The same, just in different words

A good ad copy requires literary talent

Different wording can vastly change our perception

Medical translation

I once saw a visually appealing advertisement where the company called itself ‘Craftsmen of Dentistry’ — meaning, masters of the trade. But will it make a good impression on the person who has a toothache and only cares to have it removed right away? Well, now imagine that you went to the same website and instead of “Craftsmen of Dentistry” you see quite another heading: ‘to last a lifetime’. This phrase and subsequent texts between the lines imply that the tooth will be fixed so reliably that the patient will never be required to see doctors because of it. As you can see, the same is said, but in a more impactful way. Which one would you choose if you were a clinic manager? Which one would persuade you better if you were a suffering patent?

The second headline would do better job, don’t you think? At least our client enthusiastically agreed — and time proved him right. It is not enough to have a good idea. It must be transformed into a good line — then it takes a life of its own. The difference between a plain idea and a powerful line may be not even percentage-wise, but times more!

The Lacking Ingredient

Very serious things are at stake here: the profitability of the company, the return on investment to the owners, etc. For workers, this means well-paid jobs to provide for their families.

Speaking suggestively is an art in itself! Therefore, any business should muster all attainable power of words and only then address its audience. Consequently, advertising texts should be crafted by pen masters. Unfortunately, today sales copies are created by graduates of business schools, who know about the principles of advertising but lack thorough philological education.

Mustering the power of words

While working in the translation agency Magistrai I came across an ingenious advertising campaign. All great in terms of marketing but lousy in philological terms. Our job was to make it shine. The end result? — A stunning success! So, the shocking secret is that ad or sales copies are often created by business professionals without much regard for the philological part of it. The result is that the text is dull prose when it could have been charming poetry.

Astonishing Side Effect

There is one less obvious benefit for sorting the marketing message out. At first we noticed this effect in our company and then had our observation confirmed by our clients. When a company produces a strong marketing message, it captivates not only clients but first of all the insiders. Management and employees get closer together, strife goes away, people start working as a united team. All this without any changes in management, pay rise, etc. By far the easiest and cheapest way to overcome internal problems in a business.

There are both external and internal benefits to a captivating marketing message

Therefore creating copies should be committed to philologists. The best-selling texts are created by philologists with a wide range of humanitarian perspective and a solid life experience. The basics of how to write sales copies can be learned in a month. It’s the similar to giving an actor a a new role. But to prepare an actor, just as to educate a master of letters, will take years. Therefore, if you want a truly impactful sales copy, please contact the translation agency Magistrai. Our experienced humanitarian philologists are into creating ads and sales letters and top the basics with literary powers.

A World of Difference

Once a beggar was sitting in the street asking for alms with the inscription “I am blind” on a piece of cardboard. People passed by indifferently, and his can stayed empty. Once a luxuriously dressed woman walked by. She paused, pulled out a pen and wrote something on the other side of the cardboard. Soon, the coins began to clink into the can. When the same woman visited the beggar again in the evening, he asked what she had written there? And the woman calmly replied: ‘The same, but in different words’.

This article was prepared on the basis of the video content of the 15th episode of Tiško kanaliukas. Tiško kanaliukas ir a marketing arm of the language service Magistrai who create texts of enhanced impact. If you would consider to commit writing or editing your marketing message to us, please visit contact our office.