I thought that good copywriting means sounding clever and professional.
All my posts were full of jargon and grammatical errors. I used to spend hours creating what I believed was awesome content, with whatever fancy words I could come up with.
Then I would go and click the publish button and see my engagement rate level out.
In the meantime, my coworker Jake was allowed to post simple, conversational posts that received hundreds of comments.
He did not write perfect prose-he would fill it with fragments, begin sentences with the word and, and write the way he talked with his friend over a cup of coffee.
It made me just nuts.
What roused me was then. When I opened LinkedIn and went through the newsfeed, I noticed two posts on the same subject.
One was written by a so-called copywriting master who had excellent grammar and an advanced vocabulary.
The other one was Jake and began with the words…”Here is the thing people do not talk about…”
Which of them had 500+ comments?
Then it occurred to me, people do not relate to flawless writing. Their communication is real and clear to the point that one would think they are talking to an actual person.
Good copywriting is not a matter of word phoniness. It is also a great tool which can be said to persuade, inform, and entertai,n but only when you do not make the most common mistakes that make one sound like a robot is doing the writing.
Copywriting is more than just putting words on a page.
Stay away from weak verbs (is and be)
Avoid-
“We will be running the new program from our office”
and
“There is one simple omission that can transform a sentence from boring to brilliant”
Instead, opt for-
“They will run the new programs from their office.”
In a sequence, place the longest item at the end
The simple should come first, then the complex. It makes a sentence’s ending less muddled and more memorable.
Choose-
“He was loud, uninteresting, and always later than Noah”
If your series is like:
“He was always later than Noah, loud, and boring.”
Specifics are more convincing
Don’t use terms like “many,” “several,” “approximately,” “nearly,” and other such mushy weasel modifiers unless you have to for legal reasons.
Specifics demonstrate to your audience that you are aware of the capabilities of your product based on testing, studies, outcomes, etc.
To avoid doublespeak, only use one verb
Frequently, one verb can accomplish what two related verbs can.
Choose-
“The computer was running smoothly.”
Instead of-
“The computer was working and running smoothly.”
You might also use the simpler phrase-
“He ran out of gas”
Rather than-
“He was empty and ran out of gas.”
Sentence lengths can vary
A series of identically long sentences can get boring. Start with a brief or at least a medium-length sentence before moving on to longer, shorter, or any combination of these.
Think about a speaker who uses uniformly long sentences. Robotic.
Go short and sweet
When a 1- to 2-word version will do just fine, without losing any meaning, why employ a 4- to 5-word phrase?
The words “since” or “sinned” can be used to replace phrases like “in view of the fact that.”
When you’re paying for premium ad space in a large journal, word economy is extremely crucial.
Avoid stating the obvious too often
Redundancy is good for space travel, but not for clear writing.
Phrases like-
“anticipate in advance,” or
“vital essentials”
It will drive your readers crazy and communicate very little.
Using two or more synonyms together makes it seem like you’re saying two different things.
Modify thy neighbor
When you use words incorrectly, they can also lead to confusion, misunderstanding, and even legal trouble.
Make sure your modifiers apply directly to the pertinent clause in question. Do this and you’ll avoid such gaffes as:
“The truck was stationary”
When the accident actually involved another vehicle.
