Why is Copywriting important?
Copywriting is more than just writing – it is about crafting messages that grab attention, tell a story, and drive action. In a world where audiences skim content quickly, every word matters. Strong copywriting simplifies complex ideas, balances structure with creativity and ensure a brand’s messages stand out. A compelling opening is also key, hooking the audience with curiosity, relevance, and clarity. In marketing, engagement starts with the first line, and in an age of AI, human creativity remain irreplaceable in making words truly impactful.
What is good copywriting, and what is bad copywriting?
Bad copywriting is when it doesn’t matter how awesome your product is or how beautifully you describe it – if it just looks like a giant wall of text, nobody is going to read it. And if they don’t read it, they’re not going to buy it.
The biggest copywriting mistake you can ever make is making your copywriting all about you. Change from ‘we’ to ‘you’. Instead of saying ‘We’re experts in SEO with 20+ years of experience’ say, ‘Rank your website on the first page of Google with an expert SEO team by your side’. The first sentence is solely about you. The second is about your customer – whilst still positioning your team as experts.
We live in ‘The Age of the Skimmer’, and if your content isn’t skim-friendly your business is leaving money on the table. The good news is, writing easy-to-read content is easy. All you must do is sprinkle in enticing headings, use bullets appropriately, format important points and add in images that reinforce your ideas.
Being vague in your copywriting is another one of the most common copywriting mistakes. One simple rule to follow: if a word or phrase doesn’t add any value or meaning to the copy writing, it must go.
Empty words that aim to sound clever and vague phrases that don’t really mean anything are a waste of space and will only confuse your reader. Often, these words or phrases may sound sophisticated and smart, but they add little substance to the copywriting and can make your message less clear.
Bad copywriting doesn’t always mean poorly written text with grammatical mistakes. It can simply mean that it doesn’t connect with its target audience, does a poor job of conveying a persuasive sales message, and creating a positive brand perception.
Here are two examples of ‘bad copywriting’:
Airbnb
This ad is not only poorly written, but it made the San Francisco Library system look bad. Airbnb was asked to pay millions of dollars in hotel taxes, so they thought, to provide guidance to the government on how they should be using the money, they would produce a scandalised ad and plaster it all over San Francisco. The CEO of Airbnb admitted himself ‘it made us look like jerks.’
Minnesota Health Plan
While making a point, the worst thing you can do is offend another group of people. Minnesota Health Plan wanted to promote a healthy lifestyle, so they thought to motivate their target audience, they should ditch the lift and take the stairs. However, they neglected a group of people who rely on the lift to move around in doing so. It looks insensitive because many people use the lifts not because they want to but because they have to. The biggest issue in Minnesota Health Plan’s concept is that they didn’t factor in how this message would come across to demographics outside their target audience.
Copywriting is the art of writing creative content to persuade the targeted audience to take your desired action. This action may help you fulfil your purpose or goal. The final product, produced after copywriting, is ad copy or sales copy.
Below are examples of ‘good copywriting’:
Ricola
Simple and impactful, this ad describes the purpose of Ricola very well. In 2014, the brand ran a series of ads showing how a misplaced ‘cough’ can change the entire meaning. Even the tagline is great – ‘make sure good news sounds like good news.’ What makes this ad copywriting work is that it is simple, relatable, memorable and even contains edgy humour. Adding fun in a technical industry was a brilliant strategy. Moreover, the ad does not persuade the audience in any way. It does not contain any headlines or taglines promoting Ricola as the best cough drops etc. It just is a memorable copywriting example that shows the recognisable Ricola packaging and using the same product colour over the ad. The goal here was to make Ricola top of the mind brand whilst people go the shop to buy cough drops.
Rolls Royce
In 1958 David Ogilvy penned down this example of copy writing for Rolls Royce. The headline is stellar and does not claim that the car is quiet; instead, it provides a sensory and rich experience to the targeted audience.
The body of copywriting itself is nothing short of an art piece. It states that engineers used a stethoscope to listen to the axle-whine. They left it to the reader to decide whether the luxury car is quiet or not. However, the mention of a stethoscope to hear the sound made it clear in the subconscious that it is quiet – that is the power of good copywriting. The upper-class targeted audience craved peace and quiet after WWII and this ad presents them with the luxury of experiencing it. Every point enables the reader to immerse further into the ad by painting a picture in their minds and making the product memorable.
Volkswagen
In the 1950s Americans loved muscle cars. But Volkswagen did the opposite. The diverted everyone’s interest towards small cars by highlighting their benefits. They emphasised that small cars use less fuel, require less maintenance and have cheaper insurance.
Back in those days full colour ads were standard, however they published the ad copy in black and white with a tagline ‘think small’, they advertise in the opposite way, using a minimalist design and the car pointing towards the headline to direct the readers eye.
The ultimate difference between good and bad copywriting is:
Bad copy writing is all about you. Good copy writing is all about the customer.
How do we achieve great copywriting?
There are several key principles we can apply to improve copywriting:
- Grab Attention Quickly – using bold claims, question or an emotional pull
- Make it memorable – using strong persuasive language, allowing the audience to visualize it
- Using Emotion and Curiosity – engage readers with emotional and thought-provoking hooks
- Speed matters – people decide within seconds whether to continue reading or watching so a strong, fast delivery of your hook is key
- Refine and Rewrite – copywriting is not just writing, it’s about rewriting, refining and maintaining high standard to ensure clarity and impact.
A key takeaway is to craft a compelling copy, you must connect emotionally with your audience. Avoid generic phrases and instead focus on real, relatable solutions that speak to their needs and desires.
Of course, if you’re not confident in writing your own ad or sales copy, ADhesive can help. Our team love getting stuck into a creative project – so reach out if you’d like a hand.
