Copywriting: Successful Writing for Design, Advertising, Marketing
£4.70
Many people train in graphic design and typography, but writing copy is often assumed to be a natural talent. However, there are simple techniques you can employ to craft strong written content with ease.
Using a series of exercises and illustrated examples of award-winning campaigns and communication, Copywriting takes you through step-by-step processes that can help you to write content quickly and effectively.
With insightful interviews from leading copywriters, as well as illustrated case studies of major brands that explore the challenges involved in creating cutting-edge copy, this book will provide you with all the tools you need to become a confident and versatile creative copywriter.
With chapters devoted to each specific medium, the book teaches the art of writing great copy for advertising and direct marketing, retailing, catalogues, company magazines, websites, branding and more.
Read more
Additional information
| Publisher | 1st edition (2 Mar. 2009), Laurence King Publishing |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| File size | 36388 KB |
| Text-to-Speech | Enabled |
| Screen Reader | Supported |
| Enhanced typesetting | Enabled |
| X-Ray | Not Enabled |
| Word Wise | Not Enabled |
| Sticky notes | On Kindle Scribe |
| Print length | 442 pages |
by Gurminder
Before I start my review of this book, I would like to suggest that anyone who is interested in buying a book on copywriting should buy Andy Maslen’s excellent
Write To Sell: The Ultimate Guide to Great Copywriting
. Read that book first before reading any other book on the topic. It’s arguably one of the best books on copywriting available.
Now to *Copywriting by Mark Shaw. I’ve awarded this book two stars for effort – it seems to have been a labour of love for Shaw and there is no doubting that he has put a lot of time and effort into his book. However, the book is completely let down by its bizarre (almost insane) layout and the tedious writing style. I’m not sure whether Shaw is at fault for this, or his publishers – I suspect a combination of both. The book covers writing for:
-advertising and direct marketing
-retailing and products
-catalogues
-company magazines/newsletters
-websites
-marketing and internal communications
Taking the layout first, the book is, quite frankly, a mess. The font is sans serif and very small, rendering it incredibly difficult to read – my eyes started to hurt just looking at some of the pages. The main text is interspersed with small quotes (in the margins and in italics) from copywriting luminaries. Dotted throughout the book are boxouts and chapter summaries, which are printed on luminous yellow pages. That there are so many of these gives the book a “Yellow Pages” feel. The case studies are presented on dull beige/grey pages, but the part-italics/part-sans serif font make reading difficult (again). Be warned, this is a very text-heavy book and it’s not easy to use a reference – something you can dip in and out of. The use of imagery and examples of adverts, billboards, websites is welcomed, but let down by the awful reproductions. The paper quality isn’t good and so the images haven’t come out well at all.
Content-wise, at every opportunity, Shaw seems to have used four or five words when one would have done. There is no flow to the text – it’s not written as an academic text, but it is completely devoid of any life. Long paragraphs of rambling text go nowhere, and at times treat the reader like an idiot (for example, “retailing is about making profits, in this case by selling products to customers who visit your premises or website”). If Shaw isn’t going into minutiae details, he’s straying from the topic of copywriting and covering areas such as retailing and creating product brands. He’s trying to cover too much and ends up over-complicating the subject.
Overall, I found this a poor book. If you want something short and sharp on copywriting that you can keep on your desk as a reference book and read in one short sitting, then look no further than an Andy Maslen book. *Copywriting by Mark Shaw makes grim reading in comparison.
by E. M. Hobo
It’s a beautiful book, but I would call this a coffee table book, that’s fun for people visiting your advertising agency to browse through. There’s plenty of information in there too, but it’s relatively buried and steers clear from the “keep it simple” principle, that copywriters should stick to. It focuses too much on the looks of the book.
by EE
This Book has all the information, examples and practical application you need!
whether your a novice at “copywriting” or an expert! you will definitely appreciate all this book has to offer!
by Anrika
Only a couple chapters in but this book has already helped me organise my work and the briefs I take. Great handy book so far!
by THE Music Enthusiast
Mark Shaw has clearly put a lot of effort into producing a quality book on copywriting. ‘Copywriting’ is colourful, it’s full of sensible advice on writing all kinds of copy and there are some interesting interviews and case studies. There are examples of successful advertising campaigns too, plus advice on drafting copy, desiging website pages -the chapter on writing web copy was particularly good – and on taking briefs, and exercises to help you improve your own copywriting skills.
The one thing this book badly needs, though, is some sort of spice to the writing. The copy is surprisingly dull and, in some places, quite technical, making the book read more like an instruction manual. Coupled with the long colums of text, it all makes the book feel a lot more heavy-going.
Granted ‘Copywriting’ is a text book, but I think that books on copywriting should be able to engage the reader and never feel like a chore. A lot of books on copywriting tend to be good reads in themself; unfortunately, this isn’t one of them. To get the best out of the wealth of information there is in this book, you should read maybe just a couple of pages a day.
by Dhani
It’s a great book giving an overview of Copywriting and excellent examples, I’d recommend it to people who’d like to start on copywriting or at least finding out about it.
The book would be easier to read if it were using a serif typeface, there are a lot to read and hard to follow the lines.
That’s the only letdown I found.
by B Wilson
I have really enjoyed reading this book because it is:
— COMPREHENSIVE – it has several detailed chapters on writing for websites, direct mail, shop displays, catalogues and magazines.
— EASY TO READ – each chapter is broken down into clear sections with case studies, interviews, exercises and pictures.
Only a couple of cons:
— Some of the time the text is written on a bright yellow background, making it hard to read. This only occurs at the beginning of each chapter and in a few other places.
— It could be out of date in 5 years, as the world is changing so quickly. But most of the techniques and tips in the book will last forever.
SUMMARY: This book is not a complete guide to copywriting, but is a great starting point. If you want a book on websites or so on, read this book and then buy a book specifically designed for website copy etc. Overall, a very valuable book.
by MH
I bought this after seeing a presentation from the author.
He talked about being minimalistice with your words.
Then I bought the book and wondered why he didn’t apply his advice to himself!
I want short, precise, focus, practical advice with lots of examples – Small print, many pages will never get around to reading it all. – pity it probably is good