“Take another pass at it.” “Keep going.” And the dreaded, “I don’t think we’re there yet.” If you’re a baby copywriter, you’ve found yourself bewildered by at least one of these, and if you’re a senior, you’ve heard them in your nightmares.
And if you’re a creative director (or similar), you’ve probably found yourself saying them once or twice — even if you personally despised hearing them when you were in the copy trenches. Because providing good feedback is hard. And it’s particularly hard when you, as a writer, know what you’d write there — or at the very least know what you wouldn’t write there — but now your job is to help someone else do the writing. It’s also hard if you’re a CD who doesn’t actually have a background in copywriting and might lack the vocabulary to really articulate what isn’t working about a given piece of copy. Either way, “I don’t think we’re there yet” can get really tempting.
I get it, and I’m here for you. Here are eight examples of things that might be wrong with copy. Before you tell your copywriter an item under review “isn’t working for me,” give this list a scan and determine why it isn’t working for you.
Eight reasons copy might Not Be Working for you
Disclaimer: This is not a checklist for being picky. It’s not for use in evaluating copy, or for hunting down things to bitch about. Nor is it, in and of itself, feedback, which should be specific, actionable, and constructive, and not merely a laundry list of complaints. This is provided merely as inspiration, prompting, to help you get to that “specific” part when “I don’t think we’re there yet” is all you have. Use responsibly.
It has mechanical issues. If you’re seeing these, you probably don’t need help on providing feedback about them, but I thought I’d throw ‘em in anyway: typos, bad length, missing messaging, poor phrasing, inappropriate language — if you see something, say something.
The energy is off. It’s supposed to be exciting and compelling, but it’s boring. It’s supposed to be comforting, but it’s stiff. This one is a little bit on the bubble for vagueness, but as long as it’s immediately followed by actionable conversation about what can be done to get said energy where it needs to be, I’ll let it slide.
The tone is off. The language is too elevated, or not elevated enough. It’s supposed to be evoking feelings of trust, but it feels clinical. It sounds patronizing, or fawning, or insincere — tone is another one of those areas that can easily wander off into vagueness, so be sure to get as specific as possible with feedback in this area.
The rhythm is off. Too many long sentences can get boring, too many short ones can get choppy, and odd combinations of the two can feel disjointed. If copy just doesn’t “feel right,” that could be the problem.
It’s generic. Copywriting is supposed to be distinctive. It’s supposed to help the brand stand out. It’s supposed to support the brand’s unique qualities and speak in the brand’s voice. If the copy could be claimed by any of the brand’s competitors, it’s not going to get the job done.
It’s not cohesive with the rest of the campaign. The tone and the rhythm and the so-on and the so-forth are fine, but it’s part of a campaign, and it doesn’t support the concept or fit with the imagery or cohere with the rest of the copy.
It sounds too much like something we’ve already done. Pretty straightforward. But, I mean, like, provide examples of past work so your copywriter knows what not to repeat.
It lacks focus. What are you trying to say with this copy? What are you trying to accomplish? What do you want the reader to think or do or feel? Sometimes, copy lacks a message, or tries to cram in too many messages at once, or wanders around the intended message without actually landing on it. That is an extremely common source of not Being There Yet.
The problem with rewrites, suggestions, and thought-starters
Giving good feedback is hard, y’all. It really is. And with a picture being worth a thousand words and all, it’s easy to think that providing an example of something that’s closer to what you’re looking for, or jotting down some quick copy for them to reinterpret in their own way, would be more useful than trying to actually articulate it.
The sentiment is appreciated, but no. Providing examples and thought-starters in lieu of actual feedback doesn’t give your copywriter the information they need to get from where they are to where you need them to be. The pertinent differences between what they wrote and what you provided might be clear to you, but if it isn’t clear to them, there’s no guarantee that the next round of revisions is going to get them any closer to where you want them to be.
This is going to sound snarky, but I mean it most sincerely: If there’s a specific way you want something written, write it yourself. Not kidding. Yes, your copywriter might be kind of (extremely, explosively) peeved at having their work done for them, but it’s a lot less peeved than they’d be to have to rewrite it themselves over and over and over until it almost matches the very, very specific copy you have written in your head. Otherwise, make sure any examples you provide are accompanied by details about what you like about them, as is applicable to the project at hand.
Go forth and feed back.
Providing specific, actionable feedback isn’t just good for your copywriters — it’s good for you and the rest of the creative team, because it helps get you what you need without endless rounds of stumbling and scrambling. And yes, it does take a little more effort and analysis when us not being there yet is easier to tell at first glance. But it’s well worth that effort, in the end, and hopefully this handy list will make that worthwhile effort a little bit easier.
Copywriters, creative directors — anything I’ve missed? Any other guidance that can help feedback-providers be more effective at their very important job? Drop it in comments. But for the love of God, be specific. At this point, you have no excuse not to.