Marketing Writing Resources for Creative Copywriters

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Case studies are like condensed action films—full of characters, plot, and conflict—in which, thanks to your help, the clients get what they want. Part of a case study's persuasive power comes from its energy. It should be exciting to tell and hear. Many of us, though, bore with ours. The reason? We use the standard problem-solution-result formula—and fumble "the solution" part.

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A lump of coal in your Christmas stocking—that's what the most recent holiday mailing you managed may have felt like. So while the pain and memory are relatively fresh, let's take a look at some smarter ways to get out a holiday mailing, assuming that angst of holiday mailings is a fact of life for most businesses.

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Experts say that free press is worth more, inch for inch, than paid advertising. That's because free press has the appearance of being a third-party endorsement of what you and your business have to say. So what are the dos and don'ts? What can you do to enhance your chances of getting what you want... and avoiding or minimizing what you don't?

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Luke runs MySpace marketing campaigns on a daily basis. Here, he shares his real-world experiences and tips, including the best way to leverage MySpace to zero in on your target market.

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A lot has changed in marketing since 2002, but some principles still hold true. This MarketingProfs Classic, originally published January 22, 2002, is a timeless look at the mistakes email marketers make—mistakes that prevent an email newsletter from reaching its full potential.

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It may seem strange to compare an e-newsletter with a blog. But it's not so strange at all, because it wasn't long ago that we turned to online newsletters -- not static Web sites -- to find interesting, engaging, timely and topical news and information. The best e-newsletters share many of the same qualities as good blogs. Here are four.

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Most adopters of search engine optimization have been B2C companies operating in an e-commerce environment. However, as business-to-business marketers recognize the potential of search, many are seeking ways to implement an effective B2B search engine optimization strategy. To be successful, however, you need to understand the critical differences between B2C and B2B SEO.

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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.