tonik

Copywriting

2021

Context

Over my 4.5 years at tonik, I mainly worked as a product designer. But whenever there was a chance to flex my extra skills to help the company, I jumped at the opportunity. One of them was copywriting.

From 2021 to 2023, everything on the Internet about tonik was written (or at least edited) by yours truly. Here are my best pieces.

Homepage

Instead of writing an intriguing headline, our competitors would rather state the obvious. "We are a design agency"; "We build digital products" — yeah, no shit.

To stand out, I emphasized tonik's unique approach to working with clients in a "show, don't tell" fashion.

Headline: “Your search for a design partner ends here. Products, brands, (no-)code and other shenanigans.”

To build credibility, I pitched the best projects from our portfolio.

Headline: “We hate to brag, but … JK, brag is our thing.”

Our skills are comprehensive. But for now, these top-level services are enough to grasp our know-how.

Culture

Encouraging people to join tonik was just as important as landing new clients. I showed what it's like to work here on a dedicated page that celebrates our culture.

Headline: “People first. Everything else can wait.” Body: “Sure, we build products and design brands. But it's people we genuinely love. And that includes you! Are you a designer? Great! Or maybe you need our know-how for a gig? Even better! Our job is to connect you two and let you do your thing — no middlemen involved. Unless you really-really want them (you don’t). The ground rules: do a kick-ass job, have a good time and be nice to each other. It's what this world needs.”

Company values get a bad rap for being too vague. To make them stick, I used casual language and everyday examples.

A list of company values. “Take care — It’s all love — we don’t hire assholes or work for them. Let’s keep things nice and thrive! #toniklove”, “Overdeliver — Think IKEA: you go for one thing, but end up with much more. Same here — except no time or money wasted.”, “Never settle — We're not the type that nags people for permission. We see a problem or get an amazing idea — we act.”, “Don’t lie, ever — Making up stuff is good for politics. We are more the crystal-clear types, not the ones playing hide-and-seek.”

We are FUN — and our memories together are here to prove it.

A list of past company events. “Winter holidays — It’s THE time to spoil people around (us included) with cool gadgets. Never say no to extra love (when it's consensual)!”, “Saving tigers — You don’t say 'later' when a local zoo needs money to rescue ill-treated tigers. You make limited prints that help them raise 5 figures.”, “Quarantine & tonik — We realized ‘two weeks to flatten the curve’ is an overly optimistic scenario and called up a backup for the team.”, “Awwwards conf — Flew all the way to Amsterdam to learn from the design crème de la crème and enjoy the, ahem, local brownies.”

A list of employees. “Damian Redecki — Mean whiskey sours”, “Karina Tarhoni — Binge-watching 80s horrors”, “Karol Dera — Mad FIFA tricks”, “Martyna Królikowska — Acing Sailor Moon Trivia”, “Szymon Michalczyk — Taste-testing MCD’s burgers”, “Wojtek Woźniak — Kashubian slang specialist”.

Caption: “Still scrolling? Woah, maybe we’re meant for each other!”

Always hiring

The job offers are easy to scan, but still with plenty of character.

Headline: “It’s the last time you need to update your resume (unless you wanna screw around with recruiters on LinkedIn)”

Headline: “Senior Product Designer”. Body: “We’re a well-knit digital design studio working with products, brands and (no-)code. Founders come to us because we help them define, build and scale their MVPs. That means we gotta think beyond eye-candy (though we love pretty gradients too). You’re free to do the job your way, but the team is there for you. Doesn’t matter if you’re just in a pickle or need a real talk about your career — there’s always folks happy to give you a hand. And hey, we’re not here to point the finger at what to do. If you see something we can improve or know how to reach our goals — do it and get your cred. The team is already asking about you. Don't make them wait, apply!”

A list of benefits. “Work from wherever — Flex your skills in our oh-so-cool Poznań office or wherever else you’re most comfortable. Home, café, Bali? The choice is yours!”, “Keep the balance — We’re not a cult and don’t expect to be the only life you have. After your 8h, do whatever you want. And if that REALLY is more work, we’ll pay you 2x your hourly rate for overtime.”, “Grow steadily — Each month you get dedicated 10h to focus on your personal goals. We also cover the full cost of conferences, books and courses you wanna check out.”, “Speak fluently — Trade up Duolingo for individual (and free!) English lessons provided by our friends at CoAction. You’ll also get a raise if you climb up to C1 level.”, “Stick together — Though most of the team works remotely, it doesn’t mean that we never socialize IRL. We go out every couple months and leave for a retreat and workation every year.”, “Recharge properly — Part of your job here is to rest properly, so you get paid time off for that very reason. Depending on your experience, it’s from 20 to 26 days off.”, “Get paid when sick — When you go 'achoo-achoo' or need a mental health break, your place is under a blanket. We literally pay you to stay there. And for the medical care.”, “Pimp your office — You get a full setup (MBP, external display, mouse, keyboard, headphones, desk, chair) from the get go, but if you need anything else to work better — just ask.”, “Get movin’ — If you wish for workshop buddies, join our #fitlovers group and complete for  a grand prize. We’ll support your sport with a Multisport card and massage sessions (at our Poznań office).”

An FAQ list. “How flexible are the working hours? — You should plan a minimum (think around 2h) overlap with your team and clients to sync about the work. But the rest? Up to you!”, What qualifies as the ‘mental health break’? — It’s a half day off you can take whenever you’re not in the right headspace. It doesn’t count as sick leave nor vacation, and you’ll get paid the same as if you worked the full day.”, “When am I entitled to take 26 vacation days? — When you’ve got +10 years of work experience — and that includes your higher education. Check here to learn more.”, “Can I freelance besides working here? — If there’s no conflict of interest — do your thing! Though keep in mind that if you want more work, we pay 2x your hourly rate for overtime.”, “How do I get promoted? — We talk about pay raise twice a year. No need to prepare any negotiation tactics though — everyone’s compensation is calculated using the same formula.”, “If I work remotely, can I visit your office? — Of course! Even better, we cover your transport and accommodation cost. Folks from outside Poznań often come over for a few days around the time we plan a night-out.”

Though I created a template that all the job offers followed, sometimes I went a little extra to make a buzz around the posting. Like when we were looking for someone to take care of our social media.

A greentext story that explains the responsibilities of a social media manager.

Opinions are our own

I managed our blog, where I wrote (or just edited) fourteen articles about our way of doing things. They're casual, relevant, and don't take SEO too seriously.