5 questions that will WOW any client

The answers make writing any project easier too [The Writer’ s Life]( February 24, 2023 "Part of being successful is about asking questions and listening to the answers." – Anne Burrell Hi {NAME}, Last week, I got an email from a member asking … "What kinds of questions should I ask a copywriting client in preparation for a copywriting project?" Within 10 seconds, I had the answer … and in today's issue, I share it with you too. These five questions will impress any client and position you as a high-value asset right out of the gate. (Side note — the AWAI website is an incredibly valuable resource for finding answers to any question you have!!) Asking questions helps you get clients … It helps you have better relationships with clients … It makes writing assignments easier … And if done well, it sets you up for more and more opportunity! Now is the time to "get curious," because clients need your help more than ever … Study after study has shown that marketers need more content than ever, and they are having trouble finding writers to keep up with the demand. One hot example is white papers — a cornerstone piece of content. Six out of 10 marketers use white papers as a key part of their marketing strategy, according to a recent study by Content Marketing Institute. But 61% also said that creating content that appeals to different stages of the buyer's journey is their biggest challenge. So, they struggle to find skilled writers who can create the content they desperately need! With some [training and know-how](, you would be in a great position to help them — with zero competition! Now, if you're not yet familiar with white papers, [go here for a quick crash course](. I give you loads of examples and show you why companies will gladly pay you between $5,000 and $8,000 per project … For what is essentially a formula-based "research report." I even walk through the five simple topics you need to include in each one. You'll see why creating white papers is fun and rewarding! Gordon Graham, aka That White Paper Guy, has called writing white papers the "perfect" gig. He would know — he's written over 300 white papers, and counting. And over the 20 years he's been a White Paper Specialist, he's discovered the way to impress clients is to ask them the five questions he shares today. The answers will help you do a better job on any projects you write. Follow Gordon's lead and you'll be more likely to land all the writing assignments you want. No question about it. 🙂 I hope you have a great weekend, [Rebecca Matter’ s signature] Rebecca P.S. Before I turn it over to Gordon, just wanted to point out that you can get started with our How to Become a Professional White Paper Writer self-paced program — only $59.40 today gets you access. This could be your fast track to writing a report that can pay up to $8,000 per project. [Check out the details here — this special offer is only available until midnight tonight!]( CLOSING: Now Accepting New Members Your new life as a well-paid and in-demand writer is just one click away … A life that offers freedom, lots of fun, no more money worries, and so many unique, high-paying writing opportunities. But the clock is ticking … The discounted new-member pricing disappears in a matter of hours! [Get it before midnight tonight!]( To Impress Any Copywriting Client, Ask These 5 Surefire Questions By Gordon Graham [Five colorful question marks on Post-it notes] Over the years, I've talked to hundreds of potential clients about their content projects. During those conversations, I've found a few questions I can ask that never fail to impress. And today, I'm going to share the most powerful ones with you. When you ask these questions, you stand out from the crowd. You prove you know what it takes to create good content. And you show that you're adaptable and that you will deliver what the client needs. Who wouldn't be impressed by a writer with that approach? Next time you're talking with a prospect, here are five surefire questions to ask. (Keep them handy and make them a part of your copywriting client intake interview.) 1. Do you have any personas? A persona is an archetype that represents a segment of the client's audience. A well-developed persona can include: - Demographics — age, education, location, and work background - Psychographics — values, attitudes, interests, and challenges - Technographics — how and where the content will likely be viewed: desktop, tablet, phone, at work, in transit, at home A good persona doesn't have to be long. For example, one could be "a middle-aged executive struggling to redo the website of a health insurance firm keen to sign up more consumers in the Midwest." Even one sentence tells you a lot. Everyone in marketing knows they should develop personas. But it's remarkable how few companies actually have them. If they do, great! Seeing their personas gives you a target reader to write for. If not, say you'll need to talk some more about their audience before you start writing. After they hire you, interview your client for 20 or 30 minutes about their audience, and come up with some short sentences they can use as a start for their personas. 2. What style guide do you use? A style guide defines how a company handles common issues in grammar, spelling, and punctuation, such as: - Whether to use a serial comma in a list ("red, white, and blue" or "red, white and blue") - How to spell certain terms (American style like "color" or British style like "colour") - How to express numbers, dates, times, weights and measures (9PM or 9 p.m. or 21:00) There's no right or wrong on these issues. It doesn't matter what your Grade 3 teacher taught you. The client is always right. And a truly professional writer can vary their style to match any guide. Why does this matter? For one, the closer you match a client's house style, the less time they spend cleaning up your text, and the easier you are to work with. Two, a good style guide is a third-party to settle silly arguments. If a reviewer insists on putting two spaces after a period because they learned that in college, you can ignore that suggestion because "that's not our style." Case closed. The most popular style guides are: - The Elements of Style, an indispensable little book for all writers - AP Stylebook, used by most American newspapers and magazines - The Chicago Manual of Style, used by most book publishers Some industries have glossaries or published style guides of their own. For software, there's The IBM Style Guide, The Microsoft Manual of Style, Read Me First from Sun, and the Yahoo! Style Guide. Some companies develop their own style guide, anything from a couple of pages of notes to a 20-page document. If they have one, get it and follow it. If they don't, stick to AP Style. 3. What's your workflow? In B2B (Business-to-Business) content, workflow means who will look at your work after you send it in. Do they have an editor, a designer, or a web developer? Are they in-house or freelance like you? Do they use a blog system like WordPress or an email program like MailChimp? Here's the follow-up: Can you format your text to save others time? One way to do this is to get a sample document and follow these elements: - Standard font, header, and footer - Different levels of headings - Standard boilerplate like About the company or copyright Wouldn't you sooner work with a writer who hands in complete text formatted the way you need it, rather than drafts missing all sorts of bits and pieces that need a lot of work? 4. How will we measure success? These days, every marketing campaign — and every piece of content — is measured and evaluated. In the old days, every copywriter dreamed of writing a control-busting sales letter: a piece that generates more money than anything else the company ever mailed. Today's equivalent in B2B content is the piece that earns more clicks, more engagement, and better SEO than anything else the company ever published. Every marketer uses certain metrics to measure success, anything from clicks to downloads to time on the web page. By asking about this, you show you know more than most writers. And it tells your client that you care about her success. 5. How will you repurpose my piece? Repurposing means recycling the same content in a different medium to help reach more prospects. For example, one piece can be turned into another, like making a case study into a press release. A longer piece can be broken up into shorter pieces, like making a white paper into three or four blog posts. Or shorter pieces can be combined into something bigger, like putting together half a dozen blog posts to make a speech. To find out if a client can use that, just ask. I often say something like, "You can get a much better ROI on this white paper by repurposing it as a set of blog posts, a slide deck, a press release, or a placed article. Do you have anyone in-house to do that for you?" If they answer "No," or "Yes, but we're already slammed with work," that's your opportunity to offer your help. Who better to repurpose a piece of content than the writer who created it in the first place? A cheat sheet for answers to those five questions … Here are the answers I usually get, even from fairly big companies, and the answers you can give in response: - No, but we've been meaning to develop some personas. (You say, "Maybe I can help you get started.") - We don't have any standard style guide. (You say, "Okay. I use AP Style.") - Your drafts will be reviewed by our team, and then sent to our designer. (You say, "Is there anything I can do to make it easier for your designer?") - We look at the number of downloads and the number of leads. (You say, "Okay" and realize that you'll need a snappy title to encourage downloads.) - No, nobody in-house has any time for that. (You say, "Can I help you with that?") In some ways, simply asking these questions will matter more than how your prospect answers. Each question helps you stand out from the crowd as a professional. Best of all, they will get your client talking about themselves, their policies, their workflow, their team … and how you can help them. Once they start picturing working with you, you're getting close to signing the deal. Keep these five surefire questions handy and add them to your copywriting client intake interview. Use their answers to provide better service and create more effective and engaging copy. You'll become their "go-to" copywriter for future projects. (Editorial Note: Gordon has written white papers for clients in a variety of industries. The demand for white papers is so high, he turns away 75 prospective clients a year! With the proper training in these "research reports," you can unlock a writing revenue of up to $8,000 per project. Master this in-demand writing gig now with our new White Paper self-paced program. [Go here]( to grab it now while $59.40 today gets you access.) What's Hot at AWAI … 🔥 FLASH SALE: [Grab our self-study program on White Papers now. Just $59.40 today gets you access!]( 🖐 [Strategies to identify keywords for white papers.]( 🙋 Is this you? [Calling All Armchair Detectives … Puzzle Lovers … and Curiosity Seekers: Discover the "Hidden Gem" of the Writing World]( 🤩 [From surfing to parenting, engineer builds life of freedom — and wealth — with copywriting.]( Scott teaches skiing with copywriting lessons! [Copywriter Scott Martin] Copywriting veteran Scott Martin is always amused that he's able to use the skills he has as a direct-response copywriter to help people become better skiers. There are some surprising similarities between copywriting and ski lessons! There are so many different ways you can use your copywriting skill outside of the freelance writing world. Read more about how these two things go hand in hand [here](. Have your own story to share? Email us at mysuccess@awai.com, or [post it over in the Facebook group](, so we can celebrate your win too! Your ALL-ACCESS Key — Just $1! 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