Writing
Crafted print or web content to win the trust and loyalty of your clients, customers or stakeholders.
Editing
Proofreading, polishing or a full rewrite to perfect your story or message for your target audience.
Design
Smart, brand-friendly documents, presentations and promotions to sell your project with style.
Writing
Pfft! How hard can it be?
We all think we can write. But business writing is about more than the words. It is about the purpose they must serve to be worth their pixels or ink. The words that represent your business or project need to move your audience towards taking action.
For a website or marketing piece, that might be clicking ‘buy’, ‘subscribe’, ‘contact me’ or ‘donate here’. For an instruction manual it might be the safe and high-quality completion of a task. But if your reader hasn’t acted, your words are worthless.
I’ll win your prospects’ confidence with words that work.
Pfft! How hard can it be?
We all think we can write. But business writing is about more than the words. It is about the purpose they must serve to be worth their pixels or ink. The words that represent your business or project need to move your audience towards taking action.
For a website or marketing piece, that might be clicking ‘buy’, ‘subscribe’, ‘contact me’ or ‘donate here’. For an instruction manual it might be the safe and high-quality completion of a task. But if your reader hasn’t acted, your words are worthless.
I’ll win your prospects’ confidence with words that work.
Case Studies
Let your happiest customers tell prospects how you solved their problems, thanks to my first class interview skills.
White papers
Show your expertise with a detailed piece of informational writing that 'sounds' like you and wins your prospects' trust.
Press releases
Got some news to share with the world? Make it irresistible to journalists and editors with a story that's ready to print.
Web pages
Need a new landing page? Got SEO keywords but not sure how to use them? I'll write readable, search-optimised copy.
Brochures
Great brochure copy connects the benefits customers seek with the features you can offer, but without the hard sell.
Articles
To win customers you need original content, not cheap knock-offs. As a journalist, I'll research original stories to tell for your brand.
Looking for something else?
This is just a sample – you'll be surprised what else I can turn my hand to. Why not get in touch for a chat to see if I can help?
Editing
Claer comminucation has never been more impotent *
We’ve all been there. The printer’s waiting for your vital document, but finishing it was a bit of an all-nighter. Better give it to Jim to check – he’s good with apostrophes, so surely he’ll know the difference between complimentary and complementary services. Right? Jim?
The quickest way to lose the confidence of educated, high-value leads and clients is to rub bad spelling and punctuation in their faces. But it happens all the time.
I’ll tidy up typos and more to ensure your prospects’ trust.
Claer comminucation has never been more impotent
We’ve all been there. The printer’s waiting for your vital document, but finishing it was a bit of an all-nighter. Better give it to Jim to check – he’s good with apostrophes, so surely he’ll know the difference between complimentary and complementary services. Right? Jim?
The quickest way to lose the confidence of educated, high-value leads and clients is to rub bad spelling and punctuation in their faces. But it happens all the time.
I’ll tidy up typos and more to ensure your prospects’ trust.
Proofreading
I'll dot every i, cross every t, correct every comma and pursue every misplaced apostrophe until your vital document is fault-free.
Copy editing
Know what you want to say but not quite how to say it? Suffering from too many cooks? I'll give your draft the singular voice it needs.
Presentations
Got a pivotal PowerPoint in need of sharpening? Let me trim the word salad, perk up the pictures and beef up the branding.
Looking for something else?
I don't do novels, but I can copy edit just about anything else. Whether it’s a quick tidy-up (technical), a smoothing of multiple styles into one ‘voice’ (structural) or a collaborative rewrite (developmental), I can help.
* Made you look!
Design
Your one-stop-shop for dynamic documents
You put all that work into polishing each sentence to informative or persuasive perfection, and then what? You give it to Janet in Repro to slap into a Microsoft Office template that’s as anonymous and dated as it is forgettable. Or worse, unreadable.
When it comes to design, I specialise in helping low-budget projects punch above their weight. I produce consistent, branded text design that’s easy to read, shows you mean business and attracts the trust and confidence of your prospective customers.
Let me tailor a sharp suit for your word-perfect makeover.
Your one-stop-shop for dynamic documents
You put all that work into polishing each sentence to informative or persuasive perfection, and then what? You give it to Janet in Repro to slap into a Microsoft Office template that’s as anonymous and dated as it is forgettable. Or worse, unreadable.
When it comes to design, I specialise in helping low-budget projects punch above their weight. I produce consistent, branded text design that’s easy to read, shows you mean business and attracts the trust and confidence of your prospective customers.
Let me tailor a sharp suit for your word-perfect makeover.
Reports
There's nothing less inviting than 12pt Arial stretched between half inch margins. I'll make your report a page-turner.
Newsletters
Want to give your followers an update they'll want to read? I'll edit and design you a mini newspaper to make your stories 'pop'.
Presentations
Starting from scratch with a make-or-break business deck? Got a logo but no idea how to brand your message? Let me help.
Looking for something else?
Full disclosure: I'm a writer who designs, not a designer who writes. But I've been doing it for 30 years and I know what works, especially in text-based design and layout. For the best value, why not have me edit/write AND design something for you?
Take a look
Every project is different – it’s one of the things I love about what I do. Here’s a quick taster of three recent projects where I combined my writing, editing and design experience to help clients.
Report design
EP:IC is a consultancy business specialising in research and development projects in the public and voluntary sectors, especially the social improvement and criminal justice sectors.
When they needed an interim report to present to the National Lottery Community Fund team, they asked me to take their impressive work on lived experience leadership and make it sing – and fast! I was only too happy to help.
I used the colours in EP:IC’s vibrant logo to differentiate the sections in the report, restyled infographics to match, and pulled out key quotes to draw attention to critical achievements. I also made the most of the images they had to tell their success story. The funding body was suitably taken with all EP:IC’s hard work, and subsequently renewed and extended their investment in the project.
Marketing design
Prosper4 is a social enterprise that helps people from marginalised people get back into work, through their inclusive portal, BRIDGEOFHOPE.CAREERS. They bridge the gap between progressive employers who want a diverse and people who experience barriers to employment because of their history or identity.
In the long term, the board will pay for itself, but while it’s in development it relies on investment from funders. The team wanted an infographic to illustrate how they work with charities and employers to support their growing number of candidates, but PowerPoint wasn’t doing it for them.
I suggested using an interactive document to depict the ‘candidate journey’. I consulted with key members of the team to identify each stage of the journey, wrote a treatment, and then designed this ‘flippable’ infographic. It took several rounds of input to get every detail covered, but they loved it and are now using it in applications for additional funding.
I also led their rebranding strategy, and wrote and directed an explainer video for them – but that’s another story.
Editing and Design
This national charity’s latest project is a ‘user voice’ programme called The Prisoner Policy Network. Members have already contributed to several important national reports on prison policy and the consequences of the Covid-19 lockdowns for incarcerated men and women.
Now the Prison Reform Trust wanted to reward its network members with a newsletter that was more inviting to read than 7 A4 pages of 12 point Calibri. They were on a tight budget and could only print in black and white – could I help?
Sure I could. I broke their latest newsletter copy into specific stories, re-wrote the headlines and intros to give them more impact, and sourced additional content for articles that needed more substance. Then I designed a newsy newsletter, including original graphics, in a style better suited to its mostly tabloid-reading target readership, while still reflecting the style and branding of the parent organisation. We’re currently working on our ninth issue together so far, with more to come.
A bit about me
Hi. I’m David McAllister
I’m a freelance business writer, editor, proofreader and typesetter/designer with a sideline in communication strategy. If it helps, you could think of me as your communications Swiss army knife.
After 25 years working as a journalist and high school teacher in and around London, I now make the unappealing irresistible and explain the inexplicable to the unpersuadable.
So, no change there then.
I love to help people like you communicate your businesses, services, products and passions in a way that conveys your integrity and trustworthiness, brings prospects to your doors and turns those prospects into customers, donors or volunteers. I hope your passion project will be next.
I’m insatiably curious and, as a generalist, I bring a fresh eye to every project. After all, you need someone who will dig deep to understand you, your goals, and your clients or customers, and not take anything for granted. My particular expertise is in translating specialist propositions for non-specialist customers, writing for the education sector, and in communicating values-based brands, projects or products. But I take on all sorts – the examples above are just a sample.
And because the right words, poorly presented, are a waste of time, I design text as well. If you don’t have your own in-house designers, I can produce smart, readable, brand-conscious and professional products for you, too. It’s all part of the service.
In a nutshell: I develop trusted, first class marketing content – from first draft to finished design – for businesses and non-profits that want to make a difference.
Hi. I’m David McAllister
I’m a freelance business writer, editor, proofreader and typesetter/designer. If it helps, you could think of me as your communications Swiss army knife.
After 25 years working as a journalist and high school teacher in and around London, I now make the unappealing irresistible and explain the inexplicable to the unpersuadable.
I love to help people like you communicate your businesses, services, products and passions in a way that conveys your integrity and trustworthiness, brings prospects to your doors and turns those prospects into customers, donors or volunteers. I hope your passion project will be next.
I’m also insatiably curious and, as a generalist, I bring a fresh eye to every project. After all, you need someone who will dig deep to understand you, your goals, and your clients or customers, and not take anything for granted. My particular expertise is in translating specialist propositions for non-specialist customers, writing for the education sector, and in communicating values-based brands, projects or products. But I take on all sorts – the examples above are just a sample.
And because the right words, poorly presented, are a waste of time, I design text as well. If you don’t have your own in-house designers, I can produce smart, readable, brand-conscious and professional products for you, too. It’s all part of the service.
In a nutshell: I develop trusted, first class marketing content – from first draft to finished design – for businesses and non-profits that want to make a difference.
So, how can I help?
Whether you need my writing, editing or design services, or would like to consult on communication strategy, our work together starts with you getting in touch with a brief outline of your needs. I’ll get back to you quickly so that we can arrange a phone or Zoom meeting to start discussing it properly. I look forward to being of service.