HiRoad Communications

Copywriting that speaks to your target audience

You are here: Home / Archives for Blog

by

Cats in the Cradle vs. Leader of the Band

For most people, this one is a no-brainer. Cats in the Cradle, the Harry Chapin classic, rules over any other “Call Your Dad” song. Except in Movember. Then it’s all Leader of the Band by Dan Fogelberg.

Before I explain why, let’s define “Call Your Dad” songs. Those are the songs you hear on the radio and it makes you want to phone your Dad that second—usually because you haven’t in a while or there’s some sort of conflict that the two of you haven’t resolved.

So why Leader of the Band?

While Cats in the Cradle talks about all the times a father misses in their children’s lives due to work, Leader of the Band goes a bit deeper. In addition to the whole “too busy” theme, It delves into sons trying to be like our fathers but never quite getting there–at least in our eyes–and then being okay with it.

Yet that’s not why this song rings truer in Movember than other “Call Your Dad” songs. It has more to do with the fact that Dan Fogelberg died of prostate cancer at age 56.

He was diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer in 2004. Could his life had been extended with early detection? Without knowing much more than what Wikipedia provides, it’s difficult to say. But with the advances made in recent years—thanks, in part, to funds contributed by the Movember Foundation—I feel comfortable in saying there would have been more music.

Even if Dan Fogelberg or Harry Chapin aren’t your cup of tea, we need those songs in our lives. The ones that touch our hearts, embrace our souls. It’s why we need to donate to Movember to help ensure the next Fogelberg doesn’t leave before his song should be over.

To donate to my Movember campaign, click here.

by

Author! Author! e-book/lead magnets sharpen your marketing silver bullets

Author! Author! e-book/lead magnets sharpen your marketing silver bullets

Do you have a blog with at least five entries? Then you have the makings for an e-book/lead magnet that can open the door to dozens of marketing opportunities, helping you convert visitors and welcoming new prospects.

Door #1: A Lead Generator for your Website

First and foremost, having an e-book/lead magnet on the home page of your website or on a landing page gives you a way to capture contact info from visitors. Sure, they may be kicking tires. But in a world where people are bombarded with e-mail, you know somebody who bothers to share theirs is serious at best, curious at the least in what you offer.

Door #2: What you can do with your new title—Author—and new title—the eBook

The number of ways you can promote your business with even a short 5-10-page e-book abound. Let’s the count the ways:

  • Press release announcing publishing of your book
  • A noteworthy addition to your LinkedIn profile, both as a new position and part of your summary
  • A handy follow-up to prospect meetings (e.g. “Good meeting with you yesterday. For your perusal, here’s a copy of my book”).
  • Additional follow-up for people who have specific questions. So, instead of sending them to your blog, you send a copy of your book.
  • Social media fodder. Periodically mention your e-book on social media posts. One great strategy is to posts selected text from the book and then offer a free download.
  • Enhancing your profile for speaking engagements. There’s just something about adding author to your title that makes you more appealing as a speaker. If paid and unpaid speaking engagements are part of your marketing plan, having a book, even a short e-book, is a must.
  • Pitching you/your company to the press. Again, there’s an added oomph to your pitch to contribute an article or be a source if you can say “Your expertise and author of ‘Greater Book on your Expertise’.”
  • A regular feature of your e-newsletter (e.g. “Download a free copy of “Name of your Book”).
  • An addition to your e-mail signature, image with a link on it preferred.

Hopefully, you get the idea. If you have enough related content, you could even sell your book of blogs on Amazon. Again, something about saying, “Check out my book on Amazon” that gets people’s attention.

Door #3 – How much, Monty?

You can have an e-book for your business for under $500—even as little as $300 if you have five blogs you’re comfortable featuring that don’t require editing. Of course, there are some other things you might want to add—including some help with incorporating your e-book into your marketing strategy.

If you would like to see what a lead magnet/eBook for your business could look like, please drop us an e-mail with a link to your blog.

by

The conversation you never thought you would hear

The conversation you never thought you would hear
Right now, the cat on the calendar has a better ‘stache than me.

When your father advises one of your friends on prostate cancer

The news of one of your best friends having prostate cancer is not pleasant. Yet having seen my father go through it and survive and thrive, I knew it could be beaten. So, maybe asking my friend to help me move some furniture at my parents’ house wasn’t just to spare myself some heavy lifting. I really wanted to help lift his spirits. And then the conversation happened…

It started with some of the basics: what to expect; a timeline of recovery, etc. And then it got a little weird. Without divulging personal details about the most personal of things, the conversation centered on the male body part.

So, there we are, in the living room and my friend and my father are talking about their…I just can’t say it.

But this is Movember, the time of year I grow a mustache to help raise funds/awareness for prostate and testicular cancer as well as other men’s health issues and suicide prevention. Since a portion of Movember proceeds help men to get the counseling needed to overcome issues related to these cancers, I thought the conversation was relevant because of one simple factor:

Men don’t ask for help.

Help isn’t always somebody carrying the load for you. It’s not about performing surgery to fix things. Help can simply be a kind and sympathetic ear from a friend or, if possible, somebody who’s been down the same path.

I’ve written and spoken many times about how proud I am of my father. His resiliency borders on the miraculous. It was a privilege to share him with my friend, whose father had passed a while back. I’m pretty sure the conversation helped. But it led to another conversation by phone on the ride home…

“Did your father really say…”

Again, I can’t put it in writing. But I think you get it.

If you would like to help raise funds and awareness for prostate and testicular cancer, as well as other men’s health issue, please go to my Movember site. No donation is too small or too large.

As for my friend, his doctors are still figuring his next move. He, too, is growing a mustache this Movember. More importantly, he’s part of the conversation now.

If you would like more men to get the help they need when dealing with prostate cancer, please donate to Movember this month. Here’s the link to my Mo Space.