8 Common Copywriting Mistakes (and How to Fix Them)
If I stepped into my kitchen right now and tried to whip up a Beef Wellington, it would not go well. Could I make something halfway edible? Maaaaybe. But I’m not a trained chef. Nor an amateur chef, to be honest. My husband is the cook in this family. I just eat gratefully and do the dishes. If you’re a small business owner or marketer, you’ve probably had to step into the role of a copywriter. But crafting effective copy is a skill that requires training and practice, just like running a successful hotel, event venue, restaurant, or making Beef Wellington. And if you’re not a copywriter by trade, you…
11 Overused Words (and Spicier Options to Try Instead)
There are over 170,000 words in the English language. Yet most of us only use around 1,000 words in 89% of our everyday writing. We default to the same overused word choices over and over, which can make each new piece of writing sound much like the last. While there’s value to plain language, we never want to be boring. Next time you write, do a search for any of these yawner words, and swap them out if you can. Overused Words (and Some Spicier Options) These are words that spring to mind without even thinking about them. If something is decent, it’s good. If it’s better than good, it’s…
The Meteoric Rise in Non-Alcoholic Drinks (And What it Means for You)
Does it feel like you can’t turn around without seeing an ad or announcement about a new non-alcoholic beverage? People are reassessing their relationship with alcohol, and it’s led to a massive glut in alcohol-free beers, wines, and spirits over the past few years. Alcohol consumption certainly isn’t going away, but many drinkers are choosing to imbibe a bit less often, or less heavily, than they did in the past. Here’s what you should know about this trend, and how you can take advantage of it. The Rise of Non-Alcoholic Drinks An increase in non-alcoholic drinks and “functional beverages” has been on every F&B trend list for the past few…
How to Respond to Online Reviews in 10-ish Minutes Per Day
Last week, I went to a fancy restaurant with my husband for a nice dinner. I put on a dress, a little makeup, and (gasp) actually did something with my hair. So this was clearly a special occasion. When we got to the restaurant, we were told that there would be an hour wait, even though we had a reservation. An inauspicious beginning, but these things happen. So we found a place to wait. After an hour and 15 minutes, we were finally sat. And we sat. And sat. And sat. For another 20 minutes before we were approached to place our drink order. Which came out wrong. Then we…
Creative Content Ideas to Make Your Blog Unique
Did I ever tell you about the time I met Fabio? I was a bartender in Boston at the time, headed in to work around 9am. As I crossed the Quincy Market plaza, I saw a big clear box truck parked in the square. Outside the truck, a few people were milling around. Inside, I could see a very large man with long flowing hair and a button-down shirt that was barely keeping itself together. “What the hell,” I thought. “Is that Fabio?” Sure enough, Fabio was in the truck doing a promotion for I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter. There was a faux-Mediterranean backdrop against one wall, and some…
74 Content Ideas for a Popular Hotel Blog
I’m gonna level with you. Hotels have it easy. Not in an overall “the hotel industry is a cinch” kind of way. Just in a “there are a million great topics for hotel blog posts” kind of way. Events or attractions that makes your city sound cool and desirable? Fair game. Any kind of neighborhood or food guide that a potential guest might find useful? Awesome. Updates on what you’re changing around the hotel? Bring it. As a hotel, you have a whole city’s worth of content, waiting to be explored. To get started, it can help to organize your blog into categories that you think would be valuable to…
A Restaurant’s Top Marketing Tool: The Menu
Take just a moment to think about the pillars of your restaurant’s marketing strategy. Your first thought was probably social media. Maybe your website. Perhaps you do some paid ads, either online or in old-fashioned print. But I’d be willing to bet that your menu was not at the top of that list. It may not be on the list at all. Your menu is a tool to help your current guests navigate your food options. But that’s only half of it. It also has to sell people on your restaurant before they even come in the door. According to OpenTable, 93% of people look at menus online before deciding…
You May Also Like
How to Write Menu Descriptions that People Want to Read
How to Write Your Restaurant’s “About Us” Page
Staring at a blank page with the cursor blinking at you can be intimidating. I understand. I write for a living. And for some reason, it gets even harder when you try to write about yourself. That’s probably why there are so many bad About Us pages out there. They’re soulless and don’t say much. If you were to swap out the name of the company, they could easily apply to just about any business. Why write something if you don’t want to say anything? A prospective customer only clicks on your About page because they want to learn more about the company or the founders. So let’s give the people…
The Breakfasts That Fueled Some of History’s Most Interesting People
Why are we so obsessed with morning routines, productivity rituals, and the daily to-dos of famous and successful people? There seems to be this pervading myth that if we set up our days like Steve Jobs, we can be as successful as Steve Jobs. This is clearly cuckoo. If I were to adopt a Jobsian routine of waking up at 6:00am and donning jeans and a black turtleneck, I’d be about as close to founding the next Apple as I am now. That is to say, really, really far away. There is no “right way” to start your day, just like there’s no “right way” to run a business. And…
Get Inspired: Hospitality Copywriting Examples to Feed Your Muse
Good copy does a lot of things. It establishes a brand voice. It connects with the brand’s ideal customer. It clearly explains the product, service, or offer to that customer. And it does all that in a way that makes the prospect want to buy it. One of the best ways to get a feel for good copy is to immerse yourself in it! So I’ve chosen a few examples of hotel, event venue, and restaurant copywriting to serve as inspiration. Each of these independent companies is based in the Austin area, since that’s where I live. My guess is that one may have an internal marketing team that wrote…
