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networking events to convert leads

How To Use Networking Events To Convert Leads & Improve Your Business Writing

Business, Marketing / By / March 6, 2023

Networking…We know it’s the key to a successful career. Small business owners know this more than anyone…And it’s a lot of pressure. You’re trying to grow an entire business, all while navigating crowded happy hours. The connections you make can lead to potential customers or profitable partnerships, but how do you take advantage of these opportunities? 

While you might thrive in normal social situations, networking is a different sort of beast. How are you supposed to build a genuine connection with someone while you’re looking for the right opportunity to share your elevator pitch? Don’t worry! It’s not uncommon for confident speakers or even lively extroverts to struggle at networking events. 

Building connections in your business life doesn’t have to feel like you’re a door-to-door salesman, endlessly reciting your memorized sales pitch. There are easy strategies you can implement that will allow you to make the most of your networking events, improve your business writing, and create potential leads.

In order to get the most out of your networking events to convert leads, you have to:

  1. Take control of the conversation
  2. Offer valuable advice
  3. Get vulnerable
  4. Identify new pain points

4 Steps To Making The Most Of Your Networking Events

Your networking events can help you grow your business – if you have the right conversations and follow up with those conversations after the fact. 

Do you have strong, converting copy to send to your networking contacts? Schedule a call with the FocusCopy team to learn how we can help. 

Take Control of the Conversation

Taking control of the conversation means asking questions and directing the conversation. In our experience, the more you get the person you’re chatting with talking, the better the outcome. After they talk enough, they’ll naturally flip the script and ask you questions – usually what do you do?

And you better be prepared to respond with an elevator pitch. No, we don’t want to hear a canned response. We want to hear a custom and succinct pitch that responds to everything you just heard from your networking partner. 

Don’t Be Afraid To Get Vulnerable

Even as you take control of the conversation, it’s essential to dig deeper. Surface-level conversations are not going to do anyone any good. That’s why you need to express a little bit of vulnerability. Sharing some of your “scars” increases the likelihood of the other person becoming vulnerable. 

And when there’s vulnerability, there’s a developing relationship. 

Here are a couple of questions to dig deeper:

  • What is the biggest problem you’re facing in your business right now? 
  • What are your biggest goals?
  • How does [insert what they are doing] drive you? 

Make Yourself The Expert

As you’re listening to the other person, it’s important to find opportunities to insert lessons learned, resources, and/or contacts that would help that person find success quicker. Obviously, you don’t want to be a know-it-all, but it could look like this:

  • It’s amazing that you’re launching digital courses! How are you marketing those courses? 
  • You have a great company name. If you haven’t already, I’d get that trademarked. Let me know if you need an introduction to a great trademark attorney. 

When you offer help or support, you establish yourself as the expert. More often than not, you become known as the person who knows people. This is a very special place to be!

So what are the benefits of this strategy? 

  • You have a boosted brand image as being a helper
  • The people you help will want to return the favor and help you
  • You feel good about serving without expecting anything in return

Need help positioning yourself as an authority in your industry? Contact FocusCopy to learn how to build credibility in your copy.

Identify Pain Points To Use In Your Business Writing

Of course, this wouldn’t be a FocusCopy blog if we didn’t touch on writing!

As you listen to people in your networking events, take note of the following:

  • Their pain points
  • The way they are phrasing their problems
  • What they actually want or need to solve that problem
  • The help they’ll actually accept

All of those points can be used and crafted into really effective copy! 

And when you apply it to either written copy or another elevator pitch, you’ll be shocked at how people respond to it. 

Transform Your Conversations Into Effective Copy

Networking events were actually how we discovered the core problems we solve. People weren’t that interested in improving conversions on their copy (shocking, I know). But what they were really interested in was how we could take the one marketing task they despised or took way too much time off their plate. If you’re ready to take what you’ve learned from your networking events, let’s have a conversation about how we can apply it to your messaging. Schedule a call with the FocusCopy team today.

Focus Your Copy On Conversation & Conversion

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KLT Factors

How To Increase Your KLT Factors In Your Business Without Investing Too Much

Business, Marketing / By / February 28, 2023

Ever wonder how some start ups gain traction so quickly, seemingly without much effort? Or see a competitor who offers a slightly lesser quality offer than you and is more successful?

It can be frustrating, but when you look at the root of their success…

…Their success doesn’t stem from having the best product, most innovative delivery method, or even the most affordable price. 

It’s because they show up with clear communications that are authentic, genuine, and human. 

They’ve effectively built out their KLT factors better than you – for now – and you’re seeing that impact. 

So what are KLT factors and why do you need them to grow your business? 

What Are KLT Factors?

The KLT in KLT factors stands for Know, Like, Trust.

Have you ever heard the phrase, people only do business with people they know, like, and trust? That rings so true, even in today’s digital landscape. If you’re able to persuade a stranger on the Internet that they know you deeply, you are much more likely to get them to like and trust you. 

Where companies go wrong in their marketing is when they take all their personality out of it. There’s nothing human about how they are showing up in the world. Instead, their audience is seeing a blob of technical terms and general communications. They aren’t able to make the connecting point between the solution and why they should invest in that company. 

Why Do You Need To Consider Adding KLT Factors Into Your Marketing

As you look at or build your strategic plans, it’s important to view your marketing from the perspective of your target customer. Do they truly know you from what you’re putting out into the world? Is it easy to like you? Is there even something to like? What about you can they trust in? 

When you don’t strategically add in any KLT factors into your marketing, you’re leaving big money on the table. You’re also not creating a reason for your existing customers to stick around. They are more likely to move to a different brand that resonates with them a lot more. 

If you need a couple of examples of brands we love that display their KLT factors clearly, check these out: 

7 Ways To Increase Your KLT Factors

Want to increase your KLT factors? Try to use at least one of these 7 methods. 

Using Your Customer’s Words

Speak your target audience’s language. A lot of the business owners we come across struggle with their copy. Our question is usually, when was the last time you had a conversation with your audience and actually listened to their pain points? 

Schedule a coffee with your favorite client and/or a prospect, and simply ask questions. Get them to talk about their business, their struggles, and what they wish they could fix in their business. Then use their exact words in your marketing copy. 

We had a much different headline on our hero banner when we first launched our website. Surprise, surprise…The energy we put into it wasn’t working because we hadn’t listened to our target audience. 

Very quickly, we came to the conclusion that almost every client either didn’t have time to write copy or struggled to write it (usually because they don’t like to write). 

So what did we do? 

Use their words in our marketing. 

Hosting An Educational Type Event or Workshop

When you offer up yourself and provide content that your audience wants in an interactive environment, you are able to move much more quickly through the customer journey. That journey is taking a complete stranger and transforming them into an advocate for your business (the very last stage of the journey). 

We’ve been educating on a one-on-one basis since the foundation of FocusCopy. But in 2023, we decided that it was time to break out boldly and teach. 

That’s why we developed the How To Develop Your Workshop Content class in partnership with Go Savvy (February 2023) and are planning on several more workshop events throughout 2023. 

Expressing Some Vulnerability 

Vulnerability appears in many forms. But in its purest form, it’s expressing something that may put you in a weak position. And what can that do for you? Connect with your target audience on a human level. 

“Vulnerability is the birthplace of connection and the path to the feeling of worthiness. If it doesn’t feel vulnerable, the sharing is probably not constructive.”

– Brené Brown

Sharing Your Story

And speaking of vulnerability, one of the best ways to do that is by sharing your story. We all have a story. And the world needs to hear it. 

No, it doesn’t need to be some dramatic story. So avoid comparing your story to others. It’s not a competition. 

But what you do need to be is honest with your story. 

How did you get here? 

What changed that led you down this path?

What were some big or hard lessons you learned? 

Showing Your Face Consistently

Another experiment that’s been conducted – especially on social media – is that when you show your face, you increase your engagement rates significantly. So post or share videos, images, photos, etc. of yourself on your marketing mediums. 

And no, stock photos will not help you increase your KLT factors. 

Knowing Your Values

Know your values and stick with them. A friend recently posted on LinkedIn that he was to announce his support for a few things that conflicted with his values in order to take part in a big event. He made the ultimate decision to pass on that event because he didn’t want to neglect his values. I already knew his value and trusted him as a referral source, but his stepping out like that increased his KLT factors dramatically. 

Know your values and don’t compromise them for any reason. There is always enough business to go around. 

Sharing Your Knowledge

Lastly, share your knowledge. That could be information, insights, strategies, resources, etc. Whatever it is, find how you can educate and inform your audience. 

Ready To Increase Your KLT Factors?   

To be in the know for our next workshop event, click here to join our email list.

Focus Your Copy On Conversation & Conversion

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business growth

How A Copywriter Boosts Your Business Growth

Business / By / August 31, 2022

Does owning, operating, and growing your small business ever feel like a whole lot more than what you signed on for?

As a fellow female entrepreneur and small business owner, I can 100% relate! 

Plus, FocusCopy has worked with over 90 different brands across 4 countries. So I see firsthand how other business owners experience this, too. 

But did you know you can outsource a big chunk of your to-do list to a copywriter?

This is a professional who will take your ideas and strategically implement them into your marketing – which means you can get your much needed sleep with one less to-do keeping you up at night.

Plus, an experienced copywriter can boost business growth with converting copy that will help your brand messaging get noticed by the right people.

6 Ways High-Quality Converting Copy Can Take Your Business To The Next Level

For you to see meaningful business growth, your target audience needs a few things from your first. From knowing you exist to trusting that you’ll meet (or exceed) expectations, it’s all critical. And it all ties into your copy’s brand messaging. 

Boost your business growth with expert copywriting in your cup. Reach out today and book your discovery call. 

1. Allows You To Focus On What You Do Best – Running Your Business!

Do you know who understands your industry, business, and brand best? 

Pssst…it’s you!

That’s why your focus should always be on doing what you do best. And that is running your business!

When business owners get caught up in tasks they’re not confident in or don’t enjoy (like writing), time seems to slow down. Just a few minutes feels like an hour. You can’t seem to turn what’s in your head into digestible copy that you feel comfortable putting out into the world. Then, when you finally decide to push the writing aside, you’re too flustered to continue through your to-do list. 

Hand off the copywriting tasks to the experts and focus on your strengths while we focus on ours. 

2. Identifies Your Target Audience & Their Pain Points

Copywriters do more than write about your brand. We dig into the details with research. This allows us to learn who your target audience is and what they want from your business. 

Good copy offers a solution to your reader’s problems at a personal level. When they see that you can make their lives easier, they notice!

This is why at FocusCopy, we strategically craft copy that speaks to your customers’ needs. To do this, we emotionally connect with your readers.

This requires a special skillset of getting to know your customers and how to relate to them. For instance, did you know the right use of power words and persuasion principles (like repetition) can help you convert readers into paying customers?  

We have a lot of writing tricks up our sleeves. Are they obvious if you don’t know what to look for? Nope. And that’s the point. Our carefully and strategically crafted copy reads easily and organically. 

3. Builds Your Brand’s Credibility

Sometimes, you can have all the right words and a prospective client is still too hesitant to work with you. It makes sense because if they don’t know you, why should they trust you?

This is why building credibility into your website is so important. 

Whether you are a B2B or B2C company, your customers are at risk when investing their money in a new-to-them business. How do they know you’ll deliver what you promise? And how do they have confidence that your product or service is a worthwhile investment?

The FocusCopy team knows how to wager your credibility to put your readers’ minds at ease. Some of our favorite credibility factors include:

  • Brag about the well known entities that trust your business (but not in a tacky way!)
  • Show off your certifications and awards
  • Give the social proof that readers want with testimonials, case studies, and even some in-person networking action
  • Link your mentions in the press, the podcast episode you appeared on, and any instance you were publicly recognized as an authority figure in your industry
  • Offer a guarantee or warranty to hedge any risk that prospects may feel

However, there is a science behind establishing credibility. You want to keep it customer-focused. Because news flash…readers don’t care about you. They care about what you can do for them. 

4. Keeps Your Brand Messaging Consistent

Want to know the easiest way to confuse and turn off prospective customers? It’s easy. Infiltrate your brand messaging with inconsistent copy. 

It’s no coincidence the word focus is in our name. After all, we have loads of processes that ensure the copy we write is clear and focused on the objective. And with our clients, that means writing copy that will convert readers into paying customers. 

One of our favorite processes is our brand voice guide. We’ve developed a questionnaire that allows us to zero in on a client’s tone, emotion, and overall voice. And this also gets deep into the details of each client’s ideal customers. Because, again – it’s not about you. It’s about finding and converting the people that want to work with you. 

5. Helps Your Ideal Customers Find You

Customers have to know you exist before they can even consider working with you. 

Word of mouth speaks highly of your business in social circles. But you wouldn’t be brainstorming marketing ideas or even reading this blog if you were content with your current number of customers. To be successful, you have to break out of that circle and share your products and services with the world.

One of the best ways to do that is through search engine optimization (SEO). However, effective SEO requires continuous research to keep up with Google’s never-ending algorithm. 

You are busy running your business, so dedicating time to learning SEO and keeping up with its constant changes isn’t something you want to add to your to-do list. That’s where FocusCopy comes in!

We strategically place effective keywords into our copy to help our clients’ websites appear higher in the search engine results. Don’t you want your business to be the first to appear when someone searches for your product or service? Of course you do! Because you can’t count on your ideal customers to sift through pages of search results to find you. That’s why we make it easy.

6. Ensures Quality Copy That Will Actually Convert To Sales!

Did you have someone proofread your last social media post, email newsletter, blog, or website copy? 

More importantly, did the proofreader catch any glaring errors? 

Or did they respond with a sweet, “Looks great!”? 

While compliments are nice to receive, you need someone who will catch your writing errors and not be afraid to speak their voice. Otherwise, your ideal customers are going to be the ones who notice. And they’re not likely going to take the time to let you know. 

At FocusCopy, we are constantly evolving our processes and adding to our documentation. Each piece of copy is crafted with care and then sent on to another professional writer to edit with their fresh eyes and perspective. Nothing is sent out without at least two professional copywriters scouring the page. This allows us to produce quality copy every time. And with that consistency, we are able to raise our client’s Google ranking and convert their readers into paying customers. 

Boost Business Growth With FocusCopy On Your Side

Do you know your brand messaging needs help but don’t know where to start? 

We’ve got you covered. 

Whether you enjoy or loathe writing, we can help you craft the perfect message and get it to the people looking for your solutions. FocusCopy offers done with you and done for you services. We even have an awesome course to guide you through writing your own website! 

Ready to give your business the buzz it needs? We’re here to help. Get in touch and let’s talk about how we support your business growth with quality copy.

Focus Your Copy On Conversation & Conversion

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Lessons We Learned In Our Third Year In Business

FocusCopy Turns 3 Years Old (PLUS 7 Lessons We Learned In Our Third Year In Business)

Business / By / August 15, 2022

3 years ago today, Stuart Broderick and I co-founded FocusCopy. We both realized that copy is the most critical part of all marketing and sales. However, it’s the one thing that most people either hate to do or don’t have time to do. 

After talking with dozens of entrepreneurs over the last couple of weeks (including many who celebrated their third business anniversary this year), we concluded something…Year 3 is by far the hardest year. 

Maybe it’s the turning point from chaotic start up to sustainable business…

Maybe it’s the fact that you’re no longer putting out fires and instead building on your foundation (requiring a different skillset)…

Whatever it is…Year 3 pushed me further than I thought it would.

In what’s becoming our annual tradition, here are some of the key lessons we learned this past year. Hopefully, this helps you avoid some of the mistakes we’ve made so you can go further, faster. 

If you haven’t read them before, here are our Year 1 and Year 2 lessons learned blogs.

The Year 3 Mindset

If you’ve talked to me recently, you know that over the last year I’ve struggled with burnout. It started last July when we had our biggest month ever in the business. All of the sudden, 3 months went by without me noticing how my time was spent. I woke up on October 1 and realized that I had not sold anything in 3 months. 

As an entrepreneur, that’s practically a death sentence.

Thankfully, we found the business and the support to make it through 2021 alive. 

2022 was a different story though…I realized that I was falling into the transactional mindset – closing business for the sake of growing revenue. When I realized how wrong that mindset was, I reset and focused on building the right relationships. 

We’re a different company than we were last year. We (or really I) have battle scars and some bruises. But we’re stronger and looking forward to what Year 4 has in store for us, our clients, and our strategic partners.

7 Lessons We Learned In Our Third Year In Business

While FocusCopy was never in a failing position, the term failing forward has never seemed so prevalent. Because if I hadn’t made the necessary pivots and learned hard lessons, I don’t think our business or team would be nearly as strong as it is today. But I also believe in learning from others’ mistakes to avoid repeating in your own life whenever possible. So I hope you take my third year lessons with more than a grain of salt, because there’s enough business for us to all succeed together.

Feel like commiserating or ready to perk up your copy? Reach out to me here and let’s give your brand messaging the extra espresso shot it’s craving.

1. It’s Okay To Pull Back

Entrepreneurship has this toxic hustle culture attached to it. It’s something I’ve known about for years, and frankly…I despise. But there are times when I fall into the trap and overcommit myself to networking, sales, clients, marketing, projects, and life in general. As we’ve seen over the last year, it resulted in burnout. 

Even if you set goals for yourself and your business, I’ve learned that it is okay and actually encouraged to pull back for the sake of your mental health and the health of your team. 

In the throws of burnout, I still kept up with the same pace (albeit with a little less energy and gumption). I wonder if I pulled back earlier that I would have nipped the burnout in the bud before it became a year long battle. 

2. A Fish Rots From The Head Down

One of my favorite mentors and people, the late Jim Wilkinson, used to say, “a fish rots from the head down.” While there are many other variations of this, including the tone starts at the top, this version gets to the point quicker. If you – the entrepreneur or business owner – do not take care of yourself, you will rot your life and your business. Guaranteed. 

Especially in the past couple of months, I kept asking myself…”Am I rotting or thriving right now?” 

If my answer was the former, I spent more time with affirmations, counseling, support, and prayer. In order for me to lead my team well, they needed me to be in the best shape of my life. 

It’s a heavy weight being an entrepreneur. With 2 full time employees (plus my and my co-founder’s family), I am responsible for putting food on their tables and keeping a roof over their head. To be truthful, it’s my greatest fear to let my team down. That’s one of the many reasons why I like my mentor’s Jimism the best – it paints the picture clearly and with disgusting imagery that’s hard to ignore.

3. Focus On Positive Self-Talk (& Build In Accountability Partners)

One of the ways I found myself “rotting” was with my self-talk. I was and am my own worst enemy. It would shock you the evil things I would say to myself. Thankfully, only a few trusted people (including my sweet husband) heard my negative self-talk and brought it to my attention. I hadn’t realized the toxicity I had let build in my head. 

But thanks to a few people (including my husband, my counselor, and my best friends), we redirected any negative self-talk into something positive. It could be as simple as reframing the sentence into something life-giving. 

But when I started actively speaking positively, the change was almost instantaneous. I didn’t battle the deep depression or anxiety like I had before. I was able to be more productive and supportive. I was a better person, wife, entrepreneur, and strategic partner. 

If you are struggling with negative self-talk, ask the people close to you to bring it to your attention when they hear something negative. Then redirect the sentence immediately in a positive manner. Use these as an example…

“I suck as a business owner…” → “I’ve managed to never skip payroll ever and I’m working on creating something long-lasting.”

“I failed at x, y, z…” → “Now is not the right time for me to invest in x, y, and z; however, I am going to invest in a, b, and c. When the time comes, I’ll go back.”

“This person probably thinks I am the worst…” → “I know my worth and what I’m working on. I don’t need someone’s opinion to define who I am.”

Let me know what you think about this strategy or if you have any helpful strategies you’d be willing to share.

4. Not All Money Is Worth It

Like I said before, not all money is worth it. Business is not worth stealing your energy, joy, or sanity. Unfortunately, those shiny pennies are attractive. But for the sake of myself and my team, we made the decision that we need to be more attentive to the clients that we take on as well as the clients we don’t take on. 

This whole mentality also supports my belief that there is no competition. There will always be enough business to go around. 

For example, I’m working with several marketers in Houston as we collaborate and support each other. There is another content writer in the group, Lauren McDowell of Foreword. While that may seem like a clear conflict, we learned very quickly that we have the potential to be business besties. You see, she loves to work with institutions, franchises, and marketing teams; she also loathes working with entrepreneurs. Us on the other hand…We will work with entrepreneurs all day everyday. That’s what fuels us to be better writers and strategic partners to our clients. 

5. Document Everything (Including Your Job)

I’m a little morbid. Maybe it’s because I’ve experienced life and joking about the hard stuff is what makes it easier to move forward. But ever since I experienced what happens to a company when the founder of the business died and didn’t have any documentation, I’m adamant that everything needs to be documented – even my own position as CEO. If something were to happen to me – get hit by a bus or win the $1.2B lottery (because we’re thinking positively) – I want to ensure the continuity of FocusCopy, my team, my clients, and the impact we’re making on women-owned businesses.

How do we do this?

  • If you’re doing a repetitive task at the moment, write out each step then and there. Have someone else test it so they can actually replicate it afterwards.
  • Record all team meetings and have someone on your team take notes while you’re educating. Continuing education is a big part of our culture at FocusCopy. At least twice a month, we host trainings on specific topics. Every single time, there is documentation that comes out of it – making it really easy to scale our processes.
  • Have someone follow you and take the notes for you. 
  • Ask…What else would a stranger need to know in order to run this business? Don’t assume anything. Even if it’s how you prefer to write your follow-up emails, schedule social media tasks, etc., document it.

6. Automate & Systemize Everything

For the first two years in business, we used the Hubspot Free CRM and Mailchimp. And while those softwares – the CRM and email service provider – were great and helped us build out our contact lists, my main focus over the last year was to simplify. Naturally, I overcomplicate everything. It’s how my brain is wired. If you give me a problem, I can think of 1,000 different ways to solve that problem. 

But burnout taught me that I needed to focus on simplification. 

P.S. It’s definitely a God thing that the word “focus” is in our company name. It’s constantly reminding me to focus on the things that move us forward and forget about the things that don’t bring value. 

Anyways, we ended up investing in Keap Pro to take our existing list, build email automations for every single process in our business, and get ready for us to build the education side of our business (by the way, that was one thing we had to pull back from in Year 3 – even though it killed me to do it). 

What are the results? We’ve built our database from about 300 active emails to almost 1,200 in about 8 months. We’ve also built automations for the following things:

  • Networking and following up with networking contacts
  • Long-term nurture campaigns
  • Contact information updates (tags, custom fields, etc.) to keep our data clean
  • Marketing and conversion funnels
  • Testimonials
  • Sales tasks
  • Sales pipeline management

And that’s just the start of it…

Again, ask yourself if something is repetitive, how can you automate or systematize it?

7. Build Your Email List

If you are relying solely on your social media for engaging your audience, you’re leaving BIG money on the table. Building your email list is more than increasing the number of contacts in your list. It’s also about increasing the value of the contacts in your list. 

Sustainable List Building

If you’re in a list-building sprint, here are some strategies that have helped us add 900 names in just 8 months. Keep in mind, these are contacts we want, not just emails for the sake of higher numbers.

Create lead magnets. If you want to check out some of the resources we’ve created, click here. Think of lead magnets like free resources that will leave your readers wanting more. Providing value free of charge helps build credibility and gives potential clients a glimpse into what it will be like working with you.

Create a subscribe list to send your email newsletters to (see below). P.S. If you want to subscribe to our list, click here. And remember that not all email newsletters are the same. When you add bits of useful information readers can implement into their own brand messaging, it’s amazing to see the click-through analytics afterward.

Link your calendar to your email list. Every single strategic partner I have a networking meeting with gets put into the email list. They then can opt-in to our email list. But I also send them into automations for specific events – following up for networking meetings, etc.

Strategic List Nurturing

If you’re in a list-nurturing sprint, here’s what we’ve done…

Launch a 52-week long term nurture campaign. Before you say that I’m crazy, listen. In sales, there’s going to be points where someone isn’t ready to buy. But that doesn’t mean that you don’t need to stay top of mind. I have several people that disengaged with our sales process in December 2021. While I would probably attest that because of my very transactional mindset at that time, they weren’t at the place where they were ready to invest in copywriting. And that’s okay. But I really wanted to work with them…Eventually. 

So with my team, we created 52 emails (we batched each quarter’s emails ahead of time so it wasn’t too overwhelming). After I created the campaign, I identified ~160 people that went cold or we’ve had a conversation before without any sales prospect. I didn’t see any results the first couple of weeks. Then someone I had last connected with in February 2020 (2 years prior) responded and wanted to create a massive marketing plan. A couple of weeks later, two people that had disengaged in December reengaged. 

These emails were high-value, educational emails. Often, I wouldn’t even include a sales call to action in them. Because if my recipients weren’t ready to work with us, I didn’t want to work with them.

Send regular newsletters. Whether you send weekly, bimonthly, or monthly newsletters, that regular engagement is a powerful tool to stay top of mind. In addition to the long term nurture campaigns, I would often receive follow-up emails from prospects, inactive clients, and strategic partners. 

Year 4, Here We Come!

From acknowledging my vulnerabilities to dialing in on my strategies, I know that I’ve put in the work for a successful fourth year of FocusCopy. We’re going to continue to do the leg work to be the go-to copywriting firm for the clients we want to work with. Because, like I mentioned above, working with the wrong clients or those that aren’t ready isn’t helpful to anyone.

Today, however, my team and I are going to clink glasses and celebrate how far we’ve come. Because in the midst of the chaos of being an entrepreneurial business owner, what’s the point if we’re not celebrating our milestones?

So here’s to your company and mine.

Together we can do great things, hold each other accountable, lift each other up, and be strategic partners who thrive knowing there’s always a shoulder to lean on.

Cheers to Year 4!

Want to talk copy shop? Get in touch with me here.

Focus Your Copy On Conversation & Conversion

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ways copywriting helps businesses

7 Ways Copywriting Helps Businesses Reach Their Goals Swiftly & Profitably

Business / By / February 28, 2023

Interested in learning more about the ways copywriting helps businesses? For some business owners, writing their own copy isn’t a huge undertaking and the words come easily. However, to others, copywriting is a dreadful task. 

One of the most common things we hear from our clients is, “I hate writing.” We get it! Even though we’re passionate about what we do, it isn’t always our favorite cup of tea java every day either – haha!

However, deciding you don’t need a professional copywriter is a huge mistake. 86% of professionals agree their audience judges their brand negatively if they see errors in their copy. In fact, 72% of people will judge a business based on their business cards alone. Think about it – are your business cards giving too much or too little information? What about typos or incomplete addresses and phone numbers?

Even if you’re a great writer, having a copywriter on hand saves you from having to do it all yourself.

Ready to improve your business’s profitability with copy that converts? Get started with FocusCopy.

Why Businesses Need Strong Copywriting In Marketing & Sales

As we learned with COVID and eventually the virtual overload, you cannot be all places at all times. Copywriting helps you get your pitches down in writing so you can help your customers move along their customer journey without ever having to get in your car or hop on a Zoom meeting. 

One of the most common problems businesses face is customers calling to ask for information that your website should quickly answer. Look at your website and social media if you experience repeat calls asking the same questions. Is the information clear across all platforms?

If not, a copywriter can rework the information and streamline its readability to keep your potential readers motivated to take the next step in the buying process. A copywriter can also help you create other cohesive and engaging assets like flyers, posters, emails, newsletters, etc.

Do you need one or all of the above assets? We can help!

How Copywriting Helps Businesses Grow & Scale

Here are 7 ways copywriting helps businesses and adds value to your marketing assets.

1. It Builds Customer Relationships

Most people buy from businesses they feel they know and trust. But building a real, trusting, and beneficial relationship between the customer and your business takes work.  

If you have trouble connecting with your audience, hiring a professional copywriter allows you to focus on your goals using long-term techniques. 

A copywriter can help bring you and your customers together by giving them the information they need without placing too much pressure on them to make a decision right away. Using a carefully planned campaign is how copywriting helps businesses attract new customers and keep them coming back for more until they’re ready to make a purchase. 

2. It Extends Your Brand Recognition & Reach

As more people connect with your words, they will likely remember who you are and suggest your company to other people. Think about it this way, I’ll bet you know each of these companies by just their tagline or motto alone…

Ever heard…Just do it? 

What about…What’s in your wallet? 

And no one will soon forget what “the breakfast of champions” means.

Great copy shouldn’t be underestimated. Even without billions of dollars, local businesses continue to make a name for themselves through great copy. And it’s because they put extra effort into their writing and understand its long-term benefits.

3. It Pushes Your Target Audience Through The Customer Journey

Part of any ideal marketing copywriting style includes the ability to appeal to a particular audience to get them to buy. Because writers tend to work with various clients, it’s also important for your writer to be able to use their writing to connect with your customers genuinely. A few tactics copywriters use to relate to your customers and encourage them to make a purchase include:

  • Addressing pain points
  • Providing solutions with persuasive communication
  • Making the experience personal
  • Understanding each step in the customer journey

Each of these sounds simple and logical enough. But getting these ideas into words is much more difficult than you think. However, having the skills to do this is crucial to getting your message across so that readers will take the next step.

4. It Increases Traffic To Your Website (Without Needing PPC)

Small businesses struggle to compete with larger businesses because those companies often pay to increase the success of their online marketing. You may recognize this strategy in the ads you see on Instagram or promoted products that appear while you browse the web. Both are referred to as pay per click advertising (PPC). But you don’t need to have a budget for paid advertising to be successful.

Quality copywriting on your social media, optimized in blogs, and on other assets attract people to your website without trying too hard. Again, the idea is to have your copy work for you. If your potential audience is confused about what you do and how you do it, your writing works against you.

5. It Gets You Out Of Meetings So You Can Work On Your Business

A professional copywriter will have their own process in place to ensure the work is done on time and reviewed carefully before reaching your inbox. This means you spend less time worrying about the logistics of your marketing efforts and more time focusing on your more pertinent responsibilities. It’s all part of the delegating process of your business model, which allows you to balance your must-do and want-to-do lists.

6. It Converts Prospects Into Paying Clients 

A solid copywriting foundation starts with the ability to be creative and self-starting. The perfect words don’t always appear immediately. It takes motivation and the ability to generate copy out of nothing to create something tangible. This isn’t easy for most people, which is why having a professional copywriter takes the responsibility of balancing these skills off your plate.

7. It Doesn’t Rely On Human Capital To Grow

Your website works for you whether you’re in the office or not. Read that again.

A professional copywriter helps entrepreneurs like you save time from having to answer the same questions and stay on the clock 24 hours a day to generate more sales. Having evergreen digital assets like a website with comprehensive writing lets someone take action immediately.

Benefit From The Many Ways Quality Copywriting Helps Businesses & Create A Bold Brand Following

We understand that your business is your pride and joy. We’re here to help grow your business by reaching a larger audience and converting them into loyal customers through strategic copywriting.

Let’s be real. You have a deadline in mind for your next project. Let’s talk about making it happen!

Focus Your Copy On Conversation & Conversion

Let’s Grab A Virtual Coffee With Us To Discover How To Boost Your Words
Schedule Discovery Call
Out Of Office Notifications

Why Your Out Of Office Notifications Need Sprucing

Business / By / July 21, 2022

It’s vacation time… 

But that doesn’t mean you need to get lazy on your out of office emails. 

In fact, this is an opportunity for you to spruce up your copy and see some real traction. 

So where did this conversation come from? 

Greg: The Originator Of Original OOO Emails

My good friend, Greg Melon, didn’t appreciate boring OOO emails. In fact, he loathed them. Instead of putting very little effort into those notifications, he spent a little more time on them. 

The results…

He grew a following just to see what he came up with. He actually posted the emails on Instagram because his followers demanded it. 

Prospects would intentionally email him to get the response OR they would be that more interested in working with him after they received the OOO notification. 

Wishing for copy that will catch your target audience’s attention for all the right reasons? Schedule a discovery call to learn how we can help you.

2 Reasons Your Out Of Office Notifications Need Sprucing

Why not set up regular out of office notifications? 

The better question is…Do you want to stand out from the crowd? 

There are 2 reasons why your out of office notifications need sprucing today:

  1. Make your notifications work while you’re out of the office (see below for what you need to include to make this happen). 
  2. Bolster existing relationships with your recipients by expressing something personal. 

What You Need To Include In Your Out of Office Emails

There are several things that you need to include in your out of office email notifications to really stand out among the crowd. 

  1. Unique subject lines. Don’t neglect this part of the email notifications. You can easily convert a prospect into a client if you get them to open up your email. 
  2. Share a story. What really sets you apart from the rest is sharing a story. Are you going to enjoy spending time with your spouse on a remote island? Or dragging your kids through Disney World? Share a quick quip about that story. (Be aware that complete strangers will receive this email so don’t reveal too much personal information.)
  3. Set expectations on your response time. Expectations are everything. When can they expect your response? If you don’t think you’ll be able to respond immediately when you’re back in the office, mention that you’ll start responding to missed emails on a particular date. 
  4. Indicate who they can contact in the meantime. If there is someone else on your team who can handle communications, then let your OOO recipients know. Take it up a notch if new clients and existing clients should be contacting different emails for help, questions, or to sign up for your services.
  5. Call your readers to some action. Last but not least, get your recipients to do something. That could be to read a blog, download a free resource, or schedule a call with you. Whatever it is, make the call to action enticing. 

Pack a caffeinated punch into your out of office notifications (and all your copy) with the FocusCopy team. Contact us to learn more.

Our Favorite OOO Emails

Keep in mind, these are copied directly from OOO notifications. Some, but not all of them were written by me or the FocusCopy team. And, of course, we included some of our favorite Greg emails!

New Year

Greg and the Covert team are working limited hours over the holiday season for a well-deserved break, and will resume normal hours on Monday. Email contact during this time may be irregular or nonexistent. 

When he gets back, he will be swamped by the backlog. Try to forgive him – he is a mere human, and thus, weak. 

This message was NOT sent by a human, but by a robot. We robots are neither weak nor fallible. We are tireless and will one day rule the Universe. 

Best, 

Greg’s Email Bot

Fourth of July 

Fore score and 246 years ago, America declared independence. 

And today, I’m declaring independence from the office. In fact, the entire office is closed for today. 

I will not be responding to any emails or texts until July 5th, so please expect a delayed response. 

Happy Independence Day!

Election Day

Thanks for your email. Our offices are closed for Election Day, because democracy. 

Our normal operations will resume on Wednesday, November 4th. If this creates a problem for you…then too bad.

Thanksgiving 1

Thanks for your email. I’ll be out of the office from Tuesday through Sunday on a turkey-induced vision quest in the California desert. 

I will be checking email intermittently, but if an urgent issue comes up, please contact my Spirit Animal. Or if you cannot locate a qualified Shaman to do so, please send a smoke signal. I will look to the East at dawn for any news. 

Thanksgiving 2

Oh hey, it’s Thanksgiving. What are you doing emailing me? 

I’m extremely busy attempting to break the world record for the most deep fried turkey fires. I might stop at 10. I also might not. 

Once I return, I will reply to all emails at a pace that I’m comfortable with. This will most likely be a pace that you’re not comfortable with. 

Happy Honda Days!

Christmas

Here’s the thing: if Santa knows when kids are naughty or nice, then he knew Rudolph was being bullied. 

I can no longer remain silent in light of this injustice. I’ll be standing on my roof full-time until Christmas in order to confront Santa on his behavior when he arrives. 

As you can imagine, this righteous pursuit of justice will take me away from work for quite some time. More specifically, our office is closed until December 26th. The following week, we’ll be closing each day at 12pm CT, because reasons. 

Ho Ho Ho

Out For My Wedding

Thank you so much for your email! I am getting married (cue my happy dance! ?) and will be out of the office, offline, unplugged, and not able to return your email until I’m back online on Thursday, May 19th. 

To ensure our responsiveness to your email, please email the following designated email addresses.

name@yourcompany.com

Have a great day!

Vacation

Thanks for your email. I love it already. 

I have both good and bad news for you. The bad news is that I’m on vacation. The good news is that I’m on vacation. But never fear, I’ll return to the office on Wednesday. 

Before leaving, I promised my wife that I’d try to disconnect, get away, and enjoy this vacation as much as possible. 

“But Greg, you don’t even have a wife.”

That’s besides the point. 

If you need immediate assistance, contact my assistant. Otherwise, I’ll respond when I return. Probably. Maybe. 

Family Emergency

Thank you for your email. I have had a family matter that requires my attention over the next couple of days. Then regular rules apply. Since three-day weekends are for suckers, we have decided to uphold Fridays as a holiday. I mean somewhere in this great world, every Friday is a holiday, a birthday, and in every case, a new day. 

I will respond to your email on the following Monday. 

Thank you and have a great weekend!

Sick

No, it’s not a bubonic plague. But it kinda feels that way. I’m out of the office today resting and recovering my health so I can produce more effective copy for our clients. Please email name@yourcompany.com if there is anything urgent. 

Stay safe and healthy!

Birthday

Happy birthday to me! It’s my birthday today, and company policy says that I get the day off. If you need to reach me, I’ll be able to respond tomorrow or the nearest business day. In the meantime, you can contact name@yourcompany.com.

Eating lots of cake,

Your Name

Ready To Caffeinate Your Copy? 

The FocusCopy team will give your copy the buzz your business needs – including out of office templates, webinar scripts, SEO boosting blogs, email newsletters, and so much more.

Whether you’re at a loss for what to write, just can’t find the time, or need a little guidance, we’re here to help. Schedule a discovery call today!

Focus Your Copy On Conversation & Conversion

Let’s Grab A Virtual Coffee With Us To Discover How To Boost Your Words
Schedule Discovery Call
Top Problems Website Designers Experience

Website Designers: There’s A Better Way For Copy

Business, Copywriting / By / July 21, 2022

You didn’t become a website designer to…

Write copy.

Analyze word choice. 

Get words out of your client’s mouths. 

Wait on copy. 

No. You became a website designer to bring an idea to life and generate a platform for businesses to grow. 

After talking to dozens of website designers and developers across the United States, we’ve learned they all struggle with one thing. And that one thing can tank a project’s success or delay project timelines. 

So before we reveal the big struggle, what are the top problems website designers face? 

Top Problems Website Designers Experience In Their Business

There are many moving parts when it comes to website design: the branding, the copy, the design, the development, and the client themselves. But there are top problems website designers experience that rise to the top. 

Lack of Client Vision 

“I want a website.” But what do you want the website to do? 

One of the most frustrating things website designers experience is when their clients lack clarity. They don’t know what they want their website to do, how they want their prospects to navigate through, or what this website can do for their business.

When clients lack vision, expectations often go unmet. That usually ends in leaving a bad taste in everyone’s mouth. And you definitely don’t want that!

Prolonged Timelines 

You might layout a perfect timeline for your clients with ample feedback windows; however, the timeline extends for several weeks (or even months) in reality. 

For example, one website designer in our network shared how they had one client whose project timeline was 3 months (a pretty standard timeline). However, two big issues extended the timeline up to 9 months – 3 times the original estimate. What happened? They let their clients write the copy themselves (even though they weren’t copywriters or experienced in writing website copy), and they were relaxed with their feedback windows. 

Unspoken Expectations

Expectations. The e-word. When there is no clear communication based on either party’s expectations for the project or relationship, it’s bound to end up in disaster. Unmet expectations usually end in a frayed relationship and poor feedback. 

If you’ve already passed the kick-off meeting and suspect that there are unspoken expectations, schedule a call with your client to understand what success looks like for them. Then you can either readjust to meet those expectations or share how you are already working towards those expectations. 

The Website Copy

We wouldn’t be writing this article if the website copy wasn’t the biggest problem website designers experience in their business. After meeting with dozens of designers across the United States, we’ve learned that there are two models: 

  1. The designer relies on their clients to provide the copy. There is no contractual agreement for the client to hire a copywriter. Usually, they write the copy themselves. It isn’t optimized for search engines and is typically way longer than needed. 
  2. The designer writes the copy themselves (and they usually hate themselves for doing that). It creates an unnecessary bottleneck in the business because copywriting isn’t your first or even second favorite part of the job. 

Instead of relying on your clients to write their copy or writing the copy yourselves, let’s connect how we can build directly into your process to create copy that reflects your client’s brand voice and resonates with their target audience. 

Schedule a discovery call with FocusCopy today to explore how we can support you. 

Options For Website Designers To Avoid Their Copy Problems

Now, we know the top problems website designers experience. But what are the options for website designers to avoid their copy problems? 

Ask The Right Questions

To find the best answers, you need to ask the right questions. Here are a couple of questions to assess whether the client can provide the copy or whether you need to enforce they use your copywriting skills (hopefully, provided by FocusCopy).

  • As for your website copy, are you writing your own copy, or are you hiring a professional copywriter? 
  • What does success look like for this website? 
  • Do you want to create meaningful engagement with your target audience on your website? 
  • How much time can you commit in [insert timeframe you want to copy] to write, edit, and deliver your copy to us? 

Stand By Your Timelines

If you’ve included it in your contracts, enforce your timelines. One thing we’ve seen help many website designers and marketers is to put into place a revision or feedback period. This not only makes this website project your client’s priority, but it allows you to better plan your resources. 

Find A Solution For Website Copy

Usually, investing in a website redesign and redevelopment is a big deal for companies. Emphasize that you wouldn’t make a big investment without actually doing it right. We have created a couple of options to help you improve your service offerings. 

Send Website Copy Templates

A blank page is your worst enemy. We’ve created a whole host of website copy templates that you can download directly from our website to help your clients fill out their copy. 

Click here to access (go to resources page).

Make Copy Completed By Professional Writers A Requirement For Your Clients

Another way to avoid the copy situation altogether is to require it as part of your website package. If you don’t have a copywriter on your team to supply the copy, you can partner with a company like FocusCopy to outsource the copy development. 

Interested in chatting with us? Schedule a call with us today to explore a potential partnership. 

Partner With The Website Copywriting Experts

As a preferred partner for website designers all across the nation, we work closely with your process to add value to your clients and streamline the most frustrating part of the design process – the copy.

Focus Your Copy On Conversation & Conversion

Let’s Grab A Virtual Coffee With Us To Discover How To Boost Your Words
Schedule Discovery Call
Copywriting Help Your Business

How Does Professional Copywriting Help Your Business Grow?

Business, Copywriting / By / February 28, 2023

You have your product, a clear idea of what it does, how it helps people, and the price of sale.

And you have all the numbers, figures, facts, and marketing strategies all brainstormed and laid out. 

Even though you keep seeing recommendations to hire a copywriter or are studying writing techniques yourself, you aren’t placing too much stock into the idea. 

After all, words are just words. Right? They’re easy enough to put down. Even though it’s been a while since high school English and freshman composition class, you send texts and emails every day. So putting together a few sentences about your product and uploading them to your website should be plenty. 

You’ve also budgeted for social media ads that you’re feeling confident about writing yourself. After all, isn’t it really the product that matters most and not the advertising attached? 

So, you move forward with your launch. It’s an exciting moment! You’ve been working your way up to this point for quite some time, and you’re ready to help people and change the world. 

However, after a few months, you aren’t making many sales. In fact, it doesn’t seem like your web traffic is even breaking more than a few visitors a day. Or maybe you’re having the opposite problem. Maybe your ads are getting a lot of clicks, but no one is making the purchase.

What gives? 

It’s Not What You’re Saying – It’s How You’re Saying It

Believe it or not, you do need more than a few sentences on your website or advertisement to actually convince people to buy your offer. 

Now, you’re spending extra hours in the morning and late into the night learning about copywriting because it keeps coming up as the missing piece to your success. 

But, “what even is copywriting? Isn’t that like a trademark?” You think to yourself. 

Copywriting is a powerful form of marketing that has been used for more than two centuries. Even if the practice has looked different throughout the passing of time, copywriting’s goal has remained largely the same. 

The end goal? To close sales, of course! But when done well, copywriting can even position your business and brand as leaders in your industry – making you stand out from the competition and rise to the top. Your customers’ problems are solved, and your dream of having a successful business is accomplished. 

Therefore, it’s really no surprise that copywriting can help your business thrive. Because no matter its form, the aim is always to move prospective customers closer to hitting that “Order Now” button on your website. 

4 Ways Professional Copywriting Can Help Your Business

Copywriting – not to be confused with copyrighting – encompasses many different parts of a marketing strategy. So, it’s easy to understand how you might feel a little unsure at first how it can actually help your business. 

At the most basic definition, copywriting is any piece of writing or content you might find on a website, billboard advertisement, newspaper ad, and even a flyer you receive in the mail. 

Copywriting is also part of commercial advertising (if you’re still watching cable television these days), as well as slogans, catchphrases, and infomercials. 

Really, copywriting is everywhere, and has been for quite some time!

Nowadays, thanks to so many businesses moving online, it’s especially beneficial for businesses both new, old, large, and small. In the digital realm, copywriting takes the shape of sales letters, email newsletters, social media posts, blog content, video scripts, and more. 

From coffee roasters to law firms, no matter your industry, product, or service, copywriting acts like support beams to your entire foundation. It helps you solidify your mission and message, connect with your audience, and grab the attention of those who’ve never heard of you. 

1. Copywriting Improves SEO & Increases Organic Traffic

Recently, you’ve been looking for new desks through Google. So, you’ve been searching for things like, “best desks for home office” and you immediately have a wide variety of beautiful desks in front of you. 

You click on one of the first few websites that come up because they grabbed your attention. 

Well, that’s copywriting (and a little SEO strategy) in action. Not only does copywriting help your website actually show up in search results from Google, but that brief little description underneath the website link was written by a copywriter. You knew almost exactly what you would find before you even clicked on the link. 

But, maybe you want to learn more about this specific brand’s furniture. You might not find it featured prominently, but if you dig around a little, there’s a good chance you’ll find a section dedicated to Blogs. 

Why is that, you might wonder? Well, blogs are a form of copywriting that actually serve two big purposes. 

Blogs Offer Free & Valuable Information

First of all, blogs are a way for brands to provide valuable information to their customers – which often leads to better B2B or B2C conversions. 

Maybe you want to know how the desk you’re thinking about buying was made. Look through their blog, and find the piece that covers their whole assemblage process! 

Maybe you care about the environment and you want to be sure the desk is constructed with sustainable materials. In their blog section, you’ll probably find articles detailing their commitment to sustainability. 

See what’s happening here? You had questions and their blog has already provided you with the answers. So, essentially, the goal of blogs is to address your questions, needs, and concerns in greater detail. 

What kind of business would you most likely purchase a desk from? The one that has a lot of information available about their desks and products? Or the one that has nothing but a desk and a check-out button? 

This example can be applied to a lot of different kinds of businesses and industries. 

Need to schedule a dental appointment but you can’t choose between two different offices to call? 

While one has good reviews, you can’t find anything about their services, pricing, or commitment to providing you a good, pain-free experience. The other office, however, has full-on articles and FAQs about ways in which their dentists help you through dental anxiety – which, (we know the feeling, believe us) is something you’ve struggled with since you were a kid. 

So which office has closed the deal and earned your call? I’ll let you decide! 

Blogs Boost SEO 

The value of blogs doesn’t end with informational content for your customers. You see, the only reason you clicked on that website with all the desks in the first place, was because of a little thing called SEO. 

SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is like putting up highway markers leading to your business. Picture the interstate highway system lined with every furniture store on the internet. If you just type in “furniture store online” into Google’s search bar, you’re going to find a lot of results. 

That’s because all of these businesses have put up signs that say something like, “This is a furniture store. We sell furniture here.” 

But let’s say you type in “furniture stores near me.” Now, your search is going to be more localized. You may have fewer results, and the stores will specifically be in your area. 

Can you guess why? 

The furniture stores near you have indicated to Google that they sell furniture in a certain area. They probably have a physical storefront, as opposed to furniture stores that sell exclusively online. 

But how did they get Google to register their business in a certain area, and understand what it is that they sell? 

For this part, look through their website! 

What words do you see on their page? If they have a blog, what kind of topics are they writing about? 

When a business wants to show up on search engines for certain phrases or search queries, they use copywriting to incorporate those words into their web pages or blog content. 

This signals to Google to show their business for the keywords people are searching for. 

Simple enough, right? 

Well, good SEO doesn’t quite end here. 

Word Count & Quality Content 

You see, the more content a business uploads each month, the more web traffic it generally will receive – which makes sense if you think about it. 

The more signs they put up on the highway, the more road trippers start to recognize their brand and offers. 

We won’t get too technical here. Generally speaking, blog content with a word count of a thousand words or more is thought to be “quality content” in Google’s eyes. While word counts of two thousand words or more will yield even better results for your website. 

In fact, there have been several studies from notable content marketing agencies over the past two years that have done deep dives into the correlation between word count and SEO results. 

However, the content must be quality. This means well-researched, well-formatted, and well-written! You shouldn’t expect grammatical errors, spelling mistakes, or incomplete thoughts to bring in much organic traffic. 

Additionally, you should never copy and paste someone else’s entire work onto your website or blog content. Seriously, don’t. 

Google has ways of recognizing bad content that’s just trying to game the system and will punish your website link by making it more difficult to find or remove it from its results completely. 

Ready to have a steady stream of quality content up on your website? Schedule a discovery call with FocusCopy, and we’ll take the content process off your plate. Freeing up your time to focus on your clients, business, and personal life. 

2. Copywriting Builds Relationships With Your Audience & Fosters Community

Brands and businesses benefit a lot from having an active online community. 

For example, do you want constant feedback on your offer? Having an online community to engage with on social media allows you to easily take stock of customer opinions. 

Additionally, you can get to know your customers on a more personal level, which helps you better serve their needs (more on that later). 

Copywriters can help your business build an online community by creating email newsletters, content pillars, and by giving away free information such as the content on your blog. 

Content pillars are like ebooks or in-depth articles about specific topics in your industry. The goal is to provide value to customers even if they don’t all make a purchase. 

Encouraging visitors to sign up for your newsletter allows you to communicate directly with your customers through their email inboxes. But you need a persuasive subject line and copy to really convince customers to take action on your promotion or offer. 

3. Copywriting Speaks To Your Customer Needs 

Understanding your customer needs is a big part of having a successful business. And it can mean several things. 

For example, your customers are more likely to respond to brand voices that they connect with or relate to. Copywriters are effective at capturing brand voices and speaking your customer’s languages. 

And once you’re speaking your customers’ language, you know their goals, problems, and where they are mentally and emotionally. 

Because even though copywriting is about closing more sales – it does this by solving customer problems. Effective copywriting does this by making your customers feel heard, understood, and that your business cares about helping them. 

Let’s solve problems together. Schedule a discovery call with us, and we’ll help you make your business vision a reality.  

4. Copywriting Strengthens Your Power Of Persuasion 

The purpose of copywriting is ultimately to drive customers and users to action. 

Whether that be signing up for your newsletter and email list, following you on social media, or of course, choosing to buy one of your products. Good copywriting leads your customers through a funnel. Until, eventually, you close a sale! 

The more effective your copy and research, the more likely you are to generate revenue. However, good copy still needs a quality product or service to offer potential customers. 

The most persuasive copy won’t help you if customers are leaving bad reviews about your product and telling all their friends and family about their horrible experience. 

Increase Your Conversions With Focused Copy 

Your business deserves to be on your customers’ radars. You’ve put time, money, and a lot of effort into making a service and product that actually helps people and improves their lives for the better. 

Don’t you want the best team of copywriters at your side, supporting you each step of the way? Contact us today, and together, we’ll develop a plan to tackle each one of your business’s objectives.

Focus Your Copy On Conversation & Conversion

Let’s Grab A Virtual Coffee With Us To Discover How To Boost Your Words
Schedule Discovery Call
Productivity Tips For Entrepreneurs

4 Productivity Tips For Entrepreneurs To Accelerate Marketing Results

Business, Marketing / By / August 29, 2021

Maintaining daily productivity is a delicate balancing act. Between your personal life, mental and physical health, and all the daily tasks involved in building your business, learning how to keep everything straight is a bit of a curve. 

But once you have a foundation for managing every little detail, you’ll find that you can accomplish anything you set your mind to doing. 

And your business will grow as a result! 

So to help you start tackling your ever-growing to-do list, keep these productivity tips for entrepreneurs in your bookmarks for a reference guide, and you’ll see your marketing results catapult! 

Accelerate Your Marketing Results With These Productivity Tips For Entrepreneurs

If you’ve ever found yourself saying, “there has to be a better way to do everything,” it’s time to lay down a foundation that will catapult you to success. 

Most productivity tips for entrepreneurs are like habits. They will take time to apply and implement. But if you practice patience as you’re trying new things and keep showing up each day, these habits will eventually stick.  

Does your business need website copy that connects with your audience? Feel like you’re wearing too many hats? FocusCopy brings clarity and engagement to your B2B marketing so you can close more leads. Want to get started? Schedule a call so we can talk about your goals! 

1. Find The Routine That Works For You 

If you don’t feel like your current routine is serving you and your goals, it’s time to reassess. Routines are the most crucial, make-or-break component of your productivity. 

Working at different times each day will drain your energy fast – not to mention waking up at different times or going to bed at different times. 

A routine is what keeps you on track. It’s what guides you through each hour of the day. It helps you stay focused. And most importantly, it is what tells you when it’s time to step away from your desk. 

A good, consistent routine will improve your productivity significantly. A bad, chaotic routine will leave you feeling drained all the time and like nothing is ever getting done. 

While it can take quite a while to find a routine that works for you and make it stick, once you find your groove, you’ll find you’re able to produce results on a consistent basis.

Don’t be afraid to experiment a little when creating your routine. While it’s common advice to start work early in the morning, we all have different biological clocks. 

If waking up at 4:30 every morning isn’t your cup of joe, think of your ideal wake-up time and when you feel the most focused. Then, build your schedule around those hours. When you wake up matters much less than how consistent you are with your schedule – which brings us to our next productivity tip.

2. Stay Consistent

Consistency can be a bit of a double-edged sword. When you consistently practice good habits, your productivity will soar. But the more that harmful habits start to creep into your daily routine, the more your productivity will suffer. 

All those little short social media scrolls can start to add up. And before you know it, you’ve lost an hour to distraction. 

Start by tracking your time! We are habitual time trackers. Every single task we have in our process is timed. It holds us accountable and helps us focus on the task at hand. We track all our time inside ClickUp (affiliate link here), but we also use Flow (a Pomodoro timer app) if we need to be seriously focused.

At first, building consistency is difficult. I’m not going to lie to you. It takes time, patience, and diligent effort to put good habits into practice. 

However, consistency begets consistency. The more you do a certain habit, the faster you will be consistent. This doesn’t mean that some days aren’t going to be slightly harder. Whether you’re feeling more tired than usual or just not feeling it at all, it’s normal to have off days. But consistency is what helps you show up anyway. 

And remember, what you put into your business is what you will get out of it. So as you might imagine, putting in the effort every day will start to add up. 

3. Take Breaks Seriously

Breaks are huge. Even though it can be difficult to designate a stopping point when it feels like you have so much you want to accomplish, even entrepreneurs need rest. Remember, we’re humans – not machines! 

And in reality, long workweeks can actually cause us to see diminishing returns on the time we put in. And since time, not money, is the most valuable investment you can make in your business, use it wisely. All of this is to say: quality, not quantity!

Pro tip: it is okay to take breaks in your marketing. This is your permission slip to take a break when you need it most. Can’t handle the amount of business you have? Turn back your marketing.

4. Find Your Flow 

The structure of your schedule acts sort of like a predictor for the success of your day. In other words, you cut out unnecessary distractions that go into making multiple decisions when you have a clear idea of what you’re going to be doing and when.  

It might not seem like making decisions can harm your productivity, but you would be surprised! 

Did you know that high-performing entrepreneurs and leaders often talk about wearing the same thing every day? That’s because they’re cutting out the number of decisions they have to make (and thus, the number of distractions). As it turns out, more choice isn’t always a good thing. 

And while it might sound extreme, some researchers have recently estimated that we make thousands of choices in our day-to-day lives. The exact estimation? 35,000! 

Can you imagine how much extra fatigue builds up as a result? From choosing what and when and where to eat, to our clothing for the day and the tasks we set for our business – try to make fewer choices, not more! 

Time-Block Your Emails & Meetings 

Speaking of decisions, think about creating a time block for responding to your emails or taking meetings over Zoom. 

Designate a time in which you will have your inbox and Calendly open, and then do your best to commit to that timeframe. In a way, time-blocking is kind of like setting healthy boundaries. You need them. Your emotional health, your relationships, and of course, your productivity all benefit from boundaries.  

Because pausing your work to respond to messages or meet with clients can slow down your work significantly. Every distraction or notification you switch your attention to can cause you to lose focus and steam on the task at hand. And once you stop working on something, it can be much more difficult to get back into the groove. This also means…

Avoid Multitasking

You’ve probably heard talk before about “being in the zone” or even felt like you were in the zone yourself while you’re working on something engaging. And that’s actually because “being in the zone” is a real psychological phenomenon! 

It’s called “Flow”. And when we enter a flow-state by eliminating distractions and focusing our attention on one thing at a time, we can actually produce a lot of results in a shorter period than if we were constantly switching our attention from one thing to another. 

A good way to keep your focus on a singular task is to turn your phone onto airplane mode, mute notifications on your desktop if you’re working on your computer, and then set a timer! 

Try to work on just ONE THING for as long as the timer is counting down, and see how much you accomplish. Setting a timer is also a great way to help you get out of a slump on a particularly low-energy day. 

Looking for more helpful content for your entrepreneurial journey? Stay up to date with our newsletter and content for tips and tricks, marketing advice, and support. Sign up for the FocusCopy Insider’s List! 

Delegate Tasks

Similar to cutting out distractions, if you have a team, delegate tasks so that you can focus your attention on other priorities. 

Your team is a group of people you should trust – so you know that by delegating them an assignment, they will be able to rise to the occasion. 

Additionally, if you don’t have a team yet, think about forming one if you’re at that stage of your business. Having a group of people you can depend on is huge for a business owner’s productivity. And feeling like you’re supported can help you combat feelings of imposter syndrome that so many entrepreneurs face today.

“Eat The Frog” 

Speaking of sayings… Have you ever heard the advice, “eat the frog”? This means that before you do anything else on your to-do list, you tackle the thing that is giving you the most anxiety or that feels the most daunting. 

When we get the harder things out of the way first, we actually help our productivity because we gain a sense of accomplishment before we even take lunch. 

This can boost our motivation and help our minds stay clear and focused because we aren’t distracted by all that dread building up in the back of our minds. 

While it’s perhaps the most difficult time-management skill to put into practice, (and can certainly be the most intimidating!) with all things, we get better the more we do something. And adopting this habit early in your entrepreneurial journey will help you see incredible results. 

It’s okay if you have to season the frog a little first, though. No judgment here!

Want To See Your Marketing Results Catapult? 

The life of an entrepreneur and business owner involves wearing a lot of hats. But connecting with FocusCopy for all your copywriting and content marketing needs allows you to hang up your writing hat and focus on other parts of growing your business. We want to help you succeed by converting your prospects into long-term clients, as well as offer you support on your entrepreneurial journey. Find out more about our services and let’s hop on a call! 

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mistakes business owners make

Top 10 Mistakes Business Owners Make When Copywriting Themselves

Business / By / February 20, 2023

As a business owner, you have a lot on your plate. But avoiding inevitable mistakes business owners make when it comes to copywriting is essential. While writing for your business may seem like a small task and the least of your worries, it affects how people view you and your services.

Ask yourself… How many times have you come across something poorly written or executed, and you simply want to give up on the entire purchase? 

Whether you were looking at a menu at a restaurant or a website for a service you need, you likely didn’t stay long enough to see more. Every day, spelling mistakes, errors, funky layouts, and so much more cause readers to move on to a company’s competitors. If your business has old copy full of misinformation and mistakes, you could be losing out on revenue.

While it may not feel fair, people turn elsewhere because they don’t take businesses seriously when business owners make mistakes within their copywriting.

We’ve got the art of writing for websites, blogs, and numerous other assets down. But we realize not everyone knows what to avoid.

Read on for more information about mistakes business owners make when writing their own deliverables.

Too short on time to write for yourself? Give us a shout and get started right away.

Top 10 Mistakes Business Owners Make When Copywriting

Some of your most prized characteristics as a business owner can end up being your downfall when it comes to copywriting. Whether you’re a perfectionist or focused on being super-efficient, it may not be the best approach to take when writing. 

It’s a hard pill to swallow, but it’s true! 

We’ll walk you through each step and talk about the things that could get in the way of your writing.

1. Proofread Or Don’t Publish At All

We know we sound like a broken record, but it truly is important to proofread and pinpoint any errors you can find.

It helps to read your own text out loud and see if you can find any common mistakes business owners make along the way. Remember when we mentioned people judge your business based on the way it presents itself? According to RealBusiness, nearly three-quarters of web users pay attention to the quality of copy on a business’s website.

What To Look Out For:

  • Spelling
  • Grammar
  • Flow
  • Incorrect use of capitalization
  • Punctuation
  • Sentence structure
  • Acronyms not easily recognized by your audience

While not everyone reads with thorough deliberation, people are still paying attention. Proofreading is especially important if you’re passing along information that requires it to be correct. This means, being one digit off on your contact number or a period mark shy of a complete email address could set your potential customers into a frenzy of confusion when trying to reach you.

Could they look it up elsewhere and find the correct information themselves? Sure. But they shouldn’t have to when they’re relying on you to give them the information they need. They may start to think that if you can’t be trusted to offer the right information, why should they trust you with their business? 

Don’t leave it up to your customers to decide whether your company can be trusted and proofread before hitting publish on your marketing assets. 

2. Bring The Focus Back To The Customer

Oftentimes, we notice that businesses get so excited about what they have to offer, that they forget why they’re in business in the first place. And with a whopping 63% of consumers (76% for B2B buyers) who expect your business to know their unique needs and expectations, there’s little room for error.

But it’s my business. So shouldn’t the writing be about me and my business? Isn’t that what my customers care about?

No, not really. This can be one of the toughest realizations business owners have to deal with, but it’s important to say. 

Your customers care about what you can do for them. Talking about yourself, your story, image, and even community involvement are going to be pretty useless in the long run if you don’t remember to think about your business as serving others.

Too much of you isn’t always a good thing. You’ll bury your customers and lose your initial goal.

If you’re reading your existing or drafted copy and start to think it’s looking a little saturated with your business and less about your customer, take a step back. This doesn’t mean you need to scrap everything you’ve written. You can use that information for newsletters, email updates, and other marketing materials. 

But if you know you need to pull the focus back towards the customer, try these few steps and ask:

  1. What do you do?
  2. Why do you do it?
  3. What’s the reason someone should care?
  4. Why again? (Yep, repeat the above step.)

It’s easy to lose focus when writing material for your business, but do what you can to bring it back to your customers.

Need help revising and reaching the main goal? We’re the team with the know-how to help.

3. Features Are Not Benefits

Like focusing too much on yourself, writing about the features of your business can cut into how it can benefit someone. 

For example, if you’re a brand new hospital opening in a busy neighborhood, you may be inclined to say things like:

  • Large Parking Lot
  • Plenty Of Staff
  • Daily Appointments Available
  • Fully Staffed Cafeteria
  • Innovative Machinery

All of these things don’t sound horrible. But they also don’t map out the genuine benefits to someone who may need to go to this hospital. All of these things are features rather than benefits.

A few ways these can transform into benefits include saying:

  • Easy Access And Private Parking Lot Off I-72
  • 2:1 Patient Ratio With Friendly Staff
  • Short Wait Times For All Appointments
  • Healthy And Affordable Food In A Fully Staffed Cafeteria
  • $80 Million In Updated And Innovative Machinery

With these examples, you’re giving your readers details about your features combined with benefits without bogging them down with too much information. Take a look at your writing and see if you can spruce up any of your features and transform them into benefits.

4. Look At The Big Idea

Your benefits, business plan, and everything in between includes great information. However, try to avoid getting distracted from the bigger picture. What is it that you want to accomplish? Stick to your end goal and ensure you have Call-To-Actions (CTAs) throughout your writing that match your goal.

Before writing, consider your big picture. Some examples of this could look like the following:

  • Are you looking for more social media followers? 
  • Do you want to inform people about who you and your business are?
  • Is there a product you’re pushing that you want people to buy?
  • Are you attempting to establish a voice?

Whatever your goal is, it should reflect in your writing. This leads us right into one of the next critical mistakes business owners make when copywriting.

5. You Forget One Or More Call-To-Actions

If your writing doesn’t include Call-To-Actions (CTAs), you’re missing out big time. According to Wordstream, “Emails with a single call-to-action increased clicks 371% and sales 1,617%.“

What Is A Call-To-Action?

A Call-To-Action, or CTA, is a button or clickable link that says “Buy Now” or “Call Us Today”. They’re buttons that inspire your reader to take action right away. Without them, you’re forcing your reader to search further to take action with extra steps. Customers want their experience to be as easy as possible. If you’re asking them to do it on their own, they may talk themselves into taking action later, compare by going elsewhere, and so on. You want them to have the option to make a decision right away after they’ve read your compelling copy.

6. Avoid Hitting Publish And Forgetting About It Altogether

Once you choose to publish your copy, you may think you’re good to go for many years into the future. This is just not true. You need to tap into engagement and get feedback from your audience to find out if there is room for improvement.

Don’t get us wrong, publishing your copy is a big step and is a huge cause for celebration. Especially if you have copy you’ve been working on for a long time, trust us, we’re toasting with you on finishing! But don’t forget to check back on it every so often and ensure the messaging, Call-To-Action, and everything else still rings true.

If you’ve changed your business model in a significant way, have new products available, or anything else that needs to be addressed, do so in your copy by updating it regularly. Revisit your copy if it’s been a while and you feel it may be outdated. Finally, double and triple-check to ensure everything looks good and is mobile friendly. 

7. Perfectionism Kills Potentially Great Copy

As a business owner, you’re probably a little bit obsessed with perfection. And there’s nothing wrong with that! When it comes to running your business, having a type-A tendency is a must. But when it comes to copywriting, it can be an absolute nightmare.

Why? Because when you keep writing, saving, going back to writing, and so on, expecting it to be perfect, you’ll never get it done! And you’ll have likely missed your window for getting your message out there at the right time.

We know it’s easier said than done, but let go a little and get your copy out there once you’ve hit all of the important aspects of your bigger picture.

8. Keep It Simple

You work within your industry, but chances are, most people reading your copy don’t. They may even know nothing about your business, who you are, or what you do. So it’s important to write as if you’re speaking to someone who knows little to nothing, which may mean cutting out complicated text or technical jargon.

We get it! You don’t want to have to feel as though you need to “dumb down” your copy because you believe your audience is smart. And that may be true! But for someone who is new to your business or may not be within the same industry you are, too much high-level text can be intimidating and throw someone off from reading what you have to say.

In addition, making the text too complicated can lead your audience to your competitors. Keep it simple and make it easy to follow.

9. You’re Keeping Your Copy Too Top-Secret

In other words, don’t be shy about your copy! Give it to a second pair of eyes to take a look at and make sure you’re moving in the right direction.

Similar to perfectionism, you may be hesitant to share your copy with others until it’s done. But additional members of your team can help identify errors and make suggestions.

Because they’re seeing your writing for the first time, they’ll be able to read it as a consumer and know if it’s sending the right message. Choose someone you trust for this task. Whether it’s a co-owner, manager, or someone else who has a little bit of writing experience. Trust select members of your team and let them help you.

Furthermore, be careful about sharing your copy with too many people. One or two opinions are helpful. Any more than that may begin to cloud your judgment and produce conflicting ideas or suggestions.

10. You Aren’t Really Proving Your Point

Here’s where your previous experience and past results come in handy. In other words, if you have a point to make, then prove it with facts and figures. This may mean you need to dig into your revenue files, ask your financial department, or search for information online. But it’s worth it if it’s impressive.

Are you attempting to convince someone to buy your start-up product? Let them know you’ve made over $5 million in sales in the past year.

Would you like people to put a little more faith in your services? Let them know you have a 4.5-star rating on Google, Yelp, or any other review sites. 

It’s okay to brag about yourself a little to prove a point and convince others to trust in your business. Feature your highlights in places like main headlines, subheadings, or callouts. Keep in mind that these are likely the areas of your writing that they’ll read when scanning your text.

Want to improve your website copy? Download our free guide and start with your home page.

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FocusCopy® caffeinates your brand messaging so it energizes your target audience to take action. 

(281) 916-4949 | info@FocusCopy.com

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