Avoid these 5 traps with copywriting - Flex Marketing & Design

13 May,2013

Marketing Powwow

5 traps to avoid in copywriting?

It?s useful to know ?what TO DO? in order to write good marketing copy, however it can also be handy to know ?what NOT TO DO?. Here are 5 common errors in copywriting (how do I know??I am often editing things that other people have initially drafted):

1. Using technical language or jargon. If you?ve got too close to your subject matter, get someone from outside your business or industry to review your writing and give feedback
2. Poor structure. Just like writing a novel, great marketing copy needs to have a beginning, middle and end. This structure establishes the correct tone for the piece ? there?s a risk it could come across as abrupt or disorganised if it doesn?t follow these simple rules
3. Poor formatting. Great formatting makes copy easier to read. Ideally a reader should be able to skim read and get the salient points from use of bolding, headings, sub-headings, proper paragraph spacing, bullet points and other sub-text indentation
4. Disengaging text. Copy that says ?and we do this, we do that? does not engage with your audience. Written marketing-speak needs to be along the lines of any informed face to face sales pitch i.e. ?what?s in it for the customer?. Therefore try and use ?you? to help the customer relate to the products or services you offer
5. Waffles on too much. Think about times you?ve been reading and suddenly ?switch off? when you come to a particular piece of text because the language is convoluted! Your reaction is likely to result in glossing over details, turning the page or discarding reading altogether. Get straight to the point without using unnecessary words (be honest about whether each word is enriching the text). Simply ? be succinct!

Check out our earlier blog about common mistakes with brochure and flyers for more useful traps to be aware of.

Flex Marketing & Design help businesses communicate better in a number of ways, however a popular request is to ?improve? text that?s been drafted by clients but isn?t customer-friendly or painting the best picture possible of their products and services. For help with copywriting and editing, get in touch with Andrea for a chat about your requirements.

Source: http://www.flexmad.co.nz/5-traps-to-avoid-in-copywriting/

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