Thousands of projects and more than 300,000 words (a few books worth) of published marketing content later, I still remember that cold winter day.
A faint odor of lemon-scented cleanser and a metallic, new-Macbook smell filled the air of the 20-student technology lab. It was content pitch day at the University of Missouri School of Journalism. And my award-winning professor was showing why the University of Missouri has the top-ranked journalism program in the U.S. — by mercilessly shredding students’ underdeveloped ideas. Along with about 19 other wide-eyed college kids (many of whom left class with tears or red faces and furrowed brows that day), I learned just what it means to create valuable, attention-grabbing content that has the right ingredients. Not just novelty. But also substance. Utility. And meaning.
It’s a lesson I still carry with me today, as I work in the world of data-driven, strategic content marketing. I’ve developed a passion for meaningful writing and purposeful creativity. I make it my mission to use my marketing skills and creativity to make a difference for brands and organizations that make a difference for others.
Tangibly, I’ve written a wide range of marketing content to help clients use their websites, search (SEO), social media and email marketing to reach strategic goals. Initiatives include telling organizations’ stories, positioning their brands, raising awareness by increasing traffic and helping organizations build valuable relationships with customers, clients, partners and donors by generating and closing leads. Intangibly, that’s meant being a problem-solver. A thinker. And a doer. Someone who approaches each project with the energy and attitude to get the job done right and see it through to completion.
Quality Experience
For the past three years, I’ve served as a copywriter and content strategist at Gorilla 76, a niche marketing agency where I’ve written content spanning nearly every category — from core site pages for website launches to ads, blog posts, social media posts, newsletters, buyer personas and nearly everything in between. I’ve learned the technical side of SEO, link-building and CRO as well as the more broad aspects of content strategy and even some project management and account service.
Why? When I started at Gorilla, it was a 4-person agency, and it's only recently hit the double digits. Gorilla is entirely project-based, sells itself on value (read strategy and quality) and moves at an extremely fast pace compared to many agencies. In other words, it’s sink or swim — learn or be left behind. Every team member is depended on to problem-solve, successfully prioritize a high volume of tasks and tie every project back to big picture strategy. For the past year, I’ve had the added experience of writing remotely, requiring me to balance growing relationships with a close-knit team of creatives — designers, developers and more recently account service specialists — while working as independently as humanly possible.
““Talented writer. Passionate marketer. Often goes above and beyond what he’s asked. Alex is an all-around good guy and worked his tail off for our company. He’s passionate about marketing and works hard to keep up with industry trends.””
Copywriting, editing and content management
My goal for every piece is to craft useful content that’s on-message, on-brand (on-voice) and on-strategy. I tie every word to a purpose.
That hasn’t necessarily always been the case. Coming from a journalistic reporting background, I’ve had to learn and practice what it means to write for both search engines and buyer personas, putting myself in users’ shoes to give them the right information for where they’re at in their own unique buyer’s journey. I’ve also spent countless hours writing short-form pieces and headlines to quickly captivate potential customers and direct them down the desired path. I’ve learned there’s no magic bullet to finding that just-right, compelling combination of words. It takes research, intent listening to clients and, sometimes, the right music pumping through your headphones.
““I’ve had the opportunity to work with Alex for a number of years. His patience and attention to detail was evident on every piece he crafted. He has an ability to absorb highly technical information and produce content that is informative, concise and easily digestible across a wide and varied collection of end users. I would recommend Alex as a seasoned writer who repeatedly produced the perfect balance of technical information with just the right amount of tone and personality that our brand called for. He’s a truly gifted writer.””
I’ve long been somewhat of a writing perfectionist, grammar geek and word nerd — I actually wrote a unique style guide just for Gorilla 76. But I also believe the best writers know when to break the rules. As a copywriter serving a range of brands, I seek to capture the nuances of each client and brand preference to bring them to life in the copy. To reach that goal takes an open mind — to me red ink is a chance to learn the difference between good writing and useful, on-brand content for any given organization. I take pride in the listening and feedback part of writing; it’s often the most important part. It may be because at Gorilla 76 — still just a 10-person company — I’ve often had to be my own biggest critic and “creative director.” I’ve also enjoyed the opportunity to coach and manage writing interns and have taken great satisfaction in seeing their copy improve from draft to draft and project to project.
Analytical Content Marketing Strategy and project execution
Strategy is a mix of gleaning insights from numbers, measuring success and using data to drive decision-making with old-fashioned listening to stakeholders’ needs and tracking trends. It's both applying simple best practices and finding creative solutions. In other words, a great strategist has to be a versatile problem-solver. That's why I've devoted myself to continually learning and honing web-marketing strategy, and over the past few years, I've had the opportunity to put those learnings to work.
I’ve helped brands rank for target keywords, written buyer personas, implemented marketing automation and crafted custom quarterly content strategies and calendars. Results include helping brands grow social media reach and engagement, generate qualified website traffic, convert website visitors into leads and close customers with lead nurturing
““Alex is the real deal — a talented copywriter and content strategist. He has played an instrumental role in our inbound strategies and I believe he would be a valuable addition to any marketing team.””
I’ve devoted myself to continually learning new tools and strategies to deliver results. My continuing professional education in this area, includes:
- Marketing Profs course
- Inbound Marketing Certification
- HubSpot Certification (a more advanced inbound marketing course)
- Google Analytics training
- Google Adwords training
- And countless hours spent reading up on SEO, CRO, link-building and inbound marketing trends and best practices
Marketing moves rapidly. Technology, search and social platforms are constantly changing. So, I'm not tied to any one way of doing things except selecting the best approach for the project at hand. But no matter what content marketing solutions are selected, I work my ass off to execute the chosen strategy and delivers results. Because strategy is useless without execution — ideas don't become reality by themselves.
Image courtesy of BAREfit Adventure Training, where I currently train. They offer American Ninja Warrior style circuit and obstacle course training. They're also a key member of the community and a proud social enterprise. For every Facebook check-in BAREfit receives, they donate to just causes, such as providing disaster recovery aid for flood victims and providing clean water for villages without access to it.
When I’m off the job
I was blessed to meet the love of my life during my senior year at the University of Missouri (Mizzou). Needless to say, I married her in July 2015. I have a passion for social entrepreneurship, am an economics nerd (I got a dual degree in economics, along with journalism) and regularly try new and exciting fitness challenges. I love pretty much every sport and am currently training with American Ninja Warrior circuits (I have to balance my sweet tooth and love of craft beers somehow). I also volunteer with the Young Professionals Association of Louisville (YPAL) and am progressing through YPAL’s Emerging Leaders Program. As part of the program, I’m working on a project to help Greater Louisville Inc. (the area’s chamber of commerce) make Louisville a highly attractive city for young professionals.