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Why Gregg?
I am a freelance business communications writer with more than 20 years experience, an MBA and a wall full of creative awards from organizations including the International Association of Business Communicators, the Business Marketing Association, the National Society of Fund Raising Executives and several regional Ad Clubs. Here are some of the reasons you should hire me for your next project:
EFFECTIVE COPYI bring you an extremely rare combination of professional skills that lead to particularly detail-rich, on-target, hard-working copy.
Copywriting of any kind, from print ads to internal newsletter articles, is salesmanship in print. I write copy like the best salespeople sell, focusing on audience needs, presenting benefits, highlighting solutions to problems, and anticipating and countering objections. I build your communications messages into a logical, compelling, highly persuasive case, motivating the audience to take the desired action, whether it's the purchase of a product, a service or a point of view.
Often, the key to creating persuasive copy is knowledge. I learn all I can about your product, service or situation, working hard to uncover new golden nuggets—fresh points of differentiation, innovative angles and other valuable facts and ideas—to put to work in your copy. I read and absorb everything you can give me. I ask intriguing questions. I research relevant websites to find out more. And, at your direction, I interview your subject matter experts. I've interviewed several thousand professionals—scientists, engineers, technicians, salespeople, top executives and more—and I'm highly skilled at managing the interview to uncover new golden nuggets "locked" in the heads of your experts. I am also a master at working with technical people to get the information I need to "translate" your message into a simple, engaging story—no matter how technologically complex it may be. Building these details into your copy not only bolsters the content of your messages, it reinforces their credibility as well. You will see the difference!
In business communications, how you present messages is vitally important, whether you're talking to customers, channel partners or internal colleagues. The best business communications adopt a smart professional tone that walks the line between formal and informal. It's very different than a business-to-consumer style, very different than a journalistic style, very different than an academic style. You know it when you see it, and, when you hire me, you will see it.
Finally, of course, there's the writing.
In a business environment, the challenge is getting the audience reading, and keeping them reading, because once their attention is lost,
so is your opportunity to deliver your messages. My philosophy is that good
writing is like crystal-clear television reception, which, unlike static-plagued television reception, allows the audience to absorb the content
without being distracted by an intrusion of the medium itself. That means
creating an affable, sonorous, conversational voice in the
reader's head. It means creating a smooth rhythm, with varying
sentence types and lengths, and avoiding awkward constructions, unfamiliar jargon and meaningless formal
phrases. It means creating effortless hand-offs from sentence to sentence and from paragraph
to paragraph, where the threat of losing the reader is at its peak. The net
result is copy that "talks" to your audience as if your
representative were there in person, explaining your Vision and the benefits of
your proposition.
EXPERIENCEI've written thousands of business communications pieces for hundreds of organizations in dozens of industries, from chemicals to software, genome testing to materials handling, pharmaceuticals to french fries, member services to telecommunications, and I have the foundation of business and technical knowledge and experience—not to mention the boundless interest—to quickly gain a working understanding of any product or service, no matter how technical or complex. You will be pleased and impressed.
I also deliver the experience to help you create any type of business communications piece you can think of, from intranet newsletters to executive speeches, print ads to flash video scripts, conservative annual reports to uproarious live business theatre scripts, diminutive hang tags to massive 150-page proposals, and much more. I can help you create any document that involves high quality, high impact presentation of particular information to a particular audience to achieve a particular outcome, whether that desired outcome is encouraging potential customers to take the next step in the sales process, or earning employee buy-in for a new organizational policy.
I have extensive experience in crafting long form documents, including training manuals, white papers, reports and proposals. I take the project off your plate, uncover all the diverse information I need through subject matter interviews and research, and turn that mountain of disparate knowledge into a persuasive, readable, highly effective business communication.
Customer case study/success story pieces are another specialty. I've written dozens, and my interviewing skills ensure a depth of customer commentary that will make the piece enormously powerful.
Trade shows? I've done it all, including promotions on both the exhibitor and attendee sides, exhibit panels, hospitality suite materials and more.
Got a long, complicated or especially "weird" project that makes your agency or staff writers hide when they see you coming? Call me. I've written projects like corporate football cheers, old time radio-style training tapes and a sales speech for "Ben Franklin." Humorous corporate presentations of all kinds are an award-winning specialty, as is brainstorming headlines, slogans and other creative concepting. Even the often-challenging corporate policy stuff—such as pieces concerning HR, Quality, Environmental and Safety programs—just call me and they're as good as done.
CONVENIENCEWhen you hire me, you are also buying peace of mind, and a ticket to making your job just a little bit easier. I know what to do, and I do it. I take the project off your desk, do the work, and deliver drafts that nail it and are ready to go with very little effort on your part.
RELIABILITYMy guiding principle: I always do what I say I'm going to do and my word is gold, always delivering what is promised, when it is promised.
That means if we agree to a deadline of Friday, you will have the copy in hand on Friday. It means that I will always return your calls promptly, and that the fee billed will be exactly as agreed. If I say I will call to interview your subject matter expert at 4:00, that's not just a figure of speech, his phone will ring at 4:00, without fail. If you're someone who wants to be able to trust in those you hire, I think you may appreciate this. I know I do.
SPEEDI provide high quality copy quickly for every project. RUSH projects are a specialty.
I can help you with even your most ambitious deadlines. I love the feeling I get from creating something great for you—even more so when it's under challenging conditions. If I can possibly take on the project, I will. And if I do, it will be completed as promised. Guaranteed.
VALUEMy fees are surprisingly affordable and represent real value. In fact, if you're used to paying high ad agency rates, I think you might be amazed at how much less you have to pay to get better writing. Plus, you won't have to contend with long term contracts, retainers or minimums.
I can also offer you a faster, cost-effective and higher quality alternative to hiring additional writing staff, with no recruitment costs, training responsibilities, paid vacations, sick days, or other overhead costs that can sap your budget and stall your momentum. When you need me, I become an immediate, hardworking member of your team. When you don't, I disappear—along with your compensatory responsibilities. You pay only for productive time.
Also, if you've already "accepted" the need to spend a lot of time rewriting drafts you get from your current writers, take into account the hours you can reclaim and repurpose by working with a business communications pro who can deliver drafts that require relatively little effort on your part.
Want an even better value? I will work with you to negotiate a discounted fee structure for a set volume of work.
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