Archives for July 2011

Blog Archives

Enjoy 1,000+ articles geared to your content-marketing, writing, freelancing or small business endeavors. Scroll down for recent posts, select a category, or browse the archives here.

How to Kickstart Your Book Project

Written by Phil Simon

I’ve been called many things in my life. Patient is not one of them. So when I received strong interest for my fourth book from traditional publishers and was told they’d put it out in spring of 2012… Well. Like I said, I’ve never been called patient.

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Should You Really Call Yourself a Consultant?

Written by

These days, it’s cool to be a consultant. Everyone’s becoming one. Hey, it’s the easy path to fast cash, right? You write a sales page, you promote your new service, and you become an expert. Simple. And most likely, you rock. Your fans and friends tell you that all the time, so it must be true. And they’re great too, and you tell the world all the time about your fantastic consulting clients. It’s a nice way to market your services and get other people wanting to sign up, but it’s true! You love them!

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6 Reasons Every Serious Blogger Should Blog for the Big Dogs

Written by Jennifer Brown Banks

“You’re nobody ‘til somebody loves you,” sings sexy crooner Michael Bublé. He ain’t wrong. You’re nobody in the blogosphere until you’ve been shown a little love by the influential sites that serious bloggers read, Tweet and flock to. You know the ones – they boast six-digit subscribers, have a cult following on Twitter, and bring celebrity and name recognition by association. Don’t get me wrong; you can have a totally groovy experience at lesser-known sites and accomplish many valuable blogging goals through those avenues. But think of it this way: If you had the chance

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Are You Good Enough to Write Professionally?

Written by Taylor Lindstrom

It’s not a question anyone really wants to ask themselves – but it is the most necessary question in professional writing. And if the quality of writing around the web is any indication, it’s a question very few writers ask themselves. Most people starting out as professionals will receive the following advice: write. Just write. Keep writing. I know. I give that advice myself. Recently, though, I realized that this advice is only useful after you’ve asked yourself the all-important question: are you good enough to begin? Because if you’re not good enough to write

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Is Your Work Priceless?

Written by

Imagine a world where the whole game has changed. Some powerful authority swoops down and decides that by law, everyone can only charge one standard price across the board. All writers are paid the same, all web designers are paid the same, and all web developers are paid the same too. You can’t compete with your peers on price anymore – you all cost the same. That means there’s one rate to rule them all and one rate to bind them. No more undercutting the competition with the lowest rate. No more discounts to fill

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How to Stop Hating Marketing

Written by Karl Staib

Marketing should be fun, engaging and exciting. If you think I’m nuts for suggesting such a thing, you’re probably doing it wrong. Let me tell you a little story about a friend I’ll call Tim. Tim was a software developer who enjoyed chatting with people, but hated selling his business. He didn’t want to be that cheesy guy who you avoided because all he did was try to sell you his services. He steered clear of anything labeled “marketing” for fear of becoming that guy. Tim had a superpower: he loved chatting people up. He

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James and the team at Men with Pens helped us write a number of pieces to be used for marketing purposes. James was quick to respond to our questions at...

Nick Domino – Water Damage Defense

James and the team at Men With Pens have been absolutely amazing to work with. When I came to them, I had only the vaguest of vague ideas of what...

Johnny B. Truant – The Badass Project

James and MenWithPens listened carefully to what I wanted and needed , then designed a site and accompanying twitter and facebook pages that went way beyond my expectations. They finished...

Dr. Cory Annis – Unorthodoc

When I hired Men with Pens for the web design (doesn’t it look awesome?), I also kicked off one of the most rewarding professional relationships of my life. James Chartrand...

Peter Shallard – New York Business Psychology Consultant

Working with Men with Pens for my first site redesign couldn’t have been a better experience. Their design and technical knowledge is second to none, they’re scary-fast in terms of...

Amber Naslund – Brass Tack Thinking

Men with Pens? These guys are fantastic! When saw their design, I was so happy, I just couldn't get the wrap-around-grin off my face. Communication skills, creativity, know-how - they...

Mary Jaksch – Write to Done / Zen Habits

I can’t thank you enough for what you and your team has done for our company. Our marketing presence has taken on a whole new attitude, and I think it...

Scott Gin – Better Basketball

I have worked with a lot of designers and copywriters and Men With Pens surpasses them all. After just a few emails they were able to capture my style, tone...

Melani Ward, Marketing Consultant

With a sweep of their magic wand, MWP took my old site and redesigned the look. My traffic went up 35% in two weeks, and book sales have doubled. These...

Mike Davenport – Max Rigging

Men with Pens is a great company, because they are a) smart b) talented c) quick d) funny. What else do you want in a web design firm?

Pamela Slim – Escape from Cubicle Nation

Covered in goals, and bogged down by the steps to accomplish them, I was in need of serious help. That's when I turned to James. One call with her, and...

Adam King – Adam King Studio

My first observation after the Google Analytics code went in is that users are spending 10 times (yes, that's right) as long on the site as they were on the...

Matthew Needham – Big Red Tomato Company

The art in web designing truly lies in the designer's ability to accurately capture the essence of what the client wants, and the skill to translate that into an overall...

Dr. Angelica Perez, Ph.D – New Latina

Our products sales have increased drastically after adding the new copy to our website. Thank you so much! I'll look forward to using your services again in the near future.

Bryant Tutas – Short Sale Superstars

I feel like no words would do them justice and please don’t say, “No pun intended”. This team is out of control good. They do a better job of getting...

Melani Ward

A gal in my yoga class made a huge point of telling me how much she loved the way my blog was written. So personal, so fun, so absolutely ME!...

Andree Kehn – AndreeKehn.com

I liked your straightforward advice to writers re: voice and style advice.

Margaret Atwood

What a delight working with Men with Pens. They acted as great advisers, fabulous designers and thoughtful counselors, guiding me through a website upgrade and new blog design. In addition,...

Dr. Peter Gratale

Men with Pens has this uncanny ability to take my rough ideas and turn them into something great. I am a professional writer, and working with MWP on writing projects...

Marie Rippel

Not only did James Chartrand and the whole Men With Pens team get us everything before our deadline, they were instantaneous in response pretty much all the time and very...

Jaime Mintun

As seen on Third Tribe!: Just had to share a resource for an outstanding team of copywriters, web developers, and all around rockstars that I've worked with several times now:...

Amber Naslund – Brass Tack Thinking

I was recommended Men With Pens, and I have never looked back. They seriously ROCK! I live in Asia and despite a 12 hours time difference, communication was smooth. They...

Tomas Bay – Beat The Monster

Thank you for all the effort you have put in to capturing the essence of what I am truly about and helping my voice to come out, loud and proud,...

Ali Davies

These guys rock. They quickly got to the heart of what we wanted to do, produced brilliant copy first time round and were really lovely to work with.

Marcella and Michael Bungay Stanier – Find Your Great Work

Fantastic! Men with Pens were tremendously helpful in reviewing content for my company's new website. Their critique was right on the mark, and their insights have allowed me to greatly...

Chris Sutton – Easy Ear Training

Men With Pens were just great! They listened carefully to determine what I wanted, then created a website that fit perfectly with my vision but still managed to surprise me....

Dave Rowley – Creative Chai

That looks fabulous, money well spent. I have yet to see a bad design by Men with Pens, and they have certainly surpassed themselves on yours. If I were a...

Judy (for Billybrew.com) – Judy of the Woods

Wanted to thank you for your endless patience throughout this process. You produced a site we're thrilled with. Maybe more important, you made the entire development process a fun ride!...

Janus Javier – Real World Supply Chain

If you're looking for a copywriter, a website architect, an eBook designer ... stop. Here at Men with Pens you've found a wonderful company of professionals who will be with...

Austin Briggs

Working with Men with Pens was one of the best business experiences I have had as a customer. The team was knowledgeable and engaged and provided valuable insight that helped...

Karen Swim – Words for Hire

HOLY HOT COPY, BATMAN!! Ok...can I just TELL you how much I love this copy? Seriously! I just read it to one of my colleagues and she had goosebumps!! THANK...

Jodi Ojo – Model Per4Mance

The feedback I’ve received on the site has been all good. Thank you so much for EVERYTHING. You’ve been a joy to work with, a patient instructor, quick witted, and...

Karen M Hollman, Esq. – The Law Office of Karen M. Holman, PLLC

I've used many web developers from the solo freelancers to the big national firms and have always been disappointed. And then I found Men With Pens. Great rates and amazing...

Kevin Kruse – Kru Research

I have had Men With Pens design two sites for me now. I described what I wanted and how I wanted the sites to feel. Somehow they took the images...

Elizabeth Fayle – Make Way for Biz

James and the gang at Men with Pens totally rock! The cool new site they created for us went live about six weeks ago. Already it’s generating traffic at levels...

Frank and Lou Anne Reddon – EnZepplopedia Publishing Inc.

I simply have to rhapsodize about the following website design from MenWithPens. The site is http://www.petershallard.com - the design is resplendent, the copy compelling, and the content magnificent to boot....

Barbara Ling

I wasn’t really thinking of designing a new website. But curiosity (or my ego) had me intrigued for detailed feedback about how I could improve my existing website? Who could...

Penny Hoff – New Hip Tips

For nearly a year, my associates and I tweaked and edited our online web hosting business website in an effort to generate more customer sign ups. Despite our efforts, new...

John Hoff – eVenture Biz

James challenged us to dig deep and truly understand what we wanted to accomplish, and then built a site that captures the essence of who we are. The site is...

Mark Dyck – Regina Lakeview Community Association

Our school is booming. We're having easily the best January ever, and it's only, what, the 11th? Our new site has had an impact on our overall attitude and perspective...

Shifu Ahles – Blue Dragon Kung Fu

I am thrilled to say that we have had a fabulous response to the new website and in fact we're already starting to see clients (it's only been seven days...

Sasha Stricker – Alberta, Canada

Great customer service, James. It created trust right away. You seem like an honest, stand-up guy, very professional and caring about the client. Your designs are superior to what I’ve...

Michael Toebe – Quick Help Now

Men with Pens took a site that I had built a six-figure business around and that was already "pretty good" and made it spectacular, improving product sales and boosting opt-in...

Brian DeChesare – Mergers and Inquisitions

Your ability to communicate clearly, spec a job realistically, meet a deadline and completely fulfill the work to your client's satisfaction is exceptional. And in short, code is scary to...

Elizabeth Pendleton

I'd never dealt with an online web designer. My family told me I was crazy. How could I put a large amount of dollars into someone's hands I'd never met?...

Dan Miranda – Knicks Vision

When I hired Men with Pens to design my site, I hired them for two reasons: 1. they are capable of creating artistic looks while retaining functionality; and 2. great...

Patrick Vuleta – Silvered Copy

A massive thank you for designing my blog as quickly as you did. It met and exceeded my expectations and I really couldn’t be happier with what you delivered. Keep...

Linda Iruoha

If you’re considering hiring a writer for your website or Blog, you can’t go wrong with James over at Men with Pens. He really takes the time to understand your...

Marc Chase – My Credit Group

Your original website review gave me plenty of great information that allowed me to take another step in the right direction. One thousand thank-yous for offering that insanely awesome offer...

Michael Lindstrom – Strolen's Citadel

I would strongly recommend working with the Men with Pens team. I came to them as a client who knew nothing about web design. I was nervous, didn't know how...

Wendi Kelly

Thank you so, so much for your website review, it was very enlightening! I've been listening to it again and again and had more than a few light-bulb moments (as...

Julie Duran

James is a Genius! I am thrilled and amazed at how much talent she has. Where to begin? The price was excellent for what Men with Pens did for my...

Yvonne Oliver – Dallas Relaxing Massage

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