I recently came across Semrush Marketplace’s State of Content Ops & Outsourcing report. It tells us who outsources content (and who doesn’t). Why people outsource (and why they don’t). Who people outsource to and why. And so on and so on. Whichever side of the outsourcing fence you’re on, I’d…

In 2017, I set myself a challenge: 26 weeks and 26 blog posts to create the Pippin A-Z of Copywriting. As is so often the case with these things, I successfully completed the challenge and then promptly forgot about it. Looking back at the entries in 2021, I felt a…

Your technical expertise — and the technical expertise of your people — has been integral to the success of your business so far. But when it comes to marketing your business and getting your name out there, their technical skills aren’t what you need. The incredible individuals who write beautiful…

Here’s the problem. You’ve committed yourself to putting high quality content out there regularly to demonstrate your expertise and attract new customers. But this time round, you’ve run out of time to write anything to post. Don’t despair! The chances are you’ve already got quite a bit of content in…

All over the world right now, there are marketing teams saying: “Let’s get our subject matter experts to write this blog or article for us! It’ll mean we can give expert insight to our audiences. (It’ll help us spread our workload too.)” Those marketing teams are right. Getting input from…

The best copy in the world isn’t going to work if it’s sitting in your Drafts folder. You know this. You also know that sometimes getting copy out of your Drafts folder and into the world is easier said than done. With that in mind, here are some tips to…

I’m not going to patronise you by recapping the essential components of a good brief — you haven’t built an agency without knowing what they are. But when you’re briefing a freelance copywriter (as opposed to your in-house copywriters) there are three things you might not be telling them. They…

If you’re thinking about working with a copywriter, this guide will arm you with all the information you need so you won’t feel out of your depth when you approach them to discuss your requirements. The process of working with a copywriter Most copywriters will follow a three stage process, which can be considered as before writing…

Copywriters — including me — prize the value of conversational copy, clarity of message and engaging our readers. We raise our hands in horror at examples of corporate gibberish. We encourage people to cut jargon from their copy. We praise informality. But I think we’re sometimes wrong. I think things…