It’s an objection often raised, especially when it comes to longer pieces of copy. If handled badly, it can ruin your work. But get it right and it could be one of the most important tools you employ. I’m talking about repetition. A reader asks an interesting question on this very subject: “Is there a good technical reason why so many of these sales letters go on for ages and repeat themselves endlessly?” Put simply:…
Regular reader Jared wrote in to say: “In Thomas Friedman’s book Thank You for Being Late he talks about the capacity of computer algorithms to write like humans. Friedman gives examples of algorithms writing sports columns or even poems that sound like they were written by humans. Jared goes on to ask: “Is there a danger that human copywriters could one day soon be replaced by an advanced algorithm that has figured out how to…
It’s the early 1900s. You’re in Paris. Specifically, you’re in Gertrude Stein’s home at 27 Rue de Fleurus. On the walls surrounding you are hung what will become some of the most important works of art ever to have existed. But that’s all to come. Right now, the talk around you concerns two specific artists. Both have pictures hanging on Gertrude’s walls… Both are considered geniuses… And both are pushing the boundaries of art to…
You may know him as Kento. Or you may know him by his Spanish name: Pedro. For a short while, I knew him as Hector. Before a fellow writer and marketer, Thomas Goosey, enlightened me. In case you don’t recognise his name, he looks like this: He’s a children’s television character that’s become a meme. He’s usually used as a GIF to express shock. I like him. He’s funny. But why the freaking lobster am…
Writing copy to grab your reader’s attention is hard. You might spend weeks testing different ideas for nothing. Even if the product or service you’re selling is great, it doesn’t necessarily make writing captivating copy any easier. But there is an exercise you can do to write copy with a much greater chance of success. And strangely, it involves spending time in your reader’s bed. Huh? Between the sheets Of course, I don’t literally mean…
“All my experience says that for a great many products, long copy sells more than short…” Those are the words of David Ogilvy, in Ogilvy on Advertising. He was a pretty experienced guy when it came to copywriting… Did a few good things, apparently. Interestingly, Ogilvy went on to suggest one of the reasons behind this idea is “advertisements with long copy convey the impression that you have something important to say, whether people read the copy…
At the end of the 80s there was really only one widely recognised skateboarding company: Powell Peralta. Started by two of the biggest names in skateboarding – particularly Stacey Peralta – the company was very successful. Indeed, it was pretty much the team to ride for. Its elite skating team – the Bones Brigade – included a young Tony Hawk. Nowadays, he’s perhaps the only universally recognised name in skateboarding. Another famous rider who you might…
Do people read long copy? On an almost daily basis someone suggests to me people don’t. The argument goes: In this modern world of failing attention spans no one gives anything any longer than a few seconds. What do you think? I think this whole question is piffle. I’ll tell you why in a minute… But to be fair, I should first lay down a disclaimer. I’m biased because I know long copy can make…
My mind is a mess. I mean, literally, a mess. There are too many ideas in there. Bits and bobs lying about all over the joint. Send help. Send a cleaner. Send a shrink. It’s like someone ran into a library with a barrel of explosives and let rip… There are pages everywhere. Ideas strewn across collapsed shelves. Quiet librarians shivering in corners, desperate to speak up but too shaken to speak clearly. I doubt…
When we talk about disruption, we usually think of that initial moment when we aim to grab someone’s attention. We think about an intriguing subject line… A bold and shocking headline. Or perhaps a controversial opening paragraph. We know by saying something weird or wonderful in that opening gambit – or even something strange and awful – we stand a good chance of being noticed. But as we work our way through the copy, we…