PRACTICAL MARKETING STRATEGIES FROM A SEASONED COPYWRITER

As Soho starts to open and spread its wings once again, as a small business owner you may be wondering;

“How do I rebuild my business ’ s presence and credibility to pre-pandemic levels?” “What types of marketing efforts do I need to bring back the elusive customer where street traffic once ruled?” Founder of Copy Unleashed, Copywriting Specialist for Retail & E-Commerce Businesses Aimée Lopez provides some useful ideas that you can put into practice on your own, as well as tips on how to find a writer who can help shape your written communications with your customers.

MORE THAN PRETTY PICTURES

Now more than ever, we need to be shrewdly strategic with our marketing efforts. There is an overwhelming array of platforms available to sell your ideas and so few hours in a day One thing is for certain - relying solely on pretty pictures posted on Instagram is not going to cut it. In this day and age, we need to diversify not only our sources of income but also our brand reach. This is not to say that you should just throw things at a wall and see what sticks. What’ s important here is truly getting to know your customers and how to speak their language so you can connect with them in such a way that makes it impossible for them to say no to a purchase.

THINK ABOUT YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE, NOT YOUR IDEAL CUSTOMER

The primary starting point for your business is working out who is going to buy from you.

A lot of the time, your ideal customer is not necessarily the person who will spend money with you. Malcolm Gladwell’ s book The Tipping Point goes into brilliant detail about this. But you have to start somewhere. First, think about how your product or service specifically fills a need or takes care of a problem for a potential customer. Secondly, what type of person would benefit most from how your business handles this pain point? This is your target market.

WHAT IS COPYWRITING ANYWAY?

“Make it simple. Make it memorable. Make it inviting to look at. Make it fun to read. ” – Leo Burnett, legendary ad man.

If the title of this piece grabbed you, you probably already know the power of the written word. Think about it. The words that are on your signage, product tags, menus, printed materials, website, social media platforms are selling your products or services without you speaking. Words can potentially be your 24/7 salesperson. You can sell while you sleep. Who wouldn ’t be interested in that?

The art of harnessing the written word for the purpose of selling a product or service is called copywriting. The folks who sit behind a computer feverishly crafting words for businesses and their products or services are called copywriters.

Okay, now that you are convinced of the importance of the written word for your business, let’ s go over some helpful points to consider when creating written content.

TONE OF VOICE

Now that you have a target market in mind, what does your target audience look like and how do they speak? Look at customer reviews of your competitors. What are their customers saying and how are they saying it? This will give you an insight into how to address your target market with the written word.

Keep in mind that people come from all over the world and have different levels of reading comprehension. It’ s best to keep things clean and simple without using too many idioms or puns.

GOOGLE MY BUSINESS IS YOUR NEW BEST FRIEND

Forty-nine percent of businesses on Google My Business received more than 1,000 views on search per month (Publer). Ninety percent of consumers read online reviews before visiting a business (Invesp).

If your business is not registered on Google My Business with a short and succinct description and up-to-date contact information, then stop reading this and register right this second!

Google My Business is a right-hand sidebar box that appears when people search for your business or similar ones in your geographical area. It’s becoming increasingly important in any local business’s marketing. You should read each review and respond promptly to any customer concerns or standout compliment. Keep a stock of general responses to save you time. People need to know that there is a person connected to your business, so writing a personalised response from time to time - sadly few businesses choose to do this - can make the difference between a one-time and a lifetime customer.

HOW TO BUILD SOME BRAND CRED

Plan to spend an hour each day on your marketing efforts. People want to feel like they can trust you with their hard-earned money and that you share their values.

One mega tip here is to sprinkle the pronoun “you” into your marketing copy. Do not start your marketing wording with “we.” Don’t focus on yourself. Focus on your reader. People want to see themselves in your words.

In the last few years, with the dominance of mobile technology, correct English grammar usage is going out the window. Don’t let it! Take the time to edit your writing and check for mistakes. Download the free version of Grammarly onto your computer. Poor use of language is a killer of brand credibility. If you do not feel comfortable editing your work, hire a copywriter or copy editor. As previously mentioned, there is an exhaustive list of marketing outlets that you can use. Quite simply, do the research, ask the questions, then go where your target audience is. Don’t kill yourself being everywhere and speaking to everyone. As a small business, you do not have that luxury.

Don’t fall for the latest trendy social media platform or app if your target audience is not there. Menekşe Stewart from the podcast Creative Business Marketing with Menekşe gives amazing advice. She recommends that you focus on two marketing outlets in total, one platform that you have control over and one that you do not. For example, the signage on your storefront or a website and an Instagram or Facebook business account. Just a quick note on SEO. Search engine optimisation is something that you should definitely consider as it is a low-cost way to gain traffic to a website, but as with anything, you can’t rely solely on it to bring people to your business.

WHERE TO FIND THE RIGHT COPYWRITER FOR YOUR BUSINESS

Okay, okay, you

’ re busy. We get it. If you get to the point where you need to outsource the writing for your business, then it’ s time to look for a copywriter.

Working with a copywriter can be like a marriage or a fling.

If you have a limited budget for a one-off project, you can look for a copywriter via freelance websites like Upwork and Fiverr. Do your due diligence, read reviews, research the going rates here in the UK through ProCopywriters and develop a realistic budget and schedule.

If you

’ re looking to develop a long-term relationship with a copywriter, ask your network for recommendations or have a snoop around Linkedin. Search for marketing campaigns that you like and look up the copywriter who crafted that particular piece of work. Please bear in mind that these people are experts and are artisans at crafting the written word. Treat them as such.

There is talk out there of AI technology taking over for copywriters. Sure, AI will help formulate words but unless AI technology becomes Arnold Schwarzenegger in Terminator 2 and develops a sense of empathy, then for the moment at least, copywriting jobs are secure.

If you’re looking to develop a long-term relationship with a copywriter, ask your network for recommendations or have a snoop around Linkedin. Search for marketing campaigns that you like and look up the copywriter who crafted that particular piece of work. Please bear in mind that these people are experts and are artisans at crafting the written word. Treat them as such.

There is talk out there of AI technology taking over for copywriters. Sure, AI will help formulate words but unless AI technology becomes Arnold Schwarzenegger in Terminator 2 and develops a sense of empathy, then for the moment at least, copywriting jobs are secure.

BRAVE NEW WORLD

Think of the reopening of your business as a whole new starting point on your entrepreneurial journey, even if you’ve been in business for aeons. Start with what we call a minimum viable product - a starting business model that is malleable to customer comments. Keep sharpeningand improving your business along the way from your customers’ feedback.

Good luck on your journey!

Aimée Lopez is retail/e-commerce copywriter from New York City, currently based in London. She is the former creative director of SHE. Magazine. Aimée ’ s passion lies in crafting words to serve underrepresented brands and people. You can find her at www.copyunleashed.com | IG: @copyunleashed