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Turn Your Copywriting Dream
Into Reality at AWAI’s
2008 FastTrack to Copywriting
Success Bootcamp

November 12–15, 2008
Delray Beach, Florida

Don’t let this opportunity pass you by:

And so much more …

NEW FOR 2008!
Advanced Track for Returning Attendees

You’ll be able to pick and choose the sessions that are of most interest to you! Check out new sessions added this year:

Preliminary Agenda for
2008 FastTrack to Copywriting Success Bootcamp

Day 1

Registration begins at 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, November 12th, in the Delray Beach Marriott hotel lobby.

If you’re a first-timer at an AWAI Bootcamp, there will be a brief orientation meeting just for you from 4:30 to 5:00 p.m., full of tips and suggestions to help you make the most of your Bootcamp experience, as well as a chance to network with other first-timers.

We’ll officially kick-off the event with opening remarks by Michael Masterson from 5:00 to 6:30 p.m. If you’ve never seen Michael in action before, here’s your chance! And for those of you who have been to Bootcamp before, you can look forward to Michael’s unique perspective and insight on copywriting and trends in the industry today. You definitely don’t want to miss this session.

After that, you’ll have the chance to meet Michael Masterson in person at the book signing for his recent releases, Ready, Fire, Aim and Architecture of Persuasion.

Later that evening, you’re cordially invited to join us for our annual “Wall of Fame” Networking Dinner. While enjoying a delicious meal, you can engage in conversation with AWAI’s “Wall of Fame” and Circle of Success members, get to know the AWAI staff, even dine with the pros!

You’ll be on such an emotional high, you won’t want to retire to your room early. The rest of the evening is yours to:

But don’t stay out too late! We start early and go all day, so you’ll want to get a good first night’s sleep.

Day 2

On Thursday we’ll provide a complimentary networking breakfast, starting at 7:30 a.m.

And then, at 8:30 a.m. sharp, we’ll get right to work.

We’ll all meet in the main ballroom for a very special welcome and overview from Denise Ford, AWAI’s Conference Director.

Then, we’ll kick-off this information-packed day with a special “Master Class” with copywriting superstars Mike Palmer, Paul Hollingshead and other copywriting pros. Word is that this session is going to out do their session last year – a feat in itself.

After a short mid-morning break, award-winning independent Direct-Response Copywriter, Don Hauptman, will reveal his Greatest Hits (and a Few Misses) From 30 Yearsof Direct-Response Copywriting. In this session, Don will show you how to use some of these same creative techniques to help you boost your own response rates for your clients.

After a Q&A session with Don, we’ll break for lunch at 11:30 a.m. and meet back at 1:00 p.m. to jump right into our afternoon sessions. With our dual-track sessions for Refresher and Advanced levels, you’ll have the opportunity to brush up on your copywriting skills or dive into a particular topic.

If you’re new to Bootcamp, Copywriting Coach Will Newman will introduce the Peer Review process to you along with Master Copywriter Jen Stevens. If you’re already familiar with this process, you’ll want to attend the Master Class in Design and Copywriting with Donna Doyle and Lori Haller.

After a quick break, we’ll come back to our dual-track sessions. You’ll hear from the experts on the best techniques for:

Then, we’ll break for dinner and meet back at 7:30 p.m. for a new presentation, Getting Clients: How to Find the Niche Market That’s Right forYou with Chris Marlow and a few surprise guests.

Chris is one of the most sought-after copywriting coaches today. She’s worked in nearly every category of copywriting: business-to-business, business-to-consumer, technology, health-publishing, banks, utilities and education. She’ll share with you her comprehensive system for getting clients - tailored to specific niche markets. And her special guests are AWAI alumni who are doing just that!

This is bound to be one of the highlights of this year’s Bootcamp – one you don’t want to miss!

Day 3

Friday is a big day, so make sure you’re well rested. A complimentary networking breakfast will begin at 7:00 a.m.

At 8:00 a.m. sharp, we’ll start things off with an overview of the day’s events, because we have a full agenda.

You’ll hear from legendary copywriter and past Bootcamp favorite Herschell Gordon Lewis, whose presentation will reveal his proven creative tips and techniques you can use immediately to increase the pulling power of your copy.

If you’ve never had the opportunity to meet Herschell or hear him speak … you’re in for a treat! He’s delightfully charming in person and an extremely informative, yet entertaining, speaker. This is another session you definitely want to attend!

Also that morning we’ll get back to our dual-track offerings. Some of you will work on headlines in the Peer Review while others attend a Master Class with Michael Masterson and company. But don’t worry – everyone will have the chance to do both sessions before you leave Bootcamp!

Before we break for lunch, we’ll have an all-important session to prepare for Job Fair. We invited Sandy Franks from Taipan Financial, MaryEllen Tribby from Early To Rise, and other professional marketers to join some AWAI copywriters in a panel discussion. They’ll talk about what you need to know about marketing (and why!) to grow your copywriting career, and how to successfully work with marketers as clients.

Then we’ll break for lunch and you’ll be free to go on your own or in groups. Take this time to rejuvenate, because you’ll want to be fresh and ready to meet the marketers at the JOB FAIR, where you’ll have the chance to …

Meet with representatives of major direct-mail companies … ask questions … learn about current job opportunities for copywriters … network with fellow attendees … and much, much more!

Marketers are being added to our present list of participants every day. Check the job fair website on a regular basis for updates – http://www.awaionline.com/jobfair/

If you’re a newcomer to Job Fair, take advantage of the special intro by Katie Yeakle, AWAI Executive Director, and Tammy Lawman, AWAI’s Job Fair Coordinator, from 2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. You’ll find out what to expect from Job Fair, what the marketers expect from you, and how to make the most of your experience.

Circle of Success members should gather promptly near the main entrance of the ballroom at 2:30 p.m. for early admission to the Job Fair. The doors open for General Admission to the Job Fair at 3:00 p.m.

Immediately following the Job Fair, from 5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m., you’ll join the AWAI staff and all the Job Fair marketers at a cocktail reception, where you can ask questions and network in a less formal atmosphere.

Some of you will actually land clients at the Job Fair. And all of you will have gathered information to help you work on the spec challenges of your choice.

So, after the dinner break, we’ll meet back at 8:00 p.m. to hear from our special guest, copywriter and marketer Gary Hennerberg. Gary is back by popular demand, and he will guide you through his professional tips for successfully turning those spec challenges into paying assignments.

If you’re familiar with spec assignments – or saw Gary’s successful presentation last year, you can join Mark Everett Johnson, a copywriter who specializes in publishing, health and fundraising. Mark is the author of one of the most successful letters in the mail today with over 3.3 million paid orders and $80 million in sales. Mark will address the controversial and much-debated subject of “Is Direct-Mail Dead?”

Day 4

Saturday’s networking breakfast will be served from 7:00 to 8:00 a.m.

We’ll start off the day at 8:00 a.m. with a super-charged session by Master Copywriters and AWAI Co-Founders, Don Mahoney and Paul Hollingshead. They will share with you their ideas on how to take your copywriting career to the next level.

Then, we’ll break out into the dual-track sessions for Refresher and Advanced levels.

You’ll hear from Jen Stevens and special guests on crafting offers that close the deal … and AWAI’s VP and Director of Online Marketing, Rebecca Matter, will share her insights on everything you need to know to break into the highly lucrative niche of writing for the web.

After a quick break, some of you will work on headlines in the Peer Review while others attend the Master Class with Michael Masterson and company. (We’ll switch groups from the day before.)

Then, from noon to 1:30 p.m., we’ll all get together for AWAI’s exciting Awards Luncheon, where we’ll award the “Copywriter of the Year,” the winner of this year’s $10K Challenge, the best rookie copywriter, and more! A complimentary lunch will be served!

 … and finally from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m., our Special Guest Speaker (to be announced soon!) will officially wrap up the 2008 FastTrack to Copywriting Success Bootcamp!

Afterward you’re invited to join us for a farewell reception, where we’ll send you off celebrating your success!

Whew! That’s some agenda – and it’s still being fine-tuned. More to come … no wonder we call it Bootcamp!
Your Presenters
Stay Tuned for
New Additions!

Just Added!
Robert W. Bly
Bob Bly is an independent copywriter and consultant with more than 25 years experience in business-to-business, high-tech, industrial, and direct marketing, having received more than $2 million in fees and royalties from over 100 publishers, editors, and corporate clients nationwide. He’s a widely published author of over 60 books and hundreds of feature articles.

Don Hauptman
 Don is an award-winning independent direct-response copywriter and creative consultant, who specializes in the marketing of information. Don may be best-known for his headline "Speak Spanish [French, German, etc.] Like a Diplomat!", a series of ads that generated revenues in the tens of millions of dollars.

Herschell Gordon Lewis
Herschell is one of the highest-paid, most respected, best-known direct response copywriters in the world and the author of over 20 books on how to write copy that sells more product. His articles appear regularly in Direct Selling and Catalog Age.

Michael Masterson
Michael is the originator of many of the secrets taught in AWAI’s copywriting programs. Throughout his 25-year career, he’s been directly involved in the generation of over ONE BILLION DOLLARS of sales through the mail and online.

Chris Marlow
Chris Marlow is the original copywriters coach, helping copywriters gain the high-quality, high-value clients since 2003. An expert at niche development, Chris helps copywriters find or create niches that fulfill financial goals, feed passions, and that align with personal values. Chris also helps her copywriters develop secondary income streams through information publishing and coaching. Chris’ program seeks to create copywriters who are “gurus” in their niche.

Mark Everett Johnson
Mark Everett Johnson is a freelance direct response copywriter specializing in publishing, health and fundraising. He is the author of one of the most successful letters in the mail today with over 3.3 million paid orders and $80 million in sales. Prior to starting his freelance career in 1992, Mark was copy chief and creative director for Rodale Press (now Rodale, Inc.).

Carline Anglade-Cole
After 12 years in the direct-marketing industry Carline Anglade-Cole left the corporate world in 1999, and began her freelance career as a direct-mail copywriter. For the past 9 years, she’s created multi-year controls for clients such as Healthy Directions, True Health, Weiss, Health Resources, Nature City, Soundview Publications and Sun Chlorella USA.

Don Mahoney,
Co-Founder, AWAI
Through the help of his boyhood friend, Michael Masterson, Don was able to successfully change careers from running a woodworking shop in upstate New York to living “the writers life” on Miami Beach and earning $300,000+ a year.

Paul Hollingshead
Co-Founder, AWAI
Astoundingly successful, Michael Masterson trained copywriter (former grocery store clerk). Paul has written many controls, and early in his career, wrote a letter that generated over $2 million in sales.

Will Newman
Will is a successful copywriting coach and mentor who has been associated with AWAI since 1999. He is a professional copywriter who apprenticed with Lee Troxler, one of the top copywriters in the world.

Jennifer Stevens
Jennifer is a copywriter who specializes in travel and investment copy. She's also a travel writer, and author of AWAI's The Ultimate Travel Writer’s Program. For many years she acted as the lead editor at International Living, where she still contributes articles.

Sandy Franks
Sandy is the executive publisher of the Taipan Group, an affiliate of Agora Publishing and is the editor-in chief of AWAI’s Monthly Copywriting Genius. Sandy has initiated wildly successful marketing campaigns for countless products and has reviewed promotional material for hundreds more.

Gary Hennerberg
Gary is an in-demand analytic consultant and creative director/copywriter with a record of beating controls by more than 60%. Gary’s copy reaches over 50 million people every year, and is the author of the recently released book Direct Marketing Quantified: The Knowledge is in the Numbers.

Mike Palmer
Mike Palmer heads up a group of 10 copywriters at one of the largest and most profitable financial newsletter businesses in the world. Mike has been in the direct-response business for a decade, has sold tens of millions of dollars worth of product, and most recently used his copywriting skills to write and sell a book about a month-long golf trip in Ireland.

Donna Doyle
For more than 15 years, Donna Doyle has been writing copy for some of the biggest names in the alternative health and self-improvement industries. When she’s not busy writing for today’s best-known health publishers and supplement companies, Donna serves as a copy coach and mentor with Accelerated Training Services. She is also a partner in 3-Chix, a seminar and publishing company serving the business needs of freelance writers. Donna was honored as the 2006 Copywriter of the Year by the readers of Monthly Copywriting Genius.

Testimonials

“The presentations are great. The overall feeling I have is that AWAI really cares about our success. Thank you so much for a fantastic conference. It was just what I needed to jumpstart my career.”

— John H., Trenton, NJ

“Most conferences have something in them that bores someone. Not this one. Every subject caught my interest. It was worth the money spent on the first morning. I have attended other writing conferences – this one was unusual in the warmth and openness of staff and attendees. At AWAI, everyone wants to help you succeed.”

— Lois R., New Orleans, LA

“The list of potential clients in my city blew me away.”

— Richard M., Burlington, VT

“The best part of the Bootcamp was that it put a face to the names of AWAI staff and fellow copywriters. I now feel very much a part of the AWAI family … it has increased my confidence as a copywriter and my belief that I can be successful.”

— Mark K., Chicago, IL

“I came with the mindset of a ‘cashier/wannabe copywriter,’ and I left as a writer. Thank you.”

— Raymona A., Sante Fe, NM

register today!

Listen to Our Bootcamp Raves…

Click Audio Player Button And Listen To What Past Attendees
Say About FastTrack to Copywriting Success Bootcamp!

Find out how Bootcamp set John Torre’s copywriting career into high gear.

 

Karen Martini sets and reaches her goals since Bootcamp.

 

Find out how Bootcamp helped Kevin Adams to write better promotions.

 

Penny Thomas beats control with her Bootcamp Job Fair assignment.

 

Linda Lee is thrilled that she found AWAI and will be back for Bootcamp 2008.

 

Hear what got Kathleen Cleary motivated. You can do it too!

 

register today!

More Raves…

See What Past Attendees Say About
AWAI’s FastTrack to Copywriting Success Bootcamp!

Krista J. “I landed my first paid copywriting assignment two months after I attended AWAI’s FastTrack to Success. Six months later, I had all the work I could handle.”

— Krista J.
Roswell, GA

Marcella A.

“I’ve been to the AWAI Bootcamp for the past two years and I wouldn’t miss it for the world. Every year I learn more than the year before. I meet new contacts and greet old friends. But most of all, each year Bootcamp becomes the launching pad for new projects, new clients, and most of all, better copy… Thank you again for an outstanding conference with more high-quality content than I could keep up with!”

— Marcella A.
Cincinnati, OH

“By mid-day on day one, I had already gotten my money’s worth. The breadth of the material presented was amazing. I was (and continue to be) blown away by the openness, friendliness and complete availability that the presenters and staff constantly displayed. Where in the world did you find so many experts who are such great teachers and great people?”

— Robert A.
Mechanicsville, VA

“The best part of the entire experience was the chance to meet the experts. They are knowledgeable, experienced, successful, and very, very generous with what they know. I am confident I can do this.”

— MaryBeth S.
Shoreham, NY

“Wow... I came home from Bootcamp with so much material that I am just starting to catch up. AWAI did a great job with this Bootcamp. I couldn’t be happier with the staff and the sincere desire everyone at AWAI has to make us all successful.”

— Michael L.
Waxhaw, NC

“I had a wonderful time at Bootcamp. What impressed me the most was how personable the AWAI staff and speakers were. Though they were busy, they would always take a moment to answer any questions posed by novice Bootcampers, like me. After dealing with my day job for the last week, I’m getting ready to jump into some of the spec assignments. I cannot thank you enough!”

— Cassandra H.
Mobile, AL

Malcolm S.

“My first Bootcamp was what really got my career moving. I made tremendous contacts there... I also landed a spec assignment from the Job Fair that turned into a second assignment. And I still go back to the handouts and notes from that Bootcamp... 2-1/2 years later. It’s more than paid for itself several times over.”

— Malcolm S.
Lake Worth, FL

“The thing I enjoy most is getting together with friends I’ve made in the past and forming new friendships. I enjoy a power network of support with the friends I’ve made at each Bootcamp… and that support network gets bigger each year.”

— Vicky H.
Denton, TX

Cherie R.

“To any fence-sitters out there: If you’re debating the merits of attending AWAI’s Bootcamp, sign up right now. It was, without doubt, the turning point of my graphics/writing career and worth every penny. I met my mentor there, and I made lifetime, quality contacts with both attendees and staff. Go for all the gusto you can get. You only go ’round once in life!”

— Cherie R.
Ft. Myers, FL

“The most potentially lucrative ‘conference’ I’ve ever been to, it was also the most fun. I loved being able to meet the gang and put some faces to your names. See you next year!”

— Michael L.
Tucson, A

Caroline M.

“WOO HOO!!! Not the most professional way to begin my note, but I wanted to let you know how excited I am about the results of my first spec assignment from Bootcamp. I submitted my spec assignment to The Taipan Group on November 22nd, and it has already landed me a paying assignment from them! As you can imagine, I’m very excited! Thanks again for a GREAT Bootcamp — the confidence I gained just by being there and rubbing elbows’ with so many experienced copywriters has boosted my career already!”

— Caroline M.
Wayzata, MN

Josh B.

“Several significant things happened to me there in Florida. First of all, I met a number of fellow AWAI members — several who I am now working with. Our collective mission is to more effectively promote our services. To do that, we are drawing on each other’s strengths to create an awesome synergy. I am confident that this effort will bring in clients and money for everyone.

Second, the Job Fair was a smashing success for me. From the contacts that I made there, I was able to pick up 4 brand-new clients and 5 new assignments! Finally, I am now working with one of the speakers from Bootcamp on a project that’s going to be worth enormous wealth to me in the coming years.

I just can’t tell you folks over there at AWAI ‘thank you’ enough. My life has been radically changed for the better! Thank you!”

— Joshua B.
Spanish Fork, UT

“Not only did I meet and form important friendships with several talented newbies,

“Bringing in companies who are offering real job opportunities is a huge motivation, to be able to talk with these companies in person and hear how they desperately need us to write copy.”

— Andrew E.
Santa Fe, NM

Jim T.

“It scares me when I consider where my career might be today if I hadn’t attended my first Bootcamp. My motivation received a huge boost… Just a passing conversation with any one of the people you’ll meet at Bootcamp could light a fire under your career and send your business soaring — as it did for mine.”

— Jim T.
Hopewell Junction, NY

Pam F

I was also able to connect with many working copywriters… including some of the copywriting ‘masters’ I’d been reading about since joining AWAI. And it was easy, not to mention painless! This level of connection and support can only be found in person through a handshake or a conversation… and for me these opportunities could be found only at an AWAI Bootcamp.”

— Pam F.
Scarborough, ME

“Quality, quality, quality. You really delivered on your promise. I absorbed mountains of new information and met several great teaming prospects. You have launched my career into a new orbit. Thank you!”

— Barbara P.
Mesquite, NV

“My expectations for the fall Bootcamp were that I’d learn loads, get psyched up, be exhausted by the end, and meet plenty of eager AWAI members, generous seminar leaders and Bootcamp coordinators. I was not disappointed in any of those expectations... What I did not go expecting, even though I’ve read these stories myself, was to walk away with a paid assignment from this Bootcamp... but I did! Networking happens, whether you consciously do it or not (unless you talk to absolutely no one while you’re there). Let it take you where it will, because you’ll be thrilled when it does. And, when you get home and the phone rings the next day with another paid assignment, you can grin, make the deal, then hang up and scream and jump for joy. Go ahead. Expect it all. It happens.”

— Susie H.
Shakopee, MN

register today!

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