What do you do?
People always ask that, don’t they? Over drinks, on dates, at dinners where you’re introduced to friends of friends, on the train or the plane when you find yourself sitting next to a sociable stranger. The question is usually lined-up a polite but short distance behind the introductory niceties, following as surely as a loyal dog.
The questioner is seeking fragments of information to form a sketchy character portrait. They could be taking the first steps towards establishing whether, as a potential friend, you’re pleasant and interesting. Or whether, as a potential working acquaintance, you’re accomplished and trustworthy.
So I’ll tell you right now what it is that I do. This website’s first blog seems like the appropriate time to make such an introduction.
What I do is provide comprehensive and complementary services
I help businesses reach target audiences and sell more. That’s made possible by experience and expertise accrued during 15 years working at a senior level with PR and marketing communications agencies. I deliver creative work such as copywriting, but I also help clients at an earlier stage of the process by planning new marketing and PR initiatives.
Working directly with small and medium enterprises, I help define the PR and marketing communications strategy, tactics, targeting, and key messages. Crucially, I also have the experience to determine the optimum marketing mix, identifying the most cost-effective communications channels to employ.
On behalf of larger corporations, I typically work behind the scenes by providing temporary support to their in-house PR teams, and by freelancing for agencies specialising in PR and marketing communications.
Sometimes clients request my support in a whole range of these complementary services, sometimes they just need help with one specific task. I enjoy involvement at all stages of the PR and marketing processes.
But this is only part of the answer. What I also do is write – as a freelance copywriter, freelance journalist, and author.
What I do differs to what others say they can do
Plenty of people will tell you they are copywriters, and they need only a computer and a home-built website to make the claim. But there’s an ugly chasm between those who indulge themselves in a hobby by selling cheap second-rate copy and those whose craftsmanship is so highly developed that they can shift perceptions and increase sales through words alone.
I hope you can see from elsewhere on this website that I’m a true, quality-obsessive professional. I have a gold-standard track record of writing for clients who demand excellence: publishers of books sold internationally and magazines selling a million copies every month; specialised technical companies and blue-chip consumer brands whose PR and marketing teams sweat over the nuance of every word they issue to the outside world.
This means I’m not going to be the lowest-priced of the so-called “copywriters” you can find on the internet. But I am going to save you from the false economy of buying second-rate goods. And knowing that even the highest-quality service must also represent good value, I provide agency-calibre standards without the agency costs.
Now it’s your turn!
Now that’s answered, we get to the more interesting question: what do you do, and how can my experience and expertise help you achieve it? You’re welcome to call me on 07502 605424 for an informal, exploratory chat, or you can send me a few details via this website’s contact page.