Copywriting: The Tools of the Trade

I use a variety of tools in my writing, some of which you might not expect,…

Essential, absolutely essential. Brainstorming just can’t be done on anything else – pen and paper rules.

When I’m out and about or I have a flash of inspiration around the house, having a tablet to work on is a joy.

These aren’t actually plugged in much. I often find it nice to just cut out background noise while I think. When they are plugged in, I find classical music is nice to work with. And Caro Emerald.

The place my writing comes together. Mainly used to research the product I’m writing for and fine-tune copy before firing it off to the client.

I get many of my best ideas when reading a print-out of my work and using a pen to make alterations. Old school, they call it.

It’s Good to Talk

I spend about half of my time working outside. I find the tranquillity of my garden helps me to dream up new ideas and directions.

What tools do you use in your day-to-day work?  Let me know in the comments, below.

http://www.wingcopywriting.co.uk

Stepping Out of the Woods – Getting back on Track When your Mind Goes Blank.

Step Back to Take the Right Path,…

I was writing a magazine advertising feature recently when my writing ground to a halt.  Even among the best copywriters, this happens from time to time.

Something was wrong.  I looked at my plan, I referenced my research, I took another good look at the brief, but it still wasn’t flowing: there was something false about it.  Now I know that all advertising is, to some degree or other, a little false but I pride myself on the authentic feel of my work.

So I did the very best thing I could do in this situation: I took a break.  To be exact, I went and watched Red Dwarf for half an hour.

Even though I was on a tight deadline, I knew that this was the right thing to do.  You can sometimes get too close to what you’re writing – it’s the whole “you can’t see the wood for the trees” thing.  When that happens, the best thing to do is always to step back, put your mind on other things and return to it later.

And it works.  After watching Lister agonise over the explosives attached to his “man spuds” for 30 minutes (seriously, you don’t watch this show?!), I returned to my writing and saw the answer staring me in the face:  the question I’d started the article with was wrong.  A small tweak was needed to how it was phrased.

Voilà!  The article flowed onto the page with ease – each fact in its place and each emphasis where I’d planned (I’ll talk about the importance of planning your work in a future blog).

But if you’re struggling to finish a piece of writing – whether you’re a budding novelist or a jobbing journo, the best two bits of advice I could give right now are these:

• Ask yourself whether the question you’re asking or the point that your making is really what you’d planned.

And

• Take a few minutes to relax and think about something completely different.

You’ll be amazed at how quickly the answer slaps you in the face.

Tim Austin in the Winged Wordsmith – Lead Copywriter for www.wingcopywriting.co.uk, sweet tooth and not-so-proud owner of an Alexandr Meerkat stuffed toy.  Yes, really.

Don’t forget to “Like” the Wing Copywriting Facebook page for our latest deals, as well as fun word games to keep you occupied when you really should be at work.  Naughty you.

Stronger Together: Lancaster Chamber and We Are Bentham

Wing Copywriting are now proud members of the Lancaster District Chamber of Commerce, as well as We Are Bentham – a local business alliance that is working to support small businesses in the Yorkshire Dales.

We’ve always been passionate advocates of the notion that businesses are stronger when they work together towards common goals. The energy and determination that both of these groups have shown during meetings has been truly inspirational, and we look forward to working with them in the future.

To celebrate this news, we would like to offer members of both groups a discount of 15% off of any service that we provide for them.  Just let us know you’re a member when it comes to deciding a final quote and we’ll knock off 10% from our fee. Simple.

And, as it’s Halloween soon, I feel there’s probably a copywriting law somewhere mandating that I call that a “Scarily Good Deal”.

Happy Halloween from Wing Copywriting.

It’s Social, Stupid: Wing’s Social Media Tips.

Social Media Marketing is the new kid on the block when it comes to advertising and, like many spotty new boys, it is, sadly, often mis-understood and badly treated.  So here are a few of my persional thoughts on triumphing in the new frontier of Social Media Marketing.  Enjoy!

• It’s Social, Stupid!  If you bombard your clients with straight adverts on any social media platform, you’re on a hiding to nothing.  Social Media is about communication and conversation;  show genuine interest in your customers and you’ll reap the rewards.
• It’s going to take time.  Social Media Marketing isn’t a quick fix advertising wonder – it’s a slow burn.  It takes time for your networks to grow organically, and not everyone who follows will be a “buyer”.  The larger your network becomes, the bigger your influence and the more potential clients you’ll reach.  But it won’t happen overnight!
• You wouldn’t run the same print advert in Nuts Magazine as you would in Home and Garden, would you?  Its the same with Social Media.  Facebook is different from Twitter; Google+ is different from Linkedin.  Work out what attracts your clients to each network,… and give it to them.
• People are genuinely interested in what you have to say – they wouldn’t be following you if they weren’t.  Keep this in mind and keep at it.
• Blog like there’s no tomorrow.  Your customers are curious about you and they want to know more about what you do – not just your product or your service but your business, your values and what gets you up in the morning (see my post below).  Your blog is where they can learn what makes you tick and the more passionate you sound about your work and your products, the more passionate they will be about you.
• Automatic Direct Messages on Twitter: No.  It’s annoying.  Stop it.
• Don’t think you have the time?  There’s no shame in asking for help.  Wing Copywriting offer a hassle-free subscription-based service that can take care of social media for you.  e-mail me at tim@wingcopywriting.co.uk to learn more.

Tim Austin is the Winged Wordsmith: Lead Copywriter for Wing Copywriting.  His favourite Beatle is George, he can read and write HTML, and he was once bitten by a Llama.  He didn’t bite it back.

If you would like to know more about Wing Copywriting, or if you’d like to talk to us about a project, please visit www.wingcopywriting.co.uk or e-mail tim@wingcopywriting.co.uk

Chasing the Authentic; how do big companies Keeps Customers Loyal?

How has adding a little humanity helped some of the world’s best-loved companies to keep customers buying?

Steve Jobs

Would you like to buy my car? It does 0-60 in around 10 seconds, it’s got 5 seats and it runs on electricity.

Now, if you’re in the market for an electric car, you might, just might, want to sit down and hear what I have to say.

Which is unlikely.

But what if I told you that I re-mortgaged my house to finance the early prototype?  That I held down a 9-5 job while working on the battery pack every evening for a year? That I took no salary for the first two years of selling this car and that I overcame a crippling leg injury to bring it to market – all because I believe passionately in this car and what it can do for you?

Who’s sitting down and listening now?

The reason you pay more attention to the story than the car is breathtakingly simple:

Your customers care more about people than products.

People don’t just go out and buy Ben and Jerry’s ice cream because it tastes good – lets face it, there are tonnes of very tasty ice creams out there and Ben and Jerry’s is a pretty expensive option.  But people like Ben and Jerry; they like what they do, they agree with what they do, and they support them,… by buying their ice cream.

There’s something authentic about their brand.  And by exploiting this authenticism, Ben and Jerry have kept customers loyal,… and buying.

There are plenty of other examples, too: Facebook, Apple, The Body Shop – each one has made celebrities of their CEO’s and employees.  How they do what they do is often just as interesting as what they’re selling – and they know this.

This is why I spend a lot of my time at Wing Copywriting finding out what makes my clients tick.  I know how effective it can be to bring a little authentic humanity to their advertising.  If the company can demonstrate that it’s run by genuine human beings who are passionate about their products, their customers are more likely to be passionate that company.

And this is where social media really delivers.  Much of my work with Social Media Management is not sales-based, it’s people based.  If you bombard customers with sales pitches they run a mile – but what if the CEO’s cat is sick?

As the information age has blossomed, so has people’s desire for interaction and communication and personality.  How is your company keeping up?

If you would like to know more about Wing Copywriting, or if you’d like to talk to us about a project, please visit www.wingcopywriting.co.uk or e-mail tim@wingcopywriting.co.uk

 Tim Austin is the Winged Wordsmith: Lead Copywriter for Wing Copywriting, Doctor Who fan, Ukulele player and eco warrior.

Just Do it: The Power of Hello

When someone says Hello to you, what do you do?

Hands up everyone who says hello back.

……

Thought so.

Y’see, hello isn’t simply a greeting; it’s an invitation to communicate. You illicit a response when you say the word. And good marketing is just the same.

Let me give you an example:

“How do You Eat Yours?”

Purveyors of precious, precious Chocolate, Cadbury, have been asking people in the UK this question every year for nearly a decade. Note that at no point have they told people to go out and buy Crème Eggs – they have simply asked “How would you eat it if you had one?”

Well gee, Mr. Cadbury. I’d like to scoop out the inside with my little finger and,… gosh, I fancy a Crème Egg!

Bingo.

And what about this;

Oh, that’s naughty!!

Instant response.

Do what?! Whatever it is, it sounds exciting. And just a little sexy.

Notice how none of these slogans mention the product they’re selling? They don’t tell you to buy anything either. They’re either asking a question or making a statement that’s gauged to illicit a response – just like saying “Hello”.

And it’s the response that’s important.

Think about your own marketing for a second. When you’re selling a product or service, do you start off by launching into a long list of specifications, technicalities and descriptions? Try this on for size;

“Representative 50.1% APR variable. Interest rate for purchases: 19.9% p.a. variable. AND you get Air Miles!”

It could be a great deal. It could be BRILLIANT deal,… but unless I’m in the market for a credit card I don’t care.

And American Express know this.

“Never Leave Home Without It”

Without what? <<Response. Hook. I’m interested.

So how does your business say “WAZZZUUUUUUUP?” Pop a few words in the comments section below and let me know – I’m a nosey old so-and-so.

As Bob Hoskins was once so fond of saying;

It’s good to Talk.

Tim Austin is the Winged Wordsmith: lead copywriter for Wing Copywriting, proud husband, sci-fi fan and champion Scrambled Egg maker.

www.wingcopywriting.co.uk / info@wingcopywriting.co.uk

Hello There!

Welcome to the Wing Copywriting blog. It’s brand new so content is a bit sparce but over the coming weeks it’ll be full to the brim of articles, images and news from the world of the Winged Wordsmith!

Stay tuned!