Come Sept 1, we’ll be increasing the price to $29.97 instead.

Why are we updating the book so early and tripling the price?

Since launching, we’ve had a LOT of feedback suggesting it was priced too low. We’ve also had a lot of buyers tell us they’d love to see an example of a scored post. And quite a few told us the scorecard itself was a little tedious to use: They didn’t like filling it out by hand, and they found it tedious and time consuming scrolling back and forth between the Recommendations and the Scorecard.

So we put two and two together, and decided to address all of this feedback at once. Now.

We’d never planned to release an updated version of the book so soon, but the feedback was very convincing. We had our doubts about the price from the outset, and when people pointed out the problems with the book, it was painfully obvious they were right.

I’ve spent 63 hours updating the book

So in the two weeks since launch, we’ve spent many, many hours on the book. I don’t know how many Darren’s spent, but I know I’ve personally spent more than 63 hours updating the book! (And yes, I’m in the dog-house at home!) Here’s a screen grab of my timesheets report (from Yast).

How has the ebook changed?

The result of all this time? The ebook is now almost twice as long (now 101 pages, up from 59 pages). Following are the most noteworthy additions:

• NEW — A 33-page worked example, where we score one of Darren’s posts and discuss our reasoning.
• NEW — An electronic scorecard that automatically totals your score. You just select Yes or No.
• NEW — Single page printable scorecard, containing all the the recommendations, but scaled to print on a single page.
• NEW — Recommendation on using sentence case or title case for headings.
• NEW — Expanded discussion of SEO copy.
• NEW — Improved navigation, with bookmarks displaying to the left of the PDF, so no need to scroll back and forth between Recommendations and Scorecard.

What’s the new price, and when does it go up?

As a result of all the feedback and the addition of so much extra content value, we’re increasing the normal price to $29.97 (USD). This new price will be effective as of Sept 1 EST (US Eastern time) = 2pm Sept 1, Sydney time. (Aug 31 is the last day of the special.)

A snapshot of some of the feedback

Soon after launch, Darren sent out a survey to buyers. Here are some of their responses:

Pricing

Darren asked buyers how valuable they thought the EXISTING book is. More than 60% of respondents said they thought it was worth more than the $9.97 we were charging. And remember, this is without any of the changes discussed above.

Example required

Darren asked if buyers thought an example would be helpful. A resounding 98.3% said yes.

General suggestions

Darren asked for general suggestions. Here’s a selection of the answers. Can you detect a theme? ;-)

Existing buyers get the updated version for FREE!

Buy your copy before the price goes up to $29.97

If you’d like to buy a copy of the Copywriting Scorecard for Bloggers ebook before it goes up to its full price of $29.97 USD, you have until midnight Sept 1 EST (US Eastern time). Buy now at the Problogger website…

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I know what you’re thinking: “Can’t be done”. But I beg to differ. It can… now.

Australia’s leading blogger, Darren Rowse (aka ProBlogger), and I have just launched our new ebook, The Copywriting Scorecard for Bloggers. It’s a nice little resource that allows you to objectively measure the quality of your blog posts, from a copywriting point of view, using tried and tested best practices. For 2 weeks only, you can get it at 33% off. Instead of the normal price of $29.97, you can buy your copy for just $9.97.

How does the Problogger Scorecard work?

The book details 63 individual tips (both recommendations and pitfalls). Each recommendation is worth a certain number of points — the more important the recommendation, the more points it’s worth. Conversely, each pitfall is a loss of points — the more damaging the error, the more points you lose.

E.g. If you promise an outcome in your post, you get 2 points. But if you use “then” when you should have used “than”, you lose 3 points.

To score your post, you simply read through the book’s recommendations and pitfalls, then use the electronic scorecard to score your post. For each recommendation, select Yes (if you did heed the recommendation in your post) or No (if you didn’t), and the scorecard will automatically calculate your score. (IMPORTANT: The electronic scorecard will be released on Sept 1 at the full price of $29.97. The current version is contains a scorecard that you have to print and complete by hand. If you buy before Sept 1, however, you get a free upgrade to the new version when it comes out, and you’ll pay only $9.97.)

The higher your score, the more effective your post is likely to be.

If you write a post and you’ve followed every recommendation, and avoided every pitfall, your post gets a perfect score — 100 points. If you’ve followed only a handful of recommendations, or you’ve tripped up on a few pitfalls, your post scores fewer points.

What’s copywriting got to do with blogging? They’re both selling

I think I can safely assume you subscribe to my blog ‘coz you know copywriting’s important. And blogging too. So I won’t waste time on importance. What may not be so clear, however, is how the two are related. (And no, it’s not just because they’re both forms of writing.)

Blogging and copywriting are both forms of selling through writing. Done right, they’re one in the same. When you write copy, you’re selling products or services. When you blog, you’re selling your personal brand, affiliate products, AdSense clicks, ad space and/or authority. And maybe products and services as well.

So bloggers should be following the same best practices that copywriters follow (or should follow ;-).

The best practices

The Copywriting Scorecard for Bloggers covers:

• Writing — How to write engaging compelling posts.
• Scannability — How to ensure your posts are easy to scan read.
• Search engine optimization (SEO) — How to write posts that Google will like.
• Grammar — How to avoid errors that undermine your credibility.

Plus a couple of chapters on dealing with the day to day challenges facing anyone who writes for a living (or wants to).

The outcome

While The Copywriting Scorecard for Bloggers won’t make you a world-class writer overnight, it’ll certainly nudge you in that direction with each new post you write and score. Give it a try.

The challenge

Darren Rowse scored 85/100 on one of his posts. What can you score?

Buy The Copywriting Scorecard for Bloggers

Today is the official launch of The Copywriting Scorecard for Bloggers. For 2 weeks only, you can get it at 33% off. Instead of the normal price of $29.97, you can buy your copy for just $9.97! Don’t miss out. This special offer ends Sept 1 2010 EST; Aug 31 is the last day of the special. (You might also find a couple more discounts in the book… ;-)

Visit http://www.problogger.net/scorecard/ to buy your copy of The Copywriting Scorecard for Bloggers. And please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

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My brother-in-law Phil has a real way with words. He’s also something of a stand-up comedian. So I’ve been at him to write freelance for me, but he keeps ignoring me. I thought it was simply ‘coz Paul Cunningham says I’m hard to work for, but it turns out he’s just not comfortable with the whole concept of being a copywriter. When I asked why, he was kind enough to write me a blog post by way of answer. How cool is that?

The post made me laugh. A lot. And despite the fact that Phil’s never worked freelance, he’s somehow very familiar with the challenges we face. So I thought I’d post it for everyone to enjoy.

Over to Phil…

4 Reasons I won’t work for you. Now please stop begging.

By Phil Webb

Writing, for me, is like pulling teeth. The words are in my head but they don’t come out easily. I have to wrench them loose, one by one, with a sturdy pair of pliers.

I’m currently extracting a novel at the painstaking rate of 50 words per day. And that day is a good day. If I maintain this pace, I’ll be almost but not quite half-finished my first draft when the world ends in 2012.

I’m a patient man. Mayan apocalypses notwithstanding, I’m prepared to work for as many years as it takes to finish my novel and earn my J.K. Rowling money. In the meantime, however, I have bills to pay and unsavoury habits to support. And given that the market for draft chapters of unfinished first novels is a tad slow at the moment, I can’t afford to give up my day job just yet.

Which brings me to freelance copywriting. For a would-be writer, it seems like an attractive option. It may not be a novel but it’s still writing, right? And getting paid to write has to be a good thing, right?

Wrong.

After giving it some serious thought, I’ve decided that the life of a freelance copywriter is not the life for me. Here are my reasons why:

1. Regular bread

Bills arrive at my house on a regular basis. Freelance copywriting jobs do not. Being the sole breadwinner for my family, I need to win enough bread each week to keep the mutineers at bay. The national bread lottery provides occasional relief, but the best source of bread is still a steady full-time job.

Or a bakery. Those are good too.

2. They’ll never take my freedom

The thought of following a brief disagrees with me. Briefs are restrictive. Every man knows that.

I prefer to write behind a mask of blue face-paint. As a free man, I can take my stories in any direction I care to take them. Nobody can stop me, not even those damned English (too far with the Braveheart metaphor?) If an idea pops into my head, it’s far easier to find a home for it in a tale of my own concoction than on the welcome page of www.ericthepieking.com.

3. You want it when?

I want writing to be fun. Copywriting sounds suspiciously like a job. I’m both a perfectionist and a procrastinator, and that’s a bastard child that doesn’t play well with deadlines. Having to submit a piece of writing by close of business Wednesday would make me feel very uncomfortable indeed. I need to review. And re-review. And change that word. And change it back. And set it aside and watch TMZ. And put a comma there. And delete the whole stupid thing. I can’t do all of that by Wednesday.

4. Shopping around

If a publisher rejects my novel, I’ll just take it to a different publisher. If every publisher rejects my novel, I’ll self-publish and sell it out of the back of my car. That’s what Dan Brown did, and look what happened to him.*

If, on the other hand, I write a blurb for the SlideMaster 5000, and www.slidemasterslides.com rejects it, that doesn’t leave me with too many options, does it? I can’t just shop my blurb around with the other waterslide manufacturers, and it’s harder than you might think to sell website content out of the back of your car. No network port, you see.

* That’s not what Dan Brown did.

Nearly done

My notions about being a copywriter have no basis in fact. I’ve never written a word of copy, freelance or otherwise. I’ve learned everything I know from watching Mad Men.

And, clearly, my notions about being a novelist have no basis in fact either. J.K. Rowling money? Who am I kidding?

I’m not here to influence or criticise anybody’s career choice. In fact, I’m not sure why I’m writing this at all. Because I wanted to, I suppose. And now that I realise I should have one, that’s my whole point, isn’t it?

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Why do I want to set things straight?

Because it may seem I have opposing views on it (and I like to think there are a couple of people, at least, who care)…

I’ve been quite vocal about my distaste for sausage-factory content:

• I’ve argued that if you pay peanuts to blog ghost-writers you get monkeys.
• I’ve argued that most article marketers are doomed to failure because they pay too little for their articles.
• I’ve argued (among other things) that the use of sausage-factory content is an unsustainable SEO practice (see comments — LANGUAGE WARNING).
• I’ve discussed why sausage-factory content undermines your conversion rate and bottom line.
• I’ve argued that writing content purely for search engines is not copywriting.
• I’ve publicly disagreed with Rand Fishkin and asserted that quality content is all-important in SEO.

And I’ve been quite vocal about what I think quality copy is, how to write it and why it’s worth more:

• I’ve explained why I charge so much for copy.
• I’ve written about how to write quality, respectful, positive, easy-to-read, engaging, compelling, effective copy.

Yet still I’ve publicly disagreed with Aaron Wall and asserted that sites using sausage-factory content should NOT be banned by Google.

So what do I really think?

1. I think webmasters and SEOs have every right to use sausage-factory content, and they should NOT be penalized by the search engines.
2. I think many aspiring copywriters (both good and bad) are often left with no choice but to take on low paying gigs. (I’ve been there.)
3. I think all sausage-factory content writers dislike writing sausage-factory content.
4. I think a lot of sausage-factory content is written by decent writers; it actually reads OK.
5. But I KNOW it’s impossible to write 2-3 original, thought-provoking, witty, insightful and/or persuasive 500-word articles in just 1 hour. Let alone to continue doing it all day, every day. (Try it yourself. Just for an hour. It’s not just about pretty prose; it’s about planning, researching, thinking, understanding, learning, extrapolating and communicating.)
6. I think that, as a result, the vast majority (if not all) of sausage-factory content is low value to readers. It’s fundamentally unoriginal, and never thought-provoking or truly interesting.
7. I think that because it’s low value, no-one will link to it (organically).
8. Consequently, I think the use of sausage-factory content is a fundamentally unsustainable SEO practice. It will never generate many natural editorial links from reputable, quality sites. And Google will naturally get better at identifying and devaluing poor quality content.
9. I think you get the copy you pay for. Expensive copy is generally better than cheap copy. Not because the writer is necessarily more skilled, but because a really cheap piece has to be written far too quickly.
10. I think you also get the copywriter you pay for. Expensive (busy) copywriters are generally better than cheap copywriters. They’ve typically been doing it longer, and they’re clearly delivering a valuable product to their clients (otherwise they wouldn’t be able to command such high fees). Sure, there are always exceptions to the rule, but over time, the market filters them out: Good cheap copywriters become good expensive copywriters, and bad expensive copywriters become bad cheap copywriters (or something else entirely).
11. I think successful business people view copy, like any other form of promotion, as an investment, not a cost.

And that’s all I have to say on the matter! (Until someone comments, of course… ;-)

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1) Matt MacIntosh — “I brought you a second Mothers Day gift…”

And here’s Matt’s blog post on the matter, which is quite entertaining in itself! Thanks Matt, great work!

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Rand’s problem attitude to content

This is the attitude I’m talking about:

“Those brands and sites that have… users invested in promoting their work are likely to be long term winners with little regard for comparative levels of content quality.”

(An ironic attitude, don’t you think, when Rand, himself, invests so much in quality content on his own site…?)

What if your social/viral/SEO budget is small?

Yes, a high ranking is about getting lots of “early-adopting, viral-sharing, people-connecting, idea-distributing users” to promote your site. But if your social/viral/SEO budget is small, how else will you get that to happen — and keep it happening — other than by creating good content?

What if your competitors have the same social/viral/SEO budget?

For that matter, even with a good social/viral/SEO budget, what happens when you’re competing against someone else with a comparable budget? I’d contend that, in the long term, the comparative level of content quality will be the real difference, not the individual clever (but often hit-and-miss) tactics along the way.

Good content, alone, isn’t enough

I’m not suggesting good content alone will (always) get you a high ranking; obviously your site has to be search-friendly, and people have to find out about your content. But without good content, you’ll have to invest more in ‘persuading’ people to link.

But for most businesses, it’s the real difference

No. All things being equal, for most businesses, quality content is a far more sustainable proposition than poor content. (Note that I’m not necessarily talking about outsourced content. And I’m not necessarily talking about the technical quality of your writing. I’m talking about the quality of what you have to say.)

Plus Google’s getting smarter

And let’s not forget, Google is on a never-ending quest to return quality search results. It’s already quite hard to trick it into thinking you have quality content when you don’t. Why continue down that road when it’s only going to become rockier? Google will get better at weeding out the poor quality, and you’ll spend more and more trying to game the system.

Conclusion

Obviously I know why Rand wants you to continue down that road (because he’ll profit when you do), but c’mon! It just doesn’t make sense to chase your tail trying to trick Google into thinking you’ve given it what it wants. Why not actually give it what it wants?

Quality.

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In this video, I discuss my top 10 tips for becoming a successful freelance copywriter. Not just writing tips, but business tips too.

My Top 10 Tips for Aspiring Freelance Copywriters from Glenn Murray on Vimeo.

Links to copywriting resources mentioned in the vid

• ShadowProtect PC backup solution for data & system
• Carbonite online backup solution for data
• My streamlined copywriting quoting process
• Robin Hobb: ‘The Farseer Trilogy’
• Anne Tyler
• John Irving
• Patrick Rothfuss (forgot to mention him)
• My SEO copy ebook, ‘Practical SEO Copywriting’
• My SEO ebook, ‘SEO Secrets’

Please comment if you have any questions

Obviously there’s only so much I can cover in a vid post, so if you have any freelance copywriting questions, please feel free to ask. You can either comment here or send me an email (although I definitely prefer a comment, so my answers can help everyone).

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SEO Secrets — USD $79.95 $10

Use discount code “mumseosecrets” after you click Add to Cart.

‘SEO Secrets’ is a 212 page, comprehensive DIY search engine optimization (SEO) guide for small business owners, bloggers and SMB marketers. It details a practical 10-step process that will get you to the top of Google. It’s more than tips & tricks, and more than advice. It’s a comprehensive process you can start implementing NOW. Learn more about SEO Secrets…

Practical SEO Copywriting — USD $39.97 $10

Use discount code “mumseocopy” after you click Add to Cart.

‘Practical SEO Copywriting’ is pretty much the sum-total of what I know about SEO copy. Not just the theory, but the practice. How to do it right. How to handle the difficulties. And most importantly, how to balance the needs of Google against the needs of your human readers. Learn more about Practical SEO Copywriting…

If you’re buying both ebooks (pay $20 instead of $119)

Here’s how to use both discount codes:

1. Click Add to Cart for the first book
2. Enter its discount code
3. Click Update Cart
4. Switch back to this page
5. Click Add to Cart for the second book
6. Enter its discount code
7. Click Update Cart

Your total will be USD $20.

Oh, and if you actually give it to mum, you might get your money back…

Let’s make this a little fun. I’ll give you your money back if you:

1. Film yourself giving the book to mum, explaining what it is, and explaining why you’re giving it to her.
2. Then you post that footage on your blog. (And I certainly wouldn’t say no to a link back to my site!!!)
3. And let me know about it!

Enjoy. And say “Happy Mothers Day” to your mum for me!

UPDATE: See the vids

Here’s a blog post containing the vids of some very ‘lucky’ mums getting an SEO ebook for Mothers Day…

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If you’re not already doing this (or worse, you’re still relying on keyword density), you should find this screencast useful.

Using Word Clouds for SEO: Ensuring your web copy is appropriately optimized from Glenn Murray on Vimeo.

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“If paid links that subverts [sic] search relevancy algorithms shouldn’t count on the web graph, then why should Google trust paid content that subverts search relevancy algorithms?”

Aaron is concerned specifically with the recent USA Today / Demand Media deal, which will see thousands of what he calls ‘backfill’ articles placed on the USA Today website. He urges Google to crack down on this approach before “…the search results start filling up with similar sounding misinformed content ranking for 1 then 3 then 8 of the top 10 search results”.

If you’ve read any of my previous rants, you’ll know I’m no fan of crap / filler content. But I still can’t say I agree with Aaron here. You see, unlike paid links, which (supposedly*) present a black and white case of ’subverting search relevancy’, the paid content situation is a little less clear cut.

• Is a site subverting search relevancy just because it uses paid content? I certainly hope not! Most sites contain paid content — whether the webmaster paid a copywriter, incentivized a guest-blogger or syndicated a paid journalist. Even if they just got their web designer to write the copy. For that matter, the design, itself, is a form of content, and just about every website uses paid design.
• Or do they have to be using a content farm to be penalized? (And to be fair, content farms are the main target of Aaron’s post.) Trouble there is, how does Google decide what constitutes a ‘content farm’? Is a single copywriter a content farm? What if I write really quickly? What if I employ other copywriters? What if I outsource to other copywriters? What if I outsource to journalists? What if I outsource to would-be copywriters and journalists? Is a big web development company a content farm? They regularly outsource copy to people like myself (and probably you). If the job’s big, they ask me / you to call in other copywriters, or they engage numerous copywriters, directly, to get it done.
• Or do you get penalized only if your quality is crap? I checked out a few of USA Today / Demand Media’s articles (here’s one), and they were… OK. Nothing earth-shattering (or link-worthy), but they definitely weren’t auto-generated, nor were they written by someone with absolutely no writing or English skills. They were mildly helpful (if a little boring and simplistic) ’step-by-step’ articles. What’s more, they were no worse than the non-paid mildly helpful ’step-by-step’ / ‘10-things…’ articles found on competing media websites (like this USNews.com inhouse mashup, or this by an NBC columnist).

Ultimately, what USA Today is doing is no different from what other media sites (and non-media sites) are doing: they’re paying for content. Some of it may be crap, but some of the content on other sites is crap too (including their stories, however well written!).

Aaron asks:

“How will Google be able to filter out the Demand Media content without filtering out the rest of the media sites?”

My answer is that it shouldn’t even try. Google should be concerning itself with identifying relevance and quality, based, not on the source of the information, but on the information itself. And let’s face it; if Google does outlaw ‘content farm’ arrangements, those arrangements will simply go underground**, and Google will be forced to assess each case on its merits (relevance and quality).

I think Aaron’s over-reacted a little to the situation. If USA Today publishes crap articles:

1. Readers will stop reading; and
2. Google will figure out that the articles are crap, and — solid domain authority notwithstanding — will deal with them appropriately.

Anyway, I have to go and write some paid content for a client now. I hope Google’s not reading…

* Some paid links do, in fact, provide value to readers, and should not be devalued or lead to penalty. For example, I gladly link to a variety of products and services, and I only ever link to things that I believe in. My readers benefit, whether or not I make money when they click on these links (which I don’t).

** You may argue that Google successfully outlawed paid links, but people are still making money from links. The deals have just gone underground.

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