In the most basic of terms, copywriters write copy. The persuasive prose that adorns all things advertising. Yes, we do spend countless hours on coming up with the big idea and executing all the necessary tasks to bring that idea to life. I will talk about that in another post, but for now I’m focusing on the written word.
Over the years, I’ve written a variety of TV commercials, radio spots, print ads, outdoor boards, taglines, website ideas, banner ads, e-blasts, brochures, corporate videos, infomercials, sponsorship voiceovers, posters, post cards, invitations, window clings, airport dioramas, segway decals, street team shirts, coffee sleeves, etc., et-friggin’-cetera, for a wide range of clients. From a national bank and a freight rail company, to most recently at Bailey Gardiner, a new landing page for San Diego Hospice and the banner ad below for Rockrose – an eco-savvy community built by Brookfield Homes.

Thinking back about all these different projects got me thinking about a couple of – how shall I say – “choice” assignments. Ones that have stuck with me long after the final word was typed. In no particular order, here are some random assignments I have had as a copywriter:
- For a mattress company, literature on dust mites and why you should flip your bed. These little creatures feast on your dead skin cells. And their fecal matter can be strongly allergenic. Don’t let the bed bugs bite, indeed.
- On hold messaging. Which is what you hear when you call a company’s main business line and get put on hold. I believe my copy was accompanied by a fine muzak track.
- A “Certificate of Achievement”. One of my former agencies framed a cheesy, mocked-up, award for a cricket-playing client that helped his club team win a regional tournament. Yep, you read that right. And yours truly got the call to fill in the part after, “In recognition of…”
- For a new business card, a phrase that creatively conveyed the title of copywriter. This was actually a fun one. In a supposed attempt to show how creative we were, everyone at my old agency was asked to rewrite their traditional titles. After a week of coming up with options like, “Big Idea Hunter”, “Word Slinger”, “Thinking Machine” and “Ad Jedi“, the project was scrapped by management for being too flippant. Boo.
As you can see, copywriting isn’t all coupons and brochure copy. But it isn’t exactly an ongoing Super Bowl commercial either.