How I Love Lucy Can Help You Write Better Marketing Copy

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I watched an I Love Lucy rerun the other day . . . the one with Lucy shooting a commercial for Vitameatavegamin. You remember—the stuff that was 23% alcohol and had Lucy a little tipsy after several takes. She ended up calling it “mitavatameatimac.”

Watching Lucy slaughter the product name reminded me of the complex wording people sometimes use when they’re writing marketing copy. Companies are so used to their industry’s jargon that they forget to write in layman’s terms. They write as if they’re speaking with a salesperson or another business in their industry instead of speaking to the prospect.

They don’t keep it simple. And when the marketing copy isn’t simple, the copy doesn’t connect with prospects.

I’ve done it myself. Recently, I reviewed a sales brochure written by our copywriter—a brochure that happened to be for the field she had previously worked in—and I couldn’t understand half of it. She didn’t realize she had slipped back into the industry jargon, and the message was muddled down with buzzwords I’d never heard of. It’s so easy to do that I bet you have some terminology-heavy marketing materials and don’t even realize it.

Other writers remember to stay away from jargon, but they still write in ways that prospects can’t comprehend—especially if they are skimming a website. Too may companies use ten-dollar words when fifty-cent words will do. They also write formally when a conversational tone would be more appropriate.

Simple, concise writing is half the battle when you’re writing marketing copy. Do you keep it simple? If you’re not sure, here are a few ways to ensure your marketing copy connects with prospects:

• Ask a family member to read what you’ve written. If he or she can understand it, your prospect should too.
• If you do find too much industry jargon in your marketing copy, take a critical look. Some jargon is necessary, but you can simplify other terminology.
• Look through your copy for words with several syllables. See if you can shorten them without losing the meaning.
• Read your marketing copy out loud. Do you stumble over words or lose the flow? If so, your readers will, too.
• Test for readability. If you use MS Word, readability statistics will show you which grade level you’re writing for. You should be writing to a 6^th–8^th grade level.

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4. 10 Web Copy Blunders to Avoid
5. Make Your Marketing Copy More Personal