Writing is an essential part of modern communication, whether you’re a creative or not. But for something so fundamental, it’s easy to get wrong. In this webinar with Product School’s resident bloggerr and content creator, Ellen Merryweather, you’ll learn some great tips for writing like a pro, and how to tell stories that people will listen to.

1. www.productschool.com
How To Write for Product People by
Product School Blog Expert

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5. How To Write for Product People
By Product School Blog Expert

6. About Me
● Blog writer/admin, eBook
author, copywriter, podcast
host, #ProductCon MC
● Blog Queen 👑

7. Contents
Writing Tips
Why write?
Knowing your audience
Getting ideas
Writing tips
SEO
Free ideas
Getting Published
The 2 routes to getting
published
Beginner mistakes when
pitching
How to write for Product
School

8. Why Write?
1. It’s fun!
2. Raises your personal profile
3. Gives back to the community
4. Boosts your written
communication skills
5. Great mental exercise: looking
back at your own experiences

9. Know Who
You’re Writing
For
1. Treat your readers like your
target market
2. Be all up in their spaces

10. “Where Do You
Get Your Ideas
From?”
1. So. Much. Research
2. Finding questions, and
answering them
3. Writing your own experiences
4. Being aware of what
conversations are happening
around you

11. Find Your Style
1. “Bring your personality to work”
when appropriate
2. Don’t just relay information, tell
a story: good writing is
memorable writing
3. The reader is more important
than the writer
4. Read your work out loud

12. What is SEO?
Search Engine Optimization
Google wants to be sure that your
web content is…
1. Relevant
2. Easy to read
3. High-quality
4. Not dangerous/spammy

13. What is SEO?
“What do I actually need to know
about it?”
Write for people, not computers
Focus on writing good content for
real people
Resources:
Neil Patel -> UberSuggest
SEMrush

14. General
Blog
Tips
1. Attention spans are short, just
like paragraphs
2. Use sub-headings to break up
information
3. Beware of using copyrighted
images (use free stock sites
like Unsplash)

15. General
Book
Tips
1. Itemize the key points you want
people to take away from your
book - no one is going to
remember all 50,000+ words!
2. Write the “boring” bits first
3. Post-it notes (real or Miro)
To-do
1st
Draft Ready

16. Free Ideas
Go on, take them!
-Write a review of your favorite
app/software (bonus if its PM
related)
-Write your story of how you got into
PM
-Debunk a PM myth (eg, Product
Managers are the CEO of a Product)
-Write about a time you failed and
what you learned from it

17. Getting
Published
(The easy part)

18. Route 1: Creating Your Own Blog
Route 2: Approaching Other Blogs

19. Route 1: Creating Your Own Blog
If you’re writing for fun: use Medium or LinkedIn Publishing
If you’re writing for a side project: consider your own website (WordPress, Wix,
Squarespace)

20. Route 1: Getting Published On Medium
On Medium you can write for yourself, or get published in Medium publications:
Step 1: Identify the Medium publication you’d like to write for (see below)
Step 2: Contact the admin and express your interest in publishing with them (it’s better to do this when
you’ve already published a few pieces yourself)
Step 3: If they accept, they’ll add you as a writer and allow you to submit pieces
Hot tip: Don’t spam them with EVERY piece you write

21. Route 2: Approaching Websites
Publishing with independent blogs/companies
● Spend time time looking at the blog you’re hoping to feature on. What topics have they
already covered at length? Do they reach the same audience you’re hoping to reach? Make
sure you’d be a good fit for them.
● Most blogs have guidelines. Minimum word count, format, topics, etc.
● Be open to making changes. “Kill your darlings.”
● Check their exclusivity policy.
● Hint: Almost all publications require your work to be unpublished elsewhere. This avoids
Google flagging them/others for duplicated content. Keep that in mind when pitching an
article you’ve already written.

22. 2 Beginner Mistakes I See ALL THE TIME
1. Not paying attention to the blog guidelines:
Causes delays in the publication schedule, means we both have to spend time making it right
What to do instead:
Read the guidelines before writing your article and again before sending it. There might be
something important that you’ve forgotten. 1 minute to double check can save you some
embarrassment.
2. Not telling me who you are:
“Hi I’m interested in writing for you, what’s the process?” leaves me with more questions than
answers, and sends you to the bottom of my priority list.
What to do instead:
Tell me who you are. Introduce yourself, your experience in product, what you’d like to write
about/what areas of product you’re most interested in. Including your LinkedIn profile is a great
way to help me verify your identity and qualifications.

23. How to Write for Product School
What?
www.productschool.com/blog ✨
Why?
1 million unique blog readers in 2020
Our community is a community of learners
Insider knowledge:
Content we’re looking for: Personal experiences in Product Management & technical expertise
How?

24. Join 60,000+
Product Managers on
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opportunities
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prdct.school/events-slack

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