Award-winning journalist and freelance copywriter, Susanna K. Hutcheson, presents news, thoughts and ideas on the world of business, marketing, copywriting and much more.

Copywriters --- Get Paid What You're Worth

People only value what they pay a lot of money for. OK, I'll put it another way. People value only what they pay a lot of money for sans perhaps love and relationships of that nature. I won't get into the psychology of love because that's not my field. But I do understand money and value.

Let me explain.

I watch a show on PBS (Public Broadcasting System) called Antiques Roadshow. Since I collect old fountain pens and other old things it's fun to see what might have some value and what may look like value but actually has none at all.

I've found, however, that I enjoy watching the people who bring items to the roadshow more than the items. I like to see how they relate to their item after they find either it's worth nothing or little or that it has an enormous value.

I've seen people who inherited an item that they simply disdained. They had it in the basement or attic or somewhere else. They showed it no care at all. Perhaps they piled junk on it. They kept it only because mom or grandma left it to them.

When they took it to the roadshow and were told it was worth $3000 or $10,000 or more they lit up and most of them said something like, "Oh my! I had no idea. I'll have to give it more respect and start to take care of it."

Suddenly their hated item deserved respect and love and care.

In the eyes of the human being nothing has value unless it can be bought or sold for a high price. That which is free is of no value and deserves no respect.

So there's my lesson in economics 101.

What's that got to do with copywriting? Simple. You copywriters --- you really good ones --- who are afraid to charge what you're worth --- are making fools of yourselves. Your clients won't respect you because they didn't pay you enough to have regard for your services.

If a man pays $6000 for a sales letter, he'll have high regard for the copywriter. He'll value the letter and the copy. He'll value his decision to use that copywriter. He'll value the relationship. He'll care for the relationship.

If he pays $450 for the sales letter, he'll be happy that he robbed you of your time and talent. But he won't respect you and he won't really value what he has bought with him crumbs. In his mind he'll know he didn't get real value.

People know they can't buy a big fine motor car for the price of a second-hand Chevrolet. (Not that there's anything wrong with a second-hand Chevy.) Basically people know they get what they pay for. But that's deep down inside.

In their brain there's a small evil part that wants something for nothing. That part rules. That is it rules until they realize that only fools deny a person the pay they're worth.

I've been a professional writer since 1967. I started writing for a penny a word. My first check was for $5.00. I worked like hell for that money. I made ten or twelve rough drafts on my old typewriter and polished many times before I mailed it to the magazine.

Then I sold them all rights --- keeping none for myself. I was young and foolish.

No more. Now I charge big fees and I keep a ton of my rights. In fact, when I write for magazines I keep all but their right to use my article one time. I graduated Screw U with honors.

I close about five deals a week. When I say close I mean either I say yes or no or the prospective client says yes or no. Either way --- it's a close.

I turn down several prospective clients each week. I get turned down because my fees are too high by a couple prospective clients each week. People just loathe paying a copywriter what he or she is worth. They'll pay a hooker gladly. Or they'll pay a graphic designer because they mistakenly think pretty sells.

They simply do not understand that it's the copywriter who is the salesman. The copywriter is the guy or gal who is really making them money. They don't make money --- real money --- without the copywriter.

But I do know it. I know how much money I make people. And I expect to get my share or they can go elsewhere.

So back to economics 101.

If you do not remember anything else you've read here, remember this. People only value what they pay a lot of money for. When something is free or cheap, it has no value in the eyes of the client.

Don't give a client more of your time than he pays for. He won't appreciate it. He won't honor you for it. If you do extra, charge extra.

Our situation is like the roadshow. Our item is our skill and training. We take it to the roadshow (our offer) and the client passes judgment on its value. We set that value --- not the client. If we put a high value on it, he will too.

It took me many years to know what I was worth. Let me save you some of the time I lost. Don't be an idiot. Raise your fees. Get what you're worth. You only have one shot in this life. This is the World Series. You are only valued as much as you value yourself.

Be good to your clients. Treat them well. Give them what they pay for and make sure they make money from their relationship with you. But make sure they pay you well for that service.

Never be afraid of losing a deal over price. If you do, it's okay. You didn't need that deal anyway. There are lots of people who are willing to pay what you're worth.

Discover how to raise your prices and make customers and clients love you for it.

SEO Copywriting Tip: It's All About Words, Not Phrases

SEO copywriting is not like is used to be --- if indeed it existed at all. Trouble is, most copywriters write their copy the same way it was done in the beginning.

But alas, the way people search has changed. We're getting smarter as the search engines seem to get dumber. Well, actually it's another reason, which I'll get into shortly.

Many moons ago when a 2400 baud modem was all the rage and Google wasn't even born yet, we had only a few Web sites.

Really we had a few hundred and that went to a few thousand and sort of stayed that way for awhile. My copywriting site was one of the first ones. But before that I had another site, which I would be ashamed to even look at today. It was sooo early Internet.

But I digress. My Starbucks hasn't kicked in yet. So back to SEO (Search Engine Optimized) copywriting. Back in the olden days of which I speak, you could type in one word and the search engine of the day would pop out a listing of appropriate sites.

Since there weren't that many sites, it wasn't all that hard to do. If, for example, you wanted a copywriter, you typed in the word "copywriter" without the quotes. My site and a few more came up. How sweet it was!

Now, however, you type in "copywriter" and you get not only me and some of my copywriter friends and loved ones but you also get Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia giving the low down on what a copywriter is and Gapingvoid, a great blog but not much to do with copywriting. and some books on Amazon about copywriting and on and on.

So what's a person to do if he's looking for a copywriter to write his Web site so he can get some business before he has to get a real job? He types in something like "cheap copywriter to write my website" or "web online copywriter" and so many more fun things like that.

Well, believe it or not, the word "cheap" can get you to my site. Why? I use the word "cheap" in my copy to describe what "not" to look for in a copywriter. It sure as hell doesn't describe me. Hey, I make people a ton of money and I expect to be paid well to do so.

But I digress again. At my age I'm entitled to digress from time to time so bear with me. I do have a point.

If I'm looking for a bodybuilding book, which I am almost all of the time, I don't type in bodybuilding book. Oh, that would have worked fine in early Internet years. Not now. Now I might type in "book about women bodybuilders who don't take steroids." Wahoo! That's a mouthful. But it usually gets me better results. After all, the search engines are full of bodybuilding books and you not only get books when you type in a short term but you get all sorts of sites that you're not at all keen about seeing.

So if you're an SEO copywriter or if you're (god forbid) a layman writing you own copy, you can't put in an awkward term like that or some other awkward term three times or so in the first 200 words of copy. Your copy would be terrible.

I had a client recently who asked me why I didn't use one of his key phrases exactly as it was listed in his list of key phrases. Here's why:

The search engines do not --- I repeat DO NOT --- read. They do not digest entire sentences and ideas. They see WORDS. Got it. Words. So if I put the word copywriter on my Web site and then mumble some other great things about myself including the fact that I write brochures and radio commercials and blah blah blah, guess what. Google and the other search engines see me if you type in "radio copywriter" or "radio commercial copywriter" or any number of permeation of that phrase. Or brochure copywriter. Or a hundred other different phrases. Thus, you've typed in a specific result that you want and you come up with the greatest of all time radio copywriters. Me.

But the search engines also grab my site if you type in "cheap copywriter" because I lavish the word "cheap" on my site in poking fun at people who think they're smart to screw copywriters out of what they deserve. So right after
cheap-copy.com you get expensive SKH's site. You also get Michel Fortin's Blog --- not a surprise. You can read everything a copywriter ever thought on that great blog.

But I digress yet again.

Let's fade to black here and go to wrap. In writing your Web copy, don't concern yourself with using clunky phrases.

Write for your audience. Write well. Talk to the people who visit your site. Don't talk to the search engines.

Yes, use the words you want. Use all the words in a long phrase. But for god's sake don't feel the need to use them as you say them. Again she tells you --- the damn search engines do not read! They see words. Words, my friends.

Write words.

Keep it simple. After all, I'll bet in a few days if you type in "copywriter who take steroids" you'll see this site listed. How's that for dumb search engines? But how's that for SEO copywriting? Assuming, of course, I really cared to be found in that manner or, indeed, if anyone was really looking for such a copywriter. Though I do confess my copy is copy on steroids. I, on the other hand, am not.

My point is simple. Whatever words I write will be coupled with my main keywords. I don't need to, nor should I, write out a silly phrase that looks and sounds stupid and artificial, to get the listings I want --- and far too many that I don't want. Ah, but you can't will 'em all.

Now back to my Starbucks and The Wall Street Journal. It's almost time to hit the weights.

Increase the Power of Your
Search Engine Copywriting With Proven Keyword Copywriting Techniques.

seo copywriting

Good Writers Don't Always Make Good Copywriters

Nothing makes a writer or copywriter feel as good as when he or she is complimented on his writing. "Oh, that's great writing!" That really builds up our egos.

And if you're in college, good writing makes professors stand up and pay attention. Oh, they love good writing. And chances are, it will get you an A+ quicker than anything.

So what's wrong with that? Here's what's wrong with it. A great copywriter may not be a good writer at all. Fact is, a good copywriter is basically just a damn good salesman.

A great copywriter doesn't want someone to look at his copy and say, "Oh, that's great writing!" He wants them to say, "Oh, I must go out and buy that product now!"

A copywriter is not a star. The product or service you are selling is the star. Period.

I get a weekly newsletter from a famous former bodybuilder. He's a wonderful man and he was a successful bodybuilder of what we bodybuilding fans call The Golden Era --- when Arnold ruled.

It's a wonderful newsletter and I look forward to getting it. But this guy tries so hard to show off his writing that it takes away from the real value of the newsletter --- that is the benefits you'll get from reading it each week.

He tries to be amusing and flowery and to show off his writing skills. This isn't good. No, he's not a copywriter. But he's writing to a group of people to whom he wants to sell health supplements and ideas that promote his own business.

Eugene Schwartz, one of the greatest copywriters who ever lived, said he was not a really good writer. But he added he was a guy who worked harder than most other copywriters. He also made the product or service that he was selling the star.

When you read a Schwartz ad, you were thinking about the product, not the writing. And that's the way to be a great copywriter.

If you want to be the star, write a novel. If you want to sell products and make a lot of money as a copywriter, make the product the star.

Personally I'd rather have a fat bank account because I sell a lot of products than to be known as a wonderful writer and not be able to pay my bills.

Think about it.

Just a Thought

Predators Have Always Been Among Our Children --- More than We Know

The Mark Foley scandal, which threatens to destroy the GOP, is bringing up an ugly part of our culture. Twisted people, mostly men, have been among our children forever.

My mother is dead or I would not tell this ugly story. I never told her because she would have killed for me. No one hurt her child.

When I was about twelve-years-old my mother sent me to a local typesetting shop to learn to set type. The owner was a middle-aged man whose wife worked in his office. I went to the shop each week and took a young friend so I would have someone with me.

My mother thought I was safe since the wife worked there and a friend went with me. My mother was wrong.

The man made sexual advances at both my friend and me. I wouldn't tell mother. I was ashamed and embarrassed. I didn't understand it. I thought it was because of something I did wrong.

When I was in my early twenties I put an ad in the paper offering to do freelance photography along with my writing. I got a call from a well-placed man in the community who offered me a project. My female friend and assistant and I went to his house and discovered that what he wanted was for us to take photos of him in sexual activity.

Here was a highly regarded man in the community. A church-going family man. I was a young kid. Who would the authorities believe? I said nothing again. And, of course, I did not accept the job and left as fast as I could.

Those things were raw when I was young. Now I've been in the newspaper business and related businesses for forty years plus and nothing shocks me. I know people and I know that what you see is not often what you get.

As I said in my previous post, I could tell many horror stories about people in politics and business --- people in general. These sick people have always been with us. They prey on the vulnerable. They prey on the least able to defend themselves.

If they're powerful --- and many are --- they abuse that power. They know that people won't tell on them and if they do, no one will believe them. It's the word of the powerful against the powerless.

In the current Washington scandal let us not think it is just the Republicans or the Gays or the men. Predators come in all stripes, all colors, both sexes, all parties, all sexual orientations. Most are straight men, however, if the studies are to be believed.

Perhaps it's time we take a look at our society, our culture. Perhaps we need to discover who these people are and effect laws to put them away from society. They should not be a part of it. I know first hand what these people can do to your outlook on life and how it affects your relationships; how you lose your innocence and trust forever.

These people should not be among us. They certainly should not be near young people. They should not be running our country. And those who knew about Foley should fall with him for they too are guilty. They put politics --- a seat in congress --- before the safety of the young they were sworn to protect.

Oh Machiavelli Look at Us Now --- What Asses are Elephants and Then There's the Rest of Us

The recent revelations about former Congressman Mark Foley (R-Fla.) have proven yet again that Machiavelli had it right and so did old Joe Kennedy. "It doesn't matter what you are. The only thing that matters is what people think you are."

Foley was the co-chairman of the Congressional Missing and Exploited Children's Caucus and somebody who spoke out against child predators. At the same time, he allegedly was being inappropriate with children himself. This does not surprise me. This is a very Machiavellian thing to do and my guess is that most all people in politics and, for that matter, in most all walks of life, appear to be one thing while they are indeed truly another. That's why so many people go to church. For appearance.

The true Machiavellian is one who may be the cruelest or sickest, dumbest or basest person in the world. They may be pond scum. But they manage to appear normal and healthy and just wonderful.

When I was a young girl my father had governors and mayors and other people of that type in our home. I learned a lot about these people early in my life. And the stories I could tell would raise hair on a sphinx cat. Many are and were the least likable and most despicable people you'll ever meet. And many are outright criminal and deranged in my opinion. And most get away with it all.

Foley got caught because he was careless and stupid. Most people are more discreet and never get caught. But they are no better.

So now he's doing the old trick of entering rehab. That one has been used since Betty Ford opened her center. When you get into trouble, enter rehab. Show the world you're taking charge and that you were sick because of alcohol and not stupid or criminal or mentally deranged. When in trouble, these folks batten down the hatches and run for rehab and safety like a child runs to the bathroom or a closet.

Well, aren't the Democrats just loving all this? The party of old letches like the Kennedy's, Clinton and so many more must be having organisms as they dream of taking back power because the Republicans are making such asses of themselves just before the election.

And all the while, Oprah is doing everything she can to make the world believe she's not gay. As if we really give a damn. As if it even matters. And Matt Drudge is doing all he can to brag to the world that he's the great god of journalism and everyone is scared to death of him.

It's all about appearance. What people won't do to appear to be one thing while all the time being another. Damn --- ain't it all great fun?