ADNattan_

Evenin' all. We're less than a week in to 2017, and my inbox is full of "New Year, New XYZ" email pitches. Next month, it'll be tenuous Fifty Shades tie-ins. If you're marketing your services with blogs, emails or articles, here's a few cliche concepts you'd do well to avoid.

Some questions for all of you. Who here has ever bought anything from a Facebook ad? Who here goes to Twitter when they want to buy a product or a service? Who here uses Google+ to research purchasing decisions? Honest questions, because nobody I know uses social sites for any of that.

People love testimonials, as long as they're relevant, properly attributed and honest. It's called social proof, and it's one of the oldest techniques in the book. By showing that you can do a job and you have done a job, you remove the element of risk. I have three types of testimonial on my site. 1) Footer testimonials - genuine feedback from clients, with full names and business names, so that anyone checking up on my work can get in touch. 2) Case studies - explanations of what I did, why, and for who, all with client feedback attached 3) Review site links - links to trustworthy external review sites where anyone who's of Precise Formwork's mindset can get a little added reassurance!

Hello Paul, and welcome to the forum. I'd normally plug my free ebook for designers at this point, but given that you're new I'll let you settle in!

Word of mouth's possibly the most effective marketing technique there is, but it's really limited. What you need is things with a wider reach. Here's what I do during slow weeks: 1) AdWords - well, I do this constantly, but it generates leads via my website 2) Hit the phones - find agencies to work with, or approach clients directly. Just a quick conversation about what you can offer. If your writing skills are up to it, replace the call with an email or sales letter 3) Connect with old clients/contacts - you'd be amazed what a quick call or email to a former client asking how they're getting on can do. Follow-up work is great, but just talking to them keeps you in the front of their minds, helping with that word of mouth What doesn't really work: 1) Directories - except for one very specific professional agency, I've never had a lead from a directory 2) Social media advertising - unless you're selling a b2c product that can be bought on impulse, you'll get no ROI Hope this gives you a few ideas.

Good stuff. Let me know what you think!

And Sid, thanks - glad you like the book. The designer did a great job bringing the content to life.

Hi @@Nillervision - it does say on the signup page that you'll also be subscribed to the newsletter. That's once a month.

Alright web designers, You might remember the survey I ran a few months back. The results show that lots of you have trouble creating the content for your designs. So in the spirit of helping you all out, I've decided to put together a free guide to web, email and blog content for you all. It's available from my website: www.603copywriting.co.uk/free-ebook I hope it's of use to you all!

Aye, there's a difference between dropping a colloquial turn of phrase into a forum post and having a professional website littered with errors.

These guys have you covered from a design point of view, so I'll take a look at your written content (it's my speciality anyway). Basically, it doesn't read very well. There's a hell of a load of grammatical errors, and it doesn't come across as professional. I'd think about finding a copywriter, or at least get someone to proofread it for you.

Thanks to all of the WDF patrons who responded to my survey. I've finally published the results of the UK Web Designer Survey 2015. The Results Do these sound like the problems you face? Or are you an outlier who's hounded by Fiverr but at ease getting great briefs.

The results are in. Dozens of web designers, developers and at least one digital art director have had their say, and the Web Design Survey 2015 is now closed. Full results will be published over at the 603 Digital Copywriting Blog next week, but in the meantime, here's a quick sneak peek of the results to whet your appetites: Designers Don't All Offer Web Design Despite over 90% of respondents describing themselves as "designers," only 89% offer web designs. Just over half design emails, and only 45% are happy to work on print designs. Designers Secretly Wish They Were Developers When given the option of additional services to offer your clients, 35% of designers decided you wanted to offer website development services. Briefs are the Bane of Your Life If design projects are delayed, it's usually down to the brief. 41% of people surveyed claimed poor briefs are the cause of most delays, making it the clear front-runner in the category.

Any more for any more?

I don't really get the strapline. You quench a thirst and feed an appetite. You don't really quench an appetite...

It's marketing. Google have thrown money hand over fist at Chrome, whereas Firefox is mainly reliant on word-of-mouth.

[deleted]

Thanks everyone. Some really good data so far. Apparently 60% of you don't offer any content creation services for your clients?

I think that unless you're going out of your way to copy content, the chances of you accidentally plagiarising content are very slim. Which begs the question, why are you checking that your content isn't stolen, unless you're nicking content?

Some of these responses are amazing. Google Toolbar PageRank hasn't been updated since December 2013. It's dead. It's not anything you should be using as an indicator of performance. Why are people still giving advice on increasing PageRank? It's like handing out Dodo grooming tips.

Looks like I've had a few more responses. Thanks guys! The survey's still running if there are any other takers?

Don't panic. You know what the best thing is about bad marketing? It's instantly forgettable. So you can try again next month! Railport has the long and the short of it there. You need to focus on your customers' end goals. You're just starting out, so I'm not going to try and sell you anything, but I'll do you a favour. Next time you write a pitch email, if you get in touch with me I'll proof it for you and give you some solid pointers.

Don't forget spamming platitudes on forums - that's always been a popular method of social media "marketing"...

To be a freelancer you need: 1) A skill that other people will pay you to use 2) The ability to sell that skill to people 3) The discipline to do everything else that goes with a business (bookkeeping, time management, etc)

A few pointers on your email. 1) You're focusing on you. Your hook line there is "I'm starting out and looking for work." My response would be "well, into the unsolicited pitch bin goes that." You want people to read on. That means talking about them. 2) Despite what people think, "Free" isn't a good sales proposition. Free says that this work has no value. People want something for nothing, but it has to be something they want. 3) The calls to action are confused. Pick one action - calling you. Not two - viewing your portfolio and getting in touch. 4) Your tone is almost apologetic. Be confident! Your work is good, so sell it! Here's what I'd say. What you're doing there is identifying key points that the client could already be aware of (showing that you're clued-in), showing that you value your time (waiving fees in exchange for a different kind of 'payment') and giving the idea that you're busy (limited time window). By keeping your powder dry and not explaining how you'd fix their problems, you're also getting them interested. If I had an older website, I'd definitely be more interested in that sort of offer.