We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Haley Dagan a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Haley, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Alright, so we’d love to hear about how you got your first client or customer. What’s the story?

Well, The Written World has had two chapters so far. The “before” – when I first started it as a side passion project while working full-time in corporate hospitality marketing, and the “now” – as a full-time copywriting and content creation agency with an incredible team and roster of clients. To answer your question, I’ll share a bit about getting our first client in the latter stage.

Imagine it’s 2020, it’s been a few months since being laid off from my corporate job, and I’m now weighing the choices of pursuing another full-time position or pursuing entrepreneurship. So, I decided after all these years working in digital marketing, why don’t I start an Instagram account for The Written World? When I created the account, I led with the intention of prioritizing community. I had this vision of establishing authentic connections with those who needed to know what I already knew in order to take their businesses to the next level. I wanted to share my knowledge and also be there to support those small businesses and agencies when they couldn’t do it all on their own. This authentic, audience-first perspective was how I approached our content, our engagement, and our relationships.

Our account had literally 200 followers when we got our first two clients from Instagram. (Just one example of why I’m SUCH a firm believer in creating goal-driven content, rather than focusing on follower growth!) From the DM’s to discovery calls to onboarding, the process was so seamless because these clients already knew what we did, knew what we stood for, and knew that we were the right agency to help them achieve their goals. And three years later, this approach is still at the core of everything we do.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’ve always been obsessed with words – writing, reading, singing – these were the hobbies I wrote down on every form growing up. After studying in the College of Journalism at the University of Florida and moving into a career in hospitality marketing, I seemed to be the go-to for all projects that required copy – email marketing messages, blog posts, website copy, fliers, promotional materials. Yes, I was good at it, but I also LOVED it. While others loathed writing, I couldn’t get enough. I had my own blog for fun in college and then created my second blog while working as a Marketing Manager at W Fort Lauderdale to share all my travels around the world (Europe, Tahiti, The Caribbean – the perks of working in hospitality!). But in 2018, during my pregnancy with my first son, I stopped traveling and needed to fuel my love of writing in another way. That’s when The Written World was born. I worked for fun (definitely not for the pay) on the nights and weekends I didn’t have events at the hotel, to write content for other blogs and websites as a freelancer. Flash forward to 2020 as one of the many people who found themselves laid off, I decided why not take the leap and launch The Written World full-time? And here we are today, as a team of 7 with a hybrid office location opening in Fall 2023. We have accomplished SO much in such a short time. We are a true team of what I like to call content superheroes, who swoop in at just the right time to save your content strategy and implement fully optimized, performance-based website copy, blog posts, and social media management, that helps you grow visibility, leads, and conversions. There are SO many things that set us apart as an agency, but I think at the core, it’s our belief in doing what works for clients and algorithms without compromising the content quality or personality. Every business has something unique to offer and every business has a special set of clients or customers that benefit most – it’s all about using the right words to create the right content that resonates most. And we create, test, and measure to ensure just that!

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

When it comes to building our reputation, I think the one thing that really stands out is our geniune desire to not only make our clients happy, but to see them succeed. We are a collaborative partner, and we see ourselves as an extension of our clients’ teams. We’re there to celebrate their wins, learn from the opportunities, and provide them with a constant stream of ideas and solutions tailored to their overall vision. This genuine desire shines through in our transparency around what’s working, what’s not, and what we need to do to tailor the strategy and keep moving forward. And we don’t just talk about it, we hold ourselves and our clients accountable and we get it done!

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

Referrals! And they’re not just the best source because such a large percentage of our business comes from our referrals, but because it’s also the most rewarding source. When new clients come to us because another client or partner recommended us for their needs, it’s just further affirmation to myself and our whole team that we’re making the significant impact we strive for day in and day out!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://thewrittenworldagency.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thewrittenworld/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-written-world/