It Takes a Village

Just as a village is needed to raise a child, a business, too, depends on the contributions of many. And like the numerous kind souls who have supported my personal growth, many individuals have helped me evolve as a copywriter and business owner. 

Here is where I name and acknowledge them: my teachers, my lineage.

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Here are the people who have helped me become the copywriter I am today. 

In chronological order...

Jon Morrow at SmartBlogger

Jon Morrow at SmartBlogger was my first introduction to blogging and, later, copywriting. I learned everything I needed to know to start a blog and make initial sales from Jon and his team. I have devoured both paid and unpaid resources.

Dr Jovana Mastilović

Dr Jovana Mastilović is a lifelong friend and incredible critical thinker. Throughout our friendship, Jovana has provided me with unique perspectives on nuances, power dynamics, marginalised communities and many other topics.

Jovana has always been a reliable sounding board where we spoke openly and critically about all sorts of local and global issues, no matter how icky and difficult they felt to talk about. These conversations have helped me considerably in creating my own critical thinking approach.

Sarah Buckle, Psychotherapist

Sarah Buckle is a longtime friend and has been a huge supporter of my work since we met. Over the past decade as Sarah worked as a Brand Strategist and Brand Identity Mentor, we have explored and trialled numerous processes and techniques together within the branding and marketing fields. Sarah has been a constant encouraging voice, especially when I didn't believe my work was good enough and when I questioned my value as a copywriter.

In more recent years, Sarah helped me with her work as a psychotherapist. She helped me overcome struggles with imposter syndrome and her sessions had a direct and immediate positive impact on my business and copywriting projects. 

Hayley Maxwell, Copywriter

Hayley Maxwell is a copywriter that I was lucky enough to meet online through a course. Even though the program was held by well-respected names in the copywriting space, it was a disappointing experience for us both. However, there was a silver lining – our shared experience of the questionable sales tactics during that course launch helped us connect and, in turn, sparked our initial conversations about problematic marketing techniques.

We openly talked about high-pressure launches, including deceptive testimonials, exaggerated case studies and the FOMO effect. Speaking with Hayley was one of my first steps into conscious communication, as I realised I wasn’t the only one feeling this way about standard marketing techniques.

Belinda Weaver at Copywrite Matters

Belinda Weaver is a brilliant copywriter and my first copywriting mentor. I was already a paid writer when I signed up to learn from Belinda, but I had massive doubts about my skill and ability to run a successful business. Belinda’s wisdom and guidance helped me tremendously by means of her Copywriting Master Class copywriting training and (affiliate link -->) Confident Copywriting membership.

In the membership's Facebook group, Belinda also provided a safe space for difficult conversations within online marketing. This where I first opened up to a wider audience about my thoughts and feelings about persuasion marketing. This helped me verbalise what had been going through my mind and also realise that (many) others were feeling the same, too.

Copyhackers

Joanna Wiebe and Copyhackers have created a solid, in-depth approach to Conversion Copywriting (a term they coined), that I have studied extensively. While I don’t agree with their entire approach (or the mentality and attitude I witnessed amongst many copywriters within their programs), Copyhackers' Copy School was undeniably a turning point for me that changed the way I look at online sales and marketing.

There are techniques that I learned from Copyhackers that I still use and value to this day. There are also many (that aren’t used just within Copyhackers but in the online marketing space in general) that I firmly oppose and choose not to use.

Kelly Diels

Kelly Diels and her work as a Feminist Copywriter and Coach for Culture Makers entirely changed and shaped the way I show up online and write for my clients. Kelly’s teachings and perspective go beyond just techniques and formulas – they actually prompted a paradigm shift for me in the way I approach all aspects of marketing.

I continue to learn from Kelly to this day and use her teachings for many facets of my business. I have learned from Kelly via her free content and via paid programs like her Feminist Copywriting Certification, Social Media for Culture-Makers and multiple smaller programs.

Maggie Patterson at BS-Free Business

Maggie Patterson at BS-Free Business boldly and unapologetically calls out many tactics in the marketing space. Her in-depth critical thinking has been crucial in helping me dissect tactics myself to work out how I feel about many that are used. I have learned from Maggie’s free content (Instagram, blogs and podcasts - Duped and The BS-Free Service Business Show), as well as receiving 1:1 guidance via her TrustDNA Mastermind mentorship.

These are wonderful people who have had the greatest impact on my work. There are many, many others who have, and continue to, inspire me every day.

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