I love words. I love how they form in your head, rattling around like jellybeans in a glass jar until they come clinking down through your inner ear, into your throat and out your mouth. With steamy, sensual passion or sand-blown rage these simple words change the world around us one syllable at a time.
As consumers, listen to the words that are spoken to you. Don’t just hear what the voice over is saying, but listen to the tone, the timbre and the way that they form the words before they roll out. Do they feel crafted? Do they have substance? Are they soothing or inspirational? Do they feel rehearsed or recited? Do they grate and scale against the soft parts of your emotional under belly?
Words have a lot of power. Especially when it comes to marketing and advertising. A client’s need to move a product or provide a service must be communicated to the audience in such a compelling manner that the burden on copywriters is sometimes overwhelming. But with that responsibility, a lot of ad copywriters have genius when it comes to crafting copy or dialogue that moves people. Think of your favorite television spots or your favorite print ads – ads that made you think or moved you into action. That’s copy writing genius.
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On the other hand there is the dry, uninspired, rote, garish and simply boring side to that world as well (We’ve all seen those, so no need to embed one here…).
Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.
– Mark Twain
Clients need to understand that the message with which their brand is associated will last long after the commercial has gone off the air or the magazine has been thrown away. If the words move a person to turn the channel or flip the page, then they’ve just embedded their perception to your brand. If the words, dialogue or copy make the reader pause and takes them to an emotion other than boredom or frustration, that too affects the brand perception. Which would you rather have? Good language can be wasted in a matter of seconds and redemption takes an eternity when it comes to building and maintaining a strong brand.
The common denominator we have in communication is the word. Whether spoken, written, illustrated or otherwise, don’t underestimate the power of being human.
Sincerely,
Andrew B. Clark, Interactive Director
