Ten Copy Do's and Don'ts
by George DuncanDon't "introduce" yourself or your company. Begin immediately writing about the reader and his problem, and how your product will benefit him.
Don't expound on the state of the industry/world, etc. It may come across as preaching, especially to the converted. (If he doesn't already know what you're telling him, he may be too removed from the process to be a good prospect.)
Don't use puns. They rarely translate to the reader's context.
Don't ask questions in teasers and headlines that can be answered yes or no. That gives control of the communication to your reader.
Don't use your product name as a headline by itself (clever as it may be), without appending benefit or offer copy to it.
Do build your teaser/headline around a major benefit.
Do use teasers to target your market.
Do use the product name in the corner card and letterhead rather than the company name. (IBM, AT&T and such excepted.)
Do quantify claims as much as possible. Percentages of performance, number of dollars saved or earned, minutes and seconds of time, etc. lend credibility.
