Freelancers who are trying to build their portfolios occasionally asked me, ‘What can I do with good work that was never used?’
The good news is, you should use it in your portfolio, if it’s work you’re proud of. Marketing professionals are used to seeing work in all of its stages, and as long as […]

There’s a lot of overtly self-serving marketing taking place in the ‘new copywriter’s space’ of the Internet, and I don’t want to add to that.
So permit me to give you my very considered perspective on the question ‘Can I transition into copywriting by moonlighting?’
I’m happy to report that the answer to that question […]

Now, I’d love to talk to you about strategies for winning on Bob Barker’s show. Unfortunately, I have absolutely no expertise in that area. Unless you count sitting on the couch thinking that I know how much to bid in the Showcase Showdown or my longtime dream of playing Plinko! No, what I do want […]

Over the years, I’ve had several copywriters ask me how important it is to have an ‘agency quality’ website. My answer is always the same: it’s very important if you are prospecting other than locally.
When you prospect locally, the client can meet you personally. But when you prospect nationally, your website, ‘telephone’ personality, and […]

Virtual assistants might seem like the wave of the future. Does the concept sound like an assistant working in tandem with Rosie, the Jetsons’ maid, to help make your life in the brave new world simpler?
In reality, virtual assistants are becoming a very real alternative to on-site employees in the present. Why would someone […]

I was recently approached by a copywriter who was confused about the proper use of copyright. He explained that the client had hired him for work, then canceled the job part way through, paying him for work done to date.
Perhaps because the work was unfinished, and thinking there may be some future use […]

Whenever a particular interest group, home-related business associations, or any other group set up seminars, they usually go out of their way in order to get sponsorship and the like. While it may seem unlikely that you will get anything out of sponsoring a seminar, think again! Moreover, you can get the most out of […]

Recently a copywriter named Chris asked me what she should do when a direct marketing campaign fails. ‘How do you bounce back in your freelance business after a client royally screws up a DM campaign?’
The short answer is that no copywriter wins all the time. The law of averages in the business of marketing won’t […]

‘A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.’ -Emo Philips
For those of us who have moved our businesses into the virtual world, it’s sometimes easy to forget that our customers are real, live breathing human beings. Some of us may even have moved into this area […]

What’s a Virtual Assistant?
Virtual assistants are independent contractors or entrepreneurs who provide administrative assistance to multiple clients. Unlike regular assistants, they work out of their homes rather than at your business’ physical location.
There are numerous advantages to using a virtual assistant: