Before
CHAPTER 4
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‘Proper planning prevents piss-poor performance’, as they say in
the Army, a sentiment equally true in the less martial world of
marketing copywriting.
The brief
The first step is to find out what I’m supposed to be doing, and
that starts with the brief. In theory this will be a well thought-
out, professional document that contains enough information to
make the job burst into life before my eyes. In reality it’s likely
to be a jumble of irrelevant detail cobbled together by an under-
motivated minion and presented via a vaguely worded email or
hurried conversation, possibly involving a crackly conference
call.
If the brief is anything less than 100 per cent clear – and the
chances are it will be – then my first job is to take a step back
and get all the information I need to move on. This calls for deli-
cacy and persistence, but it’s essential for the project’s overall
success. And what constitutes a good brief? That depends on the
job, but I like to see clear, one-sentence definitions of the task,
the reader and the overall goal, along with sufficient background
information to at least start me thinking.
Once I’ve acquired a workable brief I like to read it first quickly,
then carefully. In the first pass I just want to get a feel for the
project; in the second I underline key words in an effort to get a
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full understanding of what’s required. Then I like to rewrite the
key points of the brief (while checking I’ve not missed anything)
to fully excise the fluff that seems to clutter up such documents.
The really important thing is to find the verbs, because they
signpost what I’m being asked to do. By highlighting these I’m
well on the way to understanding my mission.
All this checking might seem unnecessary but I can’t over-
emphasise how important it is to give them what they ask for (in
other words, respond to the brief as it actually is) rather than
give them what I think they ask for. It’s surprisingly easy to make
this mistake but equally easy to avoid – just read the brief very,
very carefully and if you’re in any doubt about any of it seek clar-
ification. Far better to ask a few extra questions at this stage than
cock up the whole project because you went off in the wrong
direction.
50 brilliant copywriting
brilliant
tip
The tighter the brief, the more freedom you’ll have, for the curious
reason that your limitations set you free. This comes up again and
again in the interviews at the end of this book. Being told to ‘write
what you like’ sends otherwise effective writers into spasms of self-
doubt, so learn to love your limitations and all will be well.
In a nutshell:
G If in the slightest doubt, get clarification.
G Find the verbs. They signpost what you’re being asked to
do.
G Respond to the brief as it actually is, not as you’d like it to
be.
G The tighter the brief, the more freedom you’ll have.
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The reader
Once I’ve got a handle on the overall job, I need to know who’ll
read my words. The brief should spell this out, but if it doesn’t I
need to make enquiries. As a copywriter it’s up to me to take
responsibility and really nail my reader. This quote from adman
Claude Hopkins – written in 1908 – says it all:
Don’t think of people in the mass. That gives you a blurred view.
Think of a typical individual man or woman who is likely to want
what you sell. The advertising man studies the consumer: He tries to
put himself in the position of the buyer.
Hopkins’ point is that copywriting is
about establishing a one-to-one con-
nection with the reader. To do that I
need to speak directly to their emo-
tions in some way, and to do that I
need to get inside their head. It’s not
about what I want to say, it’s about what the reader wants to
hear.Think of it as a deal along the lines of ‘I’ll keep reading pro-
vided you keep me interested’. I try to make sure I keep my side
of the bargain.
In fact, if a piece of copy is anything but brilliant then the
chances are that something very simple has happened – the
writer has forgotten the reader. As a copywriter my sole purpose
is to communicate effectively in an effort to sell my wares – any-
thing less should send me into a frenzy of rewriting. So I try to
visualise the person I want to write to and speak to them as if
they’re sitting across the table from me. I try to picture them in
as much detail as I can muster. What’s on their mind? What
makes them excited? Fearful? Bored? How can I get around the
‘So what’ question? How can I answer the ‘What’s in it for me?’
enquiry? Only by doing this can I be sure I won’t solve the wrong
problem when I come to write.
Before 51
it’s not about what I
want to say, it’s about
what the reader wants
to hear
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