Understand Copywriting

 Apart from some quite excellent answers already here - I'll include the following from my experience as a senior copywriter, and currently copywriting workshops trainer at Quantico Communications in Singapore - https://www.qc.sg.

1. Understand What Copywriting Really Is And Where It Came From

For most people, copywriting is akin to a creative function. And while this may be true in some cases, copywriting is not, and has never been the sole realm of the creative industry. Copywriting has been around for as long as humans have had civilisations. If this comes as a surprise, it's likely because copywriting is itself a misunderstood concept. Copywriting has one, and just one, purpose: To sell. Copywriters are in the business of selling. But it's not just products and services we sell. We sell ideas, aspiration, people, organisations, brands, religion, leadership, emotions, superiority, change, power, and perhaps most importantly ideologies. To better understand the impact of copywriting, it's good to look at history.

Around the mid 1930s, a man in Germany stepped up to a microphone and began selling the idea of Aryan superiority and the dominance of a superior race. He sold this ideology so well that 17-year old boys and girls (everyday people) took to arms against their Jewish neighbours and in less than half a decade, took a continent, then a planet, to war. Until, around the early 1940s, another man took to the microphone across the English Channel and started selling the ideology of democracy, liberty, freedom from tyranny - and managed to mobilise a nation, followed by an alliance, towards ultimate victory – and subsequently won the Nobel Prize for Literature. It's interesting to see history through the lens of communication because then we realise that WWII (and every war for that matter) was not a battle of guns, bombs, and tanks. That's what was used to fight the war. But these were battles of ideologies, and whoever could sell them better. Yes, Hitler and Churchill (and all the great figures of power throughout history) were copywriters.

Closer to our era; in 2008 America was deep in war. McCain should have been the perfect candidate - and indeed he well was. A Vietnam war veteran, a senator, respectable background, distinguished service record. But it was Obama with his ideologies of CHANGE, HOPE, BELIEF, that won him the election. Now just about everyone has heard of Obama. Perhaps less well-known is a key figure to Obama's success - Jon Favreau (not the actor) Obama's speechwriter. Jon is responsible for many of Obama's best speeches that won over a nation. Jon Favreau used the tools of copywriting to win an election for his president. Even closer to our present is the ISIS threat. The world has faced numerous terror threats in the past but ISIS is of particular significance not because they're necessarily worse or better, but because of the ideology that they're selling. This is a classic case of using a tool for negative purposes. But that's what makes such outfits dangerous. They're selling ideology very well - and unfortunately many people are buying into it. These are just a few examples of how copywriting has changed the world, and is still doing so. Because it's such a powerful tool, the creative industry caught wind of it (around the 1950s with David Ogilvy) and parsed this awesome tool into advertising. Back then it wasn't called 'copywriting'. Some of the terms given were rhetoric and persuasion. The advertising agencies of the golden 50s eventually found their way to using the term 'copywriting'. So when you become a copywriter, remember, you're not just serving advertising. You're part of a rich, powerful, and very proud tradition that's been changing the world since we humans were first around.

2. Copywriting Is Much Closer to a Science

The purpose of copywriting is to sell. That's it. To make a sale is to influence the mind of the consumer. And that's the true nature behind copywriting. Our job is not to impress, or express. It's to sell. And for that we need to influence the minds of people to get them to buy. This is consumer psychology at its finest. Fortunately, the rules of the mind are pretty much the same, regardless of race, religion, backgrounds, cultures, and language. That means we follow set rules, methods, and structured formulas to influence the mind. Without going into this too much (it forms a rather large part of the workshop I teach and I don't want to take up too much of your time) copywriters are trained to understand the human psyche and the persuasions of committing to purchasing. No one's really going to call that an art. Psychology may be a softer science than Physics or Chemistry but it's a science nonetheless, and copywriting is it's protege, if you will.

3. Copywriting Is Design, Not Art

What's the difference between design and art? Art is a personal expression or opinion. It is the opinion of the creator of that piece. If we like the expression, well and good. If not, the artist isn't likely to change it. It's like asking J.K. Rowling to change the name from Harry to William, just because Prince William may be considered better looking. J.K. isn't about to change the name of her hero just because someone prefers something else. If someone doesn't like the book, tough. Read something else. That's art. Design, on the other hand is form + function. In other words, design requires a purpose and that purpose must be fulfilled. To understand design, form and function, take the example of a remote control. This may be a really sexy-looking remote with the coolest metal, soft buttons, gorgeous to touch, hold, and behold. But… if the remote is absolutely lousy at controlling your TV, or is extremely difficult to change channels, then it's bad design. This is because the function of a remote is to control the TV. No matter how great it may look or feel (the form) if a device does not perform its function it's considered bad design. This is why, in design-thinking, the saying goes - Form Follows Function. Function comes first, then form. We can have beauty and aesthetics but these should never get in the way of function. Copywriting is about design because it has a purpose - to sell. If your copy is really fluffy or descriptive, or full of words and phrases to sound sexy and catchy, that's fine. But if these factor get in the way of its function - to sell - then it's simply poor copy. The takeaway from this is that focus on selling. That's the function of copywriting. You can beautify the text later if it augments or supports the sale, but beautification should never, ever get in the way of sales. This is why we can sometimes watch a great video or hilarious ad on TV, laugh, get impressed, but later cannot for the life of us remember what the product was. That's failed copy because that's failed design.

4. Copywriting Is About Curiosity

So far I've given a few theoretical considerations. There are tons more but I'll spare you too many details, and instead give you two practical tips. The first is that copywriting is about curiosity. By itself, copywriting is a tool. Like a hammer. It's not very interesting by itself, till it's used to build something. Then the magic happens. Which means, to be a great copywriter is to get curious about the topic you'll be using copywriting for. And not so much the copywriting itself. Therefore to learn copywriting rapidly and for the long-term, think about issues and topics that you'd like to sell. Remember, these can be products and services, but also people, organisations, ideas, religions, emotions, philosophies, and ideologies. So pick a topic that really interests you, then try to sell someone on your point of view. You can do this verbally or via written media. But the idea here is to go beyond convincing someone of your point, and getting them to buy into it. Do this a few times and you'll see it'll make a world of difference. That's the first practical tip.

5. Copywriting Is About Everyday Settings

The second practical tip I'll leave you with is absolutely great for budding new copywriters, and I encourage all of my students in my class to do this. We happen to live in a world of junk mail. How much stuff gets deleted off our devices and disposed from our mailboxes. But here's where you can make a difference. Grab hold of just one of these junk mail pieces. Instead of throwing it away, ask yourself why it's junk. Is it the way it's written? Is it too cluttered with words, or plain poor typography, or is it just unclear what the selling point is? When you're done analysing this piece, re-write the message for that flyer or brochure. Apply the rules of copywriting you've learned so far (from the sources here, or you can PM me and I'll be happy to share more). Re-write the entire piece as a copywritten document. Then, send it back to the company that created that flyer, with your compliments. Do this enough times, and guess what? First, you may well land a job as a freelancer from a grateful company that never saw this act of expertise and charity coming. Second, even if no one offers you a thank you note for your effort, no sweat. Do ten of these self-given projects, and boom! You've got yourself a portfolio. And not just a spec-work based portfolio, but a collection of real-life collateral that you've worked on to make better. Now when you're applying for that job to an ad agency, imagine the power of your pitch and approach to copywriting. Several of my students have seen amazing results from this little tip that works wonders.

6. Finally, Copywriting Is Interdisciplinary

This is a short, simple, and extra-special tip. To be a great copywriter is to become an expert at interdisciplinary thinking. This means your reading and learning extends to way beyond just copy blogs and design books. Read Calculus books to learn about how the Golden Ratio (1:1.618) affects design perceptions, from the Mona Lisa, Vitruvian Man, and The Parthenon in Athens, to snail shells, galaxies, and the human body. Read how the sub-conscious always retains 100% of everything and why subliminal messaging relates to that. Read about how the physics of the eye determines where logo placement and messaging is placed (chunking and 24 fps). Visit NASA's websites to see why images drive engagement more than anything the written word can produce. (Teaser: in copywriting, the 'writing' part in copywriting is highly deceptive). Talk to people from completely different walks of life. Make smaller words out of larger ones on the ride back home. Spell backwards. Play with life around you. And have faith that what you're doing will give you the ability to put a real dent in the universe.