Sitting on rapture
I just had a good long talk with myself. Because I was driving myself crazy.
- Staring at the screen.
- The blank one, that is.
- Not allowing myself to type even one word.
- Until I was positive it was The Perfect Word.
- Therefore, me = paralyzed, inactive, stymied.
- Not writing.
- Worrying.
- Ridiculous.
Just start, I told myself. Maybe not at the beginning…but somewhere in between, at some point along the way.
Because even those car ads that boast ’0 to 60′ admit that it happens over the course of X number of seconds. It is not instantaneous, it is a progression.
Albeit from static and silence to rapture.
Image credit: valkyrieh116
Filed under How To, Writing | Tags: content, content creation, copywriter, copywriting, creating, marketing writer, writer, Writing | Comments (8)Barf Bags
I remember the first time I flew on an airplane. I was five, it was the winter of 1979 and we were headed to Florida. Although I was too young to get it at the time, it was an incredible trip. We stayed with old friends in Cocoa Beach, went to Disney World, saw an alligator on a golf course, ate in a very loud local restaurant where they served some famous something or other (what is the official food of Florida?), AND we woke up at 3 in the morning, drove through the night, set up chairs on a beach and watched the Space Shuttle lift off. Which, I have to admit, I found exciting in equal measure to the hot chocolate and donuts I got to eat all morning.
Anyway, back to the plane. I had the middle seat in between my brothers who had already flown several times and were taking their jobs as my guides, as usual, very seriously. In the 70′s and 80′s, one of these highlights was…drumroll, please…the barf bag.
Let’s think about the marketing ramifications of this nasty little receptacle, shall we?
- What if you walked into a grocery store and they had a big closet with huge, full-body parkas next to a neon sign that said, ‘You are about to freeze your frickin’ ass off, so put this on!’
- What if when you went to the car dealership, they had an exhibit featuring photos of the top accidents of the last month and a booth for life insurance and information about brain damage and paraplegia.
- What if the entrance to the beach was flanked with burn salve, skin cancer survivors and the drowning unit of your local hospital.
Well, the minute you sat down in your seat on an airplane back in the day, you stared at a barf bag. You weren’t left to your own devices here. They left little room for doubt. The message was clear: You are going to puke. This is going to be a bumpy ride. We were reminded of all the things we didn’t want to think of the minute we got on the plane: nausea, vomit, turbulence, bad weather, bad planes, explosions, screaming babies, twisted metal on the ground. That ridiculously small paper bag, tattooed with the airline’s logo, put a bad taste in our mouths.
Some people might have interpreted it as courteous, I thought it was terrible advertising. (Well, I do now, I wasn’t that kid).
Eventually, the industry wisened up because the last time I sat down there were happy magazines and ads for wifi in the little mesh pocket in front of my seat. The airlines want us thinking about buying things, materialism, being rich and exploring the world. Much better thoughts for a much better flight – and great incentive for planning your next trip.
Take note: (and maybe this was just my experience, but) When the barf bags were there, people actually used them – I remember a few incidents clearly. But now? When was the last time you saw someone hurling in their seat on a flight?
As the seller, producer, promoter, writer you actually have substantial power to direct someone’s experience of your product, service, space. Don’t send them down the black, gooey rabbit hole decorated with signs that say ‘Welcome! Be prepared to barf!’ That’s just not how the road to paradise should be paved.
Image credit: Oskay
Filed under Critical Copywriting, How To, Marketing, The Business | Tags: content, copywriter, copywriting, Marketing, marketing writer, marketing writing | Comments (4)My favorite way to find content
So I’m talking to Chris Ming Ryan – he’s a video and content guy, and we live in the same blogging and social media world. We’re throwing ideas back and forth about a project we’re thinking about doing, and discussing life on this web in general. All of what he says is good, and then, he says something great.
And suddenly he hears what he’s said. And he exclaims, ‘Oh my god, that’s a post! I’ve gotta go! I’ve gotta go!’
He was only half kidding. Maybe a third. And we got off the phone pretty much right away.
Talk about what you do, talk about your industry, your goals, how you work – with someone that doesn’t know you or doesn’t know your area of expertise. When you talk to someone like that, you’ll be driven to think of new ways to explain or illustrate your thoughts. Have a pen and paper or keyboard handy.
You think all day, you might write all day – but how often do you talk about your usual topics? (Especially if you’re a freelancer or a solopreneur.) The three practices are very different and create quite different results.
Try it. Pick a topic. Think about it for an hour – see what you get. Write about it for an hour – see what you get. Talk about it (in conversation) for an hour – see what you get.
When you employ all three brilliant modes, your ideas – and your post content – will expand. Hey, it might even triple.
Image credit: Nikita Kashner
Filed under Blogging, How To, The Business | Tags: blog content, content, content creation, new ideas, Writing | Comment (0)The best things you could ever write about
While I’m interested in a pretty wide range of things in this world, there are plenty of things that I’m profoundly not into. GI Joe & Barbie, Velveeta, heavy metal, comic books, hunting, skydiving, fruit cake and video games top the list.
Can you imagine if I had to write about them? Sitting down in front of the blank screen, I can imagine searching wildly for my muse to no avail – she hightailed it to a beach in Tahiti at the first mention of Toys-R-Us.
Whether you’re a marketing copywriter, a freelance writer, a blogger and/or a business owner, you will always be looking for good content, the next job and the mojo to write and make it good.
Of course, I understand the argument that the need for a paycheck might necessitate that we write about things we aren’t inspired by. But, really? I’m taking issue with that concept.
What if I follow my interests and because these things light me up so brilliantly, I write so well that I get accolades for that work and then more of that same kind of work? What if it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy?
I’ve written before about the fact that your energy comes through to your readers via your writing. That readers pick up on your writing emotions, even if they can’t really identify why they feel a certain way. So, if you write about GI Joe and don’t like him (or what he stands for or how he directs kids’ play into war and fighting), the reader will get that – no matter how subliminally. And let’s just say it won’t be the best ad copy we’ve ever seen.
If you’re a great or solid writer, it’ll be fine. But, don’t you want more than that? Don’t you want to be inspired, fed by your work creatively, satisfied, feeling good, making a difference with your words?
I do.
Filed under Blogging, Critical Copywriting, How To, Marketing | Tags: blog, blog writing, blogger, Blogging, content, copywriting, freelance writer, how to write, Julie Roads, marketing content, marketing writer, problogger, professional blogger, web content, writing inspiration, Writing Roads | Comments (12)what is a copywriter?
As much as this freaks me out, it’s true. Some people don’t know what a copywriter is. Some people think I’m a ‘copyrighter’ – which I’m not. Not knowing what a copywriter is, means that they likely have no idea what it would be like to use one or how. So in this post, I’ll tell you what a copywriter is. Then, on Monday, I’ll tell you how to work with one. Sound good? Okay, here we go.
1. A copywriter, or ‘officially’ a freelance commercial copywriter, is someone who writes words, content, copy, text for companies, businesses, individuals.
2. Commercial copywriters, like myself, generally write content for marketing materials such as: websites, blogs, advertisements, brochures, sell sheets, annual reports, articles, sales letters, direct mail and the like.
3. Copywriters get paid for this work – some handsomely, some not so much – by the hour or by the project.
4. Some copywriters like to work collaboratively with designers, marketing directors, printers, etc. While others prefer to work alone.
5. A copywriter is different from a freelance journalist in that a freelance journalist writes for newspapers, magazines and web journals/zines while a copywriter writes content for see #2 above. The only similarities are that we both write, and we both wait around to be paid by busy people not thinking about us all day long like we think about them.
6. Copywriters are great tools for businesses because they lend a fresh perspective to your message and because dentists are good at teeth, realtors are good at real estate and writers are good at writing. It is always best to stick to your expertise and let the other experts take care of the other business.
7. Copywriters can focus on specific industries or work as generalists. Either way, a good copywriter should be able to change their writing style, tone, rhythm, personality to match their client’s message and identity. Acting provides a great example here: think of Dustin Hoffman in Tootsie, then think of Dustin Hoffman in Rainman. Capiche?
8. From what I hear, good copywriters (who do good work on time) are hard to find…the profession is not quite as popular as graphic design or web design – hence the raison d’etre for this article.
See you Monday…have a great weekend.
Filed under Critical Copywriting | Tags: blog, Blogging, brochure, content, copywriter, copywriting, Julie Roads, marketing collateral, marketing content, web content, website content, Writing Roads | Comment (0)
