Many people need to write business copy as part of their jobs and for whatever reason won’t commission a professional copywriter.

We could jump up and down and complain, but instead we accept the reality.

We’re also adding more free resources to help anyone who wants to improve their copywriting skills at www.copywritingresources.co.uk

These are in the form of an online guide, which we plan to publish as a book when complete.

Visit regularly for further parts and let us know what you need to help you.

When commissioned to proofread magazines, newsletters, reports, manuals and web sites before they are sent to print or published on the internet, often we find major inconsistencies throughout the document, which require considerable rewriting or editing. Sometimes there isn’t enough time to do this and the document is produced with only the worst errors and typos corrected.

Anyone producing a long document can avoid this by assuming the role of editor and managing production from start to finish. By using style guides for both the visual and written content, you can ensure consistency through contributions from many writers, illustrators and designers. 

And because you’re monitoring progress all the time, you won’t be faced by the need to make impossible changes just before going to print or publication. 

It’ll save you time, money and hassle, and also result in a better publication.

Download our free prompt sheet on managing long documents effectively or if you want someone to edit your long document for you, call us on 0845 200 7830 or email us.

There’s quite a bit of doom and gloom in the press and media about the credit crunch, house price falls, consumer confidence and all manner of economic disaster.

As a business, what do you do? Bury your head in the sand and hope it doesn’t happen? Or panic?

Well, there is another way. Make sure your business is fit to compete in a toughening marketplace.

One of the ways to do this is to increase your marketing efforts when others are cutting them. How? Assess all your marketing material: brochures, web sites, sales letters and all customer communications to make sure that every one is up-to-date and promotes your current products and services.

Will it increase your costs at a time when you want to reduce them? A freelance copywriter, proofreader or other specialist should be able to help you revitalise your material at a reasonable cost. And if they help you to increase sales, it won’t be a cost at all.

On the other hand, there are many things you can do yourself and we offer a range of useful free prompts and checklists to guide you through these.

So don’t panic – strengthen your marketing armoury and win more business.

Robert Zarywacz