Shaun Crowley (bio)

2. Ensuring the copy is on-message

The best copy unifies one key product message.

That doesn't mean the copy is ineffective if it lists a range of different features and benefits. Rather, the overall concept and structure of the copy should revolve around just one selling proposition.

Why only one? Because in most cases, your reader will remember just one thing. Advertising copy cannot attempt to convey the same amount of information as a book chapter or a newspaper column. It must assume the reader is not actively reading, but rather, passively glancing.

For example, whenever we read an advertisement in a newspaper we are usually aware that the copy is trying to sell us something. We forget about what we read in the ad in order to focus our attention on the meaningful stuff around it—like the news story on Iraq, or our favorite weekly column.

So if the audience remembers just one thing about the product, in the context of encoding so much additional information surrounding it, the ad can be considered a success.

To increase the chances of your audience memorizing the lead sales message in your item (be it an ad, brochure, or website), you must ensure it is clear and attention-grabbing. As a rough rule, your message is clear if you can express it in a succinct sentence.

Once you have established your lead message, your copywriter will be in the best position to provide an attention-grabbing concept, with wording to communicate the message in an engaging way. That’s why it’s vital you establish the message with your client, as explained in How to brief a copywriter (Part 2), and explain it thoroughly to your copywriter.

Assuming both you and your copywriter are clear about the lead sales message, here a couple of tips to help you evaluate its presentation.

Is the copy accurate?

It sounds obvious, but a key task when reading through copy is to question the accuracy of the messages. Pretend you are your client as you read through. Would your client agree with the treatment of the copy? Do the claims hold up? Can they be reinforced with hard evidence or examples?

Is the most appealing information presented first?

To answer this, you’ll need to question who the copy is aimed at. Refer back to the meeting with your client, where you asked questions that helped you to understand your target reader (explained in How to brief a copywriter, Part 2).

Then ask yourself this: does the copy respond to the target reader’s needs? Based on what you know about the target reader, which aspects of the copy will be most appealing? If important messages are embedded in copy, can they be elevated?

3. Ensuring the copy sells the product

The job of advertising copy is ultimately to sell the client’s product or service.

Some recent commentators argue that this aim has become less defined in recent times, because the traditional hard-sell approach (“here’s the product, this is why you should buy it”) is no longer effective.

While this is true, even the softest sell requires copy that encourages the reader to take some kind of action towards buying the product. The aim of advertising remains the same even if the means of getting there changes over time.

For example, multi-stage campaigns have grown in popularity because they break down the sales process into subtle stages.

In multi-stage campaigns, the first round of marketing items may not be intended to sell the product at all—but rather to act as a ‘teaser’, grabbing the audience’s attention so they remember the product or the style of the promotion. This will always be reinforced with further items to deliver the sales message, and subsequent marketing activities that directly ask for the sale.

Make sure you are clear on the stage of the selling process your item appears in. Refer back to the aims of the item you agreed with your client (as explained in How to brief a copywriter Part 2). Then read with this in mind: What’s the aim of the item? Will the copy persuade the reader to take the required action? (Or does it prime the reader for the next stage of the promotion?)

Does the copy demonstrate a need for the product?

In some cases, especially where the product solves a particular problem, the copy may need to clearly spell out that problem—otherwise the reader may respond: “So what?”

Even if the need is obvious, readers often need to be reminded. Elaborating an obvious need elicits the reader’s agreement, providing a positive platform on which to introduce the product. This is a standard sales trick that’s also at the heart of good copy.

Does the copy give a flavor of how the product works?

If the copy has successfully engaged the reader’s interest, it follows that the reader will want to know more about the product.

If you are selling a product direct (i.e. the copy is inviting a one-off purchase), information-rich copy will be required. The reader will want to know exactly what he or she is buying, how it works, what all the components do, what applications it has, how durable and cost effective it is, and if the product is guaranteed.

However in most cases the copy will be offering a free trial or sales consultation where interested readers can access more detailed product information later on, voice objections, or check out the ins-and-outs of the product. In these cases, the copy should do just enough to give a taster of how the product works to encourage enquiry.

Ask yourself if the copy has the right amount of detail to motivate action. Too much unnecessary information and the reader will switch off; not enough information and the reader will be left unconvinced.

Does the copy show the product’s uniqueness?

It’s not always easy to pin-point a product’s unique features, especially if it competes with several similar products. But without a Unique Selling Proposition (USP), the reader will have no reason to choose the product over other cheaper or more established competition.

Refer back to the USPs you noted in your client meeting (as explained in How to brief a copywriter Part 2). If you and your client identified an indisputable USP in which the product can be described as ‘the first’, ‘the only’, or with a superlative such as ‘the cheapest’ or ‘the most durable’, make sure this fact is prominent within the copy, and that the USP of the product is fully demonstrated.

If the product appears to have no unique features, the copy needs to work even harder. The most appealing features should be presented as a solution to a clearly stated need, and there should be plenty of benefits to reinforce the desirability of the product.

Is the copy benefit-led?

“Persuasive” copy is copy that presents the reader with benefits to product features.

So for example, twin-pack packaging is a feature of the salad I buy. On its own, that feature isn’t enough to convince me it’s worth buying. But supported with a benefit: “Keeps salad fresher for longer”, persuades me it is more valuable than a single-pack competitor salad of equivalent weight.

Benefits increase the selling power of the copy. Unless it is appropriate to present product information in a ‘facts and stats’ format (common in catalog copy or in collateral for technical products), benefit-led copy always works best. As a rough rule, each section of copy should include at least one benefit.

The most persuasive benefits are those that are targeted to the reader’s individual needs. So for example, a turbo-injection car may provide one set of prospects with a feeling of power and prestige. For others, a turbo-injection car may specifically provide confidence when overtaking out of tight spots.

The benefit your copywriter identifies should respond to the specific needs of the target reader. Think about the demographic of the audience and evaluate the benefits in the copy. Are they the right benefits? Will they touch a cord with these particular readers?

(For help with identifying benefits, take my tutorial for writing a self-promo mailer.)

Are claims and adjectives backed up with examples, facts, statistics, or testimonials?

Benefits make products desirable. But desirability isn’t always enough to convince the reader to take action. Benefits need to be supported with evidence to make them credible.

As you read the copy, put your sceptic-hat on. If you feel any of the claims in the copy are likely to be challenged, insist that your copywriter add facts, testimonials, or examples to back them up. If you haven’t already canvassed specific evidence from your client, you or your copywriter may need to follow-up to get what is needed.

Is there a prominent call-to-action?

Persuasive copy means nothing if it doesn’t subsequently ask the reader to do anything.

The copy should ask the reader to take some kind of action—just as a salesperson would obtain commitment from a prospect after revealing interest for the product.

The type of “action” depends on the stage of the selling process the item sits within. Your client may want readers to book a sales visit in response to reading the item. Or go online for a demonstration. Or apply for a free trial. Or even to make a direct purchase.

As you read through the copy, ask yourself if the copy will convince readers to take the desired action. Is the call-to-action prominent enough to attract wandering eyes? Is it clear what the reader is being asked to do? Does the copy clearly state what happens next after the reader responds? If the copy asks the reader to submit personal information, does the copy reassure the reader that responding is safe, quick, and easy? Does the copy create enough urgency for the reader to act now?

© Shaun Crowley 2007

Shaun Crowley has worked as a freelance copywriter and marketing consultant. He currently works as a communications manager for a major UK publishing company and is the author of The Freelance Designer's Self-Marketing Handbook and 100 Copywriting Tips for Designers and Other Freelance Artists.