You may have noticed that my weekly e-newsletters and regular e-mails have…..well, disappeared. Earlier this year, I made a deliberate decision to stop creating more content until I looked closer at my business, at my wonderful clients and at great people like you who are members of my e-mail list.

I have asked many of you – as well as myself – questions like:

• How can I best serve you?
• What are your most pressing challenges when it comes to writing your copy and marketing your business?
• What are the most efficient and financially sensible ways for you to tap into my expertise so you can write your own copy (or your clients’ copy) painlessly, quickly and effectively?
• What kinds of programs, training, coaching and other resources would best help you write new copy, finish the copy projects you keep putting off and revamp existing copy?

What I have found over and over is that many of you have the skills and expertise to write your own copy – you just need the right systems and guidance to get you going and keep you going. There will always be those of you with the time constraints, desire (none!) and budget to hire my team to write all your copy – and for you, I will always be here. For the rest of you, I am all about setting up programs that make sense for your schedule, your budget and your capabilities – copy that prompts people to action, makes you money and makes a difference.

So, let’s get started: Simply hit “reply” to this email and in any way you want – a list, questions, quick blurbs, anything - - let me know what you want to learn how to do better. Is it write blogs? Sales letters? Press releases? Research for new content? Repurpose existing content? Create info products? Write for social media?

Whatever it is, I can’t wait to hear from you!

And as a special thank you for the five respondants, I will be giving away my Copywrite U Combo Pack, a Do-It-Yourself Guide to an Effective Press Release and a Do-it-Yourself Guide to an Effective Press Kit.

To Your Success,

Allison Nazarian

Finding quality writers is no easy task. As with hiring any employee or contractor, be sure to get the facts first. Ask these questions, and you’re sure to find a talented, hard-working and dependable writer with whom you can build a productive relationship.

What exactly am I looking for?

Before you begin your search for a writer, make sure to make a rough draft of your needs. Do you need a marketing writer, who produces brochures and other promotional collateral? Do you need a technical writer – or maybe a generalist?

Ask to see work samples. Professional writers are quite skilled (otherwise they’d be in a different profession), but they may not have the experience to handle the specific assignment for which you need assistance.

How does the writer charge?

Many writers work on a per-project basis and may require one-third to one-half of the fee in advance. Others work on an hourly, per-day or monthly retainer basis. Learn their payment requirements before hiring and make sure those requirements fit your needs.

When is payment due?

Check with the writer about the expected payment schedule. Many writers are sole owners of their own businesses and may be disinclined to extend credit to new clients.

How will you and your writer communicate?

It’s quite likely that you and your writer will enjoy a “virtual relationship” – communicating via e-mail. And today, most writers also work by phone, fax and overnight mail. Some writers find it unnecessary to meet in person and may even be unwilling to come to your office. Nonetheless, they should be flexible enough to attend meetings necessary for a given project – with a charge for their time. If working in this way isn’t acceptable to you, find another writer who will be able to meet your communication needs.

What is their turnaround time?

As all of us are (sometimes painfully) aware, deadlines rule. If writers can’t meet your
deadline, they’re probably too busy to handle your project with care. You may decide to wait for a qualified writer who is in demand if you have a flexible deadline. But if time is tight and the writer can’t meet it, again – look elsewhere.

Exactly what does the writer’s price include?

Does the writer charge for revisions and, if so, how many? Does the writer charge for travel time or long-distance phone calls? Is there an extra charge for in-person meetings? Make sure all billing parameters are established before hiring.

Will the writer take on more projects – or is this a one- time- only proposition?

If you like the writer’s work, you’ll want to establish a long-term relationship with him/her for many reasons:

1. Good writers don’t come along every day, so if you find someone who works well with you and meets your deadlines, let the writer know you want to hire him or her again.

2. Consistency is critical, so if you use the same person to write all your materials, you will send a consistent message throughout your internal and external communications. As a result, your sales and image will go up, up, up.

What websites really need is better copy. And I don’t say that because I’m a writer.

The sad truth is that – in very general terms – the quality of web writing and copy is mediocre at best. I’m not calling for elegant prose. What I’m saying is that what your website reveals – in clear, well-placed words – influences what people think of you, your product, your company.

Here are the top five ways to tell you’re NOT ready for prime time web writing.

1. Your ego knows no bounds.
   Leave your arrogance at the door and talk about the needs of your target audience instead, or leave your audience saying “so what” and moving on to the next site.




2. You always wished you had written War and Peace.
   Good web copy should be short and snappy. If, for some reason, you feel compelled to write tons of words on a single topic, it better be compelling! A good rule of thumb is: make your point, then stop.
3. You were the first one eliminated in the 3rd grade spelling bee.
   If your spelling and grammar leave something to be desired, it may be that writing for the web isn’t for you. It’s tough, calls for a lot of experience and if done carelessly or incorrectly creates a very bad impression. Ensure that your web content is free of spelling and grammatical errors and is punctuated correctly. And never upload it without proofreading.
4. You have many strong points…writing headlines isn’t one of them.
   Headings are critical to web writers – and readers. The rules: keep them short, keep them clear and don’t worry about being clever. In fact, don’t even try. Web headlines aren’t about a quick wit; they’re about placing the most important keywords for your content.
5. You place good design or “bells and whistles” far ahead of content.
   When you come right down to it, content is everything. It not only makes your company look great, it sells and – when given the care and importance it deserves – it can establish (or squash!) your brand.

What I am going to do though is share some big time NOs NOs in case any of you are in the midst of a project or considering a site revamp.

Flaw # 1: Senseless navigation
Your website navigation should immediately let you know:

• Where you are,
• Where you’ve been,
• Where you can go next and
• Where the home page is.

Navigation, in fact, must be so easy that visitors to your site shouldn’t even have to think about it. Some mistakes include dissimilar types of navigation on the same site, poorly worded links so your visitor has no clue about where he or she will end up and confusing links – or no links – back to the home page.

Flaw # 2: Confusing your website with your marketing strategy.
Listen up. Your website is part of your marketing strategy; it is not your entire marketing strategy. The right balance is in defining exactly how your website fits into your overall marketing program, then sticking with the whole program, making your site an integral and complementary part of it.

Flaw # 3. Believing people care about your website.
In the final analysis, nobody truly cares about your site. What visitors do care about is getting their problems solved. People visit websites to:

• Get information,
• Buy (or in some cases sell) something or
• Be entertained.

Flaw # 4: Putting existing print on your website.
No, no, no. Do not take your brochure, product catalog, employee manual, whatever and simply put it on-line. Printed materials don’t work on-line; they’re two totally different species. Knowledgeable web content writers create text that helps users find key words and concepts quickly. They:

• Write shorter sentences and fewer lines, paragraphs and pages.
• Use heads and subheads instead of introductory paragraphs.
• Use white space to keep the page looking open and inviting.

• Use hypertext links to give added information to readers who want more.

Flaw # 5: Acting like you own the company – even if you do.
Website readers have come to expect copy that’s personal and upbeat, so copy that smacks of bureaucracy tends to stand out like a sore thumb. Whether you’re writing your own copy or having someone do it for you, formal language and turn the tone down a notch. Also make sure to avoid technical terms and, by all means, make your verbs active and action-oriented – not in ho-hum, snore passive voice.

So once you have gone through the pre-writing process (with thorough research) and you embark on the act of writing marketing copy, I have a tip for you. It involves passive and active sentence structure, something you likely haven’t even given a thought.

You will find that some also refer to this as writing in passive or active voices, but in this post, and in my book, Do It Yourself Copywriting, I refer to it as sentence structure.

What is the difference?

Passive Sentence Structure: This is where the subject of the sentence (your target) is not taking any action but rather being acted upon by some other agent or something unnamed.

Active Sentence Structure: This is where the subject of the sentence (your target) is the one taking action, making change and coming to a solution.

You almost always want to use active sentence structure as passive still leaves your reader and prospective client with doubt. It makes it more difficult for them to visualize themselves in action and coming to a solution.

So once you do the research and gather the essential information about your market’s “hot buttons” (pain points), how do you bring your message together?

Again, do not forget that IT IS ALWAYS ABOUT YOUR MARKET not about you or even the product or service you are selling.

Yes that is what I said; IT IS NOT EVEN ABOUT THE PRODUCT OR SERVICE YOU ARE SELLING.

While the specs and features of the product/service are important and need to be noted somewhere within your message, they should not be the focus of your message. Since it is always about your market, you want to talk about them, their “hot buttons” and the benefits your product or service will bring.

Take a look at the two videos below, John Carlton does a fantastic job discussing the difference between benefits and features.

Even if you think you have the greatest idea (or greatest product or service for that matter), it means nothing unless its intended audience thinks the same.

That is something that’s always been hard for me (and many of you, I am sure) to swallow, even though it is a tried-and-true principle of marketing. It’s hard to believe that something we feel strongly about or love or want to offer to the world may not be welcomed or received in a similar manner.

This is why you have to remember two things:

1) It is always about your market, never about you, and

2) It’s not personal, it’s business!

Even if this project/product you are working has hit your pain point and solved a problem for you, it may not work or appeal to others.

You still have to do extensive market research so you can to pinpoint and get to know the bulk of your prospective audience. Just because something provides a benefit to you doesn’t mean the same for everyone else.

And there is much you can do for little to no cost, except for your time, which is an investment I know will pay off in spades for you once you know for certain you are offering the right product and saying the right words to the right market or markets.

You’ll find much of the information you need–no matter what your product or industry–from the comfort of your own desk, including:

• Census data
• Trade associations and industry-specific publications, as well as general business publications
• Keywords searches
• Internet (keyword searches through search engines and directories)

So while you may be thinking you’re on your way to starting a major trend or even encouraging a rush of interest or sales, you may be doing so with those “marketing blinders” I have talked about before.

So please take a look at it here. You will learn a bit more about me and my copywriting business.

I’d love to hear your thoughts, questions and comments.

I can tell you from my first-hand experience that Twitter can be and is a transformational tool for your business. I have made more connections and built more relationships in a very short time through Twitter than I would have through years of the “old-school” means of networking.

And I think it is very important to note that not all of these connections resulted in an immediate paying client.

In fact, some of the most valuable connections I have made are other professionals with whom I share similar target markets. And the development of these relationships has proven just as important as the direct client relationships I have developed.

Like many businesses, copywriting is part of a bigger business picture. And it is therefore near impossible to run an efficient and profitable copywriting business in a vacuum. A solid and reliable relationship with other professionals (that may never be a paying client) is critical.

What other kinds of services, service providers and vendors am I referring to?

• Web designer/developer
• Graphic designer
• Printer
• SEO (Search Engine Optimization) consultant or advisor
• P.R. (public relations) professional or firm

Of course, this list is very general, and whom you need (and don’t need) will vary by project, by budget and by preference. But having solid relationships with individuals in these areas before a new project arises takes the guess work out of it and ultimately increases your profits.

So next time you read another email, tweet or status message about the importance of social media, don’t forget that your efforts and connections should expand beyond your target market.

The interesting thing about the fundamentals of writing to sell is that they sometimes conflict with the standard fundamentals of writing (the grammar and punctuation rules) that we have all learned throughout the years.

When writing to sell, it is often ok to break some of the grammar rules we have all come to know and love. I am not talking about typos or jarring mistakes or anything that confuses the message as these are always no-nos.

Some examples of this acceptable rule-bending I am referring to are:

1. Opting for a sentence fragment vs. a full sentence, maybe in the form of a question in a headline or a subhead. This is a big one - I use a lot of fragments and Microsoft Word will almsot always flag these. Be bold and know you are generally fine doing this.
2. Opting to use slang or industry jargon when it makes more sense than a formal explanation. Along with this goes the “write like you would talk” advice that almost always trumps the “write like you are spekaing formal English” advice.
3. Going with different punctuations like the ….(ellipsis) or ending sentences with prepositions.

I always find it is more important to be consistent in style than to always be by-the-book right.