Wouldn’t it be great if there was just one little button you could press to make your audience buy? My job as a freelance copywriter would be so much easier. But it doesn’t work like that. Finding the one thing that will make someone buy can sometimes be like looking for a needle in a haystack (please forgive the cliché).

One thing that definitely won’t make people buy is clever marketing. You can make your ad look as pretty as you like; it can have a witty slogan or ironic content but that isn’t what is going to make your reader think ‘I must buy that’.

What will get them on the verge of opening their wallets is if the marketing strikes a chord within them. If you manage this, you have achieved the ultimate aim of any copywriter – you have tapped into their emotional reasoning. That is definitely the place you want to be.

Customers won’t buy just because you are trying to sell to them but they will buy if you can make them realise that it would be of benefit to them to own what you are offering them.

It could give them the solutions to their problems, make them more attractive to the opposite sex or guarantee increased income (be careful about what you promise). Whatever it is they are buying the advantages of your product.

People won’t buy if you fill your copy with adjectives, exaggerated claims or overt marketing as all this points to an amateur approach – they won’t be impressed and they will walk on by.

So get to know your audience, get inside their heads, find out what makes them tick and then you will be able to produce copy that will build their confidence in your product/service and will make them want to buy.

Sally Ormond

Freelance Copywriter

 

Let me take your business to new heights by making every word count.

As more and more businesses are shutting shops and offices to concentrate on their online presence, is the Internet really connecting people or is it devaluing the real connections we have and isolating us?

Despite some of our larger clients, I refuse to charge corporate fees to small businesses because I enjoy working with them so much more than faceless executives. This means I am regularly speaking to people working from home offices and around 50% of the time, work alone.

Before the Internet, this wouldn’t have been possible, a lone worker would need an office and exceptionally expensive marketing techniques. Before the telephone they needed meeting spaces and prominent postal addresses. With the Internet here and rapidly growing, the meeting space has gone, the office has been sacrificed, the telephone sits silently and formal office-wear has been replaced by the dressing-gown.

According to retail analysts: Verdict Research, in 2007 online shopping grew by 33.4% to £10.9bn in 2007. They foresee online sales tripling over the next five years. All the major supermarkets now deliver shopping for you. Pubs are closing countrywide faster than ever, real social lives are slowly diminishing.

Meanwhile, as the Internet makes working from home a more convenient and cheaper option, the media and Government are making it as difficult as possible for us to leave our homes, Petrol prices are forever rising, knife crime, war, terrorism, danger danger danger!

To fill the need for social interaction, Internet users are now resorting to Facebook, Myspace, email, instant messaging, online dating, online chat, anything to keep the social interaction going. Using these systems connects us with old friends, clients, suppliers, family and new people from all over the world, but is it enough? Today in 2008, we can wake up, have conversations with family and friends, catch up with clients, and answer a few enquiries all before brushing our teeth. What is the world coming to? We’re dropping human interaction for the convenience of the Internet, then finding a way to replace what we’ve lost through the same medium.

From a marketing point of view, this is not necessarily a bad thing, our demographic is becoming easier to find and reach as they’ve all pigeon-holed themselves to their favourite communities.

From a business and financial point of view, it helps keep overheads down and allows people to work at their own pace, particularly useful for single-parent families or other situations where available time is sporadic.

From a personal point of view, we’re connected to people we never thought we’d hear from again, but in many cases, slightly less connected to our neighbours and family. We see major family news on Facebook before we hear about it directly, with the extra connections and busier lifestyle, we leave family dinners longer and longer, people who should be close family, we see once a year.

Are we isolating ourselves in our homes and offices or are we better connected than ever before? Is networking the new socialising?

During one of my lives, I became a trained coffee expert, think of wine tasting but with coffee. Some hardened drinkers would be amazed at the variation of taste and textures of coffee grown in different climates under different conditions on different soils. Part of the training was to identify the soil, altitude and climate the coffee was from just by the taste.

Did you know there are two different types of coffee bean, Arabica and Robusta. Arabica beans are by far the better quality than Robusta and when raw have a smell similar to that of blueberries. They must be grown at between 600-2000 metres. Robusta beans are less variant and tend to be a little more grainy. They can grow well at low altitudes of 200-800 meters, they are also less subject to pest and rough handling problems. They yield more pounds of finished goods per acre at a lower cost of production.

Coffee beans tend to grow best with plenty of water but with the altitude and temperature, this can be tricky. The best place to grow coffee for the best flavour (in my opinion) is on volcanic soil and the pumice is excellent at trapping rainwater. Altitude + Volcanic soil generally means on the side of a volcano… as you can imaging, many crops have been lost on the side of active volcanoes.

Coffee beans look like cherries when growing… well, a picture paints a thousand words:

Coffee Bush

When ripe, the beans are picked and skinned to reveal the green pip within. Due to such wide taste variances, these need to be blended to produce the taste a brand consumer is familiar with, every cup of coffee from starbucks should taste exactly the same as the last no matter where it is… this is a tough job, especially when the beans don’t have any true flavour as yet, that comes later.

If the coffee is to be decaffeinated, they are now usually soaked in water to dissolve the caffeine and flavours, the water is put through a carbon filter to remove the caffeine and then readded to a proportion of the beans in an attempt to bring back the flavour and smell… all I ask is that you try fresh and treated beans and taste the difference. untreated beans generally have a much richer flavour, this is of course assuming artificial flavourings aren’t added to the decaffeinated beans. This is called the Swiss water method, there are other methods involving solvents and even rumours of using urine… In the commercial coffee world, this wouldn’t be allowed so it’s probably just hearsay.

The fresh (or brutally murdered) coffee beans are then added to a giant drum in the commercial world, though an stone oven would do just as well, they are dried to lose about 12% of water, then roasted at 250 degrees celsius. For quick cooling, the roasted beans are drenched and air dried to avoid burning the beans, they are then packaged and shipped.

Enough of this waffle, how do I make coffee?

I shared the above to hopefully help readers appreciate the processes and treat coffee with the respect it deserves. Coffee tastes best freshly ground. Invest in a course coffee grounder and start buying whole coffee beans, there is little (if any) difference in the cost of the beans so there’s no excuse! The beans should be kept in the fridge and can be frozen if they’re not going to be used for some time. An airtight back is recommended, usually the packet will be resealable.

First step, boil the kettle. Kettles are designed for boiling water, but boiling water will burn coffee and leave a bitter taste. The ideal temperature is about 90 degrees C not 100!

Once you’re ready for a cup of the good stuff, pull the cafetiere off that dusty shelf and wipe it clean.

Grind the coffee beans on a course setting, if you’re a cheapskate like me and have a pressure on/off button, then experiment in how much grinding works. You don’t want a fine power but something a little larger than sand, this will prevent it creeping through or round the mesh of the press. Use about 2 heaped teaspoons of beans per cup. (if you’re blessed with sensitive scales like the ones on the corner shop shelf next to the bongs, measure exactly 8gramms per cup.) Once ground, add them to the cafetiere.

Add a splash of cold tap water to the kettle once boiled to bring the temperature back down and pour just enough into the cafetiere to cover the coffee grounds. Give it a little stir to bloom (create a foam) and add the rest of the water. Don’t go to the loo or check your emails! Start a timer. Depending on the courseness, the best brewing time varies, but never leave it for more than 4 minutes (I tend to aim for 3minutes 30s). After 4 minutes, the bitter elements of the bean come through spoiling the coffee.

Once finished, give it another quick stir, then press the plunger slowly and pour. (If you can, now would be a great time to pour a little off to compare with instant coffee to remind yourself about how you wish you’d seen an article like this before.) Allow the cup to sit to settle any remaining sediment.

Tip: If you do scorch the coffee with a hot kettle, or stew them in the cafetiere, add a pinch of salt. This will take away most of the bitterness and give it a sweeter taste.

Another patronising ‘did you know’ Noted as one of the world’s largest, most valuable, legally traded commodities after oil, coffee has become a vital cash crop for many Third World countries. Over one hundred million people in developing countries have become dependent on coffee as the primary source of income. Coffee has become the primary export and backbone for African countries like Uganda, Burundi, Rwanda, and Ethiopia as well as many Central American countries.

Where can I find a decent coffee bean? That is a matter of taste, my personal favourite is Starbucks Cafe Estima (the same one they use in-store) If you’re SE based, check out Tchibo as they have a selection of fresh coffee behind the counter. The beans are changed weekly for freshness. Other brands I’m sure do the same.

If you would like to help 3rd world more directly than just buying from some brand with ‘Fairtrade’ splattered across their expensive tables in premium locations with fat-cat executives, speak to a real coffee expert, an Ecademist Anne Quinn who imports coffee beans herself as a personal interest and pursuit to helping those in need.

Wake up and smell the coffee, just another small part of life which should be enjoyed rather than hurried.

 

Website Accessibility

2.2 (p7): “The Disability Discrimination Act makes it unlawful for a service provider to discriminate against a disabled person by refusing to provide any service which it provides to members of the public.”4.7 (p39): “From 1st October 1999 a service provider has to take reasonable steps to change a practice which makes it unreasonably difficult for disabled people to make use of its services.”

2.13 – 2.17 (p11-13): “What services are affected by the Disability Discrimination Act? An airline company provides a flight reservation and booking service to the public on its website. This is a provision of a service and is subject to the act.”

5.23 (p71): “For people with visual impairments, the range of auxiliary aids or services which it might be reasonable to provide to ensure that services are accessible might include … accessible websites.”

5.26 (p68): “For people with hearing disabilities, the range of auxiliary aids or services which it might be reasonable to provide to ensure that services are accessible might include … accessible websites.”

Hotels have lifts, shops have ramps, even London underground is making an effort. (although much work still needs to be done.)

Is a website not accessible? How do you make a website accessible?

Blind people cannot read a computer screen, but many are online. How? They use a screen reader to read the page. Text content NEEDS to be in order in the code for this to work, also images should not be used for content, and any flash should have a text alternative.

Coming away from the extreme, many people in the UK are long-sighted or have difficulty reading, particularly on the back-lit screen. To combat this, the text colour should contrast the background, should be large enough or be re-sizable. You should also take into account the number of colourblind men there are out there, particularly when some colours are indistinguishable.

If you rely on video or audio files, you should provide a text alternative for the deaf.

Flash websites are BANNED! however some flash elements with text equivalents are still allowed… they are usually unnecessary. If a site must be in flash, a full HTML version should be provided, the second html site is also good for google as flash can’t be seen.

“This seems a bit like political correctness gone mad, can you be sued?”

In a word, yes. The RNIB has approached two large companies with regard to their websites. When they raised the accessibility issues of the websites under the DDA, both companies made the necessary changes, rather than facing the prospect of legal action (in exchange for anonymity).

The DRC launched a formal investigation into 1000 websites, of which over 80% were next to impossible for disabled people to use. They issued a stern warning that organisations will face legal action under the DDA and the threat of unlimited compensation payments if they fail to make websites accessible for people with disabilities.

In short, if you operate a website, this applies to you. Generally speaking, little will need to be done (if anything) to make your site accessible, speak to your web designer today or contact us for advice.

You can also check your site free on http://wave.webaim.org/

While not 100% accurate, it will give a good idea as to how much work will be needed. Have a chat to your web designer if you think your exposure could be increased.

Can I also tell you a secret? Google factors website accessibility into it’s algorythm. An accessible website will rank more highly than an in-accessible one with the same content.

Every copywriter wants their sales letter to be the greatest ever written. But how do you make sure that your message hits the back of the net rather than the crossbar?

 

The first step is to break down your identified goals into objectives. You need to think about what you want your reader to do; what should their reaction be when they read this letter? Basically you must identify – what it is you want your reader to know, how you want them to feel once they have read it and ultimately, what you want them to commit to.

 

What you want your reader to know

I know I have banged on in the past that your writing should be benefit-lead and not feature-lead but you do need to tell your reader some facts about what you are selling so that they can then justify their buying decision.

 

How you want them to feel

Not an easy question to get an answer to. Clients will often look at you blankly when you ask them. What you are looking for is something along the lines of they should feel excited about becoming one of your customers, or that they will be worried that they’ll be missing out if they pass up this opportunity. It is the emotional response that you are after. Not an easy little blighter to pin down at the best of times but if you can tap into your readers’ emotional tank you will be on to a winner.

 

What you want them to commit to

This is the call to action. It could be ‘buy now’, ‘recommend a friend’ or perhaps ‘book an appointment with an advisor’. Whatever it is it must be specific and direct. You must leave them in no doubt whatsoever about what they should do, how they should do it and when.

 

Follow these steps and you can be sure that your clients will love you forever more as they see a much higher number of customers in the back of their net.

 

Sally Ormond

Freelance Copywriter

Let me take your business to new heights by making every word count.