An easier way to choose a freelance copywriter.
Choosing a freelance copywriter for your next project shouldn’t be a huge challenge. Because really, it should come down to this:
“Let’s see what you’ve done before.”
On this page, you can see some of my work. I’m sure you’ll be able to look at it and decide if I’m the guy for you.
A few quick facts that may help:
- I’ve been a copywriter for over 20 years.
- I specialize in print, web, TV, direct and branding work.
- I’ve worked for both business-to-business and consumer ad agencies, including a 9-year stint at Saatchi & Saatchi.
- I’m an expert at making things simple, clear and inspirational.
- And (a refreshing fact, I hope) I believe in making my clients happy enough that they keep working with me for years.
So take a look at my work. I don’t know if I’m the right guy for you or not. But in another couple of minutes, you will.
Can't wait that long? Feel free to email me now to talk about your freelance writing project.
Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach him to fish and he forgets about eating.
Sometimes, all it takes is finding the truth and then saying it. That’s what this ad I wrote for Shimano Fishing Tackle did. If you can make a reader smile, nod, and say, “Yeah, that’s me,” you may just have a customer for life.
The best thing to follow an act of God is an act of kindness.
My DuPont Agricultural client did a rather remarkable thing: They created a guarantee that would replace the cost of a farmer’s DuPont products if his crops were destroyed by the weather. It’s always a pleasure to write an ad for something like that.
Yes, there are easier business schools. But Harvard’s so far away.
The Simon Business School in Rochester, NY is one rigorous place to learn. But business people in the area hardly knew about this gem. So we created ads like this one to tell them. The ads were also repurposed for email blasts, which drew great attendance to Information Receptions for potential students. As far as I know, Harvard hasn’t sued yet.
My Strong Heart Web Site
The Strong Heart & Vascular Center was being outmatched by a competitor who had been advertising consistently for the better part of a decade. We fought back with this web site. I wrote the text, recorded audio and video, and developed the structure of the site from the ground up. With the help of a Google Adwords campaign and other media, Strong leapfrogged over their competitor within months—while spending significantly less money. (This site has now been incorporated into the parent web site, URMC.com, for which I have also done a lot of writing.)
Last year, our bypass surgeons performed a nearly impossible procedure: Helping every one of their patients return home.
It was a stunning fact to learn about my client. I just tried get out of the way and tell this amazing story. I have to thank one of my favorite art directors, Kent, for putting a great image with my headline.
Yes, we use dumbbells. No, we don’t train any.
Art DiAntonio is one of the biggest, strongest, smartest guys I’ve ever met. It was my honor to write some ads to help promote his gym. Art has bench pressed over 500 pounds. Oh, and you should know: Art is also my collections agent.
American Fiber Systems Web Site
American Fiber Systems offers some amazing network technology. But describing it with a lot of techno-speak would have just made visitors anxious. So on their web site (designed by NeboWeb), I talked about things like SONET rings and Dark Fiber using words that regular people could actually understand.
Antithesis Web Site
Ad agency web sites have plenty of glitz. Substance, though, is often sorely lacking. I was well acquainted with the guys at Antithesis Advertising, and I knew they did things differently. So with their web site, I made sure their plain-talking, hard-working, highly caring ethic came through.
It seems like this opera will never end. They haven’t started singing yet.
This ad told about Alcatel’s impressive DSL offering. It was part of a whole campaign of things that you can’t stand waiting for. Alcatel ran one of them in the Wall Street Journal. The response far outdistanced their ability to deliver the product, so they had to pull the campaign.
You’re starting to rub me the wrong way.
The Evarts Joint Center has the best surgeons. Outstanding technology. A sterling reputation. Sparkling new facilities. Still, sometimes the best way to tell your story is with a talking hip.
We’ll be there when your fiber ring is put to the test. When someone blows it up, for example.
Sometimes, being a freelance writer is the easiest thing. Your client tells you something remarkable that they did. My job is just to write it down. And after that, they tell you what a great writer you are (see testimonial from AFS below).
The most impressive thing to happen with water since you learned you were made of it.
My client had come up with an irrigation system that actually sensed when the ground needed water. Amazing, right? My challenge was to share the sense of wonder I felt upon hearing about it. Kind of like that feeling I got pretty much every day as a kid.
Branding once meant poking a huge, surly animal with a red-hot iron. If only it was still so simple.
It can be kind of weird marketing an organization that specializes in marketing. But this ad seemed to take the right approach.
Since installing carpet with EcoSolution Q, Sabrina has had a string of eleven good hair days.
This new carpet fiber was totally recyclable into more carpet fiber, so it would never end up in a landfill. I figured, “If you buy carpet like that, something good has to happen to you, right?” Surprisingly, hundreds of customers wrote to tell us that “Carpet Karma” was for real.
If you’re a man. If you’re over 45. If you want to walk her down the aisle.
So what’s the ultimate test for a freelance copywriter? It’s this: Can he write an ad about prostate exams and make it sound appealing. I hope you find that I have passed this formidable challenge.
So what’s next? If you have a project that you’d like me to work on, send me an email. We can talk more by email, or by phone. In the meantime, be sure to read my article, The Seven Habits of Highly Creative People.
“Jim is an exceptional copywriter and easily distinguishes himself from the multitude of ‘good’ copywriters. He nails our desired tone every time, is responsive, personable and professional. I look forward to continue working with Jim and would recommend him in a heart beat.”
A.R. Brache
Marketing Director, American Fiber Systems
“Here is the unvarnished truth: There are creative types who are flashier. There are copywriters who play the part with more panache. There are ad guys who look more like they’ve stepped off the Madison Avenue curb.
But if what you simply need is an idea with the power to change things, Jim Lahue is the one you want working on it.
When the URMC needed a campaign to touch the hearts and minds of Rochester we turned to Jim, and he knew what it took to deliver Medicine of the Highest Order. It’s as inspiring as it is effective. And it’s quintessentially Lahue.
Jim epitomizes something E.B. White wrote about the craft of writing itself.
‘All writers, by the way they use the language, reveal something of their spirits, their habits,
their capacities, and their biases . . . All writing is communication;
creative writing is communication through revelation—it is the Self escaping into the open.”
And so it is with Jim. It’s his substance that makes the difference.” Karl Withers Associate Vice President of Marketing, University of Rochester Medical Center
“Two years ago my creative partner of 25 years—the writer in our small agency—was told she had stage four melanoma and the diagnosis was not good. Our business was doing very well at the time, with excellent clients who appreciated great work.
I had to find someone who could step in and make it look like our agency had not skipped a beat.
Jim came highly recommended from art directors, writers, photographers and cinematographers. He started right in on an ad campaign and annual report for a client I had serviced for 15 years.
Jim got it. His voice became the voice of this client. And they loved it. After 15 years of creating their annual report, they told me it was the best ever.
I trust him and so enjoy seeing what he creates. It is a treat.”
Linda Summers
Owner, Nagel & Summers
