I first read advertising giant and guru David Ogilvy’s ‘Confessions’ in the 90s. Here are 12 lessons on copy from him:
1. The best ideas come as jokes. Make your thinking as funny as possible.
2. You are communicating to a moving parade, not a standing army.
3. When people read your copy, they are alone.
4. Remember you are a human being writing to another human being. Neither of you is an institution.
5. Big ideas come from the unconscious. This is true in art, in science, and in communication. But your unconscious has to be well-informed, or your idea will be irrelevant.
6. If you’re trying to persuade, use the language in which the audience thinks.
7. People who think well, write well.
8. The most important word in the vocabulary of communication is ‘test’.
9. On average, five times as many people read the headline as read the body copy.
10. When you have written your headline and first paragraph, you have spent eighty percent of your money.
11. Tell the truth, but make the truth fascinating.
12. Edit your own draft before testing with others.
Creativity, honesty, and connection are at the heart of great copy – don’t forget AIDA – Attention, Interest, Desire, Action.