History
Back in 2006 I was a frustrated business development director. I was good at my job but the part I really enjoyed was writing the mailings. It took about 10 years for me to realise I was actually a frustrated copywriter; and that I was a bit slow on the uptake. Fortunately, the agency was kind enough to let me try out ‘proper’ copywriting and I never looked back.
Approach
In 2010 I moved to Mencap, the learning disability charity, as a full-time copywriter. Here I learnt the invaluable skill of writing in ‘Easy-read’, a unique style that helps people with a learning disability understand complicated ideas. Crucially, I realised that the guiding principles of ‘simplicity’ and ‘economy’ apply to almost all copywriting, especially digital, where space is limited.
As a freelancer, I’ve blended this approach with creativity and a focus on the details. I work without ego, am always open to feedback and am as happy collaborating or working in peaceful solitude.
Experience
I have a huge amount of experience with established financial brands such as American Express, Invesco Perpetual and Santander, as well as fast-moving start-ups such as Goldex, Fraud.com and PassFort (now part of Moody’s). As a result, I’m well used to dealing with both Compliance and Legal teams, as part of the development process.
My specialisms include tone of voice development and guidelines, UX collaboration, site content, app content, scriptwriting, team leadership, client communications/presenting and long-form content.
When I’m not on a project, I run ‘Alex Genn Copywriting’, an agency network of other senior copywriters, for which I operate as project manager, client co-ordinator, marketing manager and talent manager.
I never miss a deadline and always remember, you’re trusting me with your brand, which is a responsibility I take seriously. But don’t take my word for it.
Recommendations
“As sole copywriter on the [GREAT Britain] campaign, Alex had the formidable task of developing new language for a campaign that needed to move on from simple brand mark to responsive communications, speaking to specific audiences to drive (measured) response.
He developed the tone of voice and guidelines for the campaign language, creating distinctive ways of talking for both the consumer-facing (tourism) side of the campaign, as well as the business-facing (investment) side. This was implemented across a huge variety of media including: vehicle livery, outdoor, event comms, online and press.
With such a high-profile campaign, the demands were considerable. Alex more than rose to the challenge and has been a big part of the campaign’s success. I look forward to working with him over the long term on this and other projects.” Richard Yadgar, Client Director, Radley Yeldar
“Alex is a fantastic conceptual thinker with a deep understanding of how to tailor messages according to audience and media type. Though wildly creative, he’s also extremely results-oriented, embracing testing as a way to explore how different creative approaches work.
Always learning and always teaching, Alex is a creative leader who inspires creatives and other professionals to do better work. ” Kristen Brewe, Head of Brand, totallymoney.com
“Alex was excellent in turning projects around fast and with great quality. I loved working with him due to his dedication to the brand and big picture thinking, making an impact from day one.” Michelle Crossan-Matos, Head of Marketing, Vertu
“I highly recommend Alex. A lovely chap to work with. Smart, easy to work with, highly professional, creative, detail-oriented, a very good, solid understanding of financial and regulated content, expert at creating tone and of voice, messaging and superbly written words.” Nathan Willimans, Athlon, Brand Experience Manager
You can have a look at my work in the portfolio here:
Drop me a line today to discuss your next project.