subject: How Too Much Copywriting Creativity Can Harm Your Online Marketing [print this page] When I was teaching Marketing 101 to sleepy undergraduates, we used to talk about the way customers perceive differences between products and how they tolerated change. For instance, suppose you're a car manufacturer. You want to change the design of the model you've been selling for the past 20 years.
But how much do you make a change?
A radical change will drive away customers who have become accustomed to seeing the old familiar model. Too little change? They won't even notice.
The truth is, people like to categorize. When they hear about your service, they want to put you into a familiar category. Are you a life coach? Copywriter? Business coach? Consultant?
Often I see websites where service professionals try to come up with creative names to describe what they do. Examples that are imaginary (as far as I know) include Life Energizer, Creative Catalyst, or Profit Maximizer Coach.
The truth is, you need to be sure that your niche seeks the service you provide. Equally important, you have to describe what you offer in a context they understand. It's very difficult to innovate creatively with a new service.
Sometimes change happens naturally. For instance, corporate executives are now hiring publicists and agents for themselves. rather than wait for companies to assign these resources. I gather the idea is catching on.
But you can't force a change. I learned this lesson myself when I published my first website on the topic of relocation. (In my own defense, I hired a coach who didn't know copywriting - my first mistake!) I must admit I am still amazed that people will hire planners for parties and weddings, but won't hire a coach for a relocation that costs many thousands of dollars more! And let's face it: most of us can survive a bad party but if you move to a destination that's wrong for you, you're looking at years of misery.
Go figure.
When I coach my own clients, I encourage them to go wild and be creative - at first. Then take a break. Now you can test your ideas with living, breathing prospects and clients. You can also test your ideas at live networking events.
It's sort of like Goldilocks and those awful bears in the woods.
Too much innovation? You've lost them. On the Internet, you have just a few seconds to grab attention. You're constantly reminded that, "A confused mind always says no."
Too little? You're viewed as a cookie-cutter solution or as someone who's still stuck in an early business model.
