Copywriting
My friend Cabanne Howard (a great marketing strategist) sent this picture to me the other day… It’s a closeup of this Duraflame log… Cabanne thinks it’s a great example of story-powered marketing. And she’s right. Feeble marketing focuses on features. Better marketing focuses on benefits. The best marketing — story-powered marketing — promises transformations. A Duraflame log features sawdust…
Here’s a tale of two blog posts — both covering the same topic: Why your business needs a customer support playbook and how to implement one. In one corner we have a treatise. Here’s how it starts: Building and managing a help desk in your organization can either become a triumphant, effective tool or end…
I heard from a business owner who wants to power up his story to grow sales… …but he fears he doesn’t have a compelling story to tell. “My story isn’t interesting,” he said. I hear that a lot. Business people assume storytelling should be about themselves. They rack their brains for an inspiring origin story.…
I came across this gem of a headline in an online marketing forum this week: “I’m buying a domain name for $35,000.” The guy who posted it explained: “We presently use the domain with ‘the’ prefix for our product, so it looks like https://the___.com But going to go bolder way and buy the name without…
I was cleaning out a closet the other day and found an old biology textbook. As I paged through it, I was struck (stunned, saddened) by how little I remembered. Then I got to the chapter about animal biology… …and my memory clicked: “Kids prefer cheese over fried green spinach.” That’s the little story I…
I was walking my dog, Moose, around the block the other day and came upon a neighbor who was manicuring his lawn. This wasn’t your standard roll-the-mower-over-the-grass job. This was high-intensity fuss-over-the-fescue. He was on his knees with a hand clipper, working the edges, getting everything right. Not just good enough. But perfect. After he…
I’m enjoying a book called “Blessed Beyond Measure,” by Dr. Tom Hill. On page 69, Dr. Hill offers an idea that got my attention: Some time ago, I intentionally began using the word “fascinated” when I felt like saying something frustrated me…I realized the frustrating quality of situations causing me to feel frustrated naturally include a legitimate…
Here’s a tale of two marketing tips — one right on, the other off the mark. It starts with a question posted to an online forum: How can I generate leads for my graphic design business? Two people responded. The first person wrote 272 words… …loaded with one recommendation after another. Use LinkedIn. Try XING…
Here’s a tale about Dizzy Dean — a Hall of Fame pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals… …who was a country boy and… …not as educated or polished as the city-slicker reporters who covered the team. When a reporter accused him of corrupting language students with his lousy grammar and diction, Dizzy replied, “A lot…
I heard about a restaurant in New York… …with a stuffed fish on the wall… …above a plaque that said… “Take a tip from me — I wouldn’t be here if I had kept my mouth shut!” There’s truth in that fish story. A good business fable. Don’t talk at your prospects. Shut your mouth…