Marketing Writing Resources for Creative Copywriters

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Small businesses don't often have the resources for the amount of effort needed to succeed with the likes of Google, Yahoo and MSN Search out there. Luckily, the Internet offers lots of free tools to maximize marketing and search engine efforts. Readers offer three ways to take advantage.

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Walk through any bookstore and you'll find dozens of books about the marketing and branding efforts of corporate America. The process of corporate communication has been thinly sliced and diced over and over, but what you won't find is a book about the one truly essential characteristic in our 21st century world: the company persona -- and how words that work are used to create and sustain it.

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Here are three new ways for you, and your creative team, to trigger some gigantic ideas.

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Ah, sales and marketing. They're like two siblings fighting in the back seat while mom, pop—or a company executive—drives the car. Jonathan doesn't know how to stop all this bickering (and he's not interested in "who started it"), but here he suggests a few ways those of us on the marketing side can ease the tension by better serving their sales brethren with more productive collateral.

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They say that "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery." Not if you are a Web site owner and you have a brand to protect! Stephan has seen designs copied, content copied... even entire sites copied. It's easy for someone to "View Source" and take whatever they like, without regard to copyright. Here's what to do about it.

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Most midsize-to-large companies have long learned the value of the press release, but the vast majority of small companies haven't. The notion seems to be that, to make it into the newspaper, companies must have some momentous news to break. But, by forfeiting the newspaper coverage to the "big boys," small companies are missing out on possibly the most dynamic form of promotion and lead generation there is—and it's free.

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Microsoft's PowerPoint long ago became one of the most popular tools for business presentations. That's likely because of its efficiency and simplicity. But what about cases when PowerPoint's resources are not enough to deliver on the goals of communication?

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Chief Content Officer Ann Handley takes a look back at the blogging year that was for the MarketingProfs Daily Fix blog—and the lessons learned from launching a group blog for marketers. If you're thinking of starting your own blog, or if you're just curious about what it takes, take a gander.

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Writing a compelling story is the inner game of marketing and is often the exclusive realm of your creative agencies. The client scowls during the presentation, asks if the logo could be bigger, and then picks the execution they think is the funniest. This symbiotic relationship holds up pretty well unless a client-side marketer sneaks behind the curtain for a look. Which the author did.

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Want to make sure your message doesn't get through? That your campaign disappears without a trace? That your communication program suffers a quick, painful death? Then be sure to try one of these attention-stoppers.

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Whether your launch is for an entirely new product or for a line extension, these seven marketing communication musts will put you on the path to success.

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Do you have the killer instinct? A small percentage of Web content really makes a difference. It makes the sale, delivers the service, and builds the brand. This is the killer Web content. It probably represents less than 10% of content published on the Web, because—let's face it—most content just gets in the way.

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So you've got a small marketing budget? That's OK, there's still a lot you can do to reach your audience; it just may take a little more elbow grease. The first key to stretching a budget is shrinking your focus.

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All too often, Web pages, even homepages, provide readers with a variety of choices, but don't really provide a clear way forward. This is particularly true when a site has multiple products or services to sell. If visitors read your homepage and become interested in something you are selling or offering, what should they do next? Where should they click? Are they ready to go directly to the order page? Would conversions be higher if visitors first read a full sales page?

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Today, your Web site is more than just a media source where people find information about your business; it's the place where many customer relationships begin. In your prospects' minds, their experience of your site is a foreshadowing of their experience with your company or organization. Establishing a favorable relationship is quite a challenge. But you can improve your odds by challenging your site with these 10 important questions.

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Pay-per-click advertising is the biggest lead-generation breakthrough to come about in a long time. For small and midsize companies, in particular—and thanks to its ability to narrowly target prospects, tightly manage spending, and precisely measure results—PPC is one of the most efficient lead generation tools ever developed. It does, however, have a downside.

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A few weeks ago the author penned a popular article here on how negative thoughts can sabotage your writing. This week, she looks at the mirror image of the topic. Read on to find out how this look at the "flip side" can help you write faster and better.