‘I’d like to write an article about how Charli XCX’s latest album cover is a masterclass in anti-branding. Is this something you can help me with?’
As someone who thinks music hit its apex around 1996, this was a request that made me do a double-take.
However, the joy of being a copywriter is writing about new, interesting things that aren’t necessarily in your comfort zone.
Here’s how I worked with Anastasia Salazar to create an article which, even now, is still a club classic.
The client
Anastasia Salazar is a San Francisco-based branding and design agency. While the agency specialises in working with wellness companies and women-owned businesses, it has worked with a wide range of well-known international companies, including Google Play, Udemy, Facebook, and Allbirds.
It was also behind the iconic Twitter anniversary branded graphics. When I was on Twitter many, many years ago, I was always so excited to get a new one of these to show off on my account!
I started working with Anastasia, the Creative Director of Anastasia Salazar, in 2024.
Anastasia was looking for a copywriter to work with through Freelancing Females, with experience in the branding and design process. I used to work as a Digital Marketing Manager before going freelance, so I have plenty of experience creating strong, cohesive brand identities.
We agreed to work together on regular blog posts, with email newsletters to accompany them. This newsletter would contain additional information about the article, news about what was going on in the world of design, and a fun creative challenge.
(Here’s the link if you want to sign up.)
The problem
We had collaborated for a few months when Anastasia broached the idea of creating an article about the Brat album cover.
Brat, Charli XCX’s sixth studio album launched in June 2024, with its eye-catching neon green cover. It was officially the start of ‘Brat summer’!
With a keen eye for branding, Anastasia could see the thought process behind the Brat cover and wanted to create an article which looked at the design in more detail.
As a copywriter, you get used to writing articles about the weirdest things.
I once wrote an email sequence for women suffering from butt acne. I’ve written extensively about the different types of fence panels. I created a suite of blog posts about information security management, which is just as exciting as it sounds.
This request was something very new and strange, but it sounded like an interesting challenge and something that would be fun to write.
It was time to stop the ‘Talk Talk’ (geddit?) and start planning the article.
The process
This article would not only showcase Anastasia Salazar’s branding knowledge but also drive prospective customers to the website. This meant solid keyword research to maximise the chances of the article appearing on the first page of the search engine results.
I used Ubersuggest to research the optimal keywords to use in the article. We opted for a selection of popular keywords with a high search rate, as well as more niche ones with a lower search rate. This ensured the keywords targeted people at different stages of the sales funnel.
While it was important to drive people who were ready to consider buying branding services to the site, it was just as important to target people who were starting to think about the significance of branding for their business.
Good research was also vital to ensure the article provided value to readers.
Anastasia signposted me towards some useful resources, and I also did my own analysis, reading interviews with people involved with the design of the album.
I also listened to the Brat album to see how the music represented the cover art, and vice versa.
Once I’d collated my notes and created an outline, it was time to write. I uploaded my first draft to Google Docs so Anastasia could read through, suggest revisions, and recommend additional pieces of information to mention.
We worked together on the article and when it was complete, Anastasia uploaded it to the Anastasia Salazar website, alongside images.
The next step was to create a newsletter teasing the article, encouraging people to click through and read more.
The results
Over the space of six months, the article received over 3,330 visits, with an average page dwell time of five minutes. This was a piece of content that people wanted to read all the way through.
Even a year later, the article is getting a lot of impressions and clicks in Google – proof that reactive content doesn’t have to have a short shelf life when it’s written well.
At the time of writing this case study, the article ranked third for the keyword ‘brat designer,’ just below the popular US Weekly and the iconic Brat Generator website, and in front of the Wikipedia entry for the album.
It also ranks on the first page for a wide selection of keywords including ‘brat cover,’ ‘brat design,’ and ‘brat album design.’
Another unexpected result? I got addicted to the Brat album. It became my soundtrack of choice when I went to the gym, as well as when I went on holiday!
(Seriously, Von Dutch is a banger.)
Due to the success of the Brat article, Anastasia Salazar is experimenting with more content about design and popular culture. This article about branding lessons you can learn from The White Lotus (also written by me) has been well-received by site visitors.
Want a blog post that’s a cult classic?
Writing blog posts is easy – you can plug an outline into Chat GPT and get some generic wording you can copy and paste into your website.
Writing a good blog post that drives clicks, conversions, and shows prospective customers that you know what you’re talking about? That’s a lot harder.
I specialise in creating well-researched, SEO-optimised articles for businesses across the world – covering everything from digital marketing to construction.
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