Tips to Write Copy They’ll Want to Read
Do you like perfection? Sure, who doesn’t? When it comes to writing though, there’s a tendency to want to get it perfect, and if you can’t get it perfect, then why bother at all?
The trick is that few things are perfect the first time. Ask any famous author for the first draft of their epic novel and it will almost certainly be far different than what actually gets sent to the publisher. Revision is part and parcel of the game, and often the editing is just as important as writing.
When it comes to writing copy, you may not always be able to produce ‘perfect’ copy, but you can create well-written and thoughtful copy by following these steps:
- Write it down. It may not be pretty or articulate, but it’s something on paper at least, and that’s a lot more useful than just a blank screen. If you’re having a hard time with this step, consider what you’re really trying to say. Imagine having a conversation with a friend. What would you tell them about the topic? How would you say it? Now write down what you just said.
- Relax. You’ve got something on paper now. Let it simmer. Take a walk. Read a book. Check out the latest happenings on your favorite website.
- Rewrite for style. Now is where the editing phase begins. Take a look at your raw copy. Consider who you’re writing to and the situation in which it will be read. Are you writing to someone you know? Is it for a formal or non-formal occasion? Are you educating or selling? These considerations will dictate the style you need to use to be most effective.
- Relax.
- Rewrite for focus. Copywriting is a form of business writing, so you have to take into account that the person reading it is likely to be pressed for time. You’ll want the content to be interesting, but you’ll also want to quickly get to the point. Get rid of any sentences that don’t directly support the reason you’re writing. Also, look for any overly long or complicated sentences that might make your writing vague or confusing. If the piece you’re writing is long by necessity, be sure to include a dual readership path that leads the skimming reader from beginning to end. As a rule of thumb, the more punctuation marks you include in a sentence, the more likely that sentence is to be misunderstood.
- You guessed it. Relax.
- Rewrite for grammar. You’re just about done. As a final touch, go back through what you’ve written and check it carefully for grammar and spelling. You may want to take a break before you do. If you’ve been staring at the same document for a while it’s easy to miss simple errors. Don’t rely too heavily on your word processor’s spelling and grammar checker either. While it will most likely catch glaring spelling errors, it doesn’t always pick up on common grammatical mistakes. It might not catch onto the fact that you put ‘to’ instead of ‘the’, but rest assured your reader will spot it right away.
Even if you’re not an experienced writer, producing quality copy doesn’t have to be a nightmare. Use these tips to produce smooth, legible copy they’ll be happy to read. If it freaks you out to write your own copy or you’re not getting the results you want, hire a good copywriter and move on to what you do best.