Before I deliver some tough love, I have a rule for myself, and I like to impose it on others too:
Don’t b*tch about something if you don’t have a proposed solution.
So FIRST, here’s my complaint: 98% designers have same-same Messaging.
(I made up that stat.)
But y’all say the same shit!
I get WHY, of course. You sell similar packages, with similar deliverables, and sell to similar clients.
But your Messaging should still be different because you are a super special, unlike-anybody-else person. Sure, you may have client similarities and overlaps with your fellow designers – but you’re the only YOU.
Before this gets too mushy (aka – super off-brand for me) – here’s the shit I see all the time:
- Strategy-first design
- Stand out in a saturated market
- Make you an industry of one
- You should see yourself in your brand
- Elevate your brand
- Cultivate your brand
- Impactful design
WHAT DOES IT MEAN?!
I will pry these words out of your cold, dead carpel tunnel designer hands.
Not because they’re not Emelie-approved, but because they’re not serving you and even some of the best brand builders I know have admitted to me that… they don’t even really know what “strategy” means.
It’s a fluff word at this point.
A butt-ton of folks who run through Personality Profits are designers, and they come to me not knowing how to sell their offers without sounding like everyone else in their space.
GOOD NEWS: I’ve never had one leave with the same Messaging, even when they have the exact deliverables.
So how do we do this?
There are 3 problems with Messaging like the ones I griped about before:
- They’re vague
- They’re fluffy
- Aaaaand they’re exhausted
None of it means anything to anyone.
If we can resolve these 3 boo-boos, you can make anything you write – like a headline or your bio or tagline – and make it resonate. Make it click in people’s brains.
You can apply these 3 principles to anything you write.
CHEATER PANTS: Hayley of Art for Big Feelings created a little checklist from this to use when she writes. Pretty nifty, if ya ask me.
1. Ditch passive language
Or, as designers have told me in the past: “Sometimes I feel like I write backwards!”
YES! BINGO.
Sometimes, using active language is a big ole “flip it and reverse it,” Missy Elliot-style.
Writing directly and speaking in facts makes your statement strong and your copy will read more confidently.
This is a change to state your POV as truth, and lean in because you genuinely believe in it. (And if you can’t… revisit that POV, my dude.)
2. Use verbs & visuals
(Homepage is under construction – Source)
One of the best things you can do is take a concept and turn it into a visual experience for your reader.
Rachel could’ve said, “A website that will sell out your products” or, “increase e-commerce conversions.”
I asked her to tell me what it would LOOK LIKE for a website to sell a sh*t ton of her client’s products, and this is what we landed on.
To take it a step further, she could’ve said, “A website that gets your products off-the-screen…”
But she cut out the unnecessary bit and started with a verb.
(”Get” is an irregular verb, but the principle applies. Use active words!)
3. Watch your FluffBudget
When we start using visual language, you might find your copy getting preeeeetty long.
After asking folks to “paint the picture,” I usually encounter run-on sentences and get lost, overwhelmed, and then I want to light my laptop on fire.
That’s why everyone gets a FluffBudget – especially creatives.
You’re absolutely allowed to tell your story, add in details, and create a whole world around your copy.
But we also want to stay punchy.
Eva could’ve said, “Agents take 10% of your earnings, but what if your website could sell those bookings for you?”
It’s clear! It’s direct! But it’s not punchy and would be a long-ass header.
So she cut back and landed on, “A website that’ll work harder than an agent. (Minus the 10% cut!)”
BOOM.
Use these 3 basic principles to self-audit your own writing. That way, you can rely on your copy to grab attention and resonate with your audience.
If you want to tackle other copy projects and learn to write copy that converts and sounds like you – check out Personality Profits.
My 1-week copy sprints make copywriting stupid-easy and give you a scalable skillset. Words are EVERYWHERE, and I can help you get them right – regardless of where you put them.
