The High Calling of Good Copy

I have recently been interviewing for a new copy writer for our staff at Carter & Co. and have discovered some interesting correlations in skills for the position. Copy writing—authoring the textual content of an advertising or marketing material—is viewed by some writers as tantamount to writing for tabloids. This mindset, I am convinced, stems from the viewpoint of consumers and the growing mistrust in marketing messages. It goes without saying that all writers are also consumers.

As a start-up marketing firm, I wrote much of the copy for our early projects and still play a major part in copy writing today. Some may find it surprising that my experience in marketing has led me to seek out more and more content-rich materials when making my own consumer decisions. I read case studies and white papers authored by the very vendors that I am considering a purchase. Why? Because of the value I have realized in these allegedly biased reports. In short, I respect the high calling of good copy.

Well-written and effective copy does not revolve around inflated and unfounded claims, although this stigma is well deserved for the companies that still practice such deceit. Instead, there is a higher calling for good copy that we all must understand in order to develop effective, compelling, and most importantly honorable marketing messages.

1. Ask first, answer second. Too often we write what we believe should be said about the product/service that we are promoting. Just as a good journalist caters to the readers, writing copy must begin with an understanding of who will eventually read it.
2. Put your thesaurus away.There is no harm in adding variety to your writing with descriptive language, but readers expect to read in the language they are familiar with. Even the vernacular has become more commonly accepted in professional marketing.
3. Verify, Verify, Verify.First, verify the facts before touting them. Second, verify spelling and grammar. C’mon, people, this should be a given. Third, verify that what you have written is not misleading. Ask a third party to proof-read, then find out the impressions the copy left them with. If they were led to believe a falsehood, even if it was not explicitly stated, consider clarifying to avoid any mistrust in your prospects.

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