These are my two favourite mugs in the office right now. Which one I choose depends on how I think the day is going to pan out. Today is a Keep Calm day. Send me your favourite mug shots and I'll feature them here....
Continuing our occasional series where we look at the reasons why techie types shouldn't be allowed to write copy. Hmmmm. So what is it you do exactly? We're dedicated to providing results oriented, cost efficient solutions for customer outreach by employing existing and proprietary technologies that maximize exposure and obtain a leadership position in your market through the use of [software] our...
When I quote a job I actually give a separate cost for writing meta description tags. Why? Because they're fiddly little suckers, which can take ages to write, and deserve to be costed separately. But what are meta description tags exactly? And are they necessary for SEO? Ok, meta description tags aren't viewable on the actual web page but they do let...
Is there anything more tedious than waiting for your baggage at the airport? It's enough to make your holiday joie de vivre go right out the window. So there I was at London's Gatwick Airport at the weekend, waiting with breathless anticipation for my case to arrive, when I spied this ad for Gatwick Express, the fast train service into central...
We're used to seeing phone numbers and website addresses plastered on the side of work vans and company cars. But Ma Goa restaurant in Putney, London, has gone one step further: they've added an actual restaurant review to the back of their delivery vehicle; and one from Time Out no less. What a brilliant idea. How many people have seen that...
Clearing out some old magazines and newspapers this week, I came across this great little ad from Hiscox, a UK based insurance company. The ad explains how they believe in straightforward jargon-free policies and how they're committed to using plain English. Hooray. Couldn't we all do with a bit of plain ol' English from our insurance companies? Now I don't about you,...
When it comes to planning copy, copywriters, me included, love a good acronym. Anything that helps us keep the message focussed and tight. Back in the day I was taught to use AIDA: Attention, Interest, Desire and Action. Grab your customers' attention with a good, pithy headline which pulls them into the piece. Create interest by demonstrating your product; telling your...
This month's interview is with Alison Blake, marketing expert, and head of Add Agency, a creative marketing agency based in south west London. Turner Ink: A few weeks ago I wrote a post about why companies shouldn't cut their marketing budgets during economic downturns. Are you finding that's the case Alison? Are companies increasing their spend? Or are they cutting back? Add...
As an SEO copywriter I'm always rattling on to my clients about keywords and where they should appear on a web page for maximum SEO. As I'm going on about Page Titles, H1 Tags, Meta Description Tags and Alt Tags I see their eyes start to glaze over. So hooray for the chaps over at Seomoz who have put together the nifty visual below. It...
Let me come right out and say it: there are a lot of SEO companies out there that are full of bull. I had such a company email me out of the blue last week. They advised me that they had studied my website (yeah, right) and were concerned that I was not 'appearing on the major search engines'. Not only...
