Copywriting for FREE? Some on craigslist think so…

Every day, there are more and more craigslist posts seeking ‘writers’ for everything from book collaborations to editorials to online articles. More people are finding themselves in need of some form of writing service.

But what they’re not doing, unfortunately, is realizing how rare someone with these particular talents can be.

To those who are seeking writers, let me ask you; how many people do you know, personally, with the talent and skill to perform the writing services you need? A dozen…five…one…none?

More than likely, you don’t know any. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be posting on craigslist to find them.

And this is not really a surprise.

In this country, there are almost twice as many neurosurgeons as there are ‘professional’ copywriters. There are eleven times as many certified mechanics. There are seventy times as many people in the IT field.

So tell me…why do you think it is okay to live out the same, delusional, ridiculous fantasy of getting something for nothing (or next to nothing) when seeking someone whose abilities are even less in supply than these folks?

Given that they are less rare, and therefore individually less in demand, would it make sense to ask your mechanic to work on your car for free? Would you look him in the eye, with a straight face, and tell him that his compensation would be the ability to have his work shown to others as you drive down the street?

Would you offer a neurosurgeon the ‘opportunity’ to add your name to his resume as payment for removing that pesky tumor? (Maybe you could offer him a few bucks for materials. What a deal!)

Would you be able to seriously even consider offering your web hosting service the chance to have people see their work, by viewing your website, as their payment for hosting you?

If you answered yes to any of the above, you’re obviously crazy. If you answered no, then kudos for living in the real world.

Copywriters, freelance writers, editors, etc., are skilled tradesmen. As such, to consider them as, or deal with them as, anything less than professionals fully deserving of your respect (and money) is both insulting and a bad reflection on you as a sane, reasonable person. In short, it makes you look like a twit.

A few things you need to know;

1. It is not a great opportunity for a writer to have his work seen on your web’zine, website, sales letter, marketing flyers, etc. It is a great opportunity for you to have their work there.

2. The chance to have their name on something that is going to be seen by other people, whether it’s one or one million, is NOT a valid enticement. Neither is the right to add that work to their resume. They get to do those things anyway, after being paid as they should. It’s not compensation. It’s their right, and it’s a given.

3. Stop thinking that you’re giving them some great chance to work. Once they skip over your silly ad, as they should, the next ad is usually for someone who lives in the real world, and as such, will pay them. There are far more jobs needing these skills than there are people who possess these skills.

4. New writers in the business do need experience. But they do not need to get it by giving their work away. In fact, this does not even offer them the experience they need. Anyone who will not/can not pay them is obviously the type of person or business they should be ashamed to have on their resume anyway. Do you think professional contractors list the ‘experience’ they got while nailing down a loose step at their grandmother’s house when they were seventeen?

If you, your company or gig was worth listing as desired experience, it would be able to pay for the services it received. The only experience they will get doing free work for you is a lesson learned in what kinds of shrubs they should not lower themselves to deal with.

5. ‘Creative’ writers, this one’s for you so please pay attention. Some will ask you to submit work for consideration. They may even be posing as some sort of ‘contest’. These are almost always scams. They will take the work submitted by lots of writers each trying to win the contest, or be chosen for the gig. The organizers of these ‘contests’ take the best that’s submitted and use it themselves. Usually they’ll have someone reproduce that work or make slight modifications to it, and claim it as their own. You will not be paid, you will not win the contest. The only people who win here are the underhanded folks who run these ads. This can be considered speculative, or ’spec’, work. It’s risky at best, and a complete scam at worst. I urge you to avoid it, completely.

6. Speaking of Spec work, don’t ever accept it. When someone asks you to write some copy or draw up an ad ‘to show them what you can do’ without an agreed upon price, that’s spec. And it should not be in your vocabulary. Spec work may seem necessary at the beginning of your career, but it’s better to do ‘free’ work for charitable organizations to build up a portfolio, then to waste time and effort on spec work.

So to writers of all persuasions looking for work, do everyone a favor, especially yourselves, and avoid people who do not intend to pay you. Whether they are ’spec’ jobs, or just some guy who wants a free article in his magazine. They need you. You do not need them.

And for those who are looking for someone to work for free…how dare you.

Pepsi ‘Pinball’ Ad

Okay, here’s a Pepsi ad. It works well because of the high energy (re:Pepsi gives you energy)and the fast pace of the ad. The fact that Pepsi positions itself in the marketplace as a ‘fun drink’ for young people makes this commercial video work. ↑

What do you think?

Chipping away at Writer’s Block

 

Often, in the life of a writer, self-doubt creeps in. A form of Writer’s block, it’s notorious for bringing writing to a screeching halt. Doubting our writing capabilities in the middle of a project often becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy and the writing may, indeed, SUCK.

I find that when I’m ‘in the groove’ the words flow easily appearing on the computer monitor as fast as I can type them. But when writer’s block rears its ugly head, the monitor stares back, taunting me, laughing at me. And I stare back at it, then down at the keyboard, then back up at the monitor. But there’s nothing…

So how do you get rid of the block? What methods do I use to get back to writing?

Here are a few things that seem to work:

• If you’re not locked in to a topic, pick one that you’re passionate about, one that gets the creative juices flowing. I find if I’m interested in what I write about, it’s much easier to keep the words coming and to finish the task.

• Try Free Association. Sometimes a writers tendency to edit as he/she goes along will bring on the dreaded ‘block’. Get rid of your “editor’s hat”…there’s plenty of time for that after you’ve done the draft. Relax, close your eyes for 10-15 minutes and think of things NOT pertaining to your writing.

• After you’ve done that, try setting a timer for 10 minutes and start typing anything that comes into your mind…even if it makes no sense at all. A childhood verse, what you would do on vacation, words that rhyme…anything at all as long as it has nothing to do with what you’ve been writing. The idea is to free your mind of all distractions and just write what comes naturally. Then transfer that freedom to the writing task at hand. Works every time.

• Another easy thing to try is to break your project up into smaller portions. When looking at the project as a whole, it can feel overwhelming and seem like a monumental task bringing on writer’s block big time. Cutting it into smaller chunks ie., a few paragraphs, a page, or a chapter, if it’s a book; or the headline and subhead if it’s an ad, will make it flow that much easier.

• And exercise. Whenever your writing is blocked go for a brisk walk around the block, take a swim, ride your bike or use the treadmill. Physical activity increases the blood flow to the brain and releases nervous tension…and it’s been know to release a muse or two.

These work for me…I’d love to hear what works for you.

Funny, but does it make the sale?

This is one of several ‘Trunk Monkey’ commericals developed for Suburban Auto Group

Funny, definitely. Clever, certainly. Will it sell the product? I don’t think so.

While this commercial is memorable (the Trunk Monkey has become somewhat of a cult figure), it says nothing about the product it’s trying to sell. As a matter of fact, I didn’t even know what cars this dealership sold until the ending credit. Also, except for the web address at the very end, there was no contact or address information.

Ads like these are fun to watch, but unless they’re used in conjunction with an ad blitz campaign, they are just that, fun to watch…and nothing else. ↔

15 MAC vs PC ads from Apple.

You’ve probably seen some, or all of these, but they’re so good that I wanted to include them on my blog. They use humor, visuals…and common sense to get the point across. And the ads WORK.

Well, okay, I’m a bit biased here since I use a MAC, but these ads are some of the best to come out of Apple in many years. Great campaign. ↑↑

But what makes these 30 second bits so persuasive? Anyone care to analyze them?

I’ll start…

The appearance of each actor is the first thing that strikes the viewer. The PC guy is dressed conservativly, is overweight, stuffy, and not particularly attractive. The MAC guy is dressed casually, is hip, trim, and cute. So even without any written copy, a viewer gets the point of the ad: PC’s are stuffy, bloated, and the OS is not particularly attractive and that the MAC is lean, cool, and attractive.

Anyone else care to chime in?

A Great ad in any language

One of the traits of a good visual ad, is that it can be understood in any language. And if it’s able to get it’s message across as well, it then is elevated into the realm of greatness. This is one of those ads.

Not only does it have a catchy tune that needs no translation (try listening to it a couple of times and see whether you can stop humming the song), but the characters and their actions are universally understood. ↑↑↑

Now you’ll have to excuse me…I’ve gotta run…before the corner deli closes.

If you love ‘True Crime’ ya gotta check this out…

Several chapters of Mask of the Beast: The Life and Crimes of a Convicted Triple Murderer are available here. It’s a work in progress…by me. Don’t miss it!

Jesus Camp freaked me out…can you say ‘zombies’

Just finished watching a documentary called Jesus Camp, about Evangelical Christians and their religious fervor. Filmed over a period of several weeks, this film follows Pastor Becky something or other to her children’s camp in the hills of North Dakota. It’s here that she and other members of her flock ‘brainwash’ kids as young as 4 and 5 years old into ‘giving our lives to Christ.’

Now I certainly have nothing against Christ or Christians or children, or even North Dakota for that matter. After all didn’t Rocky raccoon live there? But the content of this film made me sick.

The film stated that over 75% of children who are home-schooled in this country are Evangelicals. And they’re teaching their children that the literal translation of the bible is fact ie, that we came from Adam and Eve, and that Evolution is a crock of sh**. And these poor kids are soaking it all up and are becoming proselytizing miniature preachers before they even reach puberty. They had these kids speaking in tongues, writhing on the floor, their bodies contorted, tears streaming from their eyes…it was eye-opening to say the least.

Now there’s nothing wrong with teaching your kids certain beliefs, but for God’s sake (pun intended) let them know about the other side of the issues. Otherwise it’s brainwashing pure and simple.

And then the film went on to show that because George W has a strong religious faith that evangelicals should pray for him and pray for anyone he wants to appoint-in this instance it was Samuel Alito’s appointment to the Supreme Court. It went on to show Evangelicals supporting the Republican party en masse. Now that was more than a little scary.

Now I tend to lean toward the Conservative side on most issues and the Liberal side on some, but to find the Religious Right as fervent as this film portrayed them made me just a wee bit uncomfortable to be on the same side of the church pew on some issues.

I found them to be almost as radical as the fundamentalist Muslims that want to destroy us. The basic difference was that these kids didn’t have bombs strapped to their bodies…just bibles in their hands and a glazed look in their eyes. It made me think that if they were given bombs or guns, they would be almost- now remember I said almost-as dangerous as the radical Muslims.

I recommend you rent this film. If nothing else it will scare the bejesus out you.

Edwards and Clinton – Devious as they come…

Well, it seems the Dems are just as sneaky as the Republicans, doesn’t it?

I wonder how Hil and John will explain this to their rival candidates.

-Barry

A key to writing GREAT ads…

 

There are many keys to writing GREAT copy. This one, while not a secret–any copy writer worth his/her salt knows it–is as important to your success as the words in your message.

The key to great copywriting is not in the writing. That’s right, and I’ll say it again…the key to great copywriting is NOT in the writing.

It’s the interview. That’s right – 90% of the work happens before you turn on your computer, punch a key, or write a sentence. If you ask the right questions, you will intimately understand your audience and the writing will be easy. Once you completely understand your purpose the words will flow like water over Niagara Falls. Here are 10 questions to help you write GREAT copy:1. Facts – These are the who, what, when, and where questions. They give you just the facts and nothing else. Most of these questions can be answered, with a bit of research, prior to your interview. So if you want to be ahead of the game, come prepared to confirm instead of collect answers to these questions.

2. Reasons - Why the clients product or service? Find out why the client thinks their product or service is needed and why their’s is the BEST choice for the intended audience.

3. Problem/Solution - What was/is the problem and how does the product or service solve it? The answers to these questions are key to producing clear benefits in your copy.

4. Descriptors - Adjectives turn words into a picture. They describe a scene so readers can connect via their imagination. One trick to drawing these words out in an interview is to get your interviewee to describe their product or service in the third person. For example: “Imagine your best client is referring you to their best friend. What would they say?”

5. Feelings - Understanding feelings is important for establishing the proper tone for your copy. Should your tone be happy and upbeat or calm and subdued? When in the interview, be sure to ask about how the reader feels both before and after the product/service experience.

6. Actions – Verbs are the most important words in your copy because they inspire readers to take action. One method for drawing out action words is the question, “What does your product/service help people do?”

7. Typical Customer - The more detail you can gather about the customer you are trying to reach with your ads, the more easily you can put yourself into their character and come up with winning copy. Go deeper than traditional demographic info and get creative with your assessment. Where do they shop? What’s their favorite food? What are they doing on the weekends? What kind of clothes are they wearing? Although your interviewee may be thrown off by these types of questions, the detailed descriptions will help you visualize your audience when you are writing and get into their mind.

8. Personification – Particularly useful if you are selling an intangible, such as a service. Try using questions like, “If your service was a person, how would you…fix them up on a date? recommend them for a job? introduce them to your mother?” Again, you may have to warn your interviewee to simply trust the process.

9. Competition - With so much noise on the market today, a thorough understanding of the competition is key to standing out. Ask the tough questions like “What advantages does your competition have over you?” “What advantages do you have over your competitors?” Knowing what you’re up against can help you focus on which benefits to feature.

10. Analogies/Metaphors - A master copywriter will quietly weave analogies and metaphors into the ad copy. Doing so solidifies the brand awareness of the product or service to an existing object or experience in the reader’s mind. Try testing analogies/metaphors throughout your interview and see if any resonate with your client. If you get a resounding “YES!!” you know you’re on to something.

—————

P.S. The above was found on the WriteMarketingIdeas.com blog. I agree with about 90% of what it says and have revised it just a bit to make it fit my own way of doing things.

Using some or all of the above questions when you go for that all important ‘first’ interview will solidify your expertise in your client’s mind. It will help you get the job and will give you that all important ‘insight’ into the products or services that you are about to promote.