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8 Keys to Content Writing Success (for Freelance Writers & Marketers Hiring Writers)

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8 Keys to Content Writing Success (for Freelance Writers & Marketers Hiring Writers)

These days, content is apparently king. But writing content that rules over your competition is not that simple. According to Time, the average reader spends only 8 seconds reading a piece of content.  (That’s probably gone down some, considering that statistic is a few years old.) So it goes without saying: creating engaging, valuable content that helps your target audience is vital. These days, in order for businesses to increase traffic and revenue, it’s essential to invest in content marketing — and therefore, expert content writing. According to CMI, higher quality content creation accounts for 78% of content marketers’ increased success in the industry, over the past 12 months (CMI’s 2018 Benchmark). What’s more, 47% of marketers today are outsourcing their content. So, we’ve established how much content creation matters today — and how nearly half of all content created is outsourced! If you’re reading this, chances are you’re one of three individuals: A writer who has heard of content writing as being one of the most profitable forms of writing. A content writer looking to brush up on your skills to get yourself ahead of the game. A marketer or business owner who is looking to step up your marketing strategy by hiring a content writer. No matter what drew you to this article, you will walk away with a clear understanding of a major factor in online business success: Successful content writing. Let’s get into the good stuff! What Is Content Writing — Rather, What’s Good Content Writing? Written content comes in a number of mediums: blogs, social media posts, web pages, articles, white papers, video and audio recordings. It is information on a specific topic focused on a targeted audience. The key here is audience. If written content fails to attract its target audience, there’s not much point to the content, to begin with. A lack of audience engagement in your content results in a low ROI. [bctt tweet=”For writers and marketers, creating engaging, valuable content that helps your target audience is vital. How do you do this? @JuliaEMcCoy shares her 8 keys to content writing success! ?” username=”ExpWriters”] So then, what makes attractive written content? Think about the best movie you’ve seen recently. Got it? Why do you like it? Was it the special effects or music score? Maybe it had a great storyline or focused on a topic of interest. Chances are, the best film you can think of was a combination of these aspects in order to make it memorable. So what’s my point? Good content writing is similar in the way that it combines several key aspects in order to engage readers and perform well in search engines. Impressionable writing requires creativity, SEO tactics, consistency and purpose. We’ll soon delve into ways on how to achieve this. But first, let’s cut to the chase: Why Is Good Content Important? Quality online content drives marketing in almost every aspect. If your content is also optimized for search engines and draws organic traffic, you’ve hit the jackpot. Leading businesses know the value in this and are looking for the talent to create it. The internet is a crowded place and it’s only becoming harder to stand out. While good content brings in audiences, great content generates higher conversion rates. This is THE trick in driving revenue. Lucky for you, we’re going to reveal that trick. We’ve laid out easy-to-follow guidelines which focus on: What content writers should strive for What employers should look for [bctt tweet=”Why is great content important? See, with good content you cannot only attract your audience, but you also encourage them to engage leading to higher conversion rates. ? – @JuliaEMcCoy” username=”ExpWriters”] 8 Keys to Successful Content Writing Successful content writers have it all. Aside from being wordsmiths, they are SEO specialists, social media gurus and expert marketers. They create the online content, which drives traffic, charms Google and turns skimmers into subscribers. Although this description seems loaded, it’s easier to grasp when broken down. So, what are we waiting for? Successful content writing in 2018 is: Amy Poehler! Just joking. 1. Audience-Focused Reel in your audience and you’ll reap the rewards. This is because Google’s main focus is keeping searchers happy. So, if you’re catering to audiences, Google will cater to you. By creating relevant and helpful content that puts your audience first, you will enjoy more success. It’s a healthy cyber relationship. To know how to help your audience, you need to understand their pain points. Research your competition and take note of what they’re providing. A competitive content audit can help you focus on WHO your competition is and HOW they’re positioning themselves in front of your shared audience. When you know your audience, you can answer their burning questions in a voice that speaks to them. Remember: healthy cyber relationships rely on communication to survive. [bctt tweet=”Good content caters to the audience, and if it is so, then the higher the chances of Google giving you the reward of bringing your search results ranking to the top. ☝️ Know more about @JuliaEMcCoy’s keys to successful content writing.” username=”ExpWriters”] 2. Dynamic The best online content writers can master a wide-range of writing styles. Why’s that? Content writing projects come in all shapes and sizes. New Media Services sums it up well. Some examples of online content forms and their individual styles are: News: Short and concise paragraphs, including the summary of the story near the top of the content piece. Blogging: Friendly, inviting and opinionated. See any of the posts on the Write Blog for examples. White papers: Long-form while providing a solution to a problem. Case studies: In-depth information providing valuable knowledge based on research of a certain scenario. Ad copy: Concise and convincing with the goal of increasing conversion rate. Scroll Facebook on any given day and you’re bound to see ads in the right panel. Here’s an example of an ad from a consultant that makes millions using ads. Ebook: A powerful marketing tool, which can be offered free … Read more

Copywriting Fixes: How to Beat Writer’s Block and Churn Out Decent Copy

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Copywriting Fixes: How to Beat Writer’s Block and Churn Out Decent Copy

As a copywriter, I wheel and deal with words. Every word I write is worth something: money in the bank, bills paid on time, food in my fridge. Needless to say, when your words are your currency, you have to be able to produce. Unfortunately, it’s not always that simple. There are all kinds of scenarios that threaten my writing. Sometimes my dog sits at the foot of my chair and stares up at me for minutes at a time. Her eyes get big and sad. Eventually, she sits up on her hind legs and reaches out one little paw, giving me a gentle pat on the leg. “Hey, remember me?” she seems to say. “I depend on you for survival.” At this point, I can only sigh deeply and try to understand what she wants. Usually, this is her not-so-subtle way of asking for a bathroom break. My dog is the least of my worries, though. There are other barriers to writing. The worst of them seems beyond my control. Writer’s block. This anxiety-inducing state is not only dreaded but unavoidable. Seconds, then minutes, tick by as I sit motionless, staring at a blank page and a blinking cursor. These two portents of doom taunt me. This is the point where I have to act, or I’ll never get out alive. So, what should a copywriter do in the face of this self-created melodrama? Writer’s block can be a hard thing to beat. If you’re still with me, I’ll show you my strategy. A Copywriter’s Guide to Winning Against Writer’s Block Writer’s block can be a copywriter’s nemesis. It doesn’t want you to write a word, and it certainly doesn’t want you to get in a groove. Here’s how to fight back. 1. Focus – No, for Real I know if I have writer’s block, my mind is elsewhere. If it’s the same for you, I suggest sitting back and discovering where your mind has gone (or when). Then, yank on it and rein it in. Put your phone away. No, don’t put it in your pocket or set it within arm’s reach. Get up, go into the next room, and literally hide it from yourself. You’ll thank me when you don’t have notifications pinging at you every 20 seconds. Next, close every extraneous browser window/tab you have open. Just say no unless it’s essential to your process. For instance, I like to leave a tab open for an online thesaurus. It’s useful for cases of overused adjectives (“great,” “beautiful,” and “excellent” are common culprits). Once you have eliminated distractions, center yourself. Meditate on the topic you’re writing about. If your mind wanders off again, pull it back, and be firm with yourself. 2. Do You Need Mood Music? Once your distractions are gone, you may feel antsy. Sometimes, the silence amplifies writer’s block. It becomes a solid, menacing entity versus a metaphor for brain fog. In these cases, I recommend background music. Example (purchased from MelodyLoops): This infographic from WebpageFX gives you an idea why: I’m talking about the kind of music that gets your brain quietly but steadily moving, like a running brook. You don’t want waterfalls – unless you prefer that mind environment. If that’s you, by all means. For me, a quiet, steady, musical movement equals production in an equal measure. Like the music, the words drop at a constant beat and keep coming. It’s not just like a brook, it’s like a faucet turned on to a continual drip. I require instrumental music. Not angry, dramatic symphonies or complicated melodies, but simple arrangements. A piano, a violin. Clear notes at a moderate pace. For you, this might be totally wrong. I recommend searching your favorite music app until you land on something that sets your perfect writing mood. If this sounds incredibly fussy, believe me, I know. However, if your currency is words, you’ll understand. 3. Light the Wick Here’s another scenario: What if you don’t need music? What if you only need ideas? Chances are, if you’re a copywriter, you had a topic handed to you. Whether you find it inspiring, the client needs 1,500 words expounding on it. If you look at the topic and feel dead inside, you probably need a therapist. If you look at it and feel blah, you need to light the wick. How? Strike the match. Start by skimming everything you can find on the web about that subject. Read every article, blog, and website you can with the time you have. If applicable, look at pictures, too. Get inside the topic and swim around. Reading is one the best ways, I find, to get inspired and find your footing. Once you have a better idea of where you are, you can discover an angle to explore. If you can, make that angle as interesting to you as possible. Not only will it be more fun to write, that interest will bleed into your tone. Let’s face it: We all know when a writer is bored to death. To combat that bored tone from boring your readers, get in there and find the interesting side. Comic by Grant Snider 4. Resort to the Dying Arts So, what if silence isn’t bothering you? What if distractions aren’t an issue? What if you have ideas, but the writer’s block is still there? If you’re blank, you need my last-resort strategy. It requires three steps: Get out a notebook. Grab your favorite pen. Write – in cursive. I’m not talking about the modern scrawl you use to sign checks and jot grocery lists. I’m talking about formal, cursive handwriting. Yes, the type they don’t want to teach in schools anymore. The kind you practiced during painstaking sessions of loops and swirls in second grade. That one. When all else fails, this causes my brain to light up in a new way. I start thinking differently than when I’m typing. Sometimes, I’ll even jot down a whole introduction to my … Read more

5 Questions Everyone Asks Before Jumping into Copywriting: How to Get Started (A Real-Life Guide)

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5 Questions Everyone Asks Before Jumping into Copywriting: How to Get Started (A Real-Life Guide)

A few months ago, I was asked by Express Writers to write about my own journey as a creative copywriter. It was thrilling. I strive to be honest with others, so I have to say that after a regular schedule of writing content for clients who take my words and use it for their needs, it was exciting to have something with my name on it. I shared it on Facebook without reserve. My husband shared it with the comment “my wife wrote this.” People liked it, and I was in writer’s heaven. It’s what I’ve always wanted to do. As a kid, I kept journals and I received high grades on writing assignments. For the last several years, while working with a nonprofit, raising three kids, and going back to school, writing has been at the back of my mind. I’ve always known I am a writer. “I just need to write.” (Jeff Goins) Searching for Answers (On Google, Of Course) If you type “how to get started in copywriting” into a Google search, you will see that there are almost 700,000 search results. There is a lot of different advice out there, including tips like: “You can become a well-paid freelance copywriter with NO experience!” “Get a job in sales to help you prepare.” “Become a freelance copywriter and earn a 6-figure income working from home.” While I respect the journeys that others have taken in their writing and the advice they can share, not all of these statements have been true in my own experience with copywriting. I never had a job in sales. I definitely don’t make a 6-figure income. And while it is true that you can work your way up to “well paid,” it doesn’t come without at least some experience (and a full pot of coffee, but maybe that’s just me). Every person who wants to get started in copywriting will be at a different place in life, have a different income requirement, and bring their own skills and experience to the industry. I would not want anyone to fall for a scheme or believe that this job requires little work for big bucks. Copywriting is not a get-rich-quick gig. At the same time, previous experience and/or an education could push you to the higher end of the pay scale in a faster amount of time. Low-end freelance writers can make anywhere from $3,000 to $15,000 per year, while those who are more high-end can eventually earn 6 figures. Moving from Writing Wannabe to Creative Copywriting: How to Get Started When you are thinking about moving from a writing wannabe to a creative copywriter, you will no doubt have some questions. Whether you are a recent graduate looking to break into the industry, a stay-at-home parent who needs extra income, or you just love writing, there are legitimate opportunities that can work with your schedule and abilities. Here are some common questions you might have: 1. Is online copywriting the same as general writing? Copywriting and general writing are two very different types of content. As Search Engine Journal reminds us, the distinction lies in the purpose behind the writing. Copywriting is used for promotion and in marketing, to entertain and draw the audience in so they engage with the company or brand. Content marketing is backed by an objective, a goal, that is supported by authoritative research in an effort to connect with the readers and sell the idea. It is professional yet warm, engaging yet relevant, and seeks to build trust while also maintaining a conversational tone. Copywriting can be sarcastic, funny, creative, or focused. It’s used by big and small companies, entrepreneurs, medical professionals, business-to-business (B2B) markets, and just about anyone who needs to promote a brand or message. 2. Do I need to be a fantastic writer to get started in freelance copywriting? First, writing needs to be, at the very least, something you enjoy. If content writing is something you are seeking out just to have some extra pocket cash, that’s okay, but there needs to be some passion behind it. Your level of writing experience could be minimal, especially if you are working with a company like Express Writers. When I first signed on, I had written previously on a casual basis, but not as a job. Thankfully, our team of editors has been patient and willing to guide me in the right direction as far as meeting the clients’ needs, etc. Over time, I have grown to really enjoy long-form blog writing (like this piece) and for those tasks I don’t like so much, I fake it. I research the particular industry and try to put myself in the place of a customer for that particular company. What would he or she be looking for? This is true for blogs, web page content, and social media posts. A copywriter will work to create high-quality content or improve the existing content to fit a specific need. So, you do need a basic understanding of proper grammar, proofreading, and sentence structure. At the end of the day, clients are counting on you to deliver to them a product that they can use. And you will find that the longer you continue to write, the more you will grow and continue to improve. 3. What types of writing should I be familiar with? (Source – by our CEO, Julia McCoy!) Depending on the position, a copywriter can receive a number of requests from clients with very different objectives. For example, a startup that is looking to jumpstart their business with powerful social media posts may request your copywriting services at the same time as a restaurant professional wants a website makeover. Web Content: This textual or visual content appears on websites of all varieties and may include images, video, and page descriptions. Web content should be original, useful, and relevant to the industry for which you are writing. Here are some content writing examples and tools to reference. … Read more

7 Fundamental Pillars that Make Up Great Modern Copywriting

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7 Fundamental Pillars that Make Up Great Modern Copywriting

Modern copywriting: while it may be similar to the copywriting of years past, it’s a different animal entirely. Today, copywriters must be Jacks and Jills of all trades – switching effortlessly between marketing prowess, fine-tuned technical know-how, poetic turns of phrase, and hard-driving SEO experience meant to produce results. If this sounds like a tall order, it’s because it is! Modern copywriting is hard, and few people understand what it takes to excel in the field. Read on to learn more about the seven key pillars of modern copywriting, and how they set the art this craft apart from anything that’s ever existed before. How Do You Define Modern Copywriting? That’s a great question, and it’s also a complex one. In many ways, modern copywriting is anything that’s being created right now. That’s not the extent of it, though. While modern copywriting is certainly content that’s being produced in the current era, it’s also a different type of content entirely. Today’s copywriting is dedicated to so much more than just making sales. Instead, it’s about building relationships, defining brands, telling stories, creating laughs, playing on reader emotions, and learning how best to present a product, good, or service to interested consumers. Thanks to all of these things, today’s copywriting is a drastically different pursuit than anything that’s existed in recent years, and it’s adapting every single day to become more functional and targeted for rising and developing brands. The 7 Essential Pillars of Modern Copywriting Just like any other industry out there, modern copywriting has a rulebook, and the people who excel in the industry know how to play by it. With that in mind, here are the seven foundational “laws” of modern copywriting, and how they all influence the industry for the better. 1. A focus on the customer In the days of old, copywriting focused on the customer, but for all the wrong reasons. The copywriting of the past was all about making sales and convincing readers that they needed a product, good, or service, regardless of whether they did or not. Most of the time, this approach came off as pushy and sales-y because, hey, it was. Today, though, copywriting takes a much different approach to relationships with customers. Instead of trying to shove something down peoples’ throats, the copywriting of today uses a complex series of emotional appeals, facts, statistics, and storylines to create a real, ongoing relationship with consumers. Instead of thinking of customers purely from the standpoint of, “What can this person do for me?” Today’s copywriters look at customers as a unique group of individual people. To honor them as well as possible, copywriters attempt to create truly valuable content that addresses consumer issues and helps them solve problems, alleviate pain points, and build healthier, happier lives. In this way, modern copywriting is more customer-centric than anything that came before it. 2. A dedication to quality and relevance Before Google got as smart as it is today, and before consumers demanded quality, copywriters and marketers often settled for scrapped, spammy, and just plain bad online content. The attitude was, “As long as I’m putting something up on this web page or blog, it’s good enough!” Today, this no longer flies. Modern copywriting is all about creating truly high-quality content that stands out. Spammy, black-hat techniques are no longer the norm and, today, it’s the best material that is the most likely to get noticed. Contrary to the copywriting mindset of just a few years ago, when the creator who could put out the most content in the shortest period was the winner, today’s copywriters earn respect by crafting unique, original material that consumers (and search engines) love. 3. A focus on social media distribution As I mentioned at the start of this post, today’s copywriters are evil masterminds who know how to use all of the things of the internet. Instead of being just writers, or just social media experts, the modern writer is both, and a whole lot more! Today, copywriting that succeeds is copywriting that’s meant to be distributed on a wide selection of platforms. Because of this, the majority of modern content is designed for distribution on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. In addition to the fact that these social platforms often produce more engagement than a blog or website, they’re one of the most efficient ways for modern creators to connect with audiences in an effective and meaningful way. 4. A willingness to engage in storytelling While storytelling has been around as a marketing strategy since the beginning, it’s become the focus on online marketing in recent years. Today, the pervasive notion is that copywriting is nothing without good storytelling and that any brand worth its snuff will understand how to craft a good tale for its audience. From advertising to product launches, storytelling exists everywhere, and modern copywriting is credited with developing, perpetuating, and fine-tuning the practice. 5. A focus on additional types of content (video, audio, and visuals) Modern copywriters know that, for a piece to be interesting, engaging, and compelling to increasingly discerning audiences, it needs to feature everything the audience wants and nothing it doesn’t. This is why so much content today features multi-modal assets, such as visuals, graphics, and video content. By interspersing content with these unique formats, today’s copywriters succeed in creating an interesting and engaging body of work that truly benefits and fascinates consumers, rather than simply leaving them cold. What’s more, adding visuals and videos into modern content is a wonderful way to ensure that a piece’s readers are getting the most out of the information offered. 6. Freedom to be as creative as possible Anyone who has ever seen Dollar Shave Club’s launch video understands that creativity is here to stay in the world of modern content. While the buttoned-up marketers of the 1950s would have cringed at such a bawdy, funny piece of content, today’s copywriters understand that creativity like this is one of the most effective ways to reach tough audiences. By making a marketing message funny and unique, it’s possible to do … Read more

The Ultimate Guide: How to Create Headlines that Will Go Viral

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The Ultimate Guide: How to Create Headlines that Will Go Viral

We’ve all heard it: while 80% of people read headlines, only 20% read body copy. What does that mean in practice, though? In other words, how do you create headlines that entice that elusive 20% to keep reading? Or to share, comment, and convert? The truth is that viral headlines are rare, and they take time, effort, and skill to master. Fortunately, the content marketers who develop solid headline skills have a better chance of standing out from the crowd. Modern customers are attracted to quality and effort, and a great headline reflects both. The good news is that headlines like these aren’t out of reach. Here’s your complete guide to creating them. What Makes a Headline Viral? If you want to create viral headlines, you must first understand what, exactly, makes them go viral. What are the components they include, and what’s their foundational structure look like? Here are a few critical elements of every good headline, as laid out by Steve Rayson in a BuzzSumo article: Viral headlines have an emotional element Viral headlines use content elements to their advantage Viral content covers trending topics Viral headlines follow a format Viral headlines promise the reader something Here’s Rayson’s table, to illustrate: According to him, most viral headlines employ not one, not two, but three or four of these elements. This combination allows them to perform in a unique way, and to grab your readers’ attention. Which Headlines Get Shared? The good things about learning to write viral headlines is that there’s a lot of information about which headlines get shared and which don’t, and this can help guide your efforts. For example, in 2014, OkDork published a post that showcased the results of a survey that analyzed more than 1 million headlines. Here’s what they found: The Most Popular Phrases in Viral Headlines The OkDork survey found that the most popular words and phrases in headlines were: As you can see, list posts top the charts time and time again. And this makes sense – they’re easy to skim, valuable for readers, and ideal for virtually all industries. Beyond that, the survey also made it clear that people love personalization, and that content that addresses the reader personally (by using the words “you” and “your”) sat at the top of the list, as well. Readers also loved any post that promised a better situation or hinted it would teach them to do something. As you can see, using the right words in your headline is essential, and can make all the difference in your readership. Emotional Headlines As the web has become more personalized and targeted, there’s been a push toward emotional headlines. These headlines take all forms. They can be shocking, infuriating, laugh-inducing, or curiosity-inspiring. Readers just want to feel something when they read your headline. This requires the use of power words. Some power words, like free, easy, and DIY are already included in the list above. There are many others besides these, though. Terms like approved, competitive, unsurpassed, and confidential all inspire strong emotional reactions in readers, and help drive shares for your content. There’s science to back this up, too. According to CoSchedule, posts with a higher emotional value earn more shares than posts with little emotional value. Headlines That Utilize Trigrams A trigram is a three-word phrase used in a headline. While the number 3 has significance throughout nature and mythology, it’s also a powerhouse in the world of writing and, specifically, headlines. The rule of three states that things that come in packs of three are funnier, more impactful, and more satisfying than things that don’t and this holds true for a viral title. BuzzSumo reports that certain trigrams within headlines earn more shares and likes than others. Here are a few to get you started: X Pictures That X Signs You’re How Well Do Can We Guess You Should Never X Things Only The Science Of History Of The The Art Of The Future Of As you can see, these trigrams are just a skeletal structure that you can apply to any headline in any industry. Superlative-Rich Headlines If you’re like most writers, you’ve been taught not to use superlatives in your writing. It’s time to turn that on its head, though. According to BuzzSumo, superlatives can increase the share volume of your headline when used correctly. Because they boost the emotional value of a headline and make it easier for readers to get excited about them, superlatives are ideal for creating viral posts that spread widely across the web. Here are a few superlatives to get started with: Amazing Inspiring Surprising Successful Particularly useful for content designed to be shared on social, superlatives can make your headlines more impactful, promising, and exiting for your readers. Content Formats There are a few content formats that get shared more often than others, and using them is a great way to make your content more viral. These include lists of ten things, how-to guides, and quizzes. Quizzes are especially exciting since they represent a form of interactive content many marketers aren’t creating. In addition to going viral, interactive content like this also allows you to expand your reach and help you stand out as a leader in your industry. How to Write Viral Headlines: 5 Tips Now that you know which types of headlines go viral let’s talk about how to write them for yourself. 1. Evaluate The Headline’s Emotional Impact Remember: headlines with a high emotional impact get shared more frequently than minimally emotional headlines. With this in mind, use a tool like the Emotional Marketing Value Headline Analyzer from AMI. Designed to evaluate the way your headline’s word groups come together to elicit emotional responses from readers, this tool is free and easy to use. Here’s an example of what it looks like in action: 2. Follow a Formula If you’re just getting started with headlines, and you want to ensure yours perform well, look for ways to include tried-and-true methods in your headline approach. Trigrams like those mentioned by BuzzSumo are always a fantastic jumping-off point. In addition to making your … Read more

Misspelled or Mispelled? & 6 Other Obnoxious Copywriting Errors (Pop Quiz inside)

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Misspelled or Mispelled? & 6 Other Obnoxious Copywriting Errors (Pop Quiz inside)

All copywriters are very much human. Even though they might publish copy that looks absolutely pristine and perfect. How do I know? Because we make spelling errors just like the rest of the mere mortals. 😉 But the difference between you and me? Because when I’m a copywriter and make a mistake, a lot more people are going to see it. That’s a whole lot of pressure. Let’s face it: English spelling is hard. For example, how come if you write a play, you are a playwright, not a play write? And why in the world is kernel spelled colonel? In fact, George Bernard Shaw once pointed out that under English spelling rules, fish could just as easily be spelled g-h-o-t-i as f-i-s-h. (As in the gh from tough; the o as in women; and the ti like in nation.) With all the wacky spelling rules, it is easy to see why even the smartest of us have problems every once in a while. Still, though, there are some mistakes so wrong that nobody should be guilty of making them. Yet, there they are, constantly being included on lists of the most commonly misspelled words (misspell, by the way, is not misspelled: however, mispelled definitely is). If you want to make it in the copywriting biz: do not make any of these common errors. We’ve put together a fun spelling test pop quiz for you in this post! Our talented designer created a quiz graphic for every question. Remember: don’t peek at the end till you’ve taken a guess! How well will you do on our spelling test? Ready…set…go! 7 Common Spelling Problems You Should Not Be Making in Your Copywriting Be creative with your copy, but not your spelling. Don’t even try to get creative with misspelling, i.e. krazy kopywriting. PSA: that’s not cute – that’s just bad spelling. Here are seven words you should consistently be spelling right, but that a whole lot of people aren’t. If you want to make it in the copy game, time to get all of these right. 1. Most Obnoxious: They’re always getting their words mixed up over there. [clickToTweet tweet=”They’re vs. their is a spine-chilling error that wins most obnoxious spelling mishap on the planet.” quote=”They’re vs. their is a spine-chilling error that wins most obnoxious spelling mishap on the planet. – @JuliaEMcCoy”] They’re vs. their. People seem to have a lot of trouble with this one, but if you are going to be a copywriter, you have to figure it out. For starters, let’s go over they’re. Whenever you see an apostrophe that is not possessive, you know it has to be a contraction. So they’re has to be one as well. And, of course, it absolutely is. It stands for they are, and it should never be used in any other way. Then, there is there. It’s a location – as in over there. It should never get mixed up with their – which is possessive. As in, their property. Ready? Test yourself: 2. He needs to leave to buy that car by the store. Bye! Everyone should know the difference between buy, as in purchase, bye, as in adios, and by, as in a preposition. Yet, here is this used car sign that makes me question everything I thought I knew about the level of grammar knowledge: This particular store will bye used cars. I guess that sort of make senses. I mean, maybe they were going for the message that they quickly get rid of used cars, as in they go bye. However, I feel like that is a stretch. They just apparently needed my spelling lesson. How about you? Are you better than this used cars sign? Get this question right and prove it: 3. If you lose any more weight, your pants will feel loose. Lose is a verb. It means to replace. Loose is an adjective that means not firm. It seems so easy. Yet when a sign for Hoodia Patch, a weight lose aid, claimed to be the effective way to loose weight, people quickly pointed out their mistake. And even fixing said mistake made them the butt of jokes as people pointed out that their ad must have gone on a diet because their loose lost an o in the edit. Now that is not the type of attention you want your copywriting to get you. Are you ready for the quiz on this section? It should be an easy one: 4. Here are two cookies that need to be eaten later because they are too hot now. Two people pretty much have figured out. It’s that pesky to and too that they just can’t wrap their minds around. Let’s break it down. To is a preposition. Too is an adverb meaning either a higher degree than is desired or else also. Easy, right? Tell that to this tax office who thinks it is never to late to file your taxes (but is it too late to fix the sign?): Do you have it down? Or do you need extra help like those accountants, too? Select the right answer: 5. Why don’t I like that sign? Because it’s got to fix its spelling. Admittedly, its and it’s can be a little confusing if you are used to ‘s being a possessive. However, when it comes to this common misspelling, all you have to know is that it’s means it is or it has and absolutely nothing else. Did you happen to notice that in the accounting sign above, they also got this wrong? That’s a truly awful sign. Its not to late to file your taxes should have been it’s not too late to file your taxes. If you ever see this sign on an accountant’s door, please know that it’s not too late to find another accountant. Now for the quiz question: 6. A lot of people think alot is okay. (It isn’t.) Alot does not exist. It is no more real than alittle or apair or … Read more

How to Kill the Fear Troll that Stops Copy Conversions From Happening & Win Over Your Readers (Case Study)

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How to Kill the Fear Troll that Stops Copy Conversions From Happening & Win Over Your Readers (Case Study)

What is it in your copy that leads someone on your site from the point of almost purchasing, to actually converting? Better yet… What stops them from that last step (the sale)? The answer is relatively simple. At some point, they came face-to-face with an ugly troll that is known as prospect fear. Today, we’re calling it the “Copy Fear Troll.” If you’re lacking copy conversions, this troll is out there, living and breathing in your copy, on your web pages, ready to pounce on anyone who is considering a purchase on your site. The good news? You can do more than just stop it: you can kill it. Read on to learn what website visitors fear the most (defining the Copy Fear Troll), and how I overcame a personal troll of our own, living and breathing on our site, as a New Year’s goal for my agency’s online presence. The 3 Subconscious Fears of Your Online Visitors (Before Copy Conversions Ever Happen) Every member of your audience has a different buying style: some are impulsive and will buy with little to no research, while others will want their decisions reaffirmed before making any commitments. Here are some reasons your potential customers may do a quick dash for the figurative door before taking action. 1. Insecurity Insecurities come from many different places, including past experiences, a lack of information, and a sense that the product or service is not quite good enough. This is the fear troll’s area of expertise – dredging up all the reasons why this transaction is going to fail. 2. Mistrust The goal in content marketing is to build trust and keep readers coming back for more quality content. There are many reasons to not trust, especially if your readers have been burned before. The fear troll loves sending subtle reminders about why a customer should quit before getting too involved. 3. Waste Most of us can remember a time when we wasted money on something foolish, whether it was a door-to-door scheme or online purchase we felt we could not do without. No one wants to repeat that mistake, so the fear troll whispers doubt at every step. Getting Rid of the Copy Fear Troll So, what’s a content marketer to do? You might be surprised at how easy the answer is: kill the fear troll with real, down-to-earth, authentic copy that transparently situates your brand and your services before your prospects. Thorough transparency. It’s the name of the anti-copy fear troll game. We recently worked on going from almost-good-enough to fear-killing-copy on our site, and the results have been promising. A Case Study of How Killing the Fear Troll in Your Copy Works In December of 2016, to prep for a great January and an even better 2017, I recruited one of our top internal marketing writers from my agency to help boost our site copy. As of December, we had roughly 6,000 monthly site visitors, and our non-paid reach in Google SERPs was worth $13,000 in organic value: Yet our average new customer number was around 20-30 a month, and some converted at low numbers. Only one or two visitors per day actually sent in a contact form. We wanted to change that! Together, my ad writer and I looked at my agency site, our services, and worked out the best emphasis on “how to sell” in our own copy. 3 Ways We Banished the Copy Conversions Fear Troll—& Won The problem we found was that visitors were bouncing early on—after a few clicks from the home page. My ad copywriter decided that we needed a) more copy and b) more effective copy. The biggest two takeaways I learned from auditing our site and reinventing the weak copy that we had: Cut to the core of what you do best. Be simple and authentic about your product and value. Be confident and speak with confidence. You’re the A-team: show clients that! Here’s the core of the changes we did: 1. New Fear-Banishing Page Around Our Values Inspired, I created the new Our Values page. In it, I concentrated on telling – from my heart – why our brand stands out above all our competitors. We take a lot of pride in a process that removes 98% of the applicants that approach our writing team, but I wasn’t telling the story of our process on the site. 2. New Image Choices (Visualizing a Happy Client) & Friendlier Menu We then re-created the menu at the top of our site with more clarity: We have a lot of resources—podcast, blog, and Twitter chat—and we grouped that under one tab called “Learn.” We created an “About” menu that included Success Stories (which we didn’t have live on the site previously), and a Meet the Team page. We worked together to create a strong page that emphatically shared “our values.” The end result was so strong that we took it out of the About tab and put it live in the menu as Our Values. We even changed the image on the home page. We had a stock image of a writer, thinking, pen in hand. The new image my ad consultant suggested was a visualization of a happy client receiving their content. Literally, someone smiling at a computer, with at least one other person. It was important to visualize the end result for the client rather than just our team doing the work. The result when we changed up the image concept (simple—a Shutterstock purchase!) was tremendously better looking. Here’s the difference, visually, between our old menu and home page stock image: And our new home page menu and image: In less than a week, more than three live chats have been started from the Our Values page by brand new, incoming agency leads (our ideal client type), discussing thousands of dollars’ worth of work. We’re starting to attract communications from our ideal client type—after I decided it was time to speak to them, in our copy! After reading the … Read more

What to Expect from a Custom Writing Service

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What to Expect from a Custom Writing Service

If you’re like most marketers, you’ve probably considered hiring a custom writing service at one point or another. But if you’re like most marketers that are new to delegating their online writing, there’s another side to that: you’re also probably not sure what to expect from working with a custom writing service. We’re here to shine a light on the topic! If you’ve ever wondered what a custom writing service is and what you can expect when you hire one, this post is for you. Read on to learn more. Let’s Define a Custom Writing Service A custom writing service is any company, individual, or firm that writes custom web content for customers. Seem simple? It is, but it’s also very varied. A custom writing service can write anything from blog content to print books, depending on what the customer wants and needs. Custom writing services are run by expert copywriters, marketers, and SEOs, and are designed to help busy marketers get the custom content they require, without the hassle of stressing over producing it in-house. Check out a short list of what we do, from our pricing page (over 40 products in our Content Shop!): To see a full list of what our copywriters can handle, check out my guide: How Copywriting Works. 5 Standard Expectations to Have with a Quality-Oriented Custom Writing Service If you choose to hire a custom writing service, you’ll be in for a unique experience. Because custom writing services are highly individualized by definition, the service you receive from the company or individual you hire won’t necessarily be comparable to anyone else’s experience. The custom writing service is there to define, understand, and exceed your unique needs – that’s the whole point! You can, however, count on a few standard protocols and methods from any custom writing service you hire. These are as follows: 1. A custom writing service will take time to consult with you about your needs To serve you effectively, a custom writing service needs to understand what you hope to get out of the partnership. For example, are you looking to populate a new site with content? Do you want to improve your leads and enjoy more conversions? Are you publishing an ebook and looking for someone to help you write or organize the copy? Maybe you’re looking to start a blog, but you don’t have time to manage it. Whatever your needs may be, the first thing any reputable custom writing service will do is seek to understand them. This information is critical for the writing company because it allows them to do the following things: Gain a deeper understanding of your company Develop a plan to meet and exceed your goals Craft custom content that caters to your corporate aspirations Adjust existing content to support your business’s trajectory When you first hire a custom writing service, you’ll want to be prepared to be as open as possible about your goals. This will help the company better serve you. 2. A great custom writing service will evaluate your current content They won’t just throw a quote at you – a good writing service will actually evaluate where you stand and go from there. If you’ve already got content on your site or blog, or if you’ve provided a layout for a bigger project, like an ebook, the custom writing service will evaluate it and reach out with suggestions, questions, or observations. This helps the writing team you select get an idea of how long you want your content to be, which topics you’d like covered, what voice you’re looking for, and what goals you’d like the content to achieve. For best results, be sure to maintain an open line of communication with the custom writing service. Remember: great writing flows easier when both of you communicate freely about the direction of the project. More tips on that in our guide on outsourcing your writing. 3. They will develop a content plan Depending on the goals you set out earlier in the process, the custom writing service will now help you develop a content plan designed to meet the objective. For example, if your primary goal was to increase your social media following, the custom writing service may design a social content plan that includes several posts each week on all of your platforms. This plan would likely include a mix of curated, original, visual, and textual content to intrigue and inspire your readers. This is a point at which you can expect to work very closely with the company. Does the plan adhere to what you had in mind? Is there anything you need clarification on? Do you want more detail about why a particular keyword is being targeted or why the use of infographics, for example, is so smart? All you have to do is ask! Any custom writing service worth its keyboards will be happy to help shine a light on these things for you. 4. Your custom writing service will optimize content for SEO If you’re publishing web-based content for the purpose of marketing or lead generation, you can expect your custom writing service to optimize it for search engines and readers. Remember, your readers come first, but SEO is vital too. Today, 81% of consumers research online before they decide to buy a product, and having content that is optimized for SEO is one of the best ways to ensure that your content appears when and where readers need it. If you’re not familiar with SEO, a good custom writing service can help you understand it more deeply. Essentially, SEO is the process of optimizing content for search engine visibility and a positive user experience. This often entails methods like keyword inclusion and meta content optimization, to name just a couple. The fact that so many custom writing services now optimize for SEO is one thing consumers love. Because today’s most visible content has all been optimized for SEO, hiring a quality custom writing service can help you remove the middleman and get professional, expert-level, properly … Read more

Separating the Wheat from the Chaff: 14 Traits to Look for In Your SEO Copywriting Service

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Separating the Wheat from the Chaff: 14 Traits to Look for In Your SEO Copywriting Service

Finding a good SEO copywriting service is no joke. In addition to being professional, the service you hire must also be knowledgeable, experienced, and able to turn on a dime to accommodate your needs. Sound like a tall order? It is! We hear new clients tell us all the time horror stories about their past experiences. Writers that didn’t pan up to the promises, didn’t even have experience in the industry they swore up and down they did, and deadlines that were left in the dust. My team, founded on high principles, has been around for six years now. We know a thing or two about values, and what it takes to create content that fulfills every need for clients. We’re here to share today the key elements to look for in an SEO copywriting service that will put the “wheat,” not the chaff, in black and white for you. Keep reading! Defining SEO Copywriting SEO copywriting is the marriage of two essential skills: SEO, and copywriting. While each of these things has existed separately for many years, the focus on bringing them both together has arisen in response to increasingly intelligent search engines and increasingly discerning consumers. SEO used to be aimed at optimizing content so search engines could find it. This often entailed keyword stuffing, black-hat link building tactics, and spammy content pasted across every page of the site. Copywriting, on the other hand, used to be aimed only at sales. The copywriters of old were the great salespersons of the web – pitching ideas, pushing products, and doing anything they could to get an early, interested, underwhelmed audience to bite (ah, for those low-volume internet days to return to us again!). Today, though, both of those things have shifted. Within the last several years, search engines have gotten smarter, and major names like Google have begun to penalize sites that use the SEO tactics of yesteryear. Today, spammy links, crappy content, and over-stuffed keywords simply don’t fly. That’s not where it ends, though – Google has also begun to push for better-quality, more user-focused content, and customers have followed suit. Today, readers want quality, informative, relevant content that helps them solve their problems, and Google wants SEO that optimizes for readers just as much as it does for people. Because of this, SEO copywriting has become an essential service for successful companies near and far. Today, SEO copywriting is critical for businesses that want to target their customers and help to solve problems and relieve pain points with the aid of unique, relevant, and high-quality online content. Why Hire an SEO Copywriting Service? Every business needs online content, and that online content needs to be optimized for reader experience and search engine visibility. With few exceptions, most marketers don’t have the time, expertise, or resources in-house to create this type of content or to optimize the content they’ve already created. Without a centralized plan for improving SEO and crafting great content, things begin to go to pieces. Content comes out disorganized or irrelevant, and SEO falls by the wayside. This is why it’s so critical for companies who are serious about their success to hire an SEO copywriting service. In addition to helping make SEO and content creation a more cohesive, cooperative process, a good online copywriting service has dozens of additional benefits, as well. Some of the largest are as follows: Increased traffic: Right now, 61% of internet users around the world search for products online. Unless you’ve crafted enough targeted, custom content to catch their attention, you’re going to miss out on significant amounts of attention for your site. A good SEO copywriting service can help you identify your customers, and then develop material that speaks directly to them, contributing to increase your site views and help your brand become a household name. Boosted leads: According to HubSpot, companies with websites ranging between 401-1000 pages earn 6x as many leads as businesses that only have between 51-1000 pages. When you hire an SEO copywriting service, one of the top priorities will likely be to create blog and web page content. As you create blogs, for example, each new blog is an additional page for Google to index. This helps boost your site’s visibility and increases the number of leads your site will draw through organic traffic. Increased relevance to customers: Today, customers use web content to answer questions and gain new information. When your company creates custom content meant to cater to these purposes, you become more relevant to your consumers, which is good for brand recognition and customer loyalty. Decreased costs: While inbound marketing is drastically more efficient than traditional, outbound marketing, it’s also significantly less expensive. In fact, HubSpot reports that companies save an average of $20,000 each year by migrating to inbound marketing tactics. 14 Traits of a Worthwhile SEO Copywriting Service 1. Clearly defined boundaries SEO copywriting services are not SEO-only services, and it’s important to understand that from the get-go. While a good SEO copywriting service has an extensive understanding of everything that has to do with search algorithms, and likely conducts Google-specific duties like keyword research and on-page optimization, it’s unlikely that an SEO copywriting service will do anything like updating your link profile, for example. With this in mind, an SEO copywriting service should neither define itself as an SEO company nor should it attempt to tackle the most convoluted aspects of technical algorithms. These jobs are best left for other, more technical firms. When an SEO copywriting service clearly defines what it is and isn’t, you can bet that the content delivered will be high-quality and that the scope of focus will be narrow enough to provide you with targeted, quality service. 2. A willingness to work with your company’s brand A professional SEO copywriting service will morph to adapt to your brand. Everything from the company’s voice to their approach should shift depending on your unique target audience and preferred tone. While this may sound like a tall order, copywriters are chameleons by nature, and altering these things to provide you with a good experience … Read more

Why Robots Won’t Replace The Writer Anytime Soon, and How to Create Content that Will be Read

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Why Robots Won’t Replace The Writer Anytime Soon, and How to Create Content that Will be Read

In recent years, there’s been some concern that robots will eventually replace human writers. Automated systems have successfully replaced people in thousands of factory assembly jobs, surgical positions, security posts, and farming positions. Why not writing, as well? While there’s no doubt that writing has been, and will continue to be, aided by technological advancement, I say it’s unlikely that robots will ever fully replace the human copywriter. Why? Robots can’t process a human level of creativity, thinking, and subsequently, writing. While robots, algorithms, and automated systems may have methods in place to “crawl” and interpret data, they will never understand the distinctly human joy of curling up in front of the fireplace with a cup of tea and a great book. Think about these scenarios for a moment: Robots will never know how exciting Tolkien’s world can be, or how a great novel or short story can transport you to another time, place, and headspace. Robots will never know what it means to read a Content Marketing Institute article that punches you in the gut, that you feel compelled to share so everyone can learn what you just learned (content marketing nerds unite). Robots can’t ever wipe away their own tears at the last lines of Shakespeare’s dying Romeo, or Mufasa’s passing in the Lion King. For these reasons, human copywriters will not be replaced anytime soon. While robots might be capable of incredible things, only we understand how deeply human the act of writing is, and how much heart it takes to produce material that other people want to read. Why Robots Won’t Replace the Writer: The Raw Power of Human, Conversational Content You know what else robots are lacking that humans have down pat? The power of conversation. Sure – robots can be programmed to talk, answer questions, and tell jokes, but they’ll never be the conversational natives that humans have always been. This gives us a serious edge when it comes to copywriting. If you’ve been working in the digital marketing space for a while, it’s likely that you can think of a few examples of funny, conversational, relatable content you’ve read and enjoyed that features a distinctly human touch. Here are a few of the brands that come to mind for me when I think of conversational content: 1. Dollar Shave Club Dollar Shave Club is almost always on the top of these lists because the brand has done such an incredible job of making itself approachable, funny, and relatable. There’s no doubt these guys have real, hard-working humans behind their digital content. While there are dozens of examples of how the company does this, check out this screenshot of the “How it Works” portion of their website for a great demonstration: 2. Poo~Pourri What I love about Poo~Pourri is their genius level of creativity in every bit of copy and marketing material. Their theme? Creative humor. They win at it. If that’s not fun, relatable and conversational, I don’t know what is. We all can give a little belly laugh in the name of joining a “potty” community ready to spritz the bowl and “trap-a-crap” (a product name, not kidding you). Show me a content scraper, algorithm, or robot that can evoke that humorous level of creativity. 3. Headspace Headspace built a meditation app that provides access to fast, accessible meditations for situations ranging from anxiety to anger to general wellbeing. While meditation often feels like a lofty and unapproachable practice, Headspace hits the ball out of the park when it comes to making the pursuit user-friendly and approachable. One of my favorite examples of their conversational their content is their “How the Headspace App Works Video.”  Watch it and then tell me you’re still feeling intimidated about developing a meditative practice: 5 Reasons We Have to Learn Conversational Writing While the brands above are all killing it at conversational writing, the people behind this content didn’t just come in off the streets and start excelling at it. While it’s true that people are conversational natives, writing marketing copy (and everything listed above is marketing copy) that connects with readers requires a set of learned skills. Most of us are familiar with marketing messages that feel cold, pushy, overly sales-y, or cheap. This material makes us recoil and click “delete” as fast as we can. While a human may have written it, it doesn’t do anything to make us feel all warm and fuzzy inside. With this in mind, we have to learn conversational writing. Here’s why: 1. School didn’t teach us If you’re like most people, you remember being told you were too wordy, informal, or grammatically incorrect in your school papers. While this may have made sense when we were learning APA or MLA formatting or constructing a senior thesis in college, it doesn’t hold up in the real world. Sometimes, approachable marketing writing bends grammar rules. Sometimes it’s less formal than a college essay, and sometimes it pushes the envelope – but that’s okay! In fact, that’s necessary. While school taught us to abide by hundred-year-old grammar rules, it didn’t teach us how to be approachable and conversational in the material we write. 2. Conversational writing takes relies on the audience What your audience might find approachable and what my audience might find approachable may well be two separate things. While some aspects of conversational writing carry across all industries and target personas, there’s no doubt that being compelling in marketing copy requires you to know your target audience intimately. If you don’t, you can’t expect to speak directly to them. 3. It takes time to get good at this While there’s a fine line between being professional and robotic, there’s also a fine line between being conversational and downright rude or unprofessional. Conversational writing, like all things, requires a delicate hand and a certain level of skill. You don’t develop this overnight, and it’s important to give yourself time and space to hone the craft and develop your unique style. 4. Old habits die hard For some people, breaking out of the box of academic writing and learning to be more conversational and … Read more

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