Yesterday I jumped on a quick call with a potential client and I wasn’t expecting what happened.

They asked a startling question…

“You’re Italian right? So my team was wondering, how can you get the language and messaging right with your copy?”

My old self just starting out 7 years ago, would have froze. Stomach cramping and bullets of sweat running down my forehead. The whole shebang.

My present self got pissed off instead.

Obviously, internally only. I’d never get mad at a client.

So I turned that anger into constructive feedback and another big lesson.

Also I’m just more confident in my process and results, that I know the right answer to that question by now.

I welcome it.

Because it’s my chance at clarifying what good copy is like for people.

A good copywriter is not a poet or a novelist.

Not even a journalist.

Good copy starts with knowing your market, how your audience thinks and behaves.

A good copywriter is more like a detective. And it’s up to them to carefully and obsessively study every single detail of the case.

It’s also why I always say that there’s no such thing as a copywriter’s voice (unless you’re talking about writing to their own audience from a personal brand perspective). Because the voice a copywriter takes, is whatever the voice of the market at hand is!

I love addressing this objection despite the slight twitch of anger bubbling up.

It shows that I care, and that I’m excited about working with the business and about learning.

An example I like to share…

Do you know who Evaldo Albuquerque is?

Probably not.

Well, he’s a copywriter for mega info-product direct-marketing organization Agora, responsible for generating $170,000,000 in sales over 4/5 years.

Thing is, Evaldo is not a native English speaker.

He just knows and has studied the financial market he writes in so well and so thoroughly, that he can write like they speak.

Look it up online, it’s a good story.

Anyway, my point being…

If you’re a non-native copywriter on the rise, don’t worry and focus on the craft and on the research.

If you’re a client looking for copy, be skeptical, it’s only fair. But know that the best copywriters won’t focus on the writing as much as on understanding your market.

And…

Enthusiasm and a positive approach, always pay off 😊

Quote and reflection of the day:

“Even though I didn’t win every time, that was my mind-set. I became a total animal. If you tuned into my thoughts before a competition, you would hear something like: “I deserve that pedestal, I own it, and the sea ought to part for me. Just get out of the fucking way, I’m on a mission. So just step aside and gimme the trophy.”

• Arnold Schwarzenegger, Total Recall

Authority starts with the determination and willingness to be the best at whatever you do. Dominate in your mind before you can dominate in your world.