Posting Announcements

Take a cue from advertising. Put enough correct information in your announcements for people to know what you're talking about, who it's for, when it is happening, how much it costs and where they can find it.

I just spent a frustrating five minutes trying to track down what looked like a chat on writing. The poster wrote two items about whatever it was. The first gave a day and time, but didn't list the time zone. The second referred to "yesterday" (always use a date) and provided a wildly invalid link to what was supposed to be a blog post about the event--whatever it was. She also gave a different time, still without reference to time zone. Here's a hint: on the Internet, not everyone lives on the east coast of the U.S. even if they're dogs.

And call a spade a spade. If the event involves streaming audio/video online, don't call it "radio." If it requires a long distance phone call, explain that your "webinar" will probably cost participants, even if no fee is involved. Don't call it "free" unless you're providing a toll-free number that works worldwide.

I like to think I have at least average intelligence, but I'll bet no one other than the originator of the announcement I read knows Who did What, When, Where and Why or How. Gee, now where have I heard that before?

Listen to this article