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Author: Patricia Iyer

Do you have an amazing business success you want to share? Pat Iyer has worked with experts helping them share their knowledge since she first began writing and editing books in 1985. Pat Iyer has written or edited over 800 chapters, books, case studies, articles or online courses. She delights in assisting people to share their expertise by writing a book. Pat serves as a developmental editor and ghostwriter.

Pat built a service business assisting attorneys with cases involving medical issues. After growing that business to a multi-million dollar one, after 25 years, she sold it in 2015 and now devotes her time to mentoring, writing and editing. Get tips for polishing your writing style and gaining business through the material you write: Listen to Writing to Get Business Podcast on the C Suite Radio platform.

Reach her through Patiyer.com|Do you have an amazing business success you want to share? Pat Iyer has worked with experts helping them share their knowledge since she first began writing and editing books in 1985. Pat Iyer has written or edited over 800 chapters, books, case studies, articles or online courses. She delights in assisting people to share their expertise by writing a book. Pat serves as a developmental editor and ghostwriter.

Pat built a service business assisting attorneys with cases involving medical issues. After growing that business to a multi-million dollar one, after 25 years, she sold it in 2015 and now devotes her time to mentoring, writing and editing. Get tips for polishing your writing style and gaining business through the material you write: Listen to Writing to Get Business Podcast on the C Suite Radio platform.

Reach her through Patiyer.com|Do you have an amazing business success you want to share? Pat Iyer has worked with experts helping them share their knowledge since she first began writing and editing books in 1985. Pat Iyer has written or edited over 800 chapters, books, case studies, articles or online courses. She delights in assisting people to share their expertise by writing a book. Pat serves as a developmental editor and ghostwriter.

Pat built a service business assisting attorneys with cases involving medical issues. After growing that business to a multi-million dollar one, after 25 years, she sold it in 2015 and now devotes her time to mentoring, writing and editing. Get tips for polishing your writing style and gaining business through the material you write: Listen to Writing to Get Business Podcast on the C Suite Radio platform.

Reach her through Patiyer.com

Categories
Best Practices Culture Growth Personal Development

How We Define Wealth in a Post-Pandemic World

If one point of agreement exists among influencers and business leaders, it is that how people do business in the coming years will change.

In practical terms, the age of the huge conferences where many business people met clients may be over, at least for a while. Business trips may also be mostly a thing of the past. The question of how people will make business connections in the future requires immediate attention.

In my own business, I addressed this need by designing and giving a course on online networking in April 2020. The class filled quickly (evidence that many are recognizing the value of online solutions to networking), and the attendees participated with commitment and enthusiasm.

The success of the course has encouraged me to develop additional projects in this vein. It also brings home once again, the principle that has guided me for decades in my various businesses.

I have clarity about my priorities. One of these is to provide innovative services that my potential clients need. Another—and this goes to the heart of my business philosophy—is that my customers, clients, students, and authors are my wealth.

They’re Your Wealth, Too

More than has been true in recent history, potential clients and customers, both corporate and individual, are hurting financially. They will be spending more carefully and looking for the best value for their money.

They will also be looking for businesses that genuinely care about their needs, that want to help them to prosper. The time has come for any business that wants to succeed to recognize this:

  • The true wealth of any business is its customers and/or clients. Nurturing these relationships is more important than any other practice related to your company.
  • Businesses must find new ways to communicate and expand established successful practices.
  • Videoconferencing and other online techniques will continue to flourish. We can expect to see innovations and improved technologies and security.

However, companies will also need to develop increased expertise in written methods of communication. Blogs, newsletters, podcast transcripts, and books will proliferate.

To preserve and strengthen your business will take imagination and focus. Written communication can provide a valuable way to connect meaningfully with the wealth represented by your clients and customers.

Pat Iyer is one of the original 100 C Suite Network Contributors. She hosts Writing to Get Business podcast, found on the C Suite Radio Network, the largest business podcast platform. Connect with Pat at patiyer.com.

 

 

 

 

 

Categories
Best Practices Growth Skills

Podcasts are not only for listening

You may wonder why I include podcasts in a series about the importance of written communication with your clients and customers. People listen to them, right?

They do, but many non-auditory people who would like to enjoy and learn from podcasts—or any form of information transmitted in an audio format—end up feeling frustrated by their inability to absorb and review this information. This occurs because people learn in different ways.

Experts in learning theory have identified several forms of learning. The forms most relevant to the question of podcasts are listening and reading.

Without going into the technical and scientific aspects of how people learn, I’ll say that some people learn more thoroughly when they hear information.

People who are used to obtaining their information through reading may “lose the plot” more readily when they are listening. If they’re used to going back and re-reading what they’ve read, they may get even more lost. If they are really impressed by the material, they may want to print it out and highlight key passages.

The Time Factor

It always takes longer to listen to a podcast than to read a transcript. This isn’t a problem when someone is listening while driving to and from work, for example. It’s an efficient use of time.

However, many people have told me that, if they have a choice between listening to a podcast and reading it, they will always choose the latter. This gives them the additional benefit of skimming through portions that they find irrelevant to their needs and focusing more intensively on those areas that have extra relevance for them.

Always Provide a Transcript

You and the people within your company go to a lot of work to create a podcast. If you’re interviewing someone, you have at least one preliminary conversation to create a focus for the question and answer format. In a non-Q&A format, you must prepare a script or at least an outline.

This means that you want the maximum return on your investment. You don’t want people saying, “Oh, no transcript; I guess I won’t bother.” You also don’t want the further possibility that they will resent that you didn’t consider their specific learning needs. (People are like that; accept it.)

Two Additional Benefits of a Transcript

The first may initially humiliate you. When you read over the transcript, you are going to find out how many times you say “really,” “kind of,” “actually,” and other empty phrases. Trust me on this; I’ve edited many podcast transcripts. One transcript I saw had 80 instances of “you know” In 30 minutes.

The big benefit here is that you can recognize these habits and learn to eliminate these words from your operating vocabulary. Those who listen to your future speeches and oral presentations will be far more appreciative listeners.

The second benefit is that those transcripts can form the basis for a longer work in the form of a bonus pamphlet or a book. I created eight books to date from podcast transcripts. They require substantial editing, but I’ve found this to be an excellent way to repurpose material.

Get the most from your company podcasts by offering transcripts (which also builds your mailing list) and permits you to repurpose your work.

 

Pat hosts Writing to Get Business Podcast, carried by the C Suite Radio Network, the world’s largest business podcast platform. Connect with Pat on patiyer.com.

 

 

Categories
Marketing Personal Development

Is a Book Trapped Inside You?

According to surveys, up to 80 percent of Americans think they have a book in them. For the vast majority, those books will remain inside. Consequently, if you can sit down and write a book, you’ve joined those few who will realize their dreams.

Writing and publishing a book doesn’t always yield material wealth, but it can enhance your reputation as a leader and influencer and publicize your company. Most importantly, a book that contains valuable information can help people. If that’s your principal goal, you will have a source of inspiration that will see you through to the finish line.

The Book May Already Exist

It doesn’t exist in finished form, but the raw material probably does. You may have a collection of podcasts, blog posts, articles, newsletters, how-to pamphlets, and other types of source material.

Stop for a minute and reflect on that good news. It tells you that, without knowing it, you’ve been writing your book all along. All you need to do now is gather its elements into cohesive and entertaining form.

Focus is Everything

I recently read that focus is more important than intelligence. Ideally, a writer will have both, but I agree that intelligence without focus leads to scattered thinking. It does not lead to the completion of a book.

Begin with the question: “What do my clients/customers need to know that I am uniquely positioned to provide for them through a book?” Take your time with this question. It’s analogous to the foundation of a building. It must be substantial. In terms of getting the writing done, it must inspire you.

You can even ask your clients what they’d like to learn. They’ll appreciate your reaching out in this way and will likely give you useful answers.

Once you’ve built your foundation, write a rough outline. Then sift through your source material: the podcasts, newsletters, blog posts, collecting those that relate most to the subject you want to address.

Organize this material. You will probably find gaps, which will point you to areas you need to research. You may want to interview other industry leaders, which provides the additional benefit of networking.

You may be saying at this point, “But I don’t know how to write a book.” No one knows how until they do it—and help is available.

If you are a self-starter and self-paced person, look for a book or course that teaches the fundamentals of book writing. If you need more direct guidance and someone to hold you accountable, find a more hands-on course, i.e., one that meets in real-time or hires a writing coach.

And if you falter or fall into discouragement, remember that, ultimately, this book isn’t about your ego or self-gratification. It’s about those clients who can benefit from your years of experience and understanding of their needs. Think about their appreciation, and your inspiration will return.

 Pat Iyer is a ghostwriter, book coach, and editor who helps businesspeople share their knowledge in a book. As a C Suite Network Advisor, she works with experts to make writing a book possible. Contact her through her website at patiyer.com.

Categories
Best Practices Marketing Personal Development

Build Client Engagement with Blogs and Newsletters

Newsletters and blogs are essential forms of communication with your clients and customers. Businesses operate with the assumption that those who buy from you or contract your services are busy people. Many organizations are competing for people’s attention. The New York Times, for example, has been providing a daily newsletter for subscribers and non-subscribers alike.

In addition to the challenge of digital competition, we need to realize that life abounds with distractions. With the constant news of crises, you have to make more effort than ever before to remind people of your existence. At the same time, you need to do so in a way that’s neither intrusive nor annoying.

Op-in newsletters and blogs present an elegant and—if you produce them well—engaging way to capture and retain your readers’ interests. The New York Times newsletter mentioned above has an entertaining mix of brief news summaries and links to essays, entertainment reviews, and recipes in the newspaper. Zappos.com is another model for entertaining blog posts.

The Difference Between Newsletters and Blogs

To be relevant, you need to post on your blog one to seven times a week. Whatever frequency you choose, be as consistent as possible.

Blog posts traditionally run 300 to 500 words in length. They can address issues related thave a series of links to relevant articles, combined with your comments. Overall, they will provide bite-sized chunks of information.

A newsletter may be published once a week or once a month. Again, be consistent. Also, see what frequency works best. You can often determine this by checking the unsubscribe rate immediately after you’ve sent out a newsletter. A high rate may reflect a “Oh, no , not again” reaction.

A newsletter provides information in a more leisurely way. Here, you can provide a more extensive look at industry or consumer issues. You can interview an influencer or publish guest articles. In-depth looks at new products you’re developing can be featured here. You can profile an employee who has made significant contributions to your business.

Both your newsletters and your blogs should always provide links to your web site.

How to Drive Readers to Both Forms of Publication

 Newsletters and blog posts can be interactive. Strive for engagement with blog posts or a longer article in your newsletter. A newsletter can highlight recent blog posts.

Another way to generate client/customer interest is to invite comments. Make this invitation in a way that shows you genuinely care about the readers’ opinions. Reinforce this by answering those who respond and (with permission) quoting responses.

With care and commitment, you can turn your newsletter and blog into a voice that authentically represents your appreciation of the people who make your business thrive.

Pat Iyer began writing newsletters In the 1990s and blogs In 2009. She has written thousands of blog posts by now. Businesspeople hire Pat as an editor. Reach her at patiyer.com. Pat was one of the original 100 C Suite Network Contributors.

Categories
Best Practices Growth Leadership Personal Development

The Company Memo as a Reflection of Company Culture

 

Good writing skills plus a good attitude make a good memo.

An Imaginary Case History

Frank must send out a memo to the people on his team about low productivity among employees. The nature of that memo will depend a lot on the kind of company culture he’s either created or contribute to maintaining.

The specific problem is that people are turning in reports that are carelessly written and sloppy in terms of grammar, spelling, and punctuation. How will Frank address this issue?

Wielding the Stick

Suppose he functions within a repressive company culture. This would be one that sees its employees, Frank included, as units of profit and loss. Those at the top do nothing to promote a sense of community and common purpose. The odds are good that many don’t like their jobs, call in sick whenever possible, and are either actively seeking other employment or thinking about it. (Frank may be one of them.)

Frank Lays Down the Law

Feeling the pressure from higher up, he writes his memo in a harsh and formal tone. He uses words like “consequences” and “unacceptable.” He threatens that employees will get negative reviews. Beneath this threat lurks the possibility of firings. Overall, the emphasis is on “Shape up, or ship out.”  He may incorporate as well the message that anyone should be able to write an acceptable report. The undertone here is “You’re all stupid.”

Waving the Carrot

In a more employee-centric environment, Frank will pause before he writes his memo. He takes the time to review the attributes of each team member. He knows that Jaye is dealing with a child’s chronic illness. Rick has to put his mother into a nursing home. He realizes that other team members may be dealing with issues of which he isn’t aware.

He also recognizes that, due to pressures to launch a new product, it’s been a long time since the office has had a party or outing and that informal conversations have been down to a minimum. People have been stressed by overtime work. It’s time to rebuild the cohesiveness of the team.

He writes a memo that reflects his awareness of these issues and suggests a team meeting to discuss them. He invites team members to bring proposals to the meeting. In addition, he emphasizes that he’s available to anyone who needs to speak to him individually.

The tone of this memo is informal and friendly. He uses words like “rebuild,” “understanding,” and “accessible.” His memo invites a positive response.

Middle Ground

With the above two examples, I’ve posited extremes. However, it would be more accurate to envision a spectrum. Many companies are making the transition from being employee-repressive to more positive approaches. This means that a memo—and all inter-office communication—can serve not only to reflect but to shift company dynamics and the nature of its culture.

Maybe those at the top who practice repression out of habit and can’t envision a different way need to see the effect that a friendly, employee-centric memo with appropriate follow-up can create.

Trigger Words

I’ve mentioned some of these above. “Consequences” and “unacceptable” characterize a repressive company culture. “Rebuild,” “understanding,” and “accessible” reflect a friendlier atmosphere.

Here are some other words to consider.

Repressive: necessity, obligatory, required, rules, mandatory

Employee-centric: teamwork, cooperative, supportive, appreciation, community

A company culture is an ongoing process. A memo and any other form of written communication should not only communicate necessary information but convey an appropriate tone.

Our words count.

Pat Iyer is one of the original 100 C Suite Network Contributors. She serves business leaders as a ghostwriter and editor. Connect with her at patiyer.com.

Categories
Best Practices Culture Growth Leadership Personal Development

Is Your Company Sexist?

In June 2018, Ernst & Young, an accounting firm with $36.4 million in global revenue and 270,000 employees, demonstrated how deeply sexism is embedded in company culture.

At a day-and-a-half-long seminar on leadership and empowerment, 30 female executives received a barrage of information about how to “fit into” corporate culture. The basics of this presentation were contained in a 55-page document.

Noteworthy excerpts included:

“Don’t flaunt your body—sexuality scrambles the brain.”

A description of how women’s and men’s communication styles differ stated that women often “speak briefly” and “ramble and miss the point” in meetings. In contrast, a man will “speak at length ― because he really believes in his idea.” Men are more effective at interrupting than women, who “wait their turn and raise their hands.”

A masculine/feminine score sheet further reinforced sexist stereotypes. Some of these included the notions that women are loyal, sensitive to the needs of others, and yielding. Men are individualistic, independent, and competitive.

A senior consultant at Paradigm, a diversity and inclusion consulting firm, Evelyn Carter, said that while the Ernst & Young presentation took note of sexist stereotypes, it seemed to advise women how to live with them.

What’s a Company to Do?

Consulting with a diversity and inclusion company is a good start. I also recommend this article in Inc. “Women Should Not “Fix” Themselves to Fit Into Sexist Work Environments,” 

by Amy Nelson, founder, and CEP of The Riveter. Read this article for some specific suggestions about changing company cultures.

In addition, special attention needs to be paid to both verbal and written language so that it’s gender-neutral.

“Men” Is Not an Inclusive Word

The argument that it is, while archaic, is still used, as in the idea that “mankind” includes both men and women. The truth is that it leaves out women entirely; it makes men the default gender. Erasing that word from one’s speech and writing is a good beginning.

In that vein, the word “guys” also must go. A guy is a man. I can’t count the number of times a waiter addressed my husband and I as guys. “Thank, guys.” “What would you like tonight, guys?”

Some other words, like “businessmen,” “chairman,” and “manpower” should also be endangered. The first two only need the replacement of “person” and “people.” The third can be swapped for “personnel.”

One phrase that should be eliminated is “Man up” and similar expressions, some of which are genitalia-based. It might take a little longer to say, “Take responsibility,” but it has much more impact.

When my boys were little and enjoyed having me read bedtime stories, I edited the language in their books. Fireman became firefighter. Police man became police officer.  I even changed some elements of stories. If daddy was outside doing yard work and mommy was inside cooking, I added a sentence that daddy would take his turn cooking the next day. When my boys learned how to read, they realized how I’d changed the stories. We still laugh about this today.

 Use “They”

I agree with those who say that using “he and/or she” is clunky and awkward. The solution many are adopting is “they.”

“If an employee wishes to submit a complaint, she or he should forward it to the appropriate department.”

“If an employee wishes to submit a complaint, they should forward it to the appropriate department.”

Grammatically, it may look wrong, but it’s simple, and it does the job.

Overcoming Objections

One of the bigger objections is “It’s just an expression.” None of the phrases I’ve used here are “just expressions.” They are, rather, “reflections.” They demonstrate the underlying sexism that underpins far too much of company culture and culture in general.

Attention to non-sexist language also isn’t a phase that women are going to get over. They are in it for the long haul. It makes good business sense to understand and adapt to the values that are reshaping company culture.

Besides, it’s the right thing to do.

Pat Iyer is one of the original 100 C Suite Network Contributors. She serves business leaders as a ghostwriter and editor. Connect with her at patiyer.com.

Categories
Best Practices Personal Development Sales

Use Your Website to Highlight Your Company Culture

Learn from Zappos

Zappos is one of my favorite companies. Their products are excellent, and their customer service ranks among the best I’ve received. I once exchanged a pair of shoes three months after I’d purchased them, and in the process got invaluable advice about what size would fit me best.

I wasn’t surprised to discover that Zappos has a thriving and employee-centric company culture. Their approach stems from a practical perspective. “Stress-related health care and missed work cost employers nearly $300 billion annually.”

In the area of amenities, Zappos has a relaxed dress code, team building, an office library, relaxation rooms, and other perks. In addition, they have “fungineers,” who organize regular parties, entertainment, and other entertaining group activities.

Innovative as their programs are, they take their approach even a step further.

They Publicize Their Company Culture

If you go to the “About” Heading, you will find out how clever this company’s approach is. (My one complaint is that you have to go to the bottom of the page. Make it easy to find, Zappos.)

They open in an impressive way with their mission statement.

“We aim to inspire the world by showing it’s possible to simultaneously deliver happiness to customers, employees, vendors, shareholders, and the community in a long-term, sustainable way.”

Further down on the page are links to their 10 core company values, why company culture matters, and how they work, among other topics.

On the navigation page at the top of the About page, you will see Zappos Stories. Now it really gets interesting. There are several pages of stories. I highlight a small selection.

Tails of Our Furry Friends: Alex & Opie

A man working at a Zappos distribution center befriends and eventually adopts a stray dog. The story is complete with an accompanying video.

These are the Books Zappos Wants Its Employees (And You) To Read

This page briefly describes eight books, each of which embodies a Zappos core value.

Zappos Nap Room Has Employees Sleeping with the Fishes

It’s really not possible to describe this. You need to take a look, and—as is frequent with Zappos stories, you can view a video.

Those who like the idea of this kind of nap room are encouraged at the end of the article to search open positions at Zappos.

Living Her Best Life

Again with a video, this short article describes a Zappos employee’s victory over breast cancer.

Both the index and the individual pages have beautiful photographs, and the articles I sampled were well-written and to the point.

Anyone who runs a company blog can benefit from seeing what Zappos does.

And if you leave the Zappos site thinking that maybe your company culture could use an overhaul, Zappos can help you with that, too.

At Zappos Insights you can find out how Zappos trainers can get your business into shape.

As I said at the beginning of this blog, Zappos already had won me as a loyal customer. Now that I’ve explored their web site beyond the retail pages, I’m a convert. I will be recommending the business widely and hoping for its long-term success.

Those are the kinds of words any good company wants to hear.

Pat Iyer is one of the original 100 C Suite Network Contributors. She serves business leaders as a ghostwriter and editor. Connect with her at patiyer.com.

 

 

Categories
Best Practices Growth Personal Development

Repurposing Written Material: An Effective Way to Improve Your Bottom Line

Today innovative c suite business leaders are getting the most out of the volumes of written material generated by their businesses and simultaneously increasing their outreach to customers and clients.

Many of the suggestions in this post work with the concept of providing a potential customer with free information. Whether you go with a download, mini-book or course, or video, I recommend including that you offer a discount on related products. That can turn a potential customer into a real one.

Your Company Blog

Whether your company generates blogs daily, twice weekly, or weekly, you’re accumulating material that’s ripe for repurposing, a function that saves both time and money. If you write or commission blog posts that relate directly to what you produce, you can focus this effort even more effectively.

If, for example, you have a company that makes natural household products, your blog can focus on advances in this field. You can extract material about the latest information about chemical-free products into podcasts and videos. Imagine a video that benefits of using products that will not harm the user or environment.

You could take material from a blog post that focuses on saving the environment and do the same thing. In addition, you could make available on your web site a download with about the benefits of natural products.

A home improvement company can find countless ways to attract customers and to strengthen the  loyalty of existing customers by using its blog to suggest ways to make DIY projects easier and by translating that information into both downloads (ideally illustrated) and videos.

Mini-Courses

People are interested in learning and especially in learning for free.

Companies that offer self-help and personal growth products can provide free mini-courses in written and podcast form. Always offer both a text and audible or audiovisual version of any such course or any way of giving free information. It’s now well known that people have different ways of taking in information.

A company making nutritional products can offer quizzes by which people can determine their nutritional needs.

A pet food company can have guest blogs by veterinarians that can be compiled into mini-courses about the best home care for your pets.

Reach the Next Generation

I’m always surprised that more companies don’t offer resources for children. They may not be direct consumers, but they are definitely influencers.

Some examples:

If you make environmentally-friendly products, you can commission a children’s picture book about the environment. Send it as a gift with a large purchase.

The above-mentioned pet company can produce a short video showing children how to kindly treat their pets.

Write or Compile a Book

Many written materials can form the foundation for a book: blog posts, training manuals, historical documents about your company, and more. What’s unique about your business, whether it’s your process or your products? If you’re the founder of that company, what’s unique about your business journey?

New entrepreneurs want to learn from those have succeeded. The audience is there if you have the product.

And if you’re worried about how to write such a book, you can choose to have it written in house or by a ghostwriter. The idea of writing and publishing a book isn’t necessarily for book sales but for further outreach and promotion of your company.

Adapt and Repurpose

Look at every piece of written material as a candidate for repurposing and also as the raw material that can trigger an entirely new way to reach your customers and provide valuable services to them.

Pat Iyer is one of the original 100 C Suite Network Founders. As a skilled editor and ghostwriter, she helps her clients shine. Connect with her through her website at patiyer.com and listen to her podcast: Writing To Get Business, hosted on the C Suite Radio platform.

Categories
Best Practices Growth Personal Development

The Buyer is Learning to Beware: It’s Time for the Seller to Take Care

Excessive customer returns are unhealthy for your bottom line.

You’ve probably seen the dark gray Amazon trucks that now roam the streets of the U.S. Most of the drivers’ work involves delivering orders, but they also make a significant number of pickup.

Amazon is now making it extremely easy to return things. Not only are returns on millions of items penalty-free, but no one now needs to call UPS or go to the post office or a UPS office. The Amazon driver will pick it up from your house, and you don’t even need to be home.

While other companies don’t have Amazon’s resources, they will feel the consumer pressure to make returns easier. One of the best ways to prevent excessive customer returns is to tighten up on accuracy and scrupulousness when it comes to advertising.

Pat Iyer is one of the original 100 C Suite Network Founders. As a skilled editor and ghostwriter, she helps her clients shine. Connect with her through her website at patiyer.com and listen to her podcast: Writing To Get Business, hosted on the C Suite Radio platform.

Is What You Read What You Get?

This question has several aspects. The first involves the copywriter making sure that all the information in the description is accurate and that nothing essential is left out. If, for example, pregnant women shouldn’t take a particular supplement, highlight that.

The second involves making sure that the instructions for the product match the sales copy. I recently bought a space heater because the ad copy said you could plug it in anywhere, due to its being low wattage. The instructional booklet that came with the space heater said that you needed to get an electrician in and make sure that the circuit could handle the heater.

I managed to sort that out with the company that made the product, but I was annoyed about the time this took and about the deceptive advertising. The only reason I didn’t return it was because I really wanted that space heater. You can’t count on your customers having that kind of determination.

The manufacturer also needs to ensure that if a product needs to be assembled, it comes with assembly instructions. That sounds obvious, but a friend of mine bought a snow shovel that came in several pieces. She had no clue about to put it together, and she returned it.

 You Need to Hire Skilled Writers

Depending on the size of your business, copywriting may be outsourced or in-house. If you outsource it, you still need an in-house person who scrutinizes the copy with great care. For example, comparing the instruction booklet or printed matter on the box to what appears on the sales page would be an essential task.

If you have in-house copywriters, they need to practice the same degree of due diligence.

The people you hire to advertise your products need to have patience, focused attention, and the ability to think logically—and think like a customer.

Truth in Advertising Benefits Everyone

Companies will raise prices to counter the cost of returns. Customers discouraged by higher prices will bargain shop. Trust levels go down.

Interrupt this downward spiral. It costs less to hire the best copywriters than to deal with a glut of returns.

And building customer trust because you give them accurate information about your products is priceless.

 

Categories
Best Practices Growth Personal Development

The Missing Comma That Cost a Company $10 Million

If you think punctuation isn’t important, you might want to rethink that attitude. Or ask Oakhurst Dairy of Portland, ME, how they are currently looking at the punctuation element known as the Oxford comma.

What is the Oxford comma?

Also known as the serial comma, it’s placed between the last two items in a series of three or more. An example would be: His favorite foods were pizza, ice cream, and potato chips.

Here’s an example of how the absence of an Oxford comma causes confusion.

“Among those interviewed were Merle Haggard’s two ex-wives, Kris Kristofferson and Robert Duvall.”

Proponents of the Oxford comma say it’s necessary to avoid potential ambiguity. It obviously also helps to avoid costly settlements.

How A Missing Oxford Comma Caused a Lawsuit

It all started in 2014. Three truck drivers sued the dairy with a claim that they’d been denied four years’ worth of overtime pay. According to Maine law, workers are required to get time-and-a-half pay for each hour worked after 40 hours, with these exemptions:

The canning, processing, preserving, freezing, drying, marketing, storing, packing for shipment or distribution of:

(1) Agricultural produce;

(2) Meat and fish products; and

(3) Perishable foods.

The key to the dispute was the phrase “packing for shipment or distribution of.” The court ruled that the lack of a comma between “shipment” and “or” made it unclear whether the law exempted the distribution of the three categories that followed, or if it exempted packing for the shipment or distribution of them.

The dairy company claimed that the drivers did not qualify for overtime because they engaged in distribution. It argued that the spirit of the law intended to list “packing for shipment” and “distribution” as two separate exempt activities.

The drivers stuck to the letter of the law, which said no such thing. Lacking the Oxford comma, one could read the law to exclude only packing — whether it was packing for shipment or packing for distribution. Distribution by itself, in this case, would not be exempt.

The judge who decided the case agreed with the drivers.

“Specifically, if that exemption used a serial comma to mark off the last of the activities that it lists, then the exemption would clearly encompass an activity that the drivers perform. And, in that event, the drivers would plainly fall within the exemption and thus outside the overtime law’s protection. But, as it happens, there is no serial comma to be found in the exemption’s list of activities, thus leading to this dispute over whether the drivers fall within the exemption from the overtime law or not.”

The lawyer who represented the drivers, said: “That comma would have sunk our ship.”

In February, 2018, Oakhurst Dairy agreed to pay $10 million to the drivers, according to court documents.

What Do You Think About Punctuation Now?

I haven’t been able to find who first discovered that the $10 million comma was missing. As a committed member of the Grammar Patrol, I applaud his or her genius.

Grammar nerds around the world rejoiced over this victory. Maine legislators immediately reworded several laws. It would not surprise me to learn that many lawyers are carefully examining a multitude of legal documents, looking for an opportunity.

Let this be a lesson: Punctuation matters.

Pat Iyer is one of the original 100 C Suite Network Contributors. As a ghostwriter and editor, she helps her clients shine. Connect with her on patiyer.com and listen to her podcast on the C Suite Radio platform: Writing to Get Business.