Why is it that we are constantly bombarded with supposed advertisements and marketing copy that reads like a final year economics textbook? Obviously businesses are under the impression that for their products and services to hold any credibility, they need to encase it in a short story.

The truth is, we are exposed to more than 3,000 advertising images. If you bore your customer in the first second, you’ve lost them – perhaps for good. Now we at Accure are not claiming to be creative writers or even writers at that, but as avid readers of all the noteworthy publications (at least in our industry) we sure are bored with all the mediocrity. The moment we unknowingly do this with our copy and ads, please give us a slap and let us know.

I randomly opened a marketing magazine and found an ad. Here’s the copy:

“Discover when less is more…Less can be more every time you establish a new contact over the phone or from coupon. The XXXX Rapid Addressing Tool easily integrates (within 15 minutes) with your existing system to provide your data entry or call canter operators with the assistance they need to capture validated addresses with a fraction of the effort…”

Sorry….I flicked through. That’s 59 words in the first two paragraphs and it goes on for another 4 paragraphs. It’s kind of ironic that an ad titled “Discover when less is more” is so long winded and boooooring! Who writes this stuff and why was it approved for print? It’s obvious that companies are not really spending the time or resources analysing their marketing copy.

We have a simple philosophy at Accure when it comes to copy. We’ll share it here and you can take from it what you like.
- If you skip over your writing, you can bet that your clients will too.

- Exclamation marks!! The more exclamation marks! the less your customers will believe you!

- Less is more or as Seth would say, “Small is the new big”. Invest in design and let that be your exclamation point. White space is also good.

- Save the academic text for academics. Marketing in today’s climate is entertainment.

- Don’t put Angus from Accounting in charge.

- Welcome and encourage input from a reputable marketing agency or creative forums, you’ll be surprised how many people in the industry are happy to donate a few minutes of their spare time.

Anyway good luck! And as we are on the topic, here is a sneak peak at our latest print ad schedule to hit the press late next month.

It might not make any sense without the rest of the publication this ad is to feature in, we think 4 words says a whole lot more about us and our business than a full page bio ever could.