Copywriting style tips
Posted on: June 13, 2010
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Write better copy, and boost the credibility of your brand
The point of your business copywriting is to make your point. But credibility comes before points. The average reader is not an English master, but he knows enough to know when something isn’t quite right. If he hesitates, you probably will lose him. Here are some of the many ways to lend credibility to your marketing content.
One exclamation point only
No: We have the lowest prices!!!
Yes: We have the lowest prices!
Each exclamation point beyond the first one increases how desperate (and inexperienced) you look.
He and she problems
To avoid using either “he” or “she” or recasting the sentence, many people succeed only in making themselves look illiterate.
No: “When a writer sits down to write, they should be in a quiet place.”
No: “When a writer sits down to write, he or she should be in a quiet place.”
Correct: “When a writer sits down to write, he should be in a quiet place.” (Even if the “writer” in question could be a female; however, if the writer in question could only be a female, obviously use “she.”)
Best: “When writers sit down to write, they should be in a quiet place.”
Plurals/possessives
Most of the time, possessives are formed with an apostrophe:
“My dog’s collar.”
But not with the word “it”:
“My dog has its collar on backwards.”
With “it,” use an apostrophe to contract:
“It’s a very weird-looking collar for a dog. It would look better on my wife.”
Their, there and they’re
Almost everybody knows the difference between these words, but even experienced writers have mind-lapses and occasionally mix them up when typing them. Pay attention as you write, and pay close attention when you proofread.
Ellipsis
An ellipsis has three periods – not two or four or ten. Correct typing method calls for spaces before, after and between:
“Her car was . . . messed up, to say the least.”
Capitals
Rule of thumb: you use capital letters way too often. If it’s not a formal, official title or name or part of a formal, official title or name, don’t cap it.
Yes: Barack Obama is the president of the United States.
Yes: U.S. President Barack Obama.
No: The Software Program is not running.
No: The Dodgers will probably win the Playoffs.
No: We do Marketing and Advertising.
Periods and quotations
In American English, commas and periods and any sentence-ending punctuation go inside quotation marks.
“Hi, my name is Donald Trump.”
“Hi, my name is Donald Trump!”
“Hi, my name is Donald Trump,” Trump said.
Quotation marks
Don’t overuse them. When you use them for taglines and slogans, it can make it look like you’re stating an as-if, or in-a-sense:
No: “Where quality comes first.”
Yes: Where quality comes first.
Use double quotes, not single quotes, to set off a word:
Yes: His “knowledge” of music was deplorable.
No: His ‘knowledge’ of music was deplorable.
But if that previous example were dialog, set off the word with single quotes:
“His ‘knowledge’ of music was deplorable,” Marty said.
Italics
Use italics to emphasize a word or phrase, and also to style names of films, television shows, books, magazines, newspapers, etc. (Specific article or short story titles use quotation marks.)
Bold
Use bold to make a strong point. But don’t make too many of them. Also use for headings to make visual navigation easier.
Underline
Many readers are thrown off by too much underlined text. It’s rare that you need to underline something, when bold and italics do the job just as well and are less intrusive.
Paragraphing
Don’t use big paragraphs, especially online. Find ways to split paragraphs with more than five or six lines.
Sentences
If you use long sentences, make sure you punctuate them correctly. You will absolutely lose your reader with long, poorly punctuated sentences.
Bullets
Rule of thumb is seven bullets, max, in a list.
These are some ideas you can easily incorporate into your writing. There are many more that you can find in books like The Elements of Style, which no writer should be without.
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