And more importantly, what makes good copy good?

Copywriting. The act of writing persuasive text that encourages the reader to do something specific. Often found on social media or websites, in emails, print or broadcast. Generally shorter form, unlike content writing, which tends to be longer. And not to be confused with copyrighting, that’s definitely something different.

Some trace it back to Ancient Egyptian papyrus-based persuasive messaging. It would become an official profession in the late 19^th century thanks to the advent of print media. Then came the age of the ad agency – consider copywriting heavy-hitters John Emory Powers and David Ogilvy in the US and UK respectively – and slogan-driven TV/radio campaigns. Now of course we have the internet and digital marketing, analytics and performance-driven marketing, and AI.

To put it simply (itself a key copywriting objective) – a copywriter takes something that might seem convoluted or complicated and communicates it in a way that is easier to understand. It needs to be clear, concise, and compelling (adjectives don’t have to begin with ‘c’, but it helps). What does that look like?

Good copy is less about selling, more about telling. Because a lot of organisations are much better at doing ‘things’ than they are at explaining what these ‘things’ are (and why they matter). Or, they have plenty to say but no one is actually getting round to saying it (they’re do busy doing said ‘things’).

It needs to grab the reader’s attention. Attention spans aren’t getting any longer. The reader needs to understand what you do in seconds, not minutes.

And it needs to be authentic. This will build trust, which will determine whether the reader understands your (often complex) proposition, whether your expertise gets noticed and appreciated, and whether they actually remember you. You stand a much better chance of this by being specific and data specific, with real numbers and outcomes, not just vague innovations and solutions. Credibility and authenticity is key, so you sound like a human who knows that they are talking about.

Less is so often more. Good copywriting rarely means using lots of big, impressive words. It’s often about removing them. And helping a business communicate what they already know, with less faff and less fluff.

Most importantly, good copy shouldn’t be an afterthought, it needs to be a key element throughout your whole sales and marketing process.

Good copy is cost-effective. Marketing is expensive. Ultimately, having good copy is one of the cheapest and most over-looked marketing levers that you have. You can spend a fortune on design, paid media, and a beautifully built website – but none of that will matter if the copy doesn’t tell the reader why they should care. If it doesn’t convince the reader why your product or service matters, using words that they can actually understand.

And bad copy can cost you. If you don’t get the basics of spelling and punctuation right (proof-readers and editors are worth their weight in gold here). If your output is clearly AI (these days, people can tell). If your landing page gets traffic but no conversion. If a case study is so boring, no reader can make it to the end. And if email copy feels like every other piece of email content in the recipient’s inbox. This is costing your organisation, not because your offering isn’t good enough, but because the words between you and the reader aren’t working.