Who Says Corporate Writing Has To Be Boring?
IT DOESN’T!
To me, the process for corporate projects isn’t that different to more “creative” projects. At the core of all writing – corporate, creative or business – is a need to connect and engage with the audience. That’s how to make your brand/message memorable. Whatever I’m writing, I want the viewer/audience to have an emotional response to it – whether it’s warm fuzzies, a laugh or a moment of clarity.
Recently, I completed an exciting corporate writing project for Jason Feldman. I wrote the web copy and wrote, produced and directed his web videos. He has a playful, quirky personality that was fun to work with and made the creative process (for the most part) highly enjoyable.
Think about all the ads you’ve seen lately – TV, web, billboards. Which ones stood out to you? What are the ones you remember? The ones that stuck with me either made me feel something, or had a surprising twist that piqued my brain and made it hold it in a memory. (I can still remember a Guinness ad I saw over 10 years ago that showed three guys walking into a pub, and then de-evolving through millions of years (in 60 seconds) to become tadpoles to the song “Rhythm of Life”.)
Okay, so you might not be able to turn a quarterly earnings report to your stockholders into an award-winning whizz-bang commercial, but there is a way to communicate the information effectively and make it memorable. For example, I had a lecturer at university who would break up large chunks of scientific information with a Far Side cartoon.
So in a nutshell, for me, the trick is to make it as interesting as possible, without losing the message. So firstly, I try to keep it simple and concise by not cramming too many ideas into one thing. Then I try and make it a little more personal to the viewer/reader, and make it engaging. You’ll notice I’m addressing you directly, for example. Did you also notice I’m asking you questions? I’m trying to engage your by brain by asking it questions that it will have to think about answers to.
When I’m writing more creatively, I try and boil down my script to the emotional core and arc of my main characters and layer the story over the top. In a more corporate setting, the emotional core becomes the overall message or brand and this underpins everything I write for the client. For Jason, for example, his playful and approachable personality is his brand, so I tried to convey this not only in the videos, but in the web copy too. I did this by keeping the tone of the copy light and breezy.
If you want some help or suggestions for your corporate writing or website copy, feel free to reach out to me. I’m always happy to answer any questions you have.
Thanks for reading. Enjoy your day!
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