Read Me Writing, 3 (and Selfie Sensation)

Lesson 3: Making the magic happen

Copy that achieves sticky status tends to exhibit certain qualities. These have been understood–with varying degrees of clarity and with changing emphasis–for many years.

For our purpose a “sticky line” is any headline, slogan, tag line, and so on that lodges in its audience’s brains and refuses to budge. Sticky lines tend to appear at the top or bottom of a piece of communication, although the principles explained here work equally well for any compressed text in any location–captions, conclusions, summaries, e-mail subject lines, etc.

In Read Me. 10 Lessons for Writing Great Copy lesson three takes the long-copy message of lesson two and crunches it into that one, single, memorable statement that people at work just cannot stop uttering at all the appropriate and inappropriate moments until you are ready to strangle the life out of the adman who created it while simultaneously wondering if it’s available at the store up the street.

Each lesson comes with a “workout”, a challenge to try it for yourself. Like the math problems in school, but with less groaning. I want the practice, and double-bonus that I can ask for feedback. Please?

This workout is particularly fun. Unlike the creep-factor of the workouts in lesson one. I skipped posting lesson two because it was boring (but in case you’re interested it’s on page two (link way down below at the very bottom)).

Workout

…put all this into practice by writing some sticky lines.

Product and Client: You!
Audience: A prospective romantic partner.
Task: Write one or more sticky lines that sell you to a prospective mate. This could be as obvious as a short dating-site ad, or as quirky as a tagline you append to your name. Or something else entirely.

I’ve been looking for an excuse for some shameless selfie sharing, and this is just it. Since dating sites, apps, and whatnot come with a picture here’s my take on the assignment selfie style. Sticky line in the caption.

Down to earth with my head in the clouds.

*****

A bad ass, not a piece of ass.

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Chill

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Connoisseur of the finer things. Expert in styrofoam cup coffee.

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And one you’re all familiar with because I still think it does what I want it to do two years after writing it. What more do you need to know? Keep clicking, you’ll find out.

I’m grilling in a dress. What more do you need to know?

What’s your tagline? How did you come up with it, and why does it work for you?

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*Featured and Post Images: Copyright Melanie (WritingInBoots) — selfie sensation

**The ads (which may appear) below are not mine, but they keep this free for me. Do with them as you choose.

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