
(Wo)mansplaining 101
Ask any woman, and she'll tell you it's happened to her... Not just once or a few times, but countless times... to the point that it almost seems "normal" to have to constantly deal with thinly-veiled put-downs and annoying behavior, no matter how much experience you...
I felt so betrayed… and then I fought back
When I was 7 years old, my family spent the summer living temporarily in an apartment complex on Santa Rosa Island near Fort Walton Beach, Florida. My father was working on a radar project at a major air force base nearby. My brothers and I spent many a hot summer day...
All by myself (don’t wanna be…)
Issue #154 When I moved to Ohio from Florida as a 14-year-old, having left behind my first boyfriend and needing to make a new group of friends all over again, I used some of my spare time to reacquaint myself with my piano and teach myself some new songs. One of...
Gurus, prognosticators, and other people to ignore
Issue #153 I just got back last night from Justin Goff and Stefan Georgi's Copy Accelerator event in Tampa. It was wonderful to be back at a live copywriter event in person and see and meet so many great people. Several of...
How to torture your teenage children
Issue #152—February 25, 2022 This morning Ben Settle sent out an email to his list recounting how I once tortured my two teenage children five years ago with one of his notorious "Valentine's" issues of Email Players. As...
What a Prince song can teach you about getting your copy read
I may be showing my age, but I remember at least a few decades ago when a certain song by the late legendary musician Prince came out. And in today's issue, I'm going to show you how this song can significantly boost the chances that your emails, sales pages, VSLs,...
Good emails 👍
Earlier this week I talked about "bad emails". Specifically, I shared some lame efforts to sell a male potency supplement that I got a peek at when someone hacked my email while I was in Italy. (If you overlooked it in your email inbox, go back and take a look so you...
Lies, d*mned lies, and statistics…
What's in Kim's Mailbox? As Mark Twain put it, "Facts are stubborn things, but statistics are much more pliable." Twain is also credited with saying, "There are 3 types of lies: Lies, damned lies, and statistics." As copywriters, we are obligated to stick to the facts...
The power of curiosity and playing “hard to get”
Issue #151 Kids today are missing out on SO many things... One of them is the joy of passing notes during class. Back when I was young, passing notes in class was the ONLY way to get a message to a classmate or have a "private" conversation while the teacher was up in...
“Mistaken beliefs” about getting clients
Issue #150 Sometimes I briefly hop onto Facebook and see what some folks are posting on their feed or in copywriting groups, and I get downright annoyed. A common reaction for sure when it comes to social media. But in this case, it was a young man I know who's had...
How to stop worrying about money
Issue #149 When our two young adult children were kids, my husband used to say to them, "When you grow up, you can do anything you want. But being poor sucks." If you find yourself constantly going through "feast or famine" cycles with your freelancing career or...
Playing it too “safe” with your copy
What's in Kim's Mailbox? Happy Friday! To make it an even better last day of the first week of 2022, you're getting the first "What's in Kim's Mailbox" breakdown of the year in today's email. I'm also putting the finishing touches on my latest compilation of "What's...
“What is copywriting?” srsly
Issue #148—January 4, 2022 It's the first Copy Insiders issue of the new year, and I'm sitting here looking outside my window at the sun streaming in over snow-covered tree branches. I'm also feeling thankful I'm not stuck on interstate 95 south of Washington, DC,...
2021: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
Issue #147 Well, it's the last day of the year, and it feels like the perfect time to reflect on the highlights, the lowlights, and the downright ugly lights of 2021. I call it "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly"... and it reminds me of a massive printed book of...
Clients: can’t live with ’em, can’t live without ’em
Issue #146 If you're like me, this week has been busy catching up on ALL those Christmas-related tasks you haven't gotten to yet... Planning holiday meals and get-togethers... wrapping presents... sending out holiday cards (which likely won't arrive until after the...
When you’re the “hot girl at the bar”
Issue #145 I'm gearing up later this morning to do my first LIVE Control Breakdown call in a while. It's something I offered as an exclusive bonus to Copy Insiders who got the epic Black Friday Bundle and the Upsell Bundle from me. If you're quick (and I mean...
How not to end up in FDA “jail” [WIKM]
What's in Kim's Mailbox? I'm back at you today with a fresh new breakdown of an "O to O" promo that landed in my (physical) mailbox this morning. You may ask what I mean by "O to O"? It's "offline to online"... and I'm seeing more of these direct mail promotions over...
Why offer trumps copy AND drama
Issue #144 Today is Black Friday, and rather than wake up early and go shopping, I decided to sleep in and have myself a leisurely morning and breakfast. (I plan to hit the Black Friday sales online as soon as I finish this email!) Great decision, because I came up...
Are affiliate swipes killing your business?
Issue #143 A lot of you enjoyed the "non-testosterone" email I sent the other day about all the war-like shenanigans related to the Black Friday Mega-Bundle campaign I'm participating in. ANY support you can throw my way to help me climb to the top of the affiliate...
How to “dash for cash” for your client or business
Issue #142 "Cash is king". I remember the head of the consumer division I worked for at Phillips Publishing, Bob King, saying those words...again and again. And cash is king for your business, whether you're a copywriter, marketer, or offer owner. Without sufficient...
Are magalogs DEAD?
What's in Kim's Mailbox? If magalogs could talk right now, here's what they'd say... "Reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated!" Yes, you might think these 20 to 32-page printed, magazine-like, direct mail promotions are an ancient dinosaur relic of the past....
The LEGO secret to building better “big ideas”…
Issue #141—October 22, 2021 Today you're in for a treat.. It's a special Guest Spot issue written by Gabriel Baumstark... one of my current copywriting mentees in my Fast Track to A-List program (I just opened the doors for next year's program. You can check out the...
7 MORE types of sales-boosting sidebars
Issue #140 Yesterday I sent you my first all-new Copy Insiders issue in a while... and it was all about something many up-and-coming copywriters have little experience with: SIDEBARS! I explained WHY you should master the art of writing sidebars... and how to approach...
A mini-master class on the lost art of THIS copy…
Issue #139 Perhaps you've mastered how to write killer headlines... sizzling-hot emails... powerful leads... intriguing bullets... and persuasive closes. But if you're like many copywriters who cut their teeth strictly on online platforms, you may not have a clue...