Storytelling will outlive AI. Stories are what we live by. We invest our belief systems in them. We recall them to remember loved ones. We tell them to entertain or motivate others. We tell them to engage donors and stakeholders. Stories have been around since the dawn of man, and I don’t see that changing simply by throwing more tech in the mix. Because when empathy is at the heart of our story, people keep listening. Empathy keeps our humanity at the forefront. When we can – as Atticus...

Reader, who do you surround yourself with? High-quality people who are hungry for something greater or people who pander for whatever crumbs they can get? Since you’re a mission-driven pal, I assume you'd choose the former. So should your emails. The spam folder is the dark abyss of spammy bros, scammers, and bad pitches. It’s where emails go to die. The last thing you want is for the email you thoughtfully crafted to land next to an email like this one I got recently: I don't even need to...

Reader, did you catch my LinkedIn post yesterday? If not, I'll give ya the cliff notes: I was this 🤏 close to buying a course from a longtime {super successful} inbox mentor I responded to their email - per their call-to-action - aaaand *nothing* They lost a sale because their communication (er- lack thereof) didn't align with what they said I've got something to preach about today (preaching to myself, too): You have a responsibility to build relationships with your audience. It's a key...

Hey Reader, The sun is starting to show off, I’m already planning my summer garden, and I even saw the first bee of the season yesterday. I’m normally a sweater weather gal, but this spring has me excited for new beginnings in life and in my biz! If you’re like me, you like to keep things neat and tidy. Did you know that your email list should get a nice cleaning once or twice per year? I like to do this in the springtime when everything else around me symbolizes growth and new opportunities....

🎶 Let's talk about you and me. Let's talk about all the good things and the bad things that may be. Let's talk about blogs! 🎶 I'll stop dancing and get to the point: most of us have one foot out the door with Meta. We are so done compromising our values and supporting people who have no idea what it's like to be in our shoes -- or the shoes of our clients, supporters, or beneficiaries. The good news: we don't have to depend on Meta accounts as our only source of attracting leads or...

Reader, stop using weak call-to-actions in your copy. Call-to-actions should be all over your website. You should have 1-3 in every email you send. You need one at the end of every single one of your social posts. Using weak CTAs is a waste of your time. Strong CTAs can actually drive sales, calls, sign-ups, or donations. Subpar CTAs may not be your fault. Maybe you don't consider yourself a writer, or you're just saying what everyone else does (reminder: that doesn't help you stand out). The...

I made a mad dash from the front porch to the driver’s side of my car. We were running late for school, but I still wanted to warm the car for a few minutes on this frosty morning. I pressed the key fob. The locks clicked. I opened the driver’s door to find the contents of my console strewn across the driver’s seat and cupholders. I panicked, looking around to see if anyone was there and trying to remember if anything valuable was left in there (there wasn’t, thank goodness). I spent the rest...

Reader, Black Friday and Cyber Monday are around the corner. Q4 is coming to an end VERY soon. Are you on track to meet your 2024 business goals? You still have time... But it's not time to sell. It's time to get strategic. Don't get me wrong -- selling in your emails is vital to your email marketing success. But sales emails are more effective when you pair the words with strategy. So while you're wrapping up your Black Friday sales sequence or drafting a launch for the beginning of 2025,...

I laughed and took a sip of my margarita. Sitting with old friends in a new restaurant in Miami, ignoring the flood watch alerts from Hurricane Milton, I forgot the mess and invested in the connection. The warmth from my dear friends I hadn't seen in a long time (and the 85-degree weather) felt like a "welcome home" hug as we laughed over margs and tacos. Life is good, I thought. We all crave these moments - connections - that make us feel like we have everything we need. We want friendships...