“Thank you for being so lovely & funny and for making me feel completely relaxed and at ease through the whole thing. It really was such an enjoyable session and I came away feeling a real high. You’re a true professional.”
— Lisa T.
Can you tell me about what you do and how you got into it?
I’m a freelance copywriter working with brands, businesses & individuals to help them to define their tone of voice & create rich content to engage their audience and get their message out in the best possible way in the right formats.
I spent 20 years client-side in marketing (mostly digital) working for some big global brands, during which time I was lucky to learn a lot of ‘stuff’ and learn from some amazing people. When I had my first baby, I was working in a European role, and wanted to change to something that involved less travel and meant I could get more precious time with my family. It was the perfect time to go freelance and take on the exciting new challenge of helping small and medium-sized businesses improve their marketing strategy. I spent 4 years (including having my second baby) offering the full marketing consultancy package, but I soon realised that I wanted to become more specialist and focus on the area that I enjoyed the most, and in which I could provide the most value – that’s when I moved into pure copywriting (with a marketing edge!). Helps that I have an English Literature degree and psychology ancillary – means I can cross over my fascination with what motivates people with writing skills!
Why do you do what you do?
I love words, and the fact that the way they are used can completely change the impact that they have. Getting completely absorbed in a piece of writing is my happy place & I get a real kick out of helping brands really identify with their consumer and land their unique way of communicating & connecting with them.
What do you like best about what you do?
The fact that I’m freelance gives me total flexibility, but also means I get to work with an amazing variety of people and businesses – one minute I could be writing beautiful spiritual content for a holistic health website, and the next I’m making IT software sound compelling with a completely different tone and style! I also get to mix it up with creative client meetings and collaborations with other brilliant marketers, and solo days spent drinking (too much) coffee and getting completely ensconsed in what I’m writing.
What do you do to stay motivated?
I allocate just three working days each week as I have my two small children on the other two – and I know how precious that time is, so I want to be as efficient as possible so I’m not looking at my phone when it’s my family-time! I always pick things up in the evening, but I know that’s my choice, so it’s never a chore.
I try to start the working day with some yoga for focus or a run to get me in the zone, then I write a clear action plan for the day and work as hard as I can to make sure I get through it! I also find that sometimes getting out of my house and going to a coffee shop with a nice ambience gets me into the zone when I’m struggling.
What are your dreams for your business moving forward?
I’d love to continue creating a wide variety of interesting and impactful copy for current clients, and grow the list of fantastic brands and businesses that I work with. I’m all about building long-term partnerships and would love to work with a selection of great brands on a long-term basis to help them grow. I also love collaborating with other talented people in the industries and creating some brilliant output as part of a team too.
Eventually, it would be fantastic to add more writing skills to my portfolio including books and indie book editing, but at the moment, I’m enjoying where it’s at and want to take every week as it comes!
Do you have any advice for any other creative entrepreneurs or small businesses?
Don’t be scared to fail or you’ll never take the risk which will lead you to where you want to be. Enjoy what you you do and take inspiration/ learnings from others but never compare yourself to them – your path is your own and your version of your own success should be entirely yours.
Find something you love and have the courage to make it happen but don’t be afraid to change direction at any point along the journey.
