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Copywriting seems to be off-tangent when talking about sales and marketing. At least, that’s what most people think. Only, the reality could not be farther from the truth. Read more…
This will sound similar to the words of Master Oo-Gui from the Kungfu Panda. One of his many famous statements: “Quit? Don’t quit?”, “Noodles? Don’t noodles?” So do we “Copywrite? Don’t copywrite?”
Of course it is definitely cheaper not to copywrite your piece of advert, that is, to only directly translate the source copy into the targeted language, without any thoughts of whether the copy would attract anyone to read it.
There has been more and more needs to produce good copies, since there is an ever increasing amount of lines of products and services, and who is to say which one of them is better than another? There are different kinds of consumers. Some are loyal, whereby they stick to one product to the end of their lives. Others, are simply product-hoppers. So it is very important to even let these people take a quick glance at your poster or flyers! So first impression counts a lot.
It is therefore not easy to capture the attention of your audience, given that there are so many advertisements out there aiming to do the same thing. As a copywriter, it not only takes a creative mind to come up with a good copy, he must also understand the needs of the consumers. Consumers needs can be created or they can be already present. For a copy to attract, it must address the needs and create an everlasting impression. It must be able to jump out from the 2D poster or billboard or TV screen and scream at the audience to “BUY ME!”
You don’t have to be a total language expert. But you need to be a whiz with wordz.
Many people may get confuse over the difference between copywriting and translation. They are sets of very different specialised skills. Where copywriting is using words to sell or promote a person, business, opinion or idea, translation is to interpret the meaning of a text and communicate that in a different language.
Although clients may seek not to have the text in a direct translation form (which is supposed to be so, given that structures of sentences formed in different languages varies), translators do not regurgitate directly what is being given and spit out in the exact same way as it was in the source language. The translator should take into account the localisation required. The flow of the sentences translated within that paragraph should flow in its target language, and not force it to flow like the source texts.
We should not equate translators to copywriters. Copywriters are creative people responsible for an advertisement’s verbal or textual content, and they are in charge of bringing out the vibrancy of the copy that will sway the audience.
So do put this in mind when you are looking for that copywriter or translator to do your job. Know what you want, so that the people serving you can give you their best.