Meet Jo Mills: Freelance Copywriter in Wānaka

I started writing a (short-lived, admittedly) daily newspaper when I was seven, a content creator before that was even a thing. While the stint in journalism was fleeting, the love of writing and story telling has endured. After working for 15 years in the wine world in a communications heavy role, I decided to move into freelance writing in 2022 and help my clients with their story-telling, their brand identities and their customer engagement with effective and clear communications.

While we hear that AI is taking over every aspect of business, I'm in no doubt that the human touch and personal relations remain vital to developing authentic and enduring customer engagement. In a time-poor society, it’s understandable that businesses are making the most of LLMs to craft their content but often the nuanced brand language and identity is lacking. Sometimes a client will ask me to add the human touch to AI content, sometimes it’s quicker and more cost effective to start from scratch. I look at every project on its own merits and will discuss with my client what’s going to be the best strategy for them.

Whether it's EDMs, web content, social media strategies and posts or creating and executing a communications plan, I communicate a brand's voice efficiently and clearly (helping find that voice along the way if needs be) and thrive on seeing the results.

I apply the same rigour and commitment to the job whether it’s working as a publicist for a music festival, strategy documents for philanthropic organisations or editing and writing bids for multi million Euro EU tenders. My clients are local, national and international; the time difference works in many of my overseas clients’ favour, providing them with a 24 hours workstream and rapid turnaround.

I work fast, I work efficiently, and I work to brief. As a one-woman operation, I take on only what I can handle, never overpromising and never underdelivering.

My professional tagline is "effective communication, the human way”. If this sounds like your way of working, I'd love to talk.