12.02.05
Posted in Advertising, Business, Copywriting, General, Marketing at 3:42 pm UTC by Michele PW
Here are seven tips to help get your copywriting business off the ground.
1. Put together a portfolio. Most people won’t hire you without seeing samples of your work. That said, I’ve found the longer I’ve been in business the less people look at my samples.
When I first started and had hardly any samples, well then, of course everyone wanted to see them. So my portfolio consisted of every little thing I had ever done. Now that I have more samples than I can keep track of, I only bring a handful.
As for why potential clients aren’t asking to see my samples anymore, my guess is what’s probably happened is I’ve changed. My confidence has gone up and clients probably sense that in me, thus they’re also confident I can do the job. Read the rest of this entry »
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Posted in Advertising, Business, Copywriting, General, Marketing, Public Relations at 2:59 pm UTC by Michele PW
You are a professional writer — therefore you need a professional identity or image. And if you also offer marketing consultation, that image becomes even more important (after all, you’re in the business of helping other businesses with their identity, you better have a decent one yourself).
People want to work with successful people. The image you present to the world goes a long way toward establishing that.
Although the following three tips are designed more for copywriters, all writers can benefit from taking a closer look at their professional identity. Read the rest of this entry »
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Posted in Copywriting, Writing at 2:56 pm UTC by Michele PW
Looking to chuck that full-time job for a life of full-time writing? Or maybe you’ve already dumped the day job but aren’t quite as busy as you’d like to be. Why not take a closer look at copywriting?
Copywriting, also known as business or promotional writing, can do more than put a few extra bucks in your wallet — it can also help you develop as a writer. Here are ten reasons why:
1. Copywriting pays well. Actually it can pay very well. I know copywriters who easily make six figures in a year. That’s because copywriters charge by the hour rather than the by the word or page. Beginning copywriters usually start at $25 or $30 an hour, but if they’re good (or good at asking for what they’re worth — a rare trait in writers but one definitely worth developing) they can quickly move to $45 to $75 an hour. Senior copywriters charge well over $100 an hour.
Now you probably won’t start at $100 an hour, but even a few small jobs at $30 an hour can really boost your bottom line. Read the rest of this entry »
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Posted in Copywriting, Writing at 2:53 pm UTC by Michele PW
As a professional copywriter, I’m often asked by aspiring copywriters what they need to do to succeed. Most of their questions center around writing ability. They want to know how to find out if they have the talent to succeed, or if there’s a “test” they can take that will tell them if they’re a good enough writer to actually get paid to write.
Well, for better or for worse, writing ability has very little to do with a writer’s ultimate success. (Business owners who want to write to promote their business, take note — I’m talking to you as well.)
If there was a test out there (and there isn’t by the way) but if there was, I would say the test would deal only with your attitude about writing and leave ability flat out of it.
Yes, you heard me right. Attitude over ability. That’s the key to success.
I know. It’s hard to hear. As writers, we want so badly to be told our work is good, that it has merit, that we truly are talented. I’m not sure why so many of us need that exterior validation — perhaps because writing is such a solitary, inner activity that when we do finally come up for air, we want to make sure we haven’t been wasting our time. Read the rest of this entry »
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Posted in Creativity, Writing at 2:51 pm UTC by Michele PW
According to Julia Cameron, author of The Artist’s Way, the fear of being a bad speller is a remarkably common fear for people who want to write but are creatively blocked.
It doesn’t matter that the fear is irrational, it doesn’t matter that every single word-processing program out there comes with a spell checker, the fear of not being able to spell still haunts those would-be writers. And thus, those people remain blocked. Read the rest of this entry »
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Posted in Creativity at 2:48 pm UTC by Michele PW
Worried you may not be creative or you may not be creative enough? This quiz will help you find out just how creative you are.
Take a piece of paper and number it from one to seven. For each question, write down the corresponding letter of your answer.
1. When you come across a rose, you immediately:
A. Smell it.
B. Quote every rose poem you can remember.
C. Write your own poem.
D. Sketch the rose.
E. Step on the rose.
2. One of your dreams in life is to:
A. Write a novel.
B. Become a painter.
C. Travel the world.
D. Climb all the famous mountains.
E. Just once, get everything done on your to-do list. Read the rest of this entry »
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Posted in Business, Creativity at 2:45 pm UTC by Michele PW
When you think about the legacies Walt Disney left us, do talking mice and a multigizillion dollar company come to mind? Actually, those are only the products of his prodigious and rich creativity — dig deeper and you start to realize one of the most intriguing heritages Disney left was his processes.
Disney was a creative and problem-solving genius. He knew how to make fantasy come alive in the minds and hearts of millions of people around the world. He employed several techniques to do this, but one of the most interesting is his ability to seamlessly slip into different creative “people” or “roles.”
The dreamer, the realist, the critic
One of Disney’s coworkers once said: “There were actually three different Walts [and] you never knew which one was coming to your meeting.” Robert Dilts, a scientist who studied Disney, called the three different Walts “the dreamer, the realist and the critic.” Each persona had a specific role in the creative process, and only together did it become “Disney magic.” Read the rest of this entry »
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12.01.05
Posted in Advertising, Business, Copywriting, Writing at 11:00 pm UTC by Michele PW
Knowing how to write, and write well, is a skill that will come in handy in all sorts of situations. And if you combine good writing skills with the persuasive selling tactics found in, say, copywriting, you’ll be that much more ahead of your competition.
Of all the different types of writing I’ve done in my life (and believe me, I’ve tried practically all of them) writing radio has made one of the bigger impacts on my writing style.
Below are three ways writing radio can help strengthen your writing style. (Oh, and these tips will also help you write better radio copy too.) Read the rest of this entry »
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Posted in Copywriting, Writing at 10:58 pm UTC by Michele PW
(Note: I wrote this article in response to a sentence fragment contest I had in a previous issue. I had such a great response and so many interesting comments I thought I’d devote another issue to sentence fragments.)
Let’s start with what a sentence fragment isn’t:
1. If there is an implied “you” in the sentence, it’s not a frag. For instance — “Sales lagging?” This is not a fragment because there is an implied “you” (Are your sales lagging?).
2. Imperative sentences also are not considered sentence fragments. An imperative sentence is a command “Watch out for long sentences.” Read the rest of this entry »
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Posted in Copywriting, Writing at 10:54 pm UTC by Michele PW
As a professional copywriter, not only do I do a lot of writing but I also look at a lot of writing. One of the things I’ve noticed that set the good/great writers apart from the so-so is rhythm.
What I mean by rhythm is how the writing sounds. The rhythm of the words and sentences. It’s a subtle aspect of writing, one not normally talked about, but that doesn’t lessen its importance.
Unfortunately, rhythm is also tough to teach (which is probably why it isn’t talked about very much). It’s something felt deep inside, like it is with music. It isn’t as straight forward as pointing out a grammar error. What makes it tougher is that everyone has his/her own style and own unique rhythm. However, these three tips should get you started thinking about your own writing rhythm and how to improve it. Read the rest of this entry »
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Posted in Advertising, Business, Copywriting, Marketing, Public Relations at 10:50 pm UTC by Michele PW
Want to create print ads that get results? Below are three keys to get you started.
1. Write for the eye. Print ads are visual. Therefore, craft ads with the eye in mind.
Eyes are kind of picky, though. So, here’s a checklist of what eyes like and don’t like:
A catchy headline that encourages them read more. Read the rest of this entry »
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Posted in Advertising, Business, Copywriting, Marketing at 10:49 pm UTC by Michele PW
Now that you’ve decided to hire a copywriter, how do you go about finding one? Here are seven things to look for to make sure the match is a good one.
1. Define your expectations. Are you looking for a copywriter or a technical writer? Do you need a writer that can take a project and run with it or do you need someone who will follow strict guidelines? Do you want a writer with the ability to make technical material readable for the general public or do you need a writer who specializes in retail? Are you looking for a writer with whom you can build a long-term relationship or will this be a one-time, one-shot deal? Before you start looking, make sure you know exactly what kind of writer you need. Not only will it make the review process go that much faster, but also it help ensure you find exactly what you want. Read the rest of this entry »
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Posted in Advertising, Business, Copywriting, Marketing at 10:47 pm UTC by Michele PW
Think you can’t afford to hire a copywriter? Think again. Here are seven ways a copywriter can contribute to the success of your business.
1. Save you time. Chances are, you have more than enough things to fill your day with other than writing brochure copy or freshening your Web site or getting that pesky newsletter article off your desk. When you hire a professional copywriter, not only are you getting one more thing off your to-do list, but also it will probably get done faster than you could do it. Read the rest of this entry »
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Posted in Copywriting, Writing at 10:45 pm UTC by Michele PW
Want to know the secret to creating MEMORABLE promotional copy? Sales copy that actually stays with your customers long after they’ve finished reading it?
Then master the art of using words to create pictures in your customers’ heads.
If you can describe your products or services in such a way that it forms images in your customers’ heads, well, then you’ve just created something that will last long after the marketing is over.
Why else do novels stay with us for so long? Those “pictures” we see draw us into the world of the novel, and those pictures stay with us long after we’ve closed the book. If you can create that kind of staying power with your marketing materials, think about how much ahead of your competition you’ll be.
So, how do you get started? Below are three tips. (Note how all three tips have the word “specific” in common. Be specific whenever you can. We don’t think in generalities, we think in details. The more specific you are, the stronger the pictures.) Read the rest of this entry »
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Posted in Copywriting at 10:42 pm UTC by Michele PW
You’ve done it. Gotten that press release written. Now you’re ready to send it out to your carefully chosen list of media contacts.
But before you hit that “send” button, take a moment and run your press release through this checklist. Remember, you only have a few seconds to catch the attention of busy journalists and editors — don’t blow it over an easily corrected mistake.
Some of these may seem painfully obvious. Alas, even the obvious gets overlooked from time to time (even from professionals – I know, I’ve made my share of mistakes) so it’s always a wise idea to take a few moments to double check that your release is up to snuff before sending it out into the world.
1. Is your release newsworthy? In other words, does it answer the question “Will this interest my readers?” Remember, media people are interested in one thing – keeping their readers happy. Make sure your idea is something that will do just that.
2. Is the headline compelling? Will it encourage media people to actually read the story? If the headline doesn’t interest them, chances are they aren’t going to take the time to read the rest of the release. And you’ve just missed your opportunity.
3. Is the first sentence (the lead) compelling? Like the headline, if the first sentence doesn’t grab their attention and persuade them to keep reading, chances are your release will be headed to that famous circular file. (Otherwise known as the trash can.)
4. Is it written in third person? In other words, use “he/she/they.” No “you” or “we.”
5. Is it less than a page? Media people don’t have time to read long press releases. Unless you have a darn good reason, keep it less than a page. For that matter, even if you do have a darn good reason, still keep it less than a page.
6. Are there grammatical or spelling errors in your release? Trust me, these are professionals. They’ll catch your errors. And those errors won’t leave a very good impression. At the very least use your word processing’s spell checker, but hiring a proofreader is an even better solution. Or you could simply have someone you trust read it. But definitely do something.
7. Do you have your contact information on the release? Media people are on deadline. They don’t have time to search for your contact info if they need clarification or a quote from you. Make it easy for them – put your contact info in a prominent place.
8. Do you have any sales copy in there? Reminder: Press releases don’t go to the advertising department – they’re for editorial. And editorial doesn’t look very kindly on sales pitches. Nix the promotional copy and just focus on content – if they use your story, they’ll put your contact info in there.
While there are no guarantees with publicity, making sure your release follows this checklist will go a long way to garnering you publicity.
Michele Pariza Wacek owns Creative Concepts and Copywriting, a writing, marketing and creativity agency. She offers two free e-newsletters that help subscribers combine their creativity with hard-hitting marketing and copywriting principles to become more successful at attracting new clients, selling products and services and boosting business. She can be reached at http://www.writingusa.com. Copyright 2005 Michele Pariza Wacek.
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