A Quick Hyphenation Tip
March 31st, 2008 Dina at Wordfeeder.comI’ve noticed that quite a few people hyphenate when quantifying units of time. I’m not sure why they do it. But it’s wrong.
Here are some examples of what NOT to do when describing a unit or units of time in your writing:
INCORRECT: How difficult is it to roll out of bed 15-minutes earlier than usual?
CORRECT: How difficult is it to roll out of bed 15 minutes earlier than usual?
INCORRECT: I’ve been managing a copywriting business for more than 12-years.
CORRECT: I’ve been managing a copywriting business for more than 12 years.
Let’s put it into perspective. Suppose the sentence read:
I’ve been managing a copywriting business with more than 12 people.
You’ll notice there’s no hyphen there. “More than 12 years” and “more than 12 people” function in the same exact way here. How many years? Twelve. How many people? Twelve. No need for a hyphen.
I’ve been managing a copywriting business for more than 12 years.
I think the confusion may come in because people are used to hyphenating ages. For example:
What do you expect from a 12-year-old boy?
This gets hyphenated because “twelve,” “year” and “old” are three words that work together as an adjective that describes “boy.”
(There’s an official term for this. If some word nerd wants to come by and clarifying it for me, be my guest! All I know is that the right side of my brain loves to break down the logistics of hyphenation and I don’t need the exact name of the rule to know why things work as they do.)
Now, when IS it appropriate to use a hyphen in the above examples? If the number and the unit of time function as an adjective describing a noun.
CORRECT: She runs a 12-year copywriting business. (This is a lame sentence but it serves the purpose well here.)
CORRECT: I’m going to get a 15-minute head start on my morning today. (”Fifteen” and “minute” modify start.)
Many people just ignore hyphens because hey, this is the web, and you know, “creative license.”
But if one wants to appear professional, it never hurts to brush up on one’s hyphenation skills.
- Dina at Wordfeeder.com Copywriting and Marketing
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Posted in Grammar Issues, Proofreader, Punctuation Peeves | 4 Comments »Peter Shankman, Help Us Help You.
March 25th, 2008 Dina at Wordfeeder.comEvery so often, you come across something that you just KNOW should be jumped on so you can ride it out before it gets too big to handle. This post is about just that; and I’m sending a message out to:
1. The Urban Muse
2. My copywriting clients and colleagues
3. Peter Shankman.
Okay, why the The Urban Muse? Because I have to thank this woman for posting about Peter Shankman’s Help a Reporter Mailing List.
Peter Shankman acts as a matching service between reporters on the beat, and experts who can supply them with quotes and stories for the articles they’re writing.
Popularity: 25% [?]
Posted in Dina Recommends, Gracias, In the Spotlight, Publicity, Resource Room | 18 Comments »The Five Caveats of Writing Great Web Copy
March 24th, 2008 Dina at Wordfeeder.comThere is an abundance of articles on the Internet. Some are good, a few are inspired, and the rest belong in a junk heap.
Whether you’re writing to sell, or just to be read, keep these points in mind before you sit down and start typing.
1. Have a keyword-rich title and talk to the search engines in your copy.
The sheer number of words on the Internet means that people must rely more heavily on search engines to find valuable content than ever before. That trend won’t end anytime soon, which is why you must optimize your text so the search engines can find you quickly.
The first thing to optimize is your article’s headline. Search engines often check headlines first for relevant keywords before moving on to your body copy. Forego the desire to be witty when creating your headlines and opt instead to use keywords that will increase your chances for being seen. If you’ve got wordplay on the brain, never fear; that’s what the subhead is for.
Popularity: 15% [?]
Posted in Copywriting Techniques, Copywriting for the Web, Wordfeeder Copywriting | 2 Comments »Quick! Find the Typo.
March 20th, 2008 Dina at Wordfeeder.com
Did you find the error? It was a tiny one, and probably more difficult to see on a compressed image than it was for me to notice it in the shower this morning. (I know - I’m not so good with posting images yet, but I’ll get there.)
Answer: the words ‘JUGLANS REGIA (WALNUT) SHELL POWDER’ appear in a slightly smaller sized font than the rest of the text.
Looks like someone maybe took that ingredient out and then added it back in later or something. Things like this happen during the creation of product packaging and ingredients lists.
I know that St. Ives has more than one formula now (the other ones make my face burn). So they probably did some kind of copy pickup thing and then someone came in and sloppily edited it.
Nothing Gets By Dina at Wordfeeder.com Copywriting and Marketing, Packaging Proofreader and Super Sleuth.
Popularity: 15% [?]
Posted in Copyediting, Packaging Copy, Proofreader | 2 Comments »Are Demographics Dead?
March 19th, 2008 Dina at Wordfeeder.comOne of my copywriting clients has challenged me to write an article claiming that “demographics and psychographics are becoming obsolete.” The rationale being that he attracts coaching clients from all ages, income levels and walks of life.
I spent a restless night with this one rolling around in my head. My client wants me to revoke everything that’s been drilled into my brain for the last 15 years about target markets and ideal customers and who I’m writing to?
When someone makes a bold assertion like this one, I’m inclined to analyze their marketing behavior. So what’s my client been doing all this time to bring in such a vast and varied smorgasbord of clientele?
Popularity: 33% [?]
Posted in Blogging Tips, Branding Strategy, Creative Platform, Marketing Communications, Social Media, Target Audience, The Copywriting Client, The Creative | 6 Comments »Copywriting Tip: Do Away with the Fluff Filler
March 18th, 2008 Dina at Wordfeeder.comWhen you get hit with bulk article assignments, it’s tempting to write the articles in a wham, bam, thank-you, ma’m fashion.
If you’re looking to speed up your article production, hey, that’s super. But beware the tendency to create “fluff filler copy” when you’re in too big of a writing hurry. Trust me, nobody wants to read this junk!
I’ll give you an example of what I mean. Let’s say you’re writing an article titled “How to Eat Better When You’re Constantly Pressed for Time.”
Popularity: 25% [?]
Posted in Article Marketing, Copy Right, Copy Wrong, Copywriting Techniques, Wordfeeder Copywriting | No Comments »100 Marketing Secrets
March 18th, 2008 Dina at Wordfeeder.comI just wanted to call to your attention a compilation that Anita Campbell of Small Business Trends has put together.
It’s her 100 Marketing Secrets downloadable report, contributed by the readers of Small Business Trends, including a panel of hand-picked, well-known names in the industry.
If you want to download the report instantly, click here.
If you prefer to poke around on Anita’s site and blog first, visit http://smallbiztrends.com.
What’s especially nice about this, for me, is that I got to help Anita compile and organize the report, and she has publicly acknowledged this on her blog. What a great feeling, and the gesture really says a lot about Anita’s character.
Another perk to being behind the scenes on a project like this is taking the time to click through to each contributor’s website. I’ve gotten to know some people in the marketing industry who I didn’t know before.
Download Anita Campbell’s 100 Marketing Secrets report!
WORK FOR YOURSELF?
Take the Small Business Owner Survey from Wordfeeder.com
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Posted in Branding Strategy, Business Management, Gracias, In the Spotlight, Marketing Communications, Resource Room, Small Business Marketing, Social Media | No Comments »Copywriter Toasting to the Freelance Life
March 13th, 2008 Dina at Wordfeeder.comBob Bly has posed a fun question on his copywriting blog: “What’s your favorite thing about the freelance lifestyle?”
Little does Bob know, he’s the inspiration for my freelance career in the first place. It all started that fateful day at Barnes and Noble when I spied this famous title of his…
Five or so years later, here we are. (Thanks, Bob.) And what’s NOT to like about the freelance lifestyle? Some of my favorite perks…
Popularity: 14% [?]
Posted in Freelance Lifestyle, Small Business Marketing, Wordfeeder Copywriting | 7 Comments »Word Food: Marketing During a Recession
March 12th, 2008 Dina at Wordfeeder.comThe latest edition of Word Food just broke. If you missed it, you can catch the March issue live at:
http://wordfeeder.com/ezine-mar-08.htm.
While you’re here, why not take the Small Business Owner Survey?
Results to be aired in a future issue of Word Food: The Copywriting and Marketing Newsletter from Wordfeeder.com
Thanks for tuning in.
-Dina at Wordfeeder.com Copywriting
Popularity: 25% [?]
Posted in Creative Platform, Marketing Communications, Marketing Survey, Small Business Marketing, Target Audience, Word Food | No Comments »How Not to Slam Copywriting Clients on Your Blog
March 11th, 2008 Dina at Wordfeeder.comWhat’s that song that Britney or somebody had out a few years (or was it a decade) ago? “Oops, I Did it Again…”
No, I’m not talking about leaving the house without any drawers on. I’m talking about when copywriters bad mouth their clients right there on their blogs for all the world to see.
Hey, listen. We freelancers all endure our share of frustration. One of the great joys of blogging is to unleash your fury upon the unsuspecting blogosphere.
And one of the most horrid repercussions is when that bad energy BOOMERANGS back to you in the form of negative feedback from someone (client, colleague, competition, random passerby) who now thinks you’re a classless wretch for the brazen manner in which you just publicly spewed.
Nothing feels finer than ripping through a scathing tale of injustice while the other copywriters of the world rally around you and encircle you in a loving and protective embrace.
But you know what? Those other copywriters are going to be no help to you next week when the rent or the mortgage is due. And even if you don’t say names, and you cloak it all under the pretense of “Here’s what happened to this guy I know…” it’s STILL bad form to spank the client on a public and easily searchable forum.
You don’t see your clients bashing THEIR clients on their blogs… do you? (And if you do… get some new clients.)
Here’s what to do if your clients or potential clients seem to be “getting the best of you” on any given day…
Popularity: 14% [?]
Posted in Blogging Tips, Copywriting for the Web, The Copywriting Client | No Comments » « Previous Entries