Creative Copy

You can’t be sick and write well…at least not for long.

Oh, you think you can? Think again. You need your health. It’s not just something that’s nice to have around. It’s the core essential to any job you do or any career you have.

Now put down that diet cola and repeat after me…I want to be healthy. ( I want to be healthy) I need to be healthy (are you repeating after me?) If I’m not healthy, I’m no good to anyone. (say it…it’s true) And if I’m healthy, I can overcome obstacles in my mind, body, and work.

OK. Do you believe it?

Well…believe it. Chew on this. You eat fast food everyday. You don’t exercise. You definitely don’t drink enough water, and even when you’re drinking it, it’s mixed with tea or coffee. And you think you can take your little one-a-day so-called vitamins and keep the bad times away.

Wrong.

You gotta stay well. People are depending on you to do your best. And when you’re constantly reaching for a tissue to honk your nose…or running for an umpteenth bathroom break…how much good work are you getting done? Have you seen a recent commercial where the guy doesn’t know how to get dressed or make breakfast or even get in his car? Turns out he gave up smoking, and he’s having to re-learn how to do everything without a cigarette in his hand.

Don’t be like that guy. Stay well. Be well. Start now. Be happy. Grin. It’s good for you. And you’ll keep your mind free to think up all kinds of things to write about.

It just worked for me.

I’m ready to listen,

Tags: be happy, be well, overcome obstacles, write well

I remember way back when…when I was going to school in Pasadena, Texas. Our house was near a paper mill, not far from refineries, and the air and water looked and smelled awful.

I’m putting it mildly.

That was quite some time ago, and we’ve learned a lot about where we should and shouldn’t throw our waste products since then. We still need to improve, but at least we’re aware and working on it. However; something you may not be as aware of is how toxic and polluted your everyday products are…and how toxic and polluted you may be. Sorry…it’s weird but true.

You may be going along day-to-day thinking you’re doing your part for the environment, and yet you don’t realize what you’re doing to yourself. Your soft drinks, water, condiments, cookies, meats, and just about everything else you consume are found in plastic containers nowadays. Research is really starting to show how the pollutants in the plastic are leaching into the products they contain.

And that means they’re getting into you, too.

Do you live in a house with carpet on the floor. More evidence shows carpets contain adhesives which give off toxic emissions. Still want to roll around on the floor?

OK…so you jump up from the floor, and as you’re leaning on the wall eyeing your carpet, think about this. Is your wall covered in paint loaded with high level VOC’s? (volatile organic compounds) Is the paint free from heavy metals? (cadmium or lead) Even if it doesn’t have these substances, it could still have formaldehyde, ammonia, acetone, or odor-masking agents.

Your daily exposure to all these toxins and pollutants can be detrimental. Don’t get me wrong. You may not be at risk, and you may have a great genetic make up which helps keep you immune to the effects of this type of environment. Then again…why just risk it? Why not clean up your personal environment? You won’t be of any good to any environmental issues if you’re too sick to care.

My recommendations are simple. Get back to basics…

• Move around more…in the sunshine and fresh air
• Drink plenty of water…and please, not out of plastic bottles…filtered water (more on that another time)
• Eat sensibly…don’t make this complicated. Remember what your Grandmother told you…start there.
• Use glass; not plastic
• Stay away from aluminum…containers and cookware
• Make your own cleaning products…it’s easy, safer, and they smell great!

That’s enough for now, but remember it like this…

Be Basic…Be Better

I’m ready to listen,

Tags: carpet, heavy metals, plastic containers, toxic emissions, VOC's, waste products

There’s no good reason why direct response, direct marketing, and creative can’t all be great pieces of the same successful pie. Well…maybe one reason is a bias for or against one of these areas. Other than that; it’s a beautiful thing to see companies who “get it” with their marketing…especially online.

I’m always curious why a business doesn’t see the benefit and/or potential of reaching a consumer through the “ear-gate” and the “eye-gate”. Not just one or the other. For example…some of the most memorable ads of the 20th century were jingles. Little tunes that stuck in your head, and the words were easy to remember, too. Talk about building a brand.

The following Podcasts include an interview about this very subject. Click on the one that says:

“DMNews’ executive editor Sharon Goldman chats with G2 creative director Holly Pavlika about the role of creative in DM; the challenges of developing creative based on driving ROI; and how DM is changing.”

Talk to me…I’m ready to listen,

Tags: jingles, marketing, memorable ads

Customers Or Clients Need You And Your Business

So…when you begin the wooing process for new customers and clients, it’s probably best to think of what you’d say if you were trying to win a new friend. You could look at ‘em as another pocketbook, purse, or wallet, and keep asking yourself “What’s in it for me?”. Or you could come at them from another angle. You could work on the relationship with an understanding of the value of their time.

The relationship part comes in extremely handy when competing for customers and clients online. Just think of all the “noise” you have to sift through each day. TV ads, radio ads, billboards, magazine ads, phone calls, emails, and on and on. And then the Internet whizzes by you at light speed with a million more ads. Remember this? “Stop The Insanity”

How You And Your Business Can Be The “Easy Button”

I’m sure you’ve seen the commercial on TV for the big office supply store that promises to make everything easier. And they illustrate this with a big red button labeled “EASY”. They understand how busy and chaotic life is. And how much you want to just be able to push a button and make the hard stuff go away. You need to be like that for the people and businesses who buy from you. How?

• Be yourself.
• Be real.
• Talk about what matters to you.
• Talk about what matters to them. In other words…
• Start a conversation and commit to the relationship. Who knows?

You may win a friend for life.

Let’s get busy,

Tags: be yourself, friend for life, radio ads, TV ads, understanding

Living in America is great. It’s still the best place on earth to live. We still enjoy more freedom than any other place…in spite of government; not because of…but that’s another subject.

And we still have the highest standard of living...which could be making us toxic. It might even be killing us.

That’s a pretty harsh statement. What do I mean? Well…

• Our air is toxic…in major cities you can actually SEE it
• Our water is polluted…even that great bottled water you buy all the time
• Viruses and unhealthy bacteria are almost out of control
• Our typical food lacks nutrients and it gets bombarded with poisonous chemicals and hormones
• Even our hearts and minds often get polluted…mostly from the stress of the other things mentioned

Deaths from heart disease, cancer, strokes, diabetes, obesity, and other diseases account for more than 85 percent of all deaths. And many times a simple (well basically simple) lifestyle change could make the difference. Don’t be one of those statistics. In an upcoming post, I’ll tell you about some of the changes you can make to give yourself the best shot at great (or at least good) health even in a toxic world.

I write on nutritional and alternative health subjects (as well as others) for a living. You can learn more about that by clicking here.

To your health…

Tags: bacteria, best place on earth, bottled water, polluted, standard of living, toxic, toxic lifestyle, viruses

Hey…what’s a brainstorm, anyway?

Well, just think of your brain as Hurricane Gustav or Hanna. Then think of all that warm Caribbean water being churned up. Those are the ideas. The difference is once we start up a category 5 brainstorm, the ideas don’t tear everything apart…they churn up all the good stuff and bring it to the surface.

Then, we really get busy.

Go over to my Brainstorm page and learn more about my direct response writing. If you’re in business, offline or on the web, and you’re interested in some creative marketing, we should talk.

I’m ready to listen,

Tags: brainstorm