Category: Irish sole trader

Categories
Irish sole trader

The final tip for Irish SMEs who want to write Google-friendly content quickly and easily…blog writing tip #3

You’ve gone to the training courses and people have told you that getting to the top of Google’s tree is all down to content. They say you must create compelling, original content to engage fully with your customers and get noticed by Google. If you own or run a small business in Ireland, it can feel impossible but make the time and you will reap the rewards.

Here, you’ll find practical advice about how to create digital content. You’ll have already read Tip#1 and Tip#2. If not, check them out. This is the third instalment on this topic and your tip today is all about answering one more question.

  • What’s going on in your industry, what’s changing and can you put anyone’s mind at rest with your insights?

And just like our last post, we’ll give a few real life scenarios.

  • You’re an estate agent and just yesterday, five people tried to get an evaluation of their house while you were having your lunch in the local pub. With the new Irish property tax, people are worried about what they’ll pay and they want a rough idea of what that will be and how accurate the assessments they have already received are. Tell everyone how you carry out an evaluation and speak in round figures. And do it on your blog.
  • You’re a solicitor and it seems these days all people want to talk to you about is penalty points thanks to press coverage about politicians/gardai and more. You need to set the record straight. Write a blog along the lines of…. Penalty points – know your rights and know when you’re wrong too.
  • You‘re an insurance broker. It seems people are still a bit upset about the recent European ruling about women’s insurance premiums. Now that things have settled a bit, why not write a blog on the issue and ensure your readers know that there’s more to calculating a premium than just gender.

You have huge amounts of information in your head about your industry that people want to know. It’s not a secret and telling people will only illustrate your helpful nature and will get you moving up those Google rankings.

I know you’re busy. But we all need to make time to make digital marketing work for us.  As a professional copywriter, of course I can help if you’re having trouble with writer’s block. Have a go yourself first of all and if it’s not happening, you can always get in touch with me or give me a call on (087) 659 7571 and I’ll point you in the right direction.

Categories
Irish sole trader Uncategorized

Just listen – Blog writing tip #2 – I’m a small Irish SME – how do I create Google-friendly digital content quickly and easily?

Every digital marketing training course you attend and every search specialist you talk to, is telling you the same thing. Google loves unique, helpful digital content. To score high in the rankings you just have to create it. But if you’re a sole trader/very small business in Ireland, you want to know exactly how to do that. If you’re hard-pressed for time, consider my approach to creating quality content ….and have plenty of time to run your business too.

You might have already read our first tip for creating Google-friendly content. If not, go back and have a read now. But today, we want you to answer another question for your next bout of blog inspiration.

Tip #2 – answer this….

  1. What do your customers ask you every day?

And just like our last post, we’ll give you a few real life scenarios…

  • You run a garden centre and at the same time every year, you’re asked the same questions. From potato blight to the plum tree that only fruits when it feels like it, you always know the answers. Make a note of the most common questions. And your next blog might be…How to grow a perfect lawn in our Irish climate.
  • You build energy efficient houses and friends are always looking for advice about insulation and energy ratings. Make some notes and write a blog like this…. ‘Ensure your home is airtight by next winter and save money too’.
  • You’re a butcher and if you hear another horsemeat joke, you’ll close up for the day. You know you source your animals from local farms and they’re processed by proven abattoirs with strict operating policies. Your next blog? How supplying only local meat means everybody knows what they’re buying.

Your customers are your greatest resource in more ways than one. By showing you understand their concerns and answering those concerns in a coherent manner, you’re continuing the conversation in an online format. Creating content is easier than you think. If you need a hand writing the blogs, I can certainly help – just get in touch.

Categories
Irish sole trader

Tourism copywriting – details sell holidays and tell stories too….

It’s January and that means many of your customers are thinking about running away! And if you’re in the business of selling holidays, tours, destinations, accommodation and any other tourism product, you need to help them picture that great escape when they finally do get away. You do this by adding colour and detail to your marketing communications. Whether it’s on your website/blog, in your direct mail/brochures, newsletter or social media, your copy should be building a picture in their minds and setting an irresistible scene.

Continue reading “Tourism copywriting – details sell holidays and tell stories too….”
Categories
Irish sole trader

Tips on networking…with me – just me.

Networking, as in official networking, has really grabbed Ireland by the throat over the last few years. It has been really good for people like me, freelancers and for smaller operators in all industry sectors. Sometimes, it feels a little uncomfortable as you endlessly witter your quick-pitch and watch someone’s eyes close over (but yet somehow remain open) as they think of all the other places they’d like to be. Most of the time, it is the single best way to meet new clients.

Continue reading “Tips on networking…with me – just me.”
Categories
Irish sole trader

I WANT TO MAKE SPAMMERS MORE SUCCESSFUL

Well, I do and I don’t but if I can stop them from filling my inbox, I’ll be happier. Every day, folk like me will lecture/pontificate/advise our clients on ‘target audience’.

I often wonder about spammers. Who is their target audience? I tell clients all the time to picture their target demographic. Get a real feeling of who they are. If you’re a spammer, I imagine your ideal customer might write a letter to you like this…

Dear Dr Smith

Further to your recent correspondence, I was most flattered that you considered me and my overdrawn current account to be of sufficient strength and solvency to assist with your brother’s impending monetary transfer. The treatment of him by the authorities was shameful and you have come to the right person in me. I will not rest until your transaction is complete, your brother out of that torture unit in the Arctic ocean and you and your family are reunited, allowing you to complete your second PhD on ‘Orphanages and their Management’ in the ‘Universidad de livo’.

While initially I was sceptical and not sure who your colleague was who recommended me, as I am a sole trader in the Irish Midlands and have had no business experience in laundering money or helping fledgling freedom fighters or brokering multi-million-dollar natural resources deals, I soon came to my senses.   Then I remembered some old advice – ‘If it’s too good to be true, it probably is’…..sorry, no… I meant …‘Never look a gift horse in the mouth’.  And what a gift this appears to be!

10% of 31million dollars is not to be sniffed at. My only concern is the VAT and the foreign exchange permutations. Perhaps you can clarify in your next letter?

And the added extra of ‘500,000 barrels of oil’ is a truly generous gesture and I look forward to renovating my turf shed to accommodate their arrival. Your position as a civil servant who only wishes to do the best for your country is absolutely understandable and I salute your sovereign loyalty.

As a doctor, reverend, lawyer and accountant, I know I can trust you and look forward to working with you on this project. Looking forward to hearing from you.

Best Regards

Nat D Brihest

We know there are people taken in by spammers but I have yet to meet one*. It is fairly logical that if all these people were identified or at least demographically profiled, then spamming would stop for the rest of us…right!

So, my message for spammers is…know your audience. Think about all the people you’ve conned, find out more about them, target them and leave the rest of us alone. Imagine how much time you’ll save. You’ll increase efficiencies within your organisation and these extra resources will enable you to leverage your business unit going forward**.

Having said that, if you feel you are not getting the best out of your direct mail campaigns, a professional copywriter should be a priority.

*If you have been conned by a spammer, sorry, but …ah, come on now

**obligatory management-speak