“The ‘Marketing Copy’ Is You”

I was on a coaching call with a client last week, and he asked me if I had time to talk about writing.

“Of course, I said. What’s on your mind?”

“I don’t feel like I can write marketing copy,” he said. “It just doesn’t sound like the style I see all over the place, and I struggle with choosing the right words. It just doesn’t flow.”

“What kinda stuff are you into in your spare time?” I asked.

“Oh. Well.. I’m actually a huge sports nut. Any kind of team, anywhere. And I’m even a bigger fan of the Olympics.”

I asked him what sport he most liked in the Olympics, and he said it was hard to choose, but he especially loved archery.

“Why should I dig archery?” I asked.

“Are you kidding me? It takes incredible skill to hit those targets at range. The upper body strength you need alone is massive. It’s really competitive, and…” he went on for a couple of minutes. His excitement and passion were positively contagious. By the end, he had me wondering what I’d been missing out on all these years.

“There you go,” I said. “That’s great marketing copy.”

The goal of marketing is to create need. Need is much easier to create with emotional text. We often forget that people don’t want to read “stuffy” or “official” copy. It’s boring and impersonal. It lacks spark. People want to be moved emotionally and personally. The spark comes from letting your passion for the subject do the talking.

Time for you to implement. It’s Ron’s Monday Mission™:

Who is most passionate about specific messages you need to convey to your customers?

This week, I challenge you to show your personality in your writing. People don’t want to hear from your organization. People want to hear from the passionate people that work at your organization. Tell me why you care, and why I should too. Share your personal thoughts. Your opinions. “I” instead of “We.” Or, choose who is speaking based on the highest amount of passion for the subject. Let this flow into your social media, your email marketing, your website copy, your purchase confirmations, your letters… all communications. It’s time to make it personal.

Have a wonderful week,

Ron