Copywriting
COPYWRITING
The long and the short of it, from posters to manifestos.
The long and the short of it, from posters to manifestos.
POSTERS
A poster should be understandable in three seconds flat - about as long as it takes to drive past one.The discipline of writing them - keeping the idea simple and striking - is equally applicable to writing posts, tweets or anything else that needs to instantly cut through clutter to get noticed.
A poster should be understandable in three seconds flat - about as long as it takes to drive past one.The discipline of writing them - keeping the idea simple and striking - is equally applicable to writing posts, tweets or anything else that needs to instantly cut through clutter to get noticed.
(during petrol price war, when Mobil had petrol stations)
HEADLINES
Ads, articles, emails, tweets, posts, blogs... they all need a hook.
Ads, articles, emails, tweets, posts, blogs... they all need a hook.
FINANCIAL TIMES:
Launch of WEEKEND colour magazine
These in-store posters, announcing the new FT colour supplement, were designed to appear inside newsagents.
They were up for months, so had to bear repeat reading.
Each highlighted headline is picked out of text that tells a fuller story.
Launch of WEEKEND colour magazine
These in-store posters, announcing the new FT colour supplement, were designed to appear inside newsagents.
They were up for months, so had to bear repeat reading.
Each highlighted headline is picked out of text that tells a fuller story.
LONDON'S BUSES
Bus backs
directly targetting drivers who might be tempted to abuse bus lanes - and a bus side encouraging them to just give up driving in London.
BODY COPY
Even when it's not read, some nicely set copy can add gravitas, giving the impression that something of substance is being said.
GOOD SERVICE FEELS GREAT
Life's a breeze with people who treat you properly. When their service goes beyond expectations, you know you've chosen well. Who's clever, eh? Is it you? Is it? Yes, it is.
Life's a breeze with people who treat you properly. When their service goes beyond expectations, you know you've chosen well. Who's clever, eh? Is it you? Is it? Yes, it is.
GOOD SERVICE FEELS GREAT
Even sheep don't appreciate being treated like sheep. It's much nicer if one person does as you ask and personally makes sure you're satisfied. Without bleating.
Even sheep don't appreciate being treated like sheep. It's much nicer if one person does as you ask and personally makes sure you're satisfied. Without bleating.
GOOD SERVICE FEELS GREAT
Oh, to travel. The sun on your face, the wind in your hair and perhaps your ears flowing behind you. Having everything taken care of makes travelling easier, so you can happily hop off all over the place.
Oh, to travel. The sun on your face, the wind in your hair and perhaps your ears flowing behind you. Having everything taken care of makes travelling easier, so you can happily hop off all over the place.
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YELLOW?
Do you think of it at all? Yes, sure, it’s everywhere - but it’s also kind of nowhere. Yellow’s a 'don’t-mind-me-I’m-just-doing-my-job' sort of colour. Come to think of it, it’s not really provocative enough to be a proper colour. It’s more of a hue. Old huey. A bit washed out and kind of sickly looking, just getting on with it. Helping out with the flesh tones. Giving a hand with the oranges and the greens. On its own, without the other colours, yellow really isn’t much at all. It's just £6.99.
Do you think of it at all? Yes, sure, it’s everywhere - but it’s also kind of nowhere. Yellow’s a 'don’t-mind-me-I’m-just-doing-my-job' sort of colour. Come to think of it, it’s not really provocative enough to be a proper colour. It’s more of a hue. Old huey. A bit washed out and kind of sickly looking, just getting on with it. Helping out with the flesh tones. Giving a hand with the oranges and the greens. On its own, without the other colours, yellow really isn’t much at all. It's just £6.99.
YOU LIKE CYAN
Cyan’s cool. But hey, it’s a blue - and all blues are cool. You love the way cyan helps capture the memories of glinting, azure seas. How it fills those cloudless skies. The way it can bring life to blue eyes or reflect an indigo mood. Without cyan, your days would be too warm and your nights too black. It doesn’t shout about it, but cyan does a lot of work for the greens. When it gets it together with look-at-me magenta, nervous yellow or bold black, it’s usually a calming influence. On its own it’s a cool £6.99
Cyan’s cool. But hey, it’s a blue - and all blues are cool. You love the way cyan helps capture the memories of glinting, azure seas. How it fills those cloudless skies. The way it can bring life to blue eyes or reflect an indigo mood. Without cyan, your days would be too warm and your nights too black. It doesn’t shout about it, but cyan does a lot of work for the greens. When it gets it together with look-at-me magenta, nervous yellow or bold black, it’s usually a calming influence. On its own it’s a cool £6.99
Ever wished you had a camera that takes a shot just before you take a shot?
Introducing the Sony Digital Stills Camera. You press the shutter and, a split-second earlier, it takes a picture. Sorcery? No, circuitry. Set to ‘Time Machine’ mode, the memory can recall what was in frame a moment before you actually took the shot. So, even when your timing’s less than perfect, your photograph needn’t be. If you’re still not happy with the end result, simply delete it and try again. And again. And again. Considering the endless possibilities of Sony digital photography, it looks like conventional cameras will soon be out of the picture.SONY
Introducing the Sony Digital Stills Camera. You press the shutter and, a split-second earlier, it takes a picture. Sorcery? No, circuitry. Set to ‘Time Machine’ mode, the memory can recall what was in frame a moment before you actually took the shot. So, even when your timing’s less than perfect, your photograph needn’t be. If you’re still not happy with the end result, simply delete it and try again. And again. And again. Considering the endless possibilities of Sony digital photography, it looks like conventional cameras will soon be out of the picture.SONY
We'd be delighted if you dressed for dinner.
Any old thing will do.
Whichever of our three restaurant cars you choose to dine in, each meal is an occasion that merits proper attire (so rare, these days).
Fine dining is like theatre: the opulent interiors of our dining cars set the stage and our Silver Service Stewards set the tables.
In the wings, our chefs conjure up culinary delights while guests prepare to make their entrances. No-one needs any prompting to make a smart wardrobe call.
Period and traditional outfits mingle with modern as diners take their seats. The programme for the evening's entertainment, the menu, is scanned eagerly.
What will the main attractions be? Fresh Brittany Lobster? Salt Marsh Lamb from Mont St Michel?
How might they be dressed?
The lavish gastronomic production has had much critical acclaim - and ever night is a gala performance.
VENICE SIMPLON ORIENT-EXPRESS
YOUR CARRIAGE AWAITS
Any old thing will do.
Whichever of our three restaurant cars you choose to dine in, each meal is an occasion that merits proper attire (so rare, these days).
Fine dining is like theatre: the opulent interiors of our dining cars set the stage and our Silver Service Stewards set the tables.
In the wings, our chefs conjure up culinary delights while guests prepare to make their entrances. No-one needs any prompting to make a smart wardrobe call.
Period and traditional outfits mingle with modern as diners take their seats. The programme for the evening's entertainment, the menu, is scanned eagerly.
What will the main attractions be? Fresh Brittany Lobster? Salt Marsh Lamb from Mont St Michel?
How might they be dressed?
The lavish gastronomic production has had much critical acclaim - and ever night is a gala performance.
VENICE SIMPLON ORIENT-EXPRESS
YOUR CARRIAGE AWAITS
Japan exports more gold than it imports.
Yet it’s never had a gold mine.
Nobody remembers the Yokohama Gold Rush of '49 - for one simple reason: there wasn't one. Japan has precious few natural resources and even fewer precious metals. It's one of the reasons that the Japanese people themselves became so resourceful. Even they haven't mastered alchemy yet, so that wasn't what put Japan in its enviable situation - it was acumen.
While the rest of the world was casually tossing away old mobile phones, computers and other appliances, the Japanese were among the first to realise something invaluable. The whispered cry went out: There's gold in them there scrap heaps!
Gold, an excellent electrical conductor, is used in the circuitry of everything from calculators to microwaves. Japanese entrepreneurs developed technology with the Midas touch to extract these tiny amounts of gold cost-effectively. They then stole a march on the rest of the world by importing everyone’s unwanted tech.
The South Africans and Australiansextract around 5 grams of gold from one tonne of ore. The Japanese discovered that 1 tonne of old mobile phones could yield up to 150 grams of gold, 3 kg of silver, 100 kg of copper plus smaller amounts of platinum, mercury, titanium and other precious metals. With prospects like that, who needs mines?
It may have come a little later than in the rest of the world, but Japan got its gold rush after all. By spotting an early opportunity and pioneering the industry now known as urban mining, some shrewd investors saw growth when everyone else was seeing piles of useless scrap.
Keen insights and intuitive thinking inform the advice we give our clients. Whatever they ask us to look at, they usually find that we see something else they weren't expecting. We simply can’t help making connections and seeing opportunities. It's our instinct.
GRANT THORNTON An instinct for growth.
Audit | Tax | Advisory
Yet it’s never had a gold mine.
Nobody remembers the Yokohama Gold Rush of '49 - for one simple reason: there wasn't one. Japan has precious few natural resources and even fewer precious metals. It's one of the reasons that the Japanese people themselves became so resourceful. Even they haven't mastered alchemy yet, so that wasn't what put Japan in its enviable situation - it was acumen.
While the rest of the world was casually tossing away old mobile phones, computers and other appliances, the Japanese were among the first to realise something invaluable. The whispered cry went out: There's gold in them there scrap heaps!
Gold, an excellent electrical conductor, is used in the circuitry of everything from calculators to microwaves. Japanese entrepreneurs developed technology with the Midas touch to extract these tiny amounts of gold cost-effectively. They then stole a march on the rest of the world by importing everyone’s unwanted tech.
The South Africans and Australiansextract around 5 grams of gold from one tonne of ore. The Japanese discovered that 1 tonne of old mobile phones could yield up to 150 grams of gold, 3 kg of silver, 100 kg of copper plus smaller amounts of platinum, mercury, titanium and other precious metals. With prospects like that, who needs mines?
It may have come a little later than in the rest of the world, but Japan got its gold rush after all. By spotting an early opportunity and pioneering the industry now known as urban mining, some shrewd investors saw growth when everyone else was seeing piles of useless scrap.
Keen insights and intuitive thinking inform the advice we give our clients. Whatever they ask us to look at, they usually find that we see something else they weren't expecting. We simply can’t help making connections and seeing opportunities. It's our instinct.
GRANT THORNTON An instinct for growth.
Audit | Tax | Advisory
More4 LAUNCH BROCHURE
A teaser campaign had made out that the channel would be X-rated. This brochure, distributed with all Sunday supplements, had to explain what was actually meant by 'adult entertainment'.
A teaser campaign had made out that the channel would be X-rated. This brochure, distributed with all Sunday supplements, had to explain what was actually meant by 'adult entertainment'.
More4: THE NEW ADULT ENTERTAINMENT CHANNEL FROM 4
OK. It’s confession time.
Our idea of adult entertainment is programmes that appeal to adult minds.
More4 is the love child of Channel 4, with one finger on the pulse and another defiantly raised to convention.
It’s time to reclaim territory for free-thinking, open-minded grown-ups who want to be challenged as well as entertained.
If you enjoy having your feelings aroused, your mind stimulated and your ribs tickled, read on...
OK. It’s confession time.
Our idea of adult entertainment is programmes that appeal to adult minds.
More4 is the love child of Channel 4, with one finger on the pulse and another defiantly raised to convention.
It’s time to reclaim territory for free-thinking, open-minded grown-ups who want to be challenged as well as entertained.
If you enjoy having your feelings aroused, your mind stimulated and your ribs tickled, read on...
Stop asking what’s on and start asking what’s going on.
You don’t have to be over 18 to watch more 4, but you will need a broad, inquisitive outlook and a sophisticated sense of humour.
Our aim is to feed your appetite for TV that starts conversations.
Focus groups haven’t dictated our programming – gut instinct has.
There’s news that presents the facts. And then questions them.
There are first-run documentaries for those with a thirst for knowledge and films that don’t spoon-feed you the plot.
There’s comedy that doesn’t rely on the laughter track to point out the punch lines.
There’s contemporary culture, drama, reality and pure entertainment – sometimes all in one programme.
And yes, there are repeats – but they’re not just ‘another chance to see’. They’re another chance to be stimulated, provoked, outraged, confronted, amused or taken aback.
You don’t have to be over 18 to watch more 4, but you will need a broad, inquisitive outlook and a sophisticated sense of humour.
Our aim is to feed your appetite for TV that starts conversations.
Focus groups haven’t dictated our programming – gut instinct has.
There’s news that presents the facts. And then questions them.
There are first-run documentaries for those with a thirst for knowledge and films that don’t spoon-feed you the plot.
There’s comedy that doesn’t rely on the laughter track to point out the punch lines.
There’s contemporary culture, drama, reality and pure entertainment – sometimes all in one programme.
And yes, there are repeats – but they’re not just ‘another chance to see’. They’re another chance to be stimulated, provoked, outraged, confronted, amused or taken aback.
This is adult entertainment.
On the following pages you’ll find details of what we believe are islands of quality in a sea of digital dross.
Here are some of the highlights of what’s in store:
The big launch event is A very special secretary – a comedy –drama of the ins and outs of the Blunkett-Quinn affair. (All right, so there is some sex, but it is actually integral to the plot).
More4 News is conveniently scheduled at 8 p.m. for those who couldn’t catch the news on Channel 4. It will delve deeper than most, with live studio debates on the issues of the day.
We’ll give you plenty to talk about with ‘must-see-but-sometimes-can’t-bear-to-watch’ television events such as Capturing the Friedmans, a disturbing revelation of child abuse, Animals, a drama-documentary about animal activists and The Corporation, which considers multinationals as if they were individual people, puts them on the couch and draws alarming conclusions.
Our Best of the US programmes will be just that, with new episodes of The West Wing, the cringingly funny tribulations of Larry David in Curb your enthusiasm and topical stateside satire with the dry and acerbic Jon Stewart in The Daily Show.
And, oh yes, those repeats. We prefer to call ours Another opportunity to view – because you really shouldn’t have missed them in the first place.
In the future we’ll be keeping a critical eye out for unusual and original programmes from home and abroad. One we’ve already picked up is 30 days, a series of role-reversal experiments introduced by Morgan Spurlock, famed for his own month-long ordeal in Supersize me. He’ll have a homophobe living with a gay man, a Christian living as a Muslim and you realising that reality TV can actually be worth watching.
On the following pages you’ll find details of what we believe are islands of quality in a sea of digital dross.
Here are some of the highlights of what’s in store:
The big launch event is A very special secretary – a comedy –drama of the ins and outs of the Blunkett-Quinn affair. (All right, so there is some sex, but it is actually integral to the plot).
More4 News is conveniently scheduled at 8 p.m. for those who couldn’t catch the news on Channel 4. It will delve deeper than most, with live studio debates on the issues of the day.
We’ll give you plenty to talk about with ‘must-see-but-sometimes-can’t-bear-to-watch’ television events such as Capturing the Friedmans, a disturbing revelation of child abuse, Animals, a drama-documentary about animal activists and The Corporation, which considers multinationals as if they were individual people, puts them on the couch and draws alarming conclusions.
Our Best of the US programmes will be just that, with new episodes of The West Wing, the cringingly funny tribulations of Larry David in Curb your enthusiasm and topical stateside satire with the dry and acerbic Jon Stewart in The Daily Show.
And, oh yes, those repeats. We prefer to call ours Another opportunity to view – because you really shouldn’t have missed them in the first place.
In the future we’ll be keeping a critical eye out for unusual and original programmes from home and abroad. One we’ve already picked up is 30 days, a series of role-reversal experiments introduced by Morgan Spurlock, famed for his own month-long ordeal in Supersize me. He’ll have a homophobe living with a gay man, a Christian living as a Muslim and you realising that reality TV can actually be worth watching.
NOOR BANK Brand Book
This project, for Wolff Olins Dubai, was part of establishing a 'can do' internal culture at the bank.
The language had to be sensitive to Sharia banking traditions and values while engendering an entrepreneurial spirit.
This project, for Wolff Olins Dubai, was part of establishing a 'can do' internal culture at the bank.
The language had to be sensitive to Sharia banking traditions and values while engendering an entrepreneurial spirit.
MANIFESTOS
Brand Manifesto? Mission Statement? Rallying Speech?Whatever you prefer to call it, a manifesto that sums up a brand's purpose, attitude and values is an invaluable tool. Even if it's never published or distributed, it can inform the intent, language and tone of all communications. It can also be the benchmark against which all work can be checked.
Brand Manifesto? Mission Statement? Rallying Speech?Whatever you prefer to call it, a manifesto that sums up a brand's purpose, attitude and values is an invaluable tool. Even if it's never published or distributed, it can inform the intent, language and tone of all communications. It can also be the benchmark against which all work can be checked.
