Cleaning Up Your Copy

When you are beginning to write, you gather as much data as you can. You continually add allied thoughts. . You use your right brain, the creative side.

So when you have an idea and your mind says, "not relevant to my core subject," you ignore the doubt. You don't cross anything out. You behave as magpie.

To polish your copy, you do the opposite.Here's how: shut the door and banish distractions. Read your copy v e r y s l o w l y and concentrate.

Better still, read the copy out loud s l o w l y. If reading out loud is impractical say the words to yourself soundlessly. The instant you sense "this shouldn't be here," cross it out.Trust your first judgement. Trust your first judgement.

What "shouldn't be here?". Any material that is superfluous, because you've said it before in a different way. Or because it is not central to your main argument.

You should be removing words as well as ideas. You want to communicate in as few words as possible. Shorter is better. Shorter is richer. Shorter is more bang for your reader's buck. Short sentences are easy to read and understand.

If you are fond of a certain sentence, but you know deep down it is not relevant here's a tip to help you excise. Create a heading at the end of your draft called "overmatter." Whenever you are not sure whether to cut or leave a sentence, cut and paste it into overmatter.

Later delete all the overmatter. Sometimes doing it in two steps is easier than one fell swoop.

As novices we love a certain word, phrase or musicality. Don't be distracted by that. Think only of your reader and the shortest route to communicating your idea.

My mentor, Natalie Goldberg in Writing Down the Bones, says,"when you go over your work, become a Samurai, a great warrior with courage to cut anything out....be willing not to be sentimental about your writing when you reread it. Look at it with a clear, piercing mind."

"Clear writers have accepted the grim reality," says John Trimble that nine-tenths of all writing is rewriting...perhaps most important of all, they are sticklers for continuity. They link their sentences and paragraphs as meticulously as if they might face criminal charges for negligence."

Do you have a robust marketing plan? How persuasive is your website, brochure copy or direct mail?

To win more business,call Neroli Lacey NOW.

About The Author

I'm Neroli Lacey of Beyond Communications Inc. in Minneapolis, MN. I've been helping executives transform their businesses and their lives with outstanding marketing materials since 1995. VISA, 3M and Perot Systems are some of my bigger clients. I have worked with clients in Boston, San Francisco, Dallas, Austin, Minneapolis, London, Paris, Amsterdam, Dublin and Delhi. I used to be one of the top journalists in Britain writing for The Times, The Sunday Times, The Daily Telegraph, The Independent, The Guardian, The Evening Standard, New Statesman, Vogue and Tatler.

Before newspapers I was an investment banker. I grew up in London, England, studying Latin with Greek at Bristol University.

Please visit my website: www.beyondcommunications.com

Or contact me at: neroli@beyondcommunications.com

612-215-3826

---

Magic Words That Sell and What Words to Avoid

We all know words are powerful. Whether written or spoken, according to advertising legend David Ogilvy, some of the most persuasive words to use in marketing are:Now... Read More

12 Copywriting Tips to Make Your Advertising More Profitable

Year after year people make the same mistakes in direct-response copy and advertising. You can avoid the most common and costly blunders by following these profit-enhancing tips...1.... Read More

How You Can Become A Freelance Business Plan Writer

As with any business, becoming a freelance business plan writer can be a challenge. The first challenges involve factors such as cash flow, getting clients, and maintaining... Read More

Does Your Copy Look Fake To the Search Engines?

From the early days of search engine optimization, keywords and content have always been vital to achieving your goals. Starting back in the days when we used... Read More

How To Write Headlines That Grab Your Prospects Attention

It doesn't matter if you're writing an article, a newspaper or magazine ad, a web page, or even a Yellow Page ad. If it has a headline,... Read More

5 Deadly Copywriting Mistakes That Kill Sales

Chances are that you are making many, if not all, of these 5 copywriting mistakes. I call them "deadly" because theyre killing your sales and your profits.Let... Read More

Top 7 Things To Do Before You Hire A Copywriter

Now that you've decided to hire a copywriter, how do you go about finding one? Here are seven things to look for to make sure the match... Read More

The Number One Copywriting Technique That Makes Your Prospects Read Every Word You Write

How does this sound?Today, I'm going to show you how to get a fifteen page sales letter read from beginning to end and keep your prospect magnetized... Read More

Your Article Headlines will Make or Break Your Business

Most people with an online presence will have to regularly deal with the issue of coming up with an appropriate headline. The problem is that most people... Read More

Hooks, Lines & Sinkers

Hands up if the title to this article made you think that you'd strayed into a fishing feature?Perhaps you didn't quite go that far, but hopefully you... Read More

3 Reasons why Content is Still King

Back in the late nineties, the phrase 'Content is King' was repeated and repeated and repeated by site owners and marketers alike. The belief was that the... Read More

How To Test The Body Of Your Sales Copy For Weaknesses

Your sales copy is the life source of your business. If your sales copy isn't pulling in a decent conservation rate, then your business is suffering.In this... Read More

What A Ghostwriter Needs To Do To Earn Top Dollar

The huge demand for writers online is really for ghostwriters. A vast majority of the available online writing jobs for an online writer are for ghost writing... Read More

Be Contagious... Spread The Word!

"Melissa" invaded our computers in late 1999, then "I Love You" in 2000. A year later, the "homepage.htm" attachment virus is wreaking havoc online. And now, in... Read More

How to Build Benefits from Features Fast and Easy with the Solution Approach

Every salesperson and fledgling copywriter hears the harangue: DON'T SELL the FEATURES of a product ? SELL the BENEFITS those features bring!!!The concept's important but it confuses... Read More

How To Write An Effective Ad

A letter or postcard allows you to "talk" one-on-one to your prospect. That means you should use "I" and "me" and "you" in your sales letter. Don't... Read More

Sticky Homepage Copy in 30 Seconds

Yes indeed, that's all you've got, 30 seconds to make your website visitors decide to stick around...The internet has changed how we think about the customer, the... Read More

Steps to a Writing an Effective Press Releases

Want to get the most media attention and spotlight for your business? Then the first place to start is with a GREAT press release. Now I can... Read More

Website Advertising: 10 Tactics To Make Your Ad Copy More Impactful

If your ad is not generating a lot of sales, the reason may be because it is not effective.Here are secret website advertising tactics to make it... Read More

Its Not What You Say But How You Say It

Copy is all about words. Or is it?Copy is about using words to describe the benefits of your offer. About using words to paint vivid mental imagery.... Read More

Freelance Writing As A Career

Most people would love to make a living from freelance writing. If you tell people that you are a freelance writer, chances are that they will respond... Read More

Stop Chasing Away Customers! Bad Copy is Your Worst Enemy

Every day, more and more of us begin new online business ventures, hoping to make a better living or just a little extra on the side. And... Read More

Some Important Tips On Proposals And Price

Here's a critically important copywriting technique I use when writing sales letters and proposals for our own direct marketing services and for our clients.It's all about "price".I... Read More

Keeping It Real: The Only Copywriting Trick That Works

Much of today's accepted copywriting wisdom comes from old books written for a different, quieter world.For most of the twentieth century, widely promoting a successful message was... Read More

7 Big Ticket Copywriting Secrets I Learned from Ted Nicholas

I recently sponsored and attended Joel Christopher and Ted Nicholas's Double Birthday Bash and Interactive Marketing Summit in beautiful San Antonio, Texas. There was... Read More

Copywriting Secrets Of Indias Mystics

Hi everyone,Been ruminating on this one for a little while now but it's probably one of the most profound discoveries of my life. It all began with... Read More