And why I recommend it to copywriters looking for financial stability.

Why?

Random Choice: The Latest eMail in My Inbox

As reader engagement metrics grow more sophisticated, the opportunity – and the need – for copywriters can only grow.

A more engaged audience (one byproduct of superior content) not only adds happy zeros to the bottom line, but it now seems better engagement metrics may improve email deliverability – the holy grail of email marketers.

From Chief Marketer’s digital magazine comes news of AOL’s willingness to use engagement metrics to add email marketers with highly engaged customers to their “enhanced whitelist.”

In the past, email marketers feared “This is spam” complaints from readers, knowing that too many complaints would dry up email deliverability.

In fact, email service providers (like Underground Fave MailChimp and small-biz leader Constant Contact) go to great lengths to police their own customers.

If they don’t, those vendors lose their critical “whitelist” status.

Now, it appears AOL has gone beyond simple negative measures to using engagement metrics (clicks, opens, etc) to determine if readers find emails useful.

High “engagement” scores could land your email marketing clients on AOL’s enhanced whitelist – a powerful incentive to deliver useful, engaging (and anticipated) email programs (the kind of emails a professional copywriter might write).

As the torrent of content on the Internet grows, this kind of measure will become increasingly common (and that’s not exactly a bold prediction).

Which provides fertile ground for the copywriter looking for upscale projects.

And while the existing email profit motive provides a good foundation for any client pitch, tacking on this little bit of engagement marketing news can only help.

And I’m only getting started.

A Plea For Integration

In my marketing boot camp classes, I take a hard look at the success – and the ROI – of email programs.

In fact, you can see the surprise on the faces of my business students – who often feel email is an “outdated” marketing channel – when I relate my compelling email success stories.

In simple terms, it’s a rare business that doesn’t see a revenue spike when an email drops.

And while social media channels like Twitter and Facebook have pundits swooning, integrating email, blogs and social media offers huge bottom-line benefits – and it’s a path more organizations are taking.

At times, it seems as if many young copywriters are focusing on blogging for dollars or getting paid to write “articles” – when they might consider offering integrated content packages to selected businesses.

In other words, why write weekly blog posts for a few bucks when you can pitch the same client a package containing integrated blog, social media and email content?

The Copywriter’s Growing Role

Given the ability to integrate blog entries with email programs – and the ease with which you can funnel the same content into social media – an integrated approach should be a no-brainer for even small businesses.

In fact, the integration bit is the part of my boot camp that most surprises (and excites) my students.

After all, they’ve spent the last few years growing increasingly confused (and yes, frightened) by the increasing number of communications channels.

And there I am, suggesting they – with proper integration – can stuff all those channels (blogs, email, social media) for the price of one piece of content.

In fact, technology is improving so quickly that content is now the primary barrier to online marketing success.

Which, my savvy copywriters, is where you step into the picture.

It’s no secret; I like the concept of the value-added copywriter. In this case, the value you add is integration – a turnkey ability to neatly gift-wrap a big chunk of a company’s online marketing in one nice, neat package.

You’re not writing blog posts. You’re delivering a blog, revenue-enhancing email, and a steady presence on Twitter and Facebook.

And you’re doing it turnkey.

Which means you’re delivering more than results; you’re offering peace of mind (don’t undervalue that in today’s madhouse marketing universe).

And yes, it’s retainer money, and as Underground Fave Seasoned Veteran Copywriter Roberta often says, freelancers ignore regular paychecks at their own peril.

One more thing; offering integrated packages is yet another tactic that sets you aside from those bidding themselves into starvation on the freelance sites.

Keep writing (and integrating, and pitching, and…), Tom Chandler

Except you edited it like you were on crack, mucked it up, and didn’t notice until after you hit “post.”

Damn.

Now it sits for all eternity – an embarrassing piece of text with the name of a supposedly professional writer attached to it.

There is, however, hope.

After The Deadline is a Firefox plug-in that offers “Spell, Grammar, and Style Check” right in your browser.

After the Deadline Firefox plugin

According to the site, it offers a more powerful spell checker than Firefox, and flags misused words, grammar issues, etc. (Remember when browsers didn’t even offer spell checkers? Oy.)

It’s a given that everything that flows from my fingertips is perfect just as it is, yet I installed AfterTheDeadline for testing (everybody has an off day).

It’s too early to rave, but I figure it’s never too early to stop making embarrassing mistakes.

Keep writing (error free), Tom Chandler.

Two years later, Gaylord’s writing gig has mushroomed into several lucrative new areas, and it seems the time is ripe for an update.

Those who read the original post will recall Gaylord’s advice: write about a subject you love so much, you can’t wait to get out of bed and get to work.

Not only is it a prescription for job satisfaction, but it’s not a bad route to getting paid.

In the last two years, Gaylord’s turned his domination of the adult target airgun niche into several lucrative new projects – including a co-host spot on a TV show and several lucrative product development deals.

In fact, with his American Airgunner TV show recently signed for a second season, Gaylord is now in the enviable position of refusing even high-paying jobs.

His dance card’s just too full.

Write to Your Passion, But Get Paid For It

“I’m exactly where I want to be” said the plain-talking Gaylord at the start of the interview.

“I’ve reached my work limit, I don’t “audition” for any kind of work any more, I’m getting paid for my time, and I’m doing something I want to keep doing as long as my heart is beating.”

Can you top that?

If not, read on.

First, what’s Gaylord doing right?

He’s getting paid to:

• Write airgunning’s top blog
• Produce a 2x monthly podcast (he taught himself the technology)
• Write paid articles for several sites & magazines
• Co-host a new TV show
• He signed a pair of lucrative product development deals

How has he arrived at this place?

Simple.

He knows this stuff, and he loves writing about it.

If that’s not exactly the four-point formula for success you were hoping for, consider this: For several years, Gaylord has posted new blog articles five days a week (without fail).

And he does it for the fastest-growing retailer in the business (an excellent example of content marketing that you can reference in your own pitches).

Gaylord’s audience continues to grow, and and just so you know he’s hardly phoning it in, his blog posts regularly generate upwards of several hundred comments – an astonishing number given the tiny airgun market.

In addition to all the writing projects outlined in my prior article, the past year has seen him signing several paid product development deals – and moving from the online world into a TV host spot.

In other words, he’s still doing exactly what he wants.

And yes, he’s making more money at it then ever.

Television

While it’s common for successful bloggers to steer themselves into other channels, Gaylord wasn’t necessarily looking for the television show which has transformed his working life.

And while the TV show has been well received in its first season (the Sportsmen’s Channel just signed for a second season), Gaylord notes the ride hasn’t been wholly smooth.

“Between the travel and the workload, I discovered what my limits were. Now I have to make sure I don’t make myself sick again.”

Still, the TV exposure promises to raise Gaylord’s profile even higher among not just the airgunning world, but the larger sporting markets. In terms of building a personal brand, a TV show is not a bad route – and the affable Gaylord comes across as so likable and passionate, you can’t help but see a big future in video (whether broadcast or online).

Product Development

In what Gaylord calls “another lobe” of his work are his new product development deals.

He recently signed two deals which see him helping a pair of industry leaders fine-tune – and even revolutionize – their product lines.

While modesty – and a pair of NDAs – limit what Gaylord’s willing to reveal, it’s largely true to suggest Gaylord was at the foundation of one American airgun company’s recent introduction of three world-beating products.

They’re revolutionizing a market, and because nothing succeeds like success, Gaylord’s stock has risen to the point where several other manufacturers are willing to pay him to talk turkey.

I don’t care what market you play in; that’s an enviable position.

OK, So How Does He Do It?

Rather than repeat everything Gaylord said in my earlier profile, let me reprint a quote from the earlier article summarizing Gaylord’s approach, and then I’ll get down to the nitty gritty:

Still, it’s not hard to see what matters to him — the first words out of Gaylord’s mouth were: “Most important is to write about the things you love doing.”

Gaylord’s writing style is conversational, and not intimidating or pedantic.

“I see my role as more an educator than salesman” he said, and his straightforward style of writing reflects it. He’s been writing about airguns for almost two decades, and expects to “continue doing so until I drop.”

How does he generate so much copy for so many venues?

“You should write about the things you love so much that you can’t wait to write the next post or article.”

With that in mind, Gaylord’s approach to growing his online presence beyond the online world involves nothing particularly high tech or glamorous.

Instead, Gaylord makes it a point to know everything there is to know about his industry (see blockquote above), and then pitches his ideas to those in a position to make a difference.

When one company invited several airgun writers to a show & tell, Gaylord went armed with a specific product pitch, including marketing information he’d picked up at an industry breakfast a couple years prior.

Simply put, it worked. And it lead to one of his product development deals.

It’s a recurring tactic for Gaylord, who only founded his extremely popular (and paid) blog because he pitched the idea a top online retailer – a pitch that came complete with costs and revenue potential.

“Don’t Be Afraid to Fail.”

Diving headfirst into new areas is a recurring theme for Gaylord, who used to publish a printed airgun “newsletter” that ultimately failed when the Internet picked up steam.

“Sure, you sometimes make bad decision, but don’t be afraid to fail” he said.

“You need to fail to learn, and if you’re one of those people who has to ask three other people what they should do, you’re simply going to prolong the learning process.”

And while his stock is definitely on the rise, Gaylord’s not afraid to admit he made mistakes even in the midst of his most-successful year.

The TV show – which required frequent travel to New York (Gaylord lives in Texas) – was a new situation for him, and he didn’t strike a deal that served him particularly well.

That’s been rectified for the upcoming season, but Gaylord – in opposition to a lot of what you hear spouted on the Internet about writers giving away the farm – is very clear on the idea of giving too much away.

“You’ve got to be very careful not to give too much away,” Gaylord said.

“As a writer in a particular market, over time you develop an experience base that should make you valuable. There’s a tendency to give that knowledge away in order to get in the game.”

“Don’t do that.”

Where Are You Going?

While Tom Gaylord’s niche is small and unusual, the product and television deals have put him in a place so ideal, he can’t imagine anything better.

“At 62, I’m finally in the place I wish I was at when I was 40″ he said.

“I’m turning down work, I don’t audition for anything, and I’ll happily keep doing this work as long as my heart keeps beating.”

Keep writing (and pitching, and thinking, and failing…), Tom Chandler.

UPDATE: Gaylord’s year-end post displays the kind of specific, boots-on-the-ground thought leadership that allows him to charge for product development ideas. Worth a look.

Now, College Humor has produced Font Fight – the hilarious, perfect-for Friday video that every font geek (and yes, I mean you ) will want to play over and over.

Click the image, watch the video, shoot Comic Sans out your nose...

After all, what fontophile would willingly miss the long-awaited meeting of Helvetica and Arial – the latter of which stole the former’s identity so many years ago? (The hairs on my neck are standing up.)

I can’t embed it, but it’s worth the short trip to the College Humor site, where you can embrace your inner font geek.

Keep writing, Tom Chandler.

Scanned from Newsweek, but aimed at GenX (and younger)?

And we’ve gotta ask: Will Oscar Mayer’s target market truly understand Blogworthy?

Me? I vote thumbs up. The concept mixes a little edge and some fun with an ever-so-slight amount of self-deprecating humor. And yes, Oscar Mayer is clearly more interested in the “connected” generation than they are the old geezers (like the one writing this blog post).

Critique?

• I might have shoehorned another benefit into the copy (we get “under 350 calories” and “microwave minute” which isn’t bad)
• Oscar Mayer supports a blog of their own and some fun online goodies on their site (Oscar Mayer Pong) – why not reference it in this ad?

The Hotdogger.com blog follows the Weinermobile’s location on Google.

In an era when new media channels are coming online almost hourly, large organizations often struggle to achieve true integration across all marketing channels. Sometimes that’s due to departmental turf wars, but often it’s simply the result of tunnel vision.

And yes, the smart freelance writer will spot integration issues for a client, and offer to fix them (after all, nothing’s more endearing than being useful).

What’s your hit – fun ad, or total marketing baloney?

Keep writing, Tom Chandler

After all, my contribution to the freelance survival conversation (and I think freelancesurvivalist.com would be a stunning blog name) amounted to “get as close to the revenue stream as you can.”

Good idea, but vague. Better might be this: In a down economy, the freelancer’s worst enemy is a shrinking budget (his best friend is marketing staff layoffs, but we’re ignoring that grim reality for now).

So where are marketing budgets growing?

That depends on who’s doing the counting.

DMNews published data from an email software provider’s poll; it identified the top three areas marketers expect to raise spending in 2009:

• 72% E-mail marketing
• 44% Search marketing
• 35% Advertising

Content marketing site Junta42 says content marketing spending is accelerating as the economy worsens, while B2B Magazine says only 25% of B2B marketers plan to cut budgets.

That’s hard to reconcile with the Canadian Marketing Association’s contention that 44% of marketers will reduce their marketing spending, but then, most of these surveys aren’t exactly scientifically valid, it’s an apples & oranges comparison, and those Canadians are a pretty shifty lot to begin with.

Back to Basics

My experience during past downturns suggested marketing departments participate in “back to basics” movements, and our current mess is probably not an exception.

In a recession, Return on Investment (ROI) is king, and not surprisingly, accountable media are seeing gains (or at least not reductions). And who is the marketing ROI King? E-mail marketing, a fact which squares nicely with the bullet points above.

You might also expect to see lots of activity in high-ROI direct response media (the really glitzy lumpy mailers to 100,000-name lists are probably out), and as I pointed out above, “content marketing” also looks good, though I wonder if that isn’t mostly an extension of search marketing. (I divide the world into SEO content and engagement content, and where do the two meet?)

One bright spot is the emerging social media marketing, which despite its “experimental” status, is seeing lots of growth (and yes, I lost the link to the stats).

While social media remains a mystery to many organizations – and its effectiveness is often hard to quantify – spending in that area is still growing based simply on the potential for massive ROI, though again, it’s a spotty thing.

Marketers are often seduced by the low initial cost of social media, but when headcount is tight and people already overloaded, the ongoing care and feeding of social media projects becomes a problem (or perhaps an opportunity for the ambitious freelancer).

Where It’s Not Great

It’s probably not a great time to specialize in non-response oriented brand advertising, especially in high-priced media (like broadcast).

In addition, ad pages in consumer magazines are down a whopping 11%, and those numbers will only get worse as they’re updated, which means less print ad work for writers and art directors.

And it’s not surprising to hear that “luxury” projects (like Web site makeovers, corporate print brochures, etc) are toppling under the swinging budget scythe.

Of course, these are gross generalizations (every situation is unique), but then, why write a blog if you can’t make sweeping generalizations?

What To Do

I’m a big proponent of pitching work to the clients you want to work for, and in a recession this strong, that hasn’t really changed, though you better keep a couple points in mind:

• A strong value proposition is essential – people aren’t buying into experimental programs or those lacking the promise of real ROI
• A package deal often helps – cutbacks usually mean remaining staff are severely overworked, so projects have to be turnkey
• Be prepared for disappointment – people are hunkered down, and don’t take it personally

The psychology of what I’ll call “non-abundance” is an endlessly fascinating thing. Some remain optimistic and see opportunity everywhere while most hunker down, happy if they can protect what they’ve got.

A strong value proposition is no guarantee of anything in times like these, but it’s an excellent starting point for a freelancer.

Keep writing, Tom Chandler.

Keep writing, Tom Chandler.

No, the timing wasn’t great, but I wasn’t surprised. This was a speculative project – one living far from the organization’s revenue stream. And in tough economic times, being “far from the revenue stream” is more an epitaph than a harbinger of survival.

The point isn’t whether this will happen to you (it will). The real point is this: How will you react?

Walk Away? Or Try Again?

I’m satisfied I did a good job, and the good results reflect that. Still, it was a luxury project, and while I can walk away with my head held high, why would I walk away at all?

The client was happy with my non-revenue producing work – so why not pitch them a revenue-positive project?

I’m working on the pitch now, and approaching the client this week. The concept? They have a gaping hole in their marketing process where they should have a revenue stream.

I’m offering to create that revenue stream, and do so quickly.

To do it, I’m putting together a pitch that’s both persuasive (hopefully) and topical (it draws on recent, well-known fundraising successes to prove my point).

And to help it fly with the spreadsheet zombies, I’m willing to back-load my fees (accept the bulk of payment toward the end of the project so expenses show up after revenues are flowing).

Will it work?

Hard to say. Tough times make for bunker mentalities at a lot of organizations, and new projects – even those with revenue-positive projections – are often relegated without a thought.

Still, why walk away?

The freelance copywriting life includes plenty of rejection and down economies; both can be painful, but both also represent opportunities, especially if you’re looking for them – instead of seeing only  doom and gloom.

Keep writing, Tom Chandler.

That’s what writers do; we finish the book/Web site/project, then go somewhere warm to shake off the Post-Project Traumatic Stress Syndrome – preferably with an appropriately literary alcohol (the Copywriting Maven says “mojitos” are the cure, and this time, I may test her theory).

Still, I’m going to leave my readers with some legal fun (really). Read on: you’ll find this interesting.

Who Owns Your Work Now?

You can run from big projects, but you can’t run from the law, which is why I sat up a little when Valleywag listed the five most laughable Terms of Service Agreements in high tech.

For example, download Google’s new Chrome browswer, and you agree that:

…any “content” you “submit, post or display” using the service — whether you own its copyright or not — gives Google a “perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free, and non-exclusive license to reproduce, adapt, modify, translate, publish, publicly perform, publicly display and distribute” it? Google’s ambitions for Chrome are even larger than we thought; by the letter of this license, Google will own all information that flows through its browser. But Chrome’s terms of service are just the latest in a long line of ludicrous legalese.

Facebook’s says it owns the rights to the photographs you upload to the service.

Sure, it’s ludicrous, but then, it’s also in keeping with the anti-intellectual property ethos of Web 2.0, where content creators give up their right to content as fast as they create it, and only those providing technology are allowed to cash in.

In this case, Google’s obviously trying head off the legal challenges that suggest their ad netowrk illegally profits from the work of others.

As a copywriter, it’s easy to think none of this will affect you, but in some not-so-distant future, some of these agreements could come back to bite writers and other creatives on our flat butts.

Imagine a professional photographer who innocently uploads a couple images to his Facebook page, then finds them starting back at him in a Facebook ad.

Legal? Maybe.

UPDATE: Now Google says they don’t want the rights to your work, and are removing that passage from the Chrome license.

Non-Disclosure Agreements

Web Worker Daily also posted a short interview with a legal expert about Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) – a legal form copywriters are often asked to sign.

I’ve signed quite a few over the years (mostly high-tech clients), and most protected my rights as much as the client’s.

Still, I was once handed a “standard” NDA across a desk, and though I came within a whisker of not reading it, I’m glad I did.

On page six, I discovered a non-compete clause.

I muttered a “Huh?” (Not my best moment, verbally speaking.)

A little reading, and I realized this little gem would have prevented my working for anyone else in the client’s markets (all of them) for several years.

“Houston,” I said, “we have a problem.” (This was much better than “Huh.”)

While I avoid direct conflicts of interest, I’m also clear that I’m being paid for my copy and expertise – not the exclusive rights to “own” me in a particular field.

It became a sticking point – until I explained to my contact exactly what I was signing away.

We excised the offending passage from the NDA (both initialed the change), and went on with the project.

The moral? Don’t sign an NDA without reading it – even a “standard” form.

Keep drinking mojitos writing, Tom Chandler.

valleywag, terms of service, google chrome, nda, non-disclosure agreement, facebook

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In the past, that meant a lot of my ad budgets were switched to less-glamorous media like inserts, card decks, etc.

Today, the rush is on to find the most effective, affordable online media (hint: online ad buys seem stagnant). And while coupons are regarded by many as a relic of the pre-Internet era, a New York Times Magazine story says coupons are back – especially online coupons:

Its figures show that in 1998 consumers redeemed about 4.7 billion coupons. The number of coupons that manufacturers issued has gone up and down since then, but the redemption number fell steadily every year until last year, when it leveled off at about 2.6 billion. According to the Promotion Marketing Association Coupon Council, less than 1 percent of coupons are distributed digitally — which seems a little surprising given that coupons-on-the-Web companies have been around for years.

Perhaps it was the positive economic mood that held them back, but that’s changing: the online data tracker Hitwise says visits to a variety of thrift-focused sites are up by about a third over the past year, and the likes of Coupons.com and more recent entries like CouponWinner.com are lately reporting big spikes.

Good news? Bad news? Does it matter to you?

A little fiscal reality check is always a good idea (if the supposedly targeted ads on social network sites aren’t working, it’s time we moved them elsewhere). But the take-away here is simple: in the face of a shrinking budget, the smart copywriter offers their client a cost-effective alternative.

And while “everybody else is doing it” is hardly a killer business case for a promotion, it’s the kind of statement that opens a client’s mind (if not their checkbook).

Remember, in a recession, clients are often scared. That means they’re seeking value from their marketing efforts, and while coupons and promos aren’t glamorous, they’re cost-effective – and they work.

And in the case of online coupons – a largely untapped medium – it’s likely your competitors simply aren’t competing.

Keep writing, Tom Chandler.