With more than twenty years of experience as a professional copywriter, I can help you dump the jargon and find your organisation's true voice. I can write to your audience in a way that is clear, engaging, perhaps playful, and undeniably human.
One happy client put it this way:
"Ben was recommended to me as an exceptional copywriter and one we should work with for our next direct mail appeal. I can confidently say that Ben not only delivered great copy but he also suggested creative direction and a choice of concepts – all equally interesting. Ben understood the charity and its aim straight away, and adapted very well to the tone and language required to communicate sensitive information and messages. Finally he delivered copy on time and worked under a quick turnaround. I am sure Ben will become a regular copywriter for Muscular Dystrophy UK and I can only encourage you to use his services."
- Senior Direct Marketing Executive for Muscular Dystrophy UK
How does an animal charity like FOUR PAWS truly bring home the BIG impact of its donors' contributions over the past year?
For this copy, I employed a spot of anaphora -- that lovely Greek rhetorical device of starting a string of sentences with the same word or phrase. The resulting copy opens with an irresistible series of tiny snapshots of BIG animals who are safe and happy now, thanks to the donor's help. This combined with the BIG format of the letter itself (an A3 sheet, rather than the more traditional A4 size) to make a real impact on the reader.
Always nice to get to write in the inimitable voice of Jon Snow. This Ebola Crisis Appeal brought in strong results for this international aid charity, by making a simple and direct plea for support, in the authoritative style of one of the nation's foremost newscasters.
The international animal charity FOUR PAWS had found a truly shocking case of cruelty -- a bear who was being kept tightly caged at night and forced to fight wave after wave of fierce dogs during the day.
ABF The Soldiers' Charity: Hard and soft
This was quite a radical approach for this charity, but it was unquestionably the right one. As my Art Director partner and I dug into the case study of Micky Yule and looked at these amazing photos, it was clear we could make real impact by and surprise readers with a stark juxtaposition of toughness and vulnerability.
Many charities tried to make donors care about the recession by quoting alarming statistics about job losses and homelessness.
For this national animal charity, we took a more direct approach: one that got right to the heart of the matter.
As the copywriter at Carle Foundation Hospital in Urbana, Illinois (USA) I was called upon once a month to write an entire eight-page internal magazine -- this was the hospital talking to its staff, keeping them up to date on everything from research breakthroughs to summer picnics to cost-cutting measures.
I loved the challenge of researching these articles -- talking to a wide range of brilliant physicians, researchers and medical staff. I remember Kevin, the chap profiled in the interview on the back page. When he saw the finished piece he said 'You make me sound more interesting than I really am.' A nice summary of my job, I think.
A charity specialising mainly in mobility aids for young people, Action for Kids wanted to send a mailing featuring a case study in his early twenties. How would this remain compelling to an audience accustomed to helping children?
As always, it's all about the voice. I had a great chat with this young man, and I really wanted to do him justice. I was really happy with how the finished letter captures his good-humoured, plain-spoken tone.
