The copy we use in our ads is critical to their success; we have to convey messages quickly and efficiently through our words. Meta recommends just two or three lines of copy for the best results of your ads. This means that we need to cut the unnecessary words that don’t add urgency, context or value. This can be a hard process, and copywriting is one of the most in-demand skills in the digital marketing community.
I want to quickly talk about tone. Tone says a lot about a company. And the copy of each ad is an opportunity for us to showcase that tone. Build yourself a style guide so that you know what sort of vocabulary you can use as your brand. Do you use contractions? Or do you always speak professionally? What it must always come back to, however, is not your own comfort but what is most effective with your target audience. A tip for effective copy, use active language rather than passive language. This allows the reader, in this case – the target we’re advertising to, to feel the immediacy of our words. Rather than saying, “Our cupcakes are delicious,”; we could instead say, “You are going to love our cupcakes”. Not only is this a better use of emotive language, but we’re also placing the audience in the copy by using the word “you”.
Another tool I use to make sure I’m being as effective as I possibly can is to write the caption out, then delete it, and try to write it again from memory. I usually find that if I can’t remember, it’s the unnecessary words that I use the first time that I have forgotten. The writing will then be more direct and focused. I will just briefly make a point to say here that no matter the style or tone that you use in your copy, you will develop your own understanding of what is needed for each audience.
For example, when I worked for a tourism company, marketing rental cars to overseas travellers, the shorter and sharper the copy was, the higher the engagement and conversions. However, when I worked for a not-for-profit charity, the longer form copy landed much better with an audience who was interested in learning more and developing an emotional connection. There is space for both approaches within marketing, and you’ll quickly find as you begin working with a client which approach is going to land best with your audience.
