Guy Thornbury-Phillips's Linkedin Analytics

Being a copywriter = having 256 tube ads on your phone. And a browser history that could get you sectioned.

How do you brainstorm? Whiteboards? Walks? Post-it notes and panic? We’ve been refining our own creative rhythm at Fyxer and I’d love to hear how others do it too. Here’s how we’ve been running ours for our bi-weekly ad sprints: 🧠 We start with a creative review session the day before, looking at: + What’s performing + What’s flopping + What we’re missing + What others are doing well This helps build out a Miro board with creative prompts and hypotheses, designed to spark the next chapter of ad ideas. 🎥 The whole creative crew then gets together for the brainstorm. Videographer, designer, brand director, marketing manager, UGC creator. About 6-8 of us, riffing and adding ideas live (in person if possible). ✅ After that, a smaller group does a “creative judgment” session. We filter out the fluff, sharpen the sparks, and flesh out our faves. ✍️ Then it’s go time. I get into copywriting mode. Scripts, captions, voiceovers, headlines. Before we stroll into production. This process helps us go from insights → imagination → execution fast, without losing the fizzy-brain magic in the middle. So, over to you: How do you brainstorm?

To anyone currently at Cannes: Yes, you Cannes: wear sunglasses indoors. Yes, you Cannes: take 14 meetings and remember none of them. Yes, you Cannes: pitch a toothpaste ad like it’s a Christopher Nolan film. Yes, you Cannes: pretend rosé counts as networking. Yes, you Cannes: walk 10k steps and still never find your panel. Yes, you Cannes: drop “AI” into every conversation like it’s seasoning. Yes, you Cannes: win Gold for a case study no one understands. Yes, you Cannes: spot a celebrity and casually say “we’re chatting later.” Yes, you Cannes: get sunburnt and over-budget on the same day. Bonne chance, brave ad warriors 💪

Every time I pick up a pen, I hear a sound in my head. A short, sharp 'shhhhhing' - like a sword being drawn from its sheath. It’s a holdover from years of gaming and a lifelong obsession with fantasy and medieval worlds. Lord of the Rings. Vikings. Oblivion. Konana The Barbarian. That kind of thing. So when I sit down to write. Not type, but write. I’m not just scribbling notes. I’m gearing up. The pen is my blade. The paper is my battlefield. It’s what I fight problems with. It’s what I carve ideas with. It’s what I put down at the end of a bloody good day's work. And I'd say, at least 90% of my best ideas have come from swinging ink, not pressing keys. There’s something raw and physical about it. Gutteral. Gritty. A connection you don’t get with a blinking cursor. It also means you can make mistakes more naturally. Cross it out and carry on. You'd be surprised how useful it is for your brain to see your ugly, scribbly, workings out from yesterday. And I think more of us are feeling that. The urge to hold on to the physical. To get our hands back on something real. It’s why people are swapping smartphones for Nokia 3310's. Because most of the time, the old ways still cut the deepest. Best of luck on the battlefield 🗡️✍️

Rap sells AI. You heard it here first. (and I ticked this off my bucket list) After one week at Fyxer, the creative team and I made a rap video... No biggie 😎 We went from idea to production in 24 hours, with a little help from Sora Ai. Sora wrote the bones of the song. We tightened the bars, sharpened the flow, and gave it some actual street cred (says the 32 year old... I'm hip and cool, okay...) But even though AI was involved at the start, it's the talented minds being the production that make videos like this. I’m not saying every AI company needs a rap video. But Fyxer does. 🫳 🎤 Big up to Amelya, Sam (the rapper), Andrew, Lucy, and Jonny.

Normal people: unwind with Netflix Me: create unhinged masterpiece at 11:43pm because brain whispers “do it” like Emperor Palpatine Anyone else?

Came back from Glasto with a few things. Sore legs, a full heart, and a conversation I can’t stop thinking about. I was stood next to a stranger at the urinals. They told me, with complete sincerity, that the Scissor Sisters were the most important band of the 21st century. For a split second, my brain wanted to go: "What? Really?" "Surely not." But I caught myself. Because judgment is easy. Curiosity is better. So I asked why. They told me about how the music made them feel seen. How it soundtracked their coming out. How it gave them courage when nothing else did. And suddenly, I saw what they saw. Felt what they felt. Heard a story I never would have otherwise. And it's got me thinking. You have two choices: 🧠 Default to judgment. 🤔 Or lean into curiosity. Judgment says: "They don’t get it." "That’s a terrible brief." "Who’d even want that?" Curiosity says: "What’s missing here?" "What are they really trying to say?" "What are they seeing that I’m not?" Because curiosity opens doors judgment keeps shut. And if you’re in the business of ideas, that’s the difference between a "meh" idea and a breakthrough. Cheers, Jamie! Hopefully see you at the next Glasto... in 2 years time 😭

(why am I like this)

5 things that made me a better copywriter that don't involve writing (or my Mum's top hat): 1. Watching stand-up comedy The best comedians know their audience, set expectations, break them, and land a punch at just the right time. ☑ They build tension. ☑ They time their pauses. ☑ They play with language. That's copywriting in disguise. 2. Eavesdropping on trains, in pubs, and in queues The best copy sounds like a person. We all know that. Not a brand. Not a brief. Not ChatGPT. By being a bit nosy, you learn how people: → Trail off mid-thought → Repeat themselves when nervous → Pause before saying the honest bit Real human speech is imperfect (which is why it’s perfect to spy on hehe). 3. Studying the psychology of advertising Not how they look. How they stop you. The scroll. The skip. The tap. The "why am I getting ads for ED pills?"... You realise it’s rarely about being loud. It’s about being clear yet unexpected. Bold yet subtle. I think David Oglivy put it best: “A good advertisement is one which sells the product without drawing attention to itself.” 4. Reading fiction You can't become a great copywriter with academic writing. Fiction teaches rhythm. Tone. Pacing. Timing. You notice how a line lands. How a paragraph pulls you forward. How characters say so much without saying much. If you want to write better copy, read more novels. 5. Editing other people’s first drafts When you first start editing, you tip toe around it. But after a year or two, it sharpens your gut. You learn what not to do. It’s also way easier to cut someone else’s fluff - which helps you spot your own. 🏆 Pro Tip: When you read, watch, or overhear something that makes you pause... save it. → Screenshot it. → Write it down. → Steal like a respectful little creative goblin. You'll become more of a collector. And the more you collect, the more you’ll have to say when the blank page stares back. What helped you become a better writer?

Best advice for writing great copy? What people expect to hear: → “Use this AI tool” → “Follow this 7-step formula” → “Read 100 books a week, bro” → “Steal with pride haha lol” The actual advice: → Go outside. → Notice how people speak (and how they don’t). → Take note of things that make you feel something. → Take note of things that make them feel something. → Read the stuff you actually enjoy. Your brain will thank you. → Write for yourself. Your brain will thank you. → Take your time. → Be ignorant. It doesn't happen overnight. I've been writing copy for nearly 7 years and I still feel like I’ve only scratched 5% of what there is to know. And maybe that’s the point.

The copywriting framework I use most often: P.I.S.S. It’s not in any books. I invented it to help connect copy more naturally with the audience. Here’s how it works: P → Problem Pretty standard. Start with the real issue. The thing that makes your reader go: “Ugh, that’s so me.” Not a product problem. A human problem. Example: “Your inbox is a full-time job you never applied for.” I → Inner Thought Now name the quiet part out loud. The belief they hold but might never say. The thing they mutter under their breath. Or wouldn’t post on LinkedIn. Example: “Some days you spend more time replying than actually doing your job.” S → Shift Introduce a new possibility. Challenge the status quo. Reframe the situation. Your job here is to go: “Hey, what if it didn’t have to be like this?” Example: “But, what if your inbox could run itself?” S → Solution Now (and only now) you get to talk about your thing. But you’ve earned it. Because you’ve made them feel seen, heard, and understood. Now you can say: “That’s what [your product] is built for.” Example: “That's what Fyxer's for. An AI email assistant to organize your inbox and draft your replies. Most people get back one hour every day thanks to Fyxer." --- TL;DR: Let the P.I.S.S. guide you. → Problem → Inner Thought → Shift → Solution Have a great Tuesday!