Kate Evans

Internal comms| IT pharma | ALS care advocate | Tell a good story and make me laugh? I'm in. Offer me whisky? I'm yours.

[Kate Evans @kateinthemiddle]

@mrsjennifield I agree! Why do you want them to care? If it's a feel good story about the company, meh, better to promote externally as a way to attract socially conscious potential employees.

[Jenni Field @mrsjennifield]

Question from the floor: how do we get employees to care about the ESG stories?

Makes me want to ask back, why do you want them to care? And what do you want them to do with those stories?

#IABC23

[Michelle Garrett | B2B PR Consultant/Writer @PRisUs]

DC friends - say someone was going to speak at a conference at the Convention Center. What hotel would be most convenient/best place to stay in your opinion?

[Kate Evans @kateinthemiddle]

@ambernoelle Isn't that what a bedroom chair is for?

[Shawna Bruce (She/Her) @sbrucecanada]

#CrisisCommsTip

When delivering bad news you need to think of your audience.

- What do they want to hear?
- What do they need to hear?
- How can I say this with empathy?

It starts at the top with your leadership.

Remember - it’s about them - not you. Show them you care.

[Michelle Garrett | B2B PR Consultant/Writer @PRisUs]

But it saves you so much time… 🙄🙄🙄

[Kate Evans @kateinthemiddle]

@GWSmith14 Hope you're feeling better soon.

[ρꪮꪮ𝓳ꪖ 🌸 @YourSomeone11]

Little things matter because the quietest whisper of hope, the softest shadow of a smile, and the faintest act of kindness can save a soul.

[Michelle Garrett | B2B PR Consultant/Writer @PRisUs]

“Writing for the audience should always take precedence over writing for search engines.”

10 Content Marketing Expert Hot Takes to Stay Ready in 2023
https://t.co/0q8zjKC61h @PointedCopy by Mujidat Oladeinde
#writingtips

[Kate Evans @kateinthemiddle]

@Jeanc9orf72 CCALS is a wonderful organization.

[Kate Evans @kateinthemiddle]

Really good take on ChatGBT

Blog | Shel Holtz https://t.co/8aPUw3uD9q

[Ashley R. Cummings @ashleyrcummings]

Being a writer is just constantly googling "what's another word for this word I've already used 500 times."

[Alice Lemée 🌱 @alicellemee]

There are two types of writers. Those who write to achieve high status, and those who write because they have an insatiable urge to share their ideas with the world. The best writers tend to be the latter. 🌎

[Kate Evans @kateinthemiddle]

Truth

[Joel Lalgee @Humanheadhunter]

Connecting people is an underrated business skill.

[Marly @VerbsRProudest]

I’m trying to lift my heart this morning. I’m doing it but I feel like one of those weightlifters with the shaking arms.

[Eddie Shleyner 🇺🇦 @VeryGoodCopy]

𝗗𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀.

“No sentence can be effective if it contains facts alone," said copywriter Eugene Schwartz, pictured below. "It must also contain emotion, image, logic, and promise.”

Headlines are sentences too, of course.

They’re the most important sentences. Because if you write a poor one, nobody will care enough to read the rest of your sentences. Nobody will give a damn. If you write a bad headline, you fail.

So don’t write flat, invisible headlines, like white paper on a white desk. Write compelling headlines. Headlines containing emotion and imagery, logic and promise.

𝘖𝘯𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥.

How to make your most important sentence:

𝟭/ 𝗘𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹

Make it dramatic, like this famous headline by John Caples:

“𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙇𝙖𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙚𝙙 𝙒𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙄 𝙎𝙖𝙩 𝘿𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝘼𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙋𝙞𝙖𝙣𝙤 — 𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙒𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙄 𝙎𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙋𝙡𝙖𝙮!”

This is among the most successful headlines of the 20th century because it tells a story. Dramatizing the claim — or its result — is storytelling, pure and simple. It’s making the prospect visualize a clear narrative in as few words as possible.

𝟮/ 𝗩𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗱

Make it appeal to the senses, like this headline from The United Fruit Company:

“𝙏𝙖𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙨 𝙇𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙅𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙋𝙞𝙘𝙠𝙚𝙙 𝙄𝙩!”

Sensitizing the claim by making the prospect feel it, smell it, touch it, see it, or hear it will transport the prospect to a moment, consciously or otherwise. In this headline, it’s a hungry moment.

𝟯/ 𝗟𝗼𝗴𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹

Make it a question, like this headline by Gary Bencivenga:

“𝙃𝙖𝙨 𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙈𝙖𝙣 𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝘿𝙞𝙨𝙘𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙚𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙄𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙒𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙩𝙝?”

In his book, 𝘌𝘯𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘓𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱, Ed Oakley writes, “Nothing redirects people’s thinking better than a well-phrased question.” This is true. A good question can be provocative, even profound to a prospect on the cusp of a decision (especially if she has, at one point, asked herself the same question).

𝟰/ 𝗛𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗳𝘂𝗹

Make it inspirational, like this classic headline from Rolls Royce:

“𝙏𝙤 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙈𝙖𝙣 𝙒𝙝𝙤 𝙄𝙨 𝘼𝙛𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙙 𝙏𝙤 𝙇𝙚𝙩 𝙃𝙞𝙨 𝘿𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙢𝙨 𝘾𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙏𝙧𝙪𝙚”

Despite running during The Great Depression, this ad sold more cars than any other Rolls Royce ad.

An inspirational headline challenges any limiting beliefs the prospect may have, forcing her to think critically about what she wants. Life, after all, is a constant battle between what we want and what others expect of us. It’s a perennial fight.

When appropriate, write a headline that helps the self win this fight. Write a headline that bolsters hope.

𝘖𝘯𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥.

[Kate Evans @kateinthemiddle]

@Hervbird21 When I get a rejection, and I've had a depressing amount these last couple of months, I send a thank you. So many companies don't bother. It's important to acknowledge a company when it does take the time to do it. It's a matter of professional respect and courtesy.

[Advita CommsRebel @Advita_p]

If you say you care about fairness and equity but then you speak at an event that has no diversity or fair representation - that’s performative allyship

[Caitlin Kelly: veteran journalist, writing coach @CaitlinKellyNYC]

Next mass shooting, maybe delete "tragic", "unthinkable", "shock" and start admitting the truth:

-- utterly predictable
-- inevitable
-- politically chosen
-- uniquely American

Yes, obviously horrific. Without concerted political action, just more words.

#editing #writing

[Andrea Hall @WriteitHall]

Local journalists are often seen as lesser. Universities tout their grads who go to large pubs & imply that those who go to small pubs are their weaker students. But local journalism is HARD. It is writing 2-3 stories a day. And taking the photos. And designing it. And editing it