Copywriting Academy 7: The tyranny of new

How do you launch a product in words? The temptation of course is to plaster your copy with synonyms for ‘new’ – after all, once we’ve exhausted the words you, money and save, new ranks the next highest in terms of persuasion. Or so they claim.

But, in real life, it’s not quite that simple.

The problem of new

I’ve spent much of my professional life writing about technology. It’s an industry that depends on newness – the latest release, the freshest gadget, the never before dreamt of way to change your life. So you’d expect me to have new hardwired into my brain.

The thing is, however, new things are scary. While people give new their attention (which is why it does so well in headlines) they are less inclined to actually buy it (at least until the product achieves critical mass).

Fortunately, new is not the only game in town.

Introducing sameness with difference

Let’s get one thing straight, if you’re launching something new, I’m not saying to ignore the fact that it is new. That would be dumb. As I said, that will help get you attention.

I’m talking about making the sale.

If all you do is talk about how new the product is, your readers will have no context to work with. They’ll struggle to see how it fits into their day to day lives. And they’ll worry about being the first to buy and start thinking about Betamax and laser discs.

You need to build from where they are right now. You need to show how the new product relates to things they already know and understand (maybe even own). Then, and only then, can you take them onwards to focus on the new.

Let’s take portable music as an example. The first Walkman was a tape deck you could wear and take with you. The first MP3 players were Walkmen with no need for tapes. Then we had MP3 players that could also show video. Ones that added apps. And, of course ones that added a phone. The success stories have tended to place themselves within an existing context. NLP calls this ‘sameness with difference’ – Google it for more.

Take a look at the following. This is the original TV ad for the iPod. Now it could have gone on and on about the revolutionary nature of the product. Instead it shows the iPod in action and relates the benefits in a way that everyone can understand – ‘A thousand songs, in your pocket’.

 You can see all the posts in the copywriting Academy series by following this link.