Hello and welcome to this special festive episode of the Hot Copy Podcast. Belinda and I have come back together to roast some chestnuts, neck some egg nog and talk all things copy. So if you’re ready to put up your stockings with us and wait for Father Christmas to slip down your copy chimney, this is the episode for you.

Did you know we've been creating this podcast since 2015 -- never missing an episode? Well, not until 2020. 2020 has been the year of "the surge" for us both. In this special episode, we go through how we've handled working through the pandemic and what's happening with the Hot Copy podcast. Spoiler alert: we're mixing things up in 2021!

Have you ever felt cooped up in a corporate office, staring outside at the trees, wishing you could leave the hustle and bustle of city life behind? Waking up mid-morning, taking a coffee onto the veranda, and staring out at wide-open pastures with birds chirping? While it’s a nice daydream to have, many of us stick it out and stay put. Others, like our guest today, put in the tough hours to make it a reality. It’s not all lazy sleep-ins and fresh country air, but it IS freedom from the...

Figuring out what makes you unique is a tough but essential part of marketing your copywriting services. What if you’ve written for every type of business? What if you’ve seen it all and written the copy? Can oodles of experience be your USP? The answer is yes and we’re excited to talk to a copywriter who celebrates not only her age and experience but her knack for reinvention… and how that’s shaped her copywriting business. Tune in to learn: Life and writing experience – when you’ve...

SaaS copy, is it a super sexy sassy form of copywriting? No! It’s Software as a Service copy. Huh? Well you know big brands like Stripe, ConvertKit, Slack - well yes they need copy. And a particular type of copy. When we write for SaaS companies we’re writing easy to understand words for potentially highly technical products. We need to write copy that shows that this software, that you've never heard of, is absolutely essential for your life. We’re digging deep into the world of SaaS...

Being a guest on a podcast is a fantastic way to increase your reach and boost your visibility and skyrocket that authority. Right? You're a really important person who knows what they're talking about when you're been on a pod. But getting on a podcast is not quite as easy as just asking the podcast host. Today's guest is a podcast guesting specialist and we're digging into how to get on podcasts but so much more. Tune in to learn: How Mai-Kee niched into podcasting pitching How...

Do you want to know a secret? Kate never actually wanted to be a copywriter. Her dream was to be a magazine writer. In fact, she was voted “Girl Most Likely To Write For Smash Hits” when she was at school. But there's more. She was also a feature editor for her uni newspaper interviewing Blur and Bob Monkhouse. She interned at several sexy music mags in London. And she was accepted onto a prestigious magazine journalism course. Whaaaat? But she couldn’t afford it. So she didn’t go. So...

Do you want to know a secret? I never wanted to be a copywriter. My dream was to be a magazine writer. I was voted “Girl Most Likely To Write For Smash Hits” when I was at school. I was a feature editor for my uni newspaper interviewing Blur and Bob Monkhouse. I interned at several sexy music mags in London. And I was accepted onto a prestigious magazine journalism course. But I couldn’t afford it. So I didn’t go. And spent the next 10 years wandering in the wilderness of digital...

As copywriters, we get to hide behind our keyboards – writing the words that put our clients in the spotlight. And for many of us, it’s just where we want to be. But are we doing ourselves a disservice? Today we’re going to be talking to Mike Kim about building a personal brand and what it can mean for us as copywriters and business owners. His own podcast Brand You is where he talks about all those things and more.. But today, he’s all ours.   Tune in to learn: The surprising start...

Human-centered design is an approach to interactive systems development that aims to make systems usable and useful by focusing on the users, their needs and requirements, and by applying human factors and usability knowledge and techniques. The point? To create a better experienced for real-life people. On today’s podcast, we have a veritable whizz at all things human-centered, Anita Siek. She’s going to explain what Human-Centred design is, how it applies to content and copywriting, and...

We are surrounded by art every day. And artists struggle with many of the challenges that us copywriters do… How to create a sense of perceived value around their work. How to market their work to audiences who will not only appreciate it but pay for it too. How to create a successful business without disrupting their creative process. That’s where today’s guest comes in. We’re talking to Ali Strachan, digging into how artists can create a successful business and how copywriters can be...

Did you notice we missed an episode? You’ve probably got bigger things to worry about right now. Like the C-word. We’re talking about COVID19, of course. The truth is, we’ve been a bit scrambled too. Belinda is surviving on wine and 80s music. Lockdown with memberships, communities, courses, launches AND managing the kid’s online learning. It’s a bit bloody much. We wanted to talk about that and what we’re doing to stay sane. We also got some questions about writing copy during this...

Some industries have a very straight-forward process to buy. I have a problem. I research alternatives. I choose one. I give them some money and I get something in return. All very simple. Other industries have a much more complex process. Very big (and expensive) projects often begin with a tendering process. Writing tenders for civil engineering and construction industries might seem like a dry idea to some but that’s what our guest today specialising in… and it’s way more interesting...

How many times have you Googled a symptom? Hands up. We all have. The need to make complex medical information accessible and readable has flourished with the advent of Google and the prevalence of internet access. WHO NEEDS DOCTORS? We do. Of course. But as patients we’re more informed than ever and who writes the content we use to research the latest thoughts on medical science? Medical copywriters! Today we’re talking about medical copywriting -- accurately representing clinical data...

The truth is most copywriters write solo, alone, with no one around but perhaps a farting dog, or keyboard obsessed cat. We need silence and solitude to rouse the creative muse. But can working with another creative brain be a good thing? In agency life we’re often paired with designers (shudders) to work on concepts as a team, but how about being paired with another copywriter, and writing pages of copy TOGETHER!! Dun Dun Der. Is that even a thing? In this episode, we chat about the...

The highs, the lows and the letting go’s.   The truth is most copywriters write solo, alone, with no one around but perhaps a farting dog, or keyboard obsessed cat. We need silence and solitude to rouse the creative muse. But can working with another creative brain be a good thing? In agency life we’re […]

Does cold emailing get you in a cold sweat? Is it something you’ve put off because you don’t want to be accused of being a spammer… Or face rejection, over and over again? Many of us will find anything to do aside from sending a cold pitch email. We create and share content. We go to networking events. We participate in forums and FB groups where our ideal customers hang out. All great marketing strategies but there comes a time when we need to get proactive about our lead generation. ...

Discover the secrets of sending effective cold pitch emails to drum up more copywriting work.   Does cold emailing get you in a cold sweat? Is it something you’ve put off because you don’t want to be accused of being a spammer… Or face rejection, over and over again? Many of us will find anything […]

SEO is a topic we've often see discussed in copywriting Facebook groups and across the web. And most copywriters either seem scared of it, confused by it or just overwhelmed by how to package it and sell it to clients. The question most often asked? What does an SEO copywriter actually do? And can you even call yourself an online writer if you don’t have mad SEO skills? In today’s episode, we walk you through what we think SEO copywriting really means, how to do it, and how it can become...

Setting realistic expectations and ensure you know all the things SEO is a topic we’ve often see discussed in copywriting Facebook groups and across the web. And most copywriters either seem scared of it, confused by it or just overwhelmed by how to package it and sell it to clients. The question most often asked? […]

Christmas is a great time of the year to take a break from your business as your clients are on holidays. It’s also a great time to knuckle down and get some strategic work done… because your clients are all on holidays! In this episode, Kate and Belinda share their own plans for Christmas 2019 and how they’re setting themselves up for success in 2020. Did someone say INTENTION WORD? Then, we go into infomercial mode because the Hot Copy Mastermind is 100% happening in early 2020 and we...

The infomercial episode Christmas is a great time of the year to take a break from your business as your clients are on holidays. It’s also a great time to knuckle down and get some strategic work done… because your clients are all on holidays! In this episode, Kate and Belinda share their own plans […]

Today, Kate is talking to Glenn Fisher, from All Good Copy. He’s an Author, Copywriter, Podcast and Speaker. His book ‘The Art of The Click’ was shortlisted as the business book of the year in 2019. And his podcast - The All Good Copy Podcast - has had a string of awesome guests on it, including me. He has a dog called Pablo, a Crime podcast loving partner called Ruth and lives in merry old England. But as well as being a copywriting celebrity, Glenn is also a working writer, and he...

Strategies and principles to make it easier.   Today, Kate is talking to Glenn Fisher, from All Good Copy. He’s an Author, Copywriter, Podcast and Speaker. His book ‘The Art of The Click’ was shortlisted as the business book of the year in 2019. And his podcast – The All Good Copy Podcast – has […]