Don’t Bother with Copywriting‚ No One Reads Anymore
by Colin | October 30, 2008
by Colin | October 30, 2008
- Nearly 6 in 10 Americans never read another book after high school
- For college graduates, the number drops to 42%
- Average Canadian reads 1.5 books a year (blind people “read” more books!)
Now, as copywriters we can don our “worry hats” and collectively lament the death of our profession…
“Nobody’s going to read our copy! Wah wah wah.”
Or… first take a breather, and use our thinking caps instead.
“Facts” like these can throw you off your game if your belief in direct response copy isn’t rock solid. (And by “rock solid,” I mean clear-cut test results…)
Say you make the bad decision of chatting to someone at a party about your profession. (”Copywriting?” So you work at the patent office?) Say you dig yourself deeper and explain the power of long copy…
Inevitably, he asks you why you need to jumble up ad campaigns with five zillion bags of scrabble tiles.
“All those words!” he says. “I heard somewhere that 58% of folks don’t even read a book after graduating high school. Why would they read a long letter?”
Keep your cool.
While most people can’t bother with a book after high school… that doesn’t mean they don’t read.
Lonely, single guys get hooked by dating advice. Geeks devour every review of a hot, new gadget. Widows with arthritis read about painkillers.
People in pain will seek out information… and read it.
Hoarding scrabble tiles,
Colin Y.J. Chung | REALITYcopywriting.com
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October 30th, 2008 at 3:47 pm
Dear Colin,
Thank goodness for you! You’ve put it all in perspective - am so grateful. Am always horrified by people who proudly announce they’ve never read a book since school - what sort of medal are they expecting to receive???- but like you point out, they will actually avidly read anything that applies to them - instruction manuals, emails, newsletters, reports, etc etc. However, and don’t be dismayed, have never met anyone except my grandmother who hoarded scrabble tiles. You’re too young for this to be your target market!
Thankyou again for pointing out what should be obvious and lifting our spirits!
October 31st, 2008 at 1:34 pm
Reading a book is nothing like reading a long sales letter. Sales letters are typically read in one sitting, but a book requires a longer commitment. Sales letters are very focused and niche specific. A book is full of general, often times non-useful information.
What we should be asking ourself is how many people buy books? We are marketers after all, and why they buy is more important than they don’t consume.
December 24th, 2009 at 1:21 pm