3 Steps to Writing Great Copy for Your Business
I’ve been writing copy for brands for more than six years now. In the earlier years, I continuously found it difficult to explain to clients how there was both objective strategy and subjective preferences tied into word choices I’d made. It wasn’t so much that they didn’t understand this concept (they did), rather it was that I didn’t have a clear way to explain this with more depth to help copy editing go more smoothly.
I needed a way to explain the strategy and principles that went into the copywriting so that as we refined the words together, we could be on the same page and have the language to articulate what needed to stay and why and what could be changed and why.
We needed a framework for writing great copy.
So, Lane and I put our heads together with the goal to create our own framework. This is what we developed.
Save this graphic for your next copywriting session!
3 Steps to Writing Great Copy
Step 1: Objectively Clear and Good
Decide the goal of the copy first, then write to drive that outcome, always prioritizing clarity.
This first step requires that you know your purpose for your writing before you start writing. After you’ve identified your goals, all of your words must be clear.
You want to pull from proven frameworks, principles, and influence factors to help you organize your thoughts, ideas and concepts. This is important because this is the foundation for objectively good writing. When you reference and incorporate frameworks, principles and influence factors that work from the very beginning – you’re setting yourself up for good, effective copywriting.
For example, this is where the StoryBrand Framework comes into play when I write copy for small businesses. I help them map out their brand story using this framework (aka: Messaging) so that when it comes time to start writing the copy for their website, lead generator, email campaign or any other marketing asset – key decisions about their narrative and the words most important to them have already been wrestled with and narrowed down intentionally.
Here are some important questions to consider in this first step:
1. Who is it for? (i.e., target market)
2. What action are you trying to drive?
3. Without trying to be clever, fancy or “nail” your brand voice, how can you say what you want to say in the simplest way?
4. Are there relevant frameworks or proven methods applicable to the goal of the copy?
StoryBrand BrandScript
Influence Factors
+ Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Dr. Robert Cialdini, Ph.D.
Sales Frameworks
+ To Sell Is Human: The Surprising Truth About Moving Others by Daniel H. Pink
Medium/platform specific research and studies
+ i.e., How people read websites, how to be most effective on social media, etc.
After you’ve done this, then you need to filter the words you’ve drafted through your brand voice.
Let’s say you have a t-shirt company, and you want to sell more t-shirts. There are 1,000+ ways you could communicate about your t-shirt company to the world. So, what words are the right ones for your business? This is when we want to choose words that are more dialed into your t-shirt company’s brand vibe. It’s time to move to Step 2!
Step 2: Your Brand Voice and Vibe
Apply the tone and voice to your writing that is on brand for your business in order to reach your specific target audience.
Knowing your brand vibe and voice is important. Is your brand playful, cheeky, sarcastic, bold, reserved, serious, elegant?
When you know the vibe and tone you’re going for, this steers the writing as you apply your brand’s unique voice to your word choices. For example – if you’re a t-shirt company that has a casual, bold, and irreverent vibe – then you might throw in some punchy cuss words into your marketing. But if you’re a t-shirt company that has a more elevated, luxurious, and high-end vibe – then you aren’t going to be dropping cuss words in your marketing, you’re going to choose words that elicit the elevated feel of your brand.
It’s important to point out there are still often 100+ ways you could write words for your brand that fit your vibe and brand voice.
Don't get stuck trying to write the "perfect copy." As with anything, don't let perfect kill great. There is no perfect story, chapter, or sentence. If you can hang with a sports analogy here for a sec – there is also no perfect hit in baseball. The ball could be hit further, harder, or at a better trajectory. But, if the ball makes it out of the park, it doesn't matter – it's a home run. Find and choose some words that hit home runs, and then move on. Now it’s time to move to Step 3!
Step 3: Incorporate Your Taste
Choose specific words that suit your preference for how you communicate about your brand.
There are hundreds of words that could work for meeting the test of step 2 – your brand’s voice and vibe – but you might not like all of those words. This third and final step is about narrowing in on your personal preferences for specific words you like and prefer to use for your brand. This is your chance to really get your fingerprints all over your copywriting.
For instance, rolling with our t-shirt company example again – if you’re the bold, irreverent t-shirt brand you might have flexibility within your brand voice (step 2) to use cuss words, and you might like this idea. But you might have a preference (read: subjective opinion) for using words like “shit” or “damn” but not the F-word. If you’re the elevated, high-end t-shirt brand – you might have the flexibility within your brand voice to use a word like “luxury” – but you might have a preference to NOT use that word because it doesn’t quite fit what you’re going for, or maybe you just dislike that word.
The point is, it’s okay to have aversions to certain words and preferences for others (FYI: we all do) – and that’s both normal and good! That’s what helps you get your fingerprints on your copywriting so you can more easily connect with your desired target audience. If you don't like a certain word, then don't use it.
BUT… Be careful here! The risk of this step is that you undermine or forget about what you’ve already done in the first two steps. Be careful not to lose your objective clarity (step 1) and brand voice (step 2) during this last step.
Here’s one more example for you that I heard from Rob Bell once on his podcast (The Robcast).
He shared that he doesn't like the word "marketing." He said something about it makes him feel like he is trying to convince someone of something, and it just feels a bit off for him. Instead, he said he likes to use the words: "inform" and "invite."
This is a good example of still holding true to the previous two steps.
Step 1:
The clear objective is still intact. → Marketing is essentially informing others and inviting them to take action.
Step 2:
His tone and voice are present. → One of his goals is to continually help others take in/try on/have the freedom to use/see from a different perspective. Using the words “inform” and “invite” instead of “marketing” does just that.
Step 3:
He incorporates his personal taste → He intentionally chooses specific words that are to his liking and preference to communicate what he wants and needs to, without sacrificing the first two foundational elements.
Copywriting doesn’t have to be overwhelming, but I know it often feels that way to people. My hope is that by utilizing this framework – you’re able to 1) apply a sound structure to help you succeed in your copywriting, and 2) that you feel more confident when you sit down to write words for and about your business.
And, of course, if you’re ever feeling stuck or just plain don’t want to do this yourself – we can help.
Happy writing!
More soon,
Mahla Hoffbeck
CONSULTANT + PARTNER
P.S.
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