There has been an interesting phenomenon that has occurred in recent years. The most popular copywriters have not arrived at that distinction because they are proven sales-producers, but because they are outrageous. People are always attracted to outrageous personalities, and in the copywriting profession, this is no exception.

Here is an example of what I am referring to.  A mainstream copywriter may advertise their business thus:

We provide effective copywriting that sells your prospective customers by appealing to their most basic needs. Our copywriting has proven results with dozens of client testimonials to support our claims. We write professionally to enhance your company’s reputation and brand.

Then, there is the outrageous copywriter, who has been catapulted to cult status because of the way they ignore image to concentrate on absurdity.

We reach out and grab your prospects by the neck and squeeze until their eyeballs pop. We drag them kicking and screaming and beat your products’ benefits into their heads. Our approach smacks them in the face until they buy while we throw your competition against the curb.

Which writer is the better one? There is one way to discern the difference between the pop-culture heroes and the tried and true copywriters.  Good copywriters have verifiable results they can point to. They have legitimate clients, companies with established brands and products. The outrageous copywriters point to their own self-promotion and followers pronouncements as proof of their prowess.

Does it seem that one group of writers spends more time pushing their style and making millions based on their perceived capabilities?  The plain-vanilla copywriters work every day and get real results. They research their client’s markets, connect product or service benefits with client needs and produce sales. They offer their clients real value.

Next time you hear someone suggest a copywriting superstar who has a long-copy sales-page website screaming of their success, tell them; no thanks. Good copywriting works when the client’s brand and image are considered along with selling their product. The outrageous copywriters write for companies that will last for a year or less. By this time, they have made their money and moved on.

© 2010 K Richard Douglas

Welcome to 2010. The last year of the decade reminds us that a lot has changed in the past nine years. The nineties saw the escalation in the popularity of the Internet and the current decade exploded in its application. Everything has changed.

At the beginning of this decade, companies were allocating just a smidgen of their marketing budget to digital marketing.  Some big companies still allocated none of their marketing budget to the Internet. Today, the focus has made a monumental shift. Brand recognition and product and service sales are dependent on the Internet. A new generation goes to the Internet as a matter of routine.

Copy writing for print media was still the focus of most big companies at the start of the decade. Content is slowly replacing print media copy.  There are no trees sacrificed to create a virtual page. Internet pages allow linking and viewer interaction.

Content still has the same mission as copy.  When content is employed on an ecommerce site, it must sell products or services. Content must also build brands. Some content goes viral and gains the influence and power of millions in ad revenues for free.

The next decade will bring an entirely different use for words. Portable devices will be the norm and content will have to deliver in very new ways. Smart companies will work with experienced content writers to harness a whole new set of opportunities for utilizing words.

How many times have I written articles on the topic of brand building and instructed clients on the subject? Over the years, it has been a regular focus of The Great Writer and Solution Content’s services.

Ironically, in an age of Internet marketing, brand building isn’t always related to SEO or SEM best practices or even a Web 2.0 or 3.0 focus. Sometimes brand building can effectively take an ‘old fashion’ approach and be very successful. That is going to be the approach with The Great Writer.

A good copywriter must think of everything
For the past few years, The Great Writer has proven to be a good domain name and has aided in SEO. It has also been central in the effort to build a positive image based on a client-focus, superior writing and effective copywriting. There has been only one potential downside of the name; some prospective clients may find the name too egotistical or haughty. In the world of marketing, everything has to be considered.

The result of this soul-searching and insightfulness will be some renewed brand building. In the weeks ahead, The Great Writer will become Acme Writing.

What’s in a name?
The word Acme means the highest point; summit; peak. Besides the legendary image of the word ‘acme’ in stories and comic strips as the generic, fictitious company, it has a meaning that is very fitting for the way we do business.

We always raise our gaze to the highest point when we are writing for a client.  Our aim is never low, but always pointed at the summit so that our writing is of the highest quality and nothing less.

In addition to the ‘established’ feel of the word ‘acme,’ it is easy to remember and does not suggest any sense that we consider ourselves pompous or self-aggrandizing. It sounds like a company that was established a hundred years ago and not a half-decade ago.

Marketing the old way to build a brand
None of the explanations above have anything to do with the Internet or digital considerations at all. A change from a business name that has some SEO benefits to one which comes out of traditional marketing speaks to the true constants in marketing and brand building. What matters most is how other people see your company. What is the emotional or intellectual impact on the prospective customer or client?

In the zeal of modern day marketers to embrace all things digital, some of the fundamentals of marketing not only survive, but prevail. When building a brand, its all perception. Much of this approach has not been advanced much by the advent of the digital age. The psychology of prospective buyers is constant.

What has changed? Even a small company, with a minimum of capital, has the ability through smart marketing to reach a global audience. This would have been impossible twenty-years ago. These same small companies can build a public perception through digital channels that can be magnified beyond the means of traditional marketing. Social media and other means of creating a buzz can amplify the company’s image and persona to gigantic proportions.

Our Company
By all measures, The Great Writer has been an enormous success. We have clients all around the world. What’s even more important, those clients have been very happy with the deliverables. We have grown our business, and it’s related buzz through many channels, but in the end the focus on quality has been our calling card.

What we do know, when the smoke clears, is that its many of the traditional means of introducing a company and creating its image that get peoples’ attention and stimulate their imaginations. For that reason, Acme Writing will carry on the best attributes of The Great Writer, but rely on a company name with a broader appeal. Brand building still has to consider these incremental changes to take companies to the peak of success.

Maybe I should say, the acme of success.

© 2009 K Richard Douglas