Up until a couple of years ago I considered myself a graphic designer and marketing consultant. As such, I left the copywriting to the copywriters. Sure, I’d whip up a couple of lines of prose here and there, but the main stuff always went out to a bona fided writer. But, writing is an important activity for designers. You’ll be writing proposals, business letters and memos, instructions for vendors and, hopefully, press releases, articles, along with other promotional stuff.

It wasn’t until I was drafted to write the main content for Creative Latitude that I discovered I had a certain flair for the written word. Well … okay … the keystroked work. What was even more surprising was that I enjoyed it and it was pretty easy for me.

Writing has become a core tool in my business marketing toolbox. I write articles that get posted on various sites. Those drive traffic to my site and then I get a requests for proposals coming into my inbox. As a marketing tool, I highly recommend your start writing stuff.

But maybe you were a C- English student, can’t tell a conjunctive adverb from a coordinate adjective and, pardon me, but your modifier’s dangling. The idea of writing is right up there with having a root canal done by Dr. DeSade without any anesthetic.

Well, you could always take the coward’s route and hire a ghostwriter. Lot’s of folks do and there’s really no shame in doing so. A ghostwriter is somebody you pay you put your thoughts and ideas into tangible, written and usually intelligible form. They get the dough and you get your byline on the finished piece. Or, you can suck it up and get to writing your own stuff. If you take things methodically, it’s not all that tough.

If you’re shaky about stringing together a 1500 word ditty, consider starting off small. Tip Sheets are a great start. These are typically a single page of how-tos topics with a descriptive sentence or two. If you’re even remotely good at what you do, these should be easy as pie.

It’s important to remember that things you take for granted about your work and profession aren’t necessarily at the top of your prospects’ minds. You do these tasks day in and day out. Your prospects don’t, so it’s often new information for them.

When writing a Tip Sheet, think along the lines of, “10 Ways to …” or “The Top Hot Tips for …” Then make up your list and simply write a couple of lines or a paragraph about each item. How hard is that? Odds are, you can whip out one of these in less than an hour.

Maybe you start out with “10 Ways,” but can only come up with eight. No big deal. Just change the headline. The point is to get something into written form. You’re not going for a Noble Prize in Literature. You’re simply conveying your expertise.

Next comes that 1500 word monster. No sweat, Hemmingway. All you need to do is take a few related Tip Sheets and put them together. Add in a wee bit ‘o editing and you’re got yourself and article.

Take a couple of articles, put them together and now you’ve got a “report.” Ooooo! String together several reports and you’ve got the makings of a book. Holy smokes! You went from being writing-challenged to a budding author in just a few steps. Boy, you’re good!

I believe in taking a conversational approach to writing and adding in a little humor. I think it makes things more entertaining, digestible and memorable. But that’s just me. The point is, find your own voice. Be yourself in your writing. Renowned adman, David Ogilvy, once wrote, “Never use jargon words like, reconceptualize, demassification, attitudinally. They are the hallmarks of a pretentious ass.”

But most of all, make it fun. It you can do that, you’ll soon find the writer lurking within waiting to see the light of day.

Until the next
Marketing Minute
all the best,
nt