The Scratch Post

The world of online marketing is a maze of jargon, buzzwords and abbreviations like “SEA”, “SEO”, “PPC”, “Conversion Rate Optimization”, “Growth Hacking” and “Copywriting”. In this article, we’ll help you cut through the buzzwords and make sense of the marketing muddle. Together, Laura, our German SEO strategist and copywriter, and Sabine, a conversion optimisation and copywriting specialist will answer questions like: What is SEO and how is it different from SEA? How do you know if you need an SEO or conversion copywriting specialist? If you hire an SEO copywriter and a conversion copywriter, will they just argue the whole time? Even if you've been in business for years, these insights will help you take a more targeted, efficient approach to future copy and content projects. You’ll learn how to get the most from your time, effort and budget – whether you work in a corporation, startup, non profit or NGO, in the public or private sector.

We crafted creative conversion copy and a verbal identity for the UK’s first plant-based, packaging-free online shop, Forrist. Given that we’re a sustainable copywriting agency, this was our idea of a dream project. Almost everyone on the team had a part to play in the process, which involved brand writing, conversion copywriting, UX consulting and SEO strategy.

Karo Tak asked us about subheadings in blog posts. If you also blog with WordPress, you may have come across the Yoast plugin. It helps you write in a more readable way, but also helps you optimise for search engines. One of the things that Karo often sees in Yoast is that it tells her, "you don't have enough subheadings." Why should you have subheadings in your blog? How can you write better subheadings, and what do they have to do with SEO? In this audit, we'll look at an example post to explain.

Alessandra, owner of Live More Offline, had 2 questions for us: 1. Is this web copy too long? 2. Is it OK to ask people to apply? Or should I offer them a checkout instead? Spoiler alert: The copy in this example was TOO SHORT. And for Alessandra's offer, an application form was PERFECT. Watch the video or read the transcript to find out why.

In this Web Audit, Sabine takes a close look at a product page on a fair-trade, sustainable e-commerce website. What could the website owner do to make the product page convert better?

In this web audit, we're looking at which call to action is best suited to a home page that's supposed to generate leads. Our example is from a business-to-business service context. You can apply the same principles to decide which call to action works best in your individual scenario.

How do you market an 80-page ebook for ecopreneurs? Should you offer it as a lead magnet — or as a paid product? That's the core question we address in this website audit for London-based design studio, Little Green Space.

Sometimes, we like to create a couple of different versions of the very first drafts of a writing project. Take a look behind the scenes and find out about the benefits of our approach.

Content is King. Or is it a hype? In this article, we introduce R.A.C.E. — which stands for a customer focused approach to creating content: 1. Range 2. Accessibility 3. Correctness 4. Effortlessness

As anyone who's ever tried to write an effective lead magnet can tell you, it isn't as easy as just writing a longish blog post. So here are 6 ideas that can smooth your path to hitting 'publish' with confidence — knowing that your lead magnet will resonate with the right people, in the right way.

"No more embarrassing customer service emails!" — It's often this aim that makes companies set out to monitor their customer service teams. But what makes good service writing? We recommend 3 proven quality criteria — making it transparent and easy to train or coach.

Complaints and brand personality — an impossible mix? Some companies think so, and tone their complaint responses down to sound completely neutral.  In this blog post, Sabine shares 4 ½ tips to help your brand shine through, even in the face of complaints.

In this blog post, we'll look at a few example sentences from an email we've had — and shed some light on: - The importance of sentence length for good communication - How to avoid unintentional rudeness by writing simply and clearly - 3 free tools to improve your writing

Auto-acknowledgement emails aren't usually personalised. Still, they set the customer’s expectations about tone of voice, attention to detail, what level of service they’ll get and how long it will take. In this article, we analyse and rewrite an example — and teach you 4 important tips to get your own templates right.

We all like to feel a spark of connection with people we're dealing with. It makes us feel recognised and important. Here's how to write like a human in three easy steps — and a before-and-after example.

We're fans of sustainable fashion, and so we dream of a future where all apparel is transparently made, socially responsible and eco-friendly. On her visit to Neonyt #Fashionsustain 2019, Sabine discovered some encouraging signs of sustainable fashion finally going mainstream — but also 2 major challenges that sustainable fashion must overcome if it wants to change the world. Read on to find out how to market sustainable fashion for maximum impact.

Meet Jack: Business insurance on a first-name basis. Together, we'll show you how to create FAQs that actually help people, how to use FAQs for content marketing, and why your FAQs' tone of voice matters — among other things.

Do you know the words most commonly uttered by our clients? "I don't want to bombard people with emails." Followed by, "Our supply chain doesn't allow us to email people regularly." If that sounds familiar, it's time to break through these barriers and limitations and claim what's rightfully yours: the inboxes of your subscribers, now and forever. This post will inspire and teach you how to make email marketing work for you.

This newsletter signup page Sabine wrote and designed for multi award-winning social entrepreneur and mentor Nyasha Gwatidzo achieved a whopping 60% conversion rate. While a conversion rate of 60% is certainly not a typical result, the steps Sabine took to create this high-converting landing page are still a great guide to writing websites that convert well.

Welcome emails often have the highest open rate of any newsletter email. That’s great — but of course we want all our emails to be read and enjoyed equally. After all, we’ve got important things to say, and we want to add value for our subscribers. So what can you do to increase engagement beyond email number one? Ethical Brand Marketing show how you can use your thank-you email to future pace good outcomes for your new readers. Dive into this email clinic to learn how you can do it, too.

Many social enterprises have a compelling story to tell. Email is one of the best ways to tell it — and win the hearts of your subscribers. But the big traditional brands out there model email newsletters that are all about pictures, logos and discount codes. How can purpose-driven companies stand out from the crowd and engage their readers?

Coromandel Coast is a UK-based specialty coffee brand with a sustainable twist. Named after the region where the coffee is grown, the company specialises in shade-grown Indian coffee that protects wildlife and gives coffee farmers a more sustainable income. In this email clinic, we take a look at the end-to-end experience of signing up to an email newsletter. We’ll look at the difference between building a community vs. building a list, and how brand values shape voice and tone.

One of the most frequent requests we get: a page that contains words or expressions that should be avoided in replies to customers.  So, here it is. 13 examples of what not to write, and what to write instead.

When you’re able to establish trust with a web visitor quickly, they're more likely to stay on the page, take in your entire message, and click through to buy from you. We've identified 4 common mistakes that can put people off when they first come to your website.

Starting a series of posts in which we take a close look at one specific email — putting a positive spin on “copy teardowns”. About these Email Clinics Copy “tear-downs” are having a bit of moment on the internet. For years, we’ve resisted the urge to take part in this movement — even though we […]

Words can make it or break it — in life and in business. From not-quite-convincing declarations of love to inadverturtledly cringeworthy product packaging: Valentine’s Day is always a good reminder that it’s worth spending some thought on how you want to come across, and what words you want to use. Sweet tortoise! Probably the most […]

After a year of building insurance startup With Jack, it was time to optimise the brand message. Ashley, With Jack's founder and director, came to us because the existing website did a good job of conveying the brand ethos — but it didn't tell creatives why they should sign up. Read this case study to learn more about this in-depth conversion copy project to find the messaging that would help grow the brand.

“Help!” Ah, the familiar cry from a brand paying too much per sale from their digital ads. It’s also the subject line of an email that landed in our inbox last year. To save time and advertising funds, Sabine recommended a well-planned email campaign and website optimisation project. The sales email sequence she planned and wrote for this client more than doubled their open and click-through rates. This case study will walk you through the process and results.

You probably know about the power of email marketing to boost your sales, inspire people to take action, and build relationships. And yet, many businesses send Welcome emails that say little more than “thanks for signing up — please whitelist our email address”. With Welcome emails getting 86% higher open rates than other newsletter emails, that’s a tragic loss of a brilliant opportunity to leave a strong first impression and engage readers from the get-go. So in this definitive guide, we've assembled 39 tips and techniques that will help you make your Thank-You email count.