87 ways to get unstuck
A deck of named copywriting techniques, each with a question to ask your brief and a way to try it on your own copy.
Made by ProCopywriters, the UK’s professional body for copywriters. Free, for anyone.
Persuasion
40 cardsPrinciples and rhetorical devices: why people believe, remember and act.
Absolutes are unbeatable
As Luke Sullivan writes: ”Go for an absolute; go for an ‘-est’.
Address objections
Addressing objections doesn’t need to be negative, though, because you can positively address customers’ concerns.
Appeal to authority
How can you demonstrate your authority?
Benefits first
Features are things your product does.
Brutal honesty
Address the obvious weakness with your product immediately and openly.
Call to action
How can every word contribute to guiding readers towards this action?
Craft
30 cardsWriting technique: how the words are made to work.
Active voice
For example, writing ‘we save your life’ is more informative and powerful than ‘lives are saved’.
AIDA
First, you must get a reader’s attention, then capture their interest before arousing desire and, finally, encouraging action.
Alliteration
Starting multiple words with the same sound can lend texture to your writing and encourage people to pay attention.
Ask questions
Asking questions is a simple technique to make your copy more conversational.
Because
It’s one of the most powerful words you can use.
Bucket brigade
What do we mean?
Process
17 cardsWays of working: how to get unstuck, get started and get it done.
Bullets
* Don’t worry about the style or tone
Change the font
This visual shift can highlight weaknesses and errors in your copy.
Combine harvester
Rewrite a single headline using five different voices or copywriting techniques.
Cut-up technique
Try printing your working notes so you can cut them up and rearrange the physical sheets.
Dirty dozen
Instead of trying to write the perfect headline, try to write the very worst thing you possibly could.
Draw the thing
Sketching your ideas might help you imagine how the reader will flow through the ad, how the messaging will fit together, and which details you have room to include.
Embrace constraints
Feeling overwhelmed by creative possibilities?
Guerrilla testing
Pop your copy under the nose of anyone who isn’t moving.
Know your competitors
Are you competing with companies in different industries?
Lateral thinking
Could you weave this word into your copy?
Pause
Creativity rarely happens when you’re staring at a white screen or a blank page.
Read aloud
Listen carefully.
Review harvesting
Shopping reviews and Q&A sites are packed with real-world problems and descriptions of the products bought to solve them.
Tell a friend
I must tell you about this brilliant copywriting technique…
Turn negatives into positives
Try to reframe any negative statements as positive declarations.
Unusual suspects
Who within the business has the most direct contact with customers?
Why should I care?
If your copy doesn’t answer this question satisfactorily, start rewriting.
CopyDeck is the free part of Ideas. Studio is ProCopywriters’ tools for people who write copy, included in Pro membership.