Entries Tagged 'copywriting tips' ↓

Before we get started, let’s go back to basics.

PPC (Pay-Per-Click) Google ads are found above and to the right of your search results. Written with your keywords and key phrases in mind, they are highly targeted and are only seen by people searching for your product or service.  As the name suggests, you only pay when someone clicks your ad, so they can be quite cost effective (if you know what you’re doing).

So how can you make sure your ads are effective?

Well, here are 7 tips to help you create powerful PPC ads.

1. Know your audience

As with all your marketing, your advert will be targeted at a specific audience. It is important that you make sure your message is written specifically for them. Writing something for everyone will result in a wishy-washy ad that doesn’t attract anyone.

2. Include your keywords

The whole point of PPC is that it’s targeted, so make sure your keywords are included in the heading and body of your ad. Not only will this highlight your ad’s relevance, it will also reassure the potential customer that you are offering what they are looking for.

3. Keyword only headings are a no-no

It may be tempting just to cram all your keywords into your heading, but it will create something ugly and meaningless. Your heading should be benefits driven, offer a hook and contain your keyword. That’s quite a tall order considering you only have 25 characters to play with, so you’ll have to get creative.

4. Be focused

Each ad you write should be focused on one benefit only. You only have 25 characters for your heading and 35 characters for your description, so there’s no room for waffle.

5. Call to action

The best ads will have a call to action. It could be your phone number or a link. Either way it will add value to your ad and give you a way to measure its effectiveness.

6. Proofread

So important and yet frequently forgotten about – proofreading will prevent you from looking like a total amateur and publishing an ad with a blaring typo in it.

7. Test

The only way to make sure your ads are working as hard as possible for you is to test them. Try different headings, calls to action and benefits to see which brings in the highest response rate. Only through this continual process can you find the perfect formula.

Over to you

Do you use PPC advertising?

If so, leave a comment below and leave your top tips for getting the most out of your ad.

Kevin Cain of OpenView Blog has kindly agreed to allow me to re-post his blog A Writing Checklist for Content Marketers… and Everyone Else on Freelance Copywriter’s Blog. A very useful article for copywriters and content writers.

In a recent guest blog post for the Content Marketing Institute, I talked about how crisp writing and a consistent treatment of words and phrases are a very public reflection of an organization’s professionalism. The post went on to describe how to create a content marketing style guide and to make the point that in the digital age, where our thirst for content and ability to share that content is greater than ever before, style guides are essential.

I stand by that claim, but also recognize that putting a style guide together can be a pretty daunting task, particularly when resources are limited. That’s why in this post I’m giving you an out in the form of a writer’s checklist. A regular component of the style guides I’ve created over the years, it’s essentially a one-page cheat sheet that you can use to help make sure your content is up to snuff.

My Writer’s Checklist

Always remember to read your writing out loud and ask yourself: Is it easy to read? Do you stumble anywhere? Is it hard to follow? While doing so, remember to check the following:

Overall Effect

• What is the main message being communicated?
• Is it interesting to read?
• How does it look? Are the paragraphs divided into easily digestible lengths?
• Read your first sentence or two. Is the purpose of your writing clear? Have you hooked your reader into wanting to read more?
• Does the story progress naturally and logically? Would any paragraphs make better sense elsewhere?

Tone

• Are your point of view and tone consistent?
• Have you chosen words that are appropriate for your audience?
• Will your writing offend anyone who is reading it?

Style

• Is each sentence complete? Does each focus on a simple point? Is each clear and explicit?
• If all sentences are about the same length, can you find ways to vary their lengths?
• Are your transitions between sentences and paragraphs smooth and logical?
• Are you writing in active (not passive) voice?
• Have you used verb tenses consistently?
• Are adverbs and adjectives used excessively?
• Are any words overused?
• Do any parts of your writing sound wordy, choppy or repetitive?
• Do any of your sentences start with and, but, or so? Can you eliminate these words without changing your meaning? If not, can you combine these sentences with others without making them excessively long?

Grammar and Spelling

• Do all your subjects and verbs agree?
• Do all your pronouns agree with the subjects to which they refer?
• Have you spell-checked?
• Are all names and titles accurate and spelled correctly?

While a checklist like this will never take the place of a content marketing style guide, following it will at least make you think more about your writing before you share it with the rest of the world. Doing so will almost always lead you to a better final product.

Guest post by Sam Mauzy, a copy writer and blogger and also a contributing writer for QuickSprout, a digital marketing agency.

Many copywriters are traditionalist in their approach to business, choosing to write down ideas and plans with pen and paper first, before transferring them to a digital format by typing them up manually later. However, it’s possible to circumvent what can be a laborious and lengthy process by making use of some of the modern applications and software that have been designed to help creative professionals capture ideas, create compelling copy, and deliver projects in a timely fashion and to a high standard.

1. Evernote

When starting out, many copywriters keep a notebook with them at all times so that they can jot down ideas as soon as inspiration strikes. But this is certainly not the most efficient or effective method of capturing ideas and information, and that is where Evernote comes in. Evernote is the favorite app of copywriters all over the world. Described as ‘the ultimate note-taking app’, it enables you to collect thoughts and ideas when on the move, capture text, images, video and other content from the internet. You can use it to record speech, whether it is your own, or the words of an interviewee or someone giving a seminar or talk. Everything you capture can be tagged for easy sorting and location.

2. Omnifocus

David Allen’s Get Things Done methodology is used by many creative professionals to manage time and tasks with greatest efficiency, and OmniFocus is just one of the apps available that can help you to prioritize your workload and break it down into manageable tasks. Using the projects function, you can organize tasks by their goals and group associated tasks using the ‘contexts’ tool. You can keep track of your tasks by sorting them according to project, location, person or date. Available for Mac, iPhone and iPad, this app uses a simple interface which allows you to access your tasks wherever you are, and synchronizes across your devices using MobileMe or the WebDAV servers. The app will even build your task lists according to your location, using the in – built iPhone GPS, and receive notifications when you are near a location that has tasks available. For everything from planning and organization to reminders and taking notes, this app offers users flexibility and a range of tools to make project management effortless, so you can get on with the work at hand.

3. Mindmeister

Ideas are the driving force behind any good copywriting business, and there are plenty of apps that are designed to help you maximize your creativity and make the most of your ideas. Mindmeister is one of the simplest but most successful creative apps available. The app is connected to the online MindMeister service, which is the web’s no. 1 site for collaborative mind – mapping, boasting more than 1 million users. The MindMeister mobile app can be used anywhere to generate new ideas, organize and prioritize information, and create connections between ideas. Users can create an unlimited number of folders and mind -maps, all of which sync seamlessly with the free online MindMeister account if you choose to use it. Users can share mind-maps directly from their mobile device, and make use of the app’s support for multi-touch functions to zoom in and out, pan, drag and drop. They can also add themes, styles, colors and icons to mind maps to make them visually interesting and stimulating, and to make them meaningful to those they are shared with. For busy creative professionals on the move, losing a great idea can make or break a project, so having this app at your fingertips is a great way to keep all of your inspiration in one place. A powerful internal searching function means that it is easy to find ideas again across multiple mind-maps, and the real-time collaboration enables you to brain-storm with your colleagues and work with them as easily as if you were in the same room.

The author’s views are entirely his own and may not reflect the views of FreelanceCopywritersBlog.com. If you are interested in producing a Guest Post for this blog, please get in touch with your ideas.

This is one from the archives, but still very relevant…

Content is everywhere.

Some of it is great – informative, funny, attention-grabbing, persuasive, powerful…some of it is, well, pants quite frankly.

You would probably be hard pushed to recall a great ad or piece of copy, but I bet you can remember the bad ones.

As a copywriter or online marketer, you’ll want your copy to be remembered for the right reasons.

To avoid falling into the trap of producing bad copy, I have compiled a list of 20 sins that you should avoid.

1.  No attention-grabbing headline

2.  No sub headings

3.  No benefits

4.  No guarantees

5.  Spelling and grammar mistakes

6.  No testimonials (believable ones, anyway)

7.  No features

8.  No conversational writing or questions

9.  Over complex and long sentences

10.  No deadlines

11.  No strong call to action

12.  No free trials

13.  ALL IN CAPITALS

14.  Very few ordering options

15.  No visuals (all text is a bad idea)

16.  No comparison against competitors

17.  No emotional appeal

18.  Way too much jargon

19.  Text is either too small or too big

20.  Not enough white space

I’m sure you can provide further examples, if so I’d love to hear about them.

Marketing your business involves a lot of writing.

Whether you do this in-house, or by hiring in the expertise of a copywriter, you’ll need one very important thing – lots of ideas for content.

Ideas can come from anywhere at any time, so here are a couple of tips to make sure your ideas keep flowing.

1. Paper and pen

Because you never know when inspiration will strike, make sure you have a pen and paper with you at all times (or a digital voice recorder).

During your working day, ideas will come at you from all directions:

• Comments from customers
• An article you’ve read
• A news item
• Mail shots
• Emails…

So when an idea strikes, write it down. It could be the start of a blog post, article or newsletter item.

Customer feedback is particularly important. If you’re scratching around for an idea for your next blog post, or newsletter, where better to look for inspiration than your customers?  If they contact you with a question, you could create a ‘how to’ or ‘top tips’ article based around their enquiry.

By keeping a record of ideas like this, you’ll never be scratching around for inspiration.

2. Swipe file

One word of warning – a swipe file doesn’t mean you are free to plagiarise other people’s work.

Every day you are subjected to hundreds of sales messages. You probably subscribe to several newsletters, receive loads of direct mail and read magazine and newspaper articles. Some of which you’ll read and some you’ll ignore.

But with the ones you read, think about what it was that made you take notice of them:

• What was in the headline that made you read on?
• How was it written?
• What type of information did it contain?
• What tone was used?

In other words, what was it that captured your attention? Once you discover that, you can reproduce that effect in your own marketing materials.

What it comes down to is this – online marketing is a continual process. We’re talking about newsletters, emails, web copy, blogs and articles – all things that have to be done regularly to keep your business in your customers’ line of sight.

By regularly jotting down notes, you’ll never be short of ideas for your online marketing.