ATTENTION: This session requires advance signup to attend. For Online Schedule: Please utilize the RSVP link below the description to reserve your seat. For SXSW GO App: Use the RSVP 'Find a Timeslot' link. You must have a SXSW Interactive, Gold, or Platinum badge to attend, and, you must have an activated SXsocial account (social.sxsw.com) to reserve a seat. If you have any issues with signing up, please email support@sxsw.com. VERY IMPORTANT: Because of the limited space, we recommend you arrive at least 15 minutes prior to the published start time of this session. If you have not checked in at the room you RSVPed for at least five minutes prior to the session start time, you may lose your seat to an attendee in the waiting list line.

Prerequisites:
Should be familiar with the struggles of generating fresh and effective copy.

What to Bring:
Bring laptop plus a piece of copy you're working on.

Words shape commerce. The best ones arrest readers, prompt decisions, and cause value to sell.

But choosing which words to use--in what order--isn't easy. That's what this workshop is all about.

Led by Jean Tang, this hands-on workshop gets participants channeling inspiration--NOT simply information. Figure out what makes amazing content legendary, get a methodology for DIY, and then apply it to your most dire copywriting project: be it web, mobile, print, or personal marketing content.

In response to the surge of demand at SXSW 2014, we're adding an intro and conducting the hands-on portion in small groups. After kicking off with a 20 minute talk on the tenets of effective writing, participants break into format-specific groups: one perhaps for blogs, another for web content, a third for email campaigns.

Bring us a piece of your marketing copy: say, a homepage, blog series, branded messaging, tagline, bio, or social media profile. We’ll provide a constructive critique and actionable redrafting plan. Walk-ins welcome.