CREATIVE COPYWRITING:

IT’S IMPORTANT.

Some people have a way with words, and other people… oh, uh, not have way.

- Steve Martin

WHY IS IT IMPORTANT?

Mainly because it uses words – and as people, we tend to use those to communicate with each other.

So when I talk about copywriting – what’s involved? Copywriting should provide you the language to discuss and express your business.

Find your tone of voice in order to effectively communicate your brand.

How to powerfully paint a picture for your audience - show, don't tell.

The power of contextualising your brand attributes.

How to engage your audience and encourage them to start conversations.

WHAT IS IT?

Anything with words: Press releases Website copy Emails Brochures Speeches Your tools to talk about your brand

Copywriting is the skilled use of words to promote a person, business, opinion or idea.

IT’S ALSO ADVERTISING…

But advertising copywriting is a luxury – because it’s fun. It can be more direct.

You need the tools of copywriting to give you that voice – then you can play with it more publicly with advertising copy.

WHAT IT CAN DO FOR YOU

It increases the perceived value of your brand.

Most people aren’t doing it as well as they could be – including your competitors.

Good copywriting might not always win the sale, but bad copywriting can lose it.

THE PERCEPTION OF VALUE

When you have great copy – you have a perceived level of quality.

Most of your competitors have probably ignored this. Because hey, if it’s in English – it must be communicating what we need it to communicate.

But having GREAT copy – sets you aside, your perceived quality of service or product is much higher – and it’s cost effective – great copy can be used over and over and over again, re-printed, distributed – if it’s a great message, you can put it out everywhere.

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CAN ANYONE DO IT? Most people fancy themselves a writer.

I’M A WRITER

But there’s a difference between a journalist, an editor, a novelist and a creative copywriter.

At the end of the day – as with anything that’s creative – it’s going to be subjective.

CREATIVE COPYWRITING

Journalistic: Copywriting has emerged as one of the world’s most

undervalued services following a meeting at the global copywriting forum.

Novelist: “Copywriting,” she thought, swirling her whisky in

the glass, “if only they saw what it means.” Ice cubes clinked about as she burst into tears and sobbed until mascara ran down her face.

Creative copywriting borrows from both of these – it’s emotively informative.

WHERE TO START

WHO ARE YOU TALKING TO? What age are they? What’s their point of reference? What have they been familiar with so far? –

TV, Magazines, Brands, World Events.

WHY ARE YOU TALKING TO THEM?

Presumably because you want them to trust you – to spend money with you – on products or services.

You may also just want them to be impressed by you – have something to aspire to. (This is not a very profitable attitude, just fyi)

WHY SHOULD THEY LISTEN?

What makes you different? Do you have the experience? The track

record? The energy? Even the most boring subject matter can be

made interesting – there’s a lot of interest to be seen.

A LITTLE EXERCISE

What’s the most boring job you’ve ever had?

Now the bar-pickup metaphor. I wouldn’t usually go with this, but we’re going to today.

There are many ways to say the same thing. That’s a given – but it’s about knowing your

audience and deciding what level you want to connect with them on about your subject matter.

It’s important to focus on the quality of the connection.

For example…

Some examples of bog-standard copy.

We are passionate about innovation and creativity. We are a committed and enthusiastic team of

professionals. We ensure the highest standards of customer service.

There’s no colour in these examples.

CONTEXTUALISE YOUR BRAND ATTRIBUTES

Have some faith in the imagination of your reader. You don’t need much to paint a picture.

Paolo raised his eyebrow at the pile of money

on the desk. He twisted a gold ring onto his little finger, swollen flesh bulged around it like roast pork.

Describe that man as you see him in your head.

FINDING YOUR TONE OF VOICE

Focus on your audience. Don’t try to be too clever. Be direct and to the point. Make the most of the opportunity to

differentiate yourself.

Copywriting is about coming up with a tight idea and finding the best way to say it.

This often means simple words. Say it directly or don’t say it at all.

‘At COMPANY we…’ So many corporates start with this sentence. Why not just ‘We’? It’s the same with ‘We aim to’ or ‘We believe’. We’ll believe you if you do it, so say what you’re going to do.

BRAND ATTRIBUTES

Some words we come across all the time: Professional, Friendly, Enthusiastic,

Passionate, Knowledgeable, People-focused, Innovative, Creative, Experienced, Dynamic.

You need to prove these things.

INDUSTRY SPECIFIC TERMINOLOGY

We need this. Hospitality will mention food and drinks. Technology will mention innovation. Banking will mention reliability.

You do need some of these – it’s about

finding what sets you aside.

Professional: Yes, obviously – most people are. People-focused: We’re not a world run by robots, yet. Knowledgeable: Let’s see some credentials. Enthusiastic: Do you sound happy about what you’re doing?

BANK provides a comprehensive range of financial services through four customer groups and global businesses: Retail Banking and Wealth Management; Commercial Banking; Corporate, Investment Banking and Markets; and Private Banking.

BANK works tirelessly to provide consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial services and products. We strive to create the best outcomes for our clients and customers with financial ingenuity that leads to solutions that are simple, creative and responsible

BANK is a strongly capitalised commercial bank whose major business activities comprise retail banking and wealth management, corporate and commercial banking, treasury services, and private banking. The Bank also offers a comprehensive suite of RMB services.

“THOUGHT LEADERSHIP”

A personal favourite, because everyone wants to be a thought leader.

It’s important to note that many of the best leaders in history and today – have a distinctive, engaging tone of voice.

Don’t tell people you’re a thought-leader, show them you are.

WHY LESS IS SOMETIMES MORE

We overwrite because we’re scared the reader won’t understand.

Sometimes you don’t want to give them everything.

Curiousity is a powerful motivator – leave people with a few questions.

You’re more likely to make a decision based on what someone’s told you than what you’ve read.

WHEN WORKING WITH A COPYWRITER

Don’t fall into the trap – just because you own a racket, doesn’t mean you can play tennis. Just because someone speaks English – doesn’t mean they are a born creative writing genius.

Have an editor. An honest, brutally honest editor.

Brief them fully. Be frank and candid. A good copywriter will be able to see through the fact you don’t know what you’re talking about.

WHERE TO START

Keep the first sentence between 7 and 10 words.

7 to 10 words is the average conversation’s sentence length.

The most engaging brands don’t introduce themselves in monologues.

They start a conversation.

HAVE FUN WITH THREES

As a challenge – try writing something about your business or yourself in three words.

See how these three words can add a break – a statement – a bit of confidence when placed within copy.

GET ACTIVE

You can tell your reader to do something “Get in touch” “Click here” “Join us” – it’s all part of the seduction process.

If you’ve hooked them so far and left them with questions – by all means give them a little instruction to find out more.

HEADLINES

Break up copy with headlines. It sounds basic but it makes a big difference. This is an interesting place to inject your own

voice. “The Team” “About Us” “What we do” Same with little headings or titles within

copy – you have a chance to show a little personality.

RE-WRITE AND DO SO FEARLESSLY

Write ideas down. Any ideas – and explore them, make

ridiculous notes and let your thoughts go off on tangents.

Draft and re-draft and then give yourself a cut-off point.

COPYWRITING RULES TO LIVE BY

Don’t lie, don’t be lazy and don’t be boring.

Take ownership of your words. Focus on your audience and remember

they aren’t stupid and they have imaginations.

Show don’t tell.