INKWELL Copywriting, Ghostwriting, PR

Outsourced copywriting solves a problem

I fulfilled an interesting 15-month contract copywriting for a Manchester-based consortium of social housing organisations called GM Procure (now rebranded as Procure Plus).

It entailed writing internal reports, newsletter stories, member interviews, brochures, conference materials, press releases, rewriting the website and anything else that required some well chosen words.

The consortium handled procurement worth hundreds of millions of pounds each year but seemed to run it quite frugally, with very few staff who had very little time. The solution was to contract out the work to Inkwell.

Similar organisations might have hired someone in-house for the tasks I performed. So if you need quality copywriting in your organisation but cannot justify hiring another member of staff, give me a call.

Press releases that get read

 
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A large US company launching their UK operations through a number of franchisees came looking for some press coverage. This is one of a number of cuttings I achieved for them.

The key to writing press releases that get read is to study the style and format of the magazine or newspaper you're sending to. The closer you get to their style, the more of your story they are going to publish. A good photo helps, too.

Copywriter stops for Lancashire lunch

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Ashberry Sandwiches make and deliver sarnies throughout the North West of England. Based in Blackpool, Lancashire they have grown from a single Spar shop to a purpose-built unit employing over 100 people filling, spreading and slicing for Spar shops and forecourts throughout the region.

They asked me to write newsletters for both customers and their staff and media relations for both the general regional press and the trade magazines. We had great success with seasonal stories, which emphasised the company's quirkiness. For instance, we launched a strawberry and cream cheese sandwich for Valentine's Day and linked it to a factory romance that was blossoming among the sliced Hovis!

The Credibility Factor

 

PR in a word? Credibility. Credibility for you and your business in competitive markets.

There are few organisations that can afford to ignore their customers, so promoting your goods and services and accentuating the positive things happening in your company is an exercise that needs to be actively managed. Inkwell Media Relations will do this.

Successful Communications

Targeting the right media, with the right message, using the right words and pictures are the keys to a successful communications programme. Inkwell has proven itself to be effective in turning work-a-day experiences into news stories, turning managing directors into interesting, vocal spokespeople for their businesses & industries, and gaining media coverage where none was thought possible.

Your customers want to hear about you  

Many past and some existing clients clearly knew they needed PR when they approached Inkwell but most believed they didn’t have anything interesting to say. Some even believed that PR was about inventing fabulous stories about the company to get publicity (some still believe this).

Let us set the record straight. We have never met a company that did not interest, excite or amaze us (sometimes all three). The simple rule is: if it interests us, it will interest others. And if it is interesting, why invent?

Doing good and getting the credit for it

There are readers of a publication somewhere who want to hear what you have to say, what you have to sell, and how you can help them in some way. Media relations starts by researching your market, finding those publications that serve that market and presenting you in an approachable way by making you interesting to journalists looking for good copy.

PR has been described as “Doing good and getting the credit for it” – you do good, while we make sure you get the credit for it. Let Inkwell be part of your success story.

Customers are people first, and they want to read about people. So if you are articulate or passionate about your business and your industry we can shape that raw material into a form that editors and reporters can use.

We offer:

• Careful consultation and research of your market – of both your competitors and your customers
• An honest assessment of the potential success of press coverage – what, where, when, why, who and how
• Dynamic and punchy press releases
• Article writing and placement - for example, regular columns for your local papers
• Opinion ‘soapbox’ features
• Press photography
• Access to our contacts book and press release distribution
• Tracking forward features

A Few Thoughts on Media Coverage

Why is PR taking a more central role in marketing these day?

Because rising media costs & sceptical consumers have forced companies to seek the third party endorsement of editorial to get their message across. In a word, they want credibility. In an age when many manufactured goods are very similar, the difference is often good branding and clever P.R.

Fighting shy of the media?

More than ever, well-written and targeted press releases with great pictures are an essential part of business communications. This is important for both corporate P.R. (enhancing the name of the company and its brands) and marketing P.R. (launching & supporting new products and services). Many companies fight shy of the media but it is essential to maintain regular contact and build up goodwill through customer service opportunities, awards/good practice, new products, unique services and ongoing good news stories.

What’s the good news?

The Inkwell PR strike rate on press releases is excellent - this does not mean to say we will achieve press coverage for every single story but with our own background in journalism we do have an eye for what will 'run'. You will be surprised how much good news there is in your company that news and features editors are crying out for.

Help reporters?

Both print and broadcast reporters are endlessly racing to meet copy deadlines. We intend to help them by offering topical and entertaining press releases about your company that have impact. We will help you prepare for interviews by predicting the motivations of questioning journalists (it’s their job!). We can also advise on ways to make a happening into a story or a story into an event.

Timing is all

Timing is often a critical factor when looking for media coverage, so good stories should be saved for maximum impact while seasonal pieces can be planned in advance for best placement. Not every story from your company will have a celebrity, a cute kitten and a unique wow factor, so manifestly weak stories need careful planning to gain media coverage - very strong stories require even more planning to maximise impact and gain those extra column inches.

Virtual-ly Guaranteed

Photo Panorama came to me looking for a plug in the business pages of the regional press. And that's exactly what they got. We identified the uniqueness of his business (always an eye-catching feature for the local press) and worked up a great picture (by Martin Bostock) to accompany the press release.

The client got plenty of column inches and a large cutting from the top-selling regional newspaper in Lancashire and a terrific photo he can use for other marketing purposes - all for the price of a tiny advertisement in the same newspaper.

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