Copywriting Insights

Here's where you'll find out about -

  • how copywriting works
  • countless copywriting ideas, hints and tips ... some of which actually work!
  • what questions you should be asking before taking on a copywriter
  • SEO - how to write to keep Google happy. (Should you write to keep Google happy? Maybe not)
  • how to write a compelling Call To Action
  • weird word quirks for word nerds
  • writing newsletters
  • the best books to read on copywriting
  • grammar stuff

Check out the growing list of categories on the right.

Even better - sign up to receive your tips in a single, short email every Monday morning.

sign up 1

Oh - and when you do sign up, you'll receive a downloadable, printable 15-point Web Copy checklist.

Subject lines in email newsletters ...
... and why I'm NOT wishing you a Happy New Year. or ... why email newsletter subject lines matter SO much Let's get one thing out of the way first - Of course I wish you, yours and everyone a utterly lovely and very Happy New Year! (OK - let's exclude global despots, scammers, conspiracy theorists and the rest of the world's ne'er-do-wells - but you get my drift.)
Dec 31, 2022
Beggars will be losers
Yesterday, a newsletter nervously poked its head into my inbox. Nothing unusual there. Nothing unusual about the subject matter either. It was the tone that really struck me. Maybe 'struck' is the wrong word. This newsletter assailed my senses with all the force of a soggy haddock. It was a right 'turn-off'. I'd have preferred a pushy, 'salesy' approach.
Sep 6, 2021
This time it's personal
Using empathy to engage your readers.   Remember those heady days when mail merge was first available for PC users? You do? I’m not sure I believe you. No matter. If you truly are that old, you’ll recall the excitement. At last you could write 'personal' emails ... or do I mean 'personalised'? Is there a difference? You bet there is.  
Jun 21, 2020
Heart Attacks and Newsletters - there's a link
I suffered a heart attack in 2020. It came as a bit of a shock. In the great scheme of life (and, I guess, death too) - heart attacks are not unusual. They happen. Although, for me, I suppose this was a first. The unhappy event came as a particular surprise. You see, my family basks complacently in a history of hale and healthy hearts. Going back generations, ancestor after ancestor has successfully defied the odds of coronary mortality. My lot simply live a long, long time. A fact freely acknowledged by friends and business associates who forever remark (usually when they think I'm out of earshot) upon my ability to 'go on and on'?
Apr 18, 2020
A seasonal newsletter tip! Don't be wary ...
...of being scary. After all - it's Halloween! It's true. I'm an old grump. But just for once, I'll park my traditional curmudgeon and invoke the nonsense world of spooks and ghouls. Believe me - I don't find this easy. This post is all about scaring your newsletter readers into action.  Why? Because it's the best route to newsletter success.
Oct 14, 2019
transparent gif