Regardless of who the copywriter is on your next project — you, a colleague, a subordinate or a freelancer — make a vow to get or give proper feedback. Note that I said feedback, not criticism.

Feedback, according to Merriam-Webster, is “the transmission of evaluative or corrective information.” Criticism, on the other hand, is “the act of criticizing unfavorably.” (Isn’t that a typical dictionary definition?!) Criticism, in my opinion, does nothing to move the copy forward like feedback does.

Before learning how to use feedback to get great copy, you have to understand that copywriting is never done well when it’s done in a vacuum. Taking the time to get and give feedback — and then using that feedback to refine the copy — always leads to better results.

A couple of years ago I worked on a video script for a major pharmaceutical company. My first draft was solid, however, feedback from the project team really helped me streamline and sharpen the final copy. I’m grateful that the client provided clear and appropriate feedback; some of which was related to things surrounding the brand that I, as a consultant, could not possibly have known.

Here’s how to give the kind of feedback that promotes great copy:

1. When possible, allow the writer to briefly present the copy. Writers make a lot of decisions throughout the copywriting process and likely have a  reason for why they wrote what they did. If you go into the feedback process with insight into the copy process, you’ll at least be able to determine whether or not the writer succeeded in achieving what they said they would.
2. Read the copy to yourself. Not skim. Not scan. Not skip. Read the entire copy through once; then read it again, this time out loud.
3. On the third read-through, put yourself in the reader’s shoes. Ask yourself if the main message is presented early, clearly and succinctly. The copy should always address the benefit(s) to the reader in a way that’s both memorable and easy to understand.
4. Make note of the copy’s positives and start the feedback process there. You or your writer will be more open to hearing and receiving feedback that starts with the positive.
5. Conduct a SWOT analysis, looking for the copy’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. During your SWOT analysis, look for common copy mistakes such as vagueness, redundancies and overuse of jargon. Identify any potentially confusing areas, looking to see if the overall flow of the copy makes sense.
6. Watch for your own biases. If you prefer the word “prior” over the word “before,” don’t sweat it. Unless it changes the meaning of the message or is completely off-brand, let it go. Limit your feedback to the messaging of the copy rather than word-for-word commentary. That being said, be as specific as possible in your feedback. Instead of saying, “The copy is boring,” explain the ‘why’ behind your feedback, such as “The copy lacks an emotional connection. Use a success story to illustrate the point.”

So even if you choose to call feedback constructive criticism, make use of these six tips for giving good feedback. Your writer will thank you. But, more importantly, your reader will.

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My guest blogger Marcia Yudkin shares a simple way to turn the old, reliable postcard into a customer loyalty-building campaign. Of course, once you realize how powerful this little card can be, contact me for help in creating your campaign.

Postcard Marketing Model #4: Bond With Customers
by Marcia Yudkin
Imagine the difference between a company whose customers have so-so feelings about it and one whose customers wouldn’t dream of buying from anyone else. That’s a tremendous gap that can be narrowed with just a little expense and effort, using an inexpensive, often overlooked tool – the postcard.

By sending simple yet strategically chosen postcards to people who have already bought from you, you can turn an iffy, indifferent buyer into a sticky, delighted one.

Here are five ways to use postcards to create a bond with customers and thereby encourage them to become strongly loyal, to refer friends and colleagues to you and to send interesting opportunities your way because they care about your success.

1. Thanks. Set up an ongoing thank-you postcard campaign that sends a card to each new customer the week or month after they first bought something from you. If it’s feasible to have a handwritten signature, that’s best. You may choose to include a limited-time special offer, such as 20% off their next purchase or a free gift if they stop in the shop again before a certain date, but even if you don’t do that, a warmly worded thank-you card makes a significant impact.

2. News. Remember when it was common for financial services companies and other professionals to send a monthly or quarterly newsletter to clients? This stay-in-touch technique reinforces your expertise and helps the customer remember you when they need your services again. Printing one newsletter item on a postcard rather than sending a four-page, folded-twice newsletter is much more cost-effective and much handier for the customer to save by the phone or post it on a bulletin board or refrigerator. Make sure there’s a human element in the postcard content, with the word “you” liberally sprinkled around it.

3. Come-back offers. Don’t let your buyers feel faceless and interchangeable. Send periodic postcards with an appealing discount or bonus and a friendly message. I doubt very much your competitors are doing this. I travel a lot, and only once in my life have I received a “come back and see us” postcard from a hotel or inn where I stayed. In fact, I still remember who sent it, even though it was years ago: The Jailhouse Inn in Newport, Rhode Island. Design the postcard so it tells an inviting story about a customer who’s bought from you again and again or an anecdote about someone on your team who went above and beyond for a customer.

4. Birthdays or anniversaries. Do you have or could you get your customers’ birthdays? Some businesses wow their clients and create a closer bond with them by sending a postcard for a free haircut, massage, house plant or dessert in honor of their birthday. You could do the same for a milestone that was specific to the recipient, such as their child’s first summer or winter, or halfway through their fiscal year.

5. “Wish you were here” cards. Don’t you like it when friends and family members send you funny or gorgeous postcards when they’re on vacation? Think up convincing and appealing reasons for you to send postcards to new clients when you travel. For example, if you’re attending a conference or trade show in New Orleans, you could show a photo of the French Quarter with a chatty message about how you’re collecting ideas and inspiration at the XYZ national show that you’ll be sharing with anyone who sets up an appointment for June. This way, you come across as active, interesting, thoughtful and constantly reaching out to customers.

Which of these ideas are you excited to implement?

Get started on your next postcard campaign today!

Veteran postcard marketer, consultant and author Marcia Yudkin teaches the strategic, logistical, design and copywriting secrets of successful postcard marketing.  Discover the top ten ways – some of them simple and inexpensive – to generate results using postcards in her report at: http://tinyurl.com/n2cpgl.

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I’m a creative communications opinionator. I tell people what I think of their marcom, newsletters, press releases and web content based on my 23 years of professional experience in featuring writing, PR and interactive copywriting.

Which is why I was thrilled to be asked my opinion for this year’s Web Marketing Association WebAwards. I gave a critical eye and honest opinion of more than two dozen interactive sites.

Some were for well-known brands. Some were not. But throughout the judging process I saw the good, the bad and the ugly.

So where did the bad and the ugly go wrong? Many in design and navigation, but most with content.

Although I’ve blogged about content mistakes before, let’s look at the top three things that make web content suck – and how to avoid them.

Mistake #1 – Not Being Conversational

Although brochureware sites are oh-so-1997, some companies still employ the technique. Or, worse, they write as though they are some kind of 1970s esoteric marketer:

“Welcome to our virtual oasis on the worldwide web, where you are free to browse at your leisure from the comfort of your home or office.”

Who talks like that? Nobody.

The whole idea behind “conversational” is that it’s an informal exchange of dialogue. You say something. They say something. See how it works?

Of course, your site visitor won’t talk back (well, they may on Twitter or Facebook) but you can act as if you’re having a real conversation. You can approach your content as though you’re talking to real people about things that matter to them.

Mistake #2 – Being Too Wordy

This isn’t a long vs. short copy question. No, too wordy, simply means using more words than you have to in order to say something.

My husband is famous for being, um, shall we say a bit windy? He’ll say something. Then say it again. And again. And yet again.

Unfortunately, the punch of what he originally said (which is usually quite smart) gets lost in the retelling.

Say what needs to be said. Then stop. This goes for the home page as well as the FAQs.

Mistake #3 – Not Being Relevant

I already wrote a six-part series on relevant content, so let me remind you that great web content (i.e., non-sucky web content) has to mean something to the reader.

Web content should answer all the questions a site visitor could have – and then some. I call these the unarticulated needs.

Lose the fluff and tell the reader what they want to know.

How does your copy fare? For more tips on getting great copy, take my quiz, the Get Great Copy Reality Check.

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So it’s Friday the 13th.

Now, I am not, in any way, superstitious, but I thought it might be fun to use this “holiday,” as it were, to address some copywriting superstitions.

According to Merriam-Webster.com, the word superstition means, “a belief or practice resulting from ignorance, fear of the unknown, trust in magic or chance, or a false conception of causation.”

Hmm. Great lead in because I always teach my coaching clients that great copywriting is not magic — but it is magical.

What I mean by that is that great copywriting doesn’t happen by accident. It does, however, differ from mediocre or bad copywriting in that it stirs something in the reader. Maybe that “something” is buying your product or maybe it’s thinking of your company in a new way or maybe it’s appreciating the value your services bring to the world. Whatever it is, great copywriting has an impact and that’s what makes it magical.

Now let’s get onto the superstitions. Okay, confession time. These aren’t really superstitions, they’re old, passé writing rules that you can let go of right now no matter what Mrs. English Teacher said or says. At least in the real world, when you’re not writing for a letter grade. Books have been written about new grammar rules and there are similar lists posted on dozens of other writing sites. I’m calling attention to the ones that I let go of a long time ago. And you’ll see evidence of it in my writing on client sites like the North Market and on my blog.

1. Never start a sentence with “and” or “but.”
2. Never end a sentence with a preposition like “to.”
3. Never use contractions.
4. Always write complete sentences and paragraphs.
5. Always put two spaces after a period.

The point of letting go of these antiquated rules is to get you to loosen up and write conversationally. All that formality is not only unnecessary; it clutters the core idea or message. And that, after all, is what your readers want to read.

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