Fine art of copywriting: be interesting

Copywriters easily get wrapped up in rules, and lose sight of a fundamental part of good writing: being interesting. It’s no good offering benefits, writing actively and compellingly, addressing the reader directly and appealing to their deep-seated desires if your words are boring.

‘Being interesting’ is a vague challenge. What is ‘interesting’ anyway? There’s no simple answer to that question, but I think interesting writing can be defined as:

  • Energetic – free of tired clichés and full of the writer’s energy. If you feel flat and miserable writing about something, that mood may carry over into your copy. Sometimes using a slightly unusual word or a familiar phrase (a cliché!) is enough to make copy interesting
  • Different – sometimes being weird is all you need
  • Appealing – it’s easy to write interesting copy if your clients have interesting products
  • Humorous – making your reader smile is a good thing, though it’s tricky to get right
  • Resonant – chime with your reader’s experience to get them on your side
  • Honest – bullshit-laden copy is rarely interesting
  • Timely – give people the right information at the right time. The question of timing and ordering content is one of the trickiest bits of being a copywriter. What should you say first? And then…?
  • Appropriate. Similar to being timely – make sure your copy is also relevant to your reader. Help your readers determine if your content is appropriate for them with clear signposts and labels.

Comments

  1. Couldn’t agree more – if you don’t attract your reader’s attention in a credible way then you’re not going get the response you want.

    Comment by Mike Robinson — October 20, 2011 @ 7:14 pm

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