It all begins with an idea
What really matters
Data is important. The tools of marketing are more diverse, more powerful than ever. But what matters doesn’t change with technology. To succeed, you have to say something important and you have to say it well.
Easy reading is damn hard writing
Nathaniel Hawthorne wasn’t a copywriter, as far as I know. But he’s right—good writing is work. Done well, it has a simplicity with every aspect working in unity.
Most great writing shares a few traits:
It’s relevant. Sales and marketing that does anything beyond addressing your prospect’s self interest is a waste. Or worse, a barrier. Our first measure of all creative work — does it matter?
Everyone’s favorite subject is ME. Understand who your audience is and what matters most to them.
Write for a human audience of one. There is no audience. We convert the masses one person at a time.
Be interesting. Be relevant. Be concise. Write elegantly, beautifully even. The only sin is to be boring.
Be yourself. In every industry, there is so much sameness. What people perceive to be safe — looking and sounding like everyone else — is, in fact, the greatest risk.
Copywriting is inseparable from strategy. The best writing happens when everything we create serves a strategic purpose and the strategy is tethered to specific business goals.
The right message will be heard. If it’s relevant. If it’s compelling and believable.
Passion is the byproduct
of commitment
How to get to a certain je ne sais quoi…
All great work has a certain magic. Something unexpected. Some pairing of words and images that form an idea unique and whole, even when built from common, known, expected components.
Great work appears simple, but typically takes heart and soul to get to. It’s anything but easy. In fact, but for the rarest of instances, if it comes easy it’s probably not great.
What makes something magic? Leave it to the French to answer the question — truth is, no one knows including the writer or the designer or the photographer. We can’t define it because it typically transcends language, but we invariably know it when we see it.
It never comes when we stop at “good enough.”
If we’re to reach our most ambitious goals, good enough is no longer good enough.
How to get there?
Work. Intent. Purpose. Determination. Grit. Refusal to settle. All the things we know in our heart but compromise for convenience or budget or time.
What’s the key?
The will to do the work.
Old school radio is still fun
A comp piece for a campaign for a local outdoor store. It never ran, but that is the life sometimes. I still like the idea. Plus, radio is always fun to do.
Many years ago, a study by a group of landscape architects explored the effect that a fence around the playground had on the way children play. What they discovered is that with too much space, the children tended to stay close to their teachers. When a fence was introduced, the children pushed their games to the full extent of the playground.
My take is that limitations are critical to creativity. A really well written brief that tightly defines the project is a joy.
Embrace the difficulty
Get in touch.
You have a challenge or a problem to solve and I’d love to help you find a solution. It doesn’t matter how big or small the story you want to tell might be, let’s make something great that produces results.