Mar 20, 2023Liked by π π π €π π π π π π
Ooh, you scratched, Paul, where I've itched for years (you also wrote a great post about a topic I've loved for decades...lest there be any confusion....heaven forfend)! As a longtime lover of words, and with a dad who was a radio ad exec (and who suckled at the electronic teat of '60s TV), I've always been fascinated by ad words, and how corps say things in specific ways they want us to hear!
I'll never forget the day Dad came home with a bumper sticker for me that he got from an ad agency (of all places!)...."Eschew Obfuscation." Well, being "just" a high schooler who promptly slapped it onto my back bumper (he warned me I shoulda put it on the back of my car, instead), I had to ask him what it meant! Another piece to the ad-game puzzle!!
Like Apple's ad has always irked me....you KNOW they know that "Think different" flies in the face of grammar/language correctness! Holy adverb, Batman! But, maybe that was their point...sub-consciously, the reader may know that that's "incorrect," but we're now shown that Apple is thinking differently by saying it THAT way! They must have a reason.
And, what's with the periods? I can't think of one, specifically now, but it doesn't matter. Even that pesky Apple ad could be updated to read, agonizingly, "Think. Different." And, why hasn't it? (or, has it?)!!!
Not that they've done it, but we wouldn't be surprised to see this stupidity: "Milk. It. Does. A. Body. Good."!!! I'd love to have been around the conference table of the ad agency who FIRST proposed that grammar-ly abomination! C'mon, candy folks: "M.&.M.s: Melts. In. Your. Mouth."π±
Somebody here, I'm hoping, can come up with a real one...I can't seem to go one magazine or TV show without seeing an ad where all 84 words in their tagline has a period after it!!! Thanks again, Paul.....tantalizingly thought-provoking! How's this? "Paul's Substack: Because. Deplatformable. Newsletter."π
Perfect. Now. I. can't. stop. thinking. about. periods. after. the. words. (But it is kind of an exercise in typing). Thanks for the great (as usual) comment, Brad!
BTW, the periods after the words are like exclamation marks. Β―\_(γ)_/Β―
Mar 20, 2023Liked by π π π €π π π π π π
You can anticipate my question to those around the table: "Then, why not simply make them exclamation marks?" Or, did they, and then craftily eliminate the vertical line, hoping we wouldn't notice?π±
Mar 23, 2023Liked by π π π €π π π π π π
Thanks, Mitchell! Good on ya.....that's hilarious! I wanna spend more time with it tomorrow, but I scanned it just now (kinda late). The germ of creativity always fascinates me.....like, as I think I mentioned, the first guy (or gal) who did the period thing.....what....NO blowback? And, how did that person push it thru assuming it might've gotten some forceful push-back?
One of my all-time faves is the assumed question that's answered in the tag: "Maytag: Because you have vegetables" or whatever. "Alpo. Because your dog's hungry"! One I'd love to see: "Acme Widgets. Because.....huh, we don't really know.....you got anything?"
Mar 23, 2023Liked by π π π €π π π π π π
"Did I read MAD as a kid"?!? I subscribed AND once sent for a box of a couple dozen compilation MAD paperbacks, all in the '60s (for perspective, I was 12 in '67)!! I did everything BUT mainline their ink!! And, I'm sure their view of Mad Ave influenced my awareness and unusual focus on, especially, TV ads!
Mad Ave, and certainly internet fads in ads, are certainly copycats, especially when anything even remotely effective is determined. What we've been discussing is what companies (and DC leaders) hope the masses don't discover: How they do what they do, and what makes the way they do things so effective, pervasive, and destructive (see DC today v. TikTok...as current as today's headlines)!!
Mar 20, 2023Β·edited Mar 20, 2023Liked by π π π €π π π π π π
Thanks Paul, perfect timing that your post (this post) arrived in my inbox this morning, as I've embarked this past week on my copywriting journey.
I just picked up the audio and print version (4th edition) of Bob Bly's book -- waiting for the print version to arrive in the mail. The audio book is engaging. And, the narrator, Barry Abrams, is outstanding. His voice goes perfectly with this type of content.
Also -- to add to the list, Jim Edwards and his "Copywriting Secrets" book -- with forward by Russell Brunson of "Dotcom Secrets" fame. 'Also delving into Jim's book.
For the latest on what Jim Edwards is up to, check out his "new" site...
I loved reading this, Paul. Lessons to be learned here for anyone who writes, not just copywriting. Thanks for the research you put into this. π
Thanks so much. Glad to see you back!
Ooh, you scratched, Paul, where I've itched for years (you also wrote a great post about a topic I've loved for decades...lest there be any confusion....heaven forfend)! As a longtime lover of words, and with a dad who was a radio ad exec (and who suckled at the electronic teat of '60s TV), I've always been fascinated by ad words, and how corps say things in specific ways they want us to hear!
I'll never forget the day Dad came home with a bumper sticker for me that he got from an ad agency (of all places!)...."Eschew Obfuscation." Well, being "just" a high schooler who promptly slapped it onto my back bumper (he warned me I shoulda put it on the back of my car, instead), I had to ask him what it meant! Another piece to the ad-game puzzle!!
Like Apple's ad has always irked me....you KNOW they know that "Think different" flies in the face of grammar/language correctness! Holy adverb, Batman! But, maybe that was their point...sub-consciously, the reader may know that that's "incorrect," but we're now shown that Apple is thinking differently by saying it THAT way! They must have a reason.
And, what's with the periods? I can't think of one, specifically now, but it doesn't matter. Even that pesky Apple ad could be updated to read, agonizingly, "Think. Different." And, why hasn't it? (or, has it?)!!!
Not that they've done it, but we wouldn't be surprised to see this stupidity: "Milk. It. Does. A. Body. Good."!!! I'd love to have been around the conference table of the ad agency who FIRST proposed that grammar-ly abomination! C'mon, candy folks: "M.&.M.s: Melts. In. Your. Mouth."π±
Somebody here, I'm hoping, can come up with a real one...I can't seem to go one magazine or TV show without seeing an ad where all 84 words in their tagline has a period after it!!! Thanks again, Paul.....tantalizingly thought-provoking! How's this? "Paul's Substack: Because. Deplatformable. Newsletter."π
Perfect. Now. I. can't. stop. thinking. about. periods. after. the. words. (But it is kind of an exercise in typing). Thanks for the great (as usual) comment, Brad!
BTW, the periods after the words are like exclamation marks. Β―\_(γ)_/Β―
You can anticipate my question to those around the table: "Then, why not simply make them exclamation marks?" Or, did they, and then craftily eliminate the vertical line, hoping we wouldn't notice?π±
Thanks, Mitchell! Good on ya.....that's hilarious! I wanna spend more time with it tomorrow, but I scanned it just now (kinda late). The germ of creativity always fascinates me.....like, as I think I mentioned, the first guy (or gal) who did the period thing.....what....NO blowback? And, how did that person push it thru assuming it might've gotten some forceful push-back?
One of my all-time faves is the assumed question that's answered in the tag: "Maytag: Because you have vegetables" or whatever. "Alpo. Because your dog's hungry"! One I'd love to see: "Acme Widgets. Because.....huh, we don't really know.....you got anything?"
"Did I read MAD as a kid"?!? I subscribed AND once sent for a box of a couple dozen compilation MAD paperbacks, all in the '60s (for perspective, I was 12 in '67)!! I did everything BUT mainline their ink!! And, I'm sure their view of Mad Ave influenced my awareness and unusual focus on, especially, TV ads!
Mad Ave, and certainly internet fads in ads, are certainly copycats, especially when anything even remotely effective is determined. What we've been discussing is what companies (and DC leaders) hope the masses don't discover: How they do what they do, and what makes the way they do things so effective, pervasive, and destructive (see DC today v. TikTok...as current as today's headlines)!!
Thanks Paul, perfect timing that your post (this post) arrived in my inbox this morning, as I've embarked this past week on my copywriting journey.
I just picked up the audio and print version (4th edition) of Bob Bly's book -- waiting for the print version to arrive in the mail. The audio book is engaging. And, the narrator, Barry Abrams, is outstanding. His voice goes perfectly with this type of content.
Also -- to add to the list, Jim Edwards and his "Copywriting Secrets" book -- with forward by Russell Brunson of "Dotcom Secrets" fame. 'Also delving into Jim's book.
For the latest on what Jim Edwards is up to, check out his "new" site...
https://copyandcontent.ai/
--Tom
Excellent comment - thank you! Will check out the copyandcontent website.
There are so many greats out there. Even 60 year old advertisements can teach us! And the lessons still apply.
Good luck in your copywriting journey.
Thanks!