Found 17 topics tagged ‘Gaining Attention’

It doesn’t matter if you’re writing an email, a blog post, or a tweet—the full gamut of attention-seeking and attention-keeping tactics apply. Social media takes this to the next level. Not only is the content volume of...

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SPOILER: it’s not good. Sure—you know you’re writing an email to 5,000 people. But your task is to make your reader feel like you’re writing only to them. When ‘broadcasting’ language slips into our writing,...

To steal a mantra from our friends in journalism: don’t bury the lede. The idea might have started in newspaper offices but it applies anywhere we’re competing for our audience’s attention (so, the entire Internet)...

Cognitive biases are powerful mental distortions that affect the way we think and behave. They are so powerful that they can lead people to act against their own best interests. If you understand them, you can...

Knowing how much or how little to say starts with being clear about your objective. Rarely is it our job to turn readers into subject-matter experts. Mostly, we’re in the business of motivating people to action. If...

Of all the ‘rules’ out there for writing page headlines, this is the most transformative. If your headline sits on a petition or advocacy page, use it to communicate the ‘pain or consequence’ that follows from...