You sit down at the keyboard, all full of cheer and smiles. It’s a new year and you are psyched up to tackle the to-do list. You have decided to be your own copywriter this year. You’re going finish those new web pages, spruce up the old landing pages and actually get your email newsletter out on time each month.

That’s when the dread hits you.

I call it ‘copywriter dread.’ Some call it the January Blues. Perhaps you prefer ‘back-to-work-itis’?

Whatever you call it, there are ways to beat back the dread and get productive with your copywriting no matter what time of year.

Here are three verified (by yours truly) super effective ways to kill the dread.

1. Borrow a page from Nike’s playbook

‘Just do it’ was such a wonderful campaign because it was so precisely insightful into the workings of human nature. We don’t always know where to begin.

Sometimes being a web copywriter isn’t easy. Self-doubt There’s a blank page just staring back at you. Your colleagues, friends, customers and strangers will ‘judge’ your writing.

As human beings, we all need to be pushed at times, and at other time all it takes is one small action.

So, just write.

Sit down and start writing. Write anything. Write about not being able to write.

2. Outline

Whenever we run web copywriter training workshops, I always tell the participants to outline their work.

Why?

Because it helps the copywriter in you to let the ideas flow, getting them down on the page by committing you to just doing the outline and not worrying about the writing part (yet).

When the blank page looks back at you like the local bully, you can fight back and just do the outline (see above for Nike-related inspiration). Here’s how I outline a web page:

• Topic and angle: this will become your headline. It doesn’t need to be creative; in fact some pages are better off just saying what they are (e.g. About Us). If you’re blogging, play around with ideas until you find a compelling twist to your topic that will attract attention when you share the post.
• Goals: what is the one thing the page needs to do? Get shared? Get sign ups? Convince readers to look up the pricing? Whatever it is, outline it and write the reader to the goal. Set a primary goal, and if necessary, a secondary and tertiary goal. Any more than that is an indication you have too much going on or don’t know what you want from the page.
• Main points to cover: I try to keep it to the 3 or 4 main points. This keeps my writing tight and helps reduce the chances the reader will be distracted and head off before finishing my page.
• Call-to-action: tell the reader what they should do next. This relates to your goal, but don’t forget the opportunities along the way to create valuable links to further content and to your secondary or tertiary goals.

3. Write a bit at a time

Being part of a copywriting agency brings with it a lot of topic-switching. Sometimes this can be distracting, but often it’s inspiring and creative.

I usually like to write an entire piece all in one sitting. But there are days and topics that require more effort. So I break the process down into pieces.

If you have outlined your work (you should!) then you can focus only on writing each section at a time. This will help your motivation, but also keep you focussed on the topic at hand, and on-target.

That’s it. Just write. Start with the outline. Write each section at a time.

Before you know it, you’ll have reached the end…

It’s not track changes. Nor is it red pens.

These are the tools of an editor and they are useful in providing corrections to text. Most editors are very good at using these tools and most writers accept the advice of the editor, albeit reluctantly.

Unless your project is at the proofing stage, they are entirely the wrong way to feed back to your copywriter about the copy they have written for your brand or business.

Here’s what you can do instead:

Use the ‘insert comments’ feature

Relieve the burden and hours spent reviewing copy by using the more useful feature of the Office and Adobe suites; the comment.

As I pointed out last week in how to get what you need from your copywriter, if you are in the habit of rewriting the copy instead of explaining your ideas or objections, you are not getting the most you can from the relationship with your professional web copywriter.

When you use comments and explain why a passage isn’t working, or to praise a particular phrase that you like more than others, you will be collaborating with the writer and still keeping a hand in creating the language that makes up your brand.

This is productive and it’s a better use of your time (it’s quicker to explain than to make sure it’s all corrected properly). Commenting helps your copywriter and copywriting agency to understand your position and apply a consistency across any new or previously written copy. It also gives them the space to work their magic on your behalf, instead of taking pure direction without any input.

Here’s an example:

Now the copywriter knows why you have a preference and they will use it in all future copy.

Try speaking to each other

Sometimes it’s just easier to talk to someone and explain your views and ideas.

It’s also a good chance to build rapport with your web copywriter. The more you can do this, the more passionate the writer will be with your brand, business and ideas.

Above all the professional copywriter wants to get it right. And they are adaptable.

Copy people are good at expressing what your brand needs to say to your customers in many ways. Speaking to your copywriter will allow him or her to explore alternative concepts with you, putting you at the heart of decisions in the early phases of writing.

Do you use another feedback mechanism?

We’d love to know how you collaborate with your copywriter to get better results. Do you use email, Twitter or Skype?

Let us know in the comments.