How to transition to marcomm writing

• 1

It’s All Marcomm

A Tech Writer Goes Fluffy

• 2

What Do We Mean by Marcomm?

Some defining characteristics:

Technical Communication Marketing Communication

Post-sale audience, especially usersPre-sale audience, especially decision makers and influencers

Objective, detached style Confident, engaging style

Primary goal: inform the reader Primary goal: Inspire the reader to take action

Example: Configuration guide Example: Solution brief

• 3

How To Move from This…

• UI documentation

• Management and configuration guides

• Procedural documentation

• Courseware

• Lab manuals

• 4

…to This

• Marketing collateral:

Web copy

White papers

Solution briefs

Data sheets

Email copy

Animation scripts

• 5

Anchors to Steady You

• It’s all Marcomm

• Good technical documentation encourages brand loyalty

• It inspires action: buy from us again

• Your Tech Comm skills add big value

• Uncover hidden information• SME collaboration• Depth of engagement

• 6

First Skills to Transfer

• Technical Aptitude

• You can write impactful pieces because of your ability to grasp and distill difficult technical concepts (the opposite of fluff).

• Attention to D&P

• You can help your clients tune their message and its delivery.

• You can quickly spot and rectify empty, vague phrases that give marcomm writing its pejorative label.

• Information extraction

• You can get important information from very stubborn sources.

• 7

Contact Me

The Proceedings version of this presentation includes more detail, such as implementation tips for the first skills to transfer.

Mobile: http://tinyurl.com/8a44qek PDF: http://tinyurl.com/crdwwld

• Zerista Summit site: Joseph Staples• Twitter: @joe_staples• Email: staples@prowesscorp.com