the communicatrix recommends these copywriters

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To read more about the genesis of this list, check out this post on Make-a-Referral Week from March 9, 2009.

This is the toughest list of recommendations for me to put out there. I came late to design, only grazed up against web design, and am not built for coaching. (Consulting, however, I seem to have a knack for. Who knew?) Writing, however, is what I do now and have done since I can remember: my standards are very high, and not just because the people I refer have to be good writers.

A good writer is not necessarily a good copywriter. There are some people who are great with words, but not as skilled at translating ideas, wishes, notions, dreams, and whispers of essence into compelling copy. It’s a highly specialized skill, and very hard to pull off. You have to have a strong voice, but be able to speak in more than one voice. You need to be able to parse gargantuan amounts of input and distill it, along with a certain je ne sais quoi, into a few compelling paragraphs, sentences, words. You have to be willing to put aside your agenda while still maintaining personal standards (and not necessarily in that order). A tall order, which is why there are so few really good copywriters.

So…how do you find a good copywriter? Ask. If you read something you can’t put down, ask. If you read something that moves you to reach for the phone or your keyboard or your wallet, ask. Really. The Internet is GREAT for asking.

But wait…my card says “writer”, doesn’t that mean I write copy? Actually, I do. For a very select few clients who are grandfathered in. Mostly these days, though, I write other stuff: this blog, a column on marketing for actors, a newsletter on communication, another blog on marketing as a daily, cumulative activity. I’m working towards writing for other paying outlets, so if you’re an editor or agent or publisher (or know someone who is), hit me up! I am loaded for bear, baby!

Like everything else, get your ducks in a row before you contact your copywriter. This means understanding what it is you’re trying to market, and having some idea of the market itself. Your copywriter can help you refine this a bit, but expect to pay more for this kind of service. Also, be clear on your budget and timeframe. Understand the good/fast/cheap paradigm. Establish good lines of communication. Now, go hire one of these fine people.

  • Copylicious As with most of the best, you can tell how good Kelly Parkinson is by her very website (copywriter websites are dead giveaways): clean, engaging, easy to follow, compelling. I’ve never met her except via social media, but the woman has great style, and if the rapid growth of her business is any indication, she knows her way around a piece of client copy.
  • Christa Velbel and I worked together years and years ago, decades, almost!, at a now-defunct agency called Bayer Bess Vanderwalker. One long, tall, smart drink of class, Christa is as bright as she is elegant. She is also meticulous: she can take the gnarliest, driest concepts and make them flow with seeming ease. Of course, it’s all smoke and mirrors to distract you from the fact of her Dutch-ness and her gigantic, well-educated noggin’.
  • Emma Alvarez Gibson is, full disclosure, a client of mine. After some consideration, I’ve decided that shouldn’t stop me from referring people to her as a great resource for your copywriting needs. Emma is VERY thorough, detail-oriented, and probably comes closest of the writers I know to that peculiar je ne sais quoi that makes the communicatrix tick. Translation: if you like me and my writing, good chance you’ll like her & hers. Plus she’s nicer. I know it for a fact.
  • Backpocket Copywriter I’ve been using Conrad Winter’s site as an example in my presentation on good online marketing for almost a year now. A fellow graduate of the Marketing Mentor school of knocking ‘em dead, Conrad is a great writer who gets it.
  • Bob Bly don’t come cheap. But for a particular style of copy, he’s the best. After cutting his teeth in direct response, Bob went on to master the web and now rules at least half the world when it comes to non-consumer advertising copywriting. (I think Brian Clark would rule the other half, but he and his apprentice/right hand, Sonia Simone, seem to have given up copywriting for educating, so other nominees may step forward.) AND he’s written the book(s) on it. Literally.

Updated 4/7/09.

Image by dbdrobot via Flickr, used under a Creative Commons license.