Posted by:
Carline Anglade-Cole
January 31, 2008
Issue #344
If you’re following the sage advice of experienced copywriters – you should be doing one thing on a regular basis. What’s that?
READING promos written by other copywriters!
That’s probably the MOST valuable advice I can share with you right now. It just made me a FAST $25,000 (NOT including royalties!) Here’s what happened.
I get a bunch of promos in the mail every day. And no matter how busy I am – I MAKE time to look ‘em over. Recently, one in particular caught my eye.
It was a weight loss promo from one of my favorite clients – I’ll call him “FC” (get it, for “favorite client?”) Anyway …
While I was checking out the FOUR different headline test panels I got in the mail – I noticed one MAJOR thing:
NONE of the headlines caught my attention.
After all, I AM the intended market: Over 40 and female – but none of the headlines grabbed me!
So I called FC and asked how the package was performing.
“Not well at all,” he said. He said the copywriter took six months to deliver the first draft. And get this – the first draft was only 12 pages long!
And FC paid a hunk of dough for those 12 pages – and the mailing tanked on the Internet – and wasn’t looking hot in the mail either!
“I’m not surprised – your headlines suck,” I said. (Ok, so tact is not one of my strengths!)
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Posted by:
Carline Anglade-Cole
January 3, 2008
Issue #324
Recently, my husband Mick reminded me of why I became a copywriter.
He said, “Tomorrow morning, be dressed by 5 a.m.”
That’s it.
And before I knew it, I was on a plane headed for Las Vegas. We spent 4 restful days and 3 fun-filled nights celebrating our 24th wedding anniversary at The Venetian Hotel.
I’ve always wanted a “no stress” vacation: no packing, no creating itinerary, no headaches and no worries – and I finally got it!
I did just 3 things:
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Posted by:
Carline Anglade-Cole
December 6, 2007
Issue #300
You guys are really starting to give me a big head!
Just about every day I get e-mails from Total Package readers telling me how wonderful I am!
I want you to know I’m putting these comments to good use. I carefully cut out these notes and paste them on my teenagers’ doors and write:
“See, there ARE people out there who think your mother is SMART and actually LISTEN to her!”
Just kidding.
But I thought I’d use this issue to answer some of the most common questions you’ve asked me recently. Although I try to reply to every e-mail personally, I think many other folks may find these answers helpful for their copywriting careers.
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Posted by:
Carline Anglade-Cole
October 25, 2007
Issue #264
When I told my co-worker Howie I was leaving Phillips (now called Healthy Directions), he asked me what kind of copy I planned to write.
“I dunno” I said, “but I know what I’m NOT going to write: magalogs – they’re just too scary.”
I figured I could make a decent living writing renewal promotions and 2-page sales letters.
Well, guess what? Nine years later – “magalogs” … and their oversized cousins called “tabloids” … not to mention their midget uncles known as “digests” – still scare the beejeezus out of me every time I THINK about writing one!
So how come over 90% of my projects are magalogs, tabloids and digests?
Simple.
I learned a few simple tricks to help me conquer my fear of these Goliaths – and you can too!
In fact, I’m going to show you step-by-step how I tackle these projects – and in no time flat, you’ll be well on your way to writing killer copy for these “Big Dawgs” (hey, I live in Georgia and it’s football season – I had to do it!)
The #1 secret lies in this ancient, Chinese proverb:
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Posted by:
Carline Anglade-Cole
September 27, 2007
Issue #241
Man, I just got a SCREAMIN’ bargain!
My oldest daughter is getting married and I needed to find a dress for the wedding. One thing I knew for certain: I’m not wearing a traditional mother-of-the bride sequined jacket/gown combo!
It’s scary enough that my daughter is turning me into a mother-in-law. I’m definitely not going to LOOK like one! In other words, I needed a dress that says …
KABOOM!
And my cousin Sandy found it for me online!
It was at Nordstrom’s and the gown cost $508!
Yikes! I wanted KABOOM not Ka-ching!
But I went to the mall to try on the dress anyway. Well, they didn’t have it at my local Nordstrom’s – but I did find an identical dress at Macy’s – and it cost $200! Now, we’re getting closer to my comfort price zone. But wait …
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