As experienced copywriters, we have worked with clients from all backgrounds and with a range of experience with copywriting, branding, and marketing. But there is one common mistake we see a lot of clients make.
Their copy focuses on their business, not what their business can do for their clients.
Usually, this is not evident until we get revision requests. The revision requests will be full of suggestions to add technical information or information that is kind of interesting but won’t mean much to 90% of customers. Copywriters have a certain knack with words, but there is just no soft way to tell a business owner, “Your clients don’t care.”
Your Clients Need to Be At the Heart of Your Copy
You pay us to write copy, so you are our clients. But our job is to make your business, products, and services appeal to your clients. So we won’t write copy you want us to write; we will write the copy that makes your clients want to buy. This can often result in arguments between copywriters and clients where the copywriter will say some variation of, “Do you want me to write the copy you want me to write or do you want me to write the copy that gets results?”
In order for copy to be effective, it needs to focus on what your clients want and where they are in life. Let’s look at Apple; they’re a really advanced tech company that does all sorts of research and development. They have made lots of really cool advancements and are working on all sorts of interesting projects. But, do you see any of that in their advertising? No, because they sell their products to laypeople, most of whom know nothing about technology. From their advertising, you can tell that their customers’ concerns are:
- Does the phone take great photos?
- Is it fast?
- Will it work with my apps?
- Am I staying up to date with the cool new technology?
There are probably some really amazing coding that goes into the new phone; maybe Apple has found a new element and uses it to make their wiring. But we will never know because Apple customers don’t care. These things are not even slightly on their radar when it comes to making a purchasing decision. Talking about it will confuse their customers and bury the things that will make their customers buy.
We get it; as business owners, you want to talk about all the really cool things you are doing and your amazing story, but you can only talk about it if your clients will care. If they don’t, save it for your content strategy, it would be great on a podcast or even a Ted Talk. But it does not belong in your copy.
Know What Your Clients Need to Hear
As a business owner, you need to know your clients inside and out. You need to know what keeps them awake at night, what makes them tick, and what they want out of your products and services. Or more importantly:
- How your product or service helps your clients
- What makes your clients hesitate from buying your product or service
- What would make them purchase without a second thought
This knowledge should be at the heart of every business strategy, but especially in copywriting. A copywriter’s job is to reassure your clients that they do not have to worry about their concerns and promote the things that will make them trust you and purchase your product. If we look at the weight loss industry, your clients may have been burnt many, many times before. They have probably tried multiple diets and exercise regimes with little luck. All they got was a month or two of hunger and crankiness. So before they click buy, they want reassurance that this time will be different. If the majority of your copy talks about how you trek to the Amazon forest every month to harvest the key ingredient under a full moon, then your client won’t get that reassurance. That spiel may be good if your client’s focus is natural ingredients and sustainability. But if you’re marketing to appearance-focused 20-somethings, they probably don’t care. In fact, that spiel will read as so woo-woo to them that they will eye roll every time they see your marketing.
What Does This Mean For My Client?
This is the question business owners should ask themselves constantly, but especially when reviewing copy. If your copy introduces a product or service feature, it should be instantly clear what that means for your client.
Remember the old Apple iPod ads? Instead of saying that the iPods were 5GB, which was pretty big for that time, what did they say? “1,000 songs in your pocket.” They really cut to the heart of what this meant for their client and said it in 1 sentence. When discussing your product or service features, you should be saying, “Cool, but what does that mean for my client?” Cut through all the jargon and salesy words and tell your clients exactly how X benefits them.
So what does this blog post mean for me? Well, what we’re trying to say is sometimes your copywriter will not mention the fancy new packaging you use or how your employees are contractually required to be smiling at all times of the day. This is often because your copywriter has looked at what you told them you want to achieve with the piece of copy and realised that that piece of information does not help you achieve that goal.
As copywriters, we encourage you to ask questions of your copywriter if you do not understand why they have made certain decisions. Have conversations with them about why you don’t like things or why you really wanted a piece of information included. Keep these conversations polite, of course, and listen to what your copywriter is saying. We understand that it can be frustrating to have someone not do what you ask, but having a copywriter push back is a good thing. You paid to work with an expert, and the expert is telling you, “I’m not just going to take your money and give you what you ask for even though I know it won’t work.” They’re saying that they want you to succeed, and the best way to do that, in their expert opinion, is through X.