Because false modesty is for graphic artists and not writers, I’ll simply mention that Writer’s Digest has — for the second consecutive year — chosen my writing blog (the Copywriter/Writer Underground) as one of its 101 Best Websites for Writers.
Megalomania is setting in (again). Thanks, Writer’s Digest.
My copywriting blog (The Copywriter Underground) has appeared in the prestigious Writer’s Digest annual “101 Best Web Sites For Writers” review.
One of only three sites in the review’s Freelance category, I’m conveniently located directly below The Science Fiction And Fantasy Writers of America and just to the left of the Horror Writers Association, which seems appropriate given what freelance writers experience on a daily basis.
Naturally, recognition of almost any kind is flattering (when I interviewed fave fly fishing writer John Gierach, he said “any writer who says he doesn’t enjoy a little recognition is an asshole”).
I’m not sure how or why the Underground was chosen, though because I’m sick and my desktop computer hardware is failing me (on the eve of several giant projects), I’m guessing it’s a simple matter of karma; nature creating a kind of neutral buoyancy so I neither sink nor swim.
Then again, it could have been my winning personality, or perhaps my willingness to hyphenate compound modifiers (I’m going with the personality angle).
My Copywriter Underground freelance writer/marketer blog – despite serving mostly as an outlet for a certain grouchy copywriter/marketing consultant bent on total annihilation of social media mega-hype – has been picked by the oDesk blog as one of the Top 40 Writer’s blogs.
And yes, it appears that oDesk actually visited the blogs in question instead of simply crafting another linkbait list. Kudos to them.
I’m touched. Yet I refuse to gush like Sally Fields gushed in her 1985 Oscar speech.
It’s always gratifying to receive the recognition of your peers – people who write and market for a living.
Teaching my first three Online Marketing Boot Camps couldn’t have been more gratifying.
In addition to finally finding the time to update my site, I rediscovered a simple truth: Teaching is simply learning from the front of the room.
The student reviews were excellent, which has dangerously inflated my ego, though that’s tempered by the fact they asked some difficult questions.
That’s the learning moment for the teacher; the world isn’t always oriented the way we think, and an innocent question from a student can turn your closely held perceptions on their ear.
The most significant accomplishment was dynamiting the students’ concept that online marketing involved building a Web site and standing back while the money poured in.
Dynamic Web sites, content management systems, content marketing, engagement marketing and online CRM were all fodder for discussion – as was the concept of internal capacity.
That’s the amount of time a small business owner can reasonably pour into online marketing. Accordingly, the boot camp focused on leveraging content across multiple media channels.
With business trying to feed Web sites, blogs, email, twitter and other channels, leveraging content offers a ray of hope for those who don’t generate words or pictures for a living.
It’s the kind of structure I suggest to my consulting clients – the kind of system I just created for a new client, who built a Web site more than a decade ago and hadn’t done much since.
Web site, blog, and email are all singing the same song, and the focus is on leveraging quality content across all three.
The open rate on our first e-newsletter is three times the industry average – only two days after it dropped – is still climbing.
We’re doing something right.
When I was asked to teach an online marketing boot camp by a local economic development agency, I wondered how much interest we’d get.
A lot, it turns out.
Our first class (which begins Monday, February 23) filled up almost immediately. The waiting list grew quickly, and suddenly, we were faced with adding two more class sessions.
Overwhelming demand is a gratifying thing, though we can attribute the success of this class to something larger: An increasingly complex online marketing universe is forcing businesses and nonprofits to look for help.
They want to navigate the Internet’s confusing array of media channels, which seem to appear on almost an hourly basis. And yes, yesterday’s Web developer/graphics person may have precious little experience with blogs, social media – or concepts like engagement marketing, online CRM, or Return on Time (ROT).
We’re focused on making sense of the Internet, and doing so in these key areas:
With the online marketing world growing more complex every hour, it’s clear that consumers have more choices than ever – making connection (and engagement marketing) even more potent (and necessary) tools.
An economic development non-profit has asked me to create an online marketing boot camp – a series of seminars aimed at helping small and medium-sized businesses create and refine an online marketing presence.
I previously taught blogging and email marketing seminars for this organization (both excellent engagement marketing media channels). Yet businesses today need access to the bigger picture – they need the ability to create an integrated online presence that engages customers and prospects across multiple media channels.
In other words, a simple Web site – static and without reach – simply won’t cut it any more. Instead, the Online Marketing Bootcamp offers an A-to-Z look relevant Web technologies, including:
Working as a group, we’re going to decide which media channels are right for which businesses, help them select technologies, craft content strategies, and create meaningful metrics to track their progress.
Internet marketing technologies are evolving too quickly for the average business to keep up; Online Marketing Boot Camp clears away the hype and misconceptions, leaving attendees with a solid, effective online marketing presence.
The editors of the New Writer’s Handbook – a collection of essays by writers for writers – asked to include one of my Copywriter Underground blog pieces in their latest collection (Volume 2)
It’s always nice to receive recognition from your peers. Especially when you’re being recognized for the quality of your writing.
In this case, I spoke to the power of the parenthetical statement. English teachers largely hate it. But – used properly – it creates a sense of intimacy with the reader.
From my article:
In skilled hands, a parenthetical statement will help bridge the gap between writer and reader, puncturing the invisible barrier between the two. (See what I mean?)
They give you the ability to step out of the copy and into the reader’s space. You can even share what feels like a private joke (just don’t tell anyone else!), transforming your reader from skeptic to confidant.
Today’s marketing evironment demands more from a writer than an ability to neatly arrange vowels and consonants. Audiences are bombarded with messages, and marketing is fast becoming a game of engagement, not manipulation or interruption.
A copywriter capable of selling generates sales.
A copywriter capable of selling and engaging customers generates steady, long-term revenues.
Northern California’s Jefferson Economic Development Institute (JEDI) is an economic development non-profit which has developed a (deserved) national reputation for their innovative approaches to rural wealth building.
To help their rural, small-business entrepreneurs access global markets and compete with bigger – and more centrally located – organizations, JEDI is looking to Internet marketing. Accordingly, they asked me to teach segments in online marketing to a class of entrepreneurs, and also wanted a workshop on interactive Web 2.0 marketing.
The workshop was a sellout (we’re scheduling a second to meet demand), and working with the entrepreneurs was gratifying.
My message was simple: small businesses can out-compete bigger organizations online — especially when using interactive “engagement” methods. Engaging with customers and prospects via shared values and passions is much easier for smaller companies, who — due to smaller customer acquisition budgets — need to do a better job retaining customers.
Engagement marketing techniques are a natural for entrepreneurs looking to compete and win in tough online markets, and JEDI’s entrepreneurs immediately grasped that thinking.
As technology recedes, and values-driven content comes to the fore, the technology advantage enjoyed by larger businesses will erode. It’s a good time to be an entrepreneur.
I’ve written a lot of direct response over the course of my 22+ year career, and I’ve always been an outspoken critic of deceptive mailing practices, believing they harm all marketers in the long run.
That’s why BrandWeek sought me out when they wrote a story about the growing practice of deceptive mailers. While they quoted me several times, this quote received prominent play:
“What I don’t understand is why organizations allow deceptive practices to undermine their carefully [and expensively] cultivated brand images in the first place,” said Chandler. “I recently received a series of envelopes from a large credit-card bank where I held an account. All shared the same alarmist stamp that “Important Information” about his account was enclosed. “Of course, it wasn’t important information,” Chandler said. “It was a series of cross-selling pitches. After a month or two, I canceled my account.”
Rather than deceive, why not delight recipients?
My copywriting blog — aimed primarily at copywriter and business marketers — was once again picked as a Top 10 Writer’s Blog via a contest held by Michael Stelzner of Writing White Papers fame.
Heady stuff indeed — and proof that good content offers even the tiniest of businesses a “thought leadership” role.
Here’s the entire list of winners:
Engagement Marketing delivers powerful brand loyalty to businesses and nonprofits - provided you do it right.
Learn how; download your copy of The Engagement Principles - a clear, concise executive white paper.
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