Copywriting and Design

Advertising Writing Style

• Copy should be as simple as possible

• Should have a clear focus and try to convey only one selling point

• Every word counts; space and time are expensive

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Copywriting for Print

The Headline

• Key element in print advertising

• Conveys the main message

• Works with the visual to get attention and communicate creative concept

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How to Write Headlines

• A good headline will attract those who are prospects

• The headline must work in combination with the visual to stop and grab the reader’s attention

• The headline must identify the product and brand, and start the sale

• The headline should lead readers into the body copy

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How to Write Other Display Copy

• Subheads– Often used to enhance the key

sales point• Taglines

– Short, catchy, memorable phrases used at the end of an ad to complete the creative idea

• Slogans– Repeated from ad to ad as part

of a campaign or long-term brand identity effort

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How to Write Body Copy

• Body copy– The text of the ad– Primary role is to maintain the interest of the reader

• Lead paragraph– The first paragraph of the body copy– Where people test the message and see if they want to read

it

• Closing paragraph– Refers back to the creative concept and wraps up the Big

Idea– Call to action

Print Media Requirements

• All media in the print category use the same copy elements

• The way these elements are used varies with the objective for using the medium

Newspapers• Straightforward and

informative• Writing is brief

Print Media Requirements

Magazines

• Better quality ad production

• Ads can be more informative and carry longer copy

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Print Media Requirements

Posters and Outdoor

• Primarily visual

• Words try to catch the consumer’s attention and lock in ideas

• An effective poster marries words with visuals

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Designing for Print

• First responsibility of the art director is to choose visual elements used in ad or commercial to produce a layout.

• A layout is an orderly physical arrangement of headline, subheads, body copy, slogan, logo & visual elements into a finished advertisement

• Layouts are usually done in rough & presented to the advertiser to get the approval

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Thumbnail SketchesPreliminary Sketches

Rough LayoutsAds Done to Size

ComprehensivesArt is Finished, Designed to Impress Audience

DummyIt’s prepared to get the look & feel of

the finished product

Layout (Handout)The General Steps in a Layout Are:

L

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How to Write Radio Copy

• Must be simple enough for consumers to grasp, but intriguing enough to prevent them from switching the station

• Ability of the listener to remember facts is difficult

• Theater of the mind– The story is visualized in the listener’s imagination

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How to Write Radio Copy

• Voice• Words• Music• Sound effects

Radio Guidelines

• Speak to listener’s interests

• Make it memorable

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How to Write Television Copy

• Moving action makes television so much more engaging than print

• The challenge is to fuse the images with the words to present a creative concept and a story

• Storytelling is one way copywriters can present action in a television commercial more powerfully than in other media

Tools of Television Copywriting

• Video

• Audio

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Scripts and Storyboards

• Script– The written version of the commercial’s plan– Prepared by the copywriter

• Storyboard– The visual plan or layout of the commercial– Prepared by the art director

Storyboard

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