Interview with Anne Michelsen [greengirl] on Whohub

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What is your specialty: creativity, contact, or research?

I'm a freelance copywriter for companies providing Green or sustainable goods and services. So you could say I specialize in creating sales- and lead-generating written material - anything from ads, sales letters and brochures to articles, white papers, blog posts and press releases.

Research is a really important part of what I do. I have to be aware of not just the technical aspects and product specs, but also have a deep understanding of the target market - how and what the buyers of the product think, believe and behave. It's really like being a detective and a psychologist all wrapped up in a creative bundle.

In my private life I'm also a visual artist. My husband and I run a couple of businesses and I've been doing the graphic design and other visuals for our own companies for a couple of years. I'll probably add graphic design to my list of services sometime in the future. For now, though, I'm concentrating on writing for my professional work.

Please list some brand names or clients that you have worked for.

My first freelancing job was for Net Profit Explosion, a company that sells infomarketing products to fitness business owners. Mostly I was just editing articles, but it was an eye-opening job. They won the Kennedy-Glazer Infomarketers of the Year award about the time I was working for them, so they obviously know their stuff. Since my job was to read through a whole slew of marketing-related articles, I learned a ton.

Since then I have focused on writing for my niche (Green and sustainable companies.) I've worked with Cabot Green Investor, I blog for Ecozeal.com, and currently I'm working with Fashion & Earth (fashionandearth.com) on their landing page and email copy.

Have you got a blog or web page?

You bet. You can visit me at www.GreenInkCopywriting.com. I also have a sustainable living blog called Living Green: www.yourgreenlifestyle.blogspot.com.

What do your clients value more, strategy, creativity, design, or return of investment?

For the sales work, ROI. That;s a no-brainer. For stuff like articles, it's more the interest factor and providing value to the client, but in the end it all boils down to ROI.

The word 'creativity' is much-used in advertising, yet most commercials are annoying, why is that?

Well, you can be creative and very annoying. Just listen to most of what's on the radio.

You can also be creative and totally irrelevant, which is where a lot of commercials fall flat - whether or not they're annoying or even engaging. If you're not appealing to the customer's needs and/or desires, the ad won't bring in sales, no matter how "creative" it is, and even if people actually enjoy it.

I think the annoying factor comes from having to bust through all the competition and grab people's attention. It's easy to get lost in all the static.

Can a bad advertising campaign sell well?

If it sells well it's not a bad campaign. Get my drift?

Which advertising agencies and directors seem the best to you at this moment?

The best ones are the ones making money for their clients. Period.

How do you respond to the classic quote, "I love the idea, but right now's not the time"?

That really depends on the situation and the rationale. I don't think there's a pat answer to that one.

What brings you the most satisfaction: when your advert pleases your boss, your client, your friends, or your mother?

It's all about whether it brings in the dough.

How do you see the transition between traditional advertising and online advertising?

I think with online advertising you're dealing with more focused people who want to cut right to the chase. They're usually online for a reason - they're trying to solve a specific problem. So they have very little patience for irrelevance - they'll click away in a heartbeat. Even more than in other media, you want to figure out where they're coming from and give them what they want.

Also they've got more control, so giving them things to make it an interactive experience can keep them engaged with your message.

Personally, I like to see a marketing campaign that uses both online and offline elements. They can really complement each other.

Are people in advertising paid too much?

Yeah, if their ads don't bring a return. On the other hand, I've met copywriters whose clients repeatedly pay them thousands of dollars for a single sales letter and are more than happy to do so because the copy brings in the cash.

Is advertising merely spam?

Only if it's irrelevant. Properly targeted advertising allows people to learn about real solutions to their problems. Is that spam? I don't think so.

Have you ever felt cheated by adverts?

You bet - when they falsely represented a product as being better or other than what it was.

Ultimately, overhyped ads don't benefit anyone. You've got to present the product in the best light possible, but overrated claims just lead to disappointment on the part of the consumer. That's bad news for the company in the long run because it squashes chances for repeat business, which is the most lucrative thing anyway. Besides, word gets around - especially in this age of the Internet.

What is your favourite thing about working in advertising and what is your least favourite?

I never get bored because there are always new challenges. I've always got ideas overflowing in my head and copywriting and advertising always give my mind something to work on. And when a piece has good results it's elating.

On the other hand when results aren't what you'd hoped for it can be very disappointing. But then it's just more incentive to go back to the drawing board and try again.

Do advertising festivals help to improve the industry, or are they only ways for the elite to pay homage to themselves?

I suspect the latter.

When you select an intern to work, what quality do you deem the most valuable?

I'm an independent freelancer, so that question is NA. However, if I were to work with someone, I'd look for three things: the ability to get right on a job and focus; a creative mind; and a thick skin.

Brand names as generators of content hardly ever have success: is the online world different in this sense?

I think content's important online because people go to the internet to educate and inform themselves more than for entertainment.

Does the public buy the product or the product image?

The public buys the benefit the product represents. For instance, if I'm selling an organic blouse, what the customer really wants is better health for herself and her environment (represented by chemical - free fabric), comfort, social confirmation (her friends approve of her choice), etc.

Has your experience in qualitative research served in helping you discover new pathways or, more often than not, to kill good ideas?

It's not a good idea if it won't get the job done. In advertising, the job is to make money. So you always have to pay attention to the research and be willing to change your approach. You have to keep the ego out of it.

IMPACT! Is this the main scale for judging the work of an advertising professional?

Impact is good if it results in sales. Again, the only thing that really matters is ROI. This is business.

What are the main mistakes clients make in judging creativity?

Judging a piece by how they personally react to it rather than how their prospects react.

Is it possible for someone in advertising to communicate well with people of other generations or cultures not their own?

Sure. You have to get inside your prospect's head. It helps to have empathy and an active imagination.

In advertising, what is most effective, frequency or surprise?

Both. Depends on the situation, but both are good.

Is a political candidate the same as a product?

How do you explain the way in which some brands have been able to expand so widely and rapidly without advertising? Are the laws of marketing changing?

The situation is changing. Consumers have a lot more influence on each other due to technologies like the Internet and text messaging. Word of mouth is worth a lot.

I think companies today really have to toe the line and make sure they provide truly good products and services to their customers. Because if they don't, the whole world will hear about it.

What advice would give to someone who wants to join the ranks of advertising?

Figure out who's at the top of your field and eat up everything they say. Spend a little money to educate yourself. Then put what you learn into action, and keep at it!

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