I haven't posted for a while because I was in San Diego last week. Three exciting meetings - one with PR geniuses Randall Blaum and David Scotland; one with a prospective client; and one with business partners Audri and Jim Lanford. We'd promoted a very successful ebook together and I'd never met them in person. Such the realities of the virtual lifestyle.
Anyway... Jim Lanford told me about a great new Web mapping service I had been looking for but didn't really know existed and certainly didn't know where to find: Google Maps. It's better than Mapquest because you can zoom in and out on the map and scroll around much more easily.
Check it out: http://maps.google.com
Good for U.S. and Canada only at this time.
Second tip: I just read in the New York Times today that Beverly Sills, the opera soprano everyone who loves opera loves (I don't like opera but I revere success, and Beverly Sills certainly embodies that) -- well, she's retiring at age 75.
What I found fascinating is a little tidbit about the start of her career. We often tend to assume that anyone who is successful was always that way.
But a sidebar to the main article pointed out that she auditioned seven times for the New York City Opera in 1955 before she was accepted.
Think about that. Six "failures" before she succeeded.
Both of these tips apply importantly to copywriting, by the way. As you become a successful copywriter, you'll end up going to strange and unfamiliar places, like Rancho Bernardo, and you'll need driving directions. Hence, Google Maps.
And, you simply must learn to accept failure as part and parcel of success. Looks like a few "no's" didn't slow down Beverly Sills. Nor should it slow down you.
David Garfinkel
Publisher, World Copywriting Newsletter
Call Audio Driving Directions Toll Free . . . And Never Get Lost Driving Again! Speaking of google maps, I'm trying to decide on several headlines for a massive ad campaign we are about to launch for a brand new "instant information" audio phone service that not only provides point-to-point audio driving directions anywhere in the US but also the latest news, professional and college sports results, daily and extended weather reports for over 10,000 U.S. cities, up-to-the minute stock reports from all the major exchanges, travel connections to every airline, car rental agency, and hotel chain, plus cool entertainment and much, much more . . . all from the convenience of your cell, home or office phone. This cutting-edge voice-driven comprehensive nationwide service will allow you to keep in touch with the people and things you need every day . . . without having a computer strapped around your waist. This nationwide audio which utilizes cutting edge voice-recognition and text-to-speech audio technology has been deployed for over two years . . . but not available to the general public, only a select few insiders, that is, until now. Stay tuned for the public access launch date . . . you definitely won't want to miss it. The telephone-based audio "net" is just invaluable for any one who travels anywhere, especially when driving, anyone who follows a sports teams, or anyone who likes to instantly know the weather forecast for anywhere in the country, plus thousands of other up-to-the-minute bits of information that we crave every waking hour. I'd like some comments on the headline, if you please. Thanks in advance for reading.
Posted by: Ron | April 01, 2005 at 07:31 PM