neilhickson.co.uk
type: channel
description: Copywriting|Photography|Digital Marketing
date: 2022-03-07T20:58:22Z
update period: hourly
update frequency: 1
update base: 2000-01-01T12:00+00:00
generator agent: https://wordpress.org/
items: Instagram videos – January-February 2022
items: The copywriter’s guide to urination
items: Give your audience what they want
items: Mono magic in Pure Cheshire magazine
items: Canal walk July 2020
items: Why write a blog post?
items: What’s the biggest website mistake?
items: Building an online store
items: Features vs Benefits
items: If you don’t like selling, try marketing

Instagram videos – January-February 2022
type: item
creator: Neil Hickson
date: 2022-03-07T20:25:53Z
subject: content marketing
subject: Social Media
description: neilhickson.co.ukInstagram videos – January-February 2022 The post Instagram videos – January-February 2022 appeared first on neilhickson.co.uk. Neil Hickson
encoded: neilhickson.co.ukInstagram videos – January-February 2022 I’ve proven to myself over and over that video content on social media channels gets more engagement than still images or plain graphics. Here is a small selection of social media graphics that I wrote and edited in January and February 2022 for Instagram and Facebook channels. The post Instagram videos – January-February 2022 appeared first on neilhickson.co.uk. Neil Hickson

The copywriter’s guide to urination
type: item
creator: Neil Hickson
date: 2021-01-18T10:51:51Z
subject: content marketing
subject: copywriting
subject: marketing strategy
subject: website
description: neilhickson.co.ukThe copywriter’s guide to urination One thing I see business owners do over and over again is to cover their website with the words we, I, and us. Now, as a business owner you’re probably proud of what your company does, it’s natural, you can’t help yourself. If you have a product or service that you believe it, you just […] The post The copywriter’s guide to urination appeared first on neilhickson.co.uk. Neil Hickson
encoded: neilhickson.co.ukThe copywriter’s guide to urination One thing I see business owners do over and over again is to cover their website with the words we, I, and us. Now, as a business owner you’re probably proud of what your company does, it’s natural, you can’t help yourself. If you have a product or service that you believe it, you just want to tell the world how good it is and quite rightly so. The thing is, that’s all about you. It’s like going for a first date with someone, and all they do is talk about is themselves. Now, at some point, you will want to know more about your date, but when you first meet, if it’s all one way, there probably won’t be a second one. What customers really need when they land on your website is to feel that you are interested in them and solving their problem. They typed their problem into Google, so that’s what they want an answer to. They need to feel empathy and that you really understand them and their needs. So that’s what you need to talk about. Them and their problem. Here’s what you need to do. Take a look at your website, your home page or one of your landing pages. If you’ve ‘wee’d’ all over it, you need to mop it up fast and change we for you. Look at re-writing the page so it talks about your customer and their problem, not just about you and how good you are. An example. ‘We are a great, award-winning agency, we have a fantastic team, we have worked with some prestigious clients. Change that to, ‘Are you looking for a website to promote your business, you need help to achieve your business goals, our company can help you. We’ve built websites for some prestigious organisations, so imagine what we can do for your business. You will get better results, more leads and more conversions. Never forget, it’s all about your customer, it’s not about you. The post The copywriter’s guide to urination appeared first on neilhickson.co.uk. Neil Hickson

Give your audience what they want
type: item
creator: Neil Hickson
date: 2020-12-02T08:08:06Z
subject: content marketing
subject: marketing strategy
subject: Video
description: neilhickson.co.ukGive your audience what they want The post Give your audience what they want appeared first on neilhickson.co.uk. Neil Hickson
encoded: neilhickson.co.ukGive your audience what they want There is little point in writing content for a blog post, podcast or video if your audience won’t be interested in the subject. The way to being a success is to be useful and provide something that people want. Quite often they want the answers to questions that your business can easily provide them with. Go ahead. Start by answering a question then people will enjoy consuming your content. Watch the video and I’ll explain. The post Give your audience what they want appeared first on neilhickson.co.uk. Neil Hickson

Mono magic in Pure Cheshire magazine
type: item
creator: Neil Hickson
date: 2020-07-24T07:20:40Z
subject: monochrome
subject: photo essay
subject: Reportage
description: neilhickson.co.ukMono magic in Pure Cheshire magazine The post Mono magic in Pure Cheshire magazine appeared first on neilhickson.co.uk. Neil Hickson
encoded: neilhickson.co.ukMono magic in Pure Cheshire magazine <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="400" height="516" src="https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/C066142C-A1DC-4D39-A655-4B36DC1761F3-400x516.jpeg" srcset="https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/C066142C-A1DC-4D39-A655-4B36DC1761F3-scaled.jpeg 479w, https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/C066142C-A1DC-4D39-A655-4B36DC1761F3-400x516.jpeg 480w" sizes="auto, (max-width:479px) 479px, 100vw" class="wp-image-6576" /> <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="400" height="516" src="https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/E00A45CD-CDA1-48C0-B0A8-9ECF37BD5653-400x516.jpeg" srcset="https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/E00A45CD-CDA1-48C0-B0A8-9ECF37BD5653-scaled.jpeg 479w, https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/E00A45CD-CDA1-48C0-B0A8-9ECF37BD5653-400x516.jpeg 480w" sizes="auto, (max-width:479px) 479px, 100vw" class="wp-image-6575" /> <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="400" height="516" src="https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/6307FE68-0F74-4298-9AEB-46860A960BB3-400x516.jpeg" srcset="https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/6307FE68-0F74-4298-9AEB-46860A960BB3-scaled.jpeg 479w, https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/6307FE68-0F74-4298-9AEB-46860A960BB3-400x516.jpeg 480w" sizes="auto, (max-width:479px) 479px, 100vw" class="wp-image-6574" /> <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="400" height="516" src="https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/39B61F67-47D6-4D59-9E19-472320435226-400x516.jpeg" srcset="https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/39B61F67-47D6-4D59-9E19-472320435226-scaled.jpeg 479w, https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/39B61F67-47D6-4D59-9E19-472320435226-400x516.jpeg 480w" sizes="auto, (max-width:479px) 479px, 100vw" class="wp-image-6573" /> <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="400" height="516" src="https://neilhic…

Canal walk July 2020
type: item
creator: Neil Hickson
date: 2020-07-05T10:52:57Z
subject: landscape
subject: monochrome
subject: photo essay
description: neilhickson.co.ukCanal walk July 2020 The post Canal walk July 2020 appeared first on neilhickson.co.uk. Neil Hickson
encoded: neilhickson.co.ukCanal walk July 2020 <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1333" height="2000" src="https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Photo_7.jpg" alt="Image of grasses from July canal walk" title="Photo_7" srcset="https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Photo_7.jpg 1333w, https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Photo_7-1280x1920.jpg 1280w, https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Photo_7-980x1470.jpg 980w, https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Photo_7-480x720.jpg 480w" sizes="auto, (min-width: 0px) and (max-width: 480px) 480px, (min-width: 481px) and (max-width: 980px) 980px, (min-width: 981px) and (max-width: 1280px) 1280px, (min-width: 1281px) 1333px, 100vw" class="wp-image-6536" /> Whenever I’m photographing for myself these days, I tend to work in Black and White. I love monochrome images, but taking landscapes with no colour takes some work. Without the power and punch of colour you have to work much harder on your composition. It’s a great way to lose yourself getting totally absorbed in what you’re doing. <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="2000" height="1333" src="https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Photo_3.jpg" alt="another four leaf clover - Neil Hickson" title="Photo_3" srcset="https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Photo_3.jpg 2000w, https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Photo_3-1280x853.jpg 1280w, https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Photo_3-980x653.jpg 980w, https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Photo_3-480x320.jpg 480w" sizes="auto, (min-width: 0px) and (max-width: 480px) 480px, (min-width: 481px) and (max-width: 980px) 980px, (min-width: 981px) and (max-width: 1280px) 1280px, (min-width: 1281px) 2000px, 100vw" class="wp-image-6532" /> As we walked along the canal towpath, my daughter picked up her second four leaf clover in two weeks. She now has a collection of six. I’ve only ever found …

Why write a blog post?
type: item
creator: Neil Hickson
date: 2020-06-10T16:32:39Z
subject: content marketing
subject: marketing strategy
description: neilhickson.co.ukWhy write a blog post? To write a good blog post, first you need to ask yourself 'what is my controlling idea?' The post Why write a blog post? appeared first on neilhickson.co.uk. Neil Hickson
encoded: neilhickson.co.ukWhy write a blog post? From the other side of an open-plan office, I could hear the frustration in her voice. She explained to her colleague that this blog post had taken up most of the morning, and there was no end in sight yet. I had to see what she was doing. “Angela, what are you trying to write” I asked? She explained that she was trying to write her first blog post, and it was about the services she provides and how businesses needed them. But, she had also added some story threads about her “own personal journey.” I could see her problem. Her blog post could turn into a very long and confusing read, mainly because she didn’t know where she was going with it. The controlling idea If you’ve read anything by Donald Miller of ‘Storybrand’ fame, you will be familiar with the term ‘controlling idea.’ The controlling idea is what you want your writing to do – the ‘why’ of your blog post. You can apply this to any types of writing: blog posts, articles, books, even your shopping list. Why are you writing, and what do you want your writing to achieve? Angela lacked a controlling idea, or, more likely, she had several, and that was her problem. It’s always going to be challenging to achieve a goal if that goal keeps shifting. Was Angela trying to help her customers? Was she trying to sell her services, or display her authority and knowledge? Or, was she trying to tell her life story? She was trying to do all those things, and that gets pretty confusing. If she was struggling to write it, how is her audience going to feel reading it? When we start to write, we all need a controlling idea. That’s at the heart of what we’re writing. Start with the very simple nucleus ‘what do I want this piece of writing to do?’ When you’ve found that, stick it on a post-it note and put it on your monitor. Keep coming back to it and asking yourself ‘is my writing serving my controlling idea?’ Some reasons to write a blog post Here are a few reasons to write a blog post: T…

What’s the biggest website mistake?
type: item
creator: Neil Hickson
date: 2020-05-21T08:28:53Z
subject: copywriting
description: neilhickson.co.ukWhat’s the biggest website mistake? The post What’s the biggest website mistake? appeared first on neilhickson.co.uk. Neil Hickson
encoded: neilhickson.co.ukWhat’s the biggest website mistake? You wouldn’t make a movie like this! Why do it with your website? Imagine a movie set, a professional film crew. The director shouts ‘shoot,’ and the actors stand there motionless. After an uncomfortable pause, the lead turns to the director and asks, “what do we say?” The director can see the scene in his head. The set is great, the lighting so atmospheric. It’s going to look amazing, but there’s no script. Nobody wrote it yet. It gets crazier. The director asks, “where’s the script?’ The sound guy turns to him and explains, “It’s with Sarah in HR, she’s a pretty good writer and she knows a lot about this kind of thing, but she’s quite busy at the moment, so it’s not quite finished.” It wouldn’t happen, right? It happens all the time when people build websites. People choose their colours and fonts, make sure they’re ‘on brand.’ A web designer puts together a great looking site with random filler text. But, it’s all waiting to go online because nobody’s written the copy yet. Design is important, but it’s worthless if it doesn’t have the words. It’s the words that make things happen. And, is Sarah in HR the right one to write the web copy? We’ll see. Think about our movie scenario again. Before anyone goes near a camera, the script is written. It’s the start of everything because it’s important. Not only is the script written, it’s tested, pulled apart, re-written over and over again. People analyse the script to make sure it tells the story needing to be told. The script needs to be right before anything else is even thought about. Web designers know all the technical things needed to put together a website and make it look pretty. But what’s the point of a beautiful website that doesn’t get people to do anything or buy anything. Maybe it’s good for your ego, and boosts your confidence about your business, but it’s not necessarily going to sell anything. A pretty website is all about branding, and branding is imp…

Building an online store
type: item
creator: Neil Hickson
date: 2020-04-04T14:06:52Z
subject: eCommerce
subject: marketing strategy
subject: website
description: neilhickson.co.ukBuilding an online store The post Building an online store appeared first on neilhickson.co.uk. Neil Hickson
encoded: neilhickson.co.ukBuilding an online store Setting up an online store has suddenly become a logical step for many businesses suffering in lockdown. If you have a WordPress based website, Barn2’s Multiple Product Page plugin can have you up and running very quickly. Lots of food businesses are now realising they need to be online to keep going. I’ve been working with Greenslate Community Farm in Billinge on their online marketing for a few years now and the inbound online marketing channels have been increasingly important in the farm’s income. Faced with the current situation the farm has had to shut down their adult learners care farm and cafe. The best way the farm could help the local community was to set up an online shop with options for ‘contact-free’ pickup or delivery, and this has all been put together by volunteers at very short notice. I’ve been running Woocommerce on the farm’s WordPress based website for a few years now. Selling courses and events with the free Woocommerce plugin and the Stripe payments gateway has been smooth and straightforward. But, taking it up to a full-blown online shop took some working through. Multiple Product Page plugin If you are familiar with online shopping (I guess we all are now if we can manage to log onto Ocado) then you’ll expect to see items grouped by what type of product they are. The Woocommerce Multiple Product Page plugin from Barn2 plugins seemed the ideal solution, so I bought it for £79.00 + VAT for a one-year subscription. You can find it here complete with demonstrations of how to set up and use it: <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1920" height="861" src="https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Elementor-Food-shop.png" alt="" title="" srcset="https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Elementor-Food-shop.png 1920w, https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Elementor-Food-shop-1280x574.png 1280w, https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Elementor-Food-s…

Features vs Benefits
type: item
creator: Neil Hickson
date: 2019-11-02T15:32:56Z
subject: copywriting
subject: marketing strategy
description: neilhickson.co.ukFeatures vs Benefits The post Features vs Benefits appeared first on neilhickson.co.uk. Neil Hickson
encoded: neilhickson.co.ukFeatures vs Benefits Sell the hole, not the drill bit Benefits are the most powerful way of selling online Humans are generally nice. Most are friendly, many generous. But when it comes to buying things, people want to know ‘What’s in it for me?’ To sell with words, you need to make good friends with the concept of BENEFITS. Features vs benefits If you’ve something to sell, you’ll want to dazzle people with all that’s good about your product or service. Most people start sales copy by listing the unique properties of what they do. That’s a great starting point, but most of the things listed will be features. There’s an old cliche when people are buying a drill bit, they’re really buying the holes it makes; that’s the true benefit of the product. If you’re selling tickets to a conference, you could mention the brand new state of the art venue, the amazing lunch, the list of influential speakers. Fantastic, but they’re all just features. Car brochures are notorious for listing features. They have endless lists telling you about the leather seats, cruise control and anti-lock braking systems. Again, these are features. Features are great, they help differentiate between products and services, especially when you get down to comparing one product against another. But features are dry facts, they don’t connect to people emotionally. To sell things, you need to show people the benefit of what you have. Benefits connect emotionally; benefits persuade. Dig deeper, when you have a list of features, follow each one with the words ‘which means that.’ Every time you list a feature, hit it with ‘which means that.’ Carry on hitting it until there’s nowhere else to go. Finally, you’ll arrive at your key benefit. For example. We are holding our conference in a new venue, which means that everything works well, which means that you can concentrate on the sessions, hear everything, and take it all in without distractions, which means that you get to make the most fro…

If you don’t like selling, try marketing
type: item
creator: Neil Hickson
date: 2019-11-02T14:49:20Z
subject: content marketing
subject: copywriting
subject: marketing strategy
description: neilhickson.co.ukIf you don’t like selling, try marketing The post If you don’t like selling, try marketing appeared first on neilhickson.co.uk. Neil Hickson
encoded: neilhickson.co.ukIf you don’t like selling, try marketing If you don’t like selling, try marketing <img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1080" height="1080" src="https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/IfYouDontLikeSelling.jpg" alt="" title="" srcset="https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/IfYouDontLikeSelling-1080x1080.jpg 1080w, https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/IfYouDontLikeSelling-980x980.jpg 980w, https://neilhickson.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/IfYouDontLikeSelling-480x480.jpg 480w" sizes="auto, (min-width: 0px) and (max-width: 480px) 480px, (min-width: 481px) and (max-width: 980px) 980px, (min-width: 981px) 1080px, 100vw" class="wp-image-5455" /> I don’t like it, I always seem to be talking about selling these days. I was the most un-salesperson you could ever meet. The thought of trying to ‘flog’ something to people when they didn’t really want it used to make me shudder. I was right to feel like that. You shouldn’t shove things at people they don’t want or need. That’s bad selling. In some ways, that’s the difference between selling and marketing. But, hang on, when I set up my first business I quickly learned I wouldn’t be in business long unless I started selling. We all have to sell. But selling is far easier when people need your product. They are out there somewhere, those people that need what you do. You just have to find enough of them, and that’s really what marketing is about. It could also be that people need something that doesn’t yet exist. If there are enough of them, it’s probably worth developing a product or service that fits their needs. That’s another handy thing that marketing does. Ultimately good marketing ends up in selling, but only because people want or need your product. It’s mutually beneficial to the seller and the buyer. It’s about helping people. It’s about the benefits you bring to the world. I fell in love with the idea of marketing because I hated selling. And now I lo…