What should you do when you find your elevator speech and business cards aren't getting through to people?

 

 

I just had a second set of business cards printed which simply say ‘Writer’ rather than ‘Copywriter’. Why have I done this? Because it’s sometimes frustrating having to explain that being a copywriter has nothing to do with protecting someone’s rights to a piece of work (as in ‘CopyRIGHT’) but in fact entails lots of writing.

But I realise that unless a person is familiar with the world of marketing, design, PR, or advertising then they’re unlikely to have come across the term ‘Copywriter’ before. So it made sense for me to have a second set of cards printed, declaring myself a freelance writer. On the back of the card is a short list indicating the kind of material I typically write: brochures, web content, newsletters, press releases etc.

Then I started wondering whether I needed to work on my elevator speech too? I’ve often found myself in a networking situation, explaining what I do (quite clearly, so I think) only to find later on that the person I’ve been speaking to has clung on to that ‘copyright’ word and misunderstood the meaning.

At one event last year it happened twice. The very first person I spoke to asked what I did for a living. ‘I’m a copywriter’ I explained, ‘I write the words for marketing materials like brochures and websites to help convey the right message in the most effective way’. Which I thought was a fairly accurate description until I heard the response ‘Ah, I might need to have a chat with you actually. I supply promotional items to companies (mugs, pens etc) and I’m often confused as to whether I can use a brand name or logo without infringing a copyright...’.

Oddly enough, the last person I spoke to that day also got confused. After delivering a similar one liner describing my work, they replied with ‘so if I wrote a song for example, how would I protect the rights to it? Should I post it in a sealed envelope to my bank manager?...’

Anyway, the end result is that I’ve now got a second set of business cards to help avoid confusion and I’m also working on several new elevator speeches. All I’ve got to do now is decide which one works best:

‘You know when you read a clever advert where there’s only a few words on the page but you understand the message straightaway? That’s the kind of stuff I write.’

Or:‘Have you ever seen a website with a whole page of miniscule text on the homepage that nobody ever bothers reading? Well I’d take that and turn it into something concise and exciting that everyone will want to read’.

Or maybe: ‘I’m a writer who helps businesses improve their bottom line. How do I do this? By making every word count, by writing in a style that their customers will relate to, and by making every piece of marketing material an absolute delight to read. The customers just can’t resist...’

Or simply: ‘I help companies reach out to the customers they really want by providing the right words for their marketing materials’.

But of course your elevator speech can be geared to suit the person it’s being delivered to – just like the business cards.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some useful tips to follow when writing your next advert.

 

 

 

 

Have you ever come across that oft-quoted advertising statistic? Approximately 5 times as many people read the headline of an advert as read the body copy. Which means the headline actually accounts for over 80% of your advertising spend.

A strong headline is more crucial in advertising than in editorial work because generally people will still bother to read a news article even if it has a weak headline; with an advert, they won’t!

So it’s important to grab the reader’s attention straightaway and the best way to do this is to either stress a benefit (‘washes whiter than the rest’) or create a sense of intrigue that entices the reader to continue reading (‘why do our customers love doing business with us?’).

Moving on to the body of the text, always keep in mind the need to be concise. Forget about using long words and complex phrases to show off your English skills – instead be short, sharp and to the point. Keep it simple.

Stick to these guidelines and you shouldn’t go too far wrong, but just to be sure, run your finished advert through the following checklist:

Oh, that’s another thing – bullet pointed lists usually work well in adverts too. If you need any help writing your next advertisement please feel free to get in touch.