5 copywriting tips especially for PR professionals

Google ‘copywriting tips’ and you’ll find hundreds of great blog posts and websites full of practical advice on ‘killer headlines’, ‘irresistible calls to action’ and ‘the 10 best ads of all time’. Which is great if you’re writing ad copy. Not so good when you’re a PR professional tasked with writing about the latest policy document or a stakeholder letter on new pension regulations.

So here are 5 writing tips inspired by great ad copy but focusing squarely on the documents PR and Comms professionals have to produce every day.

1. There’s no such thing as a stakeholder

It’s easy to presume that writing for a ‘serious’ audience (financial, political, academic, scientific, etc.) requires us to write in a serious tone of voice. While you need to treat both the subject and audience with respect, it’s worth remembering that even astrophysicists and cabinet ministers are people first and foremost.

Stop thinking of them as stakeholders and try to connect with them on a person to person level. Which of the following do you find more engaging?

Example 1
As an influential spokesperson on the future of biofuels, you are cordially invited to address the membership at the International Alternative Fuels Conference in Geneva on 26 October 2014.

Example 2
I recently attended the Royal Society and heard your fascinating talk on biofuels. Would you be interested in giving a similar talk at the International Alternative Fuels Conference in Geneva on 26 October 2014?

2. Don’t force feelings onto your reader

Finding an emotional connection with your reader is not the same as forcing your feelings onto them.
Phrases such as “you are no doubt aware”, “you will understand the need for” and “you are probably worried about” can work well if you are certain your readers feel the same way you do.

If they don’t, you run the risk of alienating them or preaching the obvious. That’s why copywriters are fond of the ‘what if’ scenario.

Example 1
As you want to influence the key decision makers in the Alternative Fuels industry, you should consider presenting a paper at this year’s conference.  

Example 2
What if you could reach 25 top decision makers in one afternoon? Presenting a paper at the Alternative Fuels Conference puts you in front of leading influencers from all sides of the industry. 
 
3. More verbs, fewer adjectives

I have a client who likes to stick the word ‘exciting’ in front of every noun. We never launch new products or projects; they’re always ‘exciting’ new products and projects. But something doesn’t become ‘exciting’ (or ‘revolutionary’, ‘amazing’ or ‘thrilling’) just because you’ve put an adjective in front of it.

Verbs, on the other hand, tell you what something DOES. And telling your reader what that something can DO for them is far more persuasive than a list of adjectives.

Example 1
The new XYZ software is fast, intelligent and insightful.

Example 2
The new XYZ software transfers your data at 100,000 terabytes per second, auto-deletes duplicate files and predicts potential conflicts of interest based on your previous operations.

4. Announcements are boring; bad news intrigues
It’s a brave PR professional who sends out a press release announcing that their organisation didn’t win an award. But if they did, it would get more notice than the one announcing success.

Data error analysis company Takipi researched a load of blog posts and found that the ones including the words ‘announcing’, ‘wins’, ‘celebrates’ or ‘grows’ were are the bottom of the most-shared lists. Those using the word ‘lose’ on the other hand usually landed a post in the top half.

So how does the PR professional take advantage of human nature’s interest in bad stuff while still maintaining a positive image? Easy. Tell a story.

Example 1
ABC Trust is proud to announce that it has been awarded Health Trust of the Year at the 2014 Healthcare Awards.

Example 2
Failing to make it into the top 10 UK healthcare trusts for three consecutive years is not something most directors relish. So why did the board of ABC Trust deliberately keep the organisation out of the limelight?

5. Leave them wanting more

While PR professionals can write a 500 word press release in 30 minutes, ad copywriters will spend days, weeks or even months labouring over a five word headline. But that headline will grab attention and deliver the message in nanoseconds.

With all of us bombarded by information 24 hours a day, PR professionals need to find the right balance between making enough noise to be noticed but not so much that you overwhelm your audience.

Social and digital media has made it possible to drip feed information in bite size chunks. So the next time you’re tempting to send a stakeholder a 10 page policy review, consider starting with a top line summary and OFFER more information (in an easily accessible format) if they want it.

Get more writing tips on my website or my Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn pages.

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Seven great ways to start an article

We’ve all been there. We need to write that important 500 word article before the end of the day. We have reams of notes, pages of technical info and stacks of truly amazing benefits. If only we could get the blasted thing started!

For most writers, getting beyond the blank screen (or constantly deleting the clichéd, boring or irrelevant openings) is the hardest part of writing an article. Once they’re up and running, all those product features, mind-blowing stats and glowing testimonials seem to just fall into place.

So here are seven ways to start an article. They give you a lead in, a hook, an idea that you can hang everything else from. Every opening won’t suit every subject, but there should be something here to inspire even the worst case of writer’s block.

Oh, and in case anyone is considering law suits, the following ‘facts’ are for illustrative purposes only.

Topical
In a week in which Luis Squarez has been fined £66,000 and banned from football-related activities for four months, a new government white paper looks at the correlation between punishment and behaviour.

Historical/anniversary
In 1954, BMW launched the ‘Dynamic’, its first electric car. Exactly 60 years later, the stunning new BMW i8 shows just how far electric engineering has come.

Anecdotal
Although I broke two ribs and busted my ankle, whenever I tell anyone I was thrown out of, and then run over by, a golf buggy, I am greeted with peals of laughter. Corporate hospitality events really shouldn’t be left up to amateurs.

Survey/statistics
Men are four times more likely to lie than women, and the average person tells at least three lies a day, according to research by Royal Holloway. Is this a worrying thought for those charged with recruiting new employees?

Unconventional/surprise
His CV is full of typos, he hasn’t held down a decent job in years and he refuses to start work before 10.00am. Meet the new chairman of XYZ plc.

Hypothetical
If you could run a fleet of trucks on used chip fat, an air conditioning system on recycled polystyrene cups and a pizza oven on old beer bottle tops, would you be prepared to hike your prices up by over 100% to meet the costs? While businesses talk of green energy, few companies are prepared to switch if it means losing sales. 

Shared problem
We’ve all been there. We need to write that important 500 word article before the end of the day. We have reams of notes, pages of technical info and stacks of truly amazing benefits. If only we could get the blasted thing started!

See what I did there?

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