Does this sign make you want to get a flu shot? No? Me neither. Here’s the thing, CVS. Maybe it’s true that your smaller needles make injections less painful. But seeing the word “needles” in your sign just gave me an immediate, vivid picture of something sharp piercing my skin. Not only did I avert […]
Oh, small, earnest neighborhood florist — I can see how hard you’re working to get this right. Here you are in the heart of college country, with scores of students strolling past you every day, never stopping to browse or buy. You know an untapped market when you see one, and you’re even willing to […]
Former President Bill Clinton had faced tough questions before, but this time, the stakes were high. Clinton had never listened to “Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me,” the NPR news quiz, let alone appeared as a contestant on the show. If he lost, he would let down his party and his country — especially Dave Parks […]
My 12-year-old neighbor, Phoebe, returned from a trip to Houston and couldn’t wait to tell me about the ice cream she’d discovered, Blue Bell, and the company’s super fun slogan, “We eat all we can, and sell the rest.” (Phoebe’s not aware that I write copy for a living, but she knows how I feel […]
“Is it wrong to hide the Dalai Lama’s posts?” I asked on Facebook a couple of years ago. “They’re just so frequent.”* I wonder if Tenzin Gyatso saw this recent profile in Fast Company, which featured Rufus Griscom talking about how to build online communities around your content. We liked what RG had to say. […]
I wonder if she could recommend a wine pairing?
Nine-year-old Martha Payne started a blog last month analyzing her school lunches. Boring, right? But, with over a million visitors in just six weeks, she has something to teach the likes of Michelle Obama and Jamie Oliver. Why is her blog so successful? She pretty much sums it up in her profile: “My dad says […]
You know how Dan and Anna are always going on and on about writing copy that’s conversational and doesn’t sound like it was written by a robot (or someone really boring)? I saw this ad in a magazine and loved it so much that I sent a pic to Anna. (Dan doesn’t share our enthusiasm […]
What are you planning to do Wednesday night? That’s right, nothing. Until now. On behalf of our friends at Metropolis Creative, we invite you to attend the fourth annual Boston Extreme Website Makeover. This cool event takes place from 6-9 p.m. on Wednesday at The Charlesmark Lounge (655 Boylston St., Boston). Admission is free. What’s […]
Last year, The Hired Pens became the pro-bono copywriting agency for Cradles to Crayons. This means we help them write all sort of things, from fundraising letters to fun copy for their 2012 calendar. It also means I have been much more attuned to offers I get from other nonprofits. Who moves me and makes […]
