Hi, are you there? Or how to write copy for small attention spans
It's 2019. Every single thing in our lives is fighting for our attention. We design things to speed up the pace of life. We move quickly. We pause rarely.
Capturing a reader in the moment is an extremely valuable skill. It has great power that can impact decisions, feelings, thoughts, ideas...anything, really. It creates space where there normally is none.
Use it wisely.
I'm a firm believer in the power of presence. My best poetry happens in moments of stillness when what I'm feeling drives the pen rather than what I'm thinking. And I believe it's not just creativity that benefits from our full presence. I make better decisions when I'm present - when I'm actually feeling into the moment.
People today struggle with being present. But...
...life happens on the way to where you're going. It's not about arriving.
I do a lot of things to earn a living, but most of the time, I write. For a while now, I've been asking myself: how can I use what I do to help others be more present? Is there a way of writing that gets passed the constantly unconsciously thinking mind?
It's not about making readers feel this or think that. It's exactly the opposite. How can something I write pause your thinking patterns and get you to consider something right here, right now?
I believe that who can write like that, truly engages the reader. Words become actionable. Impact is made.
Words are only one means of communication
As much as I love words, they are treacherous. Language has many boundaries. While great poets often go beyond these boundaries, the reader needs to be open to grasping their meaning. In day to day life, most of us aren't.
That's why we have the arts. Many people appreciate art as a means of communication that goes beyond words. Other forms of communication are manifold. Touch. Sound. Movement.
But for practical reasons, most of our communication is done via words. Is that a problem?
It could be. Research shows that personality is deeply affected by language. And even greater, language actually affects our own cultural identity. People act differently depending on whether they're using their mother tongue or not.
How can we go beyond words without neglecting them?
The time is now
I googled "How to write to make people feel better" and stuff along the lines of the above with pretty much zero results.
I decided to dig a little deeper.
I read about creating emotions in readers. I revisited some of the books on copywriting I had read earlier. I reread my favorite poems and stories and looked for common features. I found some parallels. And after some practice and testing, I narrowed it down to 7 techniques.
I'm sharing them with you here.
7 techniques to write for presence
Empathy-driven copy
I already wrote an article about the importance of empathy-driven copy and how you write it. But empathy-driven copy isn't just about kindness and creating a bond with the reader, it also benefits presence.
By creating content that evokes empathy, readers are more likely to take action – sharing, responding, engaging, and even prompting change within their own communities.
Why? Because it makes them feel something in the moment they consume your words that affects their presence enough to spur action. It's actually pretty cool when you think about it.
You can read more about it here.
Word choice
Word choice can greatly affect readers' emotions. Some words are triggers in themselves and can be used to set off the reader. There are words that convey lightness or humor and words which have little emotional shading. Try to choose your words with this in mind.
Does a shirt feel soft or light to the touch? Is it indigo blue reminiscing of ocean waves or is it just, you know, blue? As somebody who enjoys reading and writing poetry, word choice comes easy tome but for most of you who only use writing as a means to communicate, it's important to make yourself familiar with how certain words are colored by emotions.
The best way to practice this?
- Read.
- Use different words than you'd normally use in conversations and see how the reaction changes.
Pacing
Adjust the pace for the emotion you want to create. Short sentences and paragraphs speed the pace. You can use this to take the reader to a realization you want them to have. You can use longer phrases and paragraphs to slow the momentum, to create a sense of relaxation or stillness. I like to do this after I've made my main point and want the reader to ponder and digest.
Here's an example: Engagement boosts performance. It decreases stress levels. It affects the bottom line directly. Employee engagement may actually be the most important factor when it comes to your team's well-being.
Three short sentences followed by a longer one. It's not difficult at all. But it works astoundingly well.
White Space
Did you know that readers read faster and feel the story is moving at a quicker pace when there’s lot's of white space on a page?
The way writing is formatted highly influences how it's read.
For example, after you make an important point, it may be smart to end a paragraph and leave a few lines of white. However, if you do this too often throughout a page, most readers will skim through your writing instead. Essentially, too much white space has the opposite effect of what you want. Be aware of this.
Punctuation
Give readers time to think and process. You can do this with the use of punctuation and paragraphs. I personally like to use "-" occasionally to set two parts of a statement aside brutally. It disrupts the reading flow and forces the reader to process what they've just read before they move on.
Here's an example: Employee engagement is maybe the most important factor when it comes to your team's well-being - and yes, you can affect it.
By using "-" the reader has a moment to process the statement that employee engagement is important. If that's the main point you're making, this moment is extremely valuable. Empower it.
Argue with yourself
We can use the same example for this one. To underline a point you're making, answer the questions you anticipate the reader may have to keep their focus on the writing.
"...yes, you can affect it" quickly eliminates doubts and moves the reader to the next point quite smoothly. It helps the reader stay present by answering questions that may have otherwise derailed their focus.
Attention!
Creating presence through copy is not about writing "Attention! This is important!". It's about making the reader aware of the present. That being said, you can still use attention-grabbing phrases to highlight a point:
- "Now this is important..."
- "But wait, does this really mean..."
- "Let's hold on a moment and revisit...
- "But get this:..."
- "You'll like this..."
- "The most important thing? It's..."
But why should I care about this?
Fair question. You should care about this because it's 2019. Every single thing in our lives is fighting for our attention. We design things to speed up the pace of life. We move quickly. We pause rarely.
Capturing a reader in the moment is an extremely valuable skill. It has great power that can impact decisions, feelings, thoughts, ideas...anything, really. It creates space where there normally is none.
Use it wisely.
Interested in learning more about copy, writing, and tone of voice? Shoot me a message and I'll see what I can do for you.
I've been writing professionally for over a decade and have worked with clients across all industries and cultures.
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