Well written copy gets your message across as clearly as possible. Online reading behaviour is different to that seen for traditional print; readers engage less, scan more and read slower.

More often than not, ineffective copy stems from the writer over-complicating things; the message is lost amidst a tangled clutter of unwieldy sentences and bloated by flaccid, lazy text.

entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem

This is Occam’s razor in Latin; more familiar is the English translation:

“All other things being equal, the simplest solution is the best.”

By focusing on clarity you will improve the fitness of your writing and make it work harder.

Copywriting overcomplicadus

Copywriting overcomplicadus is a common affliction that strikes inexperienced copywriters when writing for business. Symptoms include:

  • A case of the vagaries — an inability to say anything concrete (politicians suffer terribly from this too).
  • Marketing spiel — a nasty mix of verbal diarrhoea and projectile waffling.
  • Monarchic compulsion — a sudden urge to speak as one ought.
  • Word blindness — unable to really read what they’ve written. e.g:
    “Western women won’t find it as restrictive as they think. We just ask they observe local customs and not wear anything above the knee.”
  • Androiditus — must sound stilted. Must write mechanically: remove all personality. Concise. Cold.
  • Lawyer’s tongue — cloaking simple meaning in complex and undecipherable terms that mean nothing except to fellow sufferers.
  • Word gush — an uncontrollable desire to put every thought into words.

All these symptoms create confusion, ambiguity and ineffective copy. How can you inoculate yourself? With a KISS (Keep it Simple Stupid!). A good copywriter strives for clarity and never confuses or complicates for the sake of showing off their writing prowess. Leave egos at the door; write naturally and for your audience.

Getting Clarity

This guiding principle of copywriting is fundamental to effective copy. Fail to communicate to website visitors and they won’t become customers.

So what are some of the key things you need to write clearly?:

  • A point — every word, sentence, paragraph and page must have a purpose.
  • A good understanding of what, to who and why you’re writing.
  • Knowing how to organise and structure your writing.
  • The ability to write concisely but vividly.
  • To make grammar your friend not an enemy.

Mastering clarity is the first step in writing better copy.

In the next copywriting tutorial we’re going to see how to ensure our copy has purpose in “PoFint — copywriting for a reason“.