How to Write Great Copy for Social Media Share: Date Published 16 February 2018 Categories Blog Reading Time 5-Minute Read Copywriting is one of the most authentic methods of drawing attention to a brand or idea, however, copywriting on social media is largely ignored. Aparticula offers some suggestions to remedy these social media issues through the use of examples and analysis. How to Write Great Copy for Social Media, & What is Copywriting? Starting from the beginning, copywriting differs from press writing, because its character is merely informative. It is a form of persuasive writing, which aims to draw the attention of the reader, and to arouse their interest and influence them to react with a certain desired behavior. A good copy is one that can generate this behavior. Otherwise, if the readers do not allow themselves to be influenced, it is because the copy did not fulfil its intended purpose. This technique is used to generate sales, leads or just awareness. It needs to make an impression on the reader and influence them to the point of making a decision that meets the anticipated outcome, and serves as the basis for the creation of the copy. In advertising, the copy is divided by headline and body copy. The headline is the main phrase, which is usually formatted to be larger than the copy’s font size, while the body copy is an informative text about a product or service, often used in the press format. Before Writing the Copy To produce a copy from the beginning, you must first have a good understanding about the products or services which it will be based on. This way, market research may be used to define the added value of the product/service; that is, the characteristics that will add value to consumers lives, which benefits are associated with it and to what extent it differs from the competition. After gaining knowledge about the product/service, it is important to reach the target audience. You need to identify your potentially new customers and those who are already customers, as well as knowing what the characteristics of the product/service they most appreciate, and their expectations once they acquire it. After getting to know the target audience, we will understand how best to communicate with them. Hence, the tone of communication is defined, whether formal or informal, friendly, maternal, etc. The copy should then be written for the target audience and based on their motivations, interests, lifestyles, habits, hobbies, etc., so they can identify with the message. Elements to Take Into Account to Write a Great Copy Simplicity A good copy does not need to be extensive, because not everyone will read it in its entirety. The simpler, and shorter, the better! First, because the message is carried and absorbed more easily, since it does not take much time to read and the reader doesn’t need to expand the text so they can read everything. But, the message should be well–written in order to be easily perceived and strong enough to exert some influence. Originality The copy has to be created in an exclusive and original way. It should not be replicated instantly as if it were something disposable. It is a unique two-way communication vehicle between the public and the brand, and is able to create a conversation between friends, and thus approachable to its target audience. This way, the copy stops being positioned only as a seller. Call to Action In order to influence a behavior more, a call to action usually tells people what to do (click here, click to learn more, send now, etc.) and directs them to different places from where they are. It mainly serves as an aid to conversion, thus it is important to be present in the copy in order to reinforce it. Visual Elements Visual elements integrated into the copy aim to complement the text. Usually, the image is what first draws attention when you scroll down your social media feed. Not to mention that regarding facebook’s edge ranking, for example, it prioritizes visual elements in relation to copy alone. These visual elements can vary between gifs, videos and images. One can always combine the copy with these bits of media, and there are many images available with inspirational sentences that people love. Personality A good copy must convey the personality of who communicates. You have to impersonate an interesting person enough for the audience to feel the need to know you better. And if the copy stimulates curiosity even better, because it makes the readers pay more attention to what the brand will say. Usually the use of humor can generate curiosity and is very well received. However, it may run the risk of being misinterpreted and offending someone’s sensibilities. Storytelling Storytelling is the ability to tell appealing stories in a way that engages the audience and facilitates their identification with the text. Readers always like to read a good story, especially if it is based on common experiences. Some Examples of Great Copy for Social Media: As a first example we could not ignore our own social media. In this post we applied a little bit of storytelling to inform about our agency. In our case the copy is always associated with a strong visual element. Another example, using humor, based on a proposal analogy. Haven’t we all been there? We hate it when months instead feel like years, especially when we run out of money in the first week. Last but not least, here is the final example of a video made by a Portuguese football team, Sporting Clube de Braga, where they tried to intelligently provoke the opponent’s team. Meaning that the other team members aren’t good enough to be warriors, and were all “swiped left.” The good players always get a match! This copy is reinforced with a call to action followed by a link. It yielded good results and earned some media attention.