I’ve often heard agency owners say, “We want to be known for our expertise, but we can’t write about it without sounding cliche.”
It’s an odd one. Because these are people who have a goldmine of valuable insight to share.
But a weird thing happens when they put their ‘marketing’ hat on.
It’s like they suddenly forget everything they know, and whatever they write feels forced.
Yet if they could somehow capture how they talk to clients daily, their messaging and thought leadership would flow naturally.
But that’s part of the problem. Because they’re so used to having these conversations, they also have a blind spot about what’s valuable and what’s generic.
That’s why I do so many interviews: to help extract the gold from their brain less painfully.
When I share these ideas back, the typical reaction is, “I love that! How did you come up with it?”
And I always reply, “Actually, you said it!”
That’s why I also like to join or view recordings of client calls—another source of pure gold.
I listen in and wait for that physical and mental lightbulb flash I get when someone shares their brilliance.
This is my top copy tip, as I shared in the ProCopywriter's 1,000 blog post. And it is definitely something you can do for yourself.
In fact, if you have zero budget for copy or messaging help - this is what I’d do if I were you, along with interviewing clients about their challenges and using their words in your copy.
Because the best kind of copy doesn’t sound like copy at all. It sounds like someone voicing your own thoughts.
In fact, the real art of copywriting is the ability to let your thoughts and creativity flow uninterrupted from your mind to your page.
But that takes a lot of practice, along with uninterrupted time and deep concentration.
A luxury that few agency owners have.
So if you need someone to ask the right questions, listen deeply and make sense of your answers, I’d be honoured to help.
I’ll reflect back your brilliance so you can see what is unique about your work.
And then translate that into words that clients who don’t know you will resonate with.
The result will be copy that sounds like you, feels natural to share, and that ideal clients will find insightful and inspiring.
