Working with error-free copy at the production stage is always the goal but it’s easy to underestimate how difficult that can be. Here are a few easy ideas to help create cleaner copy.

Two sets of eyes: You may be confident in your editing abilities, but it is beyond your control that your brain is hardwired to reread what your words as you wrote them, effectively bypassing many errors. Make it a rule to always have someone else read the copy before it goes into production. Budget a proof-reader into the job. If that’s not an option, run it by a friend or relative with attention to detail. Work should always be reviewed by your peepers plus another’s.

The rule of three: Give the text three rounds of editing when possible, each with a different approach. Read through for cohesion/clarity, then for spelling/proper name double checks and finally review backwards so each word/sentence is seen freshly by your brain.

The power of one hour: Where possible, give your mind an hour break between what you wrote and beginning to edit. Some writers shelve their books for months before they look at them again. Deadlines do not always allow for this, in fact sometimes the turnaround is very tight. Copy sent in a rush, even if it was written in 15 minutes and read 10 times in the next 20 minutes, is likely to carry errors. Your brain just isn’t reading anything different, nor will spot anything new, no matter how many times you re-read it. You are better off writing copy and reviewing it again in about an hour, even if you only re-read it once.

If you are having consistent trouble with errors and are working in soft copies only, try going old school and printing documents out for a little while. We’re far from a paperless world for many reasons. For some people, there’s something about ink and paper that the brain views differently than a digital screen. It may be the case for everyone, but we have become so used to computers the change may be imperceptible to some.

Hopefully these simple tips will help you create cleaner copy. A little more time spent in editing is made up by less time spent in production.

1.        Remember your role: Packaging relevant content synthesizes and makes sense of the subject for the reader. When it’s a very niche subject, relevance becomes even more narrowly defined. Your job is to be the arbiter of relevance.

2.       Become an expert: Unlike general interest publications, niche content serves a type of connoisseur and so you must be one too. Your reader is passionate and engaged in this particular interest and one of the greatest challenges is to have your finger even more on the pulse than they. It is easy to lose credibility because the level of knowledge needed is so detailed. Cultivate relationships in the community and use them as an editorial sounding board.

3.       Be part of the community: No matter how small or specific the audience, they are gathering in some regard, in a communal space online and at events or meetings. Be present to introduce your brand and look to become part of the leadership. Approach your audience humbly and you will gradually build their trust and become part of the meeting space.

4.       Know your geography: Are you publishing a niche within a niche? As you know, your coverage area plays a role in content decisions. The smaller it the geography is, the more detailed information you need to know about it. A publication serving just one district of the country needs to understand the back roads, long-standing business and even local gossip. Even things that do not seem relevant may have context in some way to your subject.

5.       Let the passion shine: Whether it is a single project for a client or an ongoing publishing initiative, become immersed in their world and share in their passion. It will shine through in a genuine product.

Some days I can barely skim the subjects of my emails, or flip through my mail. It makes me wonder if my email and marketing messages are getting read, or lost in someone else’s stack.

Whether you’re sending out a marketing message, or simply corresponding with a client, your message has to get read. But how?

It’s your personality.

Most of the copy I read is full of jargon and lacks warmth. The images used are often cliché or over used. They don’t mean anything to me. It doesn’t pull me in or engage me, so I don’t read very far.

The messages that stand out to me have a different tone to them. That difference is personality. What moves me, makes me stop and listen, no matter what the subject, is a genuine voice.

You can use your own story in your marketing.

It may be appropriate for you to tell the life story of your business to a potential customer. For example, I attended the Australian Wine Experience the other night. After an hour of unbelievable crowds and line ups I was ready to go home. All of the wine had begun to taste the same, the displays were blending into one another, and the faces were interchangeable.

When came across the Lehmann display, I noticed right away that the company was different. Perhaps because I’m a graphic designer, the display grabbed my attention right away. The banner displayed a mosaic of various paintings, with the title “Works of Art”. After many photos of grapes, or panoramic images of vineyards, this unique banner caused us to ask the staff to explain.

As it turns out, Peter Lehmann established the company many years ago when he had been a farmer. Because he felt that starting the company was a great risk, he was compelled to use an image of the Queen of Clubs on his wine labels and marketing material. To illustrate this, he hired different artists to create their own interpretation for each wine lable.

Mr. Lehmann was in attendance that night. I had a chance to meet him (he signed a poster for me) hear his story, and see him put his arms around his wife as they posed for a photo together.

I can remember the taste of Lehmann’s Shiraz, exactly what the lable looked like, and can still picture the Lehmanns getting into a cab, still smiling at the end of the night. That’s genuine. That’s personality. As a customer, I will never forget Peter Lehmann’s “Works of Art”, or his story.

Whether you are creating your corporate identity (or brand), or planning your next marketing campaign, don’t be afraid to let your personality show  through. Unlike the list of products and services you offer, which are likely just like everyone else’s, your personality can set you apart from the competition.

Do you sell a lifestyle?

If you sell products that fit within a certain lifestyle (and most companies do), then creating your own magazine allows you to paint the picture of your customer’s lifestyle and where your product fits in. The average reader spends 50 minutes with a lifestyle publication. This is far longer than is spent on one particular advertisement, even if seen more than once as reader’s flip back and forth. With a custom magazine, you are in control of delivering the entire lifestyle picture. Next time you’re in a hotel, check to see if they are producing their own magazine. Hotels often have excellent examples of bringing relevant lifestyle information to their patrons, who have often chosen their establishment based on an image they have of themselves.

Are you looking to expand your brand?

If you need to reach a new demographic or geographic area, a custom magazine is an excellent way to enter the market as a friend to your new potential customers. You arrive in a beautiful package of interesting information and your brand is immediately associated as one with their interests in mind. Magazines are an intimate, tangible experience for readers. They touch, feel and retain the information provided. It’s the ultimate branding experience.

Is information delivery a key part of your business?

If you are an association with a membership, then being a resource is a fundamental aspect of the business. By providing members with a magazine, you’re providing them with the relevant information they need in a format that looks good on the coffee table, easily stores on a shelf, has longevity and can be passed around to friends. In any instance where your business is a resource, careful attention should be paid to the package it’s delivered in. The ability to pass it around easily is a great way to grow a membership base.

Do you need to increase customer loyalty?

Of course you do. Everyone needs loyal customers. Sometimes you need to provide some incentive to keep them loyal. Often people are loyal to a business only until a new one comes in and appears to serve their needs better. The relationship between you and your customers needs to be strong enough that they feel personally attached and would experience guilt over doing too much business elsewhere. A custom magazine provides a little insurance by offering information your competitor might not be providing and keeping your brand front and centre in the form of a magazine, which is a medium proven to be effective at forming attachments with its readers. A magazine is a gift to your customer that says “we care enough about you to bring you the information you need to know and you can get while you’re curled up on the couch.”

Would you like to be positioned as the expert in your industry?

People want to do business with the experts, the best and most respected professionals in their field. This is because there is an inherent trust that the company or individual would not be held in such high esteem if they were not legitimately a credible source of valid information. Be the place your customers go when they want to talk to an expert. A magazine that delivers highly customized and relevant content to your customers that’s accurate and data driven makes you the trusted problem-solver.

Keep these questions in mind when you are deciding whether a custom magazine is right for you. They will help you define the objectives of your marketing effort and establish your measurable goals. Keep in mind, with the new technologies in printing available it might be more affordable than you think.

Books

A beautiful coffee table book cannot be replaced by any digital medium. The combination of world class photography, glossy thick paper and well presented words on a lot of white space makes a slick first impression. If the business has a lobby, a book could be the perfect method of delivering that extra upscale feel to the operation. In particular, if the product for sale is expensive (such as a house, car or boat), a nice hard cover book featuring the lifestyle and history of the company makes a memorable custom gift for special clients. E-books are a great option for those who want to disseminate a lot of information quickly and easily with less expense.

Advertorials

I seem to see these less these days, although they are a great way to make use of a full or double page ad buy. Done well, they can tell a story that captivates readers and has them spending much more time with your advertisement than they otherwise would. Plus, advertorials can be repackaged for online use, printed as part of a brochure and used as content on your website to maximize the text.

Print or digital, magazine or otherwise, it’s most important that the format serves the goal.

Find inspiration by putting the task aside

I tend to approach all feature articles the same way. Once the interviews have been transcribed and source material collected, I decide on the hook of the story and then walk away from it. I don’t even try for the sentence at this point in time. This is when I need my mind to pre-write it in my subconscious. I have a couple activities that I find help this process and produce flowing first drafts when I return to the project. I practice the same methods when I need ideas or a creative solution that I’m stumped for.
• Shopping: Flipping through racks of clothing is engaging. There are many different colours and textures to experience and it is easy to do alone. The purpose is to not to buy, but to “mindlessly” look and touch. I like Winner’s or department stores for this because you can spend a good hour immersed without wasting time going from store to store.
• Mindful Eating: Mindfulness is a Buddhist technique that involves being fully aware in the present moment. Eating a meal that is diverse, decadent and intriguing to as many senses as possible while focusing on nothing but enjoying that meal is a great way to inspire the subconscious. Home cooked or in a restaurant works, but I find the creativity of professional chefs particularly motivating.

Reset Deadlines

Deadlines are usually known well in advance so I like to reset them at least 24 hours ahead. This gives a spot of time, if needed, to see my work with fresh eyes or look for information that may have been missed in fact-checking. For me, having that buffer zone helps avoid writer’s block because I know if I am not happy with a piece or struggling to write it I have left myself with time to fix it. Then it’s not such a big deal if the first draft reads badly. The mind becomes less attached to the time, and more focused on getting from the first sentence to the last.

What do you do to beat the block?

A few years ago I started working with seminar speaker and dream coach Stephanie Beattie, owner of Representing All Women (RAW), a company dedicated to helping people reach their goals through insight and motivation.

When I started working with RAW, their corporate identity consisted of a background of baby blue sky with fluffy clouds and a pair of hands unclasping to release a butterfly. My client felt like it expressed her passion to help women learn how to have it all as they discover what they really want from their lives.

The Book

When Stephanie asked me to design the cover of her first book “You Can Have It All: Unleash Your Inner Diva”, we discovered that her existing brand image wasn’t really the strong, powerful image she wanted to portray. She likes strong colours and “a lot of bling”. She is a powerful woman with a lot of personality, so we needed to revise her brand identity to reflect that.

The cover design we settled on for the book consisted mainly of deep magenta and black–a clean design with colour that really popped. The text at the top of the front cover appears to be diamond encrusted, complete with sparkles to add the bling.

Corporate Identity

To carry that look through the rest of RAW’s identity and marketing materials, we updated the logo. The “Representing” in the company name was changed to a slightly different script font, and the colour was altered from a muddy red to 100% magenta, with the words “ALL WOMEN” modified to an updated san serif font. We wanted to update the logo yet not change it so much as to make it unrecognizable to existing clients.

With the logo redesigned, we then revised her business cards. A simple two pms colour printing process with an added spot varnish on an extra heavy stock made her business cards fit for a diva! The cards have a black background on the front, with a solid magenta background on the back. The all-over gloss varnish, with a diamond patterned matte spot varnish really made the cards look and feel impressive.

RAW | Representing All Women magazine

Our next project has been the most fun of all! Laura, my new business partner, and I recently launched Expressions Custom Publications. Since I’ve worked with Stephanie for the last few years, I knew she was the perfect person to approach about creating her own magazine.

As I expected, she jumped at the idea and committed instantly. Now that she and I are both comfortable with her new look, designing the quarterly magazine was easy. We kept the same colour palette and clean design of the book and identity, and created a new logo for RAW. We’ve designed the media kit and the first issue of the magazine is well underway, to be available in early February.

Website

I’ve already updated www.representingallwomen.com to reflect the new style and provide online registration for Stephanie’s workshops. Within the next few months, I’ll continue to revamp the look and add more features that incorporate the magazine and book such as excerpts, articles and some fun, interactive quizzes.

We need to create an effective website with quality content that has the functionality we’ll need to inform people about workshops and coaching services, sell the book, allow people to subscribe to or advertise in the magazine, and capture contact information from visitors.

We have created Twitter and Facebook accounts with Stephanie’s voice, and are also working on adding videos from her last workshop to YouTube to help people build a connection with the brand and Stephanie herself.

It’s not the end

Developing a brand identity is an ongoing thing that will continue to evolve. The Representing All Woman brand will continue to grow and add new products, services and events, so the brand will have to grow along with it. We’re ready for the challenge.

The Second Meeting

After the initial RAW meeting with our client, we left with a million ideas and much blank paper. But ideas are just free floating dust particles unless they get fleshed out, brought to life and sold to someone. We needed an editorial plan, a design concept and media kit before heading into meeting number two. Our client was thrilled with what we came up and I think a few extra steps we took along the way ensured this success:

Editorial Plan

First we built an editorial pattern listing the sections and what order features and columns will go in from front to back of the book. This establishes the flow of the magazine and allows us to be methodical and focused with our ideas for the specifics of the stories. We brainstormed multiple strong feature concepts for a meeting so we wouldn’t be caught off guard if your favourite one doesn’t fly. We went in prepared to defend the logic of why sections are where they are in the magazine. Your client may not ask, but if it’s a wise question to be asking yourself.

Design Concept for the Cover

We needed a cover design to include in the media kit. Once we internally agreed on the visual approach we wanted to take, after bouncing a few versions back and forth between designer and editor, we agreed on a cover we were excited about. Next, we sent it to a list of family and friends who also happened to be our target demographic. Asking for criticism is important. Many will look and just point out the things they like. Push people to look for what they don’t like. We had a popular look with our pool of secondary eyes from the get-go so we knew were on the right track.

Media Kit

The media kit is a primary sales tool and the exercise of doing it solves a lot of the remaining tangibles of publishing—distribution, circulation, marketing packages and the financial break-even for the publication. A media kit can be a work in progress, especially when it comes to the premier issue of a magazine. Allow for disclaimers where aspects of the distribution or costing may change as you get further in development. We concentrated on building the credibility of the brand and focused on what we can offer to your founding advertisers.

What is content marketing?

Whether you call it content marketing, custom publishing or branded media, these marketing terms refer to the development, production and delivery of information designed to build a relationship of trust and loyalty with the sponsor’s customers, so they regard the sponsor as the vender of choice when they make purchasing decisions. This is accomplished by providing content that meets the needs and suits the tastes of the sponsor’s target market. It serves the interests of the audience, rather than overtly plugging products and services the way ads do.

The benefits of the web

Web content marketing generally involves providing information that is interesting and relevant to a specific demographic on a corporate website, social media, blogs, microsites, ebooks, white papers, webcasts, digital magazines and enewsletters.

The main benefits of incorporating the web into your content marketing strategy are interactivity and flexibility. Creating a web presence is relatively easy to start and frequently update, and it enables you to begin an ongoing dialogue with your prospects and customers.

By providing online forums, allowing people to post replies to your blog posts, and becoming active on social media sites such as twitter and facebook, you add an element of interactivity that isn’t available in print mediums such as magazines. You can display your personality, create a dialogue and establish bonds with your customers in a unique way.

Because there are no printing costs associated with adding content to the web, there is a greater flexibility in being able to update your content more often. You can do more testing and make changes as needed, thereby keeping things fresh and encouraging customers to visit your website more frequently.

Enewsletters are a great way to keep in touch with current and future consumers and drive traffic to your website and generate feedback. They can also be tracked to display behavior patterns and capture data.

As with printed elements of content marketing, the sales aspect the majority of your web content should be somewhat subliminal and the editorial overtly valuable. While product descriptions and sales pitches certainly have a place on your website,  genuine efforts to entertain or educate your client base with blog posts, enewsletters and twitter posts will be rewarded in a more loyal and profitable following.

Print definitely has a role to play in a successful content marketing strategy.

What is content marketing?

Content marketing is the creation and distribution of content designed to engage current and prospective customers by delivering valuable and relevant information that prompts buying behavior. An effective content marketing strategy will integrate the strengths of the print and other mediums in one ongoing campaign.

The benefits of print

Print content marketing commonly takes the form of magazines, newsletters, whitepapers and books. People develop close bonds with their print companions. Magazines are a trusted friend that can be curled up on the couch with. They sit on the coffee table day after day and are flipped through more than once. Print’s relationship with its readers is intimate and loyal, the medium most like a marriage.

A 2009 study by Magazines Canada showed that magazines ranked number one over any other marketing medium when it came to providing ideas, being informative, containing important details, carrying the most helpful and trusted ads and being relevant.

As a business, you can brand your own print publication that creates this same relationship with readers if you keep it credible and truly useful. The sales aspect of content marketing should be somewhat subliminal and the editorial overtly valuable. Your genuine efforts to educate your client base will be rewarded in a more loyal and profitable following.