Is Your Copy Filled With Hype?
Do you worry that your copy might be too “hypey”?
Dictionary.com defines “hype” as: “an ingenious or questionable claim, method, etc., used in advertising, promotion, or publicity to intensify the effect.”
One of the additional definitions is: “a swindle, deception, or trick”.
I rather think the second one is what we have in mind when we say a copy is full of hype.
There is a place for the kind of hype that is “an ingenious…claim, method, etc., used in advertising, promotion, or publicity to intensify the effect”.
There is not a place in a respectable copywriter’s toolbox for the kind of hype that is “questionable” or that uses “deception or tricks”.
The most reliable test for whether your copy is filled with the “bad” kind of hype is simple: is the claim being made in the copy true? If so, and if you can prove that it’s true, then it’s not the “bad” kind of hype.
What’s more, if your copy is presented to the true prospects for your product or service, it won’t be perceived as hype.
Ray,
I agree…
The fear so many people have — especially when new to this style of marketing — is that they’ll “turn off” their prospect by going “over the top.”
Your post makes an important distinction.
Well done…
JP
There is a fine line to walk - the trick is knowing your audience well enough not to cross it.
If you don’t hype (the good kind) yourself nobody will.
If you do hype (the bad kind) yourself nobody else will either.