Useful Copywriting Notes

5 creative terms for copywriters

1. words

2. concepts

3. voice over

4. radio

5. pitching (ideas)

4 creative terms for art director

1.visuals

2. concepts

3. photoshoots

4. styling

nobody reads ads
people read things that interest them, so you have to make them care
pay more attention to visual ads; instant and remove language barrier
headline can make a deeper connection (Ryan)

4 aspects of the glamorous world of advertising

1. shortage of time/money (not enough money to just do visuals)

2. space constraints

3. client mandates
ex: having to show car in ad

4. visual mashups are commonplace- -  can break through clutter to have a headline (copy driven campaign)
ex- -  ketel one ad: sentence on top of page that stopped as flipping through pages

the greeks
first to analyze visual persuasion
want headlines to be so great they go out and buy it

Aristotle's 3 appeals

1. appeal to logic (dyson vacuum)
no sales speech; all about rolling ball

2. appeal to emotion (SPCA commercials)
donald trumps platform

3. appeal to ethics; have a presenter that is trustworthy, authoritative, and charismatic
michael jordan selling basketball shoes

6 rhetorical devices
1. metaphor: lifeblood of advertising; one thing as if its another
'earth as viewed from heaven'
2. hyperbole: exaggerate your product to highlight a benefit; goes beyond rational
'mints so strong they come in a metal box'
3. irony: when the actual meaning is different from the literal meaning; say one thing and mean another
4. paradox: brain explodes; when your contradiction becomes truth; what is the opposite of opposite
5. parallelism: deliberate repetition of a word or sentence structure for effect
6. anesis: a figure of addition that occurs when a concluding sentence clause or phrase... U turn
just like grandma used to make before her afternoon nap (firefly vodka)

the manifesto
statement of purpose; strong statements meant to create passion, organize thoughts, get you thinking in a certain directions
ex: 'to live simply, proudly, dolfly, manly- - this is the high life'

headlines
the reason copywriters were invented
Harley- -  'somewhere on a plane a man is trying to rip open a small bag of peanuts'

6 things headlines can do

1. capture imagination- -  start your day off with clorox bleach

2. lure into body copy- -  what not to do in bed

3. select your audience- -  because so much is riding on your tires (michelin)

4. communicate a benefit

5. connect emotionally

6. enhance the visual

what's your type? (headline)
as a copywriter, you must use all of them (methaphor, paradox, etc.)

6 types of headlines

1. direct benefit: 'it's like tossing a twinkie into a weight'

2. factual: it takes 12m inles of cotton to make a lands end pinpoint jacket

3. selective

4. news: the end of the plain plan

5. command: never look less than accidnetally perfect

6. questions: if other banks are all about trust, why are their pens attached to chains?

taglines: brand anthems
super brief and quick
keep them short, specific and memorable (i.e. 'just do it')
don't be vague (i.e.'expect the unexpected'

body copy
still exists
nike: 'a woman is often measured'

tones of voice
of the brand, not the one in your head
brands are people, who do you hear when you are reading the headline

General notes on Copywriting:
writers obsess over words
spelling and grammar matter less
good writers read
writers often go home earlier than art directors
art directors have an easier time working with distractions and hangovers
writers look more conservative but are more ****ed up
writers are more likely to end up in management
good writers dont always make good copywriters (and visa versa)
writers tend to think more big picture and be more strategic
writers get more respect than copy writers
art directors who write are more self sufficient
writers who can art direct make great creative directors and even better writers
writers produce more work than art directors
writers are just as responsible for the visuals as art directors are for the words