07.18.08
Posted in Articles at 5:25 pm by Livvie
Everywhere we look it seems we see higher prices and lower morales. Although initally it started with rising gas prices, it now incorporates everything and has touched all businesses.
With layoffs and cutbacks in our workplaces it’s put pressure on companies to make sure their marketing materials maintain the professional image the public is use to seeing and to complicate matters it’s put pressure on those left in the workplace to pick up the slack.
Your written materials are powerful, cost effective marketing tools to clearly communicate your companies strategic message and are critical to your professional image.
With many business operating with fewer employees and remaining employees already under a heavier work load, becoming a wordsmith and a written content specialist with all the material deadlines needed just seems impossible. In fact you find yourself saying more and more “So much to do and so little time!”
Enter the freelance copywriter. A professional copwriter can:
1) Learn your product quickly
2) Discover all its features and benefits
3) Define who your target market is
4) Get a lead on the competion
5) Figure the best strategy to lift your product above the competion with quality wrtten content
Individual projects or multiple projects - from marketing brochures to website content, newsletters to articles, reports to manuals and all materials in between - a freelance copywriter can be the extra set of hands needed to keep that critical professional image and is as close as your “Send” button!
So the next time you’re in a crunch or about to miss a deadline, remember…Yes, there IS a copywriter in the house!
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Livvie Matthews is an Internet and off-line professional freelance copywriter providing creative writing services to large and small businesses. Whether it’s printed marketing materials or web site content, Livvie can meet your challenges and communicate your strategic message in a voice your customers trust and a style they understand. Visit http://www.Writebusiness.net or livvie@writebusiness.net
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03.30.08
Posted in General at 9:14 pm by Livvie
We hear it all the time, “Stop and smell the roses”, but until the roses bloom, stop and take the time to enjoy the beautiful flowering trees and shrubs. In our area the Cherry trees and the Azelea’s are blooming and they are gorgeous.
Here in the South, Azelea’s can be found from small, about 18″ tall to the “tree” Azelea, which can stand 6 feet tall and come in an array of colors.
One of the most interesting events featuring Azelea’s is approaching. The 61st Annual North Carolina Azelea Festival will be held April 9-13, 2008 in the greater Wilmington, NC area.
To quote the official site:
For more than 50 years, the folks of Southeastern North Carolina have been throwing the best party in the South and you’re invited! There’s something for everyone among our community’s rich array of artwork, gardens, history and culture. Come join us!
More Festival pictures can be seen here Enjoy the Azaleas, the Festival, and the pictures of the Southern Belle’s.
The Cherry trees are also in full bloom and with the wind we’ve had recently it almost looks as though it’s snowing when the pedals are falling. Hopefully the cold snap we are experiencing will not keep the Cherry trees or the Azalea’s from blooming their full cycle.
So until the roses bloom for you to stop and smell….enjoy the beauty of the Cherry trees and the Azalea’s. It’s a sight worth seeing!
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03.10.08
Posted in General at 1:35 pm by Livvie
Today, we’ll discuss the second element in the five Critical Elements in Effective Copywriting for the Internet:
1) Know the Product
2) Know the Customer/Audience (Your Target)
3) Stress Benefits
4) Determine the Copy Objective
5) Build Relationships/Trust
Getting to know the customer/audience (your target) is paramount to writing (effective) content in any marketing material expecially the Internet. Hereafter, we will refer to the customer as the (target) Audience .
Studies have shown when a viewer enters your web site, you have about 4 seconds to grab their attention. With that time frame in mind, knowing who your target is and what they want to know is critical to keeping them on your web site.
Just as you asked questions as discussed in (Part 1) Knowing your Product, you must ask questions for understanding your (target) audience.
Who is the Audience (target) for this information? (Who will buy it? Who are you specifically selling to?)
What are their interests, background, experience, knowledge and education?
What do they have in common with each other?
What is their main concern? (Is it the Price, performance, how reliable is it, how is it delivered, quality-service)
What information do you have relative to addressing their concerns?
How can you solve their problem?
What motivates the buyer–”What’s in it for me”? (What benefit will they reap?)
How is this going to make a difference in their life? (How can you make their life easier?)
What are their “hot buttons”?
What does the Audience expect and can you meet those expections?
What is the single most important message you want the Audience to leave with?
In other words, zero in on your specific (customer) audience. Now hold on, I can hear you saying “My product or service is good for everybody!…I’m not interested in limiting myself or my product. Sell, Sell, Sell…that’s what I want to do”.
Targeting your market doesn’t stop or limit you from selling to people outside your target. Anyone who sees your product or who is interested in your product will have the opportunity to purchase your product.
What target maketing does is guarantees you a customer base that is interested (qualifed ) in what you are selling. These people are actually looking for you! Zeroing in on your target market is the beginning of your “niche” (small, specialized) market.
People love solutions to their problems. Let them know you can solve their problems and you can solve them quick! They have a question, problem, or need…YOU have their solution. Better yet, you ARE their solution. You want to be their source of information.
As mentioned before, you have about 4 seconds to grab your viewers attention. The more specific your questions/answers, the more “targeted” your customer.
Don’t misunderstand here, your content written for the Internet MUST be of quality and of interest to the reader, but if you don’t pique your viewers interest in the beginning, you most likely will have lost your viewer/customer.
Remember, your Major is in Copywriting, but your Minor is in Mining…digging for details. Keep asking questions.
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Livvie Matthews is an Internet and off-line professional freelance copywriter providing creative writing services to large and small businesses. Whether it’s printed marketing materials or web site content, Livvie can meet your challenges and communicate your strategic message in a voice your customers trust and a style they understand. Visit http://www.WriteBusiness.net or livvie@writebusiness.net
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02.13.08
Posted in General at 12:08 pm by Livvie
Over the next few weeks we’ll be discussing two the five critical elements in effective copywriting for the Internet. Of the five critical elements listed below, we’ll be discussing Know the Product and Know the Customer/Audience (Your Target).
1) Know the Product
2) Know the Customer/Audience (Your Target)
3) Stress Benefits
4) Determine the Copy Objective
5) Build Relationships/Trust
Knowing the product is the foundation of effectively writing content for the Internet. In Real Estate it’s all about Location, Location, Location. In writing (effective) content it’s all about Questions, Questions, Questions.
Ask the right questions and keep asking them. The more you know about the product, the more strategic and targeted information you can write.
What IS the product? (What’s being offered)
What’s the purpose of the product?
What are the products benefits and features?
(Benefits = Solve clients/customers problems — Features = what the product does)
Which benefit is the products biggest selling point?
Who will use the product?
Who is the major competitor?
Who has bought the product -are there testimonials?
How is the product different from the competition?
How does the product work?
How quickly is the product delivered?
Where does the product stand in the marketplace?
What service/support is offered on the product?
Is there a guarantee on the product?
These questions start you in the direction needed to knowing the product. Preparing your list of questions leads to sub catagories within the questions asked, leading even deeper into the product.
Gather all existing and/or previously published material on the product. As you study the previously printed material and review the answers to your questions, you should be well on your way to the material needed for knowing the product.
Again, the more you know about the product, the more strategic and targeted information you can write.
Next time we’ll discuss Know the Customer/Audience (Your Target). Until then…Remember, your Major is in Copywriting, but your Minor is in Mining…digging for details. Keep asking questions.
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Livvie Matthews is an Internet and off-line professional freelance copywriter providing creative writing services to large and small businesses. Whether it’s printed marketing materials or web site content, Livvie can meet your challenges and communicate your strategic message in a voice your customers trust and a style they understand. Visit http://www.WriteBusiness.net or livvie@writebusiness.net
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12.27.07
Posted in General at 4:00 pm by Livvie
This time of year, with the Christmas season behind us and looking ahead to a new year, brings about new energy. Yes, we’ve all shopped till we dropped and have exhausted ourselves getting ready for Christmas, but yet there is a renewed kind of energy just thinking about starting a new year.
Whether it’s personal, business, or both, take some time to reflect on what you would like to accomplish this year and the steps needed to get you there.
I always have such good intentions the first of the year, full of energy, and thinking of project after project to accomplish. But through the years, I’ve also discovered something about myself…I do better if I narrow down the “projects” to just a couple. I will be more inclined to accompolish a couple. Then if time permits, I can move on to something else.
Is there something you have wanted to do for some time but yet put it off for one reason or another. Maybe it’s going into business for yourself, but you just keep putting it off. Maybe it’s taking another step towards growing your business, but you just keep putting that off. Maybe it’s asking for that promotion at work.
Whatever it is, take some time to really find the reason for not going forward. Is it fear…fear you won’t succeed? Fear you won’t accompolish what you set out to do? Fear you might be turned down? Even fear that you might just be successul?
Discover then breakdown your fear and see if you can take some steps to move you closer to the goals you really want to meet for 2008. You are the one in control, not your emotions. You are the one who can move yourself forward.
Now it’s almost the countdown for the New Year. As you countdown from 2007, start up to 2008 with your steps in place and be ready for an absolutely… Happy New Year!!!
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09.22.07
Posted in General at 6:01 pm by Livvie
September is a busy time! End of summer, last vacations, back to school shopping, and back to school.
For a short time, our normal schedules are put on the back burner. Then when things began to return to normal, it’s time to get back “into the groove”.
This time of year is the perfect time for goal setting. The fall is coming, the air is crisp, colors are magnificant, and inspiration is everywhere!
During this three month time period before the beginning of a new year, it’s time to look at what you want to accomplish in the next year and time to put down the steps you need to take to get you there.
It’s like the saying…money is not the end, but the MEANS TO the end. In other words, it’s not just money you want, but what the money will allow you to do or accopmlish.
So, we can have our goals, but unless we put into steps what’s needed to get us TO the goals, we’re just spinning our wheels.
Start with where you are right now. What did you accomplish to this point this year towards your goal? Don’t forget to pat yourself on the back for accomplishing these items…good job! If there are some things you didn’t finish/accomplish, then start right there.
Write down what you need to do or not do to get these items completed along your journey to you goals.
As we are writing our goals, we should have some short term goals (3 mos, 6 mos, 12 mos) and some long term goals. 1 year, 3 years, 5 years. Depending on what you are trying to accomplish, a year could be short term (beginning of a 5 year goal) or long term (ending to goal).
Each goal we put down needs to have some steps to get us there and these steps within themselves should have time limits for accomlishing. Trying to accomplish something without a time limit…a dead line, does not set it up as as priority to be done and makes it seem further and further into the future.
From time to time, re-evaluate your steps and goals. An unrealistic step or goal is an automatic set up for failure. If a step is too difficult, then break it down into some smaller steps. If a big goal is set too soon, then put it out a little longer.
Reward yourself as you reach each one of the little “step” goals along your journey and celebrate your big goal accomplishments!
Remember…time is going to pass. As it passes, next year you can either be on your way to your goals, OR you can still be where you are right now. The choice is yours!
It’s time to set some goals. Are YOU ready? On your mark…get set…GO!
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05.25.07
Posted in Articles at 11:13 am by Livvie
Ever needed information, asked several different people, and received several different answers?
Even more confusing, how about asking several different people who work in the same office and still receive
several different answers?
This happened to me in a practice I was with. It concerned bleaching or whitening the teeth. The patient had received instructions from the assistant as she was being dismissed in the back.
As the patient was checking out, she asked the front desk to explain it to her again and received a different set of
instructions.
Confused by the information, when the patient got home, she called the office, spoke to another person and received…you
guessed it…. a third set of instructions different from the first two.
This time she asked to speak to the office manager, explained to me what had happened, and expressed her disappointment in the office.
You can believe at that point we had a team meeting, determined how we were going to present this information in the future, printed the information to become part of our procedures, and developed a hand out to our patients.
Now anyone inquiring about or actually bleaching hears the same message no matter which team member is asked.
This type of situation happens all to often. Having a patient receive conflicting information is bad enough, but what’s worse is the trust the patient loses in their perception of the team and the practice. Trust you worked hard to develop…..gone in just a few sentences.
Bleaching instructions is just one situation for consistency. Doing the same procedures over and over, we have a tendency to just take it for granted everybody knows how to explain or present needed information to the patient.
Think about the many different areas developing consistent information would be beneficial: New Patient inquiry’s, Office policy on Accepting Insurance, Financial Arrangements, Emergency Patient inquiry’s, Hygiene visits, Operative procedures…and this is just for starters.
Are you sure your front office (and clinical team) are all giving the same (consistent) information in response to patient inquiry’s? Do you have written responses in place clearly stating the practice vision with specific information for training new (and existing) team members?
What systems do you have in place for making sure this specific information is being consistently used by all team members? How are they receiving the information? Do you have scheduled training sessions that include role playing?
Is the person training new employees doing so representing the practice vision or is the person training with their own ideas on how something should be presented?
This area of communication doesn’t need to be left to chance in the hope or assumption that everyone is responding with your practice’s vision or best interest.
“Internal communications” is a crucial part of (internal) marketing. You wouldn’t allow any external advertising (marketing) to be placed without your final approval in making sure it represented the practice at it’s best.
External advertising is usually a monthly or possibly a one time advertisement. Internal communications are daily…presented over and over…”advertisements” for the practice.
Developing your practice’s internal communications is a critically important step within your office policy and procedures. Your response to specific situations and procedures is how patients perceive your team, their perception of you, and their overall view of your practice.
With Consistency…everyone is on the same page!
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Livvie Matthews is an Internet and off-line professional freelance copywriter providing creative writing services to large and small businesses. Whether it’s marketing brochures, web site content, Americanized content or newsletter, Livvie can meet your challenges and communicate your strategic message. Visit http://www.WriteBusiness.net or livvie@writebusiness.net
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03.04.07
Posted in Articles at 7:35 pm by Livvie
The electronic (e) age is here and along with it comes the most cost effective marketing tool to communicate with your patients/customers.
Keeping your name in front of your patients/customers on a regular basis strengthens your existing relationships and establishes credibility and trust –two of the main ingredients needed to attract and retain quality patients/customers.
Use e-mail marketing to announce office events, important dental health information and tips, special offers, awards, welcome letters, and even appointment confirmations.
Build and strengthen patient relationships. Include your patients in your “dental family” by announcing team members marriages, births, graduations, office trips, and participation with school or charitable events.
Gathering patient e-mail address can be done by adding an e-mail address field on your paper New Patient information form and your online patient forms.
For patients of record ask for e-mail addresses as you update/confirm their current information or simply create a form for patients to write their e-mail addresses.
Make sure you include a “check here to receive more information” box for permission to send e-mails. Note: ALWAYS provide an unsubscribe link in your e-mails to avoid potential issues with unwanted e-mails.
The length and tone of your e-mail messages is entirely your choice. It can be a few lines of text or a detailed newsletter or both.
Your newsletter may be semi-monthly, monthly, or even quarterly. Again it’s your choice. If you choose once a month, then send once a month….every month.
Choosing the 2nd Tuesday of the month is a good example. Then every 2nd Tuesday of the month….send your information. The main thing to remember is once you have made your choice… be consistent!
Remember to always include your web site link and e-mail address in your information along with a notice to feel free to forward the information to a friend.
Your content can be written in-house by you or a team member (if time permits), or by outsourcing content to a freelance writer.
Whoever you choose to write the content needs to understand the purpose and audience of your newsletter. They are representing you and your practice.
Another great e-mail marketing tool is your e-mail signature. It’s your (virtual) online business card. You are (or should be) sending out responses to e-mails every day. Don’t just send your e-mail and type your name.
Advertise your practice and web site every time an e-mail is sent from your office. Your e-mail signature should include your name, office title, practice name, telephone number, e-mail address and most importantly, your web site address.
Remember: Keeping your name in front of your patients is paramount in establishing credibility and trust. With e-mail marketing…It’s your practice’s golden opportunity!
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Livvie Matthews is an Internet and off-line professional freelance copywriter providing creative writing services to large and small businesses. Whether it’s marketing brochures, web site content, Americanized content or newsletter, Livvie can meet your challenges and communicate your strategic message. Visit http://www.WriteBusiness.net or livvie@writebusiness.net
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12.31.06
Posted in General at 6:02 pm by Livvie
It’s hard to believe another year has come and gone. So many things you wanted to accomplish but didn’t, and the many things you were able to accomplish.
This year was special for our family and an exciting time. Our youngest daughter had bought and moved into her very first townhome in January 2006. When she knew it was hers, she stated she would be hosting Christmas 2006 in her new home!
What an exciting time it was. How she decorated, prepared the meal and entertained us all. To see her grow into an independent woman this year has been amazing. As I watched our other daughters and their husbands, I just was so filled with thanks and the fact of how richly blessed I have been to have such a wonderful family.
To me the new year is always an exciting time. A time for a new beginning. In my article A New Year, A New Beginning I compare the new year to a new page. It’s fresh, clean, crisp and it’s up to you what you write on your new page!
As a writer, comparing a new year to a page comes natural. As we go through the months, each month becomes a new paragraph we print on the page.
What are some of the things you want to “write” about this year? Maybe it’s a new business, expanding or downsizing an existing business, or maybe just better business techniques.
Maybe there are personal items you need to “write” about. A change in your career, more time spent with family and friends, or maybe you want to develop more relationships.
Whatever you begin “writing” about this new year don’t lose sight of balance. Remember to keep all the “pages” in perspective. From time to time you will need to turn the “pages” down, walk away and take time to enjoy life and everything that goes with it.
So, what do you want to “write” on your new page this year? It’s all up to you! Just get your “keyboard” going, “write” one word after another and then–press enter!!! After all it’s….. A New Year and A New Beginning!
Hope all of you have a wonderful and prosperous New Year - 2007!!
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11.11.06
Posted in General at 10:45 am by Livvie
Thank you, Veterans, Thank you!!!
Many years ago and even today our troops fought, gave lives and gave limbs to give us the wonderful freedoms we have today. They endured and are enduring situations and circumstances we can’t even imagine, yet still they honor their country and honor us by serving and protecting.
I wholeheartedly support our troops and what they are doing. Yes, I would rather there not be the need for them to be on foreign soil or certainly not in harm’s way, but the need is there and because of their unselfish acts, we are free in this country to enjoy freedoms that most countries only dream of.
So as this day goes by, if you see a past veteran or even active duty personnel, let that person know, you care, you appreciate them and most of all…Thank you dear Veteran…Thank you!!!
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