Covert Metaphor

I’ve decided to add copywriting to the categories.

Writing ad copy or copywriting is really just persuasion using the written word. Good copywriters use a healthy amount of story and metaphor in their writing to lead the reader’s emotions. Like Dr. Christopher Hyatt once said in his interview with Howard Campbell (Hey mate!) and I’m paraphrasing, “Mix metaphor with fact and you can get anyone to do anything.” I don’t remember the exact words, but it’s close enough. Watch the interview below.

Copywriting really is the spoken word in written form. It follows completely different rules. It breaks every grammatical rule there is. It’s written like a conversation between two friends, one of which is trying to convince the other of how great something is.

There is always a story in good ad copy. Go ahead and search for some on the Internet. There are plenty out there. This doesn’t necessarily mean deceivingly manipulative. I think many copywriter’s stories are true. They really need to be if they’re going to be persuasive because if the writer has lived it, perhaps you are living it too. And now you’re being offered a solution to your problem.

Copywriters have a good handle on human psychology. They know what drives people and they write to elicit emotion and avoid the rational mind of the reader. They write to sell you what you want, not always what you need.

Stay tuned as I expand on what most people want and how to elicit those emotions in written form. We’re reverse engineering society’s constructed realities here. Remember, a good citizen never questions these things.

Here’s the interview:

admin :: Jul.12.2007 :: copywriting :: 1 Comment »

Trackback this post | Feed on Comments to this post