Smile more!
Purpose-led copy and strategies
I’ve been lucky enough to work with some of the biggest brands in the world, and some of the smallest. I’ve learnt that whatever it looks like on the outside, the only important thing is to light up the world with your purpose. To be visible as a leader, offering yourself with integrity and authenticity and standing for something bigger than yourself. So that the people who need you can find you, and together you can make change happen.
Work examples, and some tips
RE-BRAND: RESEARCH, BRAND PURPOSE & NPD
Dettol
There were a lot of us in that ad agency boardroom. All of us focused on moving Dettol from the back of the cupboard, where it had sat for years, to the front.
In the end it took a simple twist to turn that brand’s fortunes around.
Dettol had always been associated with germ kill, but that meant it was only used when people were sick. We gave that germ kill a new purpose - a mission for health, and asked people all over the world to join us.
The Dettol “Mission for Health” created a new way of thinking about cleaning - no longer drudge work, it became a way to keep children in school, and grown-ups at work. It elevated the role of the home-keeper as well as the brand, launched the hand sanitiser movement and created a whole range of household cleaners and wipes - the first line of defence in the pandemic. That was a good day at the office.
Tip: Could you reframe what you or your product does to broaden the way it’s used, or the type of people who buy it?
RE-BRAND: NAME, BRAND IDEA, MESSAGING & WEB COPY
Body Positive Works
Jen and Mel needed more bums on mats. When they described their holistic wellness centre across the pond my heart leapt - it was inclusive, warm and friendly, with a mission to help everyone regardless of their shape or size.
I took a deep breath and told them to change their name. “Body Image Boutique” sounded like a cosmetic surgery boutique; completely at odds with body positivity.
I proposed we replace it with “Body Positive Works” – BoPoWorks for short - because it made me smile as much as Jen and Mel.
Says Jen, “We love our new name and the response from our community has been amazing.”
After that everything feel into place. I rewrote all the web copy and staff bios, created sample social media posts infused with a warm welcome, and came up with a tone of voice that acknowledged the importance of cake.
Tip: Does your brand name spark joy? If not it’s time to Kondo-Edge your way to happiness.
RE-BRAND: RESEARCH, BRAND IDEA, MESSAGING, COPY & BLOG
NutriCraft
Alex O’Connor sells great quality wholefood ingredients to cafes and home-kitchen businesses. He keeps the prices low by cutting out the middleman and only selling online but he had always been vulnerable to competitive price drops and knew he needed his customers’ hearts as well as their wallets.
Using my Change-Maker Method I worked with Alex to define his brand purpose. It quickly became clear that he’s not driven by profit. He sees his customers as heroes - working day and night to create the perfect chocolate bar or soap - and he wants to help them succeed.
He was on first name terms with many of his customers, and they were only to happy to share their stories with me.
All we had to do was share these stories - hero-worship them and their successes, creating an empowered community of customers, proud to be “NutriCrafters”.
Tip: In what ways are your customers heroes? How could you hero worship them?
BRAND GUIDELINES - TARGET, BRAND PURPOSE, IDEA, VOICE, MESSAGING
Rachel Entwistle Jewellery
Rachel Entwistle uses her deep knowledge of cultural narratives and symbolism to create unique jewellery.
But, as she explained on our first call, her disparate online communications were not helping to convey the true uniqueness of the brand.
Working with Rachel using my Change-Maker Method I created a clear articulation of her brand purpose, while also defining the target audience, brand idea, brand tone of voice, and brand messaging with sample social media posts, web landing pages and product descriptions.
Rachel was delighted when a customer quoted back a piece of copy word for word, saying that she felt totally connected to the storied designs and meaningful company ethos.
Tip: A lovingly crafted brand document can really help clarify and crystallise your messages for you, your team, and your customer.
SEO DRIVEN BLOG STRATEGY & COPY, EMAIL MARKETING
Amber Jean Shop
Amber Jean has been wearing human hair wigs since she lost her hair to alopecia at fifteen, but had never felt good about the wigs out there or the attitudes of the people who sold them. In her words, they made her “feel like shit.”
Now she’s on a mission to offer the best human hair wigs and a community that brings together and supports other women on the same path.
Amber asked me to create a series of blog posts to help her serve this community and bring her brand purpose to life. I used SEO research to identify the questions they were asking and wrote a series of posts that shared expert advice and ongoing support from other women on the same path. One of those women was Amber’s mum - an accredited psychotherapist, who turned out to have a complete tool kit of strategies to help cope with the stress of hair loss.
Tip: Look around you - you’ll be amazed how much knowledge your team has. Share it! Especially your mum’s!
BRAND LAUNCH: PURPOSE, WEB COPY, BLOG, SOCIAL MEDIA
YogaClicks
I created YogaClicks to gather together the very best yogi makers on a sustainable and ethical platform, supported by best-in-class customer service. To be as small-scale and personal as a class at the local yoga studio and to evangelise the stories of the makers (often yoga teachers) who have been putting the wellbeing of people and the planet ahead of profit for years - long before sustainability became a Thing.
I have now left the business but I am proud of the community I built (over 45,000 social media followers), the knowledge that I passed on (via an extensive blog), the yoga stories I shared, and the loyal fan base - we had over a thousand five star reviews when I left.
Tip: Being small is your superpower. It enables you to be personal in a way that no big brand can ever compete with. Use your speedboat to accelerate away. Leave the big guys struggling to turn their ship around.
FACEBOOK GROUP
Yoga Brand Lab
Most yoga teachers don’t know how to sell themselves, and feel uncomfortable with the idea of selling.
That’s why I created a simple marketing framework, aligned with yoga values, to help them grow an engaged community, and love doing it.
I have recorded dozens of webinars ranging from finding your tone of voice to discovering your brand purpose, and the group now has 350 members. The best bit is the gang of super fans, who have not only used the teachings to gain confidence and attract new students, but become a community in their own right - showing up for each other on and off line, time and time again.
Tip: Create a Facebook group to share your expertise, grow your community and find your super-fans.
BRAND LAUNCH - TARGET, IDEA, TONE OF VOICE, MESSAGING
Lily’s Kitchen
Henrietta created Lily’s Kitchen because her dog, Lily, was sick and she nursed her back to health with proper, nutritious food. She wanted to do the same thing for cats, but she was worried - how could she introduce a cat to Lily’s Kitchen without a fight?
With Lily keeping my feet warm in meetings, I felt I couldn’t fail. We worked through a number of brand platforms which had a an edgy, campaigning feel, but they never felt on-brand.
In the end we bought it back to basics - returning to the original brand point of view on the world. Utopia.
In Lilyland humans and all their furry companions - even cats - live in harmony, in the kitchen.
Tip: You don’t always need to fight for new customers. Sometimes you just need to open the door and show them who you are.
BOOKS
Yoga School Dropout
Talking of purpose… Yoga School Dropout was my first book, born of corporate burnout and a quest for life’s deeper meaning in the ashrams of India.
A Book of the Year for both The Times and The Independent, it received critical acclaim as one of the best yoga books on India, and as a pioneer of yoga memoir.
“A hilarious search for a meaningful life turns into a joyous discovery of India.” The Times, Books of the Year
“Lucy Edge, a former London ad exec, goes in search of spiritual riches (and the perfect headstand) in India. Neither boringly cynical nor stupidly gullible, she’s open minded, warm and funny; even – though she’d be the last person to claim this – rather wise.” The Independent on Sunday, Books of the Year
Buy signed copies at YogaClicks
Tip: Life is a question of balance - one part balancing in Tree Pose, one part falling out of the tree.