We’ve been working with clients lately on bios/profiles for websites and backgrounders, and it’s reminded me of how difficult it is for most people to write about themselves—or even get comfortable with what someone else writes about them.

Faced with a bio request, people often retreat to the safe familiarity of resume-style recitations: jobs,  accomplishments, education. That’s not wrong; it’s just not great—especially for networking via social media. Ideally, a bio will evoke a real human (not some kind of business bot) and will communicate something about how you approach your work and what makes you stand out (note to modest types: there’s always something).

A few tips that can make it easier:

• Have someone interview you (or your team)— it’s often easier to talk about we do than to put it in writing.
• Develop a list of questions for bios (our colleague Kelly Parkinson has a great one here) and answer them stream-of-consciousness style. People often have a hard time writing because they try to edit while they write. Write first, then edit.
• Think about (and write about) the ultimate results you deliver—not just what you know how to do.
• Talk about why you do what you do.
• Having a hard time pinning down that extra something you bring? Think about what others have said about  you—friends, a former boss, your mom.
• Include something about what you like to do in your off time—it gives people a way to relate to you. And be specific: “I walk dogs for the SPCA,” not “I like animals”; “I’m addicted to gritty crime novels,” not “I like to read.”

In general, think about what you like to know about others; they want to know that about you, too. And try not stress about it. You may never get comfortable with your bio, but that doesn’t matter—you don’t have to read again until it’s update time.

Organizations tend to extremes when it comes to the presentation aspect of marketing communications. Some obsess on it to the point of overlooking other important needs—like having something compelling to present. But many others seem to believe, like the woman who went to an executive job interview in flip-flops (true story), that people will dig for the diamond beneath the rough. That sounds nice and egalitarian—substance over style and all; trouble is, it’s delusional.

Presentation is one of the key components of credibility (and thus, one of 10 factors we analyze for the Thinkshift Credibility Quotient™). Ample research with website users, for example, shows that people make snap judgments about a company’s credibility based on its site’s design and usability. Note “usability”; people often get caught up in how something looks, but that’s only one aspect of presentation. A credible communication gets all these things right:

• An aesthetic that’s appropriate for your industry and market.
• Accessible information. If I’m looking for information about sustainability, or about a particular product’s qualities, can I find it easily?
• Appropriate materials. If the communication is making sustainability claims, does it use appropriate materials? Any print collateral, for example, should use the lowest-impact materials and processes possible. This applies to packaging, too. Excess or high-impact packaging on a sustainable product undermines the product.
• Writing quality. Overall, is the communication clear? Do individual statements make sense? Was it proofread? (Yes, I do need to make this point; see “flip-flops” above.)

Sloppy presentation communicates a sloppy approach overall; strong presentation lays a foundation for trust.

It’s easy to push the maintenance part of communications work to the back burner. So many pressing things to do and so little time! You don’t keep the website quite as current as it could be. Sales has been doing fine without those backgrounders—surely they can wait a few more weeks? Ditto, refining the messaging for that new target market.

But weeks stretch into months, and soon you find that the back of the stove is so crowded you don’t know which pot to tend to first. (I’ll stop the metaphor there.) Or the competition makes a move and you find you’re not prepared to counter it. And since all the parts are connected (or should be), one small need sets off an avalanche and you’re faced with what feels like a gigantic project instead of an exciting challenge.

I see it with clients who tend to react rather than remain on the offensive. And I’m guilty of it myself. (Hence the inspiration for this post—it’s as much pep talk to self as advice.) It just doesn’t result in communications that are sustainable and well thought out. It becomes difficult to change course. And it costs you in lost opportunities.

But a little effort can go a long way. You can set aside a few hours a week (or every two) to keep your site current and make sure your collateral reflects your needs and changes in your market. Figure out if you can save time by outsourcing or delegating.

Before you know it you’ll be freed to pursue those opportunities you once had to pass up because you weren’t prepared to tackle them.

Or rather, I should say, I’ll be freed up. I feel better already!