I am always nagging clients to add content to their websites. It’s great for search engines but more importantly, it sends the message that your business is dynamic and an expert in your field.
The problem is that most people just don’t want to write content. Sure, clients can pay me to do it, but it’s like this: I can staff the counter of your cupcake shop, but are you sure want me to? I can’t do as a good a job talking to your customers about cupcakes as you can. I can pretend to be you and pretend to have a passion for cupcakes, but it wouldn’t be very authentic, would it? Only you and your trusted employees can share your experience, inspire customer loyalty and foster two-way communication. I can’t do that, and although they will make big promises to the contrary, neither can anyone else in my business or in “SEO.”
Here is a barrier: You aren’t a confident writer because it’s been years since you’ve had a teacher or editor review your writing for spelling, grammar, and usage. I know how it is. My undergraduate degree is in English, yet decades of PowerPoint, e-mails, texts, reading horrible writing and pure laziness have gotten the better of me. I have forgotten most of what I learned.
That’s why I was delighted to find Grammarly, the Instant Spelling And Grammar Checker.
It works within the WordPress page/post editor, Facebook, web-based e-mail, Outlook and Microsoft Word. Here is a screen shot of Grammarly in action:
The free version catches basic problems, but the time-savings came when I purchased the advanced version. The paid version finds complex issues like split infinitives, compound sentence and passive voice problems. Grammarly is your personal English tutor looking over your shoulder, making suggestions for better word choices, finding misspelled and overused words, and much more. I no longer have to google repeatedly all the grammar and usage stuff I forgot in college (that sentence had a split infinitive — found and removed!).
When you are self-employed, tools that save you this much time more than pay for themselves. Try it and see if it helps you with your customer outreach efforts.
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