Express Marketing Memo » Copywriting

A Creative’s Controversy: Talent vs. Commodity

Susan Hamilton — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 13:37:30 +0000

It’s a heated debate. Are creative services, such as copywriting or graphic art, a talent or a commodity? On the one hand, business writing is a staple and can be purchased, like milk, through various locations. On the other hand, the talent behind a creative’s work must still support an income where time and talent are factors and the more developed the skill, the more valuable the time. You could look at it like a set designer or musician; the skill set is not simply learned academically, but also through mentoring and environment, as well as talent and popularity.

It doesn’t seem to matter what side I take when I post, the comments always indicate support of the other perspective. I write on the importance of a strong brand identity and the role a creative plays in helping a client develop one, and the comments will be along the lines of, “Well, I do that with VistaPrint.”

I do work with a company that has a rockin’ logo and gave $30 bucks for it.

On the other hand, I know I work with the best graphic artist around because I’ve seen him in action while he creates directly from his client’s persona and his personal genius, and he won’t design you a logo for $30 bucks. You won’t find a template of his stuff on VistaPrint, either. What he gives his clients and ours, however, is definitely what cannot be found elsewhere and is gladly paid well for.

If I write on how the importance of great communication with a client adds to a price benefit for both a client and creative because of the decreased level of revision, I get snotty comments about how copywriting is all related to talent.

So is creative work a commodity, or talent? In reality, they are both.

Talent is very important, and if you ask me, I’ll tell you it’s one of the most important factors. I realize you can learn skill in a classroom, but I also know that many who have gone to class to build a career like mine, suck at it. There are marketing departments speckled all over corporate America missing the mark big time with their campaigns, and the degree doesn’t matter – the skill, willingness to learn (flexibility), and talent all play a part in the success or failure of a thing.

But if you’re highly skilled and talented and have no discipline or connections that bring holistic solutions to your clients regarding their needs, talent alone won’t be enough to get your head above water within any industry, let alone the creative.

You may however, with little other necessary creative talent within your niche, be able to put together your own somewhat OK business card.

So where do you stand on it? Tell us about it and share it with our readers below.

Re-Writing Material Often Due to Poor Communication

Susan Hamilton — Tue, 04 May 2010 15:35:18 +0000

While minor revisions for detail clarification are somewhat expected in written work for hire, a complete re-write is often due to poor communication. In my experience, it takes more than note-taking during discussion and reference material to ensure a great end result.

Here are a couple of areas to discuss in detail when hiring a writer or accepting a project:

Tone of the piece, and expected response
Discuss the time-frames for approval. If the work is needed by a deadline, revisions need to be addressed in ample time to print or go live.
What emotion is being evoked? Make sure the call to action is fitting.

Not every working relationship between a client and freelance writer is handled face-to-face. Many times the only communication is e-mail, telephone, social connection and PayPal! When the majority of your communication will be handled over the Internet, it’s uber-important to make those extra points that relate to great product completion. If you will be communicating this way, read your letters, inquiries and documentations out loud before hitting send. Write notes with bullet points to cover during phone calls. The last thing you want to do in this scenario is ignore pertinent information that was previously divulged, or carelessly offend with your own tone.

Good communication will always trump a negative vibe. Ask the questions and be sure to listen to every nuance of the response without over-analyzing the situation. These practices will build necessary confidence in the whole situation, a much better way to work.

Win More Business with a Great Response Letter

Shari Voigt — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:00:00 +0000

Do you have a response letter prepared for prospective customer inquiries? When you get an inquiry via email or your Web contact form, how long does it take you to respond?

It’s up to you as to whether you’re responding to a hot lead or a cold one. Your response time makes all the difference. Same day, even same hour response is best, but unless you have a prepared response letter, that’s not likely to happen. Instead, you’ll find that customer inquiries arrive at the most inconvenient times and you’ll be torn between dropping everything to answer or making your prospect wait … which is seldom a good thing. Ask me how I know about that. (hanging head in shame)

Elements of a Winning Response Letter

Appreciation: Thank your prospect for his inquiry.
“Sell” the Information Requested: You do this by showing the benefit to the prospect for purchasing your product or service. Remember that it’s not about you … it’s about meeting your prospect’s needs.
Depending on your product or service, you may also need to list the features offered.
If pricing has been requested, “sell” the value of what you offer. Do you have the best price or best quality in town? Offer a guarantee? Is your product exclusively available through you locally? Say so. Yes, give the price, but show why the purchase should be made through you.
Provide full contact information: Make it easy for your prospect to become your customer.
One final tip: Make sure to add a subject to your response email … something along the lines of “Info you requested from [name of site]“

You may need more than one version … unless you only offer one product or service. Need help crafting a great response letter? Contact me through my Web form and I promise to respond promptly!

Ideally, your response letter should be step one of a multi-part follow-up series. For more information, visit and subscribe to Zero To Sixty Marketing’s Inside Line to learn what you need to know about effective email list marketing.

The Art of Asking “So What”

Shari Voigt — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 14:00:51 +0000

So you’ve finished the press release, the article, or the web copy … now what? Step back, let it sit overnight or maybe a day or two. Then take it back out, read it with fresh eyes, and ask yourself, “so what?”

Does it pass the test? It’s extraordinarily easy to write, but miss the mark! You started out with a purpose, a message to share with a reader who you can picture in your mind’s eye. Did you accomplish what you set out to do? Is your target reader better off for what you’ve written?

Does your press release provide real news? Does your article provide valuable information? Does your web copy answer his search queries?

If you’ve answered yes, you’ve passed the “so what” test. Congratulations!

If not, or if you’re not sure, dive back into your copy:

Revisit the “who, what, what” technique of my previous post.
Move things around. Try leading in with your third paragraph. (For whatever reason, we tend to get to the meat of our message by then.)
Don’t be afraid to ask for help. An experienced copywriter can do wonders for picking out where or why your copy flounders.
After tightening it up, let it sit overnight once again, then repeat the process.

Do you have a final edit routine? What part of the writing process do you find most challenging? As always, comments are welcome and encouraged!

3 Important Questions to Ask Before You Start Writing

Shari Voigt — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 14:00:44 +0000

Anyone who has ever put pen to paper or fingers to the keyboard is familiar with that sinking feeling of having lots to say, yet great difficulty writing it. I write for a living and still know that feeling all too well.

Sometimes it’s the blank page blues, better known as writer’s block. More often, I simply need to ask myself three simple questions. “Who? What? What?”

Who is your audience? Take some time and jot down what you know about your reader or your prospective reader.
What does your reader already know about you, about your product or service, or about the message that you want to share?
What do you want you reader to know about you, your product or service, and/or what action do you want your reader to take?

When you start your writing project by answering these three questions, not only will your words flow with greater ease; you’ll also be well on your way to writing something that your audience wants to read.

Do you have a favorite technique to organize your thoughts before you begin to write?

Copywriter, SEO Copywriter or Writer – What is the difference?

Shari Voigt — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 15:00:51 +0000

Although a copywriter is a writer, a writer is not necessarily a copywriter. And while both the copywriter and the writer deal with copyright issues, it’s probably not how they make their living. Yes, I’ve been asked about that a few times!

Merriam-Webster defines a copywriter as “a writer of advertising or publicity copy.” In other words, a copywriter specializes in writing words that sell. Look to a copywriter when you need brochure, newsletter or ad copy, a case study written, or a press release created.

An SEO copywriter takes that one step further and applies search engine optimization tactics to web site copy. She researches and finds keyword phrases appropriate to each page, then weaves them in naturally. And she also understands that ultimately, it’s still about writing words that sell and that writing for the web is quite different than writing for print.

Look to an SEO copywriter whenever search engine visibility would enhance your copy’s profitability, i.e. web site copy, online press releases, and articles or cases studies that will find their home on the Internet.

If content is king, how powerful is your web site copy?

Shari Voigt — Fri, 28 Dec 2007 14:00:39 +0000

“Words are electric; they should be chosen for the emotional voltage they carry,” according to Ray Bard, author of “Secret Formulas of the Wizard of Ads.” This rings true regardless of the media displaying your message. Whether we’re talking about web sites or print advertising, content is king.

Bard goes on to say, “Weak and predictable words cause grand ideas to appear so dull that they fade into the darkness of oblivion. But powerful words in unusual combinations brightly illuminate the mind.”

Yes, grand ideas require powerful words. But so do simple ones.

How powerful is your web site copy? Are your words relevant to your market? Do they carry emotional voltage?

To know if your words are relevant to your market, you’ll need to do some research. This falls under search engine optimization (SEO).

Before writing the first line of copy or code for a client’s web site, I want to know the actual phrases people type into the Google search box to find a similar business. So I head over to Wordtracker with a basic list of phrases that my client and I consider appropriate.

Wordtracker answers the question, “What are people searching for on the Web?” It helps identify keywords and phrases that are relevant to your business and most likely to be used as queries by search engine visitors.

Using these phrases properly throughout each web page is the beginning of search engine optimization. But for the purposes of this article, we’re focusing on your copy’s overall relevance to your market. In other words, to the extent your site is search engine optimized, you will draw traffic from Google, Yahoo, MSN, etc., but for now we’re laser-focused on drawing that visitor in.

You’ve done your research; now what? Add electricity – emotional voltage. Speak to your audience as one person. What are his hot buttons? What is her point of pain? What problem does your product or service solve?

Throughout the process, weave in those keyword phrases you found during your initial research. Don’t just toss them in for the sake of search engines; carefully weave them in for the benefit of your visitor.

As a copywriter, I’ll admit that this explanation is a bit oversimplified. There is so much more to consider. Yet this is the beginning of the process that results in powerful copy.