The Art of Copy

Copy is not my strong suit, I'll say that right now. I find a lot of times I come up with a visual first, and then my supporting copy comes second (guess that's the graphic designer in me). But it truly is a feat to be able to create an effective ad that is solely comprised of words. The words have to be concise and to the point, portray the right message and mood; but possibly the most difficult thing about words-only ads is you have to get someone to actually read your ad. It's much easier to grab a viewers attention with an arresting visual and then have them continue on to the copy for the complete message. Copywriters - especially for ads that are sans visuals - have the incredibly difficult task of making people want to read.

Because everyone knows these days reading is for squares.

Anywho, here are some nice examples.

This ad is for an NGO called Prajwala, which works to combat prostitution and human trafficking.
While I think this ad does a nice job of sparking curiosity in a reader enough to make them stop for a second on this page to take in the ad, I do take issue with the copy itself. The sociology minor in me begs the question - who says this person chose prostitution? What if she didn't have a choice? Anyway, that's just my beef with this NGO in particular, not necessarily with this ad.

I think the typography is nicely designed, easy to read, and blood spatters definitely grab attention.

 The bottom tagline says "Enjoy the silence. The quietest cabin in it's class. New Golf."

What this copy does well is paint a picture in the readers mind. This is one of three ads in a campaign, each of them describing a scene where anyone within earshot would either wish they were deaf or they had earplugs. I can only imagine what this would sound like in real life - glad I've got a Golf so I don't have to experience it first hand.

Painting a picture in a persons mind is possibly one of the greatest signs of a successful words-only ad. Instead of showing them a visual, it allows them to create one of their own in their minds.

Wonderbra does it again! They don't even need more than one word. They don't even need a word other than the name of their brand. It paints a picture in the viewers mind (which I'm guessing most wouldn't mind having in their minds), involves very little effort on the readers end as far as readability goes, and is a beautiful combination of graphic design and efficient copy.

My favorite ads with only words are ones that use typography to their advantage, and while they don't involve any visuals, still use graphic design to their advantage in catching the readers eye.

The first thing people see when they turn a page is the design of the ad. They don't necessarily process the copy right off the bat. It's only when a words-only ad is typographically interesting do they then continue on to actually reading it.

Copywriters, hire yourself some good graphic designers.
Like me. =]

Just some food for thought.