A version of this story appeared in Total Annarchy, my fortnightly newsletter that helps you be a better writer, storyteller, marketer. Get it in your inbox; you’ll love it. * * * Above ^^ is a sign I read in a hospital waiting room a few days ago. It’s one of the top hospitals in […]
storytelling
What I Learned in 3 Years of Writing a Newsletter
A version of this story appeared in Total Annarchy, my fortnightly newsletter that helps you be a better writer, storyteller, marketer. Get it in your inbox; you’ll love it. * * * Three years ago this week—in January 2018—I decided to start a newsletter. Why? I wanted connection—not one-to-many social media connection, but me-to-you direct […]
How This Marketing Program Cleaned Up: A Case Study in B2B Storytelling
A version of this story appeared in Total Annarchy, my fortnightly newsletter that helps you be a better writer, storyteller, marketer. Get it in your inbox; you’ll love it. * * * Pop quiz time: You run Marketing at a B2B company that sells industrial floor-cleaning equipment. You want to amp up awareness and demand with […]
Pumpkin Spice Couches: A Case Study in the Power of Copywriting
A version of this story on the Power of Copywriting appeared in Total Annarchy, my fortnightly newsletter that helps you be a better writer, storyteller, marketer. Get it in your inbox; you’ll love it. * * * How do you sell two used couches upholstered in the exact, unfortunate color of the poop emoji? 💩 […]
Making Boring Writing Fun Again: What We Can Learn from Stink Bugs. (Yes, Seriously.)
Here’s the best writing I read all week. It’s 170 words tucked into a belly of a 7,000-word article. And yes… it’s about stink bugs. Stay with me. Because those of us writers who write about B2B “solutions” or other boring or complex things can learn a lot from the vivid description of these […]
These Two Incredible Stories from the Morning Newspaper Will Inspire Your Own Storytelling
For all the stories of gutted newsrooms and struggling newspapers, there’s still an awful lot of innovation coming out of journalism. Staffed as they are with storytellers, writers, and illustrators, newsrooms can offer marketers and content creators a lot of storytelling inspiration. Here are two of my recent favorites. I The Boston Globe‘s Metro section […]