Copywriting + Content Marketing Tips

Lessons Learned from 90 Days of Instagram Posting (and What I’m Doing Next)

Wanna know a secret?

I started my Instagram challenge a few months back totally by accident.

I work on my blog content about a month in advance. And I’d actually written the blog post declaring my start to the challenge weeks before and scheduled it when I was feeling bold.

So when I saw my weekly email in my inbox that fateful Friday morning saying, “daily Instagram posting starts today, y’all!” my heart sank a little.

I didn’t feel “ready”. But I had no choice at that point. It was GO TIME.

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Launching Soon? Warm Up Your List with This Pre-Launch Email Sequence

I’ve had veggies on my mind a lot lately.

With farmers’ markets in full force for the season and a teeny little herb garden growing on the patio, we’re enjoying a plethora of fresh produce in good ol’ NJ.

It’s really amazing what a difference a freshly-picked ingredient makes.

I mean, when you cut yourself a bite of bright red tomato over a thick slice of fresh mozzarella drizzled with thick, syrupy balsamic vinegar? Omg HEAVEN.

You just can’t fake the freshness. No matter how tasty your cheese or how many years your balsamic’s been aging, if the tomato’s underripe, you’re going to have a pretty lifeless bite on your hands.

One of the most common problems entrepreneurs face is not generating enough sales with their launches. And tomatoes are to blame.

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4 Life Hack Lessons About Perspective

Who doesn’t love a good life hack, right?

We could all use some easy shortcuts now and again.

You know who didn’t have the luxury of a shortcut, though? A very insightful dude you’ve probably never heard of called Kazimierz Dąbrowski.

A little background: Dąbrowski was a Polish psychologist who studied coping skills — specifically, how people recover after traumatic experiences by researching WWII survivors.

His subjects had watched cities crumble, survived bombings, lived through the Holocaust, witnessed torture, lost family members — in short: some of the worst things a human could possibly endure.

Yet Dąbrowski noticed something really interesting among the survivors: their suffering led them to be happier.

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How to build a brand you love by looking outside your industry

Everybody loves a classic combo.

Macaroni + cheese.

Ripped jeans + a white tee.

Harry + Ron.

Fast food drive-thrus and…ATMs?

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8 foolproof ways to pull readers in with your intro

With dominos — as with writing — everything hinges on the start.

The first domino is your headline. If you can’t catch someone’s attention, you’re done before you begin.

The second domino is your introduction. And that’s the crucial domino we’re focusing on today.

Domino numero dos needs to pull readers in, piquing their interest juuuuust enough to keep their eyes moving down the page.

So how do you knock that second domino over?

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1 year of consistent blogging: how I did it

I’ve always had a thing for anniversaries.

I remember a classmate in high school whose parents, according to the Bridgewater mom gossip network, were still crazy in love like teenagers. And, according to the moms, the couple also took a decadent, lavish trip — sans children — every year on their anniversary.

I stopped listening when the mom squad shared their opinions on how this puppy-dog-style love affected their kids. They lost me at the “lavish anniversary trip” part.

I LOVE the idea of honoring milestones, both big and small. Taking time to reflect and celebrate an anniversary is an awesome idea, in my book.

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From Brilliantsburg to Shitetown: What to do when copy just doesn’t come together

I quit.

And I know they say that quitters never prosper. But I’m actually okay with it.

I just spent the past three hours writing and re-writing and re-writing some more, only to realize that the blog post I was working on was, to steal a phrase from my British boyfriend, utter shite.

At first, I thought it would be brill. It involved a great anecdote about runny egg yolks, leading into practical tips for capturing creative inspiration the moment it strikes.

But with every draft, it moved further from Brilliantsburg and closer to Shitetown.

…Until it eventually got cozy, dropped a 20% down payment on a condo, and opened its doors to the Shitetownian Welcoming Committee.

And you know what? That’s okay.

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How to use subheads to improve your copy

Once you’ve grabbed a reader’s attention with a compelling headline, guess how long you’ve got to keep it?

No, seriously, though. Give it a think.

How long before the average reader clicks away from your email / blog post / sales page, off into the abyss that is the internet?

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5 ways to make your emails more readable

In life, there are things we should do.

And things we actually do.

Like buying local squash. (Just go with me.)

In a perfect world, I’d shop at the farmers’ market every week. I’d write out a grocery list, pack up my reusable grocery bags, and ride my bike out to the cute little market down by the water.

Green. Local. Slow and simple. Pretty great, right?

Oh, but wait…

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9 Quick ‘n’ Dirty Tips for Conversational Copy

When it comes to talking, we don’t have to think too much.

Words and phrases move effortlessly from our brains to our mouths.

Heck, sometimes we don’t even use our brains at all — the words pop out faster than booties pop at a Beyoncé
concert.

But when it’s time to sit down and write? Total crickets.

Something just…happens when we stare at a blinking cursor.

That incessant blink!-blink!-blink pressures to say something brilliant, witty, powerful, brilliant, and meaningful. Also: witty. Keep Reading »

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