The Adweek Copywriting Handbook| book summary

The Adweek Copywriting Handbook book summary

summary in a paragraph

the Adweek copywriting handbook by joseph Sugarman is finest book written on copywriting and its up to the point and you can start writing copy just by reading it

Chapter 1 General Knowledge

The preparation to become a copywriter involves knowledge. There are two types. The first is a very broad or general knowledge and the second is a very specific or targeted knowledge. Let me explain.
The more you have stored in your brain from experiences and knowledge and the more you are able to interrelate that knowledge and come up with new combinations of old material, the greater an idea person you will be and the more powerful your capabilities as a copywriter will be.
focus on developing range to become copywriter
you need to think differently by having multiple perspectives to a problem
you need to use lateral thinking
lateral thinking is main idea :- the more general knowledge you have the better is your range and you can do lateral thinking
lateral thinking is about solving the problem with things that don't relate

Chapter 2 Specific Knowledge

You need to become an expert on a product, service or anything you write about to really be effective. Becoming an expert means learning enough about a product to obtain enough specific knowledge so you can communicate the real nature of what you are trying to sell.
In addition to knowing your product or service, you’ve really got to know your customer. You’ve got to be an expert on who your customer is by gathering specific information on whom you are selling to
And even if you understand your customer and understand your product, you must realize one more thing. There is a specific way that each product should be presented to your customer.
Every product has a nature and it tells the way it should be presented
Every product has a nature to it that you must understand to be successful when creating a marketing concept behind that product.
The nature of product means core reasons why people buy the product example people buy insurance to feel safe
if you are going to write an add for an product put yourself in place of your customer and think

Chapter 3 Practice , Practise , Practise

Copywriting is simply a written form of communicating facts and emotions. It is a mental process. Some copywriters will tell you that many of their greatest works were well thought out in their minds even before they put them on paper.
The bottom line for all these approaches is that copywriting is primarily the mental process of first getting your thoughts organized in your mind and then eventually transferring them onto paper. There is no best method—just what works for you.
writing is more important than the methos so write as much copy you can
Another fact to realize about writing copy is that the first draft of an ad is often terrible and the real skill in copywriting is taking that rough draft and polishing it.
Copywriting is a mental process the successful execution of which reflects the sum total of all your experiences, your specific knowledge and your ability to mentally process that information and transfer it onto a sheet of paper for the purpose of selling a product or service.

Chapter 4 The Purpose of all the Graphic Element of an Ad

In a copy there are 10 elements and following are the purpose of each element
1. Headline: To get your attention and draw you to the subhead line.
2. Subhead line: To give you more information and further explain the attention-getting headline
3.Photo or Drawing: To get your attention and to illustrate the product more fully.
4.Caption: To describe the photo or drawing. This is an important element and one that is often read.
5. Copy: To convey the main selling message for your product or service.
6. Paragraph Headings: To break up the copy into chunks, thereby making the copy look less imposing.
7. Logo: To display the name of the company selling the product.
8. Price: To let the reader know what the product or service costs. The price could be in large type or could be buried in the copy.
9. Response Device: To give the reader a way to respond to the ad, by using the coupon, toll-free number or ordering information, usually near the end of the ad.
10. Overall Layout: To provide the overall appearance for the ad, by using effective graphic design for the other elements.'
All the elements in an advertisement are primarily designed to do one thing and one thing only: get you to read the first sentence of the copy

Chapter 5 The First Sentence

Now if the first sentence is so important, what can you do to make it so compelling to read, so simple, and so interesting that your readers—every one of them—will read it in its entirety? The answer: Make it short.
Each sentence is so short and easy to read that your reader starts to read your copy almost as if being sucked into it.
The only purpose of those first few sentences in an advertisement is to get you to read the following sentences.
The sole purpose of the first sentence in an advertisement is to get you to read the second sentence.

Chapter 6 Creating the Perfect Buying Environment

Besides holding the reader’s attention, there is another important function we are trying to accomplish in the first paragraphs of an advertisement and that is to create a buying environment. Let me cite an example.
Because the correct answer to the question “Which is the best location?” is simply “in the best selling environment for what you have to sell.”
Once you realize the importance of setting up a buying environment, you’ll know that it must be done in the early stages of an advertisement.
For example, if I was selling products at a discount, I would use big type for my prices and lots of busy graphic elements. In short, I would make the ad look like a typical discount ad. And conversely, if I was selling something expensive, I would present myself in an environment that showed class and refinement—that exuded confidence and trust.
As a writer of direct marketing, you have control over the environment. The environment you choose is created in both the graphic elements and the copy, but especially the copy—by the way you phrase your words, the choice of words and the level of integrity you convey.
you can do it all simply in the copy of your ad or the look of your web site.
The environment is critical in getting a prospective customer into the buying mood. And to create that environment, you attract the customer’s attention (the headline, photos, logo, etc.) and then you’ve got to get the person to read the first sentence by making it so simple and so compelling that the reader cannot help but read it. And the next sentence and then the next.
Your ad layout and the first few paragraphs of your ad must create the buying environment most conducive to the sale of your product or service.

Chapter 7 Resonating with the Reader

Once you have the prospect’s attention, the next step is to introduce yourself and say something that will keep the attention of the prospect. This is similar to the subhead line and the photos and captions. Then comes the sales pitch or the copy in a print ad.
During this activity, the seller has two thoughts in mind. The first is that the buyer must like and develop confidence in the seller. The buyer must believe that the seller knows the product. Second, the seller must somehow relate the product to the buyer and the buyer’s needs.
There are many methods for creating this harmony and two of the most important apply very directly to space advertising. First, you’ve got to get the prospective reader to start saying yes. Second, you’ve got to make statements that are both honest and believable.
First we want the reader to read the copy.
Then we create the type of environment through copy that causes the prospect to feel comfortable in exchanging his or her hard-earned money for your product or service. And finally, we want the prospect to harmonize with us—to
In short, we want agreement. We want that head to nod in the affirmative. We want harmony.
Get the reader to say yes and harmonize with your accurate and truthful statements while reading your copy.

Chapter 8 The Slippery Slide

And if you remember, we said that the sole purpose of the first sentence is to get prospects to read the second sentence and that the sole purpose of the second sentence is to get them to read the third and then the fourth—all while you are building a selling environment for the sale of your product.
Every element in an advertisement must cause that slippery slide effect. The headline must be so powerful and compelling that you must read the sub headline, and the sub headline must be so powerful that you are compelled to read the first sentence, and the first sentence must be so easy to read and so compelling that you must read the next sentence and so on, straight through the entire copy to the end.
Your readers should be so compelled to read your copy that they cannot stop reading until they read all of it as if sliding down a slippery slide.
The use of an interesting article or bit of information, when tied into your product or service, of ten makes for a good start to the slippery slide.

Chapter 9 Assumed Constraints

The adult elephant had what I call an “assumed constraint.”
inadequacy and the wrong guidance we may have received from teachers or friends are still in our subconscious, and whether we want to admit it or not, they really do affect us.
If you understand the hurt and you understand some of the constraints we put upon ourselves, then you are better able to cope with breaking out of those assumed constraints and becoming anything you want to be and accomplishing anything you want to accomplish. Let me cite some examples.

Chapter 10 Seed of Curiosity

I use sentences such as: But there’s more. So read on. But I didn’t stop there. Let me explain. Now here comes the good part.
Seeds of curiosity can be used at the beginning of an ad where you mention some benefit or payoff that you are going to reveal somewhere in your copy.
Keep the copy interesting and the reader interested through the power of curiosity.

Chapter 11 Copy as Emotion

the sole purpose of the copy was to first get people to read the copy. The benefits come later.
Emotion Principle 1: Every word has an emotion associated with it and tells a story.
Emotion Principle 2: Every good ad is an emotional outpouring of words, feelings and impressions.
Emotion Principle 3: You sell on emotion, but you justify a purchase with logic.
We buy on emotion and justify with logic.
The car is sold by virtue of its emotional appeal and then justified in its advertising by an appeal to logic.
In writing copy for an advertisement, often you get your reader in an emotional frame of mind as a result of the environment you have created, and logic becomes less important.
Often, a phrase or sentence or even a premise does not have to be correct logically. As long as it conveys the message emotionally, it not only does the job, but does it more effectively than the logical message.
I realized that the product would appeal to the gadget-motivated person who would want to show it off to his or her friends.
the reason, I explained, for my ad appearing so poorly written in my first draft is because it is simply an emotional outpouring of my thoughts on the product and how I feel it should be sold. It is a free release of my emotions.
Words Have Strong Emotions Attached

Chapter 12 Selling the Concept, Not the Product

Never sell a product or service. Always sell a concept.
Sometimes simply changing the price of a product can dramatically alter its concept.

Chapter 13 The Incubation Process

Once you’ve done all that, do something that may seem strange to you at first. Stop.
The incubation process is the power of your subconscious mind to use all your knowledge and experiences to solve a specific problem, and its efficiency is dictated by time, creative orientation, environment and ego.

Chapter 14 How Much Copy Should You Write?

Students of direct marketing learn that there is no such thing as copy that is too long. And there is some truth to this.

Chapter 15 The Art of Personal Communication

Remember I said earlier that copywriting is an emotional outpouring of an idea onto paper.
Read that personal copy. It’s as if I were talking to that person directly. I used the words I and you and me—all very personal words used in a one-to-one conversation.
Every communication should be a personal one, from the writer to the recipient, regardless of the medium used.
So as you start to write copy to reach and motivate an individual, think in terms of writing in the first person with a personal message.

Chapter 16 The Copy Sequence

know how important it is to know your subject. You already know the purpose of all the elements in an advertisement—to get the prospect to read the first sentence. And you know all the axioms to get the reader to read beyond the first sentence and all the way to your last word.
Since we copywriters do not have the benefit of having the prospect in front of us to ask the questions, we must craft our ads in such a manner that they literally lead our prospect (by the flow of the copy) to ask the question we want to answer. Sounds hard, doesn’t it? It really isn’t.
In class I would ask my students to write a headline and a subhead line. I would then ask for the first sentence, then the next sentence and then the next until each student had composed a complete ad.
The ads had to flow on paper and then, once they were on paper, the editing process was of paramount importance.
One of the tips I gave during this process was to create a block diagram of a logical way the copy should flow and the questions that might logically be asked.
The ideas presented in your copy should flow in a logical fashion, anticipating your prospect’s questions and answering them as if the questions were asked face-to-face.
Block-diagram your ad. What do the first few paragraphs do for the ad? What is the emotional appeal? Are you anticipating those questions and answering them to the satisfaction of your prospect? Are you frank and honest in those answers?

Chapter 17 The Editing Process

Once again, it is a mental process that almost parallels that of the copywriting act itself. It requires lots of practice, although you will find it easier to do than writing the copy itself.
In the editing process, you refine your copy to express exactly what you want to express with the fewest words.
With less copy, your ad will look less imposing to the prospect and he or she will be more likely to read it. The second advantage is that you are making the slippery slide even more slippery by making it shorter. Your prospect will get to the bottom of the slide much faster, yet still get the full impact of your sales message.
Take as Long as You Need Sometimes editing is like raising and nurturing your child and you need to take a lot of time. You may end up doing 10 drafts before you get to the final draft. Other times it may flow right out of your mind with hardly a correction.
Most of the time, though, I would have to go through several drafts before I was satisfied. And then there is the experience factor.
If you’d like a little practice, take a look at the examples that follow and edit them yourself, or read any periodical and edit the copy by seeing how many extraneous words can be eliminated.

Chapter 18 Powerful Copy Elements Explained

it was a big success. The ad illustrates a way to present a simple product in a complicated way. You should sell a simple product that is clearly understood by the consumer in a more complicated way and a more complicated product in a very simple way.

Chapter 19 The Psychological Triggers

The 31 psychological triggers are probably going to be the most interesting of the 64 points you want to consider when writing a direct response print ad or any kind of selling message.
1. Feeling of Involvement or Ownership
2. Honesty
3. Integrity
4. Credibility
5. Value and Proof of Value
6. Justify the Purchase
7. Greed
8. Establish Authority
9. Satisfaction Conviction
10. Nature of Product
Every product has one very powerful way of presenting itself that will express the true advantages and emotion that the product has to offer and motivate the largest number of people to buy it.
By realizing the nature of every product and playing to its strengths, you will end up with a very powerful and emotionally dramatic presentation.
11. Prospect Nature
The key in this case was the power of knowing the nature of the prospect—those emotional aspects of the prospect that would respond best to a planned pitch.
Let me cite a few more examples to illustrate this very important principle. If I was selling a home, I would get to know the motivations of my prospects and what they are looking for in a home. I would find out their history. I would ask them about their other home-buying experiences and what their hobbies are. I would gather as much information about them as possible and then I would develop a sense of what emotional needs they might have.
12. Current Fads
Be aware of the current fads so you can determine the hottest product categories and also the new language of our time. You want to recognize them and harmonize with them.
13. Timing
Timing certainly has a lot to do with fads. You want to be involved at the beginning of a fad and not enter in the middle or the end. That’s smart timing. But there are products that have just been introduced too early or too late, and that relates to timing, too.
14. Linking
A very critical technique that I have used in mail order ads is a process called linking. Basically, it is the technique of relating what the consumer already knows and understands with what you are selling to make the new product easy to understand and relate to.
Linking is a basic human emotional system of storing experiences and knowledge and then recalling those experiences and linking them to something we have to deal with on a daily basis or that is in the public’s consciousness.
15. Consistency
As a direct marketer, I have determined that the most important thing you can do to turn a prospect into a customer is to make it incredibly easy for that prospect to commit to a purchase, regardless of how small that purchase may be. It is therefore imperative that the commitment be simple, small, and in line with the prospect’s needs.
16. Harmonize
When you are not in harmony with the market, the marketplace doesn’t respond. Taking a product and making it harmonize with the prospect is simply a matter of good listening and observation. It doesn’t take genius. It takes a good eye and ear, and a little intuition helps, too.
17.The desire to belong
The desire to belong is a strong motivational factor in marketing but it is often not appreciated. Think about it.
18. Desire to Collect
There must be a natural instinct in the human race to collect, as I learned from my marketing experience. If you are selling a collectible, it’s pretty easy to understand that this urge exists and therefore, as a direct marketer, you need to capitalize on it. But often overlooked is the fact that it can be used to sell any other product, too. Let’s take the watch buyer. An enthusiastic watch buyer is your perfect prospect for another watch.
One of the ways that direct marketers optimize on the collecting instinct is by sending, free of charge with their very first shipment, some sort of device to hold the collection.
19. Curiosity
If I had to pick the one major psychological reason that makes direct marketing so successful today, it would be curiosity. At retail, a customer can touch and experience the product first-hand and then decide. A mail order customer can’t do that.
20. Sense of Urgency
You might have already figured this one out. You’ve almost sold the prospect. The prospect believes in your product and is ready to buy. But like many of your customers, this one says, “Well, let me think about it.”
21. Fear
Fear is one of the great motivators that will cause us to take action. Give a person a reason to act based on the fact that they may lose the opportunity to buy something and they will usually act in a positive way toward your offer. As just discussed, sense of urgency is an important psychological trigger.
22. Instant Gratification
23. Exclusivity, Rarity or Uniqueness
24. Simplicity
25. Human Relationships
26. Storytelling
Stories usually have lessons to teach or experiences to share or even endings that can excite, surprise or bring out emotion. And so it is with good copy. If you tell a story in your copy that is relevant either to selling your product, to creating the environment for selling, or to getting the prospect to read your copy, you are using this wonderful and powerful trigger in a very effective way to sell your product or service.
27. Mental Engagement
I have a theory that I strongly believe comes pretty close to the answer: The more the mind must work to reach a conclusion that it eventually successfully reaches, the more positive, enjoyable, or stimulating the experience
The article claimed that a missing element was responsible for advertising failure—a lack of whole-brain appeal.
This is a very subtle but powerful concept. It’s the difference between talking down to prospects and making prospects feel you are talking directly to them. And it is one of the most difficult theories to understand.
Too often we write too much. We reveal too much of the pitch without allowing the prospect’s mind and intelligence to become engaged. Simply realizing how this powerful psychological trigger works will help you craft copy that causes your prospects’ brains to experience an enjoyable and stimulating time by allowing them to reach—on their own—the conclusions that you want them to reach.
28. Guilt
29. Specificity
30. Familiarity
31. Hope
When using the psychological trigger of hope, you must avoid the trap of making a specific claim that can be measured or guaranteed. You want to allude to what the product is used for without making any promises of an exact outcome.

Chapter 20 Selling a Cure Not Prevention

The guiding principle can be summed up very clearly: Always sell the cure and avoid selling prevention.
Selling a cure is a lot easier than selling a preventive, unless the preventive is perceived as a cure or the curative aspects of the preventive are emphasized.

Chapter 21 Rating Your Writing Level

this chapter is about improving your writing skill

Chapter 22 Seven Steps to Writing Great Copy

Step 1: Become an expert on the product or service you are planning to sell. I have gotten more great ideas delving into discovering everything I could about a product or service than I have from any other resource.
Step 2: Know your prospect. You might become an expert on your product or service but if you don’t know your customer, you’re at a big disadvantage. What will motivate your prospect to become a customer? Who is your typical prospect? This will give you insight and also spur lots of good ideas.
Step 3: Write your headline and sub headline. They must grab the reader and create enough curiosity to cause the reader to get to the first sentence.
Step 4: Write the copy. Don’t worry about sentence structure, grammar, punctuation—just start writing and keep writing. Let all your ideas and thoughts flow into the computer and above all don’t worry about making mistakes.
Step 5: Edit your copy. Go through it and correct the spelling, grammar, punctuation and sentence structure. Eliminate extra words not necessary to express your thoughts. Tighten things up.
Step 6: Incubate. Stop editing, put the text aside and take a walk or do something pleasurable. You’ll be amazed at what getting away from your text will do for you.
Step 7: Take a final look at your copy. You’ll be amazed at how much more you’re going to catch and how much more redefined you will be able to make the copy with this final look.

Rest part of the book are best ads written by joseph Sugarman and other he recommend to read them for grasping the principles

The Adweek Copywriting Handbook| book summary | Joseph Sugarman

Contact Form