Copy Poetics by Nicole Cloutier
For those of us who want to be kind to, for, and with our words... and make a whole lotta money while we're at it.
Is anyone else watching this?
Is anyone else watching Small Profits? Because it's one of my favorite things I’ve seen on TV in a while! It scratches all my boxes: An unexpected supernatural element Quirky characters + endearing friendships Antiques + mystery!!! I mean... pure delight. As of today, I am officially OUT OF OFFICE for two whole weeks while I get married! (Thank goodness for scheduling emails ahead, right?) But I have three things I want to get on your radar today (that I've done my best to match up with my...
Not every launch is failing
Look, this year’s been weird, right? If you’ve been paying attention to our corner of the online biz world (solo creative businesses for the most part), you’ve likely heard a lot about launches that didn’t go well. I’ve been inside some of those launches. I’ve talked to friends after some of these launches. Things that used to work so easily just aren’t working anymore AND things are changing really fast and it’s hard to keep up (AI is no joke). You may be feeling kinda scared and not really...
An Exercise: Write More Human Sentences 🎱
When I taught college writing, I would run one particular class near the beginning of every sememster. I usually called this class something like "Start with Nonsense" or "Play With Your Words." You see, college students usually arrive to their writing 101 class with a lot of baggage. That highschool "keyhole" essay does a lot of damage to a student's desire to write... who'd've thought? Many of us are still reeling from the red-pen way writing was taught to us... And this was before genAI -...
The belief that helps me love selling
Reader, When I say it's all poetry, what I mean is that... well... it's ALL poetry: Writing Marketing Movement Life This belief is the #1 thing that helps me love my work. Because when you view your copywriting (selling through words) as art, as an extension of the amazingly magical thing that you put into the world, then copywriting because a whole lot easier to do, and you sell more of your magical thing. That's the philosophy behind pretty much everything I do. So today I'm excited to...
The FB ad that changed my career
Reader, In 2019, I was living out of my car + via housesits across the US. No rent, used car fully paid for and not (yet) surprising me with repairs. Life was pretty simple! my 2009 Suzuki car bed! I was in San Jose when I came across a FB ad for the Comprehensive Copywriting Academy (aka the CCA) ... and even though I had sworn off marketing after my 3-year stint at the ad agency... I was craving a bit of stability again. So I enrolled! And I learned more about copywriting in the month it...
How to promise results without overpromising
And the winner of our poll is….. Overpromising! 👇 sending too many emails was a close (and related) second! Reader, I’m actually so delighted this topic won because it keeps coming up in conversations this year… which makes so much sense! Most of us have bought courses, workshops, or programs over the last ~6 years that we didn't actually get results from... 😬 And after seeing that happen enough times, it’s easy to swing too far in the other direction. I know a creative entrepreneur is...
What I'm investing in right now
Reader, In the year 2026, I have a new rule for myself: I'm no longer investing in offers where the mentor isn't reachable. No matter how great it seems. I want to hang out with my mentor, get their thoughts, ask them questions, spend live time in a room where I can see them and they can see me. I'll get way more out of that than I would from even the greatest teacher in a large group course where they never know my name. ... Some things I've paid for recently (that you can still join, too):...
Can I clarify?
Hi Reader, Last week's email might've seemed anti-strategy, so I just want to clarify: I'm not out here making business decisions willy-nilly, but I AM out here removing roadblocks. Example: For the longest time I didn't launch at all, because it seemed like the "perfect" way to do it was with a live masterclass (you know the ones!).* By giving myself permission to fully be my 12th-house, unpredictable-energy-levels self, I was able to launch my way... a more weird, experimental, artistic...
Any thoughts on how to celebrate this?
I’ve always thought of Taurus season as the start of “my” season… Taurus 🌙 → Gemini ☀️ → Cancer 🌅 And this year’s a poignant one… because, Reader, I’m turning 40 in June... Yesterday, I chatted with a receptionist (gotta re-up that 🌿 prescription)… and after giving her my birthday, she exclaimed: “I was also born in June 1986!! How are you feeling?! It’s a big one for us!” But honestly, the more I think about it, the more positive I feel. As someone who's always looked a lot younger than I am...
Survey results! 👀
I'm going to keep this short, Reader, because I don’t want you spending one. more. minute. reading this email when you could be looking at this truly excellent launch data. So... 🥁🥁🥁 The results from the State of Launching Survey are officially in! See the survey results 🚀 There are interactive graphs! And an audio overview where I walk through the patterns I see & how we can make our own launches... easier? better? less stressful? (the dream!) Seriously, go check it out. Enjoy! Nicole P.S....
For those of us who want to be kind to, for, and with our words... and make a whole lotta money while we're at it.