The Copywriter Club Podcast

For the 375th episode of The Copywriter Club Podcast, we brought back Seth Godin. But maybe not quite the way you think. We talked to Seth more than five years ago about creating art, freelancing, and the story you create for yourself. It's such a great discussion, but because it happened so long ago, not very many listeners find it. So for our very first throwback episode, we've pulled this great interview out of the vault and are sharing it again... with a few new thoughts at the end. Even if you heard this interview the first time we ran it, it's worth another listen. Click the play button below, or scroll down for a full transcript. Stuff to check out: This is Marketing by Seth Godin The Copywriter Club Facebook Group The Copywriter Accelerator Full Transcript: Rob Marsh: A little over 5 years ago, as we were approaching our 100th episode of The Copywriter Club Podcast, Kira and I were trying to think of who would be an amazing guest for the 100th episode of the show. There are some amazing—even famous—copywriters who came to mind. It’s too bad David Ogilvy wasn’t alive. He definitely would have made the cut. But this show is about more than copywriting. It’s about marketing and showing up and making a difference in the world. And when we added those considerations to the list, one obvious choice stood out. Seth Godin. You know Seth. He’s been a vocal advocate for making art or as Steve Jobs once said, making a dent in the universe. Much of Seth’s career, certainly for the last decade, has been about encouraging people to make their art. So I reached out to Seth and asked him if he would be our 100th guest. And I think it was about 20 minutes later, I got a reply back. I still have it, in fact, let me just read what he said… he wrote… I can happily do this, but my publisher asked me to not have any new podcast interviews until November. Can we record it soon, but have it come out then? That timing meant that Seth wouldn’t be our 100th guest, but we weren’t about to say no. And in fact, I think the timing actually worked in our favor. As you can imagine, Seth appeared on many podcasts around the same time ours went live—all to promote his new book. But because we recorded 5 months earlier, we didn’t have the book, so our interview was very different from all the others that went live at the same time. It’s been 5 years since we recorded this interview with Seth, but I have to tell you I go back and listen to it more than any other episode. Seth’s advice on making art, owning the work we do, doing the difficult emotional work, building spec projects, and what happens when we don’t do those things is even more important today than if was when we recorded this interview more than 5 years ago. Now… this is where I would usually mention the copywriter underground. I’m not going to do that today because we wanted to give you something as a thank you for being a regular listener to the show. Just after the new year, we launch the copywriter accelerator. It’s not a course. It’s an 8 part business building program designed to help you build a six-figure business that works for you. I’m not going to tell you all the things it includes here. You can find that out at thecopywriteraccelerator.com. But I will share an exclusive code only available to you as a podcast listener. This is the only place we’re sharing it. If you go to the copywriter accelerator.com and enter the code: POD200, you’ll save $200 off the price of the program. That’s POD200 at the copywriter accelerator .com. And you can find far more details about what the program includes there. Check it out. And if it’s a fit, join with the code: POD200. Okay, now we hope you enjoy this incredible interview with Seth Godin. Kira Hug:  Seth, welcome. Rob Marsh:  Hey, Seth. Seth Godin:  Thanks. Great to talk to you guys. Kira Hug:  We’re very excited and honored that you’re a part of our show. Before we start recording,

Copywriter and Publisher of Freelancer magazine, Sophie Cross, is the guest for the 374th episode of The Copywriter Club Podcast. Kira and Rob asked Sophie why she decided to publish a print magazine in a time when many printed magazines seem to be struggling to find readers and advertisers. She shared what it takes to accomplish such a Herculean task each quarter. One of our big take aways from this discussion is that you may need to do something BIG to stand out in today's competitive world. Publishing a magazine is that kind of big idea that stands out. And this episode may give you a few ideas that you can use to stand out in your own niche or industry. Click the play button below, or scroll down for a full transcript. Important links to check out: Freelancer Magazine The Copywriter Club Facebook Group The Copywriter Underground Full Transcript: Rob Marsh: Want to build your authority? Then you need to be sharing your ideas, insights and content in places where your audience will find you. Linkedin. Instagram. Medium. Twitter. That’s good advice and it has helped hundreds of copywriters rise above the crowd and get noticed by the clients they serve. But if you really want to stand out… the way to do it is by showing up in ways that no one else has thought of before. Instead of posting on someone else’s platform, why not create your own? Hi, I’m Rob Marsh, one of the founders of The Copywriter Club. And on today’s episode of The Copywriter Club Podcast, my co-founder, Kira Hug, and I interviewed copywriter and magazine publisher Sophie Cross. Sophie is the publisher of Freelancer magazine, a printed quarterly magazine about the ins and outs of working on your own. As you’ll hear her explain, Sophie wanted to create a platform to help her get noticed. So she started her magazine and we wanted to understand what it takes to publish and mail a 100-page magazine 4 times a year. Turns out it’s a lot of work. We also talked about freelancing in the hospitality industry, creating courses and other assets, and Sophie’s advice for anyone working as a freelancer today. Stick around because this one is pretty good. But first, this episode of The Copywriter Club Podcast is brought to you by The Copywriter Underground. It is truly the best membership for copywriters and content writers… let me just give you an idea of what you get for $87 a month… first there’s a monthly group coaching call with Kira and me where you can get answers to your questions, advice for overcoming any business or client or writing challenge you have. There are weekly copy critiques where we give you feedback on your copy or content. There are regular training sessions on different copy techniques and business practices designed to help you get better. And we’re adding a new monthly AI tool review where we share a new AI tool or a technique or prompt you can do with AI get more done. That’s on top of the massive library of training and templates. And the community is full of copywriters ready to help you with just about anything… including sharing leads from time to time. Find out more at thecopywriterclub.com/tcu And with that, let’s go to our interview with Sophie. Kira Hug: All right, Sophie, let's kick off with your story. How did you end up as the editor of Freelancer magazine? Sophie Cross: I ended up with the editor because I made the magazine and made myself the editor. Rob Marsh: That is a very good way to start. Yeah. Sophie Cross: I I was already making a magazine, had a little bit of experience in my backgrounds in hospitality marketing before. Yeah. Well, when I went freelance and went freelance, I had the experience making hotel brochures and collateral and things like that. You can only look back at the stepping stones, can't you can't sort of see where they're taking you. I sort of didn't think much of it at the time, but actually now realizing that I had this real passion for printed collateral and things l...

We're talking all about online business myths and what to do when you're struggling in your business on the 373rd episode of The Copywriter Club Podcast. This episode is a Kira and Rob only show—no guest. And they delve into the realities of running a business today. The path is seldom up and to the right (always growing) and often so challenging, you're tempted to get a "real" job or at least something part-time until client work gets steadier. We cover a lot of ground in this one. Click the play button below, or scroll down for a full transcript. The people and stuff we mentioned on the show: The Copywriter Club Facebook Group The Copywriter Underground Full Transcript: Rob Marsh:  Almost no one expects to launch a business and have everything go easily from the beginning, but after a few years, well by then, things should be getting easier, right? Well, not always, and not exactly.  I'm Rob Marsh, one of the founders of the Copywriter Club. And on today's episode of the Copywriter Club podcast, my co-founder Kira Hug and I talk about a couple of business myths. Like the idea that your progress should always be up and to the right. That is that things always get easier and more profitable year after year. Or the idea that replacing clients with products and passive income is easy. or the all-too-common belief that taking a job in-house is a failure. I also talked a little bit about how to prepare for a business downturn. If you struggle to find clients or your business hasn't been growing as quickly as you hoped, you may want to stay around and listen to the end of this episode.  But first, this episode of the Copywriter Club podcast is brought to you by the Copywriter Underground. You've heard me talk about this for the past few weeks. It truly is the best membership for copywriters, content writers, marketers of all kinds. And let me just give you an idea of what you get for what you pay every single month. First, there's a monthly group coaching call with Kira and me where you can get answers to your questions, advice about overcoming any business or client or writing challenge that you have. When we do one-on-one coaching, we charge several hundred dollars an hour for that. it's included in your membership.  There are regular training sessions on different copy techniques. Sometimes that's from Kira and myself. Sometimes that's an expert that we bring in to talk about something they're doing interesting in their business. All of those are designed to help you get better at this thing that we do. We've been talking about new AI tools and ways to use AI in the underground. even new tools, techniques, prompts that you can use to have AI help you get more done quicker. And on top of that, there's this massive library of training and templates. And the community is full of copywriters who are ready to help you with almost anything, including sharing leads from time to time. What an amazing value that is. To find out more of what it includes, go to thecopyrighterclub.com/tcu.  And with that, let's get to our discussion for a few suggestions about how to prepare for the inevitable downturns and hard times in your business.  All right, Kira, just you and me again today. And we're going to talk about a couple of things. But before we jump into talking about recessions and making our businesses stronger and all of that stuff, I put together a couple of getting to know you questions that are maybe a little bit different. Let's start easy. Mountain or beach vacation? Kira Hug:  I feel like we've covered that one on the pod already. And I feel like last time you asked me, I was like, I don't, I don't know. I can't choose between mountain or beach. Because the question stresses me out. So I remember it, but I mean, I would probably lean towards beach if I had to choose. I just, I like both. It's hard for me to choose.  Rob Marsh:  Why does it stress you out?

Financial copywriter Sean MacIntyre shares insights on AI, positioning as an expert authority, and improving copywriting skills. He discusses the impact of AI on copywriting jobs and how copywriters can prepare for an impending recession. MacIntyre also talks about his journey from homelessness to successful copywriting, the opportunities in copywriting during a recession, and his future plans in entrepreneurship. The podcast explores strategies for navigating uncertainties and provides tips for analyzing and enhancing sales pages.

Femtech Copywriter Lanae Carmichael is our guest for the 371st episode of The Copywriter Club Podcast, and Kira and Rob asked her about finding her niche and framework (which Kira got a little too much pleasure from making Rob name), user testing copy before you present it to the client, and how she landed 50% of the work she did this year from other copywriters. Click the play button below, or scroll down for a full transcript. A few links related to this show that you should definitely click: Lanae's Website The Copywriter Club Facebook Group The Copywriter Underground Full Transcript: Rob Marsh:  What’s your best source of leads? Where do the majority of your clients come from? As you look back on the past year, it’s a question worth thinking about. Do clients easily find you based on your social media presence or your LinkedIn profile? Do you seek out the people and brands you want to work with and pitch them on a project? Or maybe you benefit from referrals from past clients and other people who know you. Hi, I’m Rob Marsh, one of the founders of The Copywriter Club. And on today’s episode of The Copywriter Club Podcast, my co-founder, Kira Hug, and I interviewed copywriter Lanae Carmichael. Near the end of our interview Lanae said something that surprised us. She said that more than half of her clients this year came from other copywriters. This isn’t a new idea. We’ve talked about it before on the podcast. But 50% is a big number. Lanae shared what she did to put herself in position to get those referrals and it’s something any copywriter can do. And we talked about a lot more than that. You’ll want to keep listening to this episode. But first, this episode of The Copywriter Club Podcast is brought to you by The Copywriter Underground. It is truly the best membership for copywriters and content writers… let me just give you an idea of what you get for $87 a month… first there’s a monthly group coaching call with Kira and me where you can get answers to your questions, advice for overcoming any business or client or writing challenge you have. There are weekly copy critiques where we give you feedback on your copy or content. There are regular training sessions on different copy techniques and business practices designed to help you get better. And we’re adding a new monthly AI tool review where we share a new AI tool or a technique or prompt you can do with AI get more done. That’s on top of the massive library of training and templates. And the community is full of copywriters ready to help you with just about anything… including sharing leads from time to time. Find out more at thecopywriterclub.com/tcu And with that, let’s go to our interview with Lanae. Kira Hug:  Let's kick off, Lanae, with your story. How did you end up as a copywriter?  Lanae Carmichael:  All right, so I started out as a marketing consultant at a small TV tech firm, or a marketing specialist. I don't remember what my title was there. But I was very junior on the team, and I was primarily doing their internal communications. But slowly over time, I started working with the COO, and we were doing executive video scripts, and I was doing some change management communications as the small TV tech firm got bought out by a new company. After three or four years of working with that marketing team, I got pivoted into the product marketing side, and that's where I discovered branding and positioning and messaging, and I loved it.  Shortly after that, I had my first baby, and I knew I didn't really want the corporate lifestyle. I had friends that were in the copywriting industry. I didn't really know what the word meant, but I was already doing it. as is the story that so many copywriters have. But I was living in the Bay Area at the time, and there were startups abundant all around. And so I was on Angel's list, and I just started pitching. And pretty quickly, within two weeks,

Copywriter Justin Goff, who only works 3-4 hours a day, shares his secrets to work-life balance and building connections. They discuss differing perspectives on vision and process, the impact of AI tools, and leveraging copywriting skills in niche markets. Justin Goff also shares his ideas on leverage and offers advice on consistently growing your business through storytelling.

Rob Marsh and Kira Hug discuss writing sales pages on The Copywriter Club Podcast. They share formulas for writing, landing assignments, and improving skills. Topics include addressing pain points, visual elements, and the value of swipes in sales page writing.

Rob Marsh and Kira Hug share insights from the Copy Legends Lock-in Event, The Top One Mastermind, TCC IRL in London, and their Think Tank Retreat. Topics include copywriting tips, better client support, effective teamwork, and market adaptation. Learn about the power of storytelling, understanding audiences, and the value of year-end planning.

On the 367th episode of The Copywriter Club, Russ Henneberry joins the show to chat all about SEO. Russ is the founder of theCLIKK, a free daily email newsletter covering digital business topics. He shares strategies copywriters can use to increase website traffic and how they can keep up with the evolving digital marketing landscape. It’s an episode you’ll want to keep handy.  Here’s what you’ll find out:  How Russ went from teacher to marketer and SEO expert.  When he was introduced to the world of digital marketing and SEO. Why skills like content marketing and copywriting are essential in today’s landscape.  The impact of AI on search behavior and the everchanging search experience. What copywriters can do to optimize their chances of ranking in online searches.  How to customize dedicated webpages for various niches to increase discoverability.  What is link building and why is it important? Why your content needs to be thorough and how to create a content strategy for your business.  Paid advertising vs. organic search… How can they coexist? Should you productize your services?  What kind of clients are willing to pay premium rates? The difference between you and the in-house employee.  What is the theCLIKK and how do they leverage evolving marketing techniques to scale? Tune into the episode by hitting play below. The people and stuff we mentioned on the show: Join The Copywriter Underground Kira’s website Rob’s website Russ's website The Copywriter Club Facebook Group Free month of Brain.FM AI for Creative Entrepreneurs Podcast Full Transcript:

On the 366th episode of The Copywriter Club Podcast, website copywriter and niche extraordinaire, Masha Koyen joins the show. We walk through Masha’s journey from a demanding corporate marketing career to a thriving copywriting business. She shares her “REVEAL” framework, a six-step process that helps her attract high-value clients, and how copywriters can build their business from scratch.  Tune into the episode to find out more about: Masha’s transition from corporate marketing director to website copywriter for interior designers.  When do you know it’s time to pivot or go off on your own? How she unexpectedly gained her first clients and how she markets her business today.  Burnout after 3 months?! How she navigated the early stages of entrepreneurship.  How she decided to niche down both vertically and horizontally. Her methods to delving into her audience’s pain points and challenges.  Where she found clients in a hyper-specific market and how she began to stand out.  The key to finding differentiating factors within competitive niches. Her six-step framework for strategic website copywriting.  The importance of having a framework in your business.  What’s a CEO retreat and how can it benefit your overall well-being?  How can you gain access to higher-level clients?  The impact of The Copywriter Think Tank on Masha’s business.  Tune into the episode by hitting the play button below. The people and stuff we mentioned on the show: Join The Copywriter Underground Kira’s website Rob’s website Masha's website  The Copywriter Club Facebook Group Free month of Brain.FM AI for Creative Entrepreneurs Podcast Full Transcript: