One easy step to increase the power, presence and persuasiveness of how you communicate.

Here's the easiest trick when writing to insure that you are clear and accurate each and every time you write. Give every noun (person, place or thing) you ever write on the dignity of calling it by its proper name.

Even using slang or jargon is better than using a word like "things." No matter what you talk about, share the real identification of what something is or is not. 

Objects in nature are often major victims of holding back. An evergreen and an oak are very different trees, as are poplars, willows, birches and redwoods. Too many writers opt for trees.

Let's look at this:

Car is so-so. Sports car is better. 2012 Lamborghini Aventador tells you that you better have $380K worth of cash to get all this performance out of the dealer's parking lot.

Cloth is so-so. Fabrics is better. Crisp wool suit that's finished, but not too tight in a look that goes from office to after work tells you just how you look and feel in the outfit. (I'm not a fashionista, so I had to ask someone who is about  this one.)

In business, word economy in communications is cherished by most readers.  When you focus your words like a red, hot laser beam, your message is clear and accurate ... and hits the target.

Increase the power, presence and persuasiveness of how you communicate - Name names. This will also increase your brain power as well.

Windows 8: Where Are We Going Today?

The release of Microsoft's Windows 8 operating system is only a week away.  And, the promises are that this will be the most dramatic change in how the system looks, feels and operates since Windows ’95 replaced Windows 3.1.

Right now, Microsoft appears to be truly reminiscent of an aging pop star. It needs a hit to be highly relevant again. Its greatest successes are in the past, like Journey, Styx and Foreigner.   If a UK judge in June can determine that Samsung’s tablets do not legally infringe on Apple’s iPads, because “they are not as cool;” Microsoft needs to really have a breakthrough to be considered "one of the cool kids."

A key to their strategy appears to be ripping a play straight from the Apple playbook. The introduction of the Surface tablet as a proprietary item is one way that Microsoft will challenge Apple. The other key is that Windows 8 is going to be one OS across hardware platforms, unlike Apple who has different OS for their handheld devices and their laptops/desktops.

To Microsoft’s credit, they are always willing to give it a go. At times it's seems like they show up too little and too late to the party with its efforts, but the creatives in Redmond have never been shy about reworking any idea which they feel they can do better. Considering their success rate on products, for every X-Box they make, there’s a Zune. For every MS Office, there’s a BOB, a Bing, a Vista and Clippy the talking paperclip    Sure, Apple is not totally immune to failure. Just look at Apple TV, Newton and iWork to name a few.  But, right now, Apple is top of the charts as the innovation and style leader. Apple, Inc. is truly the world’s most profitable company. Those who dissed Apple ten or more years ago as a product of the creative class now own several of their products. The world rocks to an iPod and communicates on an iPhone.

Microsoft also has to learn how not to tick off their core corporate clients while coming across as innovative and leading to end users. Any piece of popular culture has the challenge of being either too hip or too hype. With the promotion I've seen in place, perhaps the hype will keep users from trying what promises to be interesting ways to communicate.

There will always be a place for the Microsoft OS. A piece of hardware has to boot up somehow.  While the OS is the heart of the computer, it is no longer the soul. With all our online apps, cloud storage and handheld devices; desktops and laptops have become more like Thin Clients, where the core programs are stored and hosted someplace else. Google has attempted to bypass hardware based apps with Chromebooks and Android tablets to only limited success.

But to answer the 1994 question Microsoft asked, “Where do you want to go today?” the overwhelming answer today is anywhere I want to go ... but not just only on this one piece of hardware.

MoreOpens

"Whether you are an email marketing pro, or a novice, you will find useful information in Dean’s presentation of “How to get MORE readers to open your business email.” 

 --  Lori T. Williams, 

Owner/Managing Attorney, 

Your Legal Resource, PLLC

"Packed with useful information. A non-stop flow of good ideas and insights."

 -- Dave Biskner

Franklin Hamilton

Two sessions are scheduled for our " How to get MORE readers to open your business email" FREE CONFERENCE CALL.

Join us on Tuesday 10/23 at 4:00 pm ET/1:00 pm PT http://moreopenstuesdaypm.eventbrite.com/

or 

Join us Thursday 10/25 at 11:00 am ET/8:00 am PT http://moreopensthursdayam.eventbrite.com/

Each call is limited to only 30 and they are filling up -  Please save your seat now.  If you have any questions you want answered specifically answered during the presentation or need additional assistance, you can either email me at dean@roundtablepromotions.com.

A pause this week ...

Pardon me for not sharing a new content post the week of October 8, 2012. With the passing of my dear friend, Charles F. "Fritz" Spademan, I prefer to take the week to heal, reflect and remember the man who so many of us called dear.  Thank you for understanding.

What's the rest of the year look like for you?

Welcome to October. What's the rest of the year look like for you? 

If you own a business or are a manager, this is a vital question you need to ask yourself NOW.

If your fiscal year is based on the calendar year, you have just over one quarter left to go. For several industries, fourth quarter is the difference between success and failure. Retail has just enjoyed its annual back to school bump. With the Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas buying seasons ahead, its make or break time for many sectors. 

Fourth Quarter means seasonal changes which can mean the beginning or the end of a sales cycle. Fourth Quarter also means less business calendar days and less business opportunities, due to the holidays. Don't be caught flat footed on December 15th that the rest of the year is just dead time until the start of the new year.

Here's several ideas to insure that when the calendar changes to 2013, you won't just affirm that things will be different in the coming year.

• BE YOUR OWN CONSULTANT. Give yourself permission to make a fearless and searching look at this year. Be willing to see things as they are. Don't hide behind could be's or denials? Ask yourself the tough questions.
• Take an accurate financial snapshot of your company and look at candid look what it says. If you know your business, it should be easy to see where you're at -- Is their something driving revenue? Is there someplace where you are leaking money? Do you have to make a tough decision for the future or are things better than you imagined?
• Talk to your business support team before the end of the year. Ask your lawyer, accountant, marketing people, HR consultant and others on whom you rely ... are their changes coming in the new year that I need to act upon now? Laws change. Tax codes change. Acting now and acting as if could make any sort of switch less painful.
• Are their goals, budget items or plans that you made back in the day which are incomplete, part done or you didn't even start?
• Can you take this analysis and start to build your 2013 business plan and budgets? Has a new client changed the way you do business? Are there factors which have changed how you look at your operations? Is there something you absolutely need to do, that you need to make a plan to achieve?

Soon enough, we will be turning the page on 2012. Act now while you have the time and ability to make changes which will strengthen your business for next year and beyond.