Whether it is a web page or a brochure or a mailer or a newsletter, your written words decide the direction and dimension of your enterprise. The written copy of your message can make or break your business. It can make your reader eat out of your hand, it can incite a Jihad against you, [...]
Written on February 11th, 2008
Read more articles on Copywriting.
Whether it is a web page or a brochure or a mailer or a newsletter, your written words decide the direction and dimension of your enterprise. The written copy of your message can make or break your business. It can make your reader eat out of your hand, it can incite a Jihad against you, and it can be simply dry.
The Internet is a great leveler. Although the current spate of pay-per-click search engines has made the battle ground a bit uneven, it is still favorable to small, but innovative businesses.
It took a severe economic jolt to make these businesses realize the power of the written word the copy of your pages that you put on the Net. For long its significance has been put on the backburner, and lots of breast-beating has gone into the cause of the “latest development technology.” Well, technology has its place, but what makes a customer do business with you is, the written message.
It all depends on the words you use, the way you use them, the combinations you use them with, and the way you decide when not to use them – it’s all about words.
Sadly, the small-sized businesspersons do not take copywriting seriously until its too late. 95% of businesses fail because they fail to convey their message. Their copy is not convincing enough.
Whenever you convey a printed message, you have an end objective. The sort of response it invokes hefts the success of the copy of the printed message.
The message that tells your customer about you and your product in a voice and tone that reaches deep.
The message that lays the bricks of the foundation on which the wall of trust is built.
At the core of your business success is the copy content of your message.
So what sort of copy is that?
The one that touches the right nerve of your customer or client.
The one that tells your customer that you and your product can be trusted.
The one that makes the customer eager to do business with you.
The one that talks to your customers as if you are talking to them directly.
The one that tells your customers exactly what they should know to arrive at an educated decision.
The one that elevates your customers to the level of clouds so that they see your world with the colors of a rainbow.
Ok, the last one sounds a bit unrealistic but you get what I mean.
Are there hard and fast rules for professional copywriting? Not at all. I often say that I can read between the lines – the words, the commas, the full-stops and the phrases – and make out what sort of person the writer is. We all have this quality, and we all go through such an awareness, but all happens in the subconscious. Your business needs a copywriter who can tap into that subconscious.
Amrit Hallan is a freelance copywriter, copy editor and a writer.
He also optimizes web page content for higher Search Engine
ranking.
Read his weekly essays and articles by subscribing to
amritscolumn-subscribe@topica.com
For Copywriting and Copy Editing Services, visit:
http://www.amrithallan.com
COPYRIGHTCraig Lock
What is copyright? No one can reproduce your work with- out your permission – not even a personal letter. How much of a writer’s work can be legitimately used? A poem of 40-50 words is generally considered to be OK. Usually one is not allowed to copy substantial amounts of another writer’s work without their express permission.
* But then what is meant by the word “substantial”? It is widely open to interpretation and opens up a literary and legal “minefield” (that’s a metaphor, by the way!).
There are no hard and fast guidelines about the rule of copy- right. The following is a rough ‘rule of thumb’:
You can take approximately 300 words from a book or any other lengthy work of writing. You can also quote 150 words from a magazine article. Fifty (50) words quoted from a news- paper article is generally considered to be “fair use” without requiring either permission or a fee. Copyright lasts 50 years after your death.
You can use what is termed ‘fair dealing’ in writing reports, or researching material. I always advise acknowledging sources in your reference section (the bibliography – I tried very hard to bring in that impressive long word) .
It’s all very unclear – the entire subject of copyright; so I won’t say too much. My simple words of advice are: Just use your common sense and discretion (if you have some)… and be HONEST by fol- lowing your heart. Don’t copy other author’s material and purport (nice word, eh?) to be the author. One should not paraphrase a substantial amount of another author’s writing, nor use that writer’s points (or theme of their writing) without due ACKNOWLEDGMENT. Hint hint!
If you get into a dispute (oops!), there are specialised trade and copyright laywers (or solicitors as they call them here in ‘civilised’ NZ) in the big centres. If in doubt, get advice…then DON’T infringe copyright.
Send requests to use “borrowed” material to the permissions editor of a magazine, newspaper or book publisher. Book publishers usually have a small department which deals solely in this. Give them as much information as possible about your article or book, your publisher, as well as other books or articles written by you. Tell them what quotes you want to use and why and so on. Say you will give them due acknowledgement in your writing. They’ll usually oblige.
There is sometimes a small fee payable. Always acknowledge the sources of your quotations – then you’ve kept your word, your side of the “bargain”.
Also keep copies of your correspondence in the event of an unlikely dispute.
Now a bit for Kiwis (and Brits)…
No one can reproduce your work without your permission. New Zealand law closely follows British law. In NZ copyright is usually protected for 50 years after the author’s death. If a book is published posthumously (nice long word that), copyright extends for 75 years after the time of the author’s death. After that the work can be freely used by anyone. No hope for me then… but perhaps my great great grand- children!
As from 1989, New Zealand copyright law requires 3 copies of every NZ publication to go to the National Library in Wellington. One of which goes to the Alexander Turnbull Library, one to the National Library for bibliographical pur- poses, while the third is kept at the Parliamentary Library in the capital in Wellington.
Sometimes a publisher might want copyright in exchange for a fee. My advice: It’s your work of art. So always retain your copyright… unless you are in dire financial straits, like this aspiring (and perspiring) writer. *
In the next lesson (and article) we will look at the subject of plagiarism . Wow, that’s a big word and I hope I spelt it cor- rectly (especially for you “slick Americans”)!
No , I don’t mind you using my material and I feel, it may be very hard for another “writer” to closely copy my rather “wacky style of hopefully informing and entertaining at the same time”.
Anyway, isn’t “imitation the sincerest form of flattery”?
Craig Lock is an author of numerous books and the creator of the ORIGINAL online creative writing course.
http://www.nzenterprise.com/writer/creative.html
Written on February 11th, 2008
Read more articles on Copywriting.