Not sure how I stumbled upon the video below, but I'm happy that I did. If you've seen it on YouTube (and chances are you have, since its received almost 2 million views), you were probably surprised when, at the end of video, it became clear it was an ad for Pantene hair products. They ended the video with their logo and the phrase, "You can shine." Some people left comments about the video stating that while it was great, it had nothing to do with the product because the product itself never actually appeared in the piece. I disagree--it had everything to do with the product.

Pantene wants to tell you about their shampoo by talking "around" it and not "about it," thereby capturing your attention with an authentic message rather than a standard sales pitch or some other regurgitated advertising tactic. Is this just another way to tug at people's heartstrings and make them head straight for Pantene bottles in the shampoo aisle? Well, of course, but the ad also does something that I think is quite clever--it makes you feel inspired by showing you a person overcoming hardship.

The interesting thing about spots like this one for Pantene is that they possess a duality that could be characterized as a blend ofadvertising and also art. Pantene is getting you to think about larger, over-arching themes (overcoming obstacles, victory), much like a film, and draws a connection between those themes and their product.

But the folks at Pantene haven't forgotten to give hair a major role in the piece. The violin player's hair is referenced visually several times throughout the spot, as the young woman is passionately playing the violin, and then again at the end, when she plays for a large crowd with a mane of gleaming, sleek, straight hair.

The bottom line? If every time you see a Pantene bottle you think of overcoming obstacles and believing in yourself, isn't that a victory often more glorious than an ad that has the actual product in it for 10 seconds? I think so.

Check out the video for yourself below and let me know what you think.

Every once in a while, a company comes along that just gets it. They don't just entice you with a flashy website--they actually deliver a quality product at a competitive price, and enhance the customer experience with outstanding support. Recently, I discovered a company called Inkd, which fits that exact description. I was looking for some last-minute graphic design work for a flyer, and Inkd gave me some of the most personalized care I've ever received from an online merchant.

Inkd provides original graphic design templates for flyers, brochures, business cards, and much more. Due to a last-minute change in the scope of a project, one of my clients needed a two-sided flyer designed as soon as possible. Not to worry, Inkd had me covered. They took on the project and turned it around in no time, thanks to super-designer Chelsea and her team. A proof was ready for me in a few hours. Brilliant!

Their site is remarkably easy to use: browse the available templates, pick a great design for your flyer/business card/brochure/etc., and tweak it as necessary (if at all) to make it your own. The whole experience was easy, and whenever I had questions, Chelsea and the Inkd staff where there for me.

Inkd makes it easier for the producers and consumers of design work to connect. Even if you regularly work with a graphic designer, it's possible that they may not accept last-minute projects. Inkd took on my project at a good price and allowed me to finish other work simultaneously. Added bonus? Inkd doesn't use cheesy templates that make you think about dot matrix printers and Betamax machines--all of their designs are fresh, modern, and look 100% custom.

As a business owner, it's a relief to know there are companies like Inkd out there. Their personalized and efficient service has made me a fan!

The benefits of using Inkd:

- Stylish templates for a wide array of projects

- Designs that reflect a more modern aesthetic

- Excellent, personalized customer care

- Quick turnaround

- Fair pricing

Many of you have been asking when the song "Chain Reaction" (from the Grasshopper video I produced) will be available via multiple music sites. Well, some good news: it's finally available for purchase on iTunes (in addition to Amazon and other sites).

Carly Comando created this incredible track, and she was really a pleasure to work with--enthusiastic, poised, and responsive. She composed "Chain Reaction" based on the script I wrote and my sometimes annoyingly specific feedback about the sound I needed for the video. She ended up producing one of the most evocative tracks I've ever heard. It really completes the "Entrepreneurs Can Change the World" video.

Grab the track on iTunes today!

Good news! You can finally buy "Chain Reaction," the song Carly Comando created for the Grasshopper video. It's now available for purchase on Amazon and should be up on iTunes soon, too. Carly created the track just for the Grasshopper video using only the script I wrote for inspiration. She is an amazingly talented musician. If you watched a basketball game at all in the last year, you probably heard Carly's song "Everyday" playing in the "NBA, Where Amazing Happens" commercials.

iTunes should have "Chain Reaction" available for purchase on or before June 30th. I'll keep everyone posted on the progress but if you catch it on iTunes before I do, please just post a comment to let me know. Shout out to the wonderful site TuneCore, which made getting the song out there super easy and straight-forward! Thanks, TuneCore!

They're "just words," right? Wrong. Your website provides a unique opportunity for you to tell your readers exactly why they should buy your product or sign up for your service. If your copy is boring, wordy, or sounds amateur, it's highly unlikely that anyone reading your site will stick around for very long.

So, how do you make your copy work for you? Here are five tips for making sure your content makes the grade.

Treat your homepage like valuable real estate. If it's cluttered with text, or if the text that's there has no discernible value to the reader, you're devaluing your homepage and your product, brand or service as soon as people get to your site. Bottom line: if it's not a major component of your business or service, take it off the homepage.

Don't make the reader work. It's a simple concept, but one that some people fail to grasp: the reader doesn't want to work to find the information they need. Find out what it is that people come to your website for, and then make sure it's easy to find it when they get there.

Invest in good copy. No, I'm not just saying this because I'm the Founder of The Cultivated Word. Good copy--and a good copywriter--will both draw readers to your site by optimizing your content for search engines, and keep them there by making that content easy to read and understand. If you don't have the resources to invest in a copywriter and intend to write the copy yourself, refrain from falling victim to what I call "My Top 5 Copywriting Pet Peeves."

Think about the big picture. When you look at your website copy, check your immediate response. How do you react? If a quick glance produces a response like, "Make it go away!" or if you can't be bothered reading through what you currently have on your site, other people will be just as bored with the copy as you are.

Good copy and design go hand in hand. User interaction research tells us that you've only got a few seconds to convince a visitor to stay on your website. If you've got good copy and a crisp website design, chances are you'll make a positive impression on visitors, and you'll find it's easier to navigate your site, too. Not sure what "decent design" means? Check out Andrew Houle's blog post, "4 Principles of Good Design for Websites."

A copywriter can do wonders with your website in addition to providing content that's attention-getting and sales-oriented. They can also give you a fresh perspective on your company's image and provide helpful feedback about how they interact with your site.

If you're writing copy for your company's website, it's pretty hard to generate objectivity about your copy because you're steeped in your own rhetoric. However, if you must go it alone, don't fall prey to what I call "My Top 5 Copywriting Pet Peeves."

#1 - Your homepage looks like a content bomb went off. Words are everywhere, from the top navigation to way past the fold. Worst of all, you've got to read through everything to figure out where to go next. Instead of stuffing your homepage with keywords, do a little research into SEO, and ask yourself what you would want to see first when you visit your own site. This will give you a clue about what others want to see, too.

#2 - You use tons of exclamation points. Adding multiple exclamation points is unnecessary. Limit yourself to one exclamation point per sentence--if you use more, you run the risk of making your site look like a teenager's text message. And remember, exclamation points are used to call attention to something--if they're everywhere, you'll render important points meaningless.

#3 - You didn't bother reading through your work before publishing it. Big mistake. Even if you think you're perfect, you've got to read through what you've written before you publish it on your site. It's not cute when there's a mistake in your copy, especially when customers are considering buying your product or service. Mistakes make you look sloppy and unprofessional.

#4- You like to use the 'ellipsis', and stick four or five on sentences. Remember the "rule of three" when it comes to the ellipsis (singular) or ellipses (plural), those little dots after words or phrases that signal something has been omitted that the reader can infer. Most of the time, ellipses should only come in sets of three (not four, not ten). Most people writing web copy won't encounter a situation that requires a more complicated use of ellipses, but if you're interested, check this out.

#5 - You don't have any copy on your site. Yes, this is an obvious one, but still worth mentioning since I've seen some sites that attempt to sell a product, but don't provide copy to describe it. If you're going to have a website, you need to be able to update it with content to both help visitors and search engines find your website (for SEO). Don't write very well and have no idea what SEO is? Hire a copywriter. If not, do your best to at least provide simple, error-free information about your product or service.

I don't normally write blog posts about work I've done for specific companies, but I've permission from the wonderful folks at Grasshopper (formerly GotVMail) to write about what they've done because I find it so inspiring.

On Monday, the company that was GotVMail launched a pretty bold campaign to re-brand themselves as Grasshopper. Change isn't always easy, but when there's a great idea behind it, it's a lot easier to galvanize support. That's the case with Grasshopper. While the company has always been a champion of entrepreneurs, the re-branding is all about inspiring entrepreneurs to change the world, and taking innovation to a whole new level. And we could all use some inspiration right now.

I was fortunate to be involved in several aspects of the re-branding but I'm really proud of one piece of work in particular: the company's inspirational video, "A Single Brilliant Idea." Producing and writing the video was amazing because I got to work with two incredibly talented individuals during production, one being Carly Comando, who created the original score. Carly is best known for writing the score for the Noah Kalina "Everyday" viral video and for music she's provided for the NBA's "Where Amazing Happens" campaign. Ben White was the motion designer on the project. I feel so grateful to have found Ben, because he understood what I was going for with the video, and he brought a lot of passion to the project. I feel fortunate to have collaborated with these two creative people.

UPDATE: Many people have been asking for the name of the track Carly created for the Grasshopper video. It's called "Chain Reaction" and it will be available for purchase on iTunes at the end of June or early July.

Without further ado, I'd like to share the video with you:

I don't have to buy your product. In fact, I can turn to your competitor(s) at any point before a transaction--or after one--if I'm not satisfied with the customer service you offer. Since customer service requires communicating with customers, it's important you create effective content for all the stages of customer engagement. From the first time customers visit your website to when they send you comments or questions via email, you have the opportunity to make a lasting impression on prospective buyers. If you use an automated email response that doesn't acknowledge you've even read a customer's questions, or if when you do respond, you're short and you don't thank someone for considering your product or service, they're not going to buy anything from you.

You'd think the aforementioned rules of sales engagement would be obvious, but for some online companies, it's clearly not. I was reminded of this recently when I contacted a company about a product that was out of stock on their website, but available for "pre-order." The website offered very little information about how the pre-order process worked. Since I was interested in the product, I sent an email requesting more info (this site had no contact phone number--that should've sent up a red flag for me). After I sent my first email, I received an automated response that in no way answered my question, and didn't even indicate I'd be getting a real response anytime soon. To make matters worse, when I pointed out my question wasn't answered through this form response, I received a reply without a greeting, and only a short, rude note. Needless to say, no matter how much I liked the product, I won't be purchasing it from this online retailer.

The point of this post is to emphasize one simple rule all businesses (small or large) should keep in mind: good content (copy) is a sales tool, and you shouldn't skimp on it when interacting with customers off your website, either via email or even Twitter. This is especially true for small businesses just starting out. Treat customer communications not only as a situation in which you're obligated to answer questions, but as a valuable opportunity to sell your company and make me buy your product.

And for any business owner that thinks customer email interaction is a "waste of time," you might want to consider supplying informative and adequate content on your website to avoid a flood of questions via email later on.

Fast food corporation + public works project = KFC's new marketing campaign.

Got potholes? KFC's got a solution: they'll fill the potholes in your city if, after they've been filled, you let them spray-paint their logo on the finished product. Sound like a good deal? Then you might want to give Colonel Sanders a call and let him know to come to town (or go to town--on your potholes, that is).

KFC's pothole-filling project is all part of their new "street marketing campaign" to spread the word about the freshness of KFC's chicken. According to the company's press release, "While most people know the signature taste of the Colonel's Original Recipe, not everyone knows that KFC restaurants receive shipments of fresh chicken on the bone throughout each week." But make no mistake, this isn't about just letting consumers know they sell fresh chicken at KFC.

As soon as I heard about KFC's new promotion, I remembered what I'd read in Martin Lindstrom's book, Buyology. In the book, he describes KFC's subliminal ad for the Buffalo Snacker chicken sandwich, which "if the viewer replayed... in slow motion, revealed a code that consumers could enter on the KFC Web site to receive a coupon for a free Snacker" (Lindstrom 2008: 73). The point is that KFC doesn't slap logos on potholes without a good reason--it's all part of the great KFC master marketing plan. The question is, will consumers find it authentic and believable?

The "Re-Freshed by KFC" pothole campaign is an interesting one--doing something good for the community and also spreading the word about the KFC brand, but some people don't like the idea of public works and business mixing. Others just don't like KFC's practices, and find the idea of promoting the brand on potholes rather repellent, regardless of the fact cities are getting help improving the roads.

PETA has accused KFC of cruelty to animals for years. They're so inflamed over the company's new "Re-Freshed" campaign that they've offered Louisville's mayor $6,000 (twice what KFC "donated") to fill potholes and then spray-paint them with anti-KFC messages. The mayor declined PETA's offer. It would appear PETA's money isn't good enough for Louisville.

No doubt the conflict has brought attention to KFC's campaign, but it also sparks discussion about the limits of advertising campaigns. Should public streets be branded with the logos of companies? Some say that has essentially already happened at bus stops, on park benches, and on city buses--so what's the difference? In this case, it seems like the difference is the close partnership between KFC and the City of Louisville. But can this be helped? After all, as Louisville Mayor Jerry Abramson points out, KFC employs a lot of people in the city.

Does KFC's advertising campaign cross the line or is it just smart marketing? What do you think?

Why is a copywriter telling people to stop caring about how they sound? Here's why: because when you think your business should sound one way, and you put all of your resources into "sounding" like something other than yourself, you lose an opportunity to tell your unique brand story with authenticity.

C.S. Lewis once said, "[N]o man who bothers about originality will ever be original: whereas if you simply tell the truth (without caring twopence how often it has been told before) you will, nine times out of ten, become original without ever having noticed it." This piece of advice applies to creating almost any kind of content, especially copy for young, small businesses still searching for their true voice. In short, when you try too hard, people can tell.

If you're a new company, or an old company just setting up your presence on the web, and you're writing the copy yourself, don't bother with making your language "pretty" at first. Tell your story in the simplest of terms, and after you've completed an entire draft, go back and do some "wordsmithing" if possible--edit for style and clarity and see what you come up with. This exercise will be helpful even if ultimately you decide you need a professional copywriter to take the reins. By giving the copywriter the story of your company from your perspective, you'll give him or her insight into your business. A copywriter will take your story and run with it, finding new and eloquent ways of highlighting the "big ideas."

I'm not saying that you shouldn't take risks with your copy--in fact, I'm a strong advocate for finding new ways of communicating with your customers. But it's important to know when your copy is at odds with your overall strategy. For example, sometimes people become preoccupied with sounding "clever," or "tech-savvy," but if you're a luxury home builder, sounding anything but professional and trustworthy on your website might hurt your business, even if you're appealing to a young, trendier market.

If you're just starting out trying to tell your company's story through a new website or on a social networks such as Facebook or Twitter, think of what C.S. Lewis said, and just tell it like it is. Maybe it requires a few tweaks by a talented copywriter to bring it all together in the end, but the bottom line is that you should always be yourself.