Writing Great Copy by Jim Rubart

If we want to be successful writers, we need to be involved at some level in marketing our work—whether we like it or not. So during the month of November, our Writer’s Journey Wednesdays have been dedicated to a four part series on the subject. Jim Rubart is an author and professional marketer. Please welcome our friend as he shares his expertise with us.

Marketing Series
Part IV

Writing Great Copy

I get paid to write ad copy: Radio spots, TV spots, Web sites, brochures, back cover copy, proposals, one sheets, etc.

So do you. (Get paid to write copy.)

You think if you’re not in advertising you don’t write copy? And don’t get paid for it? Sorry. EVERYTHING you write is copy.

When I first dove into the world of publishing I figured if someone could write an entertaining, surprising novel, they could certainly write entertaining, surprising Web site copy, or e-mails, or readers letter, or a sales proposal.

Wrong, Jim! Want to play again?

Over time I realized copy writing is a skill that takes time to learn, just like writing a book or article. But you can do it. And it can pay huge dividends.

What’s one of the first rules of writing a novel? Make sure your first line has a hook. Make it surprising. Make in memorable. What are we taught to do at the end of our chapters, be they fiction or non-fiction? Leave our readers with a question. An issue unresolved. A mystery. So they’ll jump to the next chapter. We must think the same way with everything we write.

When you entertain and surprise editors, agents, and other writers with your words, you will be liked. Sorry, not fair, but it is reality. And that leads to opportunities.

Whether it’s an e-mail, a letter, a proposal, a note to your husband, wife, kids, friends it’s copy … and you get paid; poorly if you’re boring people–making them skip over your words–or paid well if you entertain them, or give them pertinent info or inspire them.

How do you start writing better copy? Look for it everywhere. Collect the pieces you like. Study them.

During a layover in Salt Lake City recently I treated myself to a heart-attack-on-a-bun at the airport Burger King. I saved the bag ’cause I liked the copy.

Why?

It stands out in a sea of bland fast food copy. There’s a distinct voice to it, an attitude. Made me smile. And I’ll probably think of Burger King a bit more fondly in the future.

Here’s an actual e-mail I sent to a potential client of mine I’d been trying to reach but hadn’t heard back from:

Hey _____, please choose the appropriate response and send back at your convenience:
___ Jim, sorry, I’ve been slammed! I’ll get back to you after Thanksgiving and we’ll set a time to connect.
___ I’m on the 1st tee at Pebble Beach. Where are you? We can’t wait for you much longer.
___ I heard you ran into my cousin at your writer’s group and she told me the truth about you.
___ I heard you played in the Golf-O-holics with my other cousins Bob and Tim. Anyone who takes part in something making fun of alcoholics is no friend of mine.
___ I’ve joined the PGA tour. No time for the ad game anymore.

Thanks,
Jim

He responded twenty minutes later:

You’re a funny guy! I pick…

___ Jim, so sorry, I’ve been slammed! I’ll get back to you next week and we’ll set a time to connect.

I’m flying out in the morning and will return Monday afternoon. Let’s talk then and set a time.

Be blessed. Weirdo!

Your turn. Love to hear how your copy grabbed someone by the mind and didn’t let go.

Jim Rubart is a professional marketer whose clientele has included ABC, AT&T/Cingular, and Clear Channel Radio. He is also a professional speaker, and writes recurring columns for Christian Fiction Online Magazine. His first novel ROOMS comes out this April from B&H Fiction. http://tinyurl.com/yj7pp2l Jim and his wife and their two teenage sons live just outside Seattle, Washington. You can catch up with him at http://www.jimrubart.com/ and http://www.barefootmarketing.com/

Domain Names: Picking the Right One by Jim Rubart

If we want to be successful writers, we need to be involved at some level in marketing our work—whether we like it or not. So during the month of November, our Writer’s Journey Wednesdays have been dedicated to a four part series on the subject. Jim Rubart is an author and professional marketer. Please welcome our friend as he shares his expertise with us.

Marketing Series
Part III

Domain Names:

Picking the Right One

http://www.ewegottaluvthissightcauseibuiltit4u.com/

Do you know what makes an ad jingle effective?

• It’s short.
• Anyone can sing the melody.
• It’s easy to remember.

The same three criteria apply to picking domain names.

1. Short - The longer your domain name, the harder it is for people to remember—and the greater chance for mistakes when typing. My author domain name is http://www.jimrubart.com/ My marketing domain name is http://www.barefootmarketing.com/ Each are two words. One word is even better. Amazon. Hulu. Nike. Your author domain doesn’t have to be your name, but it if isn’t chose something short.

2. Anyone can say it in the most common vernacular. In other words, it’s easy to spell. “Hike for Hope” works. http://www.hikeforhope.com/ “Hike 4 Hope” doesn’t. http://www.hike4hope.com/ (Both are real domains.) Uncommon spellings are trouble also. Love is fine. Luv isn’t.

3. It’s easy to remember. I can remember “Advanced Fiction Writing.” http://www.advancedfictionwriting.com/ (Editorial comment- excellent site for fiction writers.) It’s hard to remember http://www.ifyouwant2beagreatadvancedfictionwriter.com/ Also, when people think Web addresses they think .COM. Not .NET, .USA, .ORG, etc. It’s similar to toll free numbers. Even though 888 and 866 have been around for years, people still dial 800, even with 866 or 888 staring them in the face. Same thing with domains. If at all possible get .COM. It’s what people will go to first.

One more tip: if you can, buy every variation of your domain name. My friends know me as Jim. But on my novel coming out this April it says James L., http://www.jameslrubart.com/, .net, org, and http://www.jamesrubart.com/, net, org, which automatically forward to http://www.jimrubart.com/. (I also own http://www.jimrbuart.net/, and .org.)

Bottom line? Make sure your domain name keeps the hoops to a minimum. The more hoops you make people jump through to get to your site—or back to your site—the fewer hits you’ll get. A simple test is to tell friends the name of your new site, then ask them a few minutes later what the name of your site is.

If they remember, odds are the rest of the world will too.

Jim Rubart is a professional marketer whose clientele has included ABC, AT&T/Cingular, and Clear Channel Radio. He is also a professional speaker, and writes recurring columns for Christian Fiction Online Magazine. His first novel ROOMS comes out this April from B&H Fiction. http://tinyurl.com/yj7pp2l Jim and his wife and their two teenage sons live just outside Seattle, Washington. You can catch up with him at http://www.jimrubart.com/ and http://www.barefootmarketing.com/

Risk - Who is Going to Push You? by Jim Rubart

If we want to be successful writers, we need to be involved at some level in marketing our work—whether we like it or not. So during the month of November, our Writer’s Journey Wednesdays are dedicated to a four part series on the subject. Jim Rubart, an author and professional marketer, will be sharing his expertise with us. Please welcome our friend!

Marketing Series
Part II

Risk – Who is Going to Push You?

“You’ve got to jump off cliffs all the time and build your wings on the way down.” Annie Dillard

I didn’t want to hurtle toward the ground face first from 191 feet up, strapped into a roller coaster called Aftershock. The problem was, I did.

As I stood staring up at the two towers of the coaster last week, straddling the fine line between desire and fear, it was my 14-year old son who pushed me over the edge. “C’mon, Dad! Are you a man or a mouse?!” Until his challenge, I was definitely the gray, furry little creature.

Yes, of course I went on it. Twice. What a ride! See, my knees whack together hard when it comes to heights, so anything of an Aftershock nature really gets my adrenaline pumping. (I’m a bit of a thrill seeker and love the rush, which yes, added to my fear of heights makes me a bit schizophrenic.)

My point? I probably wouldn’t have taken the ride without my son pushing me. (And I’m pumped he did.)

The application? You have to find people who will push you in your writing and especially find people who will push you in your marketing.

Marketing is frightening for a majority of writers. (You are definitely not alone.) It’s intimidating. And many don’t know what it is, let alone where to start.

Yes, in one sense marketing is complex, but in another it’s extremely simple. Let’s concentrate on simple.

Marketing: making yourself known and making yourself likeable. If someone is going to buy your proposal, your manuscript, your book … they have to know about you and it will help a great deal if they like you. That’s it.

What do people like? They like being surprised. They like being entertained. They like learning new things. But most authors never try anything risky with their proposals, e-mails, manuscripts, presentations so they sound the same as every other writer.

When I sold radio advertising in the late 80s I did magic as part of my presentations. It was a risk. It was a cliff and sometimes the wings didn’t come together and I crashed. But I won far more times than I lost.

You want to stand out? Get noticed by an editor or agent? Take the risk. In whatever you do, whether it’s writing an e-mail, posting on Facebook, twittering, answering the phone, writing a proposal, try something that will make yourself stand out. Something that’s a little bit risky.

But I mentioned at the beginning of this post, sometimes you need someone to give you a push. Yep. It’s time to go find a friend who will escort you to the edge.

Jim Rubart is a professional marketer whose clientele has included ABC, AT&T/Cingular, and Clear Channel Radio. He is also a professional speaker, and writes recurring columns for Christian Fiction Online Magazine. His first novel ROOMS comes out this April from B&H Fiction. http://tinyurl.com/yj7pp2l Jim and his wife and their two teenage sons live just outside Seattle, Washington. You can catch up with him at http://www.jimrubart.com/ and http://www.barefootmarketing.com/

Who Are You Going To Be? by Jim Rubart

If we want to be successful writers, we need to be involved at some level in marketing our work—whether we like it or not. So during the month of November, our Writer’s Journey Wednesdays are dedicated to a four part-series on the subject. Jim Rubart, an author and professional marketer, will be sharing his expertise with us. Please welcome our friend!

Marketing Series

Part I

Who Are You Going to Be?

In their seminal marketing book, The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing: Al Ries and Jack Trout argue against the concept of line extension—trying to introduce new products under an established brand. It’s almost always impossible to make work.

Once you’re in the consumer’s head with one product, it’s hard to get into their head with another.

Example: When Xerox was the god of the copier world, they decided to start selling computers. The “Huh? I don’t remember that,” going through your head right now is testament to the fact they failed miserably. They were known for copiers, but computers? No way. They spent millions trying to establish themselves as a computer manufacturer. Whoops. (By the way, IBM tried to sell copiers; it worked about as well as Xerox’s idea to sell computers.)

Would you buy a DVD player from Nike? Probably not. I know, that’s extreme, but would you buy something closer to their brand, say a soft drink with the swoosh on it? History says no.

Did you know A1-Steak sauce spent $18 million dollars on A1-Poultry sauce? Yeah, I’m not using it on my chicken these days either.

How does this apply to us as writers?

You can’t write both fiction and non-fiction. (See Frank Peretti, Ted Dekker, John Grisham, etc. What? You’re not familiar with their non-fiction books?)
You must choose. Fiction? Great, stick with it. Non-fiction? Fine, but know that you’ll always been seen as a non-fiction writer first.

What kind of fiction? Suspense? Speculative? Historical? Once you choose readers will want to see the same type of stories from you every time. (No, even though I think Stephen King is a wonderful writer, I can’t ever see him topping the romance charts.)

This is key: Whatever you’re known for first, will be your identity forever. It’s very difficult to change someone’s mind about a brand once it’s first burned into the brain. Let me prove it to you:

When Orville and Wilbur did their Kitty Hawk thing and proved powered flight was possible they blew people’s minds. No one in America will ever forget them.

You’d think the same thing would happen in Australia, wouldn’t you? Don’t you think Australian’s would remember the first man to fly a plane in their country? They don’t, and here’s why: They remember this man for something else. This man had already burned himself in their brains with another brand, and there wasn’t room for him to be known for anything other than the greatest magician that ever lived, Houdini.

So when you’re trying to decide what you want to be known for, think about what the ancient knight in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade said to Harrison Ford, and “Choose wisely.”




Jim Rubart is a professional marketer whose clientele has included ABC, AT&T/Cingular, and Clear Channel Radio. He is also a professional speaker, and writes recurring columns for Christian Fiction Online Magazine. His first novel ROOMS comes out this April from B&H Fiction. http://tinyurl.com/yj7pp2l Jim and his wife and their two teenage sons live just outside Seattle, Washington. You can catch up with him at http://www.jimrubart.com/ and http://www.barefootmarketing.com/