How to Copywrite Right

Mark Hope

• Publisher: Bibliomundi
• Year: 2021
• eBook ISBN: 9781526043641
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Personal Development
• Subtopic: Careers

To embark on a career as a copywriter, you first need to understand exactly how it differs from regular writing. It doesn't help that the word "copy" is sometimes applied to writing of any kind that is intended for publication. A newspaper journalist may be congratulated by his editor for producing "great copy"; a draft novel will be scrutinized by a copy editor before being sent for printing.In a way, newspapers and novels are copy in that the desired result is that they are purchased. However, the content of that copy does not directly advertise the publication, and this is where it cannot be considered copywriting in the sense that this book is using the term i.e. producing words that sell.Copywriting is the use of words as promotional tools. They can promote a person, a business, a product, an opinion or idea, and they can appear on TV, radio, websites, in direct mailings, brochures, press releases, catalogues, on flyers, billboards or via any other kind of advertising material.A copywriter's job is to persuade the reader, listener or viewer to take action, which usually means parting with some money in exchange for a product or service. Alternatively, it may be used to promote a certain opinion, or to dissuade people from subscribing to a certain point of view.One huge area for copywriters to plunder these days is Search Engine Optimization (SEO), which is content written for websites with keywords tactically dropped in at given intervals. This is designed to rank the website more highly on the various search engines so that more potential buyers will find it on a related search.You can learn the skill-set for copywriting. The only real proviso is that you possess a reasonable grasp of the English language so that you can express your thoughts in a way that will not cause anyone to double-take. Copy that causes confusion or that looks or sounds unintelligent will be distracting. This should not be a problem for most people because copywriting is not about using complex language. The most powerful advertising messages are often the most simple.

The Fundamental Rules

Identify the Unique Selling Point (USP)

The Unique Selling Point (or Proposition) is a well-known marketing ploy, although there is really nothing spectacularly clever about it. In fact, the need to establish a USP is common sense. Would you go for a job interview without any planned response to the question of why the company should employ you over the next candidate? That’s your USP. In truth, it may not be that unique, but you should still be able to define a special talent for yourself.

Similarly, copywriters shouldn’t beat themselves up over their inability to find a truly unique selling point for a product, especially if it leads to a bending of the truth. In the world of marketing, there really is very little new under the sun. Most times, a new ad campaign is simply a redux of one already used to good effect in the past.

When the brief does not directly indicate the USP it wants to push, you as a copywriter must try to locate one. The idea is to set the product apart from, and above, the competition. What is it that your product does better than the rest? Whatever the client tells you about this, research it some more. Find out all you can about the market so that you can write your copy with confidence.

Make an Offer

When products are on special offer, public interest is piqued. People love to think they are grabbing a bargain, or even just saving themselves a few cents over a different brand or on the previous price of the offer product.

This is perhaps the most important way to close any deal in the advertising world. The offer taps into the greedy streak that we all possess. It is so powerful that it is frequently able to bypass the rational brain and straight away trigger the physical reaction of hand-in-pocket.

It has been shown that certain unscrupulous supermarkets can increase their profits by placing display stands near the doors advertising special offers. In itself, this is not unscrupulous. Until you consider that the product advertised can be found in larger containers for less money further inside the store. Customers wind up walking out with a product they didn’t intend to buy at an inflated price, all because the word “offer” appeared above it.

Your copy can make people buy when it grabs their attention with a special offer.

The Headline

Many people scan a newspaper deciding on the basis of the headline alone whether or not they will read any given article. A headline is there to sum up the content of the article, and if you are a copywriter you must be able to hit your audience smack between the eyes the moment they see it.

Which is most interesting as a magazine article headline? “My dog ran away”, “Aliens stole my dog”, or “Martians ate my Chihuahua”? The story itself may be the same – some nutty individual loses their pet and blames an ET – but the headlines say very different things. (The difference between the latter two is the level of detail in the third, which adds color and interest to the headline.)

Remember that unsolicited advertising material is normally only of interest when you are confined to one place with nothing better to do. In all o...

Table of contents

• Understanding Copywriting
• The Art & Science of Copywriting
• The Fundamental Rules
• Ice to an Eskimo, Sand to an Arab
• Every Day in Every Way …
• The Close