Copywriting brief – here is a checklist

By Nigel TempleNo Comments
If you want to improve the quality of your 'marketing words', a  written copywriting brief will clarify your thinking. It will help you to produce better results – whether you are doing the writing or whether someone else is. Within the brief: *  State your objectives clearly. *  What business challenge will the writing solve? *  What are we selling? *  What does the product / service do? *  What is the identity of the product / service? *  How does it work? *  Key features? *  What are the benefits? (Create a Benefits List). *  How is our product / service better than the competition? *  What market segment are we communicating with? *  Describe a typical member of the market segment. *  What needs do they have (which we can help them with)? *  What are our key messages – for this segment? *  What else can we talk about? *  What proof can we offer? (Testimonials; research; statistics; surveys). *  How will we include our contact details? *   What sort of call to action will...
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Using stories in marketing

By Nigel TempleNo Comments
People love stories - are you using them in your marketing? Story telling makes it much easier to remember information. Think of the stories you heard as a child: can you remember any of them now? Here are some ideas for you. Tell the business founder's story (adversity overcome). Tell stories about the brand (creative thinking personified). Write customer case studies (problem - search for a solution - finding your product / service - benefits derived - what has changed - next steps). Run a story ideas brainstorming session. Write story ideas up on a whiteboard. Ask customers for their stories. Bring your stories to life with a storyline, characterisation, dialogue and images. By the way, if you read quality fiction, the way the author uses these devices will jump out of the page at you (which reminds me, are you reading any good books at the moment?) I trained for three years as a professional copywriter. We were living in Bromley, in...
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Content marketing and search engine rankings

By Nigel TempleNo Comments
In a digital economy, much of what you know can probably be found for free on the internet. On this basis, you may as well share a reasonable proportion of your knowledge on the web. Google will love you and so will prospective customers. For many years, it has been said that 'content is king'. This is now more true than ever - due to changes in search engine algorithms.  Content marketing and search engine rankings walk hand in hand. Therefore, the more you write, the more you sell....
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The marketing commitments – a 7 point checklist

By Nigel TempleNo Comments
It order to attract new customers, you are going to have to either spend money or time, or a combination of both. When I ask my seminar audiences to choose, they overwhelmingly opt for spending their time. So the question is: where should you spend your time, when it comes to marketing your small business? Here is 'The marketing commitments' a 7 point checklist, which may help you to decide: 1. Start with your marketing plan   Otherwise you are shooting in the dark. If you don't have one, spend half a day (i.e. a Saturday morning) writing one. Refer to your marketing plan once a week, preferably on a Friday for 20 minutes - so that you can plan activities for the following week. (See Navigator membership of The Marketing Compass). 2. Spend at least half an hour every morning writing   Believe me, if you do this, you will get better and faster. I recommend that you write a blog every day * gasp...
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How to write for the web

By Nigel Temple1 Comment
Writing for the web is part art and part science. 'Art' includes the ability to make your words flow and to make them sufficiently compelling to keep the readers' attention. 'Science' refers to your ability to get the reader to follow the journey from awareness through to purchase (or a key action, such as a request for a meeting). It is widely accepted that website visitors scan web pages. As they typically see many website pages in a day, they are hunting for useful, relevant content. They do this by scanning 'signposts' on the page, including headlines and subheads. I have taught internet marketing since 2000. During my seminars, presentations and consultancy sessions I am often surprised at how confusing web pages can be. With regards to the text on the page - start by getting the headline right. Write effective headlines The headline = the signpost for your page content (or newsletter story, blog entry etc). It is critical that it is...
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How to get more response and sales leads using the AIDCA copywriting model

By Nigel Temple4 Comments
Here is a marketing tip, which you can use online and in published materials. The AIDCA copywriting model is an effective way of generating more response. I have used this technique for 25 years and I have generated response rates of up to 38%. AIDCA represents the process that the buyer goes through, on their journey from being aware of a marketing proposition, until they make a buying decision. 1. Headline or opening line: Attention 2. Product description: Interest 3. The offer / proposition: Desire 4. Guarantee / reassurance: Conviction 5. Call to action: Action Did you know that in advertising, nearly six times as many people read the headline as the body copy of an advertisement? An effective headline should telegraph your message into the reader' mind. It will entice them to read the rest of your copy. In his book 'Confessions of an Advertising Man', advertising guru David Ogilvy said: "The headline is the most important element...it is the telegram which decides whether...
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How to make blogs easier to read

By Nigel TempleNo Comments
We're going to discuss how to make your blogs easier to read. If I had to choose one piece of advice, it would be to decrease the length of your sentences. We recently built a website for Ringrose & Co (they offer advice to companies in financial difficulties). www.ringroseandco.co.uk I was talking to their MD, Mark Smillie and we were discussing blogging. Here is the feedback I gave him, regarding a draft blog entry he wrote. Here are his draft words (IP = Insolvency Practitioner): oooooOOOOOooooo Our perspective is different to the IP who must give fair and impartial advice to all concerned with the Limited Company, we will give best advice to the client, who can benefit from over twenty years’ of experience in this area. oooooOOOOOooooo I suggested that Mark cut the sentence lengths down. This is the quickest way of increasing 'readability'. So the above could become: Our perspective is different to the IP. They must give fair and impartial advice to all concerned with...
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Write some marketing copy every day

By Nigel TempleNo Comments
Here's a tip: don't start your day by checking your emails. Write some marketing copy every day instead. Within The Marketing Compass, some of our members love to write, whilst others find it a challenge. Both groups are busy! It is all too easy to let the writing slip. Remember that 'content is king' for your website. Regular blogs will attract Google, whilst Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter, amongst others, require a regular supply of words. When it comes to writing, 'little and often' beats 'big and infrequent'. In January 2011, I started writing The Marketing Compass Manual. This has been a busy year, however, I have managed to write over 48,000 words using this principle. Feedback, anyone? By the way, 'copy' = 'marketing words', as in 'advertising copy' or 'web copy (i.e. website words). I trained as a copywriter from 1983 - 1986 and I spent three years writing advertisements, brochures, leaflets, press releases, case studies and technical articles. I used to sit...
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Can you write your way to riches?

By Nigel Temple2 Comments
Do you love to write or would you rather pay a visit to the dentist? You probably didn't launch your business because of your love of writing, did you? Can you write your way to riches? Writing is a central part of marketing. With the arrival of websites, e-newsletters, blogs, online PR and social networking, the requirement to write regularly (and well) has never been stronger. Is it all worth it, I hear you ask. Well, for a start, writing makes you think. If you write about your products / services, your customers and your business, new ideas will come to you. These ideas may be real money spinners. Capture them in lists and start to write business / marketing plans for the best ideas. Write early in the morning, before you open your emails, use the phone or go into your first meeting. Alternatively, the evening may suit you better - it really doesn't matter as long as you write something every day. With...
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10 rules of copywriting

10 rules of copywriting

By Ben Temple2 Comments
Here is a definition for you: 'Copy' = the words that marketing people write. Copy is used in advertisements, websites, newsletters, leaflets and direct mailshots (as well as many other places). 1. For each copywriting exercise, decide what your objectives are. 2. Think about the market segments you are addressing and their needs. Do you have a deep understanding of their situation and what they want? 3. Write in the language of benefits. Focus on what your service / product delivers - not just what it does ('features'). 4. Use a structured approach to your writing, such as AIDCA. 5. Use short words, short sentences and short paragraphs. Writing short sentences is the quickest way to improve your copywriting. 6. Learn how to use the English language fluently. (Or, to put it another way, you must grapple with the finer points of punctuation and grammar. If this doesn't appeal to you - find someone who can edit your copy). 7. Write the copy first and then write the headline. The headline is critical. After all, if the reader doesn't connect with the headline, they won't...
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