How Copywriting Can Save Your Political Career
It’s the general election in the UK. On previous occasions, I’ve written about how the various campaigns are using marketing techniques and tricks. Copywriting and learning about sales can help you to see between the lines and make better decisions.
Unfortunately, the various campaigns for this election have been god-damned awful and I’m avoiding the internet today like it’s a plague. There’s no better time for realising that most people don’t know what they’re talking about than the internet on election day. Jesus.
Anyway, before we move on to something constructive, here’s a single point of interest.
People have come to me and asked, “But how can you write freelance about various subjects that you don’t know about?”
Some would consider it totally unethical or illogical that you’d hire me, a non-expert, or another freelancer like me, to write about subjects we don’t know or have any interest in.
Check out this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aq8Dd5Sa7fI
Now, for those of you who aren’t aware, this woman is Diane Abbott. Should her party win and become government, it’s likely she’ll have a cabinet role (i.e. be a policy maker) and also likely she’ll be put in charge of something important. Until this interview it was assumed she’d be the Home Secretary; in charge of the police force, the security services and a whole other bunch of important stuff.
Now, I don’t really care about the politics here, but what we see in the video is a perfect example of someone who hasn’t done their homework.
What’s immediately clear is that, bearing in mind she’d be in charge of the police and defence of the country and there was a terrorist attack on the capital a couple of days earlier, she knows nothing about the subject and hasn’t read the report that the reporter is talking about.
If The Potential Head of A Country’s Security Isn’t An Expert, Then Why Should You Be?
People have a weird idea in their head that to be a copywriter or work in a field, you have to be the next incarnation of that industry’s Einstein to succeed. You don’t.
Look, the woman above doesn’t know anything about what she’s supposed to know about, and she could be in one of the country’s most powerful positions tomorrow.
You don’t have to be an expert to write $20 articles. Or $200 articles.
Writing about subjects you don’t know about is remedied by two key things:
- Learning about the subject (obviously) and
- Writing or speaking in a style that makes you not seem like a complete idiot
I suggest that if you’re going on national television to give an interview, you practice for both as much as possible. Let’s look into them quickly.
How to Quickly Learn About Your Target Subject
The above crisis interview could have been a success if the woman had have simply read the report she was supposed to have or, failing that, said, “I haven’t read the report” or “I don’t remember the details of the report.”
A key thing with copywriting – and any argument for that matter – is about picking the battle. If you haven’t read a report and you say, “I’ve read the report” then you’re like the teenager at the back of the class who wasn’t paying attention. Your reader (or interviewer) is the teacher and you know the follow up questions are going to be impossible for you to answer.
In terms of picking your copywriting battle, remember that for whatever subject you’re only ever talking to enthusiastic people with less knowledge than you. You’re not going to know more about medicine than a doctor, but if he’s a customer of a new-fangled chemical solution, then he’s not an expert in that product.
You need to speak with authority on that one product and do it convincingly.
How To Not Sound Like An Idiot
Basic copywriting principles would have saved Diane Abbott from looking like a fool.
Let’s assume you’re in a potential situation where you have to seem like an expert. Let’s also assume that you’ve followed the above advice and you know a particular facet of the topic at hand like the back of your hand.
For instance, let’s assume you need to talk about a report on policing and counter-terror measures. Assuming you’ve read the report (but you’re not the head of MI5 or a police commissioner) so you know the basics but don’t want to get skewered by curve-balls or an eager reporter.
What do you do?
Copywriting and sales are about setting the frame of an interaction.
Nobody watching that interview either knows enough about terrorism nor really cares about the specifics. In copywriting terms, the specific implementations of policing are the features of the product. Any copywriter who has read a book or two knows that the features don’t sell the product.
- Find problem
- Address target audience
- Build rapport
- Present solution
- Address Objections
- Call to action
Nobody really wants to hear, “We’re going to put ten thousand police officers on the street.” It’s a feature and there’s no guarantee it addresses the problem. People want the above. It could be that every question is answered in this formulaic manner. An example:
What Do You Think About Amalgamating The Forces?
- People need to know that relevant information is shared between all the parties that keep us safe.
- The people of London – and all of those people that come for tourism, business and travel, the families and their cute innocent children etc. – need to know that you’re safe and that incidents like this won’t affect you.
- I’m a mother/father/tourist just like you and I remember when my father took me as a child to see Big Ben… I’m a human being, honestly
- Now some people want to amalgamate the forces, but I’d propose better information sharing and a streamlined response protocol (or whatever)
- Some think this is going too far/not far enough, but it’s realistic, actionable and we can implement literally the moment we get into power. I’ll be on the phone myself to put it in motion
- Please vote for us because otherwise the other lot will get in and they literally want to starve you to death or something
Now, obviously the above is a bit of a joke, but then I haven’t read the security report either. The point is with a basic copywriting structure, you can do a lot better – and convince a lot more people – than by saying “Yes I think policing is important” and getting torn to pieces by a reporter who just knows it’s his lucky day.
Final Thoughts
Copywriting principles are persuasive principles, and they can be used in most facets of your life. The art of convincing people to take your side can save your marriage, make you more money or – if you apply it on yourself – can help you move towards the goals you want to set for yourself.
All you have to do is read this blog, and you can have all of those things. Hell, if you’re a politician, my blog can help you change the ultimate fate of global politics.
You’re welcome.