There’s a disease that’s been eating away at business’s copywriting since the explosion of social media.
It’s the overuse of adjectives and adverbs.
Sounds boring, I appreciate. BUT bear with me as this will make you money.
Writing is crucial when it comes to turning a reader into an enquirer or buyer. There’s no point having a great-looking website if your visitors don’t get convinced enough to do whatever it is you want them to do. The pretty pictures ain’t gonna do that. (Although they play a part, of course.) Same with an email, leaflet, social media post, an ad….
Here’s the thing, where you can easily stand out against your competitors: cut out all the flowery words, the need to use adjectives and adverbs everywhere.
Why? All they do is hide your main message and make it sound like you’re trying to convince your own self about what you’re selling.
You’re not talking to friends down the pub. You’re representing your business, which is there to help people, yes, but also to generate revenue. The problem is, with personal social media usage going up, that line has become blurred. You write for your mates and you’re also exposed to how your mates write for you. Be approachable in your marketing and sales copy, sure, but watch out for making it too conversational.
I mean, have you noticed how much copy is full of fluff these days? Here are some examples:
Your service isn’t fast, it’s incredibly fast.
You’re not humbled about winning an award, you’re super humbled.
Your widget isn’t affordable, it’s totally affordable.
You get my drift. I bet you’ll start noticing this everywhere now.
The words “so”, “really” and “very” are culprits too. “The little and lazy words,” I call them.
This is so good. No, it’s excellent.
This is really loud. No, it’s deafening.
This is very funny. No, it’s hilarious.
“Very” is my pet peeve, although it’s an easy trap to fall into. Mark Twain said: “Substitute ‘damn’ every time you’re inclined to write ‘very;’ your editor will delete it and the writing will be just as it should be.”
Now, if your target audience is all flowery and lovely, that’s OK. You can probably get away with chucking in adjectives and adverbs.
But, generally speaking, you want to strip them out. I’m not saying make your writing blunt and formal like you’re back in the 1930s but, again, check that it doesn’t hide your message. Or sound desperate, like you’re having to rely on adjectives and adverbs because your service or product on its own isn’t good enough.
By reducing your use of adjectives and adverbs, your copy will make it clearer what you’re saying. Clarity and simplicity are good things. Leave unnecessary words and jargon for the amateurs or those trying to pull the wool over people’s eyes.
Advertising pioneer David Ogilvy talked about this 60 years ago. Nothing’s changed. Except we’ve all got caught up in the twee, social media way of writing.
How you write has an effect on how you’re perceived, consciously or subconsciously. That hasn’t changed either.
Copywriting is a huge part of Codebreak’s Marketing That Sells™ system that we deploy for clients. (Not very big. Huge 😂 ) Want to know more about how it could help your business? Apply for a free Discovery Call.
Stay safe, stay hungry.
