2. THE CASE FOR COPYWRITERS.
- Angie Moyler
- Mar 1, 2023
- 6 min read
Updated: Jun 23, 2023
"... words - well crafted, well written, thoughtfully composed words - that move, explain, sell, persuade, describe, have never been more important, nor at a greater premium. In a world of dross, the good stands out, jewel like. It's how we make our work engagaing, distinctive, successful. Great copy glitters."
Tim Lindsay. Chief Executive Officer, D&Ad.
Words matter. Spoken, thought, written, a blog, shopping list, to do list to hound your day, a a spelling challenge .. they shape our lives, our history and provide meaning. The written word creates the structure and reference points to that which makes us human. Sign posts to how we live our lives. Words can also be destructive, mis-leading, coercive, offensive We have all known the power of written words. We hold the choice in how we use them.
Putting words together in a way which connects to others and provide that meaning is an art which we all attempt. Digital communication now compels us all to be copywriters. To know from first hand experience the skill required in getting it right. We have all experienced the fall out from getting it wrong. Equally we all have a story to tell of when it miraculously works.
Published words somehow achieve a sense of authority. Especially printed words. When printed their authority grows. They mean something more. They're out there. Unable to be deleted or withdrawn. Only read and re-read, remebered and re-counted.
Tangent - remember the depressing images of the Nazis burning books in town squares?
A demonstration of the abject paranoia of those in control who know and fear the power of printed words to free the mind to curiosity and a differing view.
https://www.dw.com/en/cultural-incineration-80-years-since-nazi-book-burnings/a-16798958
Graphic design has the ability to develop the powerful combination of word and image. The combination holds great power as it can allow the onlooker to tell or see a bigger story. In some way freeing the mind to allow individual imagination and interpretation. Communication graphics can reach a wide audience as it does not solely rely on correct language. The inclusion of image can enhance or even translate the meaning of the words. lt can adjust a culture - for better or worse, challenge the status quo, change policy, provide hope or even idealogically subvert a generation.
As I conduct research for this report the commentary and writings of Donna J. Haraway have caught my attention. Her lifes work from my perspective forms a useful broad picture basis to this report.
Donna J. Haraway is an American Professor Emerita in the History of Consciousness Department and Feminist Studies Department at the University of California, Santa Cruz. As a prominent scholar in the field of science and technology studies Haraway continually probes the status quo from a feminist perspective and raises interesting perspective and critique of the accepted norm. A reasoned, intellectual thinker always worthy of inclusion in any debate on technology and culture.
Hathaways response on the value of the written word ...
Vintage Chinese propaganda poster. "Enough demagoguery, thief Liu (Liu Shaoqi), we will fight to the last drop of blood! Communist China, 1960s
Fernando Reza
https://www.frodesignco.com/shop
Image examples - protest art etc.
A successful designer is a skilled copywriter - or is able to employ a skilled copywriter. We connect with conversation but especially with story telling - why? Copywriting is an art but it is also a science.
Sychology of copywriting
200wc
What The Experts Say.
On Copywriting.
In an otherwise useful text Mark Shaw makes a comment which I would argue is impossible. Yes the brands voice has to come through loud and clear, but there are times when the copywriter is helping to develop the brands voice or language. This cannot happen devoid of personality. It is the personality which influences the writing. I would say also that it is virtually impossible to separate the writer from their personality. One feeds the other. In employing the skills of a copywriter/designer the personality and ability is what you are buying in to. People buy people. Ego is a whole other thing. If ego is as Richard Rohr describes '"... part of the self that wants to be significant, central, and important by itself, apart from anybody else. It wants to be both separate and superior. It is defended and self-protective by its very nature. https://cac.org/daily-meditations/ego-the-actor-2016-07-12/" then yes, an overriding skill of the copywriter is to write for others or to put the defended ego aside and act in the opposite by expressing radical ego which is able to put others first. I would say 'to set aside your over defended ego which is different to your personality. How your ego is developed informs personality. Separating the two results in an inauthentic response and erodes trust. Perhaps these comments are an indication of differing perspectives on psychology and authenticity.
Shaw, M 2012, Copywriting Second Edition : Successful Writing for Design, Advertising, Marketing, Laurence King Publishing, London. Available from: ProQuest Ebook Central. [17 May 2023].
Influential Copy Writers – past and present.
Case Studies.
https://www.leoburnett.co.uk/
Leo Burnett (October 21, 1891 – June 7, 1971)
an american advertising executive and founder of Leo Burnett Company, Inc.
One of the projects he was responsible for stands out as pure genious - simply because it has spanned generations - and we are still talking about it. We all know Tony the Tiger. Created in 1952 to be the mascot for Kellogs Frosties. Tony the Tiger made his debut as a VTuber on Twitch in 2022.
'They're gr-great" - simple and memeorable slogan spoken by a tiger to promote a breakfast cereal! What I love about this is the original belief to push it as a viable idea in the first place. Leo Burnett knew how to connect with people.
In 1999, Burnett was named by Time as one of the 100 most influential people of the 20th century.
Case studies taken from D&AD's the Copy Book. Their best ever selling publication. A stat which in itself speaks volumes.
On introducing this book to my BA Graphic Design students it opened up a level of discussion with an avenue to clearer communication that they found to be incredibly useful. As a relative newcomer to GD education I have found that there is little input on the art of copywriting, with a preference to teaching on academic writing. As the goal of a degree is to steer students in to employment in their chosen subject, graphic design students will rarely use academic writing again unless they choose to stay in academia.
Research also taken from;
First, quotes to ponder from recognised copy writers;
On The Effectiveness Of Copywriting
3.“Effective content marketing is about mastering the art of storytelling. Facts tell, but stories sell.” -Bryan Eisenberg
4.“Nobody has a magic lamp which can tell you in advance whether what you say will be effective in persuading an audience.”-Maurice Saatchi
5.“Quality content means content that is packed with clear utility and is brimming with inspiration, and it has relentless empathy for the audience:” -Ann Handley
6.“Sometimes the best copy to sell a horse is, “horse for sale”.”-Jay Abraham
8.“We don’t want to be something for everybody, we want to be everything for some people.”-Carlos Ghosn
CASE STUDIES;
JohnBevins.
" when we borrow attention from total srangers or, worse, steal their precious time, we should strive to give something more valuable back. If we do that wonderful things happen."
John Bevins. (2018, The Copy Book. pg 45)
Effective copy writers are curious observers of human interaction and behaviour. This allows an endless resource of that which connects us and of stories which stir on an emotional level.
John Bevins work and following proved this. As creative director of his own agency founded in 1982 he was independant to the end winning many awards for his work.
An advert very much of it's day and showing a total appreciation of the culture, time and human response. In todays culture it would have been broken up in to a series of dramatic sound bites - even if it was acknowledged worthy of use. Our concentration span for reading digital content has been dramatically reduced to 8 seconds!
This particular advert increased bookings to the clinic by 800% - all without any conventional branding techniques.
Client MBF. 1993. Agency: John Bevins. (2018, The Copy Book. pg 49)
Athletic and footwear brand Nike celebrated the thirtieth anniversary of one succinct-but-great tagline—Just Do It—with another: This time, the brand took a stance on an ongoing issue with an ad featuring a closeup of former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick and the copy, “Believe in something. Even if it means sacrificing everything.”
It was a divisive ad, but struck the right chords with the right consumers—according to analysts, the company gained $6 billion in market value as a result.
... tbc
On Ai Writing Generators.
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