Jen Phillips April

Your Online Marketing Partner with SEO Copywriting and Social Media Marketing

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My Writing Process

my writing process
If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will get you there. .

 

Some of my clients have a clear client brief where they’ve done a lot of the background work.

They deliver me a document with a well-defined target audience, SEO terms, call to action, and sometimes even an outline.

Other clients need more help planning than that and we might schedule a brainstorming session and even review current well-performing content in real-time to choose “what’s next.”

Either way, it’s all about taking a bit of time now, to succeed later.

The Background of a Marketing Writing Assignment

As a marketer and business writer, my first job is not writing but planning and preparing.

After all, I’m always suggesting that others share their process so here’s mine.


About the Planning and Researching 

Heroic Success Stories

I spent the morning mapping out content for a client’s website and it occurred to me that most people don’t think about their website this way.

And why should you? It’s not what you do.

But writing site content is a BIG part of what I do so I thought I’d “pull back the curtain” and show you how one professional approaches it.

From a strategic perspective, I list each page — about, home page, services, and any sub-pages on a spreadsheet.

Then, I include the purpose of each page, overview of the messaging, target audience and the primary desired action – click this, download that, watch this.

I also include the primary and secondary keyword terms for SEO purposes (this helps you get found by Google.)

These terms come from keyword research tools like Wordtracker, SEMRush or even sometimes, Google Keyword Planner

Then, the client and I go over it, make any needed adjustments, and THEN I write.

See, it’s important to write using the language of your potential client. The keyword tools can give you insight as well as specific terminology.

If you can touch on those “hot button” issues in your copy and show how you solve those problems with the product/solution you’re selling…well, that’s the gold.

Here’ s a Peek Into My Writing Process:

  • Interview you for background and the right messaging. – While some clients have a better handle on this than others it’s always a valuable exercise.  You know your business far better than anyone on the outside can and I often pick up valuable nuggets that can be turned into copy or at least insights into the what makes you different.
  • Read your current website and marketing collateral I can get my hands on – brochures, ebooks, blogs, etc. it’s all a window into your market.
  • Research your competition. What are they saying? How is your product/service different from theirs?
  • Research your target market – reading LinkedIn groups/forums, search on Twitter hashtags to find out what people are talking about. (Even if I know the market pretty well, I always do some component of this)
  •  Keyword research – using software tools like PowerSEO, Wordtracker and Google Keyword Planner, I put in keyword terms to narrow it down the topics, find the most searched for keyword phrases with good but not insane competition and create a keyword strategy for the website (if needed). Sometimes clients are working with a great web development company that had done a bang up keyword analysis that they pass on to me. I LOVE that! I think it’s happened twice.

For SEO Writing

If I’m rewriting/optimizing your website so you can increase your traffic and conversions, I analyze the keyword research and assign terms to different pages on your website in alignment with your targeted prospect. I also include meta descriptions – these are the “behind-the-scenes” code that helps your webpages get found.

I let it sit (a day or two is ideal) to revise.

Then it’s off to you, the client, for review.

Next, we can jump on the phone to go over any changes or you can use the edit function in your software program to make revisions and send back to me.

I turn around the revisions, you review again and off they go to your web team for implementation.

Whew! It looks like a lot but really, you probably take as many steps before you start a project too.

You just don’t think about it because you’ve done it so many times. It’s the “inherent” knowledge you develop from years of practice.

Are you ready to get started with your writing project?

You can schedule a short call to discuss your needs here.

 

Author on Business 2 Community

Clients Include:

Barkleigh Productions

American Writers & Artists Institute

Smarttvel - Travel Smart

Seer

Official Payments Corp

Leadit Marketing

International Living

Day Smart Software

Applause

Jen helped me gain clarity around my sales posts. Her gentle pointers and awesome insights were brilliant and really helped me up my confidence. Ideas are brewing and I’m excited to put her suggestions into implementation. This woman rocks! ? – Amandalee Sparks-Hatt
This woman rocks!
Jennifer provided enormous insight into the SEO process. When I relaunched my blog, Jennifer helped me create a focused and keyword rich content marketing plan. Plus, she coached me on maintaining my renewed efforts. Working with Jennifer was a pleasure!
Aimee WilsonOccasions to Savor
My website was dead after having been hit by the dreaded Google updates. I had heard Jen speak at several functions and decided to see if she could help. She has completely revamped my SEO and keywords, helped me with my blog and my site started to come back to life! I now consistently rank high in searches and have seen a great ROI for her services. PLEASE do yourself a favor and use Jen. Thanks for everything Jen!!!
Dr. Jeff McQuaiteChiropractorMcQuaite Chiropractic
At 196 total sales with a few more gonna roll in. Was shooting for 150. So killed that ???? Emails were killer. Every time we sent one we got 20 sign ups.”
RH

Training

Jen_Speaker_trainerJen's seminars focus on helping organizations develop their social media strategy and create action items around it. Whether showing business owners the best practices of Facebook posts or how to optimize your LinkedIn headline, Jen is passionate about the social media revolution. Her engaging, conversational style keeps audiences coming back for more. One FAQ is, “When are you doing another class?” and dozens have become regulars at her small social media trainings. Check out her training...

Social Media Help

Jen_social_mediaThese in-person training seminars focus on you and what steps to take to maximize the power of social. Whether you need help crafting great content or connecting the ROI to your bottom line, Jen can help. Read More

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