The business of writing uplifting quotes

Written by Joan Lownds
Sunday, 27 November 2011 13:00

To Dr. Candice Hughes, there is nothing quite like a good quote. “It fuels the soul,” said Dr. Hughes, a graduate of Wilton High School who is an author and founder of Hughes BioPharma Advisers.

But Dr. Hughes doesn’t necessarily believe that a quote by someone famous outshines one coined by an ordinary person. “What makes famous people’s quotes better than mine? Maybe they’re not. Maybe we all have great quotes languishing in obscurity,” she said.

With this in mind, Dr. Hughes recently launched a free social media site, dudequote.me, where visitors may post original quotes on topics ranging from courage to inspiration to the current one — giving thanks.

The site also drives traffic and links to Dr. Hughes’ new e-book Small Business Rocket Fuel: Marketing Tools to Boost Revenue. Also clickable is Dr. Hughes’ Web site, which offers information about her company, which is “a marketing, strategy, innovation and medical writing consultancy for biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies,” she said.

At dudequote.me, Dr. Hughes posts a new topic each week, and “it is starting to build traffic,” she said.

Some recently posted quotes are “Learn to welcome adversity. It takes an irritant to create a pearl,” or “Reach for the stars. If you miss, you might still get to the moon.”

Part of the goal of the site is to inspire small business owners to “get our spirits up and overcome the gloom about the economy ... and pull together and find a way to make things better,” said Dr. Hughes.

A graduate of Mount Holyoke College, she obtained her Ph.D. from Boston University School of Medicine, where she studied biology and genetics. She is pursuing her MBA at an online program through Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business.

Her book also offers tips for small business owners, drawn from her own experience. “With the economy struggling, many people are starting small businesses in writing, consulting and other areas out of necessity,” she said. “Often they’ve never run a business before. Suddenly they have to get their business making money fast and they don’t know how. As an experienced business manager with MBA training, I felt I should help by sharing what I’d learned. I’d already presented some of the material at the national conference for the American Medical Writers Association, so the book was a natural extension of that.”

It was also a logical outgrowth of her background, she said, which includes “developing and implementing continuing educational programs and promotional programs for leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies including Amgen, Bayer, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Pfizer and others.”

Using an “optimized marketing strategy,” Dr. Hughes said she increased her income 300% in two years, and she described this in her book. “Worksheets show you how to lay out your marketing plan and the concepts are focused on long-term success,” she said.

One basic premise of her book is that “the rules have changed,” she said. “Basic marketing strategies such as PR, advertising and price markdowns are still effective. However, the world has gone digital and these strategies need to be included in any good marketing plan, too.”

But digital tools need to be chosen wisely, Dr. Hughes said. “Strategies and tactics need to be carefully chosen because small business owners have enormous demands on their time from many sources,” she said. “Funds are limited. So owners need to carefully assess what makes sense for their specific business. For example, a business-to-business company will likely not find a large return from tweeting and so must weigh this against time and interest in making a decision on including Twitter in a marketing plan.”

The former Wilton resident now lives in Darien, and she has also written thrillers and poetry.

Currently the theme at dudequote.me is Thanksgiving, and Dr. Hughes is kicking off the discussion with this quote:

“With the economy the way it has been, you might think, ‘What is there to give thanks for these days?’ But, hey, we’re not living in caves and using clubs. Indoor plumbing and central heat is fantastic. The U.S. is still a democracy, we can give our opinions without fear. The U.S. still has a pioneering, ‘Go West Young Man’ culture. These are things I give thanks for.”

Information: dudequote.me, or candicehughes.com.