I’m reading a book called The Man Who Broke Into Auschwitz.The book tells the story of Denis Avey, a British soldier captured by the Nazis in North Africa. Avey eventually wound up at a POW labour camp at IG Farben’s Buna-Werke plant near Auschwitz. At the plant, British POWs were forced to work alongside Jewish prisoners.After watching the way Jewish prisoners were treated, Avey […]
Continue readingA ‘lead magnet’ is something you give away in exchange for somebody’s information and permission to contact them. Lead magnets are the single marketing topic that all marketers lose sleep over. Crafting engaging stories is one thing, but attracting new contacts into your world is a steeper challenge. For one thing, media costs are crazy. […]
Continue readingI was at a party last weekend. “So what do you do?” somebody asked. An innocent question with genuine interest behind it.Even now, aged 37, the ‘what do you do’ question still gives me mild heart palpitations…At a glance I have to suss out the person I’m speaking to. What would they likely most like […]
Continue readingI’ve read a number of excellent books recently that can best described as a collection of essays. These include Words Are My Matter (Ursula K. Le Guin), which I recommend. Vesper Flights by Helen Macdonald, which I’d recommend if you like bird/animal watching. And I’ve just started A Hunter-Gatherer’s Guide to the 21st Century, by […]
Continue readingI’ve heard a lot in recent years about AI-driven copywriting tools. You input a minimum amount of input, provide the tool with guidance on style and tone, and BAM – watch the words appear magically on screen!Too good to be true, right?I’ve been a sceptic for a long time – and honestly, I still am. […]
Continue readingI’m updating my email sequences at the moment. Every 12 months or so I take a retrospective glance over the automated email sequences that go when a new contact opts-in.It’s the type of task I’d ideally take to a hotel on an overnight retreat to complete. But in reality, it’s slow progress working through each […]
Continue readingI spend a lot of time converting stories into emails, book chapters and other forms of prose. In listening to somebody’s story I’m really listening for changes; small or large events that indicate a movement from one phase of life to the next. On a personal level we feel these changes as they happen, although […]
Continue readingOne of the few marketing podcasts I follow is Chris Davis’s All Systems Go podcast. A few years ago Chris published an episode on ‘the Creator’s Curse’… As soon as I heard those words I knew they contained inherent truth. My archive of work is littered with half completed lead magnets, book ideas, courses and products. Kind of like a collection […]
Continue readingPlease note the MP3 download link is in the top right corner of the player. — Video can be a fast, effective way to build trust with new potential customers. The trouble is, most business video misses the mark. We worry about the technicalities of lighting, equipment and presentation, when what matters most is the script. On this […]
Continue readingThe stories you believe to be your ‘best’ stories are rarely the ones that get the best response. More often, it is stories about ‘routine’ events often seem to perform better. The ones you almost didn’t send. Usually these are your ‘untold’ stories. Untold because you think nobody will be interested in them. In selecting […]
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