Tom Albrighton

I’m a copywriter based in Norwich, UK, trading as ABC Copywriting. I’ve been writing and editing professionally for 17 years, first in publishing houses and design studios since 2005 as a freelance. Most of my work is now online, and often includes SEO. I do a lot of B2B, some B2C and also some speciality work like academic editing. I blog here and tweet here.

Seven ways to sharpen up your content

Whether you’re creating a blog, developing a content-marketing campaign or writing for social media, hard-hitting content is the key to success.

But how can you achieve it?

Sometimes, the idea of content is better than the execution. The problem isn’t with what you're saying, but the way you’re saying it. Sharpen that up and your content springs to life.

Here are ten tips for freshening up your content to drive interest, engagement and social sharing. Copywriters swear by them, but anyone can use them.

by Tom Albrighton 04 March 2013 11:25am 4 comments

The nightmare of choosing a domain name

The pain of names is mainly in domains…

Recently, I’ve been working on a naming project for an overseas client. The company is launching a new online business that will operate in a relatively crowded niche. All I have to do is think of its name.

Oh, and just one more thing. The name has to be available as a .com domain. Nothing less will do.

by Tom Albrighton 29 November 2012 11:51am 17 comments

Why Twitter should charge its users

Twitter seems to be moving towards a ‘walled garden’ model, with hosted ads. But is there another way forward?

As recently reported here on Econsultancy, Twitter’s API is ‘evolving’. It’s already removed personal Twitter feeds from LinkedIn, and is threatening to revise the terms of its API so that third parties like Tweetbot and Tweetie can no longer replicate its core experience on their sites.

Some commentators see this as a move towards a ‘walled garden’ model, like Facebook’s, where people must use Twitter’s own sites or apps to access the core experience.

Once there, they’ll be obliged to put up with whatever ads Twitter sees fit to host. The strategy gives Twitter full control over the format of advertising, and also the option to integrate more added-value stuff (games, e-commerce etc).

by Tom Albrighton 11 July 2012 11:00am 19 comments

Is social getting too big to be cool?

For social sites, the graph points ever upwards. But will they always be cool enough to attract young users?

It’s an exciting time in digital. As the giants of the internet jostle for pole position, it feels like we’re moving into some sort of endgame.

Or, perhaps, the end of the beginning.

by Tom Albrighton 02 May 2012 11:49am 3 comments

What you should really do on Twitter

Business users coming to Twitter receive some advice that may not help them in the long run. Here’s an alternative view.

I have now composed over 12,000 Tweets. Laid end to end, they’d make a decent-sized book. A really boring, intensely repetitive book about eating soup, last night’s TV and, from time to time, a little bit of copywriting.

When it comes to Tweeting, I’ve earned my stripes.

I’m not saying I’m a ‘social media expert’. But I do find that my experience clashes with some of the received wisdom about using Twitter for business. Here are five pinches of salt to go with some of the stuff you might read online.

by Tom Albrighton 20 March 2012 09:34am 4 comments

Five questions your corporate blog should answer

Too many corporate blogs are the answer to a question nobody asked, serving up generic, me-too posts or even syndicated second-hand content.

Give your content a kick up the social by writing to answer these five searching questions...

by Tom Albrighton 22 November 2011 10:50am 5 comments

What can we learn from @ShippamsPaste?

The @ShippamsPaste Twitter feed may have been a (very funny) fake, but there's much it can teach us about how social-media marketing should be.

by Tom Albrighton 07 November 2011 09:36am 1 comment

Why you need a freelance copywriter

Using a freelance copywriter isn't just about flexibility and convenience. It's often the best way to get a quality result.

A few weeks ago, Sharon Flaherty wrote a guest post here entitled Want quality content? Produce it in-house. As her title suggests, Sharon argues that the best way to get high-quality content is to employ an in-house copywriter.

Although I commented on the post, I feel it deserves a more considered response, so here it is.

by Tom Albrighton 08 September 2011 10:12am 21 comments

Ten reasons why marketers love new things

Smartphones, tablets, Foursquare, Quora, Colour, Google+… what is it this week? Whatever it is, if it’s new, marketers will be all over it like a cheap suit.

Here are ten reasons why...

by Tom Albrighton 09 August 2011 10:00am 3 comments