I just cleared my desk, closed my tabs, poured a fresh cup of coffee and the Salted Pages playlist is on.

It’s time for the annual year end review.

Lessons learned:

I love 35mm film

After working with far too many hybrid photographers, and teaching a brand messaging session at a film workshop hosted by Rudney Novaes, I couldn’t resist picking up a film camera.

So, just at the end of 2022 and just in time for the new year, I purchased a gift for myself. A used 35mm film camera. I put it to good use — bringing it to Austin, Oregon, Biloxi, Palm Springs, Joshua Tree, New Hampshire, Porto and my own backyard. I took it sailing around Martha’s Vineyard and that one roll that I thought sounded strange? It turned out blank and broke my heart; the jury is out as to whether or not the 2nd roll took. (To be processed!)

Film taught me patience, the art of slowing down, and reminded me of the rush of creativity when you finally get to view unseen photos after a tried-and-true development process at my local camera store.

Building a team takes trust and time, but it’s rewarding in the most unexpected (and best) ways

Last year, we took Amy on full-time (meet her here.) This year will be her second Salted anniversary, and her one-year celebration of writing and adding flavor at full-time capacity.

Handing over responsibilities in a business that you founded feels a bit like handing over a piece of your soul, and letting go of your perfectionist tendencies. And yet, Amy has helped to perfect so many aspects of this copywriting agency. Together, we’ve built standard operating procedures, been more active on social media, had projects with zero (I mean, ZERO, null) revisions and ultimately, made this word-filled world of ours feel more fulfilling.

Clients from Switzerland to California have come to adore Amy, and she’s now mentioned in quite a few of our five-star reviews. Thank goodness for clients and team members who help us enjoy a ripple effect of results.

Everyone loves a sneak peek

A new copywriting milestone is our sneak peek — sending clients a sample with three brand statement options during week 1 of website copy projects, letting them provide feedback before page after page is written. The best part? The anticipation and excitement have only increased, revisions in the final product have decreased and we — as the creatives who you hired to create for you — feel more satisfaction and clarity in the entire copywriting process.

We are not everyone’s wordsmith

Just like my husband loves savory over sweet, whereas I’m more of a sweet x salty kind of gal, we do not expect to be every single entrepreneur’s wordsmith. We’ve built systems, milestones and contractual options to ensure no one feels stuck between a rock and a hard place. In fact, we’ve started encouraging potential clients to not rush into a decision, and to make sure that we as a team feel like the perfect fit. After all, we spend a lot of time with our clients and we want every single one of us to enjoy every part.

Traveling doesn’t always provide the desired inspiration

Traveling, from the very beginning, has been my source of inspiration and motivation. However, I’ve learned — thanks to a bit too much travel — that not every trip will come with inspiration. Sometimes, I return home just tired, or wishing I had stayed all cozied up in my home office where the words routinely flow. (But sailing? The inspiration was more powerful than any other trip I’ve had. More seaside trips are welcome.)

Rent the convertible (and take your family with you more often)

My mom and I had three trips together this year — Palm Springs/Joshua Tree, Martha’s Vineyard for sailing, and Germany for the Christmas markets/in-laws. I adored taking her with me and yes, renting the convertible was not a regret. It was a favorite. I am so grateful that my job lets me treat the people I love this well.

Wins:

Alright, let’s talk celebration. Life and work have their ebbs and flows, and we had some beautiful moments this last year.

We partnered with Studio Stefan to sell pre-written Showit templates for photographers

Since many of our clients are photographers, we decided to create a more accessible and beautiful option — pre-written and pre-designed Showit templates for everything from your client proposal to your album sales page and investment guide. See the rest on Meg’s shop, or find the best-sellers on our copywriting template shop too.

The year began with a seaside retreat AND photoshoot

Originally, we visualized a seaside annual retreat. But then Rudney Novaes, our brand photographer notified us that he would be in Cancun (a short-ish drive from Tulum) so we planned our retreat around meeting up with him. New brand photos and goals were the result. (See below…)

Our work led to worldwide connections

Once upon a time, five clients from around the world — Switzerland, Philadelphia, California (you get the picture) hired Salted Pages, and then also booked an attendee ticket for a workshop in Lake Como. There, they met and realized they had one thing in common — Salted Pages was their copywriting team. The Instagram messages trickled in and the group photo commenced (they’re photographers after all). We want more of this. Next time, though, we plan on being there too.

Fun fact — it was an AMV Retreat with Amanda Virga and we now offer exclusive Salted discounts to her attendees. Starting with a retreat this month, January 2024, in Morocco!

We worked with more repeat clients than ever

An appetite for Salted copy? We love that. This year, more repeat clients than ever before hired us for everything from canned emails, to new SEO landing pages, blog posts and more. Growing with you is an honor and delight for us. (There were about 18 of these repeat client projects.)

I was the MC (Master of Ceremonies) for a business competition

After winning $10,000 with a business plan and pitch competition, I was invited back this year to host the entire event on behalf of the city of Fort Worth and Frost Bank. Read more here. If you’re local to Fort Worth, I highly recommend applying and at least attending!

Clients approved copy with zero revisions

This is way too astounding and exhilarating to not mention twice. Shout out to Courtney Blair, Michelle Johns, Philibert Barelli and Aurore Bridges for trusting and loving the copy so much that you had no changes whatsoever.

We heard some mesmerizing stories

Copywriters are essentially equivalent to storytellers, except, we see our clients as the true storytellers. Getting to meet and hear the stories of everyone from Fatima Izzat (a poet at heart and absolute gem) to Philibert (a philosopher soul living in Switzerland who photographs weddings) just made us feel more human and whole.

The Rudney Novaes DREAM Workshop was on our agenda for the 2nd time

Yes, for the second time, we were invited to teach a session to wedding photographers (about SEO and brand messaging) for Rudney Novaes. I flew to California and spent an entire day at the gorgeous Filoli museum and garden. This time, I stuck around to witness the different interactions and techniques of the photographers while also lending an ear or answering an FAQ throughout. Plus the virtual SEO session ahead of time and the day-of luncheon with some amazing live commentary and engagement. I also got to see Ty Wilson, who I met last year as well, and he is a breath of fresh air. And let’s not forget Jen Conti, an SEO client and a tremendously talented fine art wedding photographer.

We soaked up a few new niches/project types

A landscape oil painter — that’s right, a classic, master-style painter — hired us for website copy AND ad copy for a Luxe Magazine ad. We adored her, and also appreciated creating shop page copy for Foil & Ink (designer for wedding pros) and The Humble Lion EDU (educator and resource for brand photographers). And last, but not least, quite a few website designers hired us to help with their clients’ SEO — as white label, or just as a referred partner — and only for $499 with our SEO Starter Kit.

P.S. Last year, we also set out to create case studies, launch templates and more. We are proud to say we’ve done just that!

Will do:

Continue to expand and invest into our community

Whether we get to MC another event, or we’re simply there to support fellow entrepreneurs, we are carving out key dates and events in our calendars to ensure that we can put time into something we undeniably value — community. You might also see us at The Hybrid Co., which happens to be only three hours from our main office in Fort Worth.

Create the products that have been at our fingertips for years

The tricky part about working in an industry in which the appetite for what we do is only growing? Well, we often push our own internal projects onto the backburner to prioritize the next client-focused project. And while custom work inspires us and leads to humbling international connections, we’ve also realized that we need to prioritize our own passions and wishes too. So, finally, we have clear dates and plans for the very copywriting templates we’ve been asked to make (and have had on our list) for years.

Remember that our humanity and values are stronger than AI

We haven’t voiced much about AI because our approach stands on a foundation that hasn’t changed. We will still never plagiarize, we will focus on the kind of stories only humans can tell, hear and feel, and if anything, AI is our reminder that giving our clients an experience that goes a long way.

The funny thing is that a big trend over the last year was to learn how to prompt AI to write in your voice and give you the right answers. And yet, I’ve noticed that AI is also teaching and programming how we work. But it is just a system, a piece of technology, that has no true connection or humanity within it. So, we are going to continue working with our clients on human-to-human communication, where their work and their lives only become more powerful. AI is a great tool, but it’s nothing compared to the realities we can experience side by side with our clients.

Take bite-sized vacations

I’ve been enjoying a semi-annual creative reset for years now (taking two months off every single year). However, this also means that I have often been prone to spend the 6 months in between with few breaks or dedicated time off. My plan is to continue taking two months off, but to also create time for long weekends or a week here and there to decompress. My work is only as strong as the energy I have reserved for it.

Prioritize my physical health

When I lost my dog in 2020 in the middle of a pandemic, I realized how critical my mental health was to my work. But, I haven’t always maintained a healthy physical routine. My weight didn’t fluctuate much, but I could tell that I wasn’t as strong as I used to be. I’ve been a vegetarian for almost 5 years now, and I wasn’t making sure that I had the right intake of vitamins and nutrients. I wasn’t working out beyond walking the dog or yoga here and there. This year, I’m setting out to, as my current quote on the wall says, “become like the sea — vast, wise, an empire of royal blue quietness, rage tasting like salt. That was her goal.”

Take Fridays back

The systems in my business technically prevent Fridays from being filled with meetings or major client work. However, again and again, I have broken my own rule — manually scheduling a meeting on Friday when that day is supposed to be reserved for the plethora of admin, planning and restorative work tasks. This year, we will be more strict and will avoid accepting any Friday meeting requests.

Cultivate and sweeten

This leads me to my word(s) of the year, to cultivate and sweeten. We have so much staring us straight in the eyes, and if we just take the time to listen, fine-tune and enjoy it, I think everyone — here within this company, and those we have the privilege of working with — will appreciate that refreshed feel.