Copy That: 9 Essential Copywriting Rules for Brands

No development in history has moved the human race forward more than the written language. From cave drawings to the printing press to the Internet, words move our world and shape our beliefs. Words are our greatest form of communication, regardless of medium. Like art and music, words have the power to elicit emotion and influence opinion. Effective and emotive copywriting is essential for every brand. Great copy is more than just stylish wording – it moves people, drives action and connects with its intended audience. From great taglines like Nike’s “Just Do It” or Burger King’s “Have it Your Way” to crisply-written websites, email messages and blog posts, a brand’s copy will help direct its audience to take action ­– and help achieve its business goals. The following nine essentials for effective copy will help your brand reach, engage – and close its audience.

Know your audience: You wouldn’t talk to your grandmother about the new features in iOS 7 and you wouldn’t discuss James Joyce’s Ulysses with an eight year old. The same goes for copywriting. Determine whom the audience for your product or service is, and write in a voice that speaks to them accordingly.

Write with a purpose and a defined strategy: Why are you writing? What do you want to achieve? If your business’ goal is to sell more ceiling fans, write copy that will help achieve that goal. You’re writing copy to make something happen, not to impress your high school English teacher.

Get the tone and voice right: Your brand’s personality is driven by its tone and voice. Whether your brand is light-hearted and fun, or serious and professional, the tone and voice in which you write must be uniform across all brand communications.

Write short sentences: Nothing burns the eyes (and loses attention) like run-on sentences. Short sentences promote readability and comprehension – two things you need your copy to include if you wish to win more customers. If you’re trying to decide between a comma and a period, go with the period.

Employ vigorous English: One of Ernest Hemingway’s rules for writing, “vigorous English” refers to the active voice. Active voice opens the door to the party and announces its presence. Passive voice tip-toes around outside, waiting to be let in.

PRO TIP: Try to reduce the number of times you use the word “is.”

Never waste a word: Never say in two words what can be said it one. If your first word isn’t strong enough to enforce your point, find a better word.

Sell benefits, not features: No one really wants to know how the sausage is made. Tell your audience how your product or service will benefit them and improve their lives.

Be original – and creative: It’s a crowded marketplace out there. For most products, there are multiple options at similar price points. Creative, original and memorable copy can cut through the clutter, and “make the sale” for your product or service.

Spur action with words: Always include a call to action as you lead potential customers down the path to purchase. Identify the next steps, and show your audience how to get there.

Does your brand’s copy need a touch up? Contact us to discuss how we can help by using the form to the right!

San Diego Branding Agency | Jacob Tyler

Designing Our Life Experiences

Have you ever really thought about how design influences your everyday actions? Most of the time, we’re unaware of the subtle visual queues that guide our daily lives. Whether it’s strategically placed road signs on the freeway, color-coded packaging or the product flow of a supermarket, design is all around us, influencing our thoughts and behaviors. In many cases, a simple design can make a huge logistical difference. Take, for instance, University of Phoenix stadium in Glendale, Arizona – host of this year’s Super Bowl. The stadium has five main sections of seating around the perimeter. Instead of using three-digit numbers like most stadiums, University of Phoenix Stadium uses the numbers 1-5. Outside of each section, a 30-foot high corresponding number directs visitors to their section. Once inside, visitors are guided to their seats in a similarly linear fashion. It’s an easy design that that dramatically improves game day logistics.

Package design influences behavior too – like the nutrition labels on our food. As any aspiring dieter knows, the standard US nutrition label can be more than a bit confusing. As people become increasingly aware of their food choices, nutrition labels have become a point of contention for many nutritionists and doctors. But according to psychologists Peter Helfer and Thomas Shultz of McGill University in Montreal, there may be a better way to label our food.  In a recent issue of the Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, they argue that a simple one-number label called “NuVal” might be a better way to go. In their study, the pair compared the traditional nutrition label with two alternatives: a “traffic light” style design and the new, single-summary “NuVal” design. Both the traffic light and NuVal designs outperformed traditional labeling. The study, which you can read more about here, is an interesting look into the way design influences our choices.

As we move further into the digital age, the concentration on intuitive, behavior-altering design has moved to the forefront. Mobile devices are a prime example of design in action. Steve Jobs famously believed that simple, gorgeous design was the basis of success for Apple’s products. He insisted that the inside of the iPhone – which the consumer would never see – be as visually effective as the outside, believing that whole design would drive ingenuity. Today, the design of that first iPhone – a short seven years ago – has not only influenced our behavior (who knew what a “swipe” was a decade ago?) but has bled into all of our digital designs, including responsive website design. As we increasingly blend our digital experience with our organic experience, digital design will be at the vanguard of creating designs that influence, simplify and guide our actions and decisions. For brands, design will guide how consumers interact with – and make decisions about – their products and services. Whether it’s a website, packaging or a brand’s physical location, design has an enormous impact on the success of its operation. Think about how your brand utilizes design. Are you guiding customers along their journey from prospect to evangelist? Fill out the form to the right, let’s talk.

Web Design by Jacob Tyler in San Diego

Is Your Facebook Ad Relevant? With the Social Network’s New Scoring System, It’s Easy to Tell

More than one billion people use Facebook. Chances are, a large portion of your audience uses the ubiquitous social network too. Just about every brand has a Facebook page (or should), but with the rise of Facebook advertising, more brands are paying to get their product or service in front of the Facebook community. With built-in demographic and geographic options, as well as retargeting information gleaned from cookies, Facebook ads are a great way to reach a predetermined audience. However, in order to reach a large audience, brands must create relevant ads. Facebook is understandably concerned about flooding users’ feeds with promotional material. Users do not want to have to sift through multiple ads to find posts from friends and family. As a result, Facebook ad space can be relatively scarce. To handle the tidal wave of requests from marketers, Facebook ads operate on a bidding process. Advertisers can set bid prices on Cost Per Click (CPC) and Cost Per Mille (CPM) – the cost you pay per 1000 impressions. It’s not quite as random as it sounds; Facebook provides a suggested bid you’ll need in order to “win” the auction.

Of course, the amount of clicks and impressions you receive depends largely on how relevant your ad is. Targeting the correct audience for your products or services and creating an eye-catching design is key.  And starting this week, you’ll no longer have to guess about your ad’s relevance – because Facebook will now quantify it for you. Based on shares, clicks, likes and “hide” options, Facebook will provide advertisers with a score of 1-10 for an ad’s relevance. This score will not only help advertisers gauge their efforts, but will factor into whether or not a bid is accepted – and could even compensate for lower bids, making Facebook advertising less costly for more effective ads. The following article from Ad Age is a good primer on the new feature. http://adage.com/article/digital/facebook-starts-telling-brands-relevant-ads/297085/

Want to learn more about how Facebook advertising could fit into your brand strategy? Contact us using the form to the right!

Shake, Rattle and Roll: Shake Shack’s $1.6 Billion Brand

At Jacob Tyler, we draw design inspiration from the world around us. We create functional and intuitive designs that accurately portray the brand they represent. In order to achieve this end, we immerse ourselves in the culture of an organization to ensure we can “feel” the brand as well as we can see it. A great design is inspired by culture, product and when applicable – physical surroundings. Shake Shack – the high-end burger chain that recently launched a $1.6 billion IPO – is a great example of what could be called “indigenous” branding. Created by world-renowned designer Paula Scher, Shake Shack’s branding was meant to mimic its original physical location and construction. Built in Madison Square Park as a part of the park’s conservancy, the structure of the original Shake Shack was constructed with corrugated metal to blend in with its surroundings – an urban park landscape. Drawing inspiration from both the structure and the core of Shake Shack’s offerings – a 1950’-inspired burger joint – Scher created a simple, flat design that conveyed both past (“neon” 50’s roots) and present (neo-urban landscape).

Shake Shack’s branding was not conceived to represent an international chain restaurant, only a one-off location. But the restaurant’s immediate popularity gave way to a meteoric expansion that now includes locations in Russia, Dubai and even Turkey. And the original brand design survived – and thrived. It’s a great example of indigenous branding. While Shake Shack is now a multi-national corporation, it’s appeal remains grounded in its original offerings and that first location in New York. Your brand represents your company’s core – it’s culture, it’s products and its way of doing business. Success doesn’t change brands – it strengthens them.

To read more about Shake Shack’s brand story, check out this article from Fast Company: http://www.fastcodesign.com/3041777/the-untold-story-of-shake-shacks-16-billion-branding?utm_source=mailchimp&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=codesign-daily&position=1&partner=newsletter&campaign_date=02022015#1

To learn more about how Jacob Tyler can help with your branding needs, fill out the form to the right.

Branding by Jacob Tyler in San Diego

Content is King: Inbound Marketing and the New Consumer

The world of marketing and advertising has changed. You’re more likely to fast-forward through TV commercials on your DVR rather than watch them. You’ve probably clicked that little “x” on the digital ad that popped up on your screen while you were trying to read a recipe for gluten-free kale burgers. You’ve switched the dial on your car radio during commercial breaks – only to learn that seemingly every station has commercial breaks at the same time – and couldn’t escape listening unless you wanted to jump out of your car onto the freeway. And if you have a phone, which I assume you do, you may have gotten a call from someone named “Kevin” calling from Mumbai offering low prices on prescription drugs. I know I have.

What these marketing tactics have in common is that they are coming directly to you – and not at your request. These tactics aren’t new, of course, but they are becoming increasingly outdated. In the digital age, consumers are taking a “don’t call us, we’ll call you” stance on marketing. Today’s consumer doesn’t need to be inundated with direct marketing, because there are a plethora of options for almost any product or service, just a few clicks away.  Consumers are still consuming, and as the economy continues to shake awake from a long slumber, marketers are employing new tactics to reach their intended audiences. One of the more popular tactics is “inbound marketing.”

In short, inbound marketing draws consumers to your company, service or product, instead of the other way around. Inbound marketing can attract consumers who know what they are looking for and convert them into customers by creating relevant, engaging and useful content on blogs, info products or social media. Content that makes your company, product or services stand out from the clutter. Content that doesn’t include a “hard sell,” but positions your brand as a friendly, helpful and educational go-to for a particular market.

The following article from Entrepreneur – The 8 Fundamentals for a Successful Inbound-Marketing Strategy – is a good primer on inbound marketing. If you’d like to learn more about how inbound marketing can enhance your brand strategy, fill out the form to the right and let’s talk!

San Diego Ad Agency Jacob Tyler

What’s Old is New: Miller Lite Goes Back to the Future With Re-Rebrand

Miller Lite, once America’s most popular lite beer, is going back to the future. Miller has redesigned – or rather recycled – its can design from the mid-70s in an effort to attract Millennial drinkers (ages 21-30) who prefer a “vintage” feel in their products of choice. The meteoric rise in sales of what was mostly a forgotten artifact beer – Pabst Blue Ribbon – amongst the hipster set proved a hypothesis that image has as much to do with taste as well, taste. In fact, Miller conducted taste tests with its new/old can, and found that people actually thought the beer tasted better than the “old” Miller Lite. The beer’s recipe, it should be noted, has not changed.

The can first launched as a part of a promotion with the movie Anchorman 2, set in 1979. Reception was so positive that Miller made the can permanent. Though the company remains behind Bud Light and Coors Light in light beer sales, the results have shown promise.

With the recent surge of craft and microbrew beer carving out a significant portion of the beer market, the large-scale, traditional breweries, like Miller and Budweiser, have had to get creative with new products and brands to stay relevant.  Miller Lite’s re-brand is a great example of this. The new can design won’t make Miller into a microbrew, but it can create the kind of nostalgia that masks what many Millennials view as a mass-produced, “corporate” brand.

Miller’s marketing history, dating back to 1973, is an interesting study in in the life of a brand. Selling essentially the same product for 40 years, Miller has sold their beer in a variety of different ways using a variety of techniques. In the following article, Ian Crouch of the New Yorker takes a look at Miller’s past, present – and past again: http://www.newyorker.com/business/currency/miller-tyme.

Rebranding by Jacob Tyler in San Diego

Talk to Me Goose: The Importance of the Marketing-IT Relationship in the Digital Age

A long time ago, in an office far, far away, marketing and IT departments inhabited very different worlds. In one corner, you had the marketers – the swashbuckling, right-brained Don Draper’s and P.T. Barnum’s of the world. In the other corner, you had the IT wizards – the hermit-like, code-speaking masters of the server room. These stereotypes are just that – stereotypes, and increasingly outdated ones. The emergence of the digital age has thrust the marketer and the IT pro into a relationship of necessity – and harmony.

The digital age has, in many ways, democratized the market. Brands now have open access to potential customers. They can communicate and engage with audiences in a way not physically possible just 25 years ago. Techniques like inbound marketing – attracting customers to your brand via compelling content in blogs, videos, social media and other outlets – are proving to be incredibly effective in marketing and customer engagement. Social media is ubiquitous, and digital advertising continues to evolve to provide measurable results. The commonality across these marketing platforms? Technology.

In his pioneering 1964 work “Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man,” communication theorist Marshall McLuhan posited, “The medium is the message.” His 50-year old theory that a message and its medium are essentially a singularity has never proven truer than it does today. A message without a medium is only a thought. A medium without a message is a ghost ship.

In order to successfully market a brand in the digital age, marketing and IT departments must work in concert, combining medium with message to create effective communications that nurture brands. This doesn’t mean just checking in with each other every once in awhile to make sure all systems are operational.  Successful marketing-IT partnerships should resemble a circular loop, with communal brainstorming, continuous monitoring and feedback, and timely course corrections.

Think of the marketing – IT relationship like Maverick and Goose from the movie Top Gun. Maverick (the marketer) is the pilot, flying on his creative instincts, making gutsy (but not always smart) moves, trying to out-do the other guy. Goose (the IT pro) is the navigator. He ensures the engines and instruments are working properly. He monitors the jet’s position and makes sure that Maverick doesn’t crash into a mountain. Maverick is the artist, Goose the engineer. Without one and other, they’d both be helpless. But together? That’s when magic happens.

So get creative with your brand and make your mark. But don’t forget your navigator. Your brand will end up crashed into a mountain without him.

Marketing in San Diego | Jacob Tyler