3 Ways Becoming a Copywriter Has Changed the Way I View the World
Even before beginning my career as a copywriter, I always had an eye for detail and a passion for perfect grammar. Nothing gives me more of a thrill than seeing ‘its’ and ‘it’s’ used correctly in the same sentence. Since turning my love of spelling, punctuation and communication in general into my actual job, and learning how to work closely with graphic designers and other copywriters, I’ve only become more obsessed. Here are three ways that becoming a copywriter has changed the way I view the world around me.
1. Analysing ads and billboards to the nth degree
No longer can I stroll past a billboard on the side of a building or ignore an ad posted in a U-Bahn station (the German underground) — now my brain instantly kicks into copywriter mode and I find myself scrutinising everything from font choice to phrasing. Whether it’s making mental notes of clever wordplay or ideas that I want to steal, or shaking my head and tutting at awkward spacing, low legibility or a case of a bad translation, the way I look at how other companies advertise has been permanently changed.
Since I’ve been given an inside look into the world of marketing, I like to think I’ve developed somewhat of a shield against being mindlessly advertised to, and I no longer see just the surface of the finished product. I can see the difficult briefs, the hours of design work, the thought behind the colour scheme and the counting of character limits that went into the final result. The same thing even applies to TV ads; before I might have thought an ad was loud or annoying without necessarily knowing why, now I judge everything from the frame rate to the choice of music. Sometimes this insider knowledge can feel like an advantage… but it does mean my work brain is pretty much always engaged.
2. Online shopping turns into competitor research
I won’t deny it — as lockdown in Berlin has dragged on, restaurants and bars have remained a thing of the past and I get most of my excitement from the weekly grocery shopping trip, I have found myself doing far too much online shopping (what can I say, I guess waiting for a package to arrive gives me something to look forward to).
Since starting at Wayfair, however, it’s become almost impossible to just casually browse a website. Instead, I am permanently in ‘competitor research’ mode, scanning their homepage, comparing their way of making promotional content, judging the navigability of their website in general, and, of course, critiquing the copy. I can’t simply read a product description anymore without having my red pen mentally at the ready, and spend half my time wishing I could offer my services to a number of sites whose copy doesn’t meet my personal standards.
On the other hand, seeing copy from some of my favourite brands — brands which are completely different to Wayfair in everything from product to mission statement — and trying to think of ways to work my favourite parts of their style into my own writing, while still staying true to our brand and tone, is always a challenge.
3. Friends asking for a quick proofread will probably regret it.
It often happens that my friends, boyfriend or family will ask for a quick proofread of something they’ve written, be it anything from a work email, to an update of their CV, to a class presentation. It’s not uncommon to get a text saying: ‘Can you quickly check if this sounds okay to you?’
Let me tell you, sometimes it takes superhuman strength to limit myself to a ‘Top 5’ list of corrections and hold myself back from completely rewriting that work email or giving unwanted layout feedback on that poster they’ve made for an event they’re volunteering with. The phrase ‘I’m sorry but this is my job!’ has been uttered more times than I care to count. The internal struggle between wanting their writing to sound better without crossing the line between giving friendly advice and an overbearing critique is something I battle with every. Single. Time.
I have to remind myself that a check over a friend’s writing does not need to be given the same level of QA as my day-to-day work, and that it’s not the end of the world if they decide they’re happy using the wrong word, or choose to spell something in American English — thankfully, my job will be there waiting for me to be as pedantic and scrutinising as I like!
