by Webmaster on February 9, 2010
Photo by Rob Ireton used under CC BY NC SA 2.0
Technical writing tends to baffle a lot of those who went to college for English or other Arts majors. There’s a lot of writers out there who want to get into technical writing but they don’t know where to start. This is especially true of those who had English majors in college and graduate to find that tech skills are in high demand. You have to be a bit technically inclined in order to get a job even as an entry level content writer. If you’re planning to get into technical writing or have a career, you should start reading before you jump in with both feet into a job you might end up really hating.
For technical writing skills specifically, you should read a lot of technical papers, instructions etc. and then write a lot. When it comes to writing skills, practice does make it perfect (no matter how cliché it is). Ask yourself what niche market are you going to focus? Do you want to write software manuals? Manuals that come with electronics like cell phones, digital cameras and so on. Or are you interested in writing “how to” articles on using a particular system?
Find that niche first and start reading those articles, manuals etc. in that field so that you’re aware of the vernacular. I find Wordpress Codex to have great information — the information is well organized and easy to follow, even for a non-technical person. They write stuff on how to use Wordpress and things that you can do with it. It acts as an online manual for the masses. It is also a very popular blogging platform. For every great product, there is always a great support system. Technical writing IS first contact between the consumer and the product. Firefox support is another great support online. More and more people will be looking for support online in the coming years. Instead of calling customer support, consumers will be Googling and contacting other consumers. That’s why online written support is going to be really important for Web 2.0 products.
Once you’re familiar with the format, you should start writing your own manuals/technical articles, posts etc. You can do it on your own blog as tutorials. You can also join a community like Ubuntu and contribute to documentation. There’s a ton of open source projects that need help with documentation. What’s more, the open source community will support you as a writer, and as someone who is learning the ropes. Later on, you can even become an expert and you’ll be known for that.
Personally see technical writers as translators between geeks and the laymen. Geeks are great when it comes to developing new technologies but some of them don’t know how to communicate to the rest of the population who speak “English”. As a technical writer you need to understand geeks and translate that into English, breaking things down to the simplest level that everyone can understand. So, don’t forget to test it out on your mom after you’ve written something!
by Webmaster on January 11, 2010
LinkedIn Smurfs Lunch
When people write and talk about LinkedIn, they usually focus on getting a job, connecting with the right network, and marketing your individual profile. All of this is career based and is focused on the individual. LinkedIn is a great platform for businesses, too, especially for startups, small and medium size businesses. LinkedIn can be a valuable business tool if you’re able to use it effectively. Here are five effective ways you can use LinkedIn for your business:
1. LinkedIn company profile
In order to have a brand presence on LinkedIn, you must have a company profile. Click here to start one now. It gives your company a face and the visitor an overview of what you’re all about without having to visit your website. Read more about setting up a LinkedIn company profile here. This gives your online presence a boost.
2. Network with thought leaders and potential strategic partners
LinkedIn groups are one of the best places to network with thought leaders in your industry and listen to what others are thinking and saying about in your industry. You’re allowed to join 50 groups on LinkedIn but don’t join all the groups in your industry. Pick and choose wisely because there’s a lot of messages that comes through active groups. You’ll have to test and see how it will work out for you and respond to discussions if they’re useful. This is a place where you can meet professionals who have the same interest and are on the same level as you are.
3. Do market research and get feedback
Depending on how active the people in your industry are on LinkedIn, you’ll be getting a lot of answers if you put your question out there. Ask a question in the LinkedIn Q&A Section it’s one of the best places that experts in your field will respond because they are listening. This is something that you can incorporate into your marketing research. Now you can even use LinkedIn Polls and get sample data from your professional network.
4. Become a LinkedIn expert
Just because you can ask questions doesn’t mean you can’t answer them. Make sure you’re monitoring questions that are related to your vertical, industry, or area of expertise. Depending on how often you answer and how you answer questions, it may take a while before someone marks you as an “Expert”. It’s worth your time if you can answer things the right way, and really think about the answers. If you’re an expert in your area already, you won’t have to think about it much. Besides, you’ll be getting good LinkedIn karma by helping someone out, and others will contact you if your answer is interesting enough.
5. Nurture and generate leads
eMarketer reports that online social spending happens because of marketing — not ads. While online ads still can’t be ignored, it’s the personal one-on-one connections that will make you network grow. In my experience, the contacts I get are usually people who are curious and have specific questions, or want to clarify things before they invest in online marketing. You might get different questions from different people but usually they all want to start a conversation. Now, it’s up to you to keep that conversation going and see if it leads to something else. [non-ad conversational online marketing spending rose from $650 million to $800 million between 2008 and 2009. It's expected to rise to $1080 million this year.] Small and medium size businesses might not have a big marketing budget, but spending the time to engage with your network can yield results, give you other sources of traffic, and get you leads. Engaging in conversations will get you prospects to look at you as an expert. If you have the right answers, they might even hire you, but first you need to put yourself and your business out there and market your expertise the right way.
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Photo by 99Zeros used under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.
