Do You Suffer From Speed Copywriting?
“[We live in a world] stuck in fast forward. A world obsessed with speed. Cramming more and more into less and less time,” says Carl Honoré, author of In Praise of Slowness.
“These days, even instant gratification takes too long,” he continues in a video I’m about to share with you. “We used to dial, now we SPEED dial. We used to read, now we SPEED read. We used to walk, now we SPEED walk. We used to date, now we SPEED date.
“And even things that are by their very nature slow, we try to speed them up, too. I was in New York recently and walked by a gym that had an advertisement in the window for… speed yoga!”
Just saw this must-watch 19 minute talk on the weekend. Carl Honoré says that the Western world’s OBSESSION with speed is eroding our PRODUCTIVITY. Something even big corporations like Google have come to realize with their quiet rooms and recreation areas.
From what I’ve observed, “speed copywriting” is also a major problem in our industry.
You are pushed to make more money than a doctor in your first year. As a result, many copywriters take the “ready, fire, aim” maxim to the extreme - skipping the “ready” part altogether.
Struggling new copywriters brag to me about how many courses, books and seminars they have studied. I’ve been at this for three years and they’ve read five times as much as me.
How much they absorbed or understood is the real issue.
They tell me how time escapes them as they try to keep up with emails from all the copywriting and marketing gurus. My advice: Unsubscribe to all BUT three of your 300 mailing lists. Pick the three that are the most helpful to you - who you resonate with the most.
And when you study: Take notes. Then type out the notes into a file on your computer. Then print out and organize those notes into a binder.
Lastly (and most importantly), apply the information to your copywriting career. E.g. I have a massive checklist I keep of elements to include in copy I write. There’s no point in just speed-reading through all this stuff and stacking your bookshelf with information products.
Likewise, when speed copywriters are writing copy, they skimp on all the crucial parts: research, interviews, creating a concept and outline. They think they don’t have time for that. Then they end up producing sub-quality hypey copy.
Such projects conclude with the smell of cold coffee at 2am in the morning, as the speed copywriter tries to edit the last-minute job into something decent - his head screaming to be reunited with his pillow.
The final epitome of speed copywriters: They don’t even have a USP for their own copywriting services.
That’s why it is so important that you slow down and attend the free group coaching teleconference with Shaune Clarke on Wednesday. It’s why you need to sit down and do the valuable exercise sheet he has generously provided for everybody who registers.
Yes, I’m asking you to slow down - but I’m also asking you to take a MAJOR SHORT CUT.
Figure out what the heck you are doing.
Attend the call and focus. Turn off the email program and instant messaging (if not the entire computer!). Turn off your cell phone, the iPhone, the BlackBerry, the DVD player and the Xbox. Be fully present and get the most out of the coaching experience. Shaune can pack a lot into 90 minutes.
What I’m really arguing against is not “speed” but being in a “frenzy.”
If you want to talk about REAL SPEED then FOCUS. Create a USP for your copywriting business so that you can target clients who are most likely to contract you - instead of having to filter through 1000 prospective clients, why not cut that list down to 100?
More so, if you decide to focus on a specific niche, then your workload is diminished. You no longer need to start new projects having zero knowledge about the market, products or industry - wasting hours frantically trying to “get up to speed.”
Even better, by positioning yourself properly you’ll find the client(s) of your dreams, who may put you on a fulltime retainer… You can start focusing all of your time on making money with your clients - instead of finding new ones.
Alright, here’s the short 19 minute video on SLOWNESS by Carl Honoré. Please, make time to watch it.
Stop trying to cram so much into your copywriting career.
Go unsubscribe from some email lists.
Decide on ONE training program, course or book to follow at a time.
Stop confusing yourself chasing after something new every week - so afraid you’ll miss something. You’re missing tons by absorbing so little.
If Wednesday’s Craft Your Own Untouchable Copywriter’s USP group coaching teleconference sounds right for you, make sure you’re there, 100% attentive. Click this link if you have not registered yet (it’s free)…
http://www.realitycopywriting.com/untouchable_copywriters_usp
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2 Responses to “Do You Suffer From Speed Copywriting?”
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September 8th, 2008 at 4:34 pm
I’m sorry to say that I’ve been guilty of several things in this post.
In fact, I listened to the video while playing a video game with my son.
Not proud of that.
Needed to hear that.
Thanks, John.
- John
September 26th, 2008 at 1:17 pm
John,
I don’t know how often you look for apprentices, but the next time you consider looking for a couple of new ones, would you let me know? If at all possible, I’d like to be considered.
By the way, last week I cancelled my subscriptions to all the copywriting lists and groups I belong to. The only ones I kept are AWAI (have far too much financially invested) and RealityCopywriting. Yes, thanks to you, Colin and Shaune – and myself, of course – I’ve been liberated!