So, what's a copywriting smarketer anyway?

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Having spent my youth devoted to literature – I’m talking anything from Just William to Sense and Sensibility – it sort of seemed inevitable that I would end up doing something that involved words.

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Initially this took a spoken form. I was a salesperson. Now, some people shrink away from owning that title – salespeople have a dodgy rep. Think Gil Gunderson from the Simpsons. And, if you’re too young to remember Ol’ Gil, you can pretty much take your pick of toe-curling examples from The Apprentice. In my case though, I revel in the fact that I spent so many years in sales. For the main reason that it has made me better at my job.

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As a writer – particularly a copywriter – it’s basically my job to sell things using words. I come up with ideas and write them down to help businesses, non-profits and sole traders pitch themselves to Joe Public. Whether the end goal is to sell a product, a service or increase awareness – the path to get there is often the same.

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There are a couple of unique traits that good salespeople share with good writers. Incidentally, I like to think that I fall modestly into both categories.

One – be a good storyteller. Stories appeal to our emotions. Emotional responses drive sales. It’s really as simple as that. But, in order to tell the right story in the right way, you also need skill number two. A laser sharp understanding of human nature.

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This is a powerful combination. And, when applied correctly, you can sell anything to almost anyone. Now, imagine that this power couple sits across both your sales and marketing functions. You’ve got yourself quite the duo. And that’s me. A two for the price of one deal.