Hello there (I’m channelling my inner Obi-Wan Kenobi as I type this),
Today’s newsletter is soaked in whisky, philosophy and copywriting. That last thing is something I do for a living, while the other two are rabbit holes that I’m still digging through.
Thought it was pretty sweet to be featured on one of my favourite whisky podcasts and wanted to state the case for how a specialist food and drink copywriter is worth their weight in gold for growing a drink (or any) business.
Best,
Jamie
Appearing on Whisky And Things podcast
Whisky And Things is an awesome podcast for anyone with even a passing interest in whisky. Nick Kent and Dave Giles have epic chemistry and discuss a wide range of topics, from tasting new bottles to interviewing whisky geeks from all walks of life.
Chatting to them about my love of whisky and pop culture was a hell of a lot of fun and the main talking points were:
🥃 Superheroes and whisky pairings (Imagining what kind of drams characters like Wolverine would knock back. Also who would be more pretentious with their whisky collection. Batman or Iron Man?)
🥃 The popularity of Japanese and world whisky
🥃 Whisky world-building in horror and fantasy realms (+ commentary on a story called Curse Of The Entrepreneur from my upcoming short story collection Transmutations)
Check out the episode here and get involved with the podcast.
https://www.whiskyandthings.com/
How The Circles Of Concern Help To Strengthen Our Relationships
Human connection is a powerful force. It binds us together in a wider community of wanting to do good acts for each other and the world. This force permeates ancient philosophy and there are several concepts I believe have practical applications in the modern day.
One of them is The Circles Of Concern/Concentric Circles from the philosopher Hierocles. A timeless construct for deepening human connection, Hierocles’ circles can enrich our lives.
Who was Hierocles?
Hierocles was a Stoic philosopher from the 2nd century who is most famous for his concentric circles and his book the Elements of Ethics. Although little is known about his life, Hierocles’ contribution to Stoicism and philosophy is noteworthy because of his focus on oikeiosis.
Oikeioisis translates to appropriation and is linked to ideas of belonging to something, growing out of self-interest and being connected to a worldwide community.
Hierocles believed that we appropriate our sense of self to people like our family, friends, acquaintances etc and try to bring them as close to humanly possible to us.
Breaking down The Circles Of Concern
Hierocles represented oikeiosis in a series of circles that start with the self/mind and other categories that begin at a distance from the self:
The self/mind
The body
Parents
Other family e.g. uncles, aunts, cousins
Friends
The rest of the world
The aim of the circles is to reduce the distance between each of these categories. It’s to bring the other circles closer to the centre, treating different people as if they were a part of the inner circle.
For example, you should treat your parents with the same care that you do for your body and you should hold your friends in the same esteem that you do for the rest of the world.
However, the idea isn’t to treat everybody the same and people are still within their circles. These boundaries are important, but we should still treat people as we would want to be treated in their position.
Hierocles’ model has been updated through the centuries, being reimagined as the Circles Of Compassion. It’s demonstrating that you can show compassion to people that aren’t in your closest circles (family, friends) and be just with anybody.
Applying the circles in business
The concentric circles inspired the creation of a framework I use in my role as a copywriter called Brand Circles Of Care. It’s starting from a place of values and examining how these values are infused across every aspect of a business.
There are four circles:
⭕ Brand values: These are the values that represent what you stand for and connect to how your content should be presented across your website and sales channels.
⭕ Employees: This circle covers how your values relate to staff, your recruitment process and how you practice what you preach with the people in your immediate vicinity.
⭕ Customers: This circle is for how you showcase your values to customers through your online and offline content.
⭕ Industry: The industry circle covers how your values relate to your sector and can be used for turning trends and topics into valuable content.
Once the values of a brand have been analysed, I’m in a better position to create copy and content that matches those values.
The Brand Circles Of Care exercise makes it easier for a business to share its philosophy with the world and forge a deeper connection with a customer community.
Who does it help?
✔️ Start-ups that need clarity on how to present their values.
✔️Businesses who're ready to rebrand and develop their tone of voice.
✔️Solopreneurs who want to create content that's aligned to their personal views.
What are the benefits?
🔍 Clarity on your values: When you have a clear representation of your values you can quickly and easily produce content that will continue to connect with your audience.
⏰ Time-saving: Outsourcing copywriting to an expert frees you up to invest your time in business activities you enjoy doing.
🏃♀️ Content ideas to hit the ground running: The workshop will give you a base to start producing new content for engaging with your audience.
What projects does it complement?
🚧 New websites and rebrands
🎤 Brand tone of voice guide
🕵️♂️ Competitor analysis report
✍🏿 Long-form articles and white papers
Live your personal and business philosophy
The Circles Of Concern is a good methodology for building stronger connections with other people and applying it to your mental health routine. It may encourage you to live your personal philosophy and dive deeper into what your beliefs are.
Brand Circles Of Care works much the same way for a business. It’s understanding what the principles of your organisation are built on and then how to create content that’s appropriate for your customers and industry.
If you need greater clarity on your values then book a discovery call for a Brand Circles Of Care workshop. Get in touch by replying to this email.
Benefits of using a food and beverage copywriter for your business
A specialism: Trends are always changing in the industry. A hospitality copywriter will be on top of these trends and be able to suggest new content ideas and constantly evolve your strategy.
Driving sales and building engagement: Copywriting and content marketing are more than just writing words on a page. Both disciplines increase the chances of people engaging with your brand, buying products and becoming a part of your community.
Copywriting involves coming up with sales copy and calls to action. It taps into human psychology and influences people to buy or convert to a specific action. Content marketing is a long-term strategy that educates your audience and drives them towards your products and services.
A helpful resource: Good copywriters are great for long-term partnerships because they are creatives and sales psychologists by nature. They will be able to take content planning off your hands and continually add value for years to come.