Basic Strategies for Writing Compelling Copy
Simply stated – it’s writing copy. Copy refers to words that are created somewhere (usually in the writer’s head) and then copied to some form of media for advertising. Media can include newspapers, newsletters or magazines as well as scripts for radio spots or television. Another avenue of advertisement naturally is the internet. One thing is certain though: copy writing exists to compel readers to lean toward a certain opinion.
Copy writing should not be confused with copyrighting. Copyrighting is the act of securing the rights to a published work. For example, if an author writes a screenplay that turns in to a multi-million dollar movie, the author who originally wrote the screenplay gets the copyrights. And, incidentally, although “copywriting” has become an accepted compound word; the actual separated spelling (copy writing) is correct.
How to write compelling copy.
Know your audience. The first aspect in any kind of writing is to know the audience. One doesn’t write about the molecular make-up of heat and cold to a kindergarten class. But, a recipe for Kool-Aid pops can talk about the same process in a different language.
Know your topic. As a copy writer, sometimes it’s necessary to write about topics that are unfamiliar. If you don’t know your topic – find out! Research skills are critical. If the search conducted is internet-based, access as many different sites as possible, then take the most interesting or informative sections of the information found and re-create fresh copy from what has been learned. Be extremely careful not to copy word for word. This is plagiarism. (Play-ja-riz-m)
Determine the goal of the writing. Do the words your writing want to compel the reader to buy a certain product? Or does the copy want to compel the reader to lean toward a political party? Whatever it is, the writer must know the outcome of the writing and create an attraction toward it.
Attract the reader through features. The writer must know what the key features are about the product or idea about which he or she is writing. Does the toothpaste you’re writing about create the whitest teeth on the planet? Then write about that. Find the greatest feature or the element that sets the product apart from other products like it and focus on it.
Make an offer. Once you’ve determined your goal, figured out the feature(s), it’s time to make a reasonable offer for the product. The best-tasting, most smile-whitening toothpaste is just $1 for a limited time. Or maybe it’s buy one get one free – or if the consumer’s smile isn’t whiter in 3 weeks they get their money back.
A word about plagiarism.
Plagiarism is never good. In some cases, it isn’t serious such as writing a paper for one’s own records. But, if what the author is writing is written for publication, plagiarism is critical. If what the author is writing is public, and the author is being paid for it – plagiarism is illegal! Okay, writing for a church newsletter or a town’s volunteer publication isn’t going to bring the police to one’s door for plagiarizing; but, if after college the author works his or her way up to writing for the New York Times, then yes, plagiarism can cause problems. Once plagiarism is on writers’ records – they may as well look for another profession.
When writing a paper for high school, college or university, don’t plagiarize. Teachers and professors know stuff like that. They know what a writer is capable of, and if a student copies and pastes information directly from a website or book, they will definitely find themselves with a zero grade.
These few steps are very basic steps in writing copy. So much depends on the publication, the purpose for writing and the method or mode of publication. For websites, the writer doesn’t want to go on and on. Short and to the point works better. But, for a press release, the long, boring details are all necessary.
Further information is available in Jonathan Kranz’s book “Writing Copy for Dummies”. The book is easy to understand and covers every topic a writer could possibly tackle from how to write, to how to market your own business. Also, Writer’s Digest Books is an excellent resource for specific writing tools from historical fiction to children’s picture books.
So many online resources are available in the writing arena. Some are free; some are not. Angela Hoy offers “Writers’ Weekly” online, a free magazine at: www.writersweekly.com, while for a small fee writers can access the “Writer’s Market” that gives every publication known to man and their guidelines on how to publish at www.writersmarket.com. Writing copy however, is different than writing articles or fiction. But, as a writer of any genre, it’s good to use various resources to keep abreast of what’s going on in writing circles of all genres.
