7 deadly myths about freelancing … and 15 proven ideas that will actually bring in clients, kudos and cash
I have been a freelance – er, sorry – an independent copywriter, for over 15 years now. During that time I have heard a few fairly standard remarks about freelancing that group naturally into seven themes. In fact they’re not just themes, …
M*A*S*H and the art of copy-editing
You know what triage is don’t you? It’s when a bunch of people all turn up at A&E (the emergency room) together and the specialist nurse checks each one to quickly decide who needs treating first and who last. It’s like the …
Fish cookery for copywriters
When I worked and lived in London there was a particular restaurant we used to eat at for the fish. It always tasted like it had jumped from the sea straight onto the grill and then onto our plates. (Well, it couldn’t …
The bad word I no longer use
I have spent years running workshops and writing books in which I have advised copywriters to forget about writing to an “audience” and, instead, focus on their “reader”. That’s OK as far as it goes, because my intention was to implant the …
David Ogilvy teaches us how to write for the web
Though I never met him, David Ogilvy taught me more about advertising in general, and copywriting in particular, than anyone else. (Drayton Bird comes second, but only by a Rizla paper’s width.) DO’s wisdom was, for the most part, timeless. He was …
Why promises persuade prospects
Do you know why people buy from you? It’s not because of what you provide. It’s because of what you promise. Now, you may not realise you’re promising them something. And if your copy is merely average, there’s a very good chance …
The SEO Copywriting Industry’s Dirty Little Secret
So what’s the deal with SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) copywriting? Can you, by dint of clever wordsmithery, boot a site onto the front page of Google, possibly to the very top? Or is there something else going on? I spent an hour …
What to buy for the copywriter in your life
What do you give to the copywriter in your life? Well, unlike the man or woman who has everything, this person is likely to be a little more needy. And, it turns out, easy to buy for. To round off this year …
How to banish presenter’s nerves
I was talking to a freelance copywriter last week. She first contacted me a couple of years ago just ahead of a speech she had to deliver. I asked he how it went. “Brilliant!” she said. “I was nervous, but it went …
How to profit from simplicity
“In the last few years, the number of electricity tariffs has gone up, from 180 to over 400. In the same period, consumer applications to switch electricity suppliers has gone down by 25%.” I heard that on the radio last month and …
Do you suffer from these three copywriting ailments?
Picture the scene. I am sitting at my desk in The Quill, trying to come up with a worthy article for you. As I wait for the muse to visit, the post arrives. Half-hidden among the direct mail, takeaway menus and letters …
10 simple lessons my builder taught me about marketing
If you opened last month’s issue of Maslen on Marketing, you’ll know we have just said goodbye to our builders. As well as building a stunning new office for us, they have been busy on our house, creating a family room, landscaping our …
I was wrong (about punctuation)
If you’ve taken part in a copywriting or business writing workshop I’ve run over the last 10 years or so, or read Write to Sell, you might have been (un)lucky enough to catch one of my rants about punctuation and its main function. …
Web copy case study
Last month I had an email from Nicky Parker, of Bang Consulting. She said, “…what I would really love is if you could sometimes show us some examples of your writing”. So this month I want to discuss the continuing hot topic …
Ten top copy planning tips
Put your goal right at the top. Phrase it like this: When they finish reading my copy, my reader will… This a functional goal for the copy. And it focuses you on converting one reader at a time. Make sure your goal …
Buried copywriting treasure
For this article, I’m reviewing and recommending the five best books I’ve read on copywriting. Each one is worth its weight in gold and will, at the very least, ensure you get off work a little earlier. (I’ve provided Amazon links for …
Which profit-boosting DM secret is routinely ignored by many marketeers?
I’ve just got off the phone with a client. We were discussing testing subject lines for an email campaign I’m writing. The conversation turned to body copy and she said, “we’ve tested it and long copy works better for us. It’s a …
SEO copywriting is dead
HVO copywriting is the term I propose today to replace our old friend (foe?) SEO copywriting. HVO stands for … human visitor optimisation. Yes, that person who finds themselves on your site looking for steel-braided, 11mm diameter turbocharger oil feed hoses. What …
The Six Weapons of Influence
Have you heard of Robert Cialdini? He’s a US psychologist who wrote one of the definitive books on persuasion, called “Influence”. Cialdini is cited all over the place, but particularly in sales circles, for his work on what he called the “six …
Elevator pitches for the web
You know what an elevator pitch is right? Of course you do! It’s a verbal logo – vogo? – that sums up what you do quickly enough to give someone the pitch in ten seconds or less. Coming out of a meeting …
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