how to implement some home office optimization to maximize your productivity — and have more successful, much-needed “you” time. 10 Home Office Optimization Tricks to Implement for Maximum Efficiency Home office optimization starts with your desk. Your home desk setup is critical because this is your productivity hub. Once you sit down here, you are in “work” mode. Even if you don’t have a dedicated office, you can optimize using my tips for the best productivity setup regardless of where you are in the home. I bought a large executive home office desk to fit my three monitors, but also have room for writing notes, paperwork off to the side, and everything else I need. I even have hidden sliders off to the side that I can pull out for those days my desk space isn’t enough (or if I need to place my Pumpkin Spice Latte somewhere safe). Aside from buying a desk, you need to know how to design an office that focuses on how you work best. What works for me might not work for another, but you can use my home office ideas as a jumping-off point for your workspace. To get started, consider these essentials for your perfect home office, and see what works for your style and budget. [bctt tweet=”Working at home is great. But sometimes, juggling those career and family-related tasks can get you crazy. Stay productive with these 10 home office optimization tips from our content manager, Korilynn! ” username=”ExpWriters”] Tip #1: Get a Great Computer (My PC, aka The Blue Beast) My PC was custom-built, because most ready-to-buy PCs do not meet my needs, plus I wanted the ability to run three monitors without my computer ever having an issue. It is quite a monster – almost as tall as my desk. However, it runs quietly, and all three of my monitors works flawlessly on it. It has a bright blue light effect, which glows and at night looks like a big blue orb in my office; hence the name. I don’t dare lift it after we installed it either – takes two people to lift and move it. I currently run: Intel Core i7 Extreme 32GB of RAM Windows 10 64-Bit Corsair Hydro Series Liquid Cooling Nvidia GeForce RTX 2080Ti There’s plenty more in there making the Blue Beast run, but those are the primary components. Do you have to go as crazy with your system? No, but I recommend more than one monitor. With three, I can lay out my work without having to manage multiple windows or tabs in Chrome, and I have seen a drastic improvement going from a single monitor to three. Before I had three monitors, I had two. I initially swapped to two monitors after reading a study that adding a second monitory could increase productivity by 20 to 30 percent. While skeptical at first, once I added the second monitor, I was hooked – and I dare say my productivity spiked higher than 30 percent. Tip #2: Try a Mechanical Keyboard: The Only Real Way to Type When it comes to keyboards, I love mechanical ones. Not only are they easy to work on, but the sound is quite soothing. They have so many cute options today – including ones that mimic typewriters. I love to buy those, as I am obsessed with typewriters and their sound. Even better, mechanical keyboards last way longer than rubber keyboards. If a key stops working, buy a new switch, replace, and off you go. Most keyboards come with a few extra switches too. I recently swapped to the Cherry MX Silent from Corsair because my old mechanicals was too loud for early morning work sessions – didn’t want to wake everyone in the house as I crazily typed away. Source: Corsair With mechanicals, you almost feel as though you are working harder when your keyboard is clicking away like crazy. Sure, it annoys everyone around, but it gets you in the zone — so don’t mind anyone who tells you otherwise. Just show them your checklist when everything is marked “done.” ✅ Tip #3: Consider a Treadmill Desk for a Change of Pace (Literally) It is hard to sit at your desk all day, and it isn’t healthy either. Harvard Medical School mentions sitting for too many hours can increase your risk of diabetes, obesity, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular disease, and even deep-vein thrombosis. I use a treadmill desk about once every other day. Don’t buy an actual treadmill desk. What I did was purchase a regular treadmill (so I can enjoy all the great features) and created a makeshift board across it that holds my laptop when I want to get in some steps while typing. Not only does it keep me healthy but makes sure I annihilate anyone I’m competing … Read more