“You can do all of the things but you can’t do it for an extended period of time or you will be a crispy burnt out shell of a human. So you can have everything you want. You just probably can’t have it all at once.”
– Sarah-Joy Pierce
So you’re a copywriter, but you don’t live in a snazzy suburban area, with cool cafes and agencies aplenty.
Instead, you’re 8 hours from the nearest big city.
How does being a regional copywriter impact your client list, your rates and the number of meetings you have to attend?
Our guest today is a 10-year Copybeast, with small humans and a big list of achievements.
From her home offices, she’s built a successful copywriting business that allows her to support her family, have a flexible lifestyle and even employ her lovely mum.
So if you want to know how to juggle all the things and have a fabulous, successful business wherever you are, this is the episode for you.
Tune in to learn:
- Sarah-Joy’s career journey before becoming a copywriter
- The differences in working as a regional copywriter vs. working in a large city
- Sarah-Joy’s biggest copywriting career win
- Sarah-Joy’s biggest copywriting career fail
- Keeping it in the family: Why Sarah-Joy employs her mum, and why it works so well
- How giving birth to two humans has affected her business
- Sarah-Joy’s number one favourite copywriting tool
- Sarah-Joy’s tip for newbie copywriters
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And big thanks to VivP987 from Australia for their lovely review:
“Get real on copywriting Real copywriters? Real conversations? That’s clever”
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About Sarah-Joy Pierce
Sarah-Joy Pierce is a copywriter who flexes across corporate communications and content for growing businesses. She has nearly a decade’s experience in writing for clients across the public and private sector. These same clients say she makes ‘simplifying the complex’ look easy – taking documents that contain plenty of complicated concepts and turning them into plain English that captivates an audience.
Sarah-Joy is based in regional Queensland and has been known to fit a 38-hour work week into nap times, early mornings and late nights.
Fun fact: Sarah-Joy was in a nationally televised spelling competition at the age of 7 and nearly made it to the finals but choked on the word ‘zephyr’.
Connect with Sarah-Joy Pierce
Useful Resources
Transcript
Kate Toon:
So you’re a copywriter, but you don’t live in a snazzy suburban area, with cool cafes and agencies aplenty.
Instead, you’re 8 hours from the nearest big city.
How does being a regional copywriter impact your client list, your rates and the number of meetings you have to attend?
Our guest today is a 10-year Copybeast, with small humans and a big list of achievements.
From her home offices, she’s built a successful copywriting business that allows her to support her family, have a flexible lifestyle and even employ her lovely mum.
So if you want to know how to juggle all the things and have a fabulous, successful business wherever you are, this is the episode for you
Hello, my name is Kate toon. I’m the head copy beast at the clever copywriting school, an online community and teaching hub for all things related to copywriting and today I’m talking to Sarah Joy piers. Hello, SJ.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Hello.
Kate Toon:
Hello, it’s lovely to have you here. I’m gonna read out your bio now. So Sarah-Joy piers is a copywriter who flexes across corporate communication and content for growing businesses. She has nearly a decade experience in writing for clients across the public and private sector. The same clients say she makes simplifying the complex look easy, taking documents that contain plenty of complicated concepts and turning them into plain English that captivates an audience. Sarah joy is based in regional Queensland and has been known to fit a 38 hour week into nap times early morning and late nights. Fun fact: Sarah joy is a nationally televised spelling competition at the age of you want oh my god at the age of seven and nearly made it to the finals but choked on the word zephyr I would choke on the word Zephyr what is their fear even mean?
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
It means a lot brace and I’ve never been able to escape that. Yeah. Wow. That’s your word for why it’s my word.
Kate Toon: Well, interestingly enough as a copywriter I can’t spell for toffee. I’m terrible at spelling. And we have tools for that now right? Yeah, just get ai to do it. Well, I have I have to have all the tools and all the proofreaders and also if I just like to make up words as well because I think that’s yeah, that’s fun.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Also can’t still practitioner that one gets me every time
Kate Toon:
well I you know I still do the I before E except I still do all those things necessary is necessary one color and two so. I think it’s one color and two socks that’s how I remember that one. And stationery is easy because it’s got an E and letter and stationery is a cause the car
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
that’s a good one. Yeah, no man who needs Grammarly when you’ve got all this
Kate Toon:
A lot of people need Grammarly. Everyone needs Grammarly. But let’s be honest. Look, let’s let’s dig into to the episode today is a few things from your intro that I’m already interested to talk to you about. But first of all, take us back. Well, 10 years really what did you do before you became a copywriter?
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Well, I think in some way or another I’ve always been a copywriter, right. Like any copywriters know that when it’s your thing, it’s your thing. So, during university, I worked for TV station as the weather man’s assistant, which was the sweetest gig I ever had got paid for four hours a day, it’s never there for four hours a day, got to hang around in the newsroom and learn how the news works. So fun. And then I went overseas during uni and they, you know, my job went to someone else. And straight out of uni I did a stint with an events company ended up writing a lot of their stuff.
After that, I did some time in business development for an accounting firm, and a really hectic 18 months in a mining focused PR agency. So learning that all those different topics. And then for the first few years of my actual copywriting business, I was part time for a university, working in communications, and eventually also electrical, in communications for that university. So it’s all very eclectic. But all of those skills really do inform everything I do day to day today. So it’s nice to back and see how those bits all kind of work really well together.
Kate Toon:
Yeah, it’s funny, I find that if you are one of these people who always has a bit of a yen for writing, it’s like no one, no matter what role you take, you always end up being the writery person in that role. Do you know what I mean? Like, even if you like working in a baker’s, then you’ll end up being the person that puts together the flyer for the window, you know, you’ll find a way like
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
the copy finds a way in
Kate Toon: no matter what he finds you. Yes, it does. You can’t escape it. So there’s kind of a clear thread of communication through there. And you mentioned sorry, you were a university lecturer in communications, what was that all about?
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
So I did some lecturing in public relations and journalism, kind of both sides of that fence, which is very interesting. And today, I work with some of the journalists who, you know, went through while I was teaching, which is a spin out,
Kate Toon:
wow, that was a bit of a spin out. That’s not how I live.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
I live in a regional town and it was a regional university. So I will confess, and I won’t name names, but I’ve had students come up to me and be like, hey, I really loved your class. And I was like, Cool. I don’t know who you are. I mean, I feel like that would have happened to you
Kate Toon:
It did. I went to an event the other day and two people came up to me and said congratulations on your book, because I just found out my book is going Big W and I was like, oh my god like, how do you even know who I am? I didn’t think I was that recognizable. But there you go. We’re just so famous SJ..
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Definitely, because I haven’t got a book of Big W Wow. Right yet who knows? They might change their mind. So, um, let’s talk about regional Queensland. Do you mind telling us roughly where you are? Not that we’re gonna come to your house, but.
Kate Toon:
I am in Rockhampton in Queensland. So I look people are like why do you still live there? But I actually love it. Like, if the traffic if it takes more than 10 minutes to get somewhere people get edgy. Yeah. And it’s then only a lack of plane flight away from Brisbane. And you know what? controversial opinion COVID was really good for people who want to live regionally because now people will like cool. Let’s jump on a zoom call. I don’t have to drag myself to Brisbane for the day. So that’s a win.
Kate Toon:
I totally agree. And now Queensland is huge for our non Australian listeners is absolutely huge. So Rockhampton is like, it’s above Brisbane, but not as far as Cairns is that right?
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Yes, So if you’re driving in a car, it would take you eight hours, depending how fast you drove and what the state of the road works for about eight hours from Brisbane to Rockhampton, and then another maybe 12 or 14 hours to Cairns everywhere.
Kate Toon:
It’s about eight hours away in Australia, which is weird because in Italy’s if somebody is eight hours away, it’s like, Isn’t Russia, Italy or Russia? Exactly. Azerbaijan? So, yeah, I mean, I’m, I’m semi regional. I’m about an hour and a half out of Sydney. And, you know, that’s not so far that I can’t bob in for a meeting if I really want to do although literally, I would do that on you’d have to. I don’t know what you’d have to do to persuade me to go to a meeting these days. But I agree with you that COVID was beneficial for us regional people because it’s become the norm and I never would I really never want to go back to an urban environment again. You know, I go to Sydney once in a while and I get fit sweaty. I’m a bit of a country bumpkin. I don’t really enjoy it. So I love that. And how is that? You know, you’ve been copywriting now for about 10 years. Things have improved as you said with with COVID but how has that been in terms of getting jobs and getting leads, you know, as people crying out for copywriters and Rockhampton, should we all move there?
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Look for a really interesting mix of clients and they’re definitely not all from Rockhampton, and they never have been. So they’ve been from all over the place. Somewhere in Brisbane, some are further afield, and it’s an excellent subcontracting work for people who are not in Rockhampton.
So yeah, there’s clients everywhere. Really, you just have to look for them.
Kate Toon:
And does anyone does anyone ever asked you where you are? Because I mean, I think some people are a bit like nervous that if they’re not in a big city, that it’s going to make them look somehow inferior to some big city copywriter?
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Yeah, absolutely. I have come up against that. Definitely. I think when I, both times, I’ve made the decision to do more study, it’s sort of come from that place of feeling like I maybe need to measure up to a bigger city copywriter. So look, I’m regional, but I’m smart. I have this piece of paper, you should still hire me. So it’s definitely weird.
Kate Toon:
That’s weird.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Don’t think like I don’t think the right that I would charge is different to a Brisbane copywriter. But
Kate Toon:
I don’t know. I mean, I think you know when we’re putting together the pricing guide for clever copywriting school, we talk about what impacts price, you know, and generally it’s experience and big brands that you’ve worked with, they kind of tend to bump you up and then you know, there is a perception that maybe Sydney copywriters will be more expensive than regional copywriters, although that can go both ways, right? Who wants to pay for a fancy pants Sydney agency with their expensive rent and beanbags. When it’s essentially the same words that they’re using, like coming out.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Exactly.
Kate Toon:
And obviously, the cost of living in Rockhampton, I’m assuming is a little bit less than than central Sydney.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
So it’s kind of more than it used to be, but I think that’s a fairly common experience too.
Kate Toon:
Yeah, exactly. So there are pros IT pros and cons. Right? And as you said, clients less inclined to have you physically turn up so you can you know, I think you can work everywhere. Do you do much work for your local community? Like have you made attempts to kind of network and Rockhampton and become known in Rockhampton?
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
I used to do a lot more of it before I had kids but networking for business is horrendous when you’re trying to get out the door like for breakfast or you know for a 5pm thing like this or something like nap?
Kate Toon:
Yeah, it’s not gonna happen. I don’t understand why networking breakfasts are a thing. There’s nothing worse than being at networking. Someone shovel a fried egg in their gob,
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Like getting out of the house that early, the furthest thing from appealing to me
Kate Toon:
Hideous.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
I don’t know if that will ever change back to the way it was used. I used to like put on my high heels and skip out the door but now I’m like,
Kate Toon:
I don’t know it’s coming back a little bit for me. I’ve enjoyed it recently but you know minimalist, you know, I can do an hour or so and then I want to return into my little burrow and get back in my pajamas. So, you know, you’ve been doing this copywriting thing for a while and your life has changed throughout the last year you’ve made humans tell us a little bit about how you manage that juggle.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Well, I made two humans, the first of which came along before I was a full time in my business, I was still part time. So I got paid maternity leave from my bigger job, the first time around, which was lovely. The second time around, I was on my own, so I do plan a bit better. So look, I’d love to be that person. That’s like, I’m a working mum. It’s the easiest thing I’ve ever done. But it’s not
Kate Toon:
It sucks.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
It is not a walk in the park. It isn’t every day. Yeah. Yeah. So with my first day, I’d only just started working with my mum, my, my employee, Deb, she has many names. And we weren’t really in enough of a groove for me to take any time off. So I had like, paid time off from my other part time position. But from the business, I was like, little bit nervous about taking my foot off the pedal there. So I was answering emails in the hospital post C section, which, you know, not ideal I’ve got I’m like, was that wise? Anyway, my eldest was a breeze, though. So she and I just said, it’s not a breeze. My as babies go, my eldest was great. She slept, she ate, she did all the right things. And I do not take that for granted. But you know, then my second kid came along.
Kate Toon:
That’s it.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Yeah, I mean, look, a lot of mums are like, Yeah, we know that story well, so it had its ups and downs is better prepared the second time around for what it meant for my business. And I did take 12 weeks off and sit on the couch and sniff her little baby head. But also, the second isn’t the one that makes you question all the choices like was it a fluke, the first time around?
Kate Toon:
Yeah, you breezed over there very quickly. One of the things I think utterly charming and delightful about your business is that you work with your mom. Tell us how that came about?
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Well, look, she’s definitely listening to this because they make her listen to all my podcasts. I hate the sound of my own voice. So if I haven’t listened to this back my mom definitely has. So absolutely. It’s going well. No, seriously, I’m really glad that I made the decision to bring her into the business because it’s given me a lot of flexibility in the way I do things. So obviously she can write. I didn’t bring her in for a cooking skills. She has great cooking skills, by the way.
But some weeks, you know, we’re a bit all over the place. And I’m like, Here, hold a child will I make this call and there’s nobody else that I felt I could trust with that off the bat because I knew I was going into a fairly hectic few years of baby holding and juggling and stuff. And I was like, I don’t want to bring on an employee and be like, can you write this thing but also before you do that hold my baby. But when I thought about mum, I was like, Hey, she could do both of those things. And she has very well.
Kate Toon:
So she helps with the copywriting side of things proofreading all manner of bits and bobs I see my mum and dad working in my business or they did a couple of years back. They did all my proofreading. And it was lovely. It was actually also a lovely way for them to really understand what I was doing. And for my mom and dad especially like, you know, it was a couple of hours a day you know a bit of interesting work a bit of a bit of pin money as they call it and you know, they learn about all manner of different things you know about pipe so many vibrators and all sorts of things. It was illuminating. I loved it. I really, you know many kids say oh, you know my mom, dad don’t really get what I do. But you know, our mums definitely do and I think I think that’s lovely. I think that’s fantastic. And as you said they can hold babies at the same time. So it sounds like you’re kind of rocking it in Rockhampton, that was so cheesy I apologize. It just popped out. What do you think so far in your in your in your 10 or so years as a copywriter has been your biggest career win?
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
I nearly one copywriter of the year last year?
Kate Toon:
That’s true. Maybe this year, maybe this year?
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Um, look, I’m gonna be super cheesy here and say like literally last week, there was a client who we wrote website copy for. And he you know, we finished the job delivered it and he called me up about something else and was like, I just want to say the copy that you wrote has just been amazing. And the phone is ringing and people are finding my business.
Kate Toon:
That’s what you want.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
it wasn’t the best paid job I’ve ever done. It wasn’t the most prestigious thing I’ve ever done but it changed this guy’s life like his business life is now better and I was like that that’s it that’s why I do what I do.
Kate Toon: That is it. That is it. I mean, awards are all very nice, but they don’t kind of keep you warm at night and money is fantastic and big brands seem appealing. Like oh, wouldn’t it be amazing if I’m –
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Oh, but they’re often not.
Kate Toon:
They’re really not. They’re a pain in the butt and often you have to work through agencies, and there’s legals and whatever.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
82 layers of bureaucracy. But you know this guy, he cleans roofs. Rooves, roofs. I should know that, I wrote the website.
Kate Toon:
Jeez, Grammarly Sorry.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Maybe we should just talk about singular roofs anyway.
Kate Toon:
Sorry Mr. Roof man. You have to go back through and check your copy deck.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Well it’s roof cleaning anyway.
Kate Toon:
But no, no, I know that exact feeling. And for me, that was after a, you know, couple of years of of doing it, you know, once you do kind of get over that big branding in the money thing and all that kind of thing is that satisfaction of a job well done, you know, like feeling that “that’ll do, that’ll do pig” as they say in Babe.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Yeah, that was really fulfilling. Yeah, you know what this poor guy was paying? I think I worked it out about $12,000 a year to a unnamed company. I won’t name them. Who, you know, we’re taking his money for SEO purposes. I don’t know what they’re doing with it, but it wasn’t making any results for his business. So I charged him a significant amount less than that.
Kate Toon:
Yeah.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
And you know, it helped.
Kate Toon:
It helped. That’s beautiful. Well, look, let’s you know, we’ve had a positive we can’t have a positive without a negative it’s like a ying yang thing. What has been your biggest flop or something that you cringe moment?
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Okay, so I’m torn between calling this a fail and a work in progress. Okay, to me. I am I don’t know if we could call it past tense or present tense. I’m in the middle of launching a course to help small, small industry business owners communicate about ESG
Kate Toon:
About what?
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
ESG. So can I environmental and social governance issues. So basically like sustainability, but Ah, okay. So, obviously, I’m not great at explaining it yet. And I can’t write a sales page all these years and I can’t write a sales pitch.
Kate Toon:
There’s a great course I can recommend for that in the clever copywriting school sales page.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
But it’s still like it cost me favorite time and money. That’s fine. No one signed up. So I’m working on it. But it’s not, you know, it’s not up there in shining lights as a win yet.
Kate Toon:
But I’m interested in now, that’s an interesting little segue. Because, you know, I find a lot of copywriters up they’ve been doing it for a while do look to finding other ways to make income, you know, trainings, one option, you’ve obviously been a teacher. So coming up with a course is a natural progression from that. But I think again, you know, often people underestimate the amount of kind of it’s not hustling next necessarily, but the marketing you have to do you know, the, the hunt, you know, you get 100 people into the top of your funnel to get one person to take the next step, you know, and the next step is not the course the next step is the mini version of the course that says a lot you know.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
It is a lot.
Kate Toon:
It is it’s great when it works and it will work.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
It’s not passive, people who say it’s passive, I just want to slap them in the face that’s not passive.
Kate Toon:
Tell me about it, you know, because I went for you know, I was a copywriter for about four years, five years when I started doing all my other antics. And obviously the capacity to earn more income is is huge, it’s exponential right you know, the more people you get, the more you can earn. But the effort is huge and it’s and it’s taxing in a different way. I do often think about returning back and I maybe I will unless ChatGPT destroys our industry, I will return back to being a work a day copywriter because I want to work I want to fix that copy and put rooves in rather than roofs I want to I want to work with the with the little the smaller dudes and make a difference do that and have that one to one connection again. So keep going though most people give up on their courses and their passive income
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Well, I will not I will not give up, someone will take this course one day and they will love it and it will help them you know it will help them which is why I’m doing it.
Kate Toon:
I love it. I love it. So you know in your day to day as a copywriter. What are some of the tools that you use on a regular basis we always love a good tool.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Good tool definitely Grammarly. when I taught at uni I literally enforced the downloading of Grammarly in week one class like I would sit there and be like cool. So open up your browsers. And then every now and again because you know students are always on their phone during class so just yell Grammarly, that would then get the ads if they hadn’t already downloaded it. Um, but you know, other than being the cliche copywriter and saying gravelly I’m a big fan of mockup.io. It’s definitely not the techie way to say it. But I find it makes communicating with clients and designers 1000 times easier.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Can you tell us a little bit about markup what, what is it? How does it work?
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Basically, you put a URL into markup. And then it gives you like a version of the website that you can like click on kind of like a PDF, you can click on
Kate Toon:
Ah yes.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
And leave notes and say change this heading to this or change and it’s just so much easier than having to write out in the document. On the first page change the top heading, you know.
Kate Toon:
It’s so good. I actually, the fact that you just said that I’m like, I’ve just spent ages Ma, trying to explain to my designer, how I want a sales page edited and again, I’m like,
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
It’s just like you could point at it.
Kate Toon:
Yeah, I’m like, prove it not the first blue book but the second bit the bit with the wiggly bit, can you? Yeah, I need to get remember to use that. I love one tool that I do. I don’t use Grammarly. Actually, I don’t know why. But a tool, a tool that I’m loving at the moment, which I thought I’d mentioned, since we’re talking tools is Wordtune. everyone’s raving about ChatGPT up but I find ChatGPT kind of produces a lot of guff that then I need to edit a lot. Whereas I love word tune because it builds there’s one called Wordtune. What’s it called? I’m just finding its air. I’m clicking about can you hear me clicking?
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
I cannot.
Kate Toon:
But that’s good. That’s good. My microphone isn’t picking it up. So there’s wordtune, tune read, which I really love because it allows it great summaries whatever web page that you’re on, which is really useful. Just the salient points, but then Wordtune, I can’t remember it’s called that as a feature where you’re writing and you can click on the little W and it will you can choose as a metaphor are the facts out of coins are the substantiative sentence, add an explanatory sentence at a joke. The joke’s a bit lame, but it’s built the coffee. Go. Yeah, so like you’re writing. And if you’re just in the moment of lack of inspiration, you can click the W and get something that pushes you on so I like that better than chat GPT because chat, I get the tip wrong. It just got gulfs out all this stuff, and then you get to fiddle with it. Whereas I –
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Then also you have to like substantiate whatever ChatGPT gives you.
Kate Toon:
Yeah, it’s annoying. Um, cool. So we’ve got Grammarly, markup IO and wordtune. Fantastic. And so, you know, when you’re obviously juggling two children and a mother that’s created a nice visual image. And, and your copywriting clients, you know, obviously, like most of us, I’m sure you have stressful days. What are some of the ways you’ve learned to kind of cope with the mental ups and downs of being a copywriter?
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Look, I’m a giant cliche, I go to CrossFit for that.
Kate Toon:
Oh do you? Just sweat it out.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
I mean, I don’t have the body of a crossfitter sadly, but I do like I turn up every day, even if it’s just for the coffee, the gym sells excellent coffee. And sometimes I will turn up and I will look at the workout and I’ll be like, alright, well if I get through this I can have a coffee. Yeah. Yeah, basically CrossFit and coffee. That’s that’s what we get through.
Kate Toon:
CrossFit, coffee, coffee and copywriting. It’s a beautiful combination.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Yep, it’s how I roll. I do have like a, like a to do list app on my phone that just like, I find, if I have too many things buzzing around in my head, I just can’t focus. So I just flick it onto the to do list. So it’s out of my brain at all hours of the day and night and even as a watch app. But you know, Siri never picks up what I’m saying. And then I ended up with a weird note. Does
Kate Toon:
what was I talking about?
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
What was I thinking?
Kate Toon:
I do the same. And that’s a big thing for me. So I use Asana and, and Slack. So you know, in the middle of the night, I’ll just go open up my slack app and type do the thing with the thing. And most mornings, I come back and I’m like, What the hell was that? But, and sometimes I’ll pop them into like my VAs channel. And she’s like, what were you on at 2am in the morning? Just
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Seeing the timestamp.
Kate Toon:
Yeah, exactly. It’s embarrassing, but just getting it out of my head into the app, then you know, when I’m in a bit more when I’ve had my CrossFit and coffee, I can then take it, put it into Asana make it a task, and I don’t know when that’s gonna get done, but it will get done. So it’s a great way of clearing that mental load.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
You’ve closed that loop and you can move on.
Kate Toon:
You can move on and just be like, it’s gonna happen. It may not happen today, but it’s gonna happen. Another thing that I’m really learning to do is, you know, Separate me, myself and I so I make my little to do lists. I’ll do it before I wrap up today because I finish up at about two every day to get my son and even though he one does not want to spend any time with me, I still pretend that he does, because he’s 13. So I finish at 2. And I will make sure I do my to do this for tomorrow today. So the one I come in tomorrow, and I’ve got that weird procrastifaff, I had it this morning and I’m like, What should I do? What should I do? And I’m like, stop it literally just do the list that you gave yourself? Yes, they don’t question it. Just do it get in there
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
You put it there for a reason.
Kate Toon:
I put them for a reason. I don’t want to do them, but I’m going to do them. So that helps you balance you know, your your mental health and pumping it out in the gym and CrossFit is something I do too. If you were to go back and speak to little SJ of many years ago, 10 years ago and say, Okay, you’re about to be a copywriter. Here’s my one piece of advice for you. What would that piece of advice be?
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Oh, well, let’s be real, the thing that you said at the start about the 30 an hour workweeks and naptimes and and I mean this goes for everything, you can do all of the things but you can’t do it for an extended period of time or you will be a crispy burnt out shell of a human. So you can’t have everything you want. You just probably can’t have it all at once. Yes. And that is, you know, the sooner you accept that, the more then you can be,
Kate Toon:
Oh, I love that. It’s actually the mantra of my new book. It’s the world will wait. I’ve said that several times in the group. But that’s the whole mantra that like, as you said, you kind of have 40 hours to work on your business. It’s not gonna be in the same week may not even be in the same year, some years. But you can have those 40 hours you just have to be patient about it and spread that little bit of butter over more toast over the over the years. SJ, it’s lovely talking to you give my love to your mum. I’m very fond of your mum.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Well, I will say hi. I’ll go let her out of exile in a minute. Yeah.
Kate Toon:
Get out of the cupboard after the office.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
I have an office again, though. So this the room where I’m speaking to you from today was my youngest nursery. Until last week when I was like, Nope, that’s it. I need adult. I’ve been working from media room for two years now. And you’re leaving because I’m getting my daughter back. Because
Kate Toon:
What have you done with the child? Is it just in the garden?
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
No, no, no, she’s got another bedroom. There’s more rooms in the house. Okay, you can you can, you don’t need to nursery anymore.
Kate Toon: A door is so important. A door is so crucial.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
I can’t even tell you the amount of times right you know, I’ve seen it a few times this week on social media that BBC dad with the kids that skated in the Moto X me literally every day of the week, that’s me and people are like, oh, there’s your toddler again. And I’m like, just ignore it.
Kate Toon:
So me It used to be my ex husband kind of walking behind the screen like completely naked. Which, you know, some clients enjoyed. I’m gonna say, but most clients didn’t. So yeah, those doors are a crucial part of being a copywriter.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
I love my door. Very happy about my door.
Kate Toon:
Sarah is now kissing her door. You can’t see it on the podcast, but that’s what’s happening. She’s stroking it. Thank you so much. Yes, listen, before you go. Where can we find out more about you?
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Well, I have an Instagram where none of my clients are but a lot of my copywriting friends are my friend my peace with that I’m on there for me. That is at joyful Comms or my website joyful communications.com.au
Kate Toon:
I’ll also include links to your Facebook and your LinkedIn as well. always a joy to talk to you bought them. But you’ve not heard that one before.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
Love what you did there.
Kate Toon:
Yeah. Thanks for Tooning in. Birbhum there’s another one. Have a great day, Sarah.
Sarah-Joy Pierce:
You too. Okay. Enjoy your early knockoff regular knockoff
Kate Toon:
I will. So that’s the end of this week’s show. If you want to grab more copywriting tips, then join my misfit entrepreneur group on Facebook there I share digital marketing, business, copywriting and SEO advice every day on the reg and thank you very much to Sarah-Joy Pierce. But also thank you to VIV p 987. From Australia for their lovely review. They said get real on copywriting real copywriters, real conversation. That’s clever. Thank you very much. Thanks to you for listening. If you have time to leave us a rating or review on iTunes, Stitcher, Spotify or wherever you heard the podcast that would be smashing. You’ll get a shout out on the show. Also, don’t forget to check out the show notes for this episode, you’ll find links to those tools that we mentioned I highly recommend mark up I’m gonna go and get that again. I had that forgot about it. Too many apps in this world. You can check those out there learn more about Sarah Joy piers and leave a comment about the show. So until next time, happy writing
