Using Smaller Paragraphs to Keep the Attention of the Reader

I am not a professional writer, yet. Therefore, I have to be my own copyeditor. This is actually good in some ways because, though it requires more work on my end, it means I am learning a valuable skill. Of course while I was attending college I had to write on an academic level, but learning copyediting takes editing another step. One of the important concepts in copyediting is writing clearly.  

I am sure many can remember trying to read a book and finding it difficult to get through even a paragraph without needing to reread it. This is not necessarily a sign of being a bad reader. On the contrary, many would argue it is a good writers responsibility to convey even complex subjects to the reader clearly. I think of a book like Cosmos by Carl Sagan. It is about astronomy but is written in a readable manner and this surely helped the book become a bestseller. There certainly is a place for technical writing and more esoteric literature but these writing styles have a specific audience more than a general appeal.  

One easy way to keep the reader's attention is by simply breaking up your text into several smaller paragraphs rather than one or two large paragraphs. It is mainly a trick for making information appear less daunting to the eyes, but it is effective. If it looks like the text is long and complicated to read, many will simply stop reading, thus missing what you are trying to say. If your writing looks more manageable, more readers will actually read and understand your content and this is the ultimate goal of good writing.    

Interesting Interview With Ash Pournouri

Almost everyone involved in EDM and many casual music listeners know of DJ/Producer Avicii. He has swiftly risen to top tier status as an artist, ranking as the number 3 DJ in the world in both 2012 and 2013. A lot of his success has to do with his visionary manager, Ash Pournouri. Here is an interview with Ash from EMC Australia where he gives insight into building a successful career for an artist like Avicii:





   

Greek Yogurt Marketing

I came across this article about the marketing of Greek yogurt brands in America. One, Fage, is a more established player, while the other is the newer Chobani. In the end, Chobani has taken the lead. Is marketing partly to do with this?:

http://adage.com/article/al-ries/fage-lost-greek-yogurt-war/237558/

Contrast In Marketing: Commercial Volume

I have an idea for a commercial that I think would be effective and relatively unique. Commercials are often very loud; an attempt to gain the attention of those listening. Though this can sometimes cause people to pay attention, it can also make them unhappy with loudness of the commercial. In fact, due to this there is at least one law, the CALM law which now regulates how loud a commercial can be. However, because most commercials are at a high volume, a lot of people just tune out a good portion of the loud commercials they hear.

My idea is to do the opposite technique to get peoples attention. What if in the midst of a group of loud commercials, an ad suddenly came on that was silent, or significantly softer. I think the contrast in volume could grab peoples attention even more effectively than trying to be as loud as all the other ads, and might even cause people to talk about how soft the commercial is. Once people are talking about an ad, recognition and consideration of what is being advertised is not far behind. The other plus: in addition to paying attention to the quieter ad, some people might appreciate a softer commercial and associate it positively with the company.

Commercial volume is not the only way to use contrast in marketing but I think it is an easy illustration of how it can be effective.

Trend in Music Marketing: Uploading A Whole Song Onto Youtube

I can remember when I first started using Youtube around 2006 or so. Back then, there was not nearly as much content as there is now. The sound quality was not great in the early days, and videos were usually pretty short. It was rare to find a record label or artist uploading an entire song on Youtube in the early days. Over the years though, Youtube's sound quality improved, and a vast amount of content has been uploaded. At some point it started to become relatively easy to find uploads of most popular songs, usually uploaded not by the record label or artist, but another Youtube user. Lately, that is changing by my observation. It is becoming much more common for labels and artists to upload their own songs onto Youtube.

I am sure there are pro's and con's from the standpoint of a label or recording artist who uploads full versions of their songs onto Youtube. I think overall though, it is the good decision for most music makers to make. First of all, from a practical standpoint, most popular music is going to get uploaded anyway. Second, you can monetize Youtube videos and make decent money off of that. Third, Youtube can be a promotional tool that can lead to more avenues to earn money on your music. Though many everyday consumers may not ultimately purchase a song if it is uploaded in full on Youtube (though I don't know if there is a correlation or not), if it gets hundreds of thousands or even millions of views, it is fantastic promotion. Though you may not make as much on song downloads, you may get deals to have your music in a film, on a commercial, on a television program or get live performance gigs based on the success of your music.

Ultimately, I would say use Youtube to get as many people to hear your music as possible and monetize the video so that if it goes viral there is some cash coming in off the video. Otherwise, it might be a wasted marketing opportunity.  

 

Why Some Would Rather Be 'In The Know' Than Flashy

For many, part of the allure of buying something expensive is that it is a status symbol. However, according to research, some high end consumers actually prefer a smaller, more exclusive group of people to recognize that something they own is very high end. An example in one study found that while among sunglasses under $50, 21 percent had a logo on them, 84 percent in a more expensive category between $100 and $300 had a logo. The fact the cheaper sunglasses would not emphasis a logo as much as a more expensive pair is not that surprising. However, among really expensive sunglasses above $500, the percentage with a logo went down again, dramatically. Only 30 percent of these super high end sunglasses had a logo which could be used to identify them, thus making it more difficult to differentiate whether a pair was as an expensive brand or a cheaper brand. Thus, for people who bought one of the 70% of sunglasses over 500 dollars without a logo, the fact the sunglasses were higher priced would be recognized by fewer people, or a smaller more exclusive group who recognize them as being from a high end brand in other ways than just a logo.   

A link to a summary of the research can be found here at ScienceDaily:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/06/100621173930.htm

Loss Leader Pricing Strategy

A loss leader is an item priced beneath or at market value but potentially gets customers in the door to then purchase other items which are priced to make a profit. Printers for example, are sold for a bargain but are a one time purchase. The ink used by the printer is usually less of a bargain and generally new ink cartridges have to be purchased periodically to replace the previous one which eventually runs out of ink if the printer is being used regularly. Thus, although the printer company might lose money (or simple break even or not make much) in the beginning selling the printer, in the long run they will come out ahead due to the profitability of the ink. There are many other examples of using loss leaders as a pricing strategy and it has been a success in many cases.