Writing has been an integral part of my life. I love to write, and I have been fortunate to have a career that has allowed me to incorporate this skill into the work I do.
Below are just a handful of samples of writing I have done for Downtown Little Rock Partnership. In addition to weekly newsletters and official email correspondence from the organization, I have written countless press releases, media advisories, talking points documents, and media pitches.
My primary writing responsibilities involved drafting copy, both for social media and advertising purposes. I also copy edited our annual downtown magazine and all other advertising materials we had produced on our behalf.
Press Releases and Talking Points
Advertising Copy
Social Media Copy
There are several steps I take before working on social copy. I like to first sit down and think about the purpose of the campaign. Whatever that purpose is - whether informational, compelling audiences to take an action, or other, it becomes the guiding light to all of the copy and allows me to develop a voice for the whole campaign.
I tend to prefer voices that are personal and not clinical-sounding. I believe this approach humanizes the brand and makes the message more appealing. This of course can be taken too far, but as long as each post is written clearly and simply, the effect holds.
With purposes and voice established, I brainstorm a list of all major posts needed for the campaign. What are the highlights, what is the information that needs to be conveyed? Each post will in turn have their own purposes, whether to give a specific piece of information, excite those following along, or to ask the audience to purchase a ticket or fill out a survey. The goal of this exercise is to develop a working timeline as well as a reasonable list of content and media that will be needed to accompany the copy.
With the voice, content needs, and schedule in mind, I draft all of these major posts. Some details will be left blank, but the bulk of the work is getting sentence structures in place. This also helps to ensure that each post is different enough from the ones that came immediately before and after. Once drafted, it is important to look at the copy again and again, making sure it is as clean and clear as possible.
After any necessary approvals, I begin executing the campaign. As with anything in social media, I am always prepared to alter the approach or plans as soon as analytics for the initial posts are ready. It is important to evaluate and reevaluate constantly during a campaign.
All that said, it is also important to understand the audience you are trying to reach. Sometimes it will be necessary to post quickly and creatively, and it is always important to engage.
