The Copywriting Process: Easy as ABC

My copywriting process can be boiled down to three elements.

Assembly.

"Copy is not written. Copy is assembled." - Legendary copywriter Eugene Schwartz

My first order of business, regardless of the project, is to assemble all relevant client-generated information, from their existing website or landing page to their internal marketing materials to my notes from our initial conversations. Then, I immerse myself in the client's world by delving into industry publications, subreddits, and what their competition is doing. These findings are a goldmine, ripe for crafting a strategy and extracting the key messages to be conveyed.

Brevity.

"I apologize for the length of my letter. I did not have time to make it shorter." - Mathematician and physicist Blaise Pascal

Next comes the really fun part of my job: zapping unnecessary words and even whole sentences like mosquitoes. Herein lies the crux of why I don't charge by word count: it takes a good deal more thought and time to reduce the length of a text so that it captures the desired message as succinctly as possible. And as we know all too well, we have woefully little time to capture a reader's attention, let alone their heart. We have to use the time wisely.

Cadence.

"If you are hearing what you write, then you can listen for the right cadence, which will help the sentence run clear." - Brilliant novelist and essayist Ursula K. Le Guin

The final step is to read the text aloud about 40o times (slight exaggeration) in order to contemplate its cadence. This step involves a little alchemy, and a lot of empathy. A copywriter should put themselves in the reader's shoes, imagining how the words will sound to them as they seek to solve whatever challenges led them to come across your words. The alchemy comes from occasionally disregarding conventions of grammar or syntax where appropriate. For example, I generally avoid the passive voice - except if it sounds right.

Anyone with an idea to communicate is welcome to try this simple formula. Alternatively, consider hiring a professional copywriter!