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!

Gaining (a Copywriter's) Perspective on Your Marketing Content

You may have all kinds of good, solid reasons for outsourcing at least some of your marketing content creation needs to a freelance copywriter. Maybe you don't happen to have a talent for writing, so creating your own marketing content takes up a huge amount of time that ought to go toward doing your day-to-day tasks that keep your business running. Maybe you do have the talent, but you hate, hate, hate using it. (Some people just don't enjoy writing. Heck, even I don't enjoy it sometimes. Of course I find the resolve when it's time to pay the bills.) Maybe you already have a copywriting team in place, but it happens to be stretched to the limit already. These are all great reasons to hire a copywriter, and in each case I'm happy to step in.

But there's another terrific reason to think about adding a copywriter to your creative team: the possibility that you may be "too close to the topic." Let's face it, you know your business inside-out. You're immersed in it on a daily basis. You work with other people who also know the industry, and you communicate with colleagues that speak the lingo as well as you do. You live in the world of your business. The thing is, your customer probably doesn't.

You may find it impossible to see yourself objectively enough to put yourself in your reader's shoes. Sometimes it's hard to pretend you're John Doe instead of Jane Manufacturing Incorporated long enough to really grasp what the reader wants to know, as opposed to what you want to tell him. Time to bring in an objective party -- one who happens to write marketing content for a living. Your copywriter can see John's perspective as well as Jane's, creating a message informed by one and aimed at the other.

You may also find that your industry speaks a language the general public doesn't understand. I recall the time I walked into an engineering company and the owner said, "Ah, so you're the guy who's going to rescue us!" The company's leadership team had spent so many years talking engineer-speak to engineers that they'd lost a handle on how to translate their features and benefits into common English. Again, copywriter to the rescue.

Whatever your writing roadblock may be, don't keep suffering with it. Contact me today, offload that specialized work to a specialist, and welcome a new brain to your company's think-tank.

Make These Marketing Resolutions for a Happier, More Profitable New Year

Are you ready for 2022? If you weren't entirely satisfied with certain aspects of your life this year, you may be cooking up some New Year's resolutions to straighten them out in the coming 12 months -- from those extra few pounds that somehow snuck up on you to certain personal limitations you'd like to transcend. If you run a business, you may feel like making some adjustments that could boost your revenue, client loyalty, or brand reach. In that case, take a look at four marketing resolutions you should consider adding to your list.

"Resolved: I Will Network."

Yes, the world of networking received a major blow when COVID drove business leaders indoors for months at a time. Even now, many networking organizations and networkers have felt leery about diving back into the world of face-to-face conversations (not to mention all those handshakes). But at the same time they hate to give up on it entirely, since networking has proven itself an invaluable means of self-promotion in the past for countless organizations.

Fortunately, you can still network in 2022, even if you're just doing it from your computer. Online, Zoom-based networking events have taken up the slack during the pandemic, and it looks like many of those events and platforms are here to stay. Do a search for options in your area (or nationwide, if your business can benefit from that scope), sign up for the events that look good to you, and spend a healthy chunk of next year building new connections with the businesspeople you need to know.

"Resolved: I Will Re-Examine My Target Audience."

Has your target audience changed recently? As businesses change and evolve, they sometimes find themselves serving different industry verticals, niche markets, and customer demographics. If you haven't examined your buyer personas in a while, go over them with a fine-toothed comb and decide whether you need to shift your marketing strategies toward a different section of the population. 

If you never created a buyer persona in the first place (or you have no idea what I'm talking about), it's time to get acquainted with this important marketing tool. Collect and sort all your customer data until you have a clear fictionalized picture of the individuals most likely to respond to your products or services. Now you can tweak your marketing for optimal success with these future buyers.

"Resolved: I Will Update My Brand Content."

Even if your target audience won't change much in 2022, your current brand may no longer resonate with that audience as it once did, or it may not communicate your organization's current vision, mission, and values effectively. Examine your website, social media channels, blog feed, print marketing pieces, sales letters, email articles, and other marketing content with an objective eye. Does it all still look and sound like it should? Is the information still accurate and relevant in light of your business's ongoing growth and product/service offerings? Have you added entire new "wings" to your organization without adjusting your marketing efforts accordingly?

You still have time to update your web pages, redesign your logo or the overall look of your brand, and create all-new sales pieces that get the word out about the new and improved you. This facelift may not only bring new customers to you in 2022 but also infuse your team with fresh energy and enthusiasm.

"Resolved: I Will Blog Regularly."

Many of the New Year's resolutions people make represent activities that they've been meaning to do (or do better) for years. For lots of businesses, blogging falls into that self-improvement category. you know you should be blogging. You know blogging can boost your business in multiple ways. But blogging takes thought, planning, and good old-fashioned hard work, taking you away from the many other marketing plates you must keep spinning.

Put those objections aside this year by hiring a professional copywriter to help you decide on blog topics and create a steady stream of blog articles all ready for posting on your preferred schedule. Whether you want to establish your authority in your field, promote the latest and greatest your business has to offer, or increase your Internet footprint, blogging can help you make 2022 your best year ever -- at least until 2023 tops it!

Want to Take the Lead in Your Industry? Write Thought Leadership Articles

You've encountered this trope in countless films, TV shows, and stories. An ambitious youngster sets out to master a particular set of skills or gain profound wisdom and insight. The youngster makes a long and arduous journey to sit at the feet of a guru who agrees to provide precious nuggets of knowledge. After much thought, study, and practice, the student eventually becomes the next master.

We all have our gurus in life, even if we've never met them or studied with them. I'm talking about thought leaders, those individuals we turn to for the first or last word on a particular subject in a particular field. When we want an expert's opinion, we turn to these thought leaders. In the business world, the most respected professionals, the ones who display the most expertise, typically get the most business as well.

Are you an expert in your field? Would you like to be perceived as one? If you answered yes to either question, you need to produce thought leadership articles for your blog and other media channels.

A thought leadership article goes above and beyond the typical blog post. Yes, any article you create should grab your target audience's attention, provide entertaining or useful content, and compel readers to follow your posts and/or connect with your business in some profitable way or other. But a thought leadership article also includes genuine insights and original concepts that sell you as an expert in your field. By establishing your authority in this manner, you not only convince potential customers of your knowledge and wisdom; you also impress your peers and other members of the business world to lend you their ears, so to speak.

Thought leaders position themselves as deep thinkers, which means that they typically spend more time digging more extensively into specific topics. You might produce tons of shorter, lighter blog articles that cover lesser issues while spending extra time and effort delving into a more limited number of thought leadership articles. These detailed, insightful pieces may inspire others in your field (or thought leaders in related fields) to refer their own target audiences to them through valuable links and quotes. Now you're being touted as an authority by others who carry a certain amount of weight within various circles.

Thought leaders stay ahead of the curve, so your thought leadership articles must follow suit. Don't create a few epic works and then expect them to draw the same attention for many years to come. Times change, and so do products, services, methods, and opinions. Demonstrate your relevance by writing periodic thought leadership pieces that reflect the cutting edge in your industry or your target audience's ever-evolving needs and concerns.

Need some help planning and creating your thought leadership articles? Contact me to leverage my quarter-century of professional writing experience. It's high time you took the lead!

3 Smart Ways to Stay Visible Over the Holidays

We've all been here before. As Thanksgiving approaches, everyone's thoughts turn to road trips, elaborate meal preparation, and figuring out how to divide TV privileges between the football fans and the dog-show aficionados. Then Black Friday hits, followed by Cyber Monday, followed by another wave of chaos in December. Even if your business profits from seasonal holiday shopping, it can easily get lost in the shuffle. So what can you do to market your brand more effectively and stay more visible until the holiday madness settles down? Consider the following three strategies.

Host Your Own Virtual Holiday Party

Entrepreneurs are constantly looking for networking opportunities where they can get to know each other and possibly forge new collaborative and referral relationships. However, if you rely on other organizations to provide such events for you, you allow yourself to blend into the blur of bodies as just another guest with a pack of business cards. To complicate matters further, the COVID-19 pandemic has made large gatherings in hard-to-manage conditions a bad idea. So why not provide an alternative in the form of your own Zoom-based holiday party? As the host, you and your brand naturally grab the spotlight, helping to ensure that every guest pays at least some attention to you. The Zoom environment may also make it easier for guests to enjoy conversations without shouting over each other.

Make Holiday Messages a Part of Your Marketing Routine

Do you want your clients and customers to think of you during the holidays? Can you think of some long-silent clients and prospects you'd like to reconnect with? This time of year offers the perfect opportunity to do so by making use of the time-honored tradition of holiday messages. Send out those thank-you-for-being-a-customer cards and emails, or simply convey your best wishes for the holiday. Better yet, include a special offer or promotional gift to keep recipients engaged or spur them to rekindle their relationships with you.

Produce Holiday-Themed Social Media

If everybody's going to be scouring the Internet for holiday-related stuff as they do every year, why not upload some content for them to find in their searches? Think about how your products and services intersect with whatever special needs or challenges your target market might face during this holiday season. Create blog articles, video clips, Tweets, and other social media content that addresses those issues while gently pointing back toward your company as a possible solution. Launch an online contest of some sort, perhaps involving videos or written testimonials submitted by your audience. Get people interacting on your social media platforms, and they'll stay on those platforms as long as you keep feeding them content that matters to them.

Do your own holiday plans limit your ability to focus on holiday-themed marketing content? That's okay, because many freelance copywriters (including Yours Truly) maintain full-time operations all year round. So contact me, and let's work together to keep your business humming along this holiday season!

3 Reasons to Feel Thankful (When You Hire a Freelance Copywriter)

What will you give thanks for this Thanksgiving? If you're in business, you may simply feel thankful that you've kept your head above water after the craziness of the past couple of years. Of course, you probably feel thankful for many more personal things as well -- but for many small business owners, work life quality and personal life quality go hand in hand. You may find that any steps you take to make your business work better also aids your health, your sanity, and your domestic life. With that thought in mind, consider how you could benefit from bringing a skilled, experienced freelance marketing copywriter into your contact sphere. The next time somebody at your Thanksgiving table asks you what you're thankful for, you might include these three answers.

1. "I'm thankful that I can spend more time with my loved ones and less time sweating over my marketing content." I've said it before and I'll say it again -- writing takes time and effort, no matter how much talent you may have for it or how much you may enjoy it under less pressurized circumstances. You could probably make better use of that time and effort by devoting it to other necessary on-the-job tasks. You may also wish you could stop taking that extra writing work home with you so you could give more time to your family and friends. When you outsource your marketing content writing to a dedicated professional, you're giving yourself the gift of time -- and who wouldn't feel thankful a little more of that?
2. "I'm thankful that I can feel more confident and less stressed about my marketing campaigns." Any major marketing campaign involves a great deal of physical work and mental energy. You've got to research the competition, evaluate your goals, create a detailed action plan, and coordinate all the efforts of your various creative professionals to bring that plan to successful fruition. It's a stressful job under the best of circumstances -- and if you're winging it by writing your own marketing content, you may feel totally uncertain as to what kind of results you can expect. You might as well take the content creation off your plate by assigning it to a professional writer who knows how to work as a team player, follow instructions, and meet deadlines. 
3. "I'm thankful for the boost in business I can get from more effective brand messaging." Has your brand messaging wandered off target as your company has grown and evolved? A brand that no longer makes its mark on its target audience can only hurt your revenue figures. You might not even know for certain where the branding inconsistency or ineffectiveness lies. Could it be hiding in your website or print marketing content, for example? Hire a freelance copywriter who specializes in marketing content creation, and you'll have that extra pair of trained eyes you need to evaluate the problem, find out where to make improvements, and then redo the content so it actually promotes the right brand message to boost your income. More Thanksgiving dinner for everybody!

I'm thankful for the opportunity to help folks like you achieve your marketing objectives -- and I'd like to give you reason to feel thankful that you requested my writing services. Contact me, and let's talk turkey!

This Halloween, Exorcise These Gremlins From Your Marketing Content

Here we go with another Halloween season -- as if business owners and marketing content managers didn't face enough potentially scary problems all year round. Fortunately, many of us view Halloween more as a harmless source of innocent fun than a hair-raising event; more treat than trick, if you will. But you may still want to take this opportunity to take a close look at your marketing content's vulnerabilities this Halloween, if only to make sure you're ready for major sales opportunities like the upcoming winter holiday rush. If you see the following destructive gremlins lurking around your website, social media, print marketing, or other marketing content, take the necessary steps to drive these ghouls away.

Dead Branding

A company's brand is a living organism that grows, evolves, and adapts to changing circumstances, from a new direction for the company itself to updated audience expectations. It's not a static entity that you can simply set and forget. Did you leave your brand for dead years ago? Maybe it's time you administered a checkup (or conducted an autopsy) to determine whether your marketing content's style, tone, and information match up with your business's current brand vision and image. It might require a resurrection in the form of some new, fresh material.

The Headless Home Page

You've probably put a lot of care and effort into the creation of your website content, from those all-important "About" and "Services" pages to the blog that hosts your attention-getting social media. So why do prospective buyers keep jumping off the site after a brief visit to the home page? The answer might lie in the way you've laid it out. It's all too common to see beautiful-looking home pages that sport fancy animated top banners -- followed directly by testimonials, links to other pages, special offers, or contact information. But where's the introductory content? A home page without a properly compelling introduction is like a news story without a hook or a body without a head. If you left off this key lead-in to your online sales funnel, it's  time to make like Dr. Frankenstein and perform some much-needed surgery to stitch it into place.

Business Productivity Vampires

Does marketing content creation take up a huge piece of your valuable time as a business owner or marketing manager? If so, you may have a productivity vampire that could do with a stake through its heart. Marketing content requires creativity, mental energy, and effort -- all of which you could make better use of in other key aspects of your business. But wait: Don't you need to invest in high-quality marketing content if you want to boost your sales and brand visibility? Of course you do. That's why you can benefit greatly from handing the task of content creation over to a dedicated professional like an experienced freelance copywriter. We're like garlic to productivity vampires. Contact me and see for yourself!