Lots of copywriters love fluff. They gravitate toward it instinctively because it sounds good.
Check out this sentence:
“At Acme Pet Supplies, we offer superior customer service to match our outstanding products.”
You might be thinking, “Oooh – that sounds so good! Everyone wants to see that a company has ‘superior customer service.’ Anyone who reads that Acme has ‘outstanding products’ will be persuaded to shop at Acme Pet Supplies, right?” Wrong.
Though it sounds appealing on the surface, that statement is weak. First of all, that sentence could be describing almost any business in any industry. It’s a fluffy generality that could be describing an auto repair shop or a deli.
Secondly, “superior customer service” and “outstanding products” are unsubstantiated claims. Consumers are bombarded by statements like these all the time and tune them out. Instead of padding your copy with fluffy phrases, use solid details to sell your products.
Take another stab at that first sentence:
“Recognized for outstanding customer service by the American Pet Supply Organization, Acme Pet Supply stocks everything pet owners need – from canary food to chew toys.”
No more fluff. Readers are left with a verifiable fact about Acme Pet Supply that proves Acme excels in customer service. Plus, this new version tells readers the most important thing they need to know: they can get all their pet supplies at Acme.
The next time you’re tempted to use an empty phrase, remember that your copy will be stronger if you shave away the fluff and leave only the facts.
I find that most writers approach proofreading as a dreaded afterthought. Once they finish the actual writing, the idea of poring over their copy one last time to discover tiny errors seems…loathsome.
Trust me, proofreading is infinitely important. Nothing looks sloppier than using “your” when you should have used “you’re.” Or misspelling the name of the company you’re writing about. Little errors can drown out your message, but clean error-free copy strengthens it. Check out these simple ways to pack more punch into your proofreading:
Print out your work. Reading on the computer screen strains your eyes. You’ll be surprised how many extra errors you’ll catch by printing out your copy and reading it out loud.
Vary your sentence structure. Copy that consists of simple subject verb object structures over and over is boring. Pay attention to your sentences so that one sentence starts with a prepositional phrase and the next one begins with a gerund.
Alter the lengths of your sentences. Too many long sentences make your copy cumbersome; too many short ones make it feel choppy. For interesting and vibrant copy, some sentences should be long and some should be short. Like this one.
Check for consistency. Make sure that if you hyphenate a word once, that you hyphenate it throughout your work. Also, take a look at your bullets. They should all start with the same type of word: subject, gerund, action verb, etc.
Whether you look forward to proofing your work or loath the thought of doing it, remember that it has to be done. Put in a little extra time and your copy will be cleaner. For added security against typos, have someone – anyone – take a look at your work for you. A new set of eyes will find many of the tiny mistakes you’ve been too close to see.
