Home | Stella Orange Wordsmith

3 secrets to get in the mood to write hot copy

Published January 8, 2013

Why don’t you slip into something more comfortable?

We ended the year with a plea not to be a copywriting zombie.

So it’s only fair that we start the New Year off with the right tone.

I’m talking Marvin Gaye, people. Barry White. Gnarls Barkley.

Whatever gets you in the mood.

As last year wrapped up, I noticed that my clients and colleagues had writing projects they were focused on.

And some of them actually admitted to me that they were enjoying the process.

A few of them even mentioned that it was a treat to write.

Now, this is really, really good news. And so I … Read the rest >

Posted in business, copywriting, how to be, how to write

How NOT to write copy like a zombie

Published December 26, 2012

Don’t be a copywriting zombie. Find YOUR voice.

Happy holidays, superstars!

As a special tribute to the end of the year, this article is about zombies.

Copywriting zombies.

You know who they are.

You get their emails.

You go to their sales pages.

You may actually even LIKE the person, and trust that they are doing good work.

But the way they write about that work sounds like the zombies wrote it.

When zombies write copy, they use a rigid formula.

They don’t express real emotion.

They just hunt for brains to manipulate.

Examples of copywriting zombies at work:

“Are you OVERWHELMED by getting your kids out the … Read the rest >

Posted in business, how to write, marketing, marketing online

5 sales writing archetypes that make NO money

Published December 18, 2012

In these parts, we talk about messaging, and we talk about writing copy, and we talk about how to do it in a way that works AND stands out as meaningful in a marketplace of hype and hot air.

But I’ve been mostly silent about the ways I watch business owners sabotage their own results in their writing.

Until now.

See, there are some archetypes when it comes to writing copy (copy = “words that sell”). I share them because you may notice that some of them feel rather familiar to you. If that’s the case, there’s a prescription for … Read the rest >

Posted in business, how to write, marketing, marketing online

Please stop “touching their pain.”

Published December 11, 2012

Pouring salt in wounds won’t sell more. Also, it’s not nice.

One of the things you always hear about writing copy (copy = “words that sell”) is that you need to “touch their pain.”

That is, you need to stir up whatever pain your potential clients are in, so that they FEEL it, and recognize that they are in the market for a solution.

Typically, it’s the solution you offer.

Now, when I am writing with a client and he says “I know I need to touch their pain,” I smile ever so faintly, and step on to my soapbox.

After I take a deep breath, here is what I say:… Read the rest >

Posted in business, how to write, marketing, marketing online

Can you build a business WITHOUT writing?

Published December 4, 2012

Avoiding writing is like cutting your business growth off at the knees

This is a wake-up call, my sweet petunias.

Let’s cut right to the chase: if you can’t write—or if you don’t like to write—it’s going to be hard to do anything else in your marketing.

Writing copy (“copy” = words that sell) is a core skill that has a direct impact on your ability to grow your business.

Especially if you intend to leverage online marketing to work with people who don’t live in the same place you do.

Here’s why:

1) Writing is the main way you communicate with many people at the same time.

You need to be … Read the rest >

Posted in business, how to write, marketing, marketing online

What Weird Al Taught Me About Business

Published November 27, 2012

Part of what you’re selling is how you live your life.

I don’t care that much about celebrities.

But I totally 110% freaked out when I met my childhood idol, Weird Al Yankovic.

It was 5 years ago, in the livestock barn at the fairgrounds in Bozeman, Montana.

I’d been working for 8 hours as a “runner” for the band. I drove Weird Al’s drummer, guitarist, and bass guitarist around town. I picked up organic treats for Al (can I call him Al?) at the local co-op. I took tickets and checked people’s pockets for beer bottles.

And I did all that to get a free ticket to see a guy … Read the rest >

Posted in business, marketing, marketing online

Are you attracting less than ideal clients?

Published November 20, 2012

You don't have to work with clients you don't enjoy.

As a copywriter and writing teacher, I get a lot of questions from business owners about how to express what they do in a way that makes other people want it… while feeling 100% aligned with who THEY really are and what they’re about in this world.

But often, there is a hidden problem beneath this.

And that problem is that they are attracting clients who are LESS than ideal.

These clients are REALLY stuck. They don’t have a habit of regularly investing in themselves, in support, in what they need to get results. They ask to barter instead of … Read the rest >

Posted in business, marketing, marketing online

Why playing hooky from church can be good.

Published November 13, 2012

Keep moving forward. Sometimes it's to stop.

Several years ago, I was visiting my parents. They were living in Brookline, Massachusetts at the time—a really cool neighborhood right on the T line, with all kinds of people living there

Hasidic Jews, Russians, Boston liberals in rumpled khakis.

That sort of thing.

Anyway, this particular morning was Easter Sunday. My dad was out of town, and my mom had planned on attending services.

No longer a churchgoer, I’d planned on going for a run instead.

My mom surprised me by revealing she wasn’t feeling really motivated to get all dressed up and go to church.

“Well, today, let’s … Read the rest >

Posted in business, copywriting, marketing, marketing online

In praise of failing.

Published November 6, 2012

Free yourself to be profitable and enjoy the simple things in life

Two summers ago, my friend Kent read tarot cards for me.

I was pretty darn proud of how positive they all were.

And then, he drew a card for my future.

“This one is about how you think about failure,” he said.

“You are climbing the ladder, moving towards what you think is winning,” he went on, “and then you have to face the fact everything you thought about failure is dead wrong.”

That sort of thing really spooks me.

It’s like getting your fortune read: “you will find a fly in your soup… but only after you’ve eaten it.”… Read the rest >

Posted in business, marketing, marketing online

How I Fill Group Programs Online

Published October 30, 2012

Have an audience that is engaged & interested

For many service professionals and coaches, there’s a time when you say to yourself:

“I love my one-on-one clients, BUT…”

And that sentence usually ends with a curiosity about offering a group program with a lower price point.

Let’s be clear: a group program is typically NOT what you offer first.

You fill your business with 10-20 private one-on-one clients.

Because it’s easier to find 10 people to work with your privately over time, than it is to find 10 people who all want to start working with you on the same day.

But once you’ve done THAT, you’re probably … Read the rest >

Posted in brand + message, business, copywriting, marketing, marketing online, websites