How a year in Japan made me a better copywriter
View the article on Ample.co here.
Before I started at Ample, I worked as an assistant English teacher in rural Japan. Every day was a challenge. Although I’d taken a year of Japanese as preparation for the move, I was in over my head. I had expected levels of English comparable to what I’d experienced after traveling in Southeast Asia, where the economy relies on tourism and English seems to be rampant.
In Japan, however, I was not in a tourism hot spot. I got randomly placed in Fukui — notorious for being the number one least-visited prefecture in the country. Without a tangible need for English, I had more trouble communicating than I imagined I would. That, combined with a lack of real teaching experience, made for 15 months of… learning experiences.
When I ultimately moved back to Cincinnati and applied for copywriting jobs at advertising and web development agencies, it seemed I was doing a 180. But it wasn’t until I really began digging deep into my work that I realized just how much I’d actually learned about copywriting while navigating through rural Japan. Here are three things that, as a result of my time in Japan, I regularly think about when copywriting today:
1. Think way outside the box (even on a tight deadline)
On a typical work day, a Japanese-English teacher would come to me with a grammar point in the junior high textbook and say something like, “Here’s the unit we’re on. Will you come to class in an hour with a fun activity?” and that was about all the direction that I’d get.
On a time crunch, I had to fill in the blanks on my own and think creatively. It was clear when students were tired of me coming to class with grammar-point-bingo. On my slower days, I’d brainstorm activity ideas so I had a mini database of ideas I could turn to in a pinch. This included everything from fill-in comics to personality quizzes to illustrating original stories.
In a copywriter’s ideal scenario, we get a plethora of information from the client. We comb through the detailed info and pin down a few key points. In a not ideal (but more common) situation, background info is sparse. It’s hard to write the benefits of a product when you don’t know the key selling proposition. But at the end of the day, that’s a copywriter’s job — to be the creative mind brainstorming ways to fill in those blanks and help them stand out from the pack.
Further, it’s always helpful for copywriters to have their own personal toolkit of information, ideas and tactics to turn to. That’s why I make my own word banks for the industries we work with, and I turn to them when they need a new name or catch phrase. Whenever possible, I try to stay a couple steps ahead of our clients. Will they ask about SEO when we pitch a content strategy? How can I be better prepared to take on a request for keyword-centric content? That’s why I set aside time to attend webinars about Google Search Console and LinkedIn, work my way through the Moz Keyword Explorer, or read a chapter in a book about copywriting.
2. Always write to your audience
My first day as a teacher, I perfected my self-introduction presentation, spending a good 15 minutes showing pictures of every country I had traveled to and talking about what I’d studied in college. After a minute or two, eyes glazed over, chatters filled the room, and I was met with blank stares. Yikes.
When students had a chance to huddle up and ask me questions, they’d usually ask me things they were interested in. What was my favorite Japanese character? Did I like KPOP? What kind of club activity did I do when I was in junior high?
Once I could anticipate what my students were actually interested in, I was able to craft my powerpoints with them in mind. A few months in, when working on one grammar point (Do you like ___ or ____?), I thought sure the kids would have fun debating pizza vs. burgers. Instead, they looked unamused. But when I switched the question to Do you like ramen or sushi? The class exploded with a friendly debate. The more I learned from my audience, the more I was able to turn my lessons into a part of their day they actually looked forward to.
When writing copy, always remember that the copy you respond well to, or the copy you think will work for a client, isn’t always going to produce the best outcome. Great copy is a result of a carefully crafted content strategy backed up by research about your customer. And your client is as much your customer as the actual customer you want to reach. The better you know and understand what a company’s marketing director envisions, the easier it is to help them craft the right message for their audience.
3. Keep it short and simple
The more wordy I was when communicating with people who spoke English as a second or third language, the more difficult it was for them to discern what I was saying. Perhaps the most important aspect of my job was minimizing my extra words to make it short and simple for children learning English as a second language.
This was helpful outside the classroom, too (particularly with the elderly lady I ran into on our bikes at 7/11 every morning). When it was clear that neither of us had a strong grasp on the other’s native language, we’d use our limited vocabulary from the other’s language. I noticed, and appreciated, when they’d oversimplify their Japanese and use gestures to help me better understand. When we communicated in English, I did the same for them when appropriate.
For example, instead of using colloquialisms like “I had a blast this weekend! What were you up to?” I’d instead say something like “I had a very good weekend. How was your weekend?” In these instances, it was absolutely crucial that we keep our exchanges brief and to the point. I had to think: what is the most important thing I am trying to say? Can I cut out any extra words that don’t help get my point across?
When copywriting, save the long, crafted writing for your novel.
The web is a whole other monster. Our brains like shortcuts.
The more words you write, the more it distracts the reader from the product you’re trying to sell.
And in a world where most web users will leave your page after 10 seconds, your copy — whether it’s for a social media post or a billboard — must grab their attention quickly.
That’s why we use bulleted lists and subheads, and it’s also why we use simple, easy-to-skim language.
Although my post-grad experience wasn’t exactly a clear path to copywriting, I gained countless copywriting tactics from my time abroad. So the main takeaway… if you want great copy for your website, I guess you’ll just have to move to Japan for a year. It’s the only way.
However, due to recent travel restrictions, you should instead keep an eye out for more of our copywriting tips on our blog. Or, hire a copywriting team that’ll do the work for you. At Ample, we have content marketing packages that can be customized to fit your needs. Contact us to chat today.
The new normal: how our agency is shifting to fully remote
View the article on Ample.co here.
For years, Ample has prided itself on being an agency that allows employees to work remotely. Whether you’re working in a wifi-equipped cabin in the woods, taking calls at the beach, or multitasking at home with your kids, the partners at Ample have always done their best to recognize that life happens outside 9-5 hours. And some people’s working styles just don’t jive with an open office five days a week. This flexible, trusting culture is what drew me to Ample in the first place.
Now that the CDC recommends limiting large gatherings and advises everyone to stay home as much as possible to avoid community spread of COVID-19, working remotely is no longer a choice for many companies — it’s a necessity. Thanks to their five fully-remote workers, Ample has trained for this, and is already set up with many of the tools necessary for communicating daily with people on the west coast.
But not all businesses are used to telecommuting. For companies that are fortunate enough to have resources to keep business moving, this may be their first time experimenting with new tech and creating a plan for a remote office.
With how quickly the world has took action against the virus in, most managers haven’t had enough time to prepare an extensive plan or guidelines for the necessity of working remotely full-time. Many may be looking for tools that are easy to grasp and workflows that work. There are also online tools, like this one from Toptal, to assess if your company is remote ready.
Here are a few ways the Ample team manages when working remotely, and how our team has adjusted from being partially remote to working from home full-time:
1. Managing projects like a pro
Our project managers are amazing — they stay in touch with clients, keep our internal team on task, and manage company time and budget. But they can’t manage everything with post-it notes and to-do lists.
For day-to-day project management, our team uses Paymo. Paymo is a kanban-style project management board that allows team members to track moveable tasks. Is a task in progress, in review or with the client? A quick look at Paymo will tell you. When you finish, you even get the to-do list satisfaction of moving it to the crossed-off “complete” section.
We also find shared Google Calendars helpful. Maybe you need to run to the grocery store mid day, or go out for a jog. If you’re going to be unavailable for 30 minutes or more, it’s helpful to put it on your calendar. This keeps team members from trying to reach out to an empty desk and then sitting idly for a response. Plus… we all need a break. It’s healthy to block some time off.
Our developers use Github, a platform for collaborating, managing code and archiving projects. There, they can store code repositories and review it before it gets deployed to production — without needing to consult one another in person.
Our designers, a team of three who live in three different states, may be the best equipped for remote work. Among their many tools, they often use Invision, a platform for building interactive prototypes that allows for feedback directly on specific parts of the project.
2. Staying connected over voice and video calls
Ample has 18 employees, and to keep everyone in the loop we have a scheduled 15 minute meeting each morning to briefly run through what we have to do for the day. Stolen right out of the agile development playbook, this “stand up” meeting allows our project managers to identify who is low on work load and who’s probably got too much on their plate, so they can then allocate work more evenly on the spot.
We recently started using Zoom regularly, which allows for video conferencing and screen-sharing. On Mondays, we typically do a longer update (we call it “status”), where we run through everything that needs to get done that week.
For larger companies, this may make more sense to do on a smaller-scale team basis. Since the majority of our team is made of developers, we cover our smaller design and content teams first before diving into the tech side.
Slack is incredibly useful for our everyday interactions, we often use it to share links, start group chats, and maintain consistent communication, (even when we’re all in the office). It may not have been the death of email as many predicted, but it certainly raised efficiency. One downside of Slack that we didn’t notice until we went fully remote was that it limits group calls to a max of 15 people — hence why we started using Zoom for larger meetings.
3. Creating new team traditions
The spread of COVID-19 has been stressful for everyone. Beyond the physical and economic tolls the virus is taking, long periods of isolation aren’t easy on our mental health. Those who looked forward to the social aspects of coming into work every day may face lower levels of productivity without moments to come up for air.
Ample recently held its first virtual “Yappy Hour.” The Zoom video chat was a success — people brought in their pets, kids and spouses, had a drink, and had a chance to unwind from the day and take a break from bad news.
We started a Slack channel called #quarantinefun to share things that make us happy — good news, movie recommendations, childhood pictures — anything to keep spirits high. A few coworkers and I scheduled a weekly virtual lunch break to catch up. We even transitioned our optional Friday morning yoga sessions to video.
Working remotely is a major shift for companies everywhere, but it doesn’t have to mean a loss of communication, friendships or morale. It just means we all have to get a little creative.
Find out what our remote team can do for you here.
What college students need to know about internships
View the article on Ample.co here.
This is the first of three articles about copywriter Rachel Hartwick’s trip to Ohio University. The next two articles about agency careers and finding the right agency for you are coming soon.
My time as a student of Ohio University (OU) taught me a lot. In the classroom, I learned the ins and outs of journalism ethics, interviewing, and conducting research. And outside, I learned how many Red Bulls I needed after an all-nighter at the library (bordering three) and where to get your cat-petting fix (Pumpkin lives in the election office on Court Street).
But there are quite a few practical things I wish I’d known while I was still in college. So when a former professor asked me to come speak to her freshman-level Advertising and Public Relations class in February, I was all in. In addition to speaking to that class, I met with PR students, spoke to classes related to global studies, and presented at the student-run advertising/PR firm. The goal of the trip was to share my experience in agency life as a recent grad and to answer questions about the path that I took.
A lot of students had questions about internships. And although current students face a bigger challenge than I did as they try to navigate the waters finding an internship during a pandemic, a lot of the tips remain evergreen. Here are some questions students asked me about internships.
Where do you find internships as an underclassman?
The first internship is the hardest one to land. Managers want to hire people who already have a little practical experience (and can you blame them?) But that leaves underclassmen lost: how do you get practical experience in the first place if no one will hire you for it?
My way around this was to spend a few hours a week working at a local nonprofit. Yes, it was unpaid — basically volunteering — but because I was writing and managing social media and doing things that would be relevant in a future (paid) position, I framed it as a part-time internship on my resume.
1. Look at the nonprofits in your area. There are tons of organizations that could use your help but don’t post job openings, especially now as a number of nonprofits and charities help people navigate economic uncertainty. I recommend reaching out to nonprofits with missions that are important to you and offering a limited number of hours to help, whether it’s in web development, messaging or social media. You can likely do a lot of the work remotely to cut costs on commuting.
2. Ask where the team might need the most assistance. More likely than not, nonprofits could use an extra hand in things like grant writing, mailing flyers, and running social media. Show exactly what you can do to help them. And it doesn’t have to stop in the summer — if your schedule allows it, you could also agree to a couple hours a week during the school year.
I can’t work an unpaid internship. How would I make ends meet?
Be clear on the number of hours a week you can commit. During my first internship, I lived at home, went in twice a week, and spent the other five days a week nannying and waitressing. And after my freshman year, I officially had my first line of real experience on my resume: Writing Intern for the Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition (and tons of writing samples to show for it).
The following summer, I landed a paid internship that was only part-time, so I found a summer gig as a waitress for evenings and weekends (thanks, craigslist job postings!) Those two first internships gave me the experience I needed to land a full-time, paid internship in Chicago the following summer.
The road to landing something full-time and paid isn’t an easy one, but don’t be afraid to get creative. If you can present yourself as a go-getter with an entrepreneurial spirit willing to put in a few hours a week or projects a month to a good cause, you’ll set yourself up for a paid internship down the road.
I’m not doing much at my internship. How do I make it clear that I want more responsibility?
This will come into play a lot over the course of your career. One of the top reasons people leave any job is because they start to feel underutilized. They may realize they’ve hit a wall and they can no longer reach their professional goals in their current role.
1. Show your value. Spend some time proving that you can get the basics of your job down and don’t need micromanaging. I think all too often, interns and people in entry level positions frame their experience as what their boss “lets them do.” In reality, your manager probably wants to see you eager to take on more responsibility. That means less weight on their shoulders!
2. Express what you’d like to do. Tell your manager the specific projects and work that you want to take on and your plan for success. By proposing exactly what you’d like to do, you make things easier on their end, so all they need to do is give you the green light to start working (as opposed to thinking through a training plan for you).
Both in internships and in your career, sitting around and waiting for work to show up doesn’t make you an asset. Showing your value and willingness to go above and beyond does.
I don’t have much experience yet. What if I’m asked to do something I have no idea how to do?
Of course you don’t know what you’re doing. You’re brand new — they don’t expect you to know. But they will be pleasantly surprised when you push yourself to figure it out. On the first day of one of my internships, my manager asked me if I knew anything about fixing a printer. I didn’t. But I said I’d give it a try. I turned to Google, got on the phone with HP, and had the thing fixed in a few minutes.
Here’s a hint that no one tells you: we are all faking it till we make it. All of us! For even the most experienced writers — and any position, really — every project presents challenges. The joy of agency life is that you are constantly learning about something you may not have known about before. While years of experience will make you more efficient and better prepared to anticipate client feedback, every brand new project will teach you something you didn’t know before.
Few of us are truly experts in anything. In writing about various industries and figuring out tasks outside my job description, I always discover interesting things I wouldn’t have otherwise.
While in college I felt like I had no clear direction in my career path. But looking back, it’s easy to see how each internship experience I had helped lead me to another. You might not end college doing what you started, and that’s all part of the ride.
So, what’s your dream role or dream internship? And what steps will you take to get there? If you want to see when the next role or internship becomes available at Ample, follow Ample on LinkedIn.
What college students need to know about agency careers
View the article on Ample.co here.
This is the second of three articles about copywriter Rachel’s trip to Ohio University (OU). See the last article about finding and thriving in your internship here, and stay tuned for next week’s post about finding the right agency for you.
Last year, Ohio University’s Scripps School of Journalism was named the fourth best journalism program in the country for aspiring editors. Journalism students at OU are required to widen their scope of learning — about half of a journalism major’s course load is general education classes, and they’re also required to specialize in an area that isn’t related to journalism.
Getting experience in tons of different areas was great. I hopped around from newspaper writing to public relations, dabbled in marketing and global studies. But when the time came to sit down and actually search for a job title in a search bar, I was lost. What role did I even want? Where was my expertise? No matter how many lines of experience I had on my resume, when it came time to look for a job in the agency world, I had no idea what to search for.
When I came in as a guest speaker at OU in February, the students I spoke with had similar issues. What follows are some of the questions they asked me, and the insights that I wish I’d known when I started my job hunt.
What kind of roles are there at an agency? And what even is a copywriter?
I think in many majors, we are taught all the skills we need to know to be an asset, but are left confused at what to type in the search bar when we actually open up our computers to look for open positions.
I knew I wanted writing to be a central part of my job, but I had no idea if I should be searching for positions titled “content strategist” or “copywriter” or “brand manager.” I found it helpful to look through a number of agencies in my area and note the positions that sounded interesting. I often reached out to these people through LinkedIn and asked if I could learn more about their role.
What I found was there’s not one secret code to job titles. At some agencies, creative directors come from the copywriting route and others come from art and design. Some research positions require backgrounds in business and others are beneficial to those with a journalism background.
I found that copywriting and content strategy seemed to be the best fit for me. These roles have to do with writing text that is designed to prompt action. That can include things that are just a few words — like the text you may see on a button on the website, or a 6-word slogan on a billboard. It also can include longer assignments, like making a 10-page e-book or ghostwriting a 1500-word article for a tech leader to post on their personal LinkedIn. Copywriters excel in writing with purpose — some even refer to copywriters as “salespeople behind a typewriter.”
I want to freelance with an agency to get my foot in the door. Where do I even start?
Freelancing is a great way to make connections, earn extra cash and gain experience to set you up for higher-level positions immediately after graduation. I wish I had known how to start freelancing sooner than my senior year! One of the most popular places to find work is on Upwork, one of the world’s top freelancing sites. You can get hired to do something as big as writing an e-book or as small as writing someone’s personal LinkedIn overview.
Alternatively, you can look to your own network for work. If you’ve had any agency internships before, look at their copy/content team. Do they need any extra help on a remote basis writing blogs when you’re back in school? What about the team you worked on, is there space for a few hours a week of work? Offering even a small amount of time can set you up to position yourself as a freelancer.
My freelance clients came to me in a mix of lucky recommendations, connections from my internships and even a random person reaching out after finding my website through search. I’ve done everything from helping with broad brand strategy and ghostwriting articles to simply copying & pasting pre-written social media posts daily. Again, it’s helpful to first propose your idea and what you want to do. The worst they can say is no. I got lucky when Ample said yes — and it ended up turning into a full-time job!
I’m feeling burnt out after four years of school. How do I avoid this when starting my first job?
My senior year, the burn out was hitting me hard. In between 18 credit hours, an extracurricular leadership position, three ongoing freelance projects and an on-campus job, I was not ready to walk from the graduation stage into an office for forty hours a week.
After graduating, I spent the summer living with my parents and working as a waitress before moving to Japan to teach English (which is not at all what my degree was in.) I dabbled with freelance throughout, and when I did come back over a year later, I was refreshed and eager for a new challenge. That’s a bit of an extreme route that isn’t for everyone.
For me, the most important thing in my job search was to find a company that valued flexibility. I knew I wouldn’t do well at an office job where I felt trapped and micromanaged. I had family matters that meant I needed to work flex hours a couple days a month. The leadership at Ample already embraced the ability to work remotely, so I knew they were the right team for me. As you interview with companies, pay attention to the people. You’ll probably be able to tell which leadership teams value how much time you spend looking busy at your desk versus how efficiently you can put out excellent work.
I am not interested in working for a company unless it’s in [specific industry/company] How can I get a job in that field?
I’ve been in your shoes, and I know how you feel. As a student, I sat at the meetings of guest speakers and was always more mesmerized by the people who talk about working with a big-name baseball team, a well-known charity or products that we recognize in a grocery store aisle. I thought I would only write for industries I cared about.
Since then, I’ve worked with a lot of brands that may be considered “boring” (storm water mitigation, payment processing equipment, and heavy-duty fleet management, to name a few). The more realistic fact is that everyone needs clear, concise messaging. Oftentimes, the “boring” brands are the ones that need the most help.
I’m not saying you can’t write for that clothing brand or Silicon Valley company that you’ve always wanted to — of course you can! But you may be surprised what you enjoy writing for. One of the perks of agency life or freelancing is that for every mundane client, you’ll probably get one that interests you, too. The real challenge is turning that otherwise drab brand into something intriguing.
Want to learn more about what we do here at Ample? Check out what my coworkers across departments have to say about their roles on the blog.
What college students need employers to know
View the article on Ample.co here.
This is the third of three articles about copywriter Rachel’s trip to Ohio University. See the other articles about internships and agency careers here.
When it comes to workplace expectations, a lot has changed in the past few years. And even more has changed in the past few months of the tumultuous year that is 2020. COVID-19 forced companies to finally give remote working a shot, and businesses took a harder look at their diversity and inclusion efforts. Managers and business owners may benefit from learning what company perks will appeal most to new talent entering today’s job market, and today’s recent grads are looking for companies that are supportive and inclusive.
The following points come from an open-ended conversation I had with the students of the Global Leadership Certificate (GLC) classes when I went to Ohio University as a guest speaker in February. Students in the GLC program come from a variety of majors, everything from political science to graphic design to industrial systems engineering. I posed the question: “What would be important for you in a job?” and these are some of the questions they said they’d be asking themselves when looking into a company.
Is there a sense of community in the office?
Students wanted to be in an office that was collaborative rather than competitive, leveled-out rather than hierarchical. When you’re spending 40 hours a week in the same place, you not only want to get along with, but also genuinely like the people you’re spending so much time with. Especially for recent grads who often are starting anew in a different city, having a great office community is an integral part of building connections with colleagues or even making friends.
Can I work from home?
Even before the pandemic made working from home a necessity, the message I got back in February was clear: students are seeking flexibility, freedom and autonomy in their job. And that meant being able to work from home (WFH), at least from time to time.
Although it’s hard to say whether or not offering a WFH option will make companies more productive overall, the fact that many have developed a work from home workflow since the pandemic shows that it’s definitely possible. Twitter announced that some of its workforce will now be working from home forever, and Facebook said that half of its employees will be working remotely in the next 5-10 years. This may be a post-COVID norm that’s here to stay — and that’s a major plus for Gen Z.
What kind of employee benefits does the company offer?
In a recent study, researchers gave 2,000 people a list of benefits and asked how heavily they would weigh each one when deciding between a high-paying job with less benefits and a lower-paying job with more benefits. Topping the list, 88 percent of respondents said better health, vision and dental insurance was such an important benefit, that it would be enough to take a lower paying job.
Among other benefits that people in the study valued: more vacation time, student loan or tuition assistance, paid parental leave, free fitness or yoga classes, coffee and snacks, and flexible or WFH hours. The study noted that many larger companies have some unique benefits, like a free sum of money to donate to a charity of your choice after you volunteer for 10 hours, college scholarships for children of employees, and stipends for eco-home improvements.
How does the company commit to diversity & inclusion measures?
According to a report by Deloitte, generations view diversity & inclusion differently. Gen Xers and Boomers tended to believe that it meant equal and fair representation regardless of demographics. Millennials, on the other hand, saw diversity as combining different backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives to lead to innovation. My conversation with students showed that they tended to agree with the millennial perspective. Diverse, top talent has countless opportunities and less tolerance for unhealthy work environments.
When job candidates ask about company culture, they may really be asking about diversity and inclusion. Eight-three percent of millennials and Gen Z are more engaged when they feel they’re in an inclusive environment. Other companies have helped diversify their talent pool through a unique variety of benefits; while some may value a generous parental leave policy, others may be drawn to a sabbatical program. Above all, recent grads will be looking for a company that is authentic in their diversity efforts — not simply filling a quota.
What efforts does this company make to be more environmentally sustainable?
Students told me that they value companies who are aware of their carbon footprint and make efforts to reduce the impact. Going green is great for business, too. Corporations that put environmental sustainability practices into action are often more innovative.
When a corporation’s leadership is challenging the norm to find greener alternatives, they’re more likely to encourage their staff to challenge the norm in the work they put out, too — leading to more creative ideas. In return, companies could see a positive impact in their public reputation and financial returns. Whether it’s ensuring your office has recycling, committing to a paperless workspace, or adding tree-planting or trash cleanup events to your company calendar, there are a number of ways to commit to being more environmentally sustainable as a company.
How does leadership support their staff?
The soon-to-be grads made it known that working with a manager who had less than ideal leadership skills would be a definite deal breaker in a job. The days of Horrible Bosses just aren’t tolerated like they used to be. In 2013, three quarters of Americans said the most stressful part of their job was their immediate boss. But millennials (and likely Gen Z too) are said to be less likely to put up with bad boss behaviors long term; they care more about their working relationships than generations in the past. The students I spoke with made it clear that it’s imperative to have leadership that not only challenged them professionally, but also respected and supported them.
So, how does your company support today’s new talent? And what improvements might you be able to make to retain your employees? Through empathy and understanding, Ample tries to build and cultivate a work environment that makes for a sustainable work-life balance. Learn more about careers at Ample here.