You know what it’s like when you de-clutter – there is always one thing you regret throwing away.
That happened to me when I de-cluttered last year. I’d collected a folder full of examples of poorly written marketing material, going back 20 years. ‘Shall I keep it or shan’t I?’ I wondered. ‘Oh well, I haven’t used it in ages’, and into the recycling it went. I have regretted it ever since! But I remember the main examples anyway.
There was a Rioja leaflet translated from the original Spanish (possibly via Japanese and Icelandic, by the look of it!). It tried to wax lyrical about the rolling hills where the vines were grown, but read like a child’s bad poem and was full of mis-spellings.
Top tip: Writing should be done by someone who is at least competent in the language
Talking of Japanese, there was also an instruction leaflet for one of those key-rings that you supposedly ‘can’t lose’, the kind that beeps when you clap your hands. Again, it had been written by a non-English speaker. Like masculine and feminine nouns in French and German, this key-ring had been assigned a gender. It was male, and it was very funny to read ‘Put your hands together sharply and he’ll come.’
Top tip: Always apply the ‘dirty mind’ test – your more mischievous readers will!
Another item was the ad in a business magazine about a dictation device. It showed a black-and-white picture of a boss reclining in his office chair, while the copy went on about how his secretary’s work would be so much easier with this new equipment that she’d have more time to sit on his knee. Sexist or what?! At the time I had a male assistant. If he’d sat on my knee (which was not an appealing prospect), he’d probably have crushed it!
Almost worse, the ad was in the style of a letter, and ended with Victorian business-speak: ‘I wish to assure you of my most humble attention.’ Yes, I know, it sounds archaic doesn’t it! But this was during my lifetime and I’m not that old!
Top tip: Use up-to-date references in your writing and be sure to avoid any risk of offence.
I may have lost the pieces of paper, but I haven’t lost the lesson:
If you are not a native English speaker…
If you are dyslexic…
If you are not 100% sure that you know what you’re doing…
…then use a professional!
Professional copywriters have the skill and experience to get the wording right, and prompt the response you desire.
Jackie B
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JackieBarrie
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Advertising taglines and other copy that don’t work are a nightmare, aren’t they? You’re absolutely right, Jackie – investing in a professional to write your ad copy for you if you’re not up to it yourself is just plain common sense.
There are some further examples of how DIY copy can go wrong here:
http://howtowritebetter.net/saturday-snigger-advertising-taglines-that-don%E2%80%99t-er-quite-work/
Suze
Suzan St Maur lovingly created…DIY video for your blog or website- how to make it look professional
Thanks for your comment and the link – I enjoyed reading those!
Hi Jackie
Good points! It’s not just the professionalism of the copywriter when languages are thrown into the mix, is it? Because translation is an art rather than a science.
I’m sure most of us who’ve been in the advertising/ marketing game at all for any length of time will have our own hilarious memories of even product names that er, don’t translate nicely, no matter what you do with them
but at least that’s a danger that should be well and truly flagged for any NPD team nowadays.
The more tricky one I always found was that clients usually hated the idea of paying extra for professional back translation. It was something that had to be fought for as it was almost never written into the original budget. The number of times we got “Oh, we’ll just get Madrid/ Lisbon/ Paris/ Rome (wherever) to double check it for us.” Yup – that’ll do – just don’t expect anybody there to take responsibility and don’t hold your breath for the results…
Linda Mattacks lovingly created…To Cold Call or Not to Cold Call
I read a wonderful headline in an advertisement for
a Turkish Hotel:
“Enjoy A Call Of Nature At ….. Hotel”
Wondefull, worthy of Hoffnung! His ads for holidays
are mentioned somewhere in here. You’ll only have
time to watch it for long enough tho if ur a wastrel:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4182317635648274634&hl=en#