Tips for Creating a More Effective Onesheet

If you've used print marketing to promote your business, you're probably familiar with the term "onesheet" (or "one sheet," one-sheet" et cetera). This simple document serves as an all-purpose leave-behind for those client meetings, networking events, and other situations in which you want to stay top of mind long after the encounter has come and gone. But you can't just hand out any old thing with your name on it and expect the calls to roll in. Like any other marketing piece, a onesheet needs to have all the essential elements in all the right places to make an impact and attract customers. So let's look at some smart tips for making your onesheet as effective as possible.

Envision Your Audience.

This rule applies to all kinds of marketing content, including onesheets. Before you write a word of content, ask yourself who you're writing that content for -- and get as specific about it as possible. Does your target market mainly consist of tired homemakers? Harried executives? New parents looking out for their kids' long-term health or finances? Try to imagine that person as vividly as you can, and then write directly to that imaginary person. You may asking, "But what if I have several different types of clients?" The answer: Create a different onesheet for each of those target audiences!

Match the Design to the Brand.

When I write onesheets for my clients, I'm working in tandem with a graphic designer -- either someone the client has already engaged, or one of my own "regulars." In many cases, the graphic designers will want me to create the text first so they can draw visual inspiration from it. But these experts also receive their design cues from your existing brand elements. Send samples of your company colors, fonts, and other key features to the designer early in the process. Make sure you have (or can construct) a high-definition image of your company logo to ensure crisp, detailed, clean-looking results.

Include Striking, Relevant Images.

Pictures always make a big, colorful, eye-catching splash as part of any good onesheet design. Yes, you can get away with stock photos of smiling people in suits shaking hands or whatever -- but honestly, everyone has seen that kind of stuff a zillion times, to the point that it doesn't make as much impact as you might think. Get a professional photographer to take pictures of your team members, workplace, equipment, and other images under optimal lighting and with optimal gear. If you typically display vivid yet simple charts or other graphics when you make pitches to prospective clients, your designer might be able to make use of those, too.

Use Each Side for a Different Message.

Of course, you can create a single-sided onesheet instead of a double-sided one. But it's not the smartest investment, in my opinion. For one thing, when you only use one side of the sheet, you're going to a lot of effort to create half a document -- when you could double the amount of information the onesheet communicates at relatively little additional cost. Even worse, the minute somebody accidentally turns that sheet upside down on a table or desk, it becomes nothing but a blank sheet of paper. So I recommend organizing your information so that each side of the sheet conveys its own important message. For example, the top side might lay out your basic sales pitch, while the reverse side might introduce you and your key team members.

Flow Toward a Call to Action.

Just as the graphic designer creates a format that leads the reader's eye in a precise pattern down the page of a onesheet, so must your written content flow toward a call to action. Both sides of your onesheet should end with a final encouragement to contact your company for more information or to make a purchase. (Some onesheets even include a tear-away coupon or other special offer for this very purpose.) It's usually smart to place your contact information in this same part of the page so your excited reader doesn't cool off while searching the document for it. You always want to make that response as easy as possible.

Follow these tips, and you'll be well on your way toward producing a powerful onesheet. Or if you'd rather just leave it all to the specialists, here's one more tip: Contact me. Not only do I have decades of experience writing onesheet content, but I can also bring top-quality graphic design talent onboard as needed. We'll provide you with a leave-behind that won't get left behind!

Creating a Onesheet? Read This First

If you want a great promotional "leave-behind" for those sales calls, networking meetings, and promotional events, then you want a onesheet. Even if you've never created one for yourself before, you've probably seen plenty of them in your everyday business dealings. These handy one-page print pieces (also referred to as one sheets, one-sheets or one-pagers) can market both yourself and your brand at a glance by showing off your company colors and logo, talking about how people benefit from what you do, and including a bio spotlight for yourself or any member of your team. 

But just as a professional-quality onesheet makes the impression you want to make, a sub-par onesheet can shoot you in the foot -- especially if it gets passed around from one cringing viewer to the next. Yes, there is such a thing as bad publicity! So, how do you produce the kind of onesheet that grabs attention and gets results? First, take heed of these important tips.

Decide on the Scope of Your Onesheet

A onesheet can vary widely in the scope of its messaging. You might want a comprehensive document that devotes one side of the page to your brand's UVP and includes a detailed professional biography or "About Me" statement on the reverse side. This kind of onesheet makes a useful all-round introduction piece. Or you might only need to promote one specific product, service, or event, in which case you can probably get away with a single-sided sheet. I generally recommend the double-sided approach wherever it makes sense, if only because once that sheet gets placed face-down, it just looks like a blank piece of paper not worth flipping over. Oops! But whichever format you choose, don't try to shove a manifesto down your audience's throat. A successfully-written onesheet includes enough empty space to maximize readability and give the images a chance to shine.

Make It All Flow

An experienced graphic designer can create an intuitive visual architecture for your onesheet -- one that leads the eye naturally from one key point or element to the next. But at the same, time you need to make sure your written content does the same. The most natural progression of ideas in most marketing pieces involves three sections: (1) a pain or empathy statement that expresses your target audience's need, (2) a solution statement where you describe how you can help, and (3) a call to action that urges the reader to respond. On the bio side of your onesheet, you might start with an arresting introductory statement and then backtrack to give a brief history of your work. Along the way, sprinkle in your motivations for doing what you do. Finally, invite your reader to connect with you and learn more.

Go Out Strong

With any luck, your onesheet's beautiful design and compelling content have hooked your audience from the top left of Side 1 to the bottom right of Side 2. At this point, the worst mistake you can make is to go out with a whimper instead of a bang. Always add a call to action, whether you want the reader to contact you, place an order, visit your website or whatever. Include your contact information in the footer on both sides, just in case your readers either forget to flip the page or feel ready to act after reading only Side 1. Better yet, use your onesheet as a giant coupon delivery device. Build a barcode or tear-away section that the reader can use to redeem some extra perk or discount.

If you want a onesheet that will deliver your message and sell your products or services, you may want to leave both the content writing and the graphic design to the professionals instead of laboring over them yourself. I've written content for countless onesheets over the years, and I can hook you up with a brilliant graphic designer if you don't have one already. Contact me to learn more and get started!

What Is Your Business Doing This Summer -- and How Are You Marketing It?

Officially, we greet the first day of summer on June 21st, although here in Texas the summer heat arrives long before summer itself. We've already seen Cinco de Mayo come and go, and Memorial day will be here soon enough. When you're already out in the sun grilling and partying, you're pretty much doing summer, right? And we'll get a glut of other bg events coming up. There's Mother's Day, Memorial Day (if we're letting May sneak into the summer schedule), Flag day, Father's Day, Juneteenth day,  Independence Day, Labor Day....even such "niche" holidays as National Hot Dog Day, National Mountain Climbing Day, and National Watermelon Day. 

What summer holidays pertain to your business, what are you doing to draw customers on those days, and what marketing measures have you taken to let us know? Here are some ways to get your target audience's attention.

Festive videos - TV commercials have traditionally advertised summer sales and events, but they generally require elaborate planning, production, and editing. If you want to show the world what you're up to this summer, you'll find it quicker, cheaper, and easier to hit YouTube and other video channels with short, exciting, funny, compelling clips. You might already have some footage left over from previous summer promotions that you can cobble together in support of a high-energy scripted voiceover. You can also run some sort of video submission contest related to your upcoming summer spectacular, with creative fans sending in their own video essays or examples of fun in the sun. A lucky winner gets a prize -- and you get free promotional content!

Article-based promotions - Do you send out periodic email blasts and/or newsletters? Do you keep your business top of mind on the internet through regular blog posts? Now's the perfect time to plant announcements about your huge summer sale, fundraiser, or public gathering in the form of short but sweet articles. The articles can focus on the promotion itself, or they can be skilfully written to incorporate that information as tidbits within larger topics. If you blog frequently, you can touch on the subject multiple times without necessarily jamming the promotion down your target market's throat -- especially if the larger subject of the article deals with some other issue that naturally segues into your exciting news.

Direct mail - Don't let today's digital world cause you to ignore good old direct mail. There are always some folks who will respond better to a tangible ad, coupon, or announcement in their mailbox. The right combination of high-voltage written content, vivid graphics, and an offer they can't refuse will help ensure a big turnout or big sales figures. Better yet, targeted distribution techniques such as EDDM (Every Door Direct Mail) can help you send exactly the right pieces to exactly the right neighborhoods.

I've only scratched the surface of the many ways you can market your summer activities. There's still time to get the word out, of course, but your window of opportunity is narrowing. If you need help creating the right marketing content to make your summer sizzle, contact me and let's turn up the heat!

Written Content and Visual Design: 2 Peas in Your Marketing Pod

 When the word "marketing" enters your head, do you think of arresting visuals, or do you imagine compelling statements that demand an audiences' attention and inspire further interest in your products or services? Most likely, you envision both of these elements working together -- which is just as it should be. The written content and visual design elements that express your brand image and marketing message must mesh in a concerted effort to make your business shine. So let's look at how to get the best possible use out of these two peas in your marketing pod.

First, let's establish what we mean when we talk about visual design. In this case, I refer to two primary skill sets: graphic design and web design. Graphic design traditionally includes all the static visual elements of your marketing "look," from your company's logo and color scheme to the way images lead the eye through a brochure, sales sheet, PowerPoint presentation, or trade show display area. Web design creates and positions these visual elements in a dynamic online format, with bits and pieces that may change according to what kind of screen the viewer encounters them on (a technique called responsive web design) or as you add continuous updates to your portfolio, services, or biographical data. 

Web design and graphic design may differ somewhat in their requirements. For instance, certain fonts and color arrangements that work like gangbusters on a website may not look good on a print piece, and vice versa. Ideally, you want to create a design language that will work equally well for both offline and offline media.

Where does content writing enter the picture, so to speak? Well, it may come at the beginning, or it may show up later in the process. Of course your designers will want to have the basic look of your brand firmly in hand right from the beginning, while your web team will probably have some clear ideas about the basic formatting and layout decisions for your website. But the content-first approach often makes good sense for print marketing pieces. I've worked with graphic designers who used my content as a creative springboard to generate visual ideas for a onesheet, brochure, or direct marketing postcard. In some cases, a web designer may also make layout decisions based, at least in part, on what the written content seems to call for.

Ideally, your copywriter and your visual design team try to complement each other as seamlessly as possible (under the direction of a marketing director or coordinator who keeps everyone moving in the same direction). When I'm writing for a project that will include visual design, I talk to the designer about the overall concept and try to leave plenty of room for visual elements in my work. If the designer has trouble fitting my content into the design, I may need to trim it down. If I present an idea that lends itself to a particular image, the designer may want to fit such an image above, below, or alongside it. The main thing is that we're aligned as a creative unit to produce a final result that sells.

As an experienced freelance copywriter, I maintain relationships with many graphic designers and web designers. If you need both written marketing content and marketing design skills, contact me today and I'll hook you up with both!

Is Your Marketing Campaign Stuck on "Groundhog Day?"

Did you hear the exciting news a couple of weeks back? The world's most famous groundhog, Punxsutawney Phil, did not see his shadow when he emerged from his den this past February 2nd. According to legend, this means that we can expect an early spring instead of six more weeks of winter. The question is: Are you ready to move forward with your own marketing initiatives, or are you still hiding in your den?

Apart from old Phil himself, Groundhog Day is perhaps most fondly associated with the movie of the same name starring Bill Murray. Ever feel like you're repeating the same situation over and over again? If so, then you'll sympathize with Bill Murray's character in the movie Groundhog Day, even if you don't like him much.

Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow...

That's TV weatherman Phil Connor's problem -- he's just not a likable guy. He's an arrogant grump who resents his assignment to cover celebrity groundhog Punxsutawney Phil's prediction for the season. The only way his February 2nd could get any worse would be if it happened again. And then it happens again, and again, and again. He keeps having the same conversations with the same people until he's ready to kill himself. 

But then he realizes that this bizarre Groundhog Day has its upside, because he has an opportunity to become a better person -- the kind of man his beautiful news producer Rita would find ideal. He spends February 2nd after February 2nd learning to speak French, create ice sculptures, play the piano and get to know the people around him. By the time the calendar finally does start moving forward again, he's a new and better person.

One Bite at a Time

If you feel paralyzed in your attempts to grow and market your business, maybe it's because you're trying to master everything at once. A full-scale marketing campaign, for instance, can be an intimidating thing to envision, build, launch and manage. And I don't now about you, but when I see an insurmountable hurdle dead ahead, I stop in my tracks and think twice before surmounting it.

At times like these it may help to take a page from Phil Connor's playbook. How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time, goes the old joke. Director Harold Ramis stated that Collins relives at least 30 or 40 years of Groundhog Days to master all the new skills he displays. You can become effective at marketing your business in far less time than that, and you can do it incrementally.

Get the website done. Get your print marketing looking sharp. Learn how to use social media and sharpen your networking skills. If you screw something up, you can always fix it. But unless you do something every day to build your marketing knowledge and skills, your business will remain frozen in place, experiencing the same results over and over again. Phil Connor broke out of that loop -- and so can you.

Take full advantage of the early spring. Contact me, and let's get to work on a fresh new approach to your marketing content!

Fit to Print: The Art of Print Marketing Content

I devote a lot of electronic ink to the online copywriting experience, but rest assured that print marketing is not dead. I field plenty of requests to write content for trifold brochures, onesheets, flyers, direct mail, newsletters, door hangers -- if it involves applying ink to processed tree pulp, I've probably written for it. And just as effective web writing has its own set of rules, you can apply certain techniques and ways of thinking toward improving your print marketing content. Here are some things to keep in mind the next time you're faced with the proverbial blank page.

Thinking Collaboratively - The most effective print marketing pieces rely on an equal creative partnership between the copywriter and the graphic designer. Some items will naturally begin life as an arresting image, while others will take their cue from a grabby opening statement or final tag line. I've gotten writing ideas a designer's initial sketches, just as designers have built their visual approaches around my first drafts. Ideally, both of these individuals are working together from the beginning to create a piece that works on both levels to create an integrated expression of your message.

Painting a Picture - When you're writing for a brochure, onesheet or other print marketing piece, you find out in a big hurry that less is indeed more in the wonderful world of marketing copy. You've got to keep in mind that big chunks of the final product will be filled up with photos, charts, logos and other illustrations. Your writing must not only make make room for these aspects of design; it must acknowledge and enhance them. The last thing a mailer or other space-challenged piece needs is a wall of text in a microscopic font. Think about those TV ads that have the big mess of fine print shoved into the bottom of the screen. Ever wonder what all that stuff says? Me neither.

Breaking It Down - No matter how much or how little text your print marketing piece can accommodate, solid blocks of it create unnecessary eyestrain (and brain strain) for the reader, especially in today's "absorb it a glance or toss it" world. If the copy lends itself to subdivision, break it down into bulleted lists, statements or short paragraphs. This practice not only helps readers zoom in on the information that rocks their world the hardest, but it also adds visual variety to the layout and gives the graphic designer more options for positioning the text in clever ways.

Keep in mind that different print marketing formats will call for a different mix of information and "sizzle." While a brochure can offer a leisurely guided tour toward a final call to action, a mailer may have to nail the reader from the outset with an arresting image and/or phrase. Whatever your needs, an experienced marketing copywriter, preferably one who is used to working with graphic designers, can help you choose those words as wisely as possible. If if you feel you could use that kind of expertise -- well, you know what to do!

Hiring a Copywriter: What Are Your Options?

So you need to hire a copywriter to bolster your blog, whip your website into shape or perfect your print marketing. Let's assume your business actually has a marketing budget, and that you actually have allocated some funding toward this solution. The next question is: How will your hire your copywriter? You can engage this essential marketing content creation specialist under whatever kind of working arrangement both of you find workable. Let's take a look at some common copywriter hiring options.

Per Project

I've almost always offered this setup. Most of the people who have contacted my for writing work express relief over the fact that they know exactly what they're getting a for a flat fee. It's just like making a purchase at a shop: Product X costs Y dollars, and that's that. Companies with skimpy marketing budgets can't commit to a vague estimate, so knowing exactly what they're getting for their money allows them to breathe easier. It's also a recommended method when you're hiring a writer for the first time. Is he a fast writer, or is he a pokey one? Are his estimates accurate, or will you receive an ugly surprise at the end of the job? flat per-project rates eliminate that uncertainty. They also eliminate some uncertainty on the writer's part -- if I know what I'll be earning on this project, I can plug that number into my earnings without having to adjust it (possibly to my regret) later.

Hourly

Some projects and working arrangements can benefit from hiring a writer by the hour. If your writer has a track record of accurate estimates, or if he's willing to eat the extra hours on an underestimated job, then the client has nothing to lose. Large or ongoing writing needs are particularly suitable for hourly billing

Retainer

A monthly retainer is a type of contract that "retains" your copywriter of choice for a specified amount of work or number of hours. For instance, you might retain my services for $600 a month. That $600 could buy you X number of writing hours, or it could pre-pay for X number of blog articles or web pages or whatever. Retainer contracts make sense if your business needs a steady stream of writing work and you don't feel like bouncing from writer to writer to get it. They're also handy if you're trying to reduce your administrative paperwork, because you're processing one invoice a month instead of a new invoice for every single project. Marketing firms and web development companies can really benefit from putting writers on retainer.

Permanent Hire

If you're a big marketing or advertising agency, it may be worth the investment of time, money and energy to hire one or more copywriters as full-time permanent staff. Or maybe not. The business world has moved away from the massive, megalithic corporate model of the past. "Nimble" is the new normal as businesses rely increasingly on outsourcing to minimize their payroll, overhead and HR headaches. Many companies, even the ones with a bottomless need for written content, find that a reliable bullpen of contractors can get the job done just fine.

Which option is right for you? I can't answer that question without learning more about your business, your marketing efforts and your writing needs. But if you'd like to talk about it, you know where to find me!

The Goldilocks Question: Too Much Content, Too Little, or Just Right?

The tale of Goldilocks and the Three Bears has endured in various forms since the 1830s. It's pervaded popular culture to the extent that astronomers talk about "Goldilocks planets," planets that are neither too close nor too far from their sun to support life. (They're not too hot; they're not too cold -- they're just right.) When you're creating marketing content for your business, you may find yourself wondering where that Goldilocks zone lies for your purposes. What counts as too many words, or too few, or just the right number for the particular marketing channel you're working on? It's a question worth asking, so let's look at some answers.

Web Page Content

While the maximum word count on an effective web page can vary widely, there's little doubt over the minimum. Google has made it known that it considers 250 to 300 words the least you want to put on each page. Why? It's an SEO thing. There has to be enough written content for the search engine's bots to crawl and index the page properly. The content should contain an even, sensible, relevant scattering of keywords that you want Google (and its users) to associate with your business.

Beyond that minimum word count, the general rule is to include as much information as you need to convert the visitor -- and not a word more. The more complex or pricey your product or service, the more verbiage you'll probably need to apply toward persuading your prospective buyer. But keep in mind that people have better things to do than read long, densely-packed web pages. Give them the least they need to know to get excited enough to take action.

Article Content

How many words should your article contain? That depends on what sort of article it is. Many of my clients are happy with 300-word blog posts which deliver concise, digestible, entertaining content to their clientele. For press releases, I generally get requests for about 450 to 500 words. (Remember, space is limited in printed news formats.) Feature articles can run longer, but you have to know in advance what word count your intended publisher wants from you. On the other end of the scale, a detailed report or white paper may run thousands of words, not including the list of sources.

Print Marketing Content

Print pieces can be some of the most challenging things to write simply because you have so little free space. These pieces tend to be dominated by their visual elements, and rightly so. It's your job to find just the right words, and as few of them as possible so you don't overcrowd the design. Don't fall into the trap of writing substantial content for the small panels of a typical trifold brochure -- unless you're ready to shrink the text down to an unreadable size.

Direct mail pieces can be among the most challenging of all. You only have space for a few words, so make them count. Focus on grabby headlines and a few high-level points that maximize the excitement factor while conveying only the most critical information.

The most important step in creating any kind of marketing content is making sure that it delivers the necessarily results, whatever word count that may entail. If you need compelling writing that falls comfortably into the Goldilocks zone, contact me so I can help you get those words just right!

Writing Marketing Content for Different Generations

Who do you want to convince and persuade through your marketing content? Your target audience may fall into a particular industry, skill set, activity or need -- but it may also correspond to a particular generation. The American experience has varied greatly from one generation to the next, with each generation molded by its own cultural biases and social circumstances. This means that you may need to tailor your marketing message and writing style to make its maximum impact on a specific age demographic. Even if your target market spans multiple generations, you need to know how to aim the right content at each of them. Let's take a look at how you might write market content for each of the following recognized generations.

Traditionalists

Traditionalists, members of the age group born before world War II, are sometimes called "Silents" because they did their jobs silently and uncomplainingly. Loyalty, commitment, honesty, and consistency mean a great deal to Traditionalists. Growing up in the Depression taught them the value of a dollar, so they'll hold onto their money unless they have a really sound reason to do otherwise. If you aim your products and services at retirees, chances are that you're addressing many Traditionalists. While these folks do make use of online platforms, they're also very open to more traditional marketing channels such as direct mail and flyers.

Baby Boomers

Baby Boomers are the Traditionalists' children, representing the postwar population boom that gave us the first generation of TV-watching kids. As you might expect, television (and its advertising) still makes an impact on this generation. Baby Boomers grew up experiencing a unique combination of cultural stability and political instability -- Howdy Doody and Father Knows Best vs. the Cold War and "duck and cover" nuclear drills. Many of them turned on social norms when they became young adults in the 1960s, developing a degree of skepticism that compels them to try before they buy. These prospective customers must be won over with free offers, money-back guarantees, and loyalty programs. The majority of them use both the Internet and some form of social media, but their social media use is more about personal connections than shopping or professional gain.

Generation X

Generation X-ers were born between 1965 and 1980. Although they gained the nickname "Slackers" somewhere along the way, this title refers more to their values than to their work ethic. Generation X is the adaptable generation, with its willingness to change jobs, careers, and locations in the pursuit of a healthy work/life balance. Aiming your marketing message along these lines can help you get and hold these individuals' attention. X-ers were the first generation of adults to make heavy use of the World Wide Web, so the Internet has always felt like home to them. Hone your website content and work your Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and other social media channels hard to land this fish.

Generation Y

Generation Y members are also called "Millennials," since they were born between 1980 and 2000. This generation is the first one born into a truly Web-savvy world in which blogs, YouTube, and other channels serve as primary sources of information. Their life in the virtual world, with its endless possibilities, fuels their desire to shape their own lives with as much flexibility and diversity as possible. You may find that they respond to marketing content that emphasizes diversity and optimism, taking a global approach rather than a more localized focus. Millennials are also used to easy access, interaction and teamwork, so emphasize these points as well. It goes without saying that the digital realm is the place to target this generation.

The most recent generation, Generation Z, is still in its formative years. If you're marketing to children and teenagers, bear in mind that this age group is obsessed with technology -- and watch them carefully to see how today's trends produce tomorrow's crop of consumers.

These categories are kind of arbitrary, of course. Still, thinking along generational lines can help you craft your marketing content to specific age groups more accurately and effectively. Give it a try -- and contact a professional marketing copywriter if you need help saying the right things to the right generation!

Which "Person" Sells Best? Choosing the Right Pronouns for Your Marketing Content

"Which person should I be? Am I 'I' or 'we?' Or should we be 'they?' And are my clients 'you' or 'them?'"

No, this isn't a transcript from a nuthouse. I have this kind of conversation with clients all the time. It's actually a very sensible and important conversation, too, because we're discussing what kind of "person" works best for which situations.

By "person," I mean grammatical person, in the sense of first-person, second-person, or third-person pronouns. We use these pronouns a zillion times a day in everyday writing and speech, usually without giving them a second thought, and yet these simple little words contain tremendous power. 

Pronouns shift perception. You can make me, your reader, see you as an individual, as a team, or as a large, impersonal corporation by merely swapping out a word. You can address me directly or have me see things through your eyes. Powerful gadgets, pronouns. But with great power comes great responsibility, and all pronouns are not created equal depending on the task you want them to perform in your marketing content. That's when I get into mind-bending conversations with my clients about "we," "I," and "they." So which person makes the strongest impact? It depends:

• First person singular: First person allows you to present yourself as an individual. If you're a sole proprietor serving as a trusted advisor for your clients, talking them directly as "I" can build trust and open an imaginary (and later, hopefully, real) dialogue between you and your reader. Many small businesses live or die by their owner's image and personality, using "I" as a powerful tool for getting that image across.
• First person plural: A.k.a. the "Royal We." If you're speaking for a team, "we" presents a collective image of that team. Companies of any size can use "we" to give the impression of a unified group effort dedicated to fulfilling the customer's needs. Even sole proprietors sometimes describe themselves as "we" or "us" to puff themselves up a bit, because in some professions being the only guy at the helm makes you look non-competitive or unsuccessful. Small businesses may shift between "I" and "we" to speak as the boss occasionally while still giving the impression of teamwork.
• Third person: In some cases a larger company, or a small company that wants to appear large, can opt for more formality by referring to the company employees as "they," with formal bio blurbs describing individuals in terms of "he" or "she." This works well for items such as a bio or mission statement in a fancy-pants panel program or formal business plan. It can also make for a person in a relatively sober-minded profession such as medicine or law. But I've warned clients against it on occasion, because it also puts up a kind of wall between writer and reader instead of creating the comforting bond some businesses need to establish.
• Second person: "You." Talking from the reader's perspective shows that you understand their feelings and needs -- and remember, from their point of view it's all about them anyway. "You" enables readers to imagine about how the product or service impacts their quality of life. "You can have it all! Change your life today!" Et cetera.

Once you've know what impression you want to make in your readers, you'll know which "person" to use for different marketing pieces and audiences. But if you're still feeling uncertain, you always make use of one other person -- a professional copywriter!

Beyond Copywriting: The Key Players on Your Marketing Team

In my many years as a freelance copywriter in Austin and San Antonio, I've received plenty of requests to write for clients who didn't have all their marketing ducks in a row. They knew they needed top-quality marketing content from an experienced copywriter, but they hadn't engaged the other members of their marketing team. It's pretty hard to write content that will integrate flawlessly with an imaginary website or non-existent visual design, or without any clue what the most important keywords will be, or without knowing how the content will be implemented across multiple marketing channels. That's why I urge clients to gather their entire go-to team of marketing professionals before commissioning marketing content. Let's look at some of the key players you'll want to include in your lineup.

The Copywriter

Your copywriter serves as your written content resource. The right words make an enormous difference in persuading your target audience of your message as quickly and efficiently as possible. Since Google's algorithm has made relevant, professional-sounding content a top priority in recent years, the days of simple "keyword stuffing" are long gone -- you actually have to tell your story, and tell it well. That's a job for a professional. Your copywriter can also contribute to the conceptual stage of your marketing campaign through creative brainstorming, or make fixes to any existing content that just doesn't get the job done.

The Graphic Designer

What your copywriter is to your words, your graphic designer is to your pictures. The graphic designer is the architect of your brand's look. From creating original logos and determining your company color scheme to crafting individual marketing pieces, this artist understands how images influence potential buyers. Look for a graphic designer who feels equally at home in both print and digital media, since these two forms make their own specific visual demands.

The Web Designer/Developer

Web designers create the appearance and layout of your website and its various pages, working in collaboration with graphic designers as needed. Effective web design not only makes your website look compelling and professional; it also ensures a good user experience to improve retention and conversion. The web developer takes those designs and codes them expertly into the site, using state-of--the-art programming languages. When hiring these professionals, make sure they'll grant you some degree of user customization and administrative access to it. You don't want to be "locked out" of your own website if you ever happen to lose the people who put it together.

The SEO Expert

Search engine optimization makes the online marketing world go round. SEO strategies and tactics can take a variety of forms, from the sensible, elegant use of keywords in your written content (organic SEO) to the "under-the-hood" SEO achieved through meta-tags and other subtle website features. Some website providers include SEO among their services, while some SEO experts double as web design/development professionals.

The Social Media Coordinator

Today's marketing campaigns must embrace not only traditional print and website activities but the wide world of social media as well. Unfortunately, there are so many social media channels to choose from that you could easily spend most of your waking hours keeping track of them all. It's all too easy to neglect one important channel in favor of another, or to upload content in such a haphazard manner that your audience can't follow you easily. Your social media coordinator can focus on this activity exclusively, making sure that the right content is going onto the right channel at the right time.

The Printer

Print marketing is alive and well -- and most businesses need some form of it just as much as they need its digital equivalent. It's great to have close ties to a professional printing company that can make any kind of print marketing materials you might need, from 3D signage to event banners and vehicle wraps. A fully-equipped printer offers both traditional offset printing and advanced digital printing options. Some also have on-site graphic designers, thus filling two spots on your go-to marketing team roster while ensuring visual consistency across all your print marketing pieces.

The Marketing Strategist

The marketing strategist has the most important job of all: designing your company's marketing plan and supervising that plan's implementation. This expert is the first professional you want to talk to. Your marketing strategist can help you understand exactly who your audience is, where that audience tends to hang out, and what kinds of messaging that audience tends to respond to. A well-connected marketing strategist may even be able to find the other members of your marketing team for you, giving each of them their marching orders and coordinating their activities.

So there you have it -- the key players in your quest for brilliant marketing. Go get 'em!

4 Tips for a Smoother Content Creation Process

Hiring a freelance copywriter can do wonders for your ability to generate the marketing content your business desperately needs -- but getting that professional copywriter on board is only one of the necessary steps. You also need to make sure you're putting your copywriter's skills and expertise to good advantage, and you can't do that without a smart, efficient content creation process. Let's look at four smart practices that can help you smooth out that process.

1. Assemble All the Pieces in Advance

Some businesses may have a clear marketing strategy but no content to put toward toward, or a content writer but no clear strategy for putting that writer to work. Or maybe they have both the content creator and the marketing strategy, but no system in place to implement that strategy through everyday social media, print marketing or website tasks.

Don't just hire a copywriter; put an entire team together, like assembling the engine of a car so all the pieces perform in unison. I would recommend starting with the marketing strategist, because this professional can then point you toward the other experts your system needs.

2. Don't Rely on Last-Minute Brainstorms

This one applies mainly to the generation of blog articles, drip-marketing email articles, and other pieces that need to go out on a regular basis. You know you have to create them, and you know when you're likely to need them, but it's all too easy to fool yourself into thinking that you can wait until the last minute to address the issue.

Unfortunately, even the most brilliant copywriter needs a little heads-up and ideation time to craft high-quality work. If you wait until too late to request the latest pieces, you may find your copywriter otherwise engaged, out sick, or otherwise unable to leap into action. Plan ahead, ideally with the aid of a permanent editorial calendar, so you'll have the content you need when you need it.

3. Decide on a Voice Before You Draft

I've been in situations where clients weren't entirely sure what the style and tone of their marketing content should be. "Try something, and we'll adjust it as we go," they said. This approach is like the part of your vision test where the optometrist keeps saying,"Is it better like this or better like this?" Dialing the tone and style into a work in progress isn't impossible, but it is a waste of time and effort (and money, if you're being charged by the revision).

Take the time to sit down with your marketing strategist and settle on a voice for your brand, something aimed specifically at the target market you want (which may be markedly different from the audience your current content is attracting). Once you've nailed that voice, your writer can apply it consistently across all your marketing channels.

4. Avoid "Too Many Cooks" Syndrome

Do you have too many cooks in your content marketing kitchen? I can't tell you how many times I've gotten 90 percent of the way through a requested revision, only to have another set of requests come in that directly contradict everything I just did. Do I bill extra for that fresh headache? You bet I do, and so will just about any other freelance copywriter. The main cause of this disconnect stems from the draft going through multiple reviewers, none of which are aware of (or in agreement with) the others' remarks.

Make absolutely certain that your content creation process is wrangled by one designated individual -- a liaison who receives any and all comments, checks them for consistency, and approves the final set of comments that go to the writer. This important step could make all the difference between two quick, easy drafts and a dozen confusing, sloppily-coordinated ones.

Want more tips for optimizing your content creation process? Contact me and tell me about your current challenges!

Consistent Marketing Keeps Them Coming Back for More

One February day I went out to the mailbox as usual. I didn't see any mail, but I figured that I might've hit it too early, so a couple hours later I went out and check it again. Still nothing. That's not unheard of, naturally, but I couldn't help thinking, "Maybe he's just running slow today. I'll try once more time later on." So about 5pm I checked one more time. Well, I guess I just wasn't fated to receive any mail today....

Then it hit me: nobody got any mail that day. It was Presidents' Day.

The funny thing, I'd known it was Presidents' Day, and I'd known that mail didn't go out on federal holidays. What's more, I'll bet the other dozen or so people who were out there checking their mail along with me also knew it was a no-mail day. 

So what were we doing out there? Obeying habit. We robotically went to the mailbox because we had been programmed to do that. Most of us have even learned to count on the postman showing up around the same time of day every day. We've been trained to respond through the sheer consistency of the post office, and it trips us up completely when something breaks that routine.

That's why you want the same kind of consistency in your marketing schedule. Whether you're blogging, publishing a newsletter, pumping out podcasts, mailing out print pieces, or working any other channels in your overall marketing strategies -- you must repeat that process regularly and consistently if you want to (1) get noticed, (2) develop interest, and (3) train your target market to look forward to more. Nobody sends out a single flyer or direct mail postcard and expects the phone to start ringing; it takes multiple touches, often with the exact same piece, to get any kind of response. Your client may throw the first few postcards in the trash, but as long as you get that eventual "Okay, let's see what these people are so wound up about" response, then you've succeeded.

These schedules aren't so hard to work out. (How often does a monthly newsletter or weekly blog post appear?) It's simply a matter of scheduling the content preparation and distribution. However often you decide to blog, keep up that routine, rain or shine, and before long you'll see that spike of anticipation in your web traffic -- loyal readers trained to come back for the next round of insight, special offer, or whatever other goodie you've got for them. 

Yes, consistency requires commitment and responsibility. But if you're pressed for time or you don't have the necessary personnel on staff, you can always outsource the content creation or other necessary grunt work. Don't let your audience start wandering away in disinterest -- keep them coming back for more!

Writing for Your Particular Profession

Imagine for a moment that you're sitting in a typical examination room, waiting to meet your new doctor for the first time. When the door opens and the doctor steps in to say hello, how will you feel if he's wearing bib overalls and a Larry the Cable Guy cap? Or a butcher's apron? Or black mourning attire? Most of us would rather see a a polished-looking individual in a white lab coat -- because that's what we expect from a legitimate healthcare professional. Well, if you're promoting your services in a professional field, how you craft your marketing content, from tone to terminology, makes all the difference in how your clients perceive you. But some professional pose special hurdles of their own, and you may find yourself struggling to strike the right balance. Let's look at how you can optimize your marketing writing for your particular profession.

Emotional Tone

Setting the right emotional tone is a critical first step for anyone in the "trust business." If you want people to entrust you with their general health, teeth, personal finances, legal issues, business security or whatever, you have to write content that projects a mix of reassurance, encouragement, and empathy. For instance, have you ever scared yourself to death looking up Internet articles on this or that health symptom? You probably uncovered a blizzard of articles that took a severe, alarmist, worst-case scenario attitude to the subject. Just as a doctor understands the value of a proper bedside manner, you must emphasize that you understand the client's problem, you sympathize with his situation, and you can apply your skill and expertise to help ease that discomfort.

Intellectual Level

Consider the intellectual "mood music" you're including in your content. Of course you want to assure the world that you're intelligent, well-educated, and knowledgable in your field. But as I pointed out in a previous post, overly-technical terminology can put up obstacles instead of getting readers on your side. I've written for attorneys who wanted me to refer readers to specific court decisions -- citation numbers and all. Unless their clients are aspiring lawyers, that strategy is more likely to drive ordinary people away than to draw them in. On the other end of the scale, if you make an obvious attempt to "dumb down" your content, you're potentially insulting your readers. Keep it simple, keep it clear, and let the knowledge shine through.

Professional Protocols

Last but not least, think about whether your content reflects honorably on your chosen profession. For example, are you making inappropriate promises? There's a huge range of commitment between "we will," "we can," and "we may" in a piece of marketing content. Depending on the rules of your profession, you may be highly limited in what you're allowed to offer or how you're allowed to offer it. On the other hand, if your content has no backbone at all, your reader may wonder why you even bothered stating anything. Make sure you know the rules of the game, whatever those may be for your field, and stay inside the lines. But commit to the bottom line: doing everything in  your power to help those who need your professional expertise.

Choose the right "suit of clothes" for your professional marketing content, and you'll make it a lot easier for people to trust you, understand you, and take you seriously. If you need a professional writer's expertise to help you make that happen, you know who to contact!

Beyond Spell Check: The Proof Is in the Reading

Did you take a nice long drive during the winter holidays? Do you find yourself making extended road trips on business? Many of us do -- which means that many of us find ourselves reading roadside billboards and other signage to stave off the boredom of the road. Even those of us who spend all our days in our offices are likely to encounter countless ads online and in print. We may create some of that content ourselves. If we're in a real hurry to beat a deadline, we may rush the copy to the printer after a quick run through a spell-checker. Then we see the final results, and we wish we hadn't done that.

Proofreading matters, if only because the errors you pump out will live forever on the Internet. Even if you're producing a sign or advertisement in a language most of your viewing public doesn't understand, somebody, somewhere, has devoted a humorous website to you.

Yes, your spell-checking tool catches lots of errors. But what about that misused word it doesn't recognize or that proper name it doesn't have in its database? That's why you must always give your marketing content a once-over with your own eyeballs. If your eyeballs are tired, put the content away and proofread it later. But proofread it.

Of course, you can dot every I and cross every T and still end up with a ludicrous misstatement. Somewhere along U.S. Highway 83 (I forget where) stands a roadside sign for a combination gas station and restaurant. The sign proclaims proudly -- and quite seriously -- "EAT HERE! GET GAS!" 

You may encounter entire concepts that needed one more pass through the marketing department. How about that billboard that always seems to pop up in or around small towns -- the one for the BBQ place that depicts a cute cartoon pig squealing in terror as he runs from a guy with a butcher knife? Sure, it's funny if you're into that sort of thing, but does it really pull people off the highway with their stomachs growling? "Hey, you know that pig you were slashing to death on the billboard? I'd like some of that, with a side of slaw."

So consider this post a public service announcement. Don't just run your marketing content through a spell checker and call it done. Use human eyes and human brains. If you want some additional quality control, don't stop with your own evaluation. Have someone else look at it so you can get a second opinion, both on the mechanics and on the content itself. If you really want some quality assurance, hire a professional writer to proofread and edit your content. Better yet, let that professional writer create your content from scratch -- and lock in the quality from the very first word!

3 Powerful Ways to Make Your Marketing Content "Pop"

Many years ago, I helped the owner of a local shipping service create a print marketing onesheet to boost his business. He had a fascinating personal story and a compelling value proposition, with plenty of written detail to back them up. Even so, he was frustrated that prospective customers didn't seem to respond to his marketing message. I explained to him that I could take this body of material and employ my copywriting skills to make his marketing content "pop." The next time I saw him after submitting the draft, he smiled ear to ear and yelled across the room, "I SAW THE POP!"

Does your own marketing content fly off the page and demand the attention of your target audience? Does it pop, or does just sort of lie there silently like soda gone flat? If you're not happy with the results you get from your website or print marketing, here are three things you can do to put some extra "wow factor" into your words.

1. Ask Questions

One of the easiest yet most powerful methods for grabbing readers' attention involves asking them questions. "Are you tired of floor cleaners that don't clean?" "Are you ready for a totally new taste sensation?" "If you could have twice the Internet speeds for half the price, would you go for it?" Questions simulate a conversation by forcing the reader to concoct answers, if only in their own minds. This degree of engagement can make all the difference between keeping and losing your audience within the first few seconds.

By the way, make sure the answer to each of your questions is "Yes." Eliciting this magic word from your audience doesn't just keep the emotional tone of the conversation more positive -- it also gets them agreeing with you, which makes life a lot easier when you finally ask them if they're ready to buy.

2. Use Your Reader's Imagination

Products and services usually aren't that exciting in and of themselves; it's what they can do for people that creates excitement. If you sell personal financial solutions, you could easily bore readers to tears by focusing on stuff like interest rates, stock diversification strategies, or retirement account contribution limits. These issues may be important, but they don't captivate the imagination.

But what about the outcomes of successful personal financial strategies? That dream vacation for your family, the summer home you've always wanted but never dreamed you could afford, a stress-free early retirement -- these and other images will get your audience listening to what you have to say. Dream building is a powerful content marketing tool, and it's as simple as painting the picture your ideal customer has always wanted (but perhaps never dared) to visualize.

Your reader's imagination can conjure negative images as well as positive ones -- and this is a good thing. Make them see in their mind's eye that dreary, painful, or frustrating scenario they currently live through on a daily basis, that problem that keeps them from being happy. Make it as sharp and vivid as possible. Then dispel those clouds by offering the path to a sunnier future.

3. Keep It Simple

"The more I say, and the fancier I get with it, the more convincing I'll be." This all-too-common strategy usually backfires when you're creating marketing content. First of all, most people can't be bothered to read a solid wall of text about anything, no matter what the end reward might be. Second, you can't assume that everyone in your target audience shares the same reading level. Last but not least, short, simple words pack more punch -- and they'll give your content more pop, especially when you include plenty of empty space around them. Less is more.

Taking your audience on a journey is another important technique for keeping your message simple, straightforward, and effective. Give your pitch a shape, starting with your leading questions, pain statement, or dream building imagery and then moving on to your proposed solutions. Once you've given the reader both the problem and the answer, hand them the key to happiness by ending with a strong call to action. Tell them what they need to do right now to make the dream come true.

Don't settle for marketing content that barely fizzes. Get your marketing team or freelance copywriter to put these techniques to good use. With any luck you, too, will "see the pop!"

4 Marketing Content Demons That Could Be Haunting Your Halloween

Happy Halloween -- or is it? Even if you're enjoying the parties, decorations, and trick-or-treaters associated with this time of year, your marketing content may be turning your business into something more like a house of horrors. Here are four frightening turns in your marketing content that you'll want to exorcise ASAP.

1. Mummified Marketing

Hollywood has always gotten good scare value out of mummies, even though the real thing is nothing more than the preserved husk of a human being. But if your marketing content is similarly mummified, you may indeed have cause for concern. Websites, brochures, marketing videos and other marketing pieces that sport outdated content convey the impression that your business died a long time ago, or (at the very least) that it's stuck in a kind of suspended animation. Maybe it's time to sweep away the dust and create new, vital, relevant marketing that can take your brand into the future.

2. The Blog of the Undead

The Blog of the Undead is a close cousin to mummified marketing. Like a zombie, this blog is mostly dead but refuses to stay down, rising randomly in search of fresh brains (specifically, those of your audience). But just as one glance at a zombie will confirm that you're not really looking at a living being, viewing a blog with sporadic, erratic updates will paint a picture of a business that is unhealthy at best or may even have one foot in the grave. You need to post to your blog regularly if you want your brand to retain an image of glowing good health.

3. The Ghost in the Sales Funnel

Ghosts and haunted houses are an ever-popular Halloween theme. A typical haunted house story will feature a ghost that lurks in some particular corner of a house, springing out when it wants to scare interlopers away. If you think about your sales funnel as a complex structure that sends your prospects on a one-way journey to a desired outcome (calling you, signing up for a free gift etc.), then your marketing content should be acting as a beneficial force that guides the way from one landmark to another. If any of these landmarks is disfigured by content that asks for too much too early or simply fails to compel further action, then you might as well have a ghost in your marketing machine yelling "BOO" at the worst possible moment.

4. The Wrong Costume

You can't have Halloween without Halloween costumes, which enable you to transform yourself into a demon, witch, ghoul, or any other persona you wish. But is the face you're showing to your target audience the right one for the reaction you want to get? If you want to scare the daylights out of someone, you don't dress up as a happy bunny (unless, of course, you happen to know about that person's severe bunny phobia). By the same token, your brand is the face of your business, and your marketing content must support the persona that you want your brand to project. If your content's tone, style and vocabulary aren't supporting and reinforcing your image, then you might as well be topping off your devil costume with a happy bunny mask.

Take a hard, unflinching look at these marketing gremlins, and get whatever marketing content assistance you may need to help overcome them. It's a surefire path toward more treats and fewer tricks for your business this Halloween!

Bending the Rules of Copywriting: When the Wrong Words Are Right

One of the things I hear most often from business owners who engage my freelance copywriting services is, "I never do my own writing because I just know I'll get the spelling and grammar all wring." Well, of course effective copywriting requires a lot more than just a firm grasp of spelling and grammar. In fact, some of the most powerful marketing content deliberately plays fast and loose with those rules. Let's take a look at those instances in which breaking the rules can be good.

We've all seen examples of riotously incorrect ad slogans over the years. Half a century ago, Winston offered up the famous declaration "Winston tastes good like a cigarette should," sparking immediate controversy over its misuse of "like" as a conjunction. Would it have been more correct to say "Winston tastes good as a cigarette should?" Certainly. But would the slogan have been swept into the public consciousness to anywhere near the same degree? No way!

(The tobacco industry seems to have had ongoing issues with grammar. "Us Tarrytown smokers would rather fight than switch!" was another faux pas that nevertheless caught on with the public. Perhaps a new medical study is in order....)

Geeks worldwide know and love (or hate) Apple's encouragement to "Think Different." I was just beginning my writing career when that campaign first launched, and I remember some English majors sneering about how Apple's proofreader was asleep on the job. Surely the company meant "Think Differently!" But they missed the point entirely: Apple was using "different" as a concept -- a way of life, not a modifier. 

My various writing instructors used to insist that you have to know the rules before you can break them. In other words, if you understand a rule and then break it intentionally, you're creating a deliberate effect and not an ordinary screw-up. If you're quoting a certain famous cartoon bird, for instance, you can't correct his speech to read "I thought I saw a pussycat," because you'll lose the whole pop-cultural context and you won't be making your point (whatever that is).

So, yes, you can break the rules. You may even want to. But let us know, somehow, that you know what you're doing and why you're doing it -- and make sure the result is genuinely compelling. Heed the wise words of the members of Spinal Tap: "It's such a fine line between stupid and clever."

How to Create Great Marketing Content Today (That Won't Embarrass Your Brand Tomorrow)

I'm something of a connoisseur where really bad movies are concerned. Everything from cheap drive-in fodder and Z-grade science-fiction films to those bizarre educational shorts we used to watch in school holds a strange interest for me. Apart from the unintentional entertainment that occurs when sheer awfulness propels a film into a realm of its own, there's also the fascination of the what-were-they-thinking factor. Usually, of course, they were thinking to make a couple of bucks in a kind of artistic hit and run. A producer would scrape a few reels of something resembling a story together and throw it into some theaters for a couple of weeks, with the idea that it would make its money and then disappear forever.

Except that in many cases, that didn't happen. Mystery Science Theater 3000 and home video restorations have brought tons of this odd old material to light again over the years, giving it a second life and giving its creators (or their heirs) something to cringe over for decades to come. Here in the Information Age, nothing is truly temporary -- and if you're generating marketing and branding content for your company, you need to keep that in mind.

No matter how beautifully you upgrade your corporate brochure from its humble, quick-and-dirty "just something to show" beginnings, those horrible old originals are still out there, waiting to be uncovered the next time a client unloads an old storage box or cleans behind a counter. As for web content -- a quick trip through the Wayback Machine and similar archive databases will reveal all the previous version of your online presence in all their awful glory.

If you can't hide from your past, content-wise, then what can you do? That's easy -- get it right the first time. Instead of just cobbling something some text together now with the idea of improving on it later, spend the extra time and effort making the best possible creating decisions in the here and now. For instance, ask yourself:

"Is this how I want to present my brand to my target audience?" It's such an elementary question, one that anyone should always ask when creating marketing content -- but if you're in a hurry to get your brand up and running, you could be skipping over important facets of your messaging or not aiming at your target audience as precisely as you should. Why rush to release content that won't do your business any good?

"How does this content stack up against my hottest competitor's?" I've sad before that if your marketing content is as good as everyone else's, then it's better than no one else's. That may be true, but at least it's not laughable by comparison either. Make sure your print and Internet marketing efforts don't place you at a critical disadvantage from the very beginning, no matter how quickly you plan to upgrade it. You don't want to give yourself the extra burden of overcoming a bad first impression.

"Is it trendy, or is it timeless?" How evergreen are your copywriting (and design) choices? How gracefully are they likely to age? Is your text brimming over with today's slang, buzzwords and business-speak? If so, you're dramatically shortening the potential lifespan of that content's usefulness to you.

Your marketing content doesn't have to be perfect right out of the gate, and over time you will inevitably need to modify it. But get whatever professional copywriting help you may need to start out strong. You'll be less embarrassed if and when your first attempts bob up into view again -- and you'll have marketing that actually works, both now and in the future!

Practice Makes Perfect: Developing Your Writing Technique

A few months ago I attended an MSP Training session. MSP, which stands for Member Success Program, is a basic training course in the fine art of networking for BNI (Business Networking International) members. As a ten-year veteran of that organization, I've taken the course several times before, but we're supposed to re-take it regularly to keep our skills sharp. The agenda includes how to give an effective self-introduction, how to listen for possible referral opportunities, the difference between a genuine referral and a lukewarm "lead," and so on. This sort of training is especially useful for those of us who weren't born with a natural gift for self-promotion or confident interaction with a roomful of strangers. But I've found that the most important thing I can do to become a better networker is to network. A lot.

I guess this is true of just about any activity, particularly the ones that don't come naturally to us. Sure, you might accidentally pick up a basketball one day and discover that hitting 3-pointers is child's play for you and dumb luck for all your friends. More likely, though, you'll have to practice hour after hour, shot after shot, until you get the muscle memory down pat. That's technique, and anyone can develop some degree of it, no matter how much actual talent they have for the given task. In fact, technique can continue to serve you even when natural ability can't or won't. There are countless stories of singers, actors, athletes, musicians, you name it, who perform competently or better in the face of illness, injury or personal stress. They may be so distressed or distracted that afterward they can't even remember what they did. But's that okay, because their technique remembered for them.

Writing is another activity that benefits from constant practice and repetition. If you feel the ned to communicate your company's mission or your own expertise through writing, you don't need a journalism or marketing communications degree -- you just need to do the following things:

1) Read a lot 

2) Write a lot

If you plan to write your company's marketing content, immerse yourself in marketing content from your competitors, from unrelated industries, from your junk mail inbox, from everywhere you happen to find it. Soon you'll be able to recognize the good stuff from the bad stuff, and eventually you'll start to recognize the mediocre stuff as well. At the same time, practice whatever form of writing you intend to pursue. It's perfectly fine to mimic the masters to get a feel for what they're doing -- many great composers got their start by transcribing each other's work verbatim. After a while you'll be able to know whether a given word or phrase will work before you ever set it down, with no need to wait for "inspiration." And that's the beginning of technique, because once you can do that, you can write whatever you want, whenever you want.

Can you still have a professional copywriter go over your work and edit as needed? Of course! But if you really want to refine your own writing, I recommend that you study the copywriter's revision of your draft with a surgeon's eye. What exactly did he change, and what exactly is that change doing to make the content better? It's like getting a bonus tutoring session for the cost of an editing job, so take advantage of it. And whatever you do -- keep practicing!