Copywriting Watch Blog

Archives and BuzzBoost

Since this is a permanent archive, I've placed these headlines from ConverStations as the top post. Want to know how this is done? Check out FeedBurner's BuzzBoost.

Is This Ad Misplaced?

I know I said this blog is an archive, but this post doesn't fit on ConverStations.

First, what was Pittsburgh Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger thinking, riding a motorcycle without a helmet? I'm glad his injury isn't life-threatening. I hope for a quick and healthy recovery - football or no football.

Second, is this the best story to advertise a motorcycle on? Maybe motorcycle gear (like helmets!), but a motorcycle?

Tip of the helmet to Ballbug

technorati tags: Ben Roethlisberger Ballbug Motorcycle Pittsburgh Steelers Online Advertising

This Blog is Now an Archive

This blog site is now an archive.  As the focus of my business has clearly shifted to business blogging, please visit the ConverStations blog - here's the feed.

If you have a need for some great copywriters - I can point you to a few folks that are super wordsmiths. As for Copywriting Solutions?  The closing tagline might be this:

Want a Copywriting Solution? Talk with Your Customer Yourself - by Blogging!

Some of my favorite posts here:

- Brochures: Handed Out or Thrown Out?
- What's Plan C?
- HASPO
- Are You Really a Leader?
- The RBI of a Great Resume!
- Are You Covering Up Your Bald Spot?
- Waiting for the Perfect (Blank)
- Why Blogs are Like WD-40

Thanks for reading Copywriting Watch.  Hope to see you round the blogosphere (or at ConverStations!)

My First Year in Business

It's been quite a year. A year ago tomorrow, my mother-in-law passed (in peace and with a smile). On April 16th last year, I dove into free-agency as a freelance copywriter.

The last half of the previous decade, I helped build and organize online communities for a few Internet start-ups, several big-league sports teams and a little company in Virginia, now officially known as AOL. But with the dotcom bust, I quietly made my exit.

The next three years were devoted to different ministries and then moving around the country to assist Cindy's mom.

My first handful of clients each asked about search results and how to improve their standings. With research, I found blogging to be a great tool for businesses to engage with their customers AND to improve search results.

I find many similarities between blogging/Web 2.0 and what happened in the late 90s. By late summer of 2005, I realized that my experiences in building community, Internet conversations and connecting people all pointed to business blogs.

These days, my copywriting gigs are fewer by choice. Business blogging is keeping me plenty (crazy?) busy and its fun seeing business leaders get excited about the conversations and the tools. I like to have fun in my work and watch others do the same.

I've had the opportunity to help journalists, business coaches, advisors, distributorships, marketers, authors, salespeople and a few associations start blogging.

So what does next year hold in store? My gut is that a team of free-agents are about to come together with blogging a key ingredient. Maybe its a company, but I think free-agents stay hungry - and I'm hoping for a collaboration instead of corporation.

There's a good chance that the next post or so here will announce that this site will exist as an archive of my first year. Most of my attention is on the Converstations site. Before I do make the move, I have some redesign issues ahead. If you're not yet subscribed to it, here's the feed for Converstations.

Thanks for a wonderful first year.

Iowa Talent Coming Back - For a Geek Meetup

Chris & Ponzi are visiting the Des Moines area on Easter weekend and are gathering steam for a latte and Geek Meetup - possibly on Monday April 17. You Gada.be there.

Technorati Tags: Geek Meetup, Des Moines, Iowa

Iowa: Want to Keep Young Talent Here?

I've been suggesting to business leaders in Iowa that one way to keep young talent close to home is to start blogging - externally, internally or both.

Why? The users of MySpace, LiveJournal, Facebook and other social tools are going to be attracted to companies that utilize these tools to communicate with their employees and beyond.

Don't just listen to me. Here are three other voices:

• Robert Scoble talks about how Microsoft's blogging efforts attract thousands of resumes.
• Jeffrey Treem says develop an employee blog policy and communicate that policy. I agree. Don't wait. If 7% of Internet users (1-year old pdf file) have engaged in blogging - how many of your employees blog? (do the math).
• Jeremiah Owyang understands that "They are graduating soon - They will change the Workforce."

These young people are not only your future workforce - they are your future customer base.

So what's an Iowa company to do? Follow Jeffrey's advice. Ponder Jeremiah's wisdom. Envision what Robert discusses. Be creative in implementation of your blogging policies and practices and attract the talent you've spent years cultivating.

technorati tags: Iowa SocialMedia MySpace LiveJournal Facebook Workforce

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Planzo: A Calendar that Communicates

Last week, I twice shared multiple emails with two different customers on when we could meet...you know the drill...lots of back-n-forth.

This weekend, I implemented Planzo's calendar and it's making things simple - and fast. Three times today it's come in handy for clients. Here's what I love about it:

• When someone asks when I'm available, I send them a link to my Planzo Calendar.
• If multiple parties are involved - let them handle the back-n-forth and get back to me.
• The calendar has a feed (daily, weekly or monthly).
• People can leave me a note (if they are a Planzo user)
• I've put daily module on this blog and Converstations, and also my homepage. People can know where I am and when I'm available before calling.
• Each morning, I get a digest of my schedule for the day.
• I can stop using Outlook's calendar.
• It's FREE! (or maybe it's Freemium?)

It's a virtual admin assistant. If you're using Planzo, let me know of features I've missed. Not using Planzo? What calendar tool are you using?

Technorati Tags: Planzo, Calendar

Copywriting Lion - Make Your Copy Roar!

Neil Shearing's report, "Copywriting Lion: Discover How to Write Sales Copy That Roars" is available FREE for download (pdf) or web viewing pleasure.

Whether you're writing your own copy or hiring a copywriter, this report has several pages that are important to the success of your project. Here are a few of them:

• You and Your Audience - While it's tempting to write about your company, the copy should talk more about your audience than yourself.
• The One Action - Having copy without a call to action is a waste. Ask yourself how you want your reader to respond. Simply knowing about your company is not a response. Compel them to take some kind of action.
• Benefits, Benefits, Benefits - Features are what the product/service does - period. Benefits are what the product/service does for your audience.

Read this FREE report and you'll have a better grasp at how to write copy that roars, saving you time, money and angst on your next sales piece.

Technorati Tags: Copywriting Lion, Sales Copy, Free Reports

Gitomer Missing Out?

Interesting referral to this blog from a Google search for Gitomer Red Bits, where Copywriting Watch is listed at # 2 and # 3, right behind a .pdf file from Jeffrey Gitomer's site. I recently posted about Mr. Gitomer's Amazon Blog.

I wondered what a search would bring up for "gitomer blog" - here's what I found:

Okay, Gitomer's Amazon blog (which hasn't been updated since January 31st and doesn't offer a feed) shows up at the top...but look at all the blogs below. And I don't think I should be that high on this search. Blogging improves your find-ability.

So here's 2.5 reasons that Gitomer should blog:

1.0  If your audience is searching for you, will they find you?
2.0  Remember Principle #4: It's all about value, It's all about relationships, it's not all about price.
2.5  Two good sales blogs you'll want to read and subscribe to are Landing the Deal and Top Lead Generators, both by Dan Tudor.

If you're hungry for Gitomer and want to get fed, bizjournals offers feeds of all of Gitomer's articles (but the Des Moines Business Record does not).

Earlier this month, John Jantsch at Duct Tape Marketing shared a few of his favorite sales blogs.

Technorati Tags: Sales Blogs, Gitomer, Red Bits, bizjournals, Google

Pinko Marketing: A Warning

When I first heard the term "Pinko Marketing," I paused...and kept moving on. This morning, with a helpful reminder from Robert Scoble's post, I read backwards and forwards the mission of Pinko Marketing: Commons Based UnMarketing. Tara Hunt (aka Miss Rogue) is waving the right kind of flag - and it's a warning signal.

To my marketing and PR friends and copywriting colleagues, fellow business communicators and wanna-be salespeople: If you plan on being in business the rest of this decade: Read the ongoing draft of the Pinko Marketing Manifesto before you write your next word or launch your next product.

WARNING: Don't make the mistake I almost made and skip over it. Read it. Subscribe to the feed. Take a journey.

Content may be King, but Community (or the commons) is the kingdom it serves. (Design is Queen)

One more thought: Before we start a lynch mob on the name of this project, let's work together to change it - if that's what is necessary. It's a community project, after all.

Technorati Tags: Pinko Marketing, Advertising, Sales, Copywriting, PR, Community,

My Favorite Company is...

They are my quick, casual, everyday oasis. When I walk into my Panera Bread, I know how Norm felt when he walked into Cheers.

Working from a home office, I often say that I have four satellite offices in the Des Moines area, with a fifith one opening soon at Jordan Creek - each branded Panera.

You can read about how the love affair started last year. Their actions made me a loyal enthusiast and a customer evangelist. I'm not alone. There are a community of Panera fans in this area - and we've become friends.

Tonight, after a long day in which I'd only been in once twice- both times with to-go orders - they showed how much they cared. They gave me a coffee cake - on the house. Not a slice. A whole cake.

"Treating a great customer like royalty," they said.  WOW! They missed me.

Technorati Tags: Panera Bread, Customer Evangelist

Why I'm an IABC Member

I watched the IABC/Iowa calendar for a few months before joining last fall. I didn't want to get into a networking group - they're a dime-a-dozen and often worth as much.

I wanted to become involved with a group of people whose knowledge and practice would help make me a better business person. That's what kind of people I've found at IABC. Additionally, the IABC site and new IABC Commons blogs are great resources.

What intrigued me most about this group is their Professional Development luncheons (peek at past events). Great content, great leadership, great presentations.

This month's event is no exception, as Todd McDonald of ATW Training & Consulting is presenting a full day of business lessons.

Here's more info about IABC/Iowa member benefits and this months' event. What's the best group or association you're involved with? AdPros? PRSA?

Technorati Tags: IABC, Iowa, Networking, Professional Development

Four Things

My friend Mike Wagner has tagged me for the Four Things (I thought that was over) and his invite was so gracious, I humbly accept.

Four jobs I’ve had:

1. General Manager of a Class A baseball team (Salinas Spurs)
2. Assistant Pastor of a Baptist Church (Bel Air, Md)
3. Community Program Manager at AOL (several channels)
4. Taxi Driver - Owner/Operator (several locations)

Four movies I could watch over and over:

1. It's a Wonderful Life
2. The Magnificent Seven
3. The Mask of Zorro
4. Singin' in the Rain

Four places (of a dozen) I have lived:

1. Des Moines, IA
2. Evanston, IL
3. Sterling, VA
4. Harrisburg, PA

California is conspicuously absent, even though I spent over 30 years there.

Four TV shows I love to watch:

1. Andy Griffith
2. The Odd Couple
3. The Dick Van Dyke Show
4. Baseball Tonight

Four places I have been on holiday:

1. Orlando, FL
2. El Paso, TX
3. Las Vegas, NV
4. New York, NY

Four websites I visit daily:

Everything happens in my feed readers. I don't even go to The Weather Channel since they put up feeds. But they (content as king) still serve me (community as kingdom) the goods.

Well, Google is my starting point, so I guess Google. And Typepad.

Four of my favorite foods:

1. Coffee (legumes - coffee is a bean)   
2. Bread of many Panera kinds.
3. Ice Cream
4. Spinach

Four places I would rather be right now:

1. Heaven
2. Panera
3. Montana
4. Ireland

And four bloggers I am tagging:

Brett Rogers of Beat Canvas if he'll accept, because his brain and heart are both of the outstanding variety.

Chuck Tanowitz of Media Metamorphis, if he'll accept, because I've had the privilege of meeting him and so should you.

Dan Pacheco of Dan's Diner, if he’ll accept, because he's always had a knack for building community.

Zane Safrit of CCUCEO, if he'll accept, because I like the way he thinks and I'm interested to see who he tags.

There are about eight people I want to tag, but they haven't begun blogging yet.

Technorati Tags: Four Things, Meme, Panera

Hersheys Returns to Original Advertising Ways

The Hershey Company is returning to its roots in advertising habits with the Take 5 bar - consumer generated buzz.

While AdJab may think Hershey doesn't understand "buzz marketing" these days, the company was one of the leaders of word-of-mouth advertising. According to Milton Hershey, "Give them quality and that’s the best kind of advertising in the world."

According to ChipTin.com, although Hershey had forms of advertising and marketing, such as the Tin Can campaign, they didn't start purchasing ads nationally until 1970s. The relied on word-of-mouth.

You can read more about the Hershey history of advertising in this excerpt (pdf) from The Advertising Age Encyclopedia of Advertising.

What's your favorite Hershey candy? For me? I'm glad that guy got peanut butter in his chocolate.

Technorati Tags: Hersheys, Take 5, Buzz Marketing, AdJab

Sprint Delivers a Hollow Message

Earlier this month, I suggested how Sprint could make amends with Allan Jenkins at Desirable Roasted Coffee.

In a nutshell, Sprint offered Allan an opportunity to take part in their Ambassador program. Problems with this include that Sprint doesn't offer coverage in Allan's neighborhood (Denmark) and they broke a few laws in their manner of contact. When Allan tried to open a dialogue, Sprint shut it down.

Finally, Sprint extended an apology. Allan says that's good enough. To Sprint's credit, the letter came from a person rather than a "team." But they still fell short...and wasted their money.

Last fall, if you were to pick up any business magazine, you'd have run across the Sprint ad campaign "Reinventing the Yes-man." Granted, they were talking about the customer, not the company. But the message puts across that Sprint/Nextel was about the word YES.

They missed out on a tremendous amount of good will by not following my suggestion to give three Ambassador trials to people Allan chose stateside. Think how that would have played out. Sprint - Reinventing the Yes-man! Makes up for mistake threefold.

A bad precedent that other bloggers would emulate? Not really. Sprint made the first move (mistake) in their contact. It's not like Allan threw a bone to pick out of the blue (wow,-back-to-back cliche use).

The concern here is whether companies are using/manipulating the blogosphere as simply a marketing tool? If so, "reaching out" to bloggers is nothing new or brilliant. Just a different tool.

The question in the board room should not be, "How can we tap into this blogging thing to make money?"

The question must be, "How can we engage in the conversation with bloggers to develop meaningful, long-lasting relationships?" 

So yes, reach out. But have a complete plan. If things go bad in this new form of marketing, use new forms of resolution too. The message Sprint deliveres in this circmstance is inconsistent with the message they delivered in their advertising.

Technorati Tags: Sprint Ambassadors, Advertising Campaign, Lame Pitches, Blog Relations