That Golden Egg, copy writing, website copywriter

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COPY = LEVERAGE

Whether you're an information marketer, a wholesaler or retailer, a service provider or a professional if you do the right things, your web sales could and should be many times more than your local sales.

Are they? If not, you have content on your web site. If so, you have copy on your web site. You reap what you sow.

How do you tell? The difference between content and copy is easy to see...it's in the numbers.

Content tells. Copy sells. Very few online businesses know this little secret. And that's why only five percent of them thrive.

Imagine web sales that are two, three, four times or more than your local sales. That's leverage. Get some!

SERVICES

Words are the currency of life and copy is the currency of the web.

Choose which of my services you prefer:

• Copy Writing
• Copy Editing
• Copy Critique
• Short Forms
• Retainer
• Consulting

COPY WRITING

Copy writing is salesmanship in print. It's what makes your customers whip out their wallets and buy.

Copy writing combines writing skill and sales ability with technical know-how and product knowledge. It is carefully crafted to speak to your market and turn web site readers into your customers and clients.

COPY EDITING

A copy edit is a transformative rewrite that strengthens the sales-critical elements that are weak or missing in your copy.

This is typically accomplished at about half the cost of copy writing from scratch. Another benefit of fresh copy is improved search engine optimization results. Search engines like fresh copy.

COPY CRITIQUE

A copy critique gives you a written evaluation of your web site. Specifically, your site is reviewed for readability, clarity, relevance, order device effectiveness, graphics, structure, navigation and call to action.

A copy critique is the most affordable way to identify the selling quotient of your site. It tells you what's working, what's not working and suggests what to do about it.

SHORT FORMS

Brevity is the soul of wit and the big idea is the heart of advertising.

Short-form selling devices are "big ads in little bodies". Their purpose is to get noticed, be remembered and advance sales. Innumerable businesses have been revitalized with short-form advertising and new naming.

The work behind short-form selling devices is anything but short; which is why companies place such a premium on them. Corporations pay big bucks for the brainstorming behind advertising shorts. For example, the going rate for corporate site naming is now 50,000 to 75,000 USD (www.salon.com).

How short is short? Banner ads work best at 10 to 20 words. Description blocks for catalogs and landing pages entreat with 50 to 100 words. Email campaigns jump and sing with 100 to 200 words. Headlines nail it in five to nine words. Taglines rivet with five to 15 words.

FEES

As a small business owner, I know that what matters are results. I apply this principle to my personal guarantee:

“If my work doesn't please, you pay no fees.”

My fees are based on productivity. This keeps you in control and close to the process. Page rates are based on up to 300 words per page. Site rates are based on up to five pages per site.

When content or preparation needs are very light or very heavy, fees are adjusted accordingly.

REDUCED FEES

I offer reduced fees for selected non-profit organizations. Get in touch and tell me what you're up to.

NEW CLIENT DISCOUNT

As a new client, you receive a 10 percent discount off your first project.

REFERRAL DISCOUNT

When you refer a new client, you receive a 10 percent discount off your next project.

RETAINER

If you have ongoing needs, you may wish to have me work on a retainer basis. You get easy access and fast feedback. Your projects get quick attention without any surcharges. Your retainer can be adjusted or canceled as your needs change.

RELATED SERVICES

I would be glad to refer you to professional resources I know and trust for search engine optimization, web programming, digital photography, graphic design and hosting.

Note: Copy writing is not the same thing as copyrighting. If you want to protect intellectual property with a copyright, service mark or trademark, you need to contact a legal practitioner in your jurisdiction.

COST OR INVESTMENT

Before the advent of the Internet, one of the greatest minds in advertising, David Ogilvy, said that copy writing was the single most valuable investment a company could make in its success.

Ogilvy estimated then (in the 70s) that copy writing represented an investment of less than one-tenth of one percent of what a sales team would cost. Today, an investment in copy writing is far less.

Doesn't your enterprise deserve first-class attention?

THE GOOSE STORY

When
you see
geese next fall
heading south for
the winter, flying along
in V-formation, you might
consider what scientists have
learned about why they fly that way:
as each bird flaps its wings, it creates an
uplift for the bird immediately behind it. By
flying in a V, the whole flock adds an amazing 71%
more power to the flock than if each bird flew on its own.

When
a goose falls
out of formation,
it suddenly feels the drag
and resistance of trying to go it alone
and quickly gets back into formation to recover
that all-important lift of the flock member in front of it.

When
the lead goose
gets tired, it drops back to
the wing to rest knowing that
another will move forward to fly point.

When
you hear geese
honking in flight, it is their
their way of acknowledging and
encouraging each other, especially so for
those flying up front who are expending the most
effort. The honking is their way of saying "fly straight, stay
strong, keep up the speed and we're right here behind you."

When
a goose is shot or
gets sick and drops out of
formation, two other geese always fall
out with their weakened flock member. They follow
it down to take care of it and protect it. They stay with
the fallen goose until it is able to fly or until it dies. Then
and only then do they leave to resume their journey.

by Dr. Harry Clarke Noyes
ARCS NEWS, Vol. 7, No. 1, January 1992