Portfolio Guide Student Copywriters

HOW TO CREATE A COPYWRITING PORTFOLIO A Field Guide For Advertising Students

April 30, 2014 | AC 361 | Spring 2014

Why do I need a portfolio if I want to be a copywriter?

PORTFOLIOS: NOT JUST FOR

• TO

GET A JOB IN ADVERTISING, YOU'RE GOING TO NEED A BODY OF WORK IN ORDER TO PROVE THAT YOU KNOW WHAT YOU’RE DOING

•

THIS

USUALLY CONSISTS OF

• WILL

15-20

ADS

LIKELY BE THE MOST IMPORTANT BOOK YOU’LL EVER PRODUCE, AS IT WILL BE THE ONE THAT LAUNCHES YOUR CAREER

DESIGNERS

ADVERTISING APPEALS

LOGOS • LOGIC • Appeals to reason

PATHOS • EMOTION • Appeals to the emotions of target audience

ETHOS • CREDIBILITY • Appeals to character & shared values between brand & consumer

When coming up with a concept behind an ad, you must first decide on a practical approach... most appeal to either emotion, logic or brand credibility

EXAMPLES PATHOS

ETHOS LOGOS

Execution Styles based on Advertising Appeals

LOGOS

Slice of Life

PATHOS Combination

Demo

Straightforward

Shockvertisement

EXECUTION STYLES Before/After

Testimonial

ETHOS Celebrity Endorsement

Humor Comparison

COMMON EXECUTION TECHNIQUES

“When you have written your headline, you have spent eighty cents out of your dollar.”

--David Ogilvy

MAIN FUNCTIONS OF A HEADLINE Get attention Target the audience Deliver a complete message Draw the reader into the body copy 20% BODY COPY

80% HEADLINE

! Is it unique? ! Is it specific? ! Is it useful?

On the average, five times as many people read the headline as read the body copy.

! Is it urgent?

A.I.D.A. MODEL

Attention Attract the customer's attention

Interest

ATTENTION

Demonstrate advantages and benefits

INTEREST

Desire Show that you can solve the customer's problem

DESIRE

Action Get the customer to take action (buy)

ACTION

Who you’re writing it for

How that person thinks

What that person needs

REMEMBER

You cannot write copy unless you know:

“ the average millennial has the attention span of a goldfish. �

-- a goldfish millennial

CALL TO ACTION MAKE SURE YOUR CALL TO ACTION IS UNCOMPLICATED AND EASY TO SPOT. • Use verbs • Link your call to action to the benefit gained Examples Include: •

Download this free report to learn how to….

• Order Today and get FREE delivery.

• Add To Cart.

• BUY NOW. • Please Retweet.

20 Benefits

A Shoe is‌.

Bubble Method

A Product Benefit Is Something You Get From Using Whatever It Is You're Advertising. Â 1. Take ANY product and list 20 benefits.

(Don't spend more than 10 minutes on step one.)

2. Go through the list, and do one ad based on each benefit.

3. Take the 3 strongest benefits from that list 4. Try to come up with at least 5 different ads for each of those 3 benefits.

5. Pick the 3 strongest ads to serve as your first campaign. Â In the end you will determine which benefits had the most potential, and eliminate the weakest of the bunch. Â

How Well Do You Really Know Your Product?

1. Make a list. Spend 10 minutes filling in this blank:

A __________ IS‌ (Be as broad or as specific as you like..)

2. Pick the five answers you find the most interesting, and do at least one ad for each of them.

3. Try to find a more interesting way to say what you've said. Or a visual that tells the story.

When you're finished with this, you should have at least five interesting ads.

1. Start by listing 5 product benefits.

2. Pick the most interesting or most truthful benefit.

3. Write it down in the middle of a piece of paper and draw a circle around it.

4. Pull a few more bubbles out of it 5. Repeat process until you find 3 ideas worth pursuing

Start by writing: “This product is about...” Now allow yourself to fill an entire page with whatever pops into your mind about the product. Don’t hold back. Don’t be scared if naughty words or weird stuff appears from your pen. Just let your mind flow. If you’re working in a team, do one each and swap afterwards. See what ideas your partner’s mind-flow sparks with you.

Otrivin nasal spray based an entire campaign on the insight that people look dumber with their mouths open (and when your nose is blocked, your mouth has to be open). Perhaps there’s a great insight to be found in the behavior around your product or how it’s made? Find as many human truths relevant to your product as possible. Try to explore all six areas of the Insight Star.

In most product categories there’s a big fat hairy monster that just can’t be ignored. Is there any social problem relating to the category? For some cars it might be the massive effect they have on the environment. For some food categories it could be health issues. Identify the monster and think about how you can face it as a brand.

FINALIZING THE LOOK AND FEEL

ORGANIZING ITEMS Arrange Samples for maximum impact: • Industry-specific • Media specialty • Chronological

• Select a portfolio format that complements your particular style and body of work.

• Make sure all samples are free of smudges, folds, tears or extraneous markings.

• Show one item at a time to avoid a chaotic, cluttered look.

• Use pocket pages for your resume, biography and client list.

THANK YOU.

• http://www.roberthalf.com/creativegroup/how-to-create-an-onlineportfolio • http://portfoliohandbook.com/PortfolioHandbook_UCID12.pdf • http://www.thecreativeham.com/resources/portfoliolaunch/ • http://www.copywritematters.com.au/ • http://www.functional-marketing.com/aidamarketing.html#axzz30NTjfh1z • http://blog.kissmetrics.com/david-ogilvy/ • George E. Belch. Advertising and Promotion: An Integrated Marketing Communications Perspective, Mcgraw Hill, 2012.

• http://www.dsprel.com/4-great-copywriters-reveal-write-powerfulheadlines/ • Concept Maker iTunes APP: strangeloop.dk and Pixelfamily