As a specialist PR and communications agency, we love to write – that’s part of the reason that we do this job (as well as working with great people and brands, of course!). But how do we make sure that people love to read our copy as much as we love to write it? Well, the answer is within the question… people! We write for people! It seems obvious, but it can be so easy when writing a press release or a social media post to focus on the product or the message, so much so that you forget that you’re actually trying to communicate with human beings. And in the age of AI, where robots can quickly whip together a piece of copy, it’s more important than ever to remember!
We have a rigorous internal approvals process here at Honest, and we always give honest (naturally), constructive feedback on all written pieces of work. When reading any piece of work we always have these questions in our minds:
- Who are we aiming this at?
- Would we / our client actually speak like this in real life?
- Does this really make sense to the reader?
- Have we used too much jargon for the reader?
- Have we over-complicated the subject for the reader?
- Will the reader care about what we have written?
- Will this be interesting, useful, entertaining or educational to the reader?
- If someone who knew nothing about the topic read this, would they understand?
By going through this internal checklist, we can make sure that we’re never creating content for the sake of it, and that we stay true to our mission of writing for our intended audience.
Part of the beauty of working in an award-winning PR agency is that we have a variety of clients, each with their own distinct tone of voice and audience, so we have to switch up the way that we write for each of them accordingly. What remains the same, though, is the need to direct our copy to a human being. Once we know who we’re talking to, we can create content that is relevant to them, that answers questions that they have, and that resonates with them – it’s only through this that we can really engage with them. Seems simple, but it can be the first thing that copywriters forget when tasked with a new product release or industry insights overview.
Declaring war on bland copywriting
As part of one of our recent team knowledge shares, we watched the ‘Declaring War on Bland: Copywriting as Fresh Literature’ TEDTalk by Jean Tang (CEO of copywriting agency MarketSmiths). In it, Tang shares her mission to terminate boring, bland, stale and ineffective copy – and we’re joining on this mission! Because let’s face it — most copy out there is forgettable. It fills space, ticks boxes, but rarely sparks interest. That’s exactly the kind of mediocrity Jean Tang is fighting against.
During the session, she had some great insights into how to make your copy resonate with your audience. Here’s her checklist in a nutshell:
- Define your objective
- Explore your audience
- Challenge and review what you have written
- Percolate over your copy, have you met your object, have you written for your audience
- Humanise your work and make it relatable
- Edit
What stood out to us was how Tang doesn’t just talk about better writing — she treats it like a craft. Her process encourages writers to slow down, question their choices, and write with empathy and precision. The idea of “percolating” over your copy, for example, is a reminder to let ideas settle, so the final version is sharper and more impactful.
This approach is really effective in making sure that copy conveys the right message to the right people in the right way!
Looking for copywriting support?
Whether you’re writing a headline, social caption, or a product page, ask yourself: Is this memorable? Would I want to read this? If the answer is no, it’s time to go back in and make it sing. Fortunately, we can help make your copy sing for you! Whether you’re after a press release, a blog, a case study, or a complete rewrite of your website or marketing materials, we are here to help. Get in touch or drop us an email on hello@honestcommunications to chat with our specialist team of copywriters.
