#adcopy Archives -

January 18, 2017 By Marisa Moks-Unger

Three Ways to Energize Writing with Sound

Poetic Devices Create Excitement with Sound

Sound – and both its denotation and connotations – are important aspects of good writing. Repeating patterns and creating tension is vital to great content and ad writing. Add excitement to entice readers. Use poetic devices, such as onomatopoeia, repetition, and alliteration. They add zest to descriptions. Below are some ways to readily apply sound to improve writing.

Words that Burst with Sound

The use of onomatopoeia, or words that are spelled the way they sound, packs a punch. Such sound words are reminiscent of vintage “Batman” episodes where bam, boom, and wow were placed in zigzag-border boxes above action shots. Additionally, many nature sounds are naturally used in content and ad copy. Consider swish and swoosh. The buzz in BuzzFeed. The tweet behind Twitter. Think of the “snap, crackle, pop” of Rice Krispies. They add movement and texture to text. Use them as exclamation points, sparingly, for greatest impact.

Create Energy with Repetition

Phrase wording to add additional movement. Recall the 1981 Faberge Organics Shampoo TV commercial. It featured a multiplying screen with the wording, “I told two friends. Then, they told two friends. And so on. And so on. And so on.” And who can forget Franco American’s “mini, mini, mini, ravioli, oli, oli, oli…”. Earworms, yes? But effective ones, for certain.

Accelerate Action with Alliteration

When using alliteration, the first letters are repeated to create catchy slogans and phrases. These often form the products’ names such as Cocoa Krispies, Frosted Flakes or Captain Crunch. McDonalds had a “big. beefy. bliss” ad. And a Nike ad used repetition to sound like alliteration in “My better is better than your better.”

To bring it all together, add movement to writing with onomatopoeia, repetition, and alliteration. As that energy snowballs, it adds more interest in a product or service to potential customers. And that, as they said in the throwback Pearl Drops ad, “Is a great feeling!”

January 4, 2017 By Marisa Moks-Unger

Use Mother Nature’s Clues for Ad Copy

Three Clues to Better Ad Copy

Ad copy directed towards women is often based on fear, helplessness, or envy. Anytime a television is flicked on viewers are bombarded with a wide variety of scenarios, such as:

fear over lack of correct life insurance policy leaving loved ones in dire straights
helplessness over whether the linens are dull, dishes are streaked, or carpet stained
envy over another woman’s white teeth, botoxed face, slim waistline, or youthfulness

To be sure, these emotions are all strong motivators. However, when we take a clue from Mother Nature, copy can be filled with confidence, courage, and contentment. Such a shift from negative to positive can provide a better reason to purchase goods or services.

Observing the Uses of Light

Take a hint from Mother Nature and choose words that shimmer.

Below are three clues to take from nature that use light while crafting ad copy – as well as other forms of business and creative writing.

First, consider the hours leading to and following daybreak. Dawn breaking, after a dark, moonless night, is an image that easily reflects a sense of confidence. Words associated with dawn include rise, illuminate, awaken, enliven, enrich, and fortify.

Next, consider the appearance of the sun breaking through thick clouds. Courage is found in such visual words as shining, streaming, casting, beaming, and pulsing. Brooding clouds that crack open and spill hope build excitement with the dramatic shift. Light overcoming darkness is a literary theme that spills over into fashion trends, interior design, and recreational events.

Finally, the sight of a rainbow after a raging storm conjures images of contentment. The colors themselves and their hues of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet give way to even more words that border on spirituality. These include hope, faith, and love. Also, they inspire words of altruism: charity, togetherness, sharing, and gifting. Everyone, after all, can access these words as a pot of gold at the end of a figurative rainbow.

Replace worn out wording based on negative usage with positive wording. Then, ad copy can begin to do the work beyond the words. It can sell shimmering possibilities of services and products to change the world one customer at a time.

Scrabble Words for Flow

Create a Word Bank from Scrabble

Word Lists from Scrabble — First play the game, then get writing from your curated word list.

Sunday afternoons find my husband, mother-in-law, and I playing Scrabble. This ritual helps us to pass the time during the pandemic. The games usually run one to two hours. We have taken these games to a new level by anticipating them each week, then carefully crafting our word choices. It helps that all three of us are avid readers and come up with a variety of interesting diction.

Also, the game gets my mother-in-law’s mind off of the local paper’s with its teeming death notices of Covid-19 victims – most from local residential living facilities. And, she is now interested in the fact that I am using these word lists to write from professionally.

Next, free write for a few. Make a list of the words developed during the game. Then use the list as a springboard to write a creative piece using as many of the words as possible. Play with long and short lines. Add some rhymes. Look for alliteration. Give yourself about 10 minutes. See what images appear.

Then, select a genre or two to carry through. As a theme arises from the free write of the word list, follow the lead. Perhaps a poem rises up. Or, a one-act play. Or, both! Choose one genre knowing that you can come back and create more works from any single topic.

Now, it’s your turn! If you have a Scrabble game somewhere hidden in a hall closet, it is time to get it out and try your hand at this writing tactic. It employs procrastination by allowing you to blow off writing at first by playing a game. Then, you are rewarded for the time you invested in the game by writing a piece from the words you and others generated.

Here’s to growing your flow,

Marisa

TGIFF – Thank God It’s Friday Flow

Cliché Finds Flow on Friday

Congratulations, you’ve made it to Friday. And, at the workweek’s end, there is time to find flow. But, where do you go to find flow? First, realize that flow can happen anywhere at anytime. Need proof? Look at this past post on finding flow in a card and party goods store. Simply click right here: https://wewriteitright.com/visit-flow-in-a-party-goods-shop/

How Gratitude Leads the Way

Use grateful eyes to take in the world around you. Then, instead of planning to hit the bars and clubs when the clock strikes 5:00 PM, other options present themselves during these times of pandemic. Why not take a virtual tour a museum? Or, take a walk or bike ride through a park? Or, spend an hour working on a poem, and essay, or a blog post. When you are grateful for the options you have – even if you are working from home amid shutdowns – then that is enough.

Your Turn

Playtime creates greater flow. — Spirographs, Etch-a-Sketch, and Slinkys are just a few ways to re-enter flow through playtime. What was your favorite activity as a child? When was the last time you tried it as an adult?

Think back to grade school, junior high, or middle school. Think about the electives that you took that helped round out your schedule. Did you take dance or music classes? Weight training? Or, perhaps, like me, you did candle making. Whatever it might be, try to reunite your lost teen with your adult self. Take time to write, dance, sing, paint, or play with your Spirograph! You’ll be glad you did!

Here’s to growing your flow,

Marisa