How to write an article like Karrie Kohlhaas

(This article originally appeared on July 1 on Biznik.com)

If you’ve never met Karrie, do. Go to her Biznik page, see where she’ll be and go. If it’s a sit down, sit next to her. If it’s a mixer, hover. She’s smart, delightful and, if you’re lucky enough to hire her, she can shower you with practical ideas to help build your business.

In her recent article, “16 Ways,” Karrie seized upon a problem and offered practical solutions that Biznik needed. In one week, the article had 500+ views and a Biznik-record-breaking 61 comments. Joe Shirley wrote,

“Now that you’ve got three articles with an average rating approaching nine points, it’s about time for you to write an article about how to write a kick-ass article.”

I suspect Karrie is too modest to reply. But in Joe-Hage-speak, she clearly understood her positioning, objective, strategy, and tactics before she began. What follows are my words, not hers.

Karrie’s positioning:

To members of the Biznik community frustrated by low attendance rates, Karrie Kohlhaas is the unorthodox (and successful) business cultivator who can help you reduce event attrition because she offers 16 practical tips she’s used to build her – and her Fortune 500 clients’ – business and because you know her from other highly-rated and popular articles on this site.

Objective (must be measurable):
* To help Biznik members cut event attrition by half; or,

* To achieve in excess of 1,000 page views; or,

* To write a meaningful article that earns a rating higher than 8.5;

Or perhaps her goal (not measurable) was simply to stimulate conversation to help solve the problem.

Strategy:

* Write an article using devices used successfully to convey messages to this audience in the past.

Tactics:

1. Think first, write second.

Karrie takes the time to study before she puts something “out there.” This is an important lesson that everyone can use.

Online, when you write something, it’s typically out there forever. You know, like, until the end of time? And everything you write contributes to your digital imprint, your overall online persona.

Your most impressive achievement may get fewer hits than the flame email you wrote. It took me 10 seconds to locate this 2003 flame from Bill Gates. Like Karrie, be careful and think before your write.

2. Fill a need. Be incremental.

There’s little point writing a ‘me-too’ article on Biznik. You won’t see one from Karrie. She may build on a point made elsewhere on the site, and she may reference another article with a hyperlink. In fact, her “16 Ways” article was borne from a problem-solving discussion on Biz Talk.

3. Choose an intriguing title.

I suspect this article will get a warm Biznik reception because at least three members commented specifically for it. So what to call it?

* Ways to write articles that get read?

* Nine steps to great article writing?

* Writing articles that get read?

* How to write an article?

* How to write an article like Karrie Kohlhaas?

To me, “write like Karrie” is more interesting. Calling out another Biznik member, I thought, would intrigue you to click. As far as I could tell, it’s never been done before. The title is punchier with her than without and I could carry the device through the article to keep it engaging.

In layman’s terms, everybody loves Karrie. Oh the kvelling on her article! She provided a built-in audience. This was fun to write.

4. Bold each point as a subhead.

Separate each point with a hard return. This serves multiple purposes. It:

* Makes the article easier to read.

* Allows hurried and speed readers to scan.

* Lets readers decide if the point is interesting enough to read the normal text.

5. Keep paragraphs short.

Some can be just six words.

6. Use a familiar and friendly voice.

Karrie’s work is enjoyable to read. She reveals a little about herself here and there (she likes Aretha Franklin; can’t sing though) and that endears her to her readers. She doesn’t talk over our heads, and she is quick to publicly compliment someone in response to an article or BizTalk post. You can be sure that each person she treats with respect (see Aretha) will click on her article the next time she writes.

7. Leave the reader with questions to answer.

In Wizard of Oz, Karrie asks eleven questions. Back at the Easton Press, my mentor Julie Friese taught me, “You demonstrate how smart you are not by the answers you give but by the questions you ask.” Karrie forces you to think about ways to build your business and that’s why Bizniks are here, right?

8. Know the readers; thoughtfully and faithfully respond.

I suspect that Karrie writes infrequently because she commits so much to each. Among the 61 comments, 19 of them were from Karrie herself. And, from the looks of it, she spent far more time on the 19 responses than it likely took to write the article in the first place. She researched each person’s question, visited his or her site, and gave something back to each responder, if even a “thank you” back.

Another interesting factoid, only once did she let more than four comments come without responding with one (or more) comments. That’s dedication! And that very attractive quality becomes part of her online persona.

9. Be really, really smart.

In this last, and not terribly helpful tip, either you’ve got it or you don’t. Karrie’s got it — and it shines through. Getting to read expert work for free on Biznik and her website. Hey, what’s not to like?

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