Being creative entails more than just having a good idea. Much of the creativity is in the execution.
For some reason, people with little writing experience tend to overestimate the value of their ideas. Reasonably good ideas are a dime a dozen, even in these inflated times; brilliant ideas can be priced accordingly as well. The point is that having an idea is the beginning of a long road to success, not the end of it.
I’ve encountered this sort of thing before: “I had this great idea for a book and then this other guy wrote it and is making a fortune an it’s not fair!” And then more recently this issue came up in one of the many Internet lists to which I subscribe. A list-member believed that his concept for a commercial blog – along with the title for said blog – had been stolen from him, and he was contemplating legal action.
Which shows, of course, not only a lack of understanding of how things work, but also a rather inflated sense of the importance of an idea all by itself.
We all know that branding is valuable — priceless, in fact, as the Mastercard television advertisements remind us. But branding doesn’t happen because of a sole idea. Brand owners took a long route to success: trademarking the brand, making enormous investments that:
- tie the brand to the product in question;
- introduce collateral branding (creative designs, like the bottle shape of Coca-Cola);
- market and advertise the brand and product;
- offer ongoing support
Most reasonable people recognize the value of a good idea — but they also recognize the value of someone who is good at putting ideas into action. They would rather honor your idea if it’s worthwhile, and possibly have you generate more good ideas in the future, than steal it from you. And a good idea is more than a name: it’s a specific, detailed, and well-researched plan or product that can be put to use.
Whether is business or publishing, you can’t copyright a title: that’s why you occasionally see books or movies with names that are identical or almost-identical to others that are completely unrelated. You can trademark a unique identifier, such as a product name or logo, but only for a specific use. Thus we can have both Apple Computers and Apple Records.
In any case, keep thinking of good ideas. Collect your good ideas. They’re a wonderful place to start. But be sure to take the next step - implement the ideas. That’s how you’ll move … beyond the elements of style!
… and, specifically, words. Writers are notorious for using words poorly: we create our own vocabularies and collect our own expressions, no matter what the words may actually mean in Real Life. (Hmm… sounds like another of my blog articles, the one in which Alice confronts Humpty-Dumpty…)
But we’re not alone in misusing and abusing English. In fact, the newsroom may even be coming out ahead! Take a few of my favorite examples from this list of newsroom groaners:
- At The End Of The Day – The “clearly” of the 21st century. Politicians and pundit/talking head types ram this awful phrase down our throats whenever they want to intimidate, show off, or end the argument. Please don’t fall into their trap. At the end of the day, night falls. That’s it.
- Estranged – Yes, this is a convenient little term for not-quite-divorced husbands and wives. Trouble is, no one in real life ever says, “Peg and I can’t take it anymore. We’re estranged.” No one has a “trial estrangement”. If a couple is separated, say so.
- Major Breakthrough – By definition, there’s no such thing as a minor breakthrough, any more than there’s such a thing as a miniature Sumo wrestler.
- Spectacular Fire – “Wow! look at that spectacular fire! There must be 20 people trapped in there! Cool!” Let’s never use positive-sounding words to describe negative events. The dictionary equates “spectacular” with “thrilling.” Fires don’t thrill. Fires kill.
It’s worthwhile, perhaps, to look at what we’re saying before we say it, and certainly before we broadcast it in print or on a website. And maybe then we’ll have less of a reputation as butchers of the language … and move beyond the elements of style!
Is Your Content a Prince or a Pauper?
There’s a saying in search engine optimization: content is king. If that’s true, why then is there so much stale, repetitive copy circulating on the web?
Everyone talks about content being king in SEO, but does anyone really go beyond inserting appropriate keywords into their content and calling it a day? Content that is SEO-friendly is user-friendly, so we should start at the other end: create *great* content, content that is the *point* of the website, content that is creative and will attract visitors over and over again … and the SEO will follow.
The point is this: Content has to rule. Content should never be a last thought, or an afterthought:
* Hire a real writer, not just someone who can do advertising copy, so that the website actually *says* something. Good web copy is a combination of business, marketing, and creative writing. (And make sure grammar/usage/spelling are correct!)
* When looking at content, always ask the question: so what? Everything should have a point.
* Change content regularly. Train people to come back over and over again. Offer continuity and follow up on it (series, etc.).
* Consider using blogs; they force you to have frequent content changes and are a good way to fit things in that don’t fit elsewhere.
… and then you’ll be … beyond the elements of style!
