MarketCopywriter Blog

Legendary Women Copywriters: What You Can Learn from Helen Lansdowne Resor

Lorraine Thompson — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 15:08:09 +0000

This is MarketCopywriter Blog’s second post in a series on Mad Women—pioneering women copywriters.

In an earlier post, you got a glimpse of America’s early advertising industry—and the opportunities and challenges it held for ambitious women.

Today you’ll meet one of advertising’s most successful professionals, Helen Lansdowne Resor. Her accomplishments in a newly forming industry—at a time when few women held positions of power—are impressive.

But Lansdowne’s achievements are more than colorful Madison Avenue history. If you’re like me, you’ll be surprised—and pleased—to find her consumer insights, unique copy style and risk-taking strategic skills as inspirational and useful today as when she developed them a century ago.

It all started with sex.

“A skin you love to touch.”

These days no one raises an eyebrow over hyper-sexualized advertising. So it’s hard to believe that such a tame tagline—the promise of alluring skin—raised a ruckus.

But it did. A hundred years ago the slogan, “A skin you love to touch,” sizzled and shocked: The very idea of positioning a product—and its female customer—as sensual was scandalous. Unheard of.

At least no one had heard of it until Helen Lansdowne Resor wrote the famous tagline for Woodbury Soap in 1911. Lansdowne, head copywriter at NYC’s J. Walter Thompson ad agency, had a prescient understanding of the day’s consumer—and of the social barriers crumbling around her.

And it turned out the copywriter also had a superb head for business: Over an eight year period, Lansdowne’s campaign increased Woodbury sales by 1,000 percent.

Mad Woman firsts

Lansdowne is widely credited with introducing sex into advertising. But that was only one of her firsts. She was also the first woman to plan and execute a national ad campaign. The first woman to present to the board of Proctor and Gamble. The first ad pro to popularize celebrity testimonials in advertising. And Lansdowne was the first industry leader to create agency initiatives supporting women, opening doors for a generation of Mad Women.

Acclaimed as the greatest copywriter of her day, Lansdowne partnered with her husband, Stanley Resor, to manage J. Walter Thompson. Together they turned JWT—once a media broker for religious publications—into the international advertising powerhouse it was, and is to this day.

And Lansdowne made her mark in an era when women had few professional opportunities or little legal representation: In 1911 it would be nine more years before women gained the right to vote.

How did she do it? How did she bend the period’s gender-bound rules and achieve so much—for herself, the ad industry and women?

For one thing, she started life with a powerful role model.

Lansdowne’s Mother Courage

In 1890, when Lansdowne was four, her mother divorced, moving Lansdowne and her eight siblings to Covington, Kentucky. The family struggled to make ends meet. Eventually Lansdowne’s mother found work as a librarian and sold insurance and real estate on the side to support her family.

Mrs. Lansdowne was determined that her daughters would grow up to be self-reliant and self-supporting. Lansdowne, the second oldest child, helped raise her younger siblings and graduated valedictorian of her high school class.

After a brief stint of clerical work at Cincinnati’s Proctor and Collierad agency, Lansdowne started writing retail copy for P&C. In 1906 she moved to another prominent advertising firm. But she was soon persuaded by Stanley Resor—then a salesman at Proctor and Collier—to return to P&C as a copywriter.

When Resor and his brother opened Cincinnati’s branch of J. Walter Thompson, they brought Lansdowne with them. Promoted three years later, Lansdowne followed the Resors to J. Walter Thompson’s New York headquarters.

JWT’s groundbreaking Women’s Editorial Department

In 1917, Lansdowne married Resor. The couple held progressive ideas about society and advertising. They frowned on agency star-systems and rigid hierarchies, preferring to make decisions by consensus.

Lansdowne and Resor were convinced that advertising’s success depended on women consumers. Reasoning that no one understood women better than women, the couple created a Women’s Editorial Department.

Lansdowne and Resor believed fervently in the redemptive power of education. When Lansdowne chose copywriters for JWT’s Women’s Editorial Department, she cherry-picked graduates from Columbia, The University of Chicago, Wellesley, Vassar, Barnard and other Seven Sister colleges. Many of the women were ardent suffragists and social activists.

Under Lansdowne’s leadership, the Women’s Editorial Department grew to exert huge creative influence and billing power. By 1918, the department was pulling in more than half of JWT’s billings.

J. Walter Thompson’s segregated workplace

The ad women’s road to success had bumps. In the eyes of men at JWT, women colleagues were professional oddities—they weren’t secretaries, but they also weren’t “ad men.” Agency policy segregated men’s and women’s workspaces and women weren’t allowed in the company dining room alongside men.

The inequity went all the way to the top: Despite Lansdowne’s achievements—she was JWT’s director in 1924 and served the agency until 1961 in similarly influential roles—she never held the title of vice-president.

Hall of Fame ad woman

In addition to Lansdowne’s spectacular success with Woodbury Soap, she also created enormously popular and lucrative campaigns for Crisco, Cutex, Yuban and Maxwell House Coffee. Lansdowne raised three children—son Stanley Rogers Resor served as US Secretary of State 1965-1971—and worked at JWT for 41 years. She died in 1964 and was posthumously inducted into the Advertising Hall of Fame in 1967.

5 copywriting takeaways from Helen Lansdowne Resor

Lansdowne’s creative output was legendary. “She had a dozen ideas to the minute,” noted JWT veteran copywriter Peggy King. Another JWT copywriter, Nancy Stephenson, recalled Lansdowne’s brilliant mind “that darted and dipped and swooped with terrifying speed and accuracy.”

Among Lansdowne’s darting, dipping and swooping insights that are as timely today as yesterday:

Know your product. To create a brand story, you need a deep, nuanced understanding of your product and your customers’ relationship to it. In 1910, demographic and social trends reshaped consumer demands. Among immigrants, there was tremendous angst over perceptions of cleanliness and dirtiness. Lansdowne helped consumers overcome anxieties by repositioning Woodbury as a skin-care product. Her campaigns were successful on two fronts: with middle class women attracted to the idea of luxury and self-care—and with aspirational customers eager to join America’s middle class.
Get inside your customer’s head. Today we see nothing revolutionary about “A skin you love to touch.” But Lansdowne’s ads subtly introduced a radical idea: feminine adventurousness and independence. Lansdowne’s ads were among the first to picture men and women together—powerfully illustrating a societal phenomenon of the day: the breakdown of segregated male and female social spheres. Lansdowne and Resor were deeply committed to consumer research. They sent JWT copywriters and illustrators into the field for hands-on experience selling door-to-door and behind store counters. All JWT creatives were expected to have a visceral feel for consumers’ needs, desires and pain points.
Hook readers with editorial content. Lansdowne ads are a lesson to today’s content marketers. She broke ground in use of editorial-style ads that imitated the graphic look, layout and copy of Curtis magazines—publishers of Ladies Home Journal and The Saturday Evening Post, journals in which her ads appeared. This signature, content-rich style avoided hard-sell tactics, instead painting aspirational mental pictures and providing content relevant to readers.
Make content useful. “Advertising, after all, is educational work, mass education,” noted Stanley Resor. Lansdowne surely agreed. She wrote content aimed to inspire and support her customers with practical information and tips they could put to immediate use. Lansdowne’s Woodbury copy simplifies the science of skin care. “As the old skin dies, new skin forms in its place. This is your opportunity. By using the proper treatment you can keep this new skin so active that it cannot help taking on the greater loveliness you have longed for.” Using a friendly, conversational voice, Lansdowne’s copy walks readers step-by-step through Woodbury skin care, explaining how to lather the soap “always with an upward and outward motion,” then rinse with warm and cold water.
Use beautiful images to tap emotions. Lansdowne understood the power of beautiful images to tap emotions and trigger the desire to emulate. She hired acclaimed artists such as painter Alonzo Kimball and photographer Edward Steichen to illustrate her ads. Her campaigns were always esthetically pleasing. Though packed with long copy, the ads also managed to be airy, uncluttered and inviting to the eye. After riveting readers with a gorgeous image into which they could project themselves, Lansdowne’s centered headline hooked their attention and pulled them into appealing body copy.

Is Helen Lansdowne Resor relevant today?

What do you think of Lansdowne’s life and work? Can you apply any of her 100-year old insights into your copywriting and marketing? Please respond in comments.

And learn more about this pioneering ad women with the following resources:

Lessons from Mad Women: What Golden Age Ad Women Can Teach You About Copywriting

Lorraine Thompson — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 20:29:07 +0000

Post #1 in a series of MarketCopywriter Blog posts on pioneering women copywriters.

“You always say, ‘If you don’t like what they’re saying about you, change the conversation.’” Peggy Olson, Mad Men

Mad Men, the AMC series about the 1960s ad industry, beamed into`American homes and hearts at exactly the right moment—just as our country roiled through the worst recession in history, massive unemployment, a divisive Middle Eastern war and threats of terrorism at home and abroad.

Never had Americans yearned so deeply for a golden past. Mad Men was the nostalgic scratch for this cultural itch.

But the show’s title is a misnomer. Because it wasn’t just men who built the US advertising industry. As Peggy Olson, Mad Men’s “girl copywriter,” proves, Madison Avenue owes a debt to its unsung women professionals. Peggy—and many more smart, ambitious “gals”—refused to accept the era’s status quo. Instead, they changed the (gender-bound) conversation.

A recently published—and highly recommended—book, Ad Women – How They Impact What We Need, Want and Buy by Jane Sivulka, sets the record straight.

With Ad Women, Sivulka fills us in on dozens of real-life Mad Women who influenced and engineered American advertising. We quickly learn that women have been major players in advertising since the industry’s birth in the 19th century.

Though invisible to the public—and to men with whom they worked—women played significant roles in all areas of the ad business, from account management to media brokering to art to copywriting.

Inspired by Ad Women, this post is the first in a series on pioneering advertising women. Today’s post sets the stage for Golden Era Mad Women, giving you background on the ad industry’s infancy.

You’ll learn about the huge opportunities open to American advertisers—men and women—over the industry’s first century. And you’ll discover the challenges women faced—and overcame—to grab those opportunities.

In future posts I’ll profile top Mad Women copywriters. Yes, their stories are fascinating—but I think you’ll find them more than historical footnotes. If you’re like me, you’ll find many of these women’s insights, innovations and ideas as useful to copywriters now as “back in the day.”

Want to learn more? Come journey back in time with me…

Stroll down Madison Avenue in 1870.

“How will you recompense me…?”

Fee negotiation is tough for anyone. Any time. It had to be a killer for Mathilde Weil, a new immigrant, fresh off the boat from Germany in 1870. But Weil was desperate. Soon after she arrived in America, her husband died, leaving her penniless.

The panicked young widow did translations and magazine writing before trying ad sales. Her first prospect—the owner of a toothpaste company—wouldn’t bite for Weil’s magazine. But he told her he’d buy space from another New York newspaper.

Knowing zilch about media buying, Weil pitched the newspaper’s powers-that-be. Somehow she brokered the deal—and the rest, as they say, is history: Weil went on to found MC Weil, one of New York’s first advertising agencies. She worked until her death in 1903 and left a considerable fortune behind.

Nineteenth century’s seat-of-the-pants ad industry

Our nation’s first ad agencies bore little resemblance to today’s media conglomerates or even to mid-century, sky-scraping shops like Mad Men‘s Sterling Cooper.

Nineteenth century ad professionals brokered media—and did little else. Agencies acted as middlemen between manufacturers eager to unload goods and publishers looking for extra revenue. No creative services were offered—and none needed: advertising was so basic that business owners put together ads themselves…

Post-Civil War boom years

But advertising services started to change after the Civil War when factories and businesses boomed. New fangled technologies, cutting-edge manufacturing and lightening-fast railroad transportation brought a flood of new products to eager customers.

As enterprises grew over the decades, ad agencies expanded to offer an array of account and creative services along with media sales.

Demand for these services, however, outstripped the supply of talented ad men available to agencies.

Women get a foot in the door at ad agencies

Reluctantly, ad agencies began accepting female workers. Women were ready, willing and able to do the work: Thanks to women’s suffrage, educational reform and the day’s enlightened social movements, a record number of women were finishing high school. And many were going on to college.

Women filled jobs in publishing and journalism—careers deemed appropriate for the gentle sex. Ad agencies poached these skilled workers, training women to adapt editorial skills in fashion, cooking, cosmetics, housewares and furniture for ad copywriting in the same niches.

By the turn of the century, women had quietly wedged their buttoned-up boots into the glass doors of Madison Avenue.

The business of femininity

Advertisers had long ago recognized a phenomenon: Women—not men—make most purchasing decisions. Housewives and mothers were responsible for the vast majority of clothing, beauty, household products and packaged goods sales. What they didn’t purchase directly—e.g., cars and real estate—women influenced through husbands, fathers, brothers and other male relatives.

Perceived to have unique insights into women’s hearts, minds and pocketbooks, women ad pros became indispensable.

“The service we offer is copy that is written from the women’s standpoint, by women, to women, that avoids a woman’s prejudice. Such copy is the best substitute for saleswomen,” noted MB Coffin of NYC’s Sherwood Advertising.

Working dames’ double standard

While the number of female office workers grew—from 10,000 in 1870 to 100,000 in 1900 to 200,000 in 1920—there was still a huge social stigma attached to middle class women who worked.

Ad women lacked leverage to challenge the status quo. Instead of busting biases, women copywriters created ads that reinforced gender stereotypes. So while Mad Women enjoyed the privilege of full-time careers, they wrote copy idealizing the “little woman” at home, extolling the virtues of housekeeping, child rearing, fashion and beauty.

Rosie the riveting ad writer

The Great Depression and World War II turned American life upside down. But the crises also provided incredible opportunities for working women. With men at war, all hands were needed on deck in factories and offices—and many of the hands were female.

Mad Women made advances in radio, the hot new medium, creating immensely popular soap operas with clever, tie-in advertising.

As the science of psychology gained acceptance, advertisers added persuasion techniques in messaging to create powerful new advertising tools. True to stereotype, ad executives saw women copywriters as uniquely suited to understand human dynamics, manipulate feelings and write emotional copy that targeted other women.

Advertising’s go-go Golden Era

After World War II, soldiers returned to families and workplaces. The country’s busy offices and humming factories were once more manned by men. Supported by the GI bill and a robust economy, the US middle class grew. Eager to forget the horrors of war, men and women focused on raising families, assimilating into the American mainstream and solidifying status through consumerism.

Along with America’s prosperous, popular culture, Madison Avenue burgeoned, expanding to cater to newly affluent consumers. As the industry consolidated, Mad Women played increasingly influential roles in advertising, creating some of the century’s most memorable—and lucrative—campaigns.

Want to meet real-life Mad Women?

Like to learn more about Mad Women copywriters? Come back for future MarketCopywriter Blog posts profiling:

Helen Landsdowne Resor, an acclaimed copywriter who introduced sex appeal into advertising—in the 1920s.

Erma Perham Proetz who pioneered an intriguing twist on content marketing using the red-hot new media of the day, radio.

Bernice Fitz-Gibbon, rock star of retail advertisers.

Shirley Polykoff, creator of Clairol’s “Does she . . . or doesn’t she?” campaign—an effort that increased Clairol sales by 413% over six years.

Mary Wells Lawrence, the chic and charismatic copywriter and creative director. Lawrence was the country’s highest paid ad executive in 1969—and founded the hugely successful NYC ad agency Wells Green.

Don’t miss a single Mad Women post

Subscribe to MarketCopywriter Blog today.

Peggy Olson photo courtesy of MyLifeInPlastic.com
Churchman photo courtesy of Wikimedia
Sanitol and Ivory photos courtesy of Duke University Libraries

Copywriting Challenge: I Dare You to Choose the Best Headline Out of 100+ Heads

Lorraine Thompson — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 15:40:58 +0000

What’s the most important piece of copy you write? It’s not your value proposition. It’s not your product benefits. It’s not even your call to action.

You know the answer. It’s your headline.

Customers read headlines five times as often as they read body copy.

An artfully crafted, keyword-rich headline delivers customers to your website. It pulls them into your content, draws them step-by-step into your lede, on to your body copy and finally to your call to action.

So if you want folks to read your post or buy your product, you’d better take pains to write a damn good headline.

Don’t worry. You’ll find plenty of help with the task. The web is jammed with how-tos, formulas and best practices that help you craft terrific, targeted headlines.

And there’s one more itty-bitty thing you can do.

Write 100 headlines. And choose just one.

Both ad and direct response copy managers agree on this piece of copywriting wisdom: you need to write a lot of heads before choosing one that’s perfect for your copy. How many? One prolific ad copywriter wrote 800 headlines; but typically we’re told to write 100 headlines for every one headline we need.

Do you really need to write that many—100 headlines?

I confess, I usually don’t. Generally I brainstorm between 5-15 headlines for a piece of copy. But for a three-post series I wrote last year, I actually did end up writing more than one hundred heads.

Lessons learned from writing 100 headlines

The exercise—the doing of it rather than thinking about doing it—taught me some important things.

Writing multiple heads unblocks your brain and gets your creative juices flowing. It gives you a chance to fail—an essential element of success. And after you pluck the single nugget of headline gold from dross, you wind up with a ton of additional headlines you can use as subheads. Or file away for other projects.

As important, you’ll also learn…

Formulas aren’t the solution. Even if you rely on swipe files and tried-and-true formulas (I know I do), headline drafting isn’t a mindless task. You can only fall back on formulas up to a point—rote methods best serve to jumpstart brainstorming.

Headlines need to do more than grab attention. We’re constantly told a headline serves one purpose: to suck readers into your lede sentence. But it needs to do more: Your headline must be congruent with your copy—with your brand story and your copy’s tone and voice. If you own a funeral parlor, for instance, you’re not going to want to use a head like, “Who else wants to save on mortuary services?”

Headlines need to deliver on promises. If your head makes a promise, you need to come through with the goods. E.g., unless you can follow through, you can’t tell readers they can….“Make $500 in five minutes—guaranteed!” Unfortunately, many headline templates include promises that are impossible for your product to fulfill.

100+ headlines. Which work best?

My 100+ headlines are listed below—and here are the three I chose for my post series. Take a look at my 100+ heads and tell me what you think. Did I select the best? Would you have chosen—or created—different and better headlines?

Here goes…

7 ways to use storytelling in your marketing copywriting?

What Every Copywriter Should Know About Storytelling

Tell Me a Story—and Improve Your Copywriting

Here’s A Storytelling Method That’s Helping Copywriters Create More Compelling Copy.

You Don’t Have to be Homer to Add Great Storytelling Elements to Your Copy.

You Don’t Have to be Virgil to Add Great Storytelling Elements to Your Copy.

You Don’t Have to be Steven King to Add Great Storytelling Elements to Your Copy.

You Don’t Have to be Zadie Smith to Add Great Storytelling Elements to Your Copy.

You Don’t Have to be David Foster Wallace to Add Great Storytelling Elements to Your Copy.

You Don’t Have to be Hemingway to Add Great Storytelling Elements to Your Copy.

You Don’t Have to be F. Scott Fitzgerald to Add Great Storytelling Elements to Your Copy.

You Don’t Have to be Shakespeare to Add Great Storytelling Elements to Your Copy.

You Don’t Have to be Chaucer to Add Great Storytelling Elements to Your Copy.

Unlock the Secrets of Storytelling to Power Your Copywriting.

Unlock the Secrets of Storytelling to Write Irresistibly Persuasive Copy.

Unlock the Secrets of Storytelling to Write More Gripping, Persuasive Copy.

Copywriters: Unlock the Secrets of Storytelling to Write More Gripping, Persuasive Copy.

Unlock the Secrets of Storytelling For More Gripping, Persuasive Copywriting.

Unlock the Secrets of Storytelling to Write More Captivating Copy.

Discover How Storytelling Can Power Your Copywriting.

Storytelling’s Power to Transform Your Copywriting Explained.

The Compelling Power of Storytelling to Improve Your Copywriting

Discover How Storytelling Helps You Write More Persuasive, Captivating Copy.

Discover the Power of Storytelling to Strengthen Your Copywriting.

Discover Storytelling’s Power to Wake Up Your Copywriting—and Your Customers.

Discover Storytelling’s Power to Galvanize Your Copywriting.

Discover How Storytelling Can Wake Up Your Copywriting.

Discover How Storytelling Helps You Write More Compelling Copy.

Finally: Storytelling’s Power to Transform Your Copywriting Revealed.

Storytelling’s Power to Transform Your Copywriting Revealed.

Finally: The Storytelling-Copywriting Connection Explained.

The Truth About Storytelling’s Power to Improve Your Copywriting.

The Truth About Storytelling’s Ability to Power Your Copywriting.

The Truth About Storytelling’s Potential to Power Your Copywriting.

Storytelling’s Proven Power to Enhance Your Copywriting.

Once Upon a Time Top Copywriters Used Storytelling to Write Irresistible Copy.

Once Upon a Time Top Copywriters Used Storytelling to Write Conversion-Driving Copy.

Once Upon a Time Top Copywriters Used Storytelling to Write Compelling Copy.

Once Upon a Time Top Copywriters Used Storytelling to Write Captivating Copy.

Once Upon a Time Top Copywriters Used Storytelling to Write Captivating, Compelling Copy.

Once Upon a Time Top Copywriters Used Storytelling to Write Engaging Copy.

Once Upon a Time Top Copywriters Used Storytelling to Write Fascinating Copy.

Once Upon a Time Top Copywriters Used Storytelling to Write Action-Driving Copy.

Once Upon a Time Top Copywriters Relied on Storytelling to Write Irresistible Copy.

Once Upon a Time Top Copywriters Relied on Storytelling to Write Conversion-Driving Copy.

Once Upon a Time Top Copywriters Relied on Storytelling to Write Compelling Copy.

Once Upon a Time Top Copywriters Relied on Storytelling to Write Captivating Copy.

Once Upon a Time Top Copywriters Relied on Storytelling to Write Captivating, Compelling Copy.

Once Upon a Time Top Copywriters Relied on Storytelling to Write Engaging Copy.

Once Upon a Time Top Copywriters Relied on Storytelling to Write Fascinating Copy.

Once Upon a Time Top Copywriters Relied on Storytelling to Write Action-Driving Copy.

Fact: Storytelling Can Dramatically Improve Your Copywriting.

Fact: Storytelling Elements Can Dramatically Improve Your Copywriting.

Fact: Storytelling Helps You Write Compelling, Conversion-Driving Copy.

What if You Could Improve Your Copywriting Using Storytelling?

What if You Could Improve Your Marketing Copywriting with Storytelling?

How to Instantly Improve Your Copywriting with Storytelling

The Beowulf Guide to Using Storytelling in Copywriting

Homer’s Guide to Using Storytelling in Your Copywriting

Homer’s Guide to Storytelling and Copywriting

The Homeric Guide to Storytelling and Copywriting

Virgil’s Guide to Storytelling and Copywriting

What King Arthur Can Teach You About Storytelling and Copywriting

What Virgil Can Teach You About Storytelling and Copywriting

What Homer Can Teach You About Storytelling and Copywriting

Discover 7 Ways Storytelling Helps You Write Irresistible Copy.

Discover 7 Ways Storytelling Helps You Write More Compelling Copy.

Discover 7 Ways Storytelling Helps You Write Fascinating, Compelling Copy.

Discover 7 Ways Storytelling Galvanizes Your Copywriting.

Discover 7 Ways Storytelling Wakes Up Your Copywriting.

Discover 7 Ways Storytelling Enhances Your Copywriting.

Discover 7 Ways Storytelling Magically Transforms Your Copywriting.

Discover 7 Ways Storytelling Enlivens Your Copywriting.

Discover 7 Ways Storytelling Powers More Compelling Copywriting.

Discover How 7 Storytelling Elements Can Dramatically Improve Your Copywriting.

Discover 7 Storytelling Secrets That Help You Write Irresistible Copy.

Discover 7 Ways Storytelling Helps You Write More Compelling Copy.

Discover 7 Storytelling Secrets That Wake Up Your Copywriting—and Your Customers.

Rediscover the Joy of Copywriting with These 7 Storytelling Elements.

7 Ways to Instantly Improve Your Copywriting Using Storytelling

7 Ways Storytelling Instantly Improves Your Copywriting

7 Storytelling Elements That Instantly Improve Your Copywriting

7 Ways to Use Storytelling to Instantly Improve Your Copywriting

7 Time-Tested Storytelling Elements That Instantly Improve Your Copywriting

7 Time-Tested Storytelling Elements That Improve Your Copywriting

7 Time-Tested Storytelling Elements That Instantly Galvanize Your Copywriting

7 Time-Tested Storytelling Elements That Instantly Strengthen Your Copywriting

7 Time-Tested Storytelling Elements That Instantly Enliven Your Copywriting

7 Simple Storytelling Elements That Wake Up Your Copywriting—and Your Customers

7 Proven Storytelling Secrets That Galvanize Your Copywriting

7 Storytelling Secrets Proven to Power Your Copywriting

7 Proven Storytelling Secrets That Wake Up Your Copywriting

7 Storytelling Secrets That Wake Up Your Copywriting

7 Storytelling Secrets Proven to Galvanize Your Copywriting

7 Proven Storytelling Elements That Galvanize Your Copywriting
7 Storytelling Elements Proven to Power Your Copywriting

7 Proven Storytelling Elements Wake Up Your Copywriting

7 Storytelling Elements That Wake Up Your Copywriting

7 Storytelling Elements Proven to Galvanize Your Copywriting

7 Storytelling Elements That Make Compelling Copywriting Fast and Easy

7 Story Telling Elements that Help you Write Better, More Compelling Copy

See How Easily You Can Add Compelling Storytelling Elements to Your Copy

See How Easy It Is To Add Compelling Storytelling Elements to Your Copy

And the winners are…

Here are the heads I chose for my three-post series on storytelling in copywriting:
Once Upon a Time Copywriters Used Storytelling to Write Irresistible Copy
7 Storytelling Secrets of Top Salespeople
Discover 7 Ways Storytelling Helps You Write Irresistible Copy

Now YOU choose.

Did I select the best headlines for the job? Please share your comments.

Want to Dramatically Improve Your Content? Copy Other Writers (Shamelessly).

Lorraine Thompson — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 13:54:39 +0000

Virgil copied Homer. Michaelangelo copied Donatello. Elvis copied Bo Didley.

Traditionally, artists learn by mimicking masters.

It follows then: If you want to be a better copywriter, copy great writers.

I’m not talking here about using swipe files or reworking hit headlines. I mean copying word-for-word.

Copy work—the practice of exactly copying another writer’s words—is an easy, almost effortless way to improve your own writing. Copying helps you think more clearly, write more precisely and produce fresher, more original words.

Don’t believe me?

The honorable tradition of copycat writing

In a digital era flooded with pixelated content, it’s easy to forget pedagogy that pre-dates the printing press. Before there were textbooks, copy work—along with an oral tradition and rote memorization—formed the foundation of a classical education.

Greek and Egyptian schoolboys copied their culture’s great works onto clay tablets.

Nineteenth century American children copied literature, poetry and lessons onto slates.

Hunter Thompson typed the entire text of Hemingway’s For Whom the Bell Tolls and Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby.

Today Buddhist monks still handwrite sutras.

A well-known copywriting course—the granddad of you-too-can-be-a-copywriter info products—requires students to exactly copy the world’s best-pulling sales letters.

Why? In an age that venerates individuality, why mimic others? What’s the benefit to being a copycat?

7 ways copy work helps your writing

First of all, let me make one thing clear: I’m not suggesting plagiary. You won’t publish your copied text or try to fob it off as your own. Copy work is for your eyes alone. It’s a writing exercise.

Copy work improves your writing by helping you…

Absorb structure and style of great works, soaking up the work subliminally.

Immerse yourself in different literary forms and styles by writing, not just reading.

Open a window into great writers’ minds. Copy work gives you insights into the writer’s intentions and choices. It makes you pause to ask why Fitzgerald imagined a stairway to the sky before the moment when Gatsby kisses Daisy. Or notice how Hemingway’s absence of words evokes more powerful emotion than lesser writers’ explanations and descriptions.

Identify bad writing habits—such as passive voice, weak verbs and stale metaphors—by absorbing great writers’ good habits.

Practice the mechanics of good punctuation and grammar, again, by writing instead of just reading.

Improve your spelling. My spelling has slid to hell on a sled over the last twenty years—concurrent with my use of Spell Check. Copy work lets my hand, eye and mind work together to re-learn how to spell.

Clarify your thinking. Precise writing is about precise thought. The slow, methodical work of copying allows your brain to slow down long enough to take stuff in.

How to get started with copy work

I recently copied, word-for-word, George Orwell’s Politics and the English Language. The exercise taught me a few things about copy work I hope will be helpful to you.

To make the most out of copying a great writer’s text:

Choose a writer you love or feel inspired by. I loved Orwell’s essay so much I wanted to memorize it. And after copying it for two weeks, I almost have…

Set aside time to do your copy work. I gave my copying half an hour a day—and used an hourglass to mark the time. As mentioned, it took me more than two weeks to copy Orwell’s essay. But then speed isn’t the point.

Handwrite the copy. Recent studies support what my kids’ Waldorf teachers have asserted for years: handwriting produces concrete cognitive benefits. I’m also a fan of cursive writing’s esthetic and sensual properties. Writing can, after all, be an art as well as a craft.

Use quality paper and pen. See esthetic notes above. I love the Lamy Safari fountain pen—it’s totally dependable and costs less than $25.

Select a reasonably-sized chunk of text. A friend of mine, a former staff writer for Conan O’Brien, once began copying John Kennedy Toole’s A Confederacy of Dunces. (How’s that going, Guy?) A little ambitious for me. On the other hand, you probably want to choose something longer than a haiku. Think about selecting a passage you can copy over a few days.

Don’t worry if your copy starts to sound like Nabokov. Or Tony Morrison. Or David Foster Wallace. Well, like maybe you kind of do want to worry if it, you know, like starts sounding like DFW. But don’t worry too much. You’ll shake off the mimicry quickly as the copy increases your consciousness of stylistic nuance.

Ready to be a copycat?

What do you think? Could copy work be a useful practice for you? Please share your thoughts in comments.

The John Turturro Guide to Star-Turn Copywriting

Lorraine Thompson — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 14:58:07 +0000

Whooosh! A red bowling ball hurls down a glossy wooden lane.

Crack! The ball smashes the pins in a perfect strike.

Flamenco music explodes and a man in a purple bowling unitard swivels his hips in a victory dance.

“F*cking Quintana,” drawls The Dude. “That creep can roll, man.”

It’s the opening shot of John Turturro’s scene as Jesus Quintana in The Big Lebowski.

Like a lot of Lebowski fans, I watch this scene repeatedly, sniggering again and again no matter how many times I see it.

But I’m not watching the movie just for fun. I’m working.

Method copywriting

See, I believe John Turturro—like all great artists—can teach me lessons about my work as a copywriter. What’s more, I think he can do the same for you.

In past posts, I’ve explained why I think actors and acting training can help you write stellar content—copy that’s more vivid, evocative and emotionally connected.

John Turturro gives you a master class—solid insights that inform and improve your copywriting. I’ll detail how and why in a moment, but first watch the clip.

7 ways John Turturro’s work can improve your copywriting

What does Turturro—playing a lowlife, local bowling champ and convicted pederast—teach you about copywriting? Tons. But 7 key lessons stand out for me.

Turturro’s work improves your writing by showing you…

“There are no small parts, only small actors.” (Konstantin Stanislavski) No matter how small your project or ordinary your client, you need to put 100% of your creative effort into your work. In The Big Lebowski, John Turturro has less than three minutes onscreen. But his turn is among the most memorable in a movie packed with scene-stealing performances. How does he pull it off? Turturro prepares as meticulously for the bit part as if it were the starring role. As a copywriter you need to commit totally to the work—whether you’re writing a 100-page website or a ten-word tagline.

Do your homework. Fine actors make performance look spontaneous and unrehearsed. But actors actually spend countless hours researching, ruminating and rehearsing before setting foot onstage or in front of a camera. In an interview at NYC’s New School, John Turturro explains how he prepared for the role of Jesus Quintana. Turturro learned to bowl, and noticing other bowlers polishing their balls—heh—made this action Jesus’ “psychological gesture.” His research also inspired Jesus’ hairnet, manicured pinkie nail and scores of other character-driven choices. Copywriters benefit from doing similar spadework for projects. Before I start writing, I ask at least 20 questions that will inform my work. Likely you’ve evolved your own process to help you dig deep and uncover details about your client, her product and customers. Don’t be a slacker like The Dude. Do the work.

Take risks. The purple unitard. The hairnet. The cocktail rings. The accent. The tongue flickering on the bowling ball. As Jesus, Turturro goes over the top—and way out on a limb. And while he pulls it off brilliantly, truth is, his performance might as easily have bombed. Turturro knows you have to take risks: Breakthroughs don’t occur when you play it safe. And how does artistic risk-taking apply to copywriters? In an era when robots write content, copywriters are under tremendous pressure to turn out more—not necessarily better—work, faster than ever. To meet deadlines and juggle multiple projects, most of us fall back on a handful of copywriting tricks and formulas. Well and good in a pinch. But when formulaic writing becomes habitual, it’s time to do some soul searching. Maybe you need a break, time to refresh yourself with nature, art, literature. Or maybe you want to cut back on projects and build in more downtime—hours to ruminate, free associate, daydream. Or take a writing class. Or set aside time for your own creative projects. Whatever helps you take creative risks with your work.

Listen. On first viewing, you might think Turturro performs a monologue—as if this character talks in a one-way flow. But watch closely and you’ll see Turturro listening: his lines are motivated by other characters’ words, expressions, actions and reactions. Like all great actors, Turturro knows listening is as important as speaking. Copywriters also benefit from listening and responding to—rather than talking “at”—customers. And you don’t need interactive media to make copy interactive. For starters, when you sit down to write, imagine you’re speaking to a real person. Some content marketers create full customer personas to help with this imaginative work. Imagine your customer is sitting close to you—on a café banquette or across a kitchen table. Now write your copy. When you’re done, read it aloud. Do your words sound sincere, personable and friendly? Is the copy responsive to your customer and her challenges and needs? Keep “listening” to her, and let her responses inform your copy.

Connect emotionally. Why do audiences sympathize with a flamboyant, foul-mouthed sex offender? What connects us to this lowlife? We’re drawn to Jesus because of the humanity Turturro pours into this outwardly repellant person. In acting school, our teachers taught us to “look for the love in the relationship”—the emotional need—in every scene. Turturro doesn’t even need words to convey Jesus’ inner life: watch the scene in which Jesus knocks on his neighbor’s doors, mandated by law to inform them of his sex-offender status. To connect with your readers, your copy needs the same kind of emotional intelligence and empathy.

Give your project the time it needs. Some plays and parts stretch actors and require major preparation. Others roles fit like a glove and require less time. In either case, good actors carve out time to prepare their work. In his New School interview, Turturro explains how the Coen brothers—the creative duo behind The Big Lebowski—planned the Jesus scene. They knew Turturro would “come up with stuff,” so they built in extra time to shoot the scene. Good copywriting needs the same respect for process. Whether you’re a fast or slow writer, realistically schedule the time you need for the project.

Work with like-minded people. To assure the above factors, you need to work with clients who share your work ethic and commitment to quality content. In the New School interview, Turturro explains why he likes working with the Coen brothers. “We have a nice relationship. That’s a good example of collaboration and good friendship…I’m very relaxed with them. I feel like, if I show them something they won’t say ‘no.’” Of course, as a freelance copywriter, you’re unlikely to feel “relaxed” with all your clients. But if you find yourself consistently feeling rushed, underappreciated and underpaid, you may want to think about cultivating new professional relationships. Instead of taking on yet another low-paying project, make time to meet and market yourself to new, more like-minded prospects.

Your turn

What do you say? Can you apply John Turturro’s art to your copywriting work? Please share in comments.

Photo of John Turturro courtesy of mretaoin

Copywriters: Discover the Secret to Writing Fresh, Original Copy Every Time

Lorraine Thompson — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 15:16:49 +0000

Copywriters rely on writing formulas. There I said it. And if you write professionally, you know it’s true.

When you draft deadline-driven copy day in day out, month after month, year after year, you develop an arsenal of copy tricks. A set of writing rituals, rules and shortcuts that help you write copy on target and on time.

Nothing wrong with it. Copywriting formulas are useful. Even necessary. Up to a point.

Relied on too heavily, however, the same formulas that save your copy can sink it. They turn your once-sparking prose into boring boilerplate.

Want to keep your copy clear, fresh, relevant and on-point every time? You can do it by asking two simple questions.

I’ll explain in a minute, but first let’s think about how you fell into formulaic writing in the first place.

The slippery slope of formulaic copy

If you’re like most copywriters, you follow successful writers and bloggers online, collect copywriting tips and keep swipe files.

So one day you’re trawling the post of a legendary copywriter, scanning his “copywriting gold” checklist. You stumble on an intriguing nugget: He advises you to use the word “discover” instead of “learn” in your copy. “Learn,” he explains, connotes effort and toil. “Discover” implies adventure and excitement.

Hmm. Wonder if it works, you think.

You swipe and file the tip away. Next time you sit down to brainstorm headlines, you use the word “discover.” Yep, it makes your headline zing. And amazingly when you run the copy, metrics back up the veteran copywriter’s claim: that single word change makes a measurable difference in response.

Wow. Of course you want to replay the metrical magic. So you use the formula again. And again. And again.

Copywriting autopilot

You stop thinking whether or not this formula supports your brand story. You stop thinking if it speaks relevantly to your customers. You stop thinking if you’re using the right measures—metrics that have an impact on business.

You stop thinking.

Free your mind.

Here’s the thing about copywriting formulas: They work well most of the time and they make writing easier and faster. But they have to be used judiciously. They’re no substitute for clear thinking: Good copywriting requires logic, clarity and discrimination—not just wizard wordsmithing.

The secret to keeping your copy fresh: ask two simple questions

You can avoid formulaic, hackneyed copy by asking two questions. I can’t claim credit for this anti-formulaic writing formula—it’s from William Zinsser, the revered writing teacher and author of On Writing Well.

After you’ve finished your copywriting research—learned all you can about your product, features, benefits, customers, and competitors—and as you mindmap or outline your copy, ask yourself…
What am I trying to say?

Don’t go on autopilot, or fall back on glibness or formulas. Think hard.

What are you trying to say about connecting to customers as real human beings? About delivering value that’s relevant to them? About making it easy for them to take action and connect back to you? About positioning your product as unique?

Now write.

Take a break, come back and read what you’ve written. And then ask, did I say what I was trying say?

With each element of your copy—headline, lede, body copy, call to action—did you say what you were trying to say?

Or instead, as Zinsser writes, “Are you hanging on to something useless just because you think it’s beautiful?”

Or falling back on copywriting tricks to fill the page?

If either, gently ask yourself again, what am I trying to say?

Rewrite, read, ask the same questions. Rinse and repeat until copy runs clear.

It’s not easy to kill your formulaic darlings.

Yeah, I know: It’s not easy. Even Zinsser will tell you, “Writing is hard work. A clear sentence is no accident…If you find that writing is hard, it’s because it is hard.”

When it gets easy we need to worry—and ask two questions.

2011’s Hundred Top Links, Posts and Articles for Marketing Copywriters

Lorraine Thompson — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 14:14:13 +0000

A new year gives you a golden opportunity to look backward in order to move forward with confidence.

Need a little with the backward glance? Take a look at 2011’s Hundred Top Links, Posts and Articles for Marketing Copywriters, below.

Selected from my Twitter stream, Google+ and RSS feeds, the list is cherry-picked for copywriters, content marketers and content strategists.

The roster includes stories, news, industry reports, videos, gossip, entertainment and more. These terrific posts and articles will help you think more clearly, write with greater impact and connect with today’s brightest copywriting and marketing minds.

To make scanning and reading of this looong, bookmarkable post easier, I organized links in the following categories:

Copywriting
Journalism and copy editing
Storytelling
Grammar and usage
Content marketing
Content strategy
Social media and blogging
SEO
Marketing
Productivity/self-help
Humor and entertainment

2011’s Hundred Top Links, Posts and Articles for Marketing Copywriters

Copywriting
1. How to Write Faster. Can you really speed the “cognitively intense task” of writing? This Slate post explores the latest research on writing speed.

2. Tech Marketers’ Surprising Content Priority for 2012: Collateral. Confirming my own anecdotal experience.

3. Sales-Letter Magic: 10 Tips for Writing Letters That Sell. Direct mail copywriter Dean Rieck details structure and substance of a successful sales letter.

4. Copywriting: Long Copy Vs. Short Copy Matrix. Bob Kemper, Director of Sciences, MECLABS, explains factors that help determine copy length effectiveness.

5. Talking About Great Copywriting Doesn’t Make You a Great Copywriter. Looking for a good copywriter? Pass on writers’ self-serving hyperbole and look for someone who writes “…insightful, intelligent and crystal clear copy.”

6. Copywriting is Dead—Long Live Copywriting! Even though advertising is increasingly visually focused, copywriting is, and will remain, very much alive, according to “account guy” Martin Murphy.

7. What Mark Rothko Can Teach You About Writing. According to Rothko, “Painting is really THINKING. Only 10% of it is applying paint to canvas.” The same principle applies to writing, notes Publication Coach, Daphne Grey-Grant.

8. Why Disconnectors in Copywriting are Critical in Keeping Your Reader Awake. Surprise your readers to hold their attention.

9. Cut the Jargon from Your Copy. Create a list of “plain English” experts—and ask for their help when copy starts reading like gibberish.

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Journalism and copy editing
10. Editing and Proofreading: Why You Need an Expert to Do It. Three convincing reasons why you should hire a pro editor and proofreader.

11. Sticky Fingers. Patti Smith recalls her childhood—and her desperate longing for a book that led her to act rashly. Beautifully written for The New Yorker.

12. Twelve Ways to End Your Article, Story, or Book Chapter. Crafting a memorable kicker—your story’s ending—is tough for even the most experienced writers. This post shares a dozen suggestions that get you moving in the right direction.

13. A Manifesto for the Simple Scribe – My 25 Commandments for Journalists by The Guardian’s science editor Tim Radford. Great advice for editors, copywriters and content marketers, as well.

14. 6 Tactics for Cutting Jargon From Quotes in Interviews. Ragan’s Russell Working tells you how to get the inside story straight from the horse’s mouth—and not from the other end.

15. The New York Times Word-Cleansing Copy Edits. In this hilarious post, author and editor Neil Strauss recalls The Times’ zealous copy edits of his work.

16. Inside Look at The New Yorker Copy Editing. Interview with Mary Norris.

17. 50 Iconic Writers Who were Repeatedly Rejected. More proof that failure is formative.

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Storytelling
18. The Art of Business Storytelling. This 4-post series explains why stories are important to business and delineates how to incorporate storytelling elements into your marketing.

19. Kurt Vonnegut’s 8 Simple Storytelling Rules. Not just for fiction writers.

20. 5 Rock-solid Suggestions to Identify Brilliant Brand Storytellers from Story Worldwide.

21. How Storytelling Can Spur Business Growth. Almost all businesses have stories to share, they just need to figure out ways to tell them. This MarketingProf’s post tells you how.

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Grammar and usage
22. 5 Frequently Misused Punctuation Marks—and 5 quick ways to correct the misuse.

23. Sometimes it Pays to be Passive. 3 great ways to use passive voice in your copy.

24. Common Errors in English Usage. Thousands of usage errors listed alphabetically in this searchable resource.

25. 5 Ways to Set Smothered Verbs Free. Want to clarify sentences, reduce passive construction and make your writing more understandable and engaging? Choose fewer and better verbs.

26. Lost in Translation? An 11-Step Checklist for Localizing Content. If you write for international clients, you owe it to them—and yourself—to check out this practical post by Sarah Mitchell.

27. Is This the Future of Punctuation!? The Wall Street Journal fills us in.

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Content Marketing
28. 2012 Content Marketing Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends. Loads of useful facts and figures in this study from MarketingProfs and Content Marketing Institute.

29. 5 Good Reasons to Include Hyperlinks in Your Content Marketing. Still worried that links take visitors away from your site? Get over it. Linked content builds credibility, increases page views, improves SEO and more.

30. 3 Ways to Use Google Plus In Your Content Marketing Efforts. Use the newest social network to stay on top of popular content, collaborate with your team and distribute content.

31. 7 Reasons Odd Numbers Can Power Up Your Headlines. You know odd numbers work better in heads. Here’s why.

32. 5 Tips to Improve Your Headline Click-through Rate. Data-backed insights on crafting successful headlines from Content Marketing Institute.

33. Grande Guide to Content Marketing from Joe Pulizzzi, C.C. Chapman and Ann Handley. This comprehensive Slideshare presentation explains content marketing whys and hows with overviews of content marketing platforms and best practices.

34. Content Marketing is a Wide Open Field for Smaller Agencies. Big agencies have been slow to embrace content marketing—leaving the field wide open for smaller players. Insightful AdAge post.

35. Quora for Content Marketing: Is it Worth Your Time? Does Quora help you get detailed answers to questions, keep you top-of-mind with industry leaders and help you establish professional credibility? Or is it just one more time suck? Business 2 Community answers these and other Quora-related questions.

36. Everything is a Remix. Content is not just text. This fascinating video explores historical reuse of creative content. Bonus points: My teen son’s film teacher contributed to the project.

37. Content Marketing is not Journalism. While content marketers use journalistic techniques, content marketing isn’t unbiased reportage. The world still needs fiercely independent journalists.

38. Google’s War on Nonsense. The New York Times’ Virginia Heffernan on content farms, 25-minute deadlines and content’s continued commoditization.

39. Content Curation is NOT a Strategy. Focus instead on creating original content that speaks to customers’ pain points, advises Joe Pulizzi.

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Content Strategy

40. Your Next Position: Content Strategist? Content Strategy is an attractive career option for copywriters, editors, freelance writers and other content specialists. This post delineates job features and prospects.

41. Do Organizations Need a Chief Content Officer? Okay, we know the answer, but here’s confirmation from Forbes.

42. The Lego Approach to Storytelling. Digital storytellers need content building blocks—and content management systems that support them—to create a variety of stories.

43. Content Strategy: Optimizing Your Efforts for Success. Your content needs to do more than entertain and engage. It must work strategically, aligning customer needs with business goals.

44. How Much Content is Published Everyday on the Web? An unimaginably large amount. This infographic by Contently helps you take in the facts and figures.

45. Aligning Content Strategy with the Sales Cycle. Content marketing is about customized, targeted content that meets customers’ needs at all points along the sales cycle.

46. 9 Types of Content Every Intranet Should Have. This Ragan post delineates the key Intranet content your company needs to carry out business tasks most effectively.

47. Web Content Strategy: Sites vs Apps. Website content must be readable. App content must be legible. Website content is usually read once. App content is read repeatedly. This important Contentini post compares and contrasts these and more website-versus-app content issues.

48. Templates for Content Cartography. Show these to your clients who want to “throw some web content up.”

49. Four Truths for Content Strategy. Razorfish’s Tosca Fasso shares takeaways from Confab 2011.

50. Four Ways Content Strategy Saves You Money. Dan Haley of Scripps Health and Erin Malone of RealAge tell us why healthcare content strategy saves you time and money.

51. Horizontal and Vertical Content Strategy. Busting content strategy out of its silos.

52. What’s Next for Content Strategy? Karen McGrane’s smart, funny keynote speech at CS Forum London.

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Social media and blogging
53. Fake It Till You Make It. Social Media helps you fake it better than anything else, says Mitch Joel. And if you have the skills, education and portfolio, there’s nothing wrong with faking it, asserts Joel.

54. The Art of Social Media Monitoring. Third in Sean Clark’s series of posts on “Practical Social Media.”

55. The Human Cost of Social Media. Insightful video interview with MIT’s Sherry Turkle.

56. Your Price is Too High Because the Value is Hidden. Tired of getting passed over because your pricing is higher than others’? Differentiate yourself using social networks to personalize your business and create an environment of trust.

57. Why I Don’t Like You. Dislike Facebook’s “Like” button? You’re not alone. Via Mitch Joel.

58. There’s Klout and Then There’s Clout. Real clout comes from relationships, not just RTs, Likes and Shares, notes Valeria Maltoni.

59. The Google Plus 50. Chris Brogan shares thoughts on G+, the newest online social community.

60. Draft and Burn. Don’t send that angry tweet, comment or update. Write a first draft. And wait.

61. The Dangers of Letting Your Online Persona Do the Talking. Think long and hard before pushing “publish.”

62. How to Keep from Quitting Your Blog. Practical tips from Nick Westergaard.

63. 11 Easy Ways to Write an Attention Grabbing Post. Running dry on blog post ideas—and who isn’t? Here’s help.

64. 40 Simple Writing Tweaks for Better Blog Posts. Great checklist.

65. Improve Your Blog. Stop Writing for an Audience! Not sure how to create blog content that targets your audience? Mark Schaefer’s advice: Stop focusing on an imaginary group and start writing about stuff that interests you. Instead of finding your audience, your audience may find you.

66. Blogging Can Make You a Better Person—when your posts use great, sourced data. Justin Kownacki shows you how to do it.

67. 25 Interesting Things You Can Tweet (Besides Blog Posts and Retweets). You know perfectly well you’re not supposed to tweet about you, you, you. Media Bistro provides 25 suggestions for tweeting helpful stuff for them, them, them.

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SEO
68. How to Talk to an SEO Copywriter. Get the best work from your SEO copywriter by giving her the resources she needs to make your site a success. Brass tacks post by Erika Napolitano.

69. 30 Things Google Dislikes About Your Website. Splash pages, keyword stuffing and excessive cross links are just a few. Learn more.

70. SEO Rapper. In this rap video, the Poetic Prophet (AKA The SEO Rapper) describes how web standards and proper design affect ranking and conversion on your site.

71. Google Doesn’t Laugh. Sorry, witty headlines and SEO don’t mix. Terrific post from The Atlantic.

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Marketing
72. Why Instagram Matters to Marketers. Instagram, the iPhone photo-sharing app, gives you instant content and trains you to look for stories everywhere.

73. You Don’t Need a Mobile Strategy. Mobile is a platform—a tactic, not a strategy. To make the most of the platform, you need a psychological understanding of the connected customer, says Gerry McGovern.

74. Cut the World Class, Cutting-edge Hospital Gobbledygook. David Meerman Scott tells you why healthcare marketers need to lay off the jargon.

75. What Aristotle Can Teach You About Persuasion. Terrific Marketing Smarts podcast on the practical applications of classical rhetoric.

76. Nobody Cares About Your New App. Lose the self-serving, organization-centric language and “[s]tart making your customers’ lives simpler, faster, cheaper,” advises Gerry McGovern.

77. 10 Reasons to Contact Donors Other Than to Ask for Money. Advice intended for NGO fundraisers, but useful for all marketers.

78. Stop Being So Effing Strategic. When does strategizing become procrastination? Sometimes you just have to execute already.

79. AdViews’ Vintage Television Ads. Duke University cataloged thousands of TV ads from the Mad Men era to the 1980s and made them accessible via this website.

80. What Physics Teaches About Marketing. Dan Cobley’s terrific TED talk.

81. Why Women Should be Your Target Audience. You know how copywriting experts tell you to “write to one person”—rather than a crowd? This post explains why you should make that person a woman.

82. In Digital Debate, We are Mistaking Tools for Strategies. A screwdriver doesn’t replace a hammer—and social won’t replace traditional marketing, notes Bart Cleveland in this AdAge post.

83. 10 Ways to Use QR Codes for Better Conversion Rates. Lots of practical suggestions from Unbounce.

84. Top 12 Overused Stock Photos. MarketingProfs helps you see the light about using generic, stock photos.

85. Can You Really Trust Infographics? Feeling meh about infographics? Wondering if the platform is more style than substance? You’re not alone.

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Productivity/self-help
86. Take Back Your Attention. The Internet: it helps you brainstorm, find facts and source information—and also distracts you in a thousand ways. Harvard Business Review’s Tony Schwartz offers 6 suggestions to help you reclaim your focus and attention.

87. 106 Excuses That Prevent You From Ever Becoming Great—and tips for getting past them—from Tommy Walker guest blogging for Chris Brogan.

88. Is Sitting a Lethal Activity? Alarming data from The New York Times Magazine on the dangers of sitting all day.

89. Keep Your Thumbs Still When I’m Talking to You. Mobile device crassness called out by The New York Times.

90. Want Inspiration? Stop Reading Blogs. To create better, more powerful, more persuasive content, get out of the blogospheric echo chamber and into the real world. Great post by Andrew Hanelly.

91. 10 Time-Savers That Aren’t Saving You Anything. Want to save time? Forget about hiring an intern, multitasking and using apps.

92. Don’t Just Do Something; Stand There. Purposelessness has a purpose: “We need space to brood and ruminate and mull. We need to slow down to get where we’re going,” writes LA Times’ Christian McEwen.

93. Want to Think More Creatively? Let Your Mind Wander. Wired Magazine explores the neuroscience of boredom.

94. Why We Have Too Few Women Leaders. In this TED talk, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg offers 3 powerful pieces of advice to women aiming for the C-suite.

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Humor and entertainment
95. 100 Quotes Every Geek Should Know. “Spock. This child is about to wipe out every living thing on Earth. Now, what do you suggest we do….spank it?” — Dr. McCoy, Star Trek: The Motion Picture. And 99 more funny, geeky quotes.

96. Coffee Snobs. You’d better not order a caramel macchiato from these inked, coffee purists. A Funny or Die video.

97. Sh*t Girls Say. Even if Graydon Shepherd—in drag—said nothing, this video would be funny. But he says plenty. And it’s all vapid and hilarious.

98. Hardly Working/ Start-Up Guys. The best web strategy is one you don’t understand. College Humor’s hyped digital media gurus share a number of “dagital” solutions with “absolutely no brand cuffs.”

99. Arty Bollocks Generator. Need a pretentious bio or About page? Check out the Arty Bollocks Generator. Sample: “My work explores the relationship between postmodern discourse and urban spaces…”

100. Pit Bull and Kitten. Scary pit bull and tiny fragile kitten fight, play and learn to live in love and harmony. Get hankie before viewing.

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Help improve 2011’s Hundred Best Links, Posts and Articles for Marketing Copywriters

My list of top links, posts and articles is admittedly one-sided. Please round out and improve it: Add your favorites in the comments.

And have a happy, healthy and productive new year!

Punctuation photo courtesy of Horia Varlan
Blogging photo courtesy of Antigone78
Clown photo courtesy of edenpictures

MarketCopywriter Blog’s Huge Holiday Playlist

Lorraine Thompson — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 15:12:31 +0000

Very likely you have favorite carols or holiday music that holds special meaning for you.

Me too.

But unfortunately, much of my favorite music is on scratched discs, tangled tapes and old vinyl…

One of my parents' circa 1960 vinyl holiday LPs

That’s why I’m so enamored of Spotify. This streaming music service makes it easy to create playlists of old holiday favorites—and add almost unlimited new selections as well.

Spotify also lets you listen to songs on desktop or smart phone. And sharing music with Spotify is a breeze.

Take a look at my Huge Holiday Playlist, below. It includes over 200 tracks from Handel to Bobby Helms, Ella Fitzgerald to Elvis. Give it a listen on Spotify.

Not yet a Spotify member? Not to worry. I have a number of free Spotify memberships to give away. Just email me and I’ll send you one.

MarketCopywriter Blog’s Huge Holiday Playlist

My holiday playlist includes:

Traditional Choral Christmas Carols
Traditional Christmas Lullabies
Swing and Rock ‘n Roll Christmas Music
Christmas Orchestral and Oratorial Music
Popular Chanukah Music
Classic Chanukah Music
A New Year Song
12th Night Songs and Wassails

Christmas Music

Traditional Choral Christmas Carols Playlist
Lo, How a Rose; Westminster Choir
Good King Wenceslas; Westminster Choir
The Holly and the Ivy; Westminster Choir
Hark the Harold Angel Sings; Westminster Choir
O Little Town of Bethlehem; Westminster Choir
O Come Emmanuel; Westminster Choir
It Came Upon a Midnight Clear; Westminster Choir
God Rest You Merry Gentlemen; Westminster Choir
In the Bleak Midwinter; Musica Sacra
The Friendly Beasts; Christmas Revels
Lullay My Liking; Christ Church Cathedral Choir
Carol of the Bells; John Williams
The First Nowell; Kings College Choir
Once in Royal David’s City; Kings College Choir
O Come All Ye Faithful; Kings College Choir
While Shepherd’s Watched; Kings College Choir
Angels From the Realms of Glory; Kings College Choir
Adam Lay Ybounden; Kings College Choir
Quem Pastores Laudevere; Kings College Choir
A Spotless Rose; Kings College Choir
Personent Hodie; Kings College Choir
In Dulci Jubilo; Kings College Choir
I Saw Three Ships; Kings College Choir
Away in a Manger; Kings College Choir
All My Heart This Night Rejoices; Kings College Choir
Ding Dong! Merrily on High; Stephen Cleobury
Riu,Riu, Chiu; Stephen Cleobury
The Lamb; Stephen Cleobury
Joy to the World! Stephen Cleobury
A Great and Mighty Wonder; Stephen Cleobury
Silent Night; Westminster Choir

Traditional Christmas Lullabies Playlist
What Child Is This; John Denver
Lullay My Liking; Kerfuffle
Mary Had A Baby; Odetta
Coventry Carol; Westminster Choir

Swing and Rock ‘n Roll Christmas Music Playlist
White Christmas; Bing Crosby
Winter Wonderland; Tony Bennett
Santa Claus Is Comin’ To Town; Frank Sinatra
Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Frank Sinatra
Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas; Ella Fitzgerald
Frosty the Snow Man; Ella Fitzgerald
Sleigh Ride; Ella Fitzgerald
Jingle Bells; Ella Fitzgerald
The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas To You); Nat King Cole
Silver Bells; Johnny Mathis
The Little Drummer Boy; Johnny Mathis
It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas; Johnny Mathis
A Marshmallow World; Johnny Mathis
It’s The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year; Johnny Mathis
Silver Bells; John Denver
Santa Baby; Eartha Kitt
Jingle Bell Rock; Bobby Helms
Boogie Woogie Santa Claus; Patti Page
Little Saint Nick; The Beach Boys
I’ll Be Home For Christmas; Elvis Presley
Here Comes Santa Claus; Elvis Presley
Blue Christmas; Elvis Presley
Santa Claus Is BackIn Town; Elvis Presley
Silver Bells; Elvis Presley

Christmas Orchestral and Oratorial Music Playlist
Handel: Messiah; The Academy of St. Martin in the Fields
Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker; San Francisco Ballet Orchestra

Chanukah Music Playlist

Popular Chanukah Music
Oh Chanukah, Oh Chanukah; Neal Katz
Happy Joyous Hanuka; The Klezmatics
Spin Dreydl Spin; The Klezmatics
Honeyky Hanuka; The Klezmatics
Ale Brider; The Klezmatics
Latke Flip-Flip; The Klezmatics

Classic Chanukah Music
Handel: Judas Maccabaeus; The Vienna Academy Chorus

New Year Song

Auld Lang Syne; Dougie MacLean

12th Night Songs and Wassails Playlist

We Three Kings; Westminster Choir
Gower Wassail; Steeleye Span
Apple Tree Wassail; Song Jon Boden
Cornish Wassail Song; Jon Boden
Sugar Wassail; The Devil’s Interval
The Wassail Song; Westminster Choir
Can Wassel (Wassail Song); Andrew Lawrence-King
Apple Tree Wassail; Shira Kammen
Malpas Wassail Song; The Watersons

Copywriters Gift Guide: 10 Great Holiday Presents for Writers

Lorraine Thompson — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 14:07:23 +0000

Feeling a little panicked about last-minute holiday shopping? If your list includes a copywriter—or journalist, content marketer or creative writer—you can relax a little.

The Copywriters Gift Guide below includes thoughtful presents—many available online—sure to please your writer friend and send her happily into the New Year.

Copywriters Gift Guide: 10 great gifts for writers

1. Spotify. Music helps many writers focus and work more productively. Even writers who require utter silence appreciate music before and after work. You can open a huge, new musical world to your writer friend with Spotify, a digital streaming music service. Spotify gives Premium members access to millions of high fidelity songs. The service streams music on both mobile devices and desktop computers.

Spotify price: $9.99 a month.
Where to buy: Visit Spotify.com

2. Standing Desk. Fact: Writers face serious work-related health problems associated with sitting at their desks. Medical research continues to reveal the dangers of sitting for long periods of time: weight gain, high blood pressure and greater chance of suffering heart attack and death. The writer in your life will enjoy a happier, healthier new year with the gift of a standing desk. These tall worktables or extensions come in a variety of styles and price ranges. Browse around and you’ll find one that’s just right for your writer friend.

Standing desk prices: Prices range from under $20 for DIY desk extensions to over $1,500 for luxe Da Vinci antique reproductions.
Where to buy: Check out my standing desk suggestions.

3. Running shoes or cross trainers. While working at a standing desk provides multiple health benefits, it has a downside: aching feet. Writers need to wear comfortable, properly fitted shoes. Running or cross training shoes provide excellent support and do double duty for writers who run or, like me, ~~shuffle~~ jog for exercise. Tip: Don’t buy shoes online. Your friend needs to try on her running shoes, hopefully with the help of a knowledgeable salesperson. Your best bet is a gift card.

Running shoes prices: $40-$150
Where to buy: A dedicated running shoe or sporting goods store nearby. Google “buy running shoes” and the name of your writer friend’s town.

4. Reflexology. Whether they stand or sit at a desks to work, writers will appreciate the relief and relaxation of reflexology—massage of the foot, touching on pressure points that align with various zones of the body. Reflexologists claim the practice provides an array of holistic health benefits. It also feels A-mazing. Tip: Look for trained and experienced reflexologist certified by The American Reflexology Certification Board.

Reflexology prices: $50-$100 for a 45 minute to one hour session.
Where to find: Ask your chiropractor, call a local day spa or search the website of the Reflexology Association of America to find a trained reflexologist near you.

5. Vintage typewriter. Even in the digital age, the typewriter remains an iconic symbol of the writing life. Cool mid-century typewriters add panache to the writer’s office—the machine at left belongs to Yours Truly. You’ll be surprised at the number of pro writers who still use typewriters—one defends them as “America’s salvation…”. Typewriters serve a number of practical purposes: Your writer friend can use a typewriter to fill in forms and address envelopes, write more slowly and thoughtfully and give her pixel-assaulted eyes a break. Practical note: Older typewriters may need new ribbons—most last a very long time and can be used over and over.

Typewriter prices: $10-$100 dollars; typewriter ribbons $5-$25
Where to buy: You can pick up manual or streamlined mid-century electric typewriters for a song at garage and attic sales or on Craigslist, eBay or Etsy. Typewriter ribbons are available on Amazon.

6. Typewriter temporary tattoo. Not loving the vintage typewriter gift idea? You can still give a writer the symbolic associations of a typewriter with a typewriter tattoo. Or if you find an inked typewriter a little de trop, try temp tattoo typography. I confess I’d love to find the Deming typeface tattoos tucked into my Christmas stocking—I’m already brainstorming ways to use them in MarketCopywriter marketing.

Temp tattoo prices: $5-$60
Where to buy: Tattly Designy Temporary Tattoos

7. Apps for Instagram. Instagram is a free iPhone application that lets users edit, filter and share photographs. The app is a boon to writers: It provides a break from word wrangling, lets writers cultivate their inner visual artist and helps them connect online more meaningfully. And now Instagram is even easier and more fun to use, thanks to a number of related Instagram apps. My fellow copywriter—and expert Instagrammer—@Anglo, suggests the following apps: Camera+, especially for its “Clarity” and “So Emo” filters; Dynamic Light—@Anglo likes the “dreamy soft focus” of this app’s Orton filter as well as its HDR filters; ColorSplash for its ability to add color pops to black and white photos; and Qbro, an app that runs your photo through 25 different filters.

Instagram-related app prices: Qbro costs $1.99. All other apps are $0.99
Where to buy: Click here for buying information on Camera +, Dynamic Light, Colorsplash and Qbro.

8. Manicure. I know what your thinking. Why is a manicure a great gift for a writer? Couple of reasons. Think about it: Your writer friend’s hands take a beating clacking away at a keyboard all day. Those distressed digits could use a little pampering. And a manicure forces writers—notoriously reclusive animals—to pry themselves away from their laptops and enjoy a change of scenery. Even if it’s the inside of a nail salon. Yes, you can confidently give this gift to your Y-chromosomed writer pal as well: Men appreciate a half hour of relaxation and well-groomed, buffed nails. Chanel Vamp nail polish optional.

Manicure prices: $15-$25 dollars, depending on location.
Where to buy: Google “nail salon” and the name of your writer friend’s town.

9. Booze. It’s no secret that writers like a nip now and then. Ernest Hemingway produced some of his best work while hammered. And even in the post-Mad Men era, some copywriters enjoy a brandy while writing and feel it makes the words flow more freely. Whether the writer on your holiday list enjoys a tipple during or after work, she’ll appreciate a bottle of liquor. Champagne and prosecco are always festive. Or try a specialty liquor such as Lillet, Pimms No 1 or calvados.

Liquor prices: $10-$40
Where to buy: Your local liquor store.

10. Writing class, retreat or conference. Yes, it’s a splurge, but education is likely the most memorable and useful gift you can give the writer you love. In addition to teaching her new skills, a training event gives her a chance to network, connect with colleagues and maybe even meet a famous writer or content marketing rock star. Note to St. Nick: Attendance at Confab 2012 would be my dream gift—and it takes up no room in your sleigh!

Conference prices: $100-???? Depending on the conference price tag as well as travel and accommodation costs, a conference can easily run into thousands of dollars.
Where to buy: You’ll find comprehensive information on creative writing workshops at ShawGuides’ Guide to Writers Conferences & Workshops. For business and tech writers, copywriters and other corporate content creators, check out Content Marketing World 2012 and Shelly Bowen’s list of content strategy conferences.

Need more gift ideas for writers?

If none of the above gifts appeal to you, why not take a look at…

MarketCopywriter Blog’s 2010′s 12 Great Holiday Gifts For Copywriters
MarketCopywriter Blog’s 2009 10 Best Holiday Gifts for Writers

Share your holiday gift ideas for writers

What’s your dream gift for the writer in your life—or yourself? Please share ideas.

Manicure photo courtesy of Sarah Sphar
Standing desk photo courtesy of Eric Mallinson
Running shoes photo courtesy of Juanpol
Reflexology photo courtesy of mindgutter
Liquor bottles photo courtesy of Dinner Series
Conference photo courtesy of admanramblings

How to Use Metaphors to Mine Content Marketing Gold

Lorraine Thompson — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 19:00:16 +0000

A hot guy. A viral video. A resurrected brand. Aside from describing last year’s Old Spice campaign, what do these phrases have in common? They all use metaphorical language to convey an idea.

The Greek word metaphorá means “to transfer” or “carry.” “Metaphor,” wrote Aristotle, “consists in giving the thing a name that belongs to something else.”

Philosophers, poets and storytellers have long used metaphor to provoke thought and express seemingly inexpressible concepts. But metaphorical language isn’t limited to art and academics.

As a content marketer you can use metaphor to breath color and life into your copywriting. Metaphors help you hook prospects, hold attention, angle your offer, spotlight product benefits and win customers’ hearts and minds.

Metaphors: more than pretty words

Anyone whose work involves influencing minds—teachers, trainers, managers as well as salespeople and copywriters—benefits from using metaphors.

Metaphors help you:

Create connections. Metaphorical language transmits not just the name, but also the properties of one thing to something else. Take the phrase hot guy. Your customer reads the word hot and imagines flames, smoke, glowing embers. Subconsciously she intertwines these images with the the word guy. Hot delivers far more palpable impact than pallid adjectives like handsome or sexy.

Bypass critical thinking and analysis. Metaphors speak to your customer’s right hemisphere—the brain’s processing center for images, color, symbols, impressions and emotions—and bypass the left hemisphere’s focus on logic, numbers, sequences and analysis.

Simplify complexity. What’s easier to say and understand? “The Dow seesawed” or “The Dow moved up and down sharply between gains and losses”? Other metaphors you may take for granted: your computer’s desktop, DNA fingerprints, the economic meltdown.

Paint pictures in listeners’ minds. People think in images—not words—and remember what they see better than what they hear.

Evoke emotion. Metaphors transfer culturally shared emotional experiences. The word stormy conjures black clouds, torrential rain and cracks of lightening. A stormy marriage conveys more emotional impact than a troubled or contentious marriage.

Influence and persuade. With emotions stirred and mind excited, you’ll find prospects far more receptive to your product than if you’d presented it in plain and purely analytical terms.

But metaphors don’t appeal merely as clever turns of phrase. Humans, it seems, are hardwired to respond to metaphors.

Your customer’s brain on metaphors

At Harvard Business School Professor Jerry Zaltman studies consumers’ deepest feelings. His research helps marketers uncover word associations and create metaphors that bolster brands.

Zaltman’s studies differ significantly from conventional market research with its heavy reliance on language: word-centric surveys, questionnaires and focus groups. While Zaltman sees some value in verbal inquiry, he likens this superficial approach to “strip mining.” He notes that “Sometimes the valuable ore is on the surface. But often it’s not.” To strike gold, you need to dig deeper. Zaltman uses neurobiology, psychoanalysis, linguistics and art theory to probe consumers’ subconscious mental processes.

Motorola used Zaltman’s findings to brand a new security system. Slated to go to market as the “Talkatron,” Motorola renamed the product the “Watchdog” in response to customers’ word associations.

How to power your content marketing with metaphor

You’ll find dozens of ways to use metaphorical language in your content and campaigns. Metaphors add magnetic power to headlines and subheads. They help you brainstorm unique—and sticky—presentations and strategic plans. They integrate and unify an array of diverse content tools.

12 tips that help you mine metaphorical gold

But all metaphors are not created equal. It’s important to choose the right figurative words to embody a brand, position a product or simplify a complex service offering. Here are some pointers:

Keep it simple—a metaphor that involves long-winded explanations defeats its purpose.

Separate metaphorical gold from dross. Try to avoid clichéd metaphors. Your customer ignores these hackneyed, worn-out phrases.

Spotlight your customer—rather than you and your product—as you brainstorm metaphors. Anne Miller, author of Metaphorically Selling, suggests you identify your customer’s point of resistance and create a metaphor to address it.

Take a break and stop thinking so hard. Metaphor inspiration often comes during “down time” when you’re not trying so doggedly to reason, list and deduct. To give your workaholic left-brain a break, visit a museum or art gallery. Take a walk. Do some manual work—cooking, needlework, gardening—that doesn’t require thought.

Lose the words when you brainstorm. As a creative exercise, try making visual art—use a white board, paper and pencil, paint, collage—to capture impressions of your product/service and your customer’s relationship to them.

Cherry-pick action-packed metaphors—words that sear into your customer’s mind, tickle her imagination, weave active, evocative language.

Don’t promise the moon. As exciting as it may be to claim your product will skyrocket sales, it’s always better to under promise and over deliver. Use metaphors that emotionally resonate with customers, rather than puff up your product.

Mine the classics. You’ll find some of the most memorable metaphors in myths and fairy tales—before the Recession, Alan Greenspan declared the U.S. “blessed with a Goldilocks economy: not too hot, not too cold – just about right.” Shakespeare is also packed with figurative language—“The sales letter is full of sound and fury—but signifies nothing.” Or try the Bible: “Our company is David to Microsoft’s Goliath.”

Borrow from popular culture. Your Superman CEO, treating cash flow like Monopoly money, a Justin Bieber-like Twitter following.

Nix mixed metaphors. You’ll confuse—rather than engage—customers if you ask them to “wake up and smell the coffee to drive traffic like a bat out of hell.”

Kill your darlings. It’s not about using metaphors that appeal to you, it’s about finding metaphors that speak to your customers—and get results. Run metaphors by a friend or colleague or consider A/B tests for important campaigns.

Collect metaphors for a rainy day. When you hear or read metaphors you like, copy and file them away. Later, when you need metaphorical language for your copy or inspiration for strategic planning, you can refer back to your metaphor cheat sheet.

The painter Magritte noted that, “Everything we see hides something else we want to see.” As a content marketer, find the “something else” through metaphor.

More metaphor resources

Want to learn more about using metaphor in your content marketing? Check out some of these great resources:

Metaphor Marketing, a must-read Fast Company interview with Jerry Zaltman.

Writing About Metaphors in Your Discipline, excellent scholarly articles from George Mason University

Metaphorically Speaking, a TED talk by James Geary

Metaphorically Selling, How to Use the Magic of Metaphor to Sell, Persuade & Explain Anything to Anyone, a book by Anne Miller

MarketCopywriter Blog

Legendary Women Copywriters: What You Can Learn from Helen Lansdowne Resor

It all started with sex.

Mad Woman firsts

Lansdowne’s Mother Courage

JWT’s groundbreaking Women’s Editorial Department

J. Walter Thompson’s segregated workplace

Hall of Fame ad woman

5 copywriting takeaways from Helen Lansdowne Resor

Is Helen Lansdowne Resor relevant today?

Lessons from Mad Women: What Golden Age Ad Women Can Teach You About Copywriting

Stroll down Madison Avenue in 1870.

Nineteenth century’s seat-of-the-pants ad industry

Post-Civil War boom years

Women get a foot in the door at ad agencies

The business of femininity

Working dames’ double standard

Rosie the riveting ad writer

Advertising’s go-go Golden Era

Want to meet real-life Mad Women?

Don’t miss a single Mad Women post

Copywriting Challenge: I Dare You to Choose the Best Headline Out of 100+ Heads

Write 100 headlines. And choose just one.

Lessons learned from writing 100 headlines

100+ headlines. Which work best?

And the winners are…

Now YOU choose.

Want to Dramatically Improve Your Content? Copy Other Writers (Shamelessly).

The honorable tradition of copycat writing

7 ways copy work helps your writing

How to get started with copy work

Ready to be a copycat?

The John Turturro Guide to Star-Turn Copywriting

Method copywriting

7 ways John Turturro’s work can improve your copywriting

Your turn

Copywriters: Discover the Secret to Writing Fresh, Original Copy Every Time

The slippery slope of formulaic copy

Copywriting autopilot

Free your mind.

The secret to keeping your copy fresh: ask two simple questions

It’s not easy to kill your formulaic darlings.

2011’s Hundred Top Links, Posts and Articles for Marketing Copywriters

2011’s Hundred Top Links, Posts and Articles for Marketing Copywriters

Help improve 2011’s Hundred Best Links, Posts and Articles for Marketing Copywriters

MarketCopywriter Blog’s Huge Holiday Playlist

MarketCopywriter Blog’s Huge Holiday Playlist

Christmas Music

Chanukah Music Playlist

New Year Song

12th Night Songs and Wassails Playlist

Copywriters Gift Guide: 10 Great Holiday Presents for Writers

Copywriters Gift Guide: 10 great gifts for writers

Need more gift ideas for writers?

Share your holiday gift ideas for writers

How to Use Metaphors to Mine Content Marketing Gold

Metaphors: more than pretty words

Your customer’s brain on metaphors

How to power your content marketing with metaphor

12 tips that help you mine metaphorical gold

More metaphor resources

**Share your holiday gift ideas for writers**