Are you searching on Google for “phrases joined by ‘and'”, when you actually need to look for “irreversible binomials”? Search over: you’re home and dry.

I’ve had some really interesting (ahem) copywriting enquiries from potential clients over the years; here are a few mailbox highlights.

Discover why it’s so important to request a down payment from a client for a freelance copywriting project, some points to consider, and how much you should ask for.

If a client enquiry is mainly concerned with asking “What’s your day rate?”, tthere’s a skyscrapingly-high chance that I’ll politely say I’m booked up and unavailable to help. 

So, apologies, but that’s not the sort of client I want to work with. Here’s why …

Two award-winning industry experts share top tips on how to create a good radio ad and the thinking required before and during the studio session.

Pam Myers, legendary audio producer, voice caster and founder of Rorschach Radio Production, discusses how she started, what makes a great radio ad/VO/sound designer, and what creativity means to her.

When someone tried to take ownership of my Google My Business listing, I read conflicting advice from others (including a Google ‘expert’) about what to do. Here are the steps I took to successfully retain ownership – and the official Google recommendation.

Ever come across the term ‘portmanteau word’? Discover what it is and what the term has in common with Alice (as in ‘Wonderland’ and David (as in ‘Bowie’).

A simple guide to help you choose the right digital marketing channel so that your brand, product or service can stand up and stand out above everyone else’s.

A freelance copywriter is a highly elastic option for clients wanting their budgets to str-e-t-c-h. But, you get what you pay for. Here’s why an experienced freelance copywriter isn’t necessarily an expensive one.

This isn’t a blog post – it’s a warning. I’ve been alerted to the fact that someone has been using my photo and business profile (full of spelling and grammar mistakes) on a content mill site and passing off my blogs as their own.

Pop-ups, cookie notices, 404 pages … little teeny things really, and yet a massive opportunity to demonstrate a creative tone of voice for your brand and show just how wonderful and unique it is while also demonstrating brand consistency and attention to detail.

For the latest in my interview series, I spoke to Russ Lidstone, CEO of TCEG, about his definition of creativity (which was prompted by Gerry Moira) and the ways in which his ‘unusually shaped communications group’ applies thinking and innovation.

Here’s a look at the origins of some of the world’s best known brand names – and the inside knowledge (yes, from me) on how one of them came to be. Never get caught out in a pub quiz again …

I interviewed Patrick Mills, Director of Membership and Professional Development at the IPA, on how creativity in UK ad agencies has changed and how the IPA helps shape the future of advertising.

You can’t create a good website overnight: quality takes time, but how much time? Discover what your web developer and/or copywriter need to do with this simple guide, and just how long things may actually take.

Continuing my series on creativity, I interviewed Tim Irwin – CEO of data analytics agency, Essence – who has just been crowned as Campaign’s Media Agency Head of the Year for 2020. 

Here are my top five tips for shorter copy. These copy shortcuts will help you minimise the amount you write yet maximise the quality.

Hemingway, here you go …

Did you know that 4 out of 5 marketing emails are ignored? Discover how to write emails that get opened with my simple copywriting tips for subject lines, pre-headers, body copy and CTAs.

With COVID-19, animation has been an obvious way forward for the film and advertising industries. Spend a little or a lot; you need a strong idea. And, as I’m all about words and ideas (my desert island book would be Roget’s Thesaurus), I commissioned two young creatives to bring this essence to life. 

I admit it: I’ve made some freelance faux pas in my time. Here are 14 common freelance copywriting mistakes that are easily made – and how best to avoid them.

Does managing your social media make your head spin? Why struggle when you don’t have to juggle? These simple social media tools will help you see a clear way ahead rather than a brick wall – and help your business take off.

For many freelance copywriters, working from home is the norm. Except there is no norm now. I interviewed four copywriters in different work situations about how COVID-19 is affecting them, and what they’re doing to keep their work flowing and creative juices running.

Does IR35 affect you as a freelance copywriter? Discover what it means, how it may affect you, and how to work out whether or not you’re a ‘disguised employee’.

Social media should be about telling, not selling. How, where and when can you connect with your audience if planning a social media engagement strategy?

Admit it. Who hasn’t experienced an inner teenager smirk – or squirm – when asking a mixologist for a Slow Comfortable Screw. When it comes to cocktail names, anything still goes. Here’s a light-hearted pre-Christmas look at how some got their names.

As far as ad agencies are concerned, the rules of grammar and spelling are there to be broken. Playing with the rules of grammar, when done correctly, can result in powerful writing … but not understanding the rules simply leads to sloppy copy.

Having judged the D&AD New Blood Awards giffgaff brief earlier this year, I was hugely curious to interview its Yellow Pencil award-clutcher, Charlotte Cunningham, about her idea and the difference that winning has made to her so far.

Essentially, blogging and copywriting are about words and ideas? Right. And about making a topic interesting to read? Right? So if you can write articulately, you can be both? Wrong. Here’s a quick guide to six differences between a blogger and a copywriter.

Ever spent time waiting for feedback on a freelance copywriting project? Waiting? And waiting? And waiting? Don’t let project delays get in the way. Here’s how to handle those hold ups, hiccups and headaches.

In my sixth blog on creativity, I quiz Gennaro Castaldo, Director of Communications at the BPI, about the challenges facing the British music industry and who’ll win at The BRITs 2019. (How much does he give away? See for yourself …!)

Ten key channels to consider for an aesthetic marketing strategy to help your clinic or practice stand head, shoulders, knees, toes, tummy and legs above the rest.

Aesthetic marketing and advertising must be ethical for your practice or clinic to be successful – patient trust has to be earned not bought. But how? There are things you can’t say (quite a bit), things you can say (not a lot) and a rather grey area in between.

Most freelance copywriting clients are very professional in the way they approach you and work with you. They’re gems and absolute delights. But there can be some who start a conversation in a way that makes you want to end it. Right. There.

In my fifth blog on creativity, Gina Martin discusses how she’s harnessed the power of social media to promote her upskirting campaign and make this a criminal offence in England and Wales.

Words of warning to all freelancers, copywriters, bloggers, digital experts … As ever, if something is too good to be true, it really is too good to be true.

How much cheaper is it for clients to use an automated copywriter or an AI robot writer instead? Could Caroline Gibson ever be replaced by Caroline Gibbot? Well, there are some alternatives …

To continue my series on creativity, I interviewed Sally Cookson – director of A Monster Calls at The Old Vic – to discover why she was inspired to direct this and how she works collaboratively – but what will she do about the play’s tree???

The third in my blog series on creativity: Toby Lewis, blockchain guru and CEO of Novum Insights, discusses the opportunities beyond fintech for blockchain, cryptocurrencies and ICOs.

Ever considered how much planning and creative thinking goes into a major TV broadcast? Read my interview with Emma Hoskyns, Head of Special Events for ITV News at ITN, who was in charge of the ITV coverage of Prince Harry and Megan Markle’s wedding.

The (real) story of two clients who recently contacted me around the same time when looking for a strategic copywriter. I chose to work with only one of them: discover why …

The first in my series of blogs on what creativity means to people blazing the way in their particular field. In this, I interview Olivier Award and Ivor Novello Award-nominated composer: Simon Slater, recently Musical Director of Amadeus at the National Theatre.

View my video to see how different copy styles can transform a website. And to discover a simple (non-permanent) secret to make copy changes direct to a website, read on. It’s a great little trick to show copy edits or suggestions for copy improvements to clients.

‘How much do you charge?’ ‘Do you only work on big brands?’ ‘Are you available now?’ ‘Can you recommend a good graphic designer?’ The answers to sixteen typical copywriting questions – summarised in one tidy place.

Siri, Google Voice Search, Amazon’s Alexa-enabled devices, Windows Cortana and Baidu are on instant hand to solve your head-scratcher in a nano-second. Voice search is increasing in importance to organically boost your website position – read my tips to help with your VEO.

As more non-surgical aesthetics clinics open their doors and beauty products fight for shelf space, the quest for creating a unique difference becomes harder … contact an experienced copywriter who doesn’t mind a few fine lines – facially or creatively.

Making your business stand up and stand out can’t be achieved by an eye-catching logo, snazzy typeface or wow name alone. Articulating your brand distinctively and consistently through the right shade of tone of voice is also essential. After all, why be bland with vanilla for your brand when you can stand out with gold?

Once upon a time, there were typographers in ad agencies; now there are heads of design. Once upon a time, copywriters would be asked by art directors to add a few words to copy or edit them out to avoid unnecessary spaces; now there are lazy widows and lonely orphans everywhere. What’s happened to the craft of typography in advertising?

Writing short clear and concise copy should be just like packing for a holiday abroad: light, simple and a breeze. Wouldn’t you rather have an engaging, gossamer-light ad, brochure or website instead of a Ryanair excess baggage-laden one? Here’s how…

How has the Internet changed things for marketing and branding? Is being at the top of the first page of Google more important than anything else today? Or do we need to concentrate on brand building for success long term? I interviewed Chris Bullick, MD of The Pull Agency, for some invaluable industry insights and perspectives.

You learn about so many different things as a freelance copywriter that you sometimes feel like a walking encyclopaedia. I worked on some brilliant projects in 2016 – too many to mention, but here are a few things that stood out for being challenging, exciting, informing or simple fun.

Ever wondered about the difference between a creative copywriter and a copywriter? Or what a content writer or SEO copywriter does? The term ‘writer’ comes in a number of guises (let’s not forget PR writer or journalist), so what are the talents required and which kind of writer is right for your needs?

I was recently contacted by a teacher thinking of switching to becoming a freelance copywriter. Did she need agency experience? What were the pros and cons? Should she work for free initially? To give her a second point of view, I collaborated with another copywriter: Tristan Cardwell. Here’s the advice we gave…

Spending time with a private, straight male escort and researching into his world….creating the copy and tone of voice for his website that’s just the right side of naughty….writing the FAQs in a way that says not very much yet says it all…yup, life as a freelance copywriter is certainly never, ever dull. Sometimes the small copywriting projects can be the most fun – this one was no exception.

So, what’s the best way to go about wooing and winning a new client? An all-singing, all-dancing creative pitch? Or some hard truth strategic insights? What are the industry secrets to nailing that advertising pitch? I interviewed Julia Gorrod, from ISBA’s Agency Relations and Consultancy Department, to discover what to do – or not – for client pitch success.

One of the hardest things about being a freelance copywriter is the lack of regular income. However, there are ways around this so that you can avoid the dreaded freelancer’s drought and keep those financial wheels turning over smoothly. Based on my years of experience, here are eleven juicy snippets of advice that I hope may help you.

The tighter the question, the tighter the answer – it’s the same when looking for a freelance copywriter. Be specific about what you need and save yourself hours trawling or being bombarded by irrelevant responses. These ten tips will help you pinpoint the right copywriter to help with whatever you need.

Art directors say ‘headline’. Designers say ‘strapline’. Americans say ‘tagline’. Consumers say ‘slogan’. Hmmmm, is it really as straightforward as that? Don’t be confused – discover the difference for once and for all.

It’s been a sad, sad past few weeks. Not just because of the passing of Bowie and Rickman but also because I lost my dad in December. I’ve written many things over the years but never a funeral speech. How do you condense 88 years into two minutes?

In 2015, I worked with all types and sizes of client from a male escort to a cremation jewellery company to Courvoisier. In no particular order, these are the clients and projects that were the marshmallows on my hot chocolate last year…

Want to turn OK copy into good copy? Or just know how to start? Writing copy isn’t easy. Writing good copy is, well, hard (or should that be a colloquial ‘Writing good copy is well hard’?). These 10 copywriting tips will help.

Some problems crop up time and time again with freelance copywriting, so I hope these tips and suggestions will be the paracetamol to your frequent headaches. Here are 10 lessons I’ve learned.

Do you recoil in horror at a split infinitive? Maybe you’re not even sure what one is and need a quick split infinitive definition? Avoid those conundrums, headaches and head scratching with my quick and easy guide!

I’m not talking about the ability to nail a client brief or punctuate to perfection or have a knowledge of alternative words to match Roget’s Thesaurus or a few D&ADs gathering dust on the mantelpiece. No, I’m talking about the everyday realities of copywriting life.

When do you use It’s and when do you use Its? It’s a common head-scratcher but that tiny little apostrophe makes a universe of a difference. Read on and hopefully the clouds will part and the fog will lift. (You know what I mean.)

It’s the first of the month: which clients have settled your invoices – or not? Frustrating, isn’t it? As a freelance copywriter, I’ve had to take several clients to court. Here’s what to do…

You know that feeling of trying to untangle a kite string? It looks pretty straightforward but the more you attack it, the knottier the problem gets? Well, doing SEO keyword research to boost your site on Google needn’t be like that.

Having written the website and literature for the second year running for Wandsworth Enterprise Week, I was on a mission to have an office jail-break and actually hear some of the inspiring business talkers I’d written about.

Mention the word ‘freelance’ and people assume a life in which you take the whole of August off and spend your days in pyjamas resorting to daytime TV. Here are ten things you need to consider if you really, really want to be a freelance copywriter.

Does working from home ever mean nine to five? The big plus to being a freelance copywriter is that you can work just about anywhere and any time. But the big (and I mean BIG) downside is letting clients know when ‘any time’ starts and stops.

Clients often ask me how to make their advertising work harder for them – not just in terms of words but also £££. Here are the two key areas to consider when choosing the right communication channel to build your business and boost your bucks.

What makes a customer want to come back for more? The more unique and personalised your business communications and , ultimately, your relationship with your customers, the more they’ll want to come back. Again. And again. And again.

Choosing a catchy new company, product or brand name is one of the most important business decisions you’ll take. You need one to help you stand out from the crowd and summarise your brand and values – all in just one or two words. Discover how…

Hoorah! My Mighty Rice client has won an award in The Dieline Package Design Awards – a worldwide competition devoted to the art of brand packaging based on quality of creativity, marketability and innovation.

Is your brand tired, dull, flabby and, er, bland? Being a freelance copywriter is isn’t just about clever words and ideas. It’s about understanding how a brand works, demonstrating strategic thinking and providing fresh perspective.

I’ve been transported to the lush island of Mauritius several times since May. Sadly not in person, but by email and Skype while working on the launch of Mighty Rice. This was a great project to work on, right from the start, with a motivating client brief…

It’s always lovely to see a new company get off the ground, none more so than my client: Freybors. Freybors is a unique idea that embraces all the power of group buying with all the convenience of delivery in your area, with market-fresh fruit and veg delivered within 24 hours.

You may recall the blog I posted in August after spotting that my post box in Kew had been painted gold, with the intriguing message ‘Be nicer to other Londoners’. My attention was caught today when I spotted the message again on a local traffic bollard. What on earth…?

My reading material lately has largely consisted of school prospectuses. And what wallpaper they are – dull, dull, dull. In creating the new Unicorn School prospectus, I decided to make it full of magic moments…

My attention was caught this weekend by a big, bold ad for MARTINI, which carried the headline ‘Kisser casting’. The stylish Italian brand is looking for men age 25+ to star in their next TV ad. Clever ad stuff indeed.

The post box in my village is now gold – how, what, when, why? Has the Royal Mail changed its brand identity overnight? Is it an post-riot statement of defiance by the dinner party classes of Kew? Anyone know the answer?

Kiosk Productions is a photographic production company set up by Sabina Spaldi, Mario Testino’s former producer. They’d created a very simple yet stylish and evocative website and needed content to reflect their unique fashion element. See what I did…

My client at Marazzi Design Kitchens was keen to create stand out for his kitchen company and reflect just how unique his designs are. Discover how I created a tone of voice and content to make these kitchens hotter than hot…

Call me old fashioned, but I hold tip-top spelling in high esteem. A wrongly spelt word has the same effect as nails screeching down the blackboard. Here are the 30 frequently misspelt words in business and tips to separate ‘seperate’ from ‘separate’ etc etc!

Kate Middleton engaged at last! It’s being predicted that she will wear a demure, high necked, lace couture gown – all those boxes are ticked perfectly by award-winning wedding designer Louise Selby. Could she be the chosen one?