I run copywriting masterclasses in all sorts of places. To find out more, email me: alanbarker830@btinternet.com These are a slide version of a session I ran at 'Words that Work', a conference in Bournemouth on 18 May 2014, organised by Brian Jenner of the UK Speechwriters' Guild, and Richard Spencer of A Thousand Monkeys - both of whom did a great job. One of the interesting insights of a very insightful day was that the word 'copywriting' seems to be becoming rather old-fashioned. We're all writers now, as Sarah McCartney noticed. (She's decided to call herself a scribe - good idea.)

1. Welcome to
Copywriting
for
non-copywriters
Alan Barker

2. I GAVE THIS SESSION
AT THIS
CONFERENCE:

3. I RUN THIS
CONSULTANCY:
www.kairostraining.co.uk

4. ... AND
I WRITE
BOOKS.

5. I’M ASSUMING THAT
YOU’RE NOT A
COPYWRITER.
MAYBE YOU WRITE:

6. ... REPORTS, EMAILS,
LETTERS –
THE KIND OF WRITING I
CALL
FUNCTIONAL

7. IT’S A BIT LIKE THE KIND OF
WRITING WE WERE TAUGHT
AT SCHOOL.

8. NEWSLETTERS,
MARKETING EMAILS,
BROCHURES,
LEAFLETS,
BLOG POSTINGS
- AND EVEN
TWEETS AND TEXTS
BUT MAYBE
YOU’RE
FINDING
YOURSELF
WRITING MORE
AND MORE :

9. ... THE KIND OF
WRITING THAT’S
OFTEN CALLED:
COPYWRITING

10. WHAT’S THE
DIFFERENCE?

11. I LOOKED AT SOME
OF THE GUIDES TO
COPYWRITING, AND
THEY SAID STUFF
LIKE...

12. Copywriting: received wisdom emotions.
 Show definite benefits, and start
at once.
 Tap the primal emotions.
... AND...

13. Copywriting: receivedwisdom#2
 gets attention
 focuses on the target reader
 stresses benefits
 differentiates your organisation from others
 proves its case
 establishes credibility and conviction
 builds value
 closes with a call to action
ALL VERY GOOD, BUT -

14. BUT HOW
DO YOU
ACTUALLY
DO
THIS KIND
OF
WRITING?

15. LET’S THINK ABOUT THREE KEY
VARIABLES...

16. Threevariables
functional copy
committed
reader contract
uncommitted
FIRST: THE
CONTRACT THE
READER MAKES
WITH YOU.

17. Threevariables
functional copy
committed
reader contract
uncommitted
FUNCTIONAL: THE
READER WANTS TO
READ
COPY: WE HAVE TO
ATTRACT THE
READER’S
ATTENTION

18. committed
reader contract
uncommitted
purpose
inform perform
Threevariables
functional copy
SO THE
PURPOSE OF
THE WRITING
DIFFERS...

19. committed
reader contract
uncommitted
purpose
inform perform
style
text voice
Threevariables
functional copy
.. AND THE
STYLE WILL BE
DIFFERENT,
TOO.

20. style
text voice
THE WORD ‘TEXT’
IS RELATED TO
THE WORD
‘TEXTILE’...

21. style
text voice
FUNCTIONAL STYLE
IS ‘WOVEN’ INTO
COMPLEX
PATTERNS...
THE WORD ‘TEXT’
IS RELATED TO
THE WORD
‘TEXTILE’...

22. Once final decisions are made
about the available funding for
2011/12, this strategy will also need
to involve making difficult
decisions about the level and
allocation of money raised from
council taxpayers and the Mayor’s
revised priorities across the GLA
group.
LIKE THIS:

23. style
text voice
... AND COPYWRITING FOLLOWS
THE RHYTHMS AND PATTERNS
OF SPEECH...

24. Here’s some advice for
companies in search of a better
bottom line: Send your workers
home early.
Sound silly? It certainly does to
most executives.
... LIKE THIS!

25. Three dimensions of copywriting
 Sense
 Sound
 Structure
THIS PRINCIPLE PLAYS
OUT IN THREE
DIMENSIONS...

26. Three dimensions of copywriting
 Sense
 Sound
 Structure
THIS PRINCIPLE PLAYS OUT
IN THREE DIMENSIONS...
... AND I’VE GOT THREE
SUGGESTIONS FOR
EACH...

27. Three dimensions of copywriting
 Sense
 Sound
 Structure
AND THE FIRST DIMENSION IS:

28. Sense
 Be clear
 Be memorable
 Use the senses: literally or metaphorically
HERE ARE SOME EXAMPLES -

29. Monkey visits German pizzeria,
vandalises toilet
A PRETTY
CLEAR
HEADLINE!
Sense: be clear

30. Sense: be clear
IF YOU’RE
BOB THE
BUILDER –
SAY SO.

31. Sense: be memorable
YOU CAN
EVEN DRAW
ATTENTION
TO HOW
CLEAR
YOU’RE
BEING...

32. Sense: be memorable
YOU CAN
EVEN DRAW
ATTENTION
TO HOW
CLEAR
YOU’RE
BEING...
...IN FACT,
THIS TAGLINE
HAS BECOME
SO
MEMORABLE,
IT’S NOW LIKE
A PROVERB.

33. Sense: be memorable
PROVERBS ARE
INTERESTING.

34. Sense: be memorable
THEIR MEANING IS
‘OPEN’...

35. Sense: be memorable
...WE HAVE TO ADD
SOMETHING FROM
OUR OWN EXPERIENCE
TO MAKE SENSE OF
THEM.

36. Sense: be memorable
NOBODY IS THE
‘AUTHOR’ OF A
PROVERB; PROVERBS
BELONG TO ALL OF
US.

37. Sense: be memorable
GREAT THINKERS
CAN CREATE NEW
PROVERBS...

38. Sense: be memorable
... AND SO CAN GREAT
COPYWRITERS.

39. Sense: use the senses (literally)
ANOTHER WAY TO MAKE OUR
WRITING MEMORABLE IS TO APPEAL
TO THE SENSES...

40. Sense: use the senses (literally)
FROM
TASTE TO
SOUND...

41. Sense: use the senses (literally)
IN THIS EARLIER
VERSION, THE
COPYWRITER
HAD TO TELL US
WHAT TO DO!

42. WE CAN
FIND
OTHER
EXAMPLES
OF THESE
EFFECTS IN
SIX-WORD
STORIES...

43. ...OTHERWISE
KNOWN AS
FLASH
FICTION...

44. Sense: use the senses (literally or
metaphorically)
Window box,
modest lawn,
wildflower meadow.
HERE’S A SIX-
WORD STORY THAT
USES THE SENSES
REALLY WELL...

45. www.smithmag.net
(LOTS
MORE SIX-
WORD
STORIES
HERE.)

46. Sense: use the senses
(metaphorically)
METAPHOR IS A
GOOD WAY OF
CONVEYING AN
IDEA BY USING THE
SENSES...

47. Sense: use the senses (metaphorically)
AND WE CAN
PLAY WITH
METAPHORS
BY MAKING
THEM
LITERAL.

48. Sound
 Keep it simple
 Give it rhythm
 Play with patterns
THIS IS THE
SECOND
DIMENSION OF
COPYWRITING...

49. Sound: keep it simple
A
BRILLIANTLY
SIMPLE
BRAND
NAME...

50. Sound: keep it simple
A
BRILLIANTLY
SIMPLE
BRAND
NAME...
... REGULAR
ALTERNATION
OF
CONSONANTS
AND VOWELS.

51. Sound: keep it simple
THIS COMBINATION
OF VOWELS SEEMS
TO BE
PROBLEMATIC...

52. Sound: keep it simple
WHEN SONIC SIMPLICITY
WORKS, IT REALLY FLIES...

53. Sound: keep it simple
... AND WHEN IT DOESN’T
WORK...
WHO REMEMBERS IT?

54. Sound: keep it simple
(and give it rhythm)
THE SIMPLICITY (AND DOUBLE MEANINGS)
MAKE THIS SLOGAN SO MEMORABLE...

55. Sound: keep it simple
(and give it rhythm)
... THAT IT’S BEEN STOLEN
FOR ANOTHER CAMPAIGN!

56. Sound: give it rhythm
WHY NOT
‘PEPPER
AND
SALT’?

57. Sound: give it rhythm
WHY NOT
‘PEPPER
AND
SALT’?
BECAUSE
WE
PREFER
REGULAR
RHYTHM.

58. Sound: give it rhythm
WHY NOT
‘PEPPER
AND
SALT’?
BECAUSE
WE
PREFER
REGULAR
RHYTHM.
STRONG – WEAK – STRONG - WEAK

59. Sound: give it rhythm
THE SAME
EFFECT CROPS
UP IN ALL
SORTS OF
PLACES – EVEN
GREAT
LITERATURE...

60. Sound: playing with rhythmic
patterns
... AND WE CAN
PLAY WITH
THESE
EFFECTS TOO,
JUST AS WE
CAN PLAY
WITH SENSE
AND
METAPHOR...

61. /troch/ ee/
iamb trochee
RHYTHM IS ALL ABOUT
ALTERNATING STRONG
AND WEAK STRESSES...
Sound: playing with rhythmic
patterns

62. Sound: playing with rhythmic
patterns
APPARENTLY, MANY
‘FEMININE’ BRANDS
HAVE IAMBIC NAMES...

63. APPARENTLY, MANY
‘FEMININE’ BRANDS
HAVE IAMBIC NAMES...
Sound: playing with rhythmic
patterns
... AND MANY
‘MASCULINE’ BRANDS
ARE TROCHAIC...
APPARENTLY...

64. Sound: play with patterns
WE CAN ALSO
PLAY WITH
VOWEL
SOUNDS (IT’S
CALLED
ASSONANCE...)

65. Sound: play with patterns
...AND
CONSONANT
SOUNDS
(WHICH IS
ALLITERATION)

66. Sound: play with patterns
OR BOTH!

67. Sound: play with patterns
Pickles, pregnancy, puking, pain, premature.
Priceless.
HERE’S A
LOVELY
ALLITERATIVE
SIX-WORD
STORY.

68. Structure
 Inform or perform
 Shape your sentences
 Be unusual
INTO THE THIRD
DIMENSION...

69. Structure: inform
A VERY EFFECTIVE
FUNCTIONAL
STRUCTURE IS
THE PYRAMID:

70. Structure: inform
Say it first,
then
support it.

71. ... LIKE THIS.
BUT PYRAMIDS SIT STILL; THEY DON’T PERFORM...
A written agenda acts as:
a plan of the meeting;
an objective control of the meeting; and
a measure of the meeting's success.

72. Structure: perform
For sale: baby shoes, never used.
...LIKE THIS
DOES!

73. Structure: perform
Every sentence takes you on a little
journey somewhere.
[Susan Bernovsky]

74. Structure: perform
In the beginning God created heaven and
earth.
And the earth was void and empty,
and darkness was on the face of the deep;
and the spirit of God moved over the waters.
And God said …
WRITING THAT PERFORMS
OFTEN MAKES STRUCTURES
BY ADDING...

75. Structure: perform
HERE’S AN
EXAMPLE
FROM A
(RATHER OLD)
AD...

76. Structure: shape your sentences
One day you’re in, the next day you’re
out.
THIS SHAPE –
CREATING A
CONTRAST – IS
CALLED
ANTITHESIS.

77. Summarise: shape your sentences
My fellow citizens: I stand here today...
humbled by the task before us;
grateful for the trust you have bestowed;
mindful of the sacrifices borne by our
ancestors.
AND
THIS...

78. ...IS CALLED A TRICOLON:
A SET OF THREE
(HUMBLED...GRATEFUL...MINDFUL)
My fellow citizens: I stand here today...
humbled by the task before us;
grateful for the trust you have bestowed;
mindful of the sacrifices borne by our
ancestors.

79. ...MUCH USED BY THIS
MAN:
My fellow citizens: I stand here today...
humbled by the task before us;
grateful for the trust you have bestowed;
mindful of the sacrifices borne by our
ancestors.

80. TAKE A LOOK AT THE
WRITING ON THE NEXT
SLIDE. HOW WELL
STRUCTURED IS IT?

81. Structure: shape your sentences
So what is it that has made this festival the gem
that it clearly is? I think the answer is quite
simple. Great music played by some of the
most wonderful musicians, surroundings
which offer the audience the opportunity to
feel directly involved in the experience, while
at the same time giving the performers the
chance to be inspired and energised by the
intense concentration of those listening.

82. Structure: shape your sentences
So what is it that has made this festival the gem
that it clearly is? I think the answer is quite
simple. Great music played by some of the most
wonderful musicians, surroundings which offer
the audience the opportunity to feel directly
involved in the experience, while at the same
time giving the performers the chance to be
inspired and energised by the intense
concentration of those listening.
IT STARTS WELL: A
GOOD RHETORICAL
QUESTION AND A
SIMPLE STATEMENT.
BUT THEN IT GETS
HORRIBLY LOST...

83. Structure: shape your sentences
So what is it that has made this festival the gem
that it clearly is? I think the answer is quite
simple. Great music played by some of the most
wonderful musicians, surroundings which offer
the audience the opportunity to feel directly
involved in the experience, while at the same
time giving the performers the chance to be
inspired and energised by the intense
concentration of those listening.
AND THE GRAMMAR
GOES WRONG.

84. Structure: be unusual
WE CAN PLAY
WITH
GRAMMATICAL
STRUCTURES,
TOO...

85. Structure: be unusual
(IT SHOULD BE
‘DIFFERENTLY’
OF COURSE...)

86. Bald. Unreliable. Easily distracte
HERE’S A FUNNY SIX-
WORD STORY THAT PLAYS
WITH SPELLING ...
Structure: be unusual

87. ... COPYWRITING OFTEN
PLAYS FAST AND LOOSE
WITH GRAMMAR.
Structure: be unusual

88. (WHICH FUNCTIONAL
WRITING SHOULD
NEVER DO!)
Structure: be unusual

89. BUT IT HAS TO LOOK
DELIBERATE – NOT LIKE
A SIMPLE MISTAKE.
Structure: be unusual

90. I CAN’T HELP THINKING
THAT THIS NEXT
EXAMPLE IS ACTUALLY
A MISTAKE -
Structure: be unusual

91. Structure: be unusual

92. Structure: be unusual
(THERE SHOULD BE AN
APOSTROPHE:
FOR GOODNESS’ SAKE

93. FOR ME, THIS IS ONE OF
THE MURKIEST
ASPECTS OF
COPYWRITING:

94. HOW IMPORTANT IS IT
TO BE
GRAMMATICALLY
‘CORRECT’?

95. TRICKY!
MEANWHILE, HERE’S A
SUMMARY OF ALL MY
SUGGESTIONS:

96. Three dimensions of copywriting
 Sense
 Be clear
 Be memorable
 Use the senses,
literally or
metaphorically
 Sound
 Keep it simple
 Give it rhythm
 Play with patterns
 Structure
 Inform or perform
 Shape your
sentences
 Be unusual

97. Alan Barker
www.kairostraining.co.uk
Copywriting
for
non-copywriters