Image: Cracked egg against pink background. (Photo by Melani Sosa on Unsplash)

Isn’t it amazing that we can run an entire business with just an idea, a phone and an internet connection? In the olden days (like, 2005), you might have been able to speak to your clients and colleagues from home or on the bus, but you’d still have needed some physical infrastructure to deliver your service.

Not anymore.

Now we can find clients on social media, create and post content with apps like Canva, upload blog posts directly to our websites, run coaching calls from Zoom, sell products via Shopify, keep track of tasks with Trello, check our bank accounts with FreeAgent, send emails from MailChimp… it actually blows my mind to think about this.

The rules of business have changed

The idea of a business owner being some Alan Sugar-type in their grey suit in a grey office is outdated. It’s me, in the garden with my phone, writing to you, in… wherever you are these days!

The principles of good business are the same: you need to find out what your clients need, create something that solves their problem, and then tell them about it. But the way you go about it can be pretty much whatever you want.

When you know what the rules are, you can bend them to suit your own life and goals.

You don’t have to do it *all* from your phone, but if you want to, you can.

Once you know the rules you can break them

If there’s one thing copywriters love more than working wherever (and with whomever) they want, it’s knowing – and breaking – the rules of grammar.

Copywriting straddles a somewhat uncomfortable line between written and spoken communication.

It’s writing, obviously, so the usual rules of writing apply. But it’s also about having a conversation with the reader, which means communicating in a way that reflects how people speak.

You need to know the rules of writing, so you know when to break them to grab attention and keep the conversation flowing.

Three copywriting rules you can break

1 . You can’t start sentences with ‘and’, ‘but’ or ‘because’

Wrong! You can. If there’s one way to make your copywriter cry, it’s to edit out prepositions at the start of a sentence.

If you’re feeling resistant to this idea, please trust me when I say it'll make your copy SO much more engaging.

And if you need some examples (see what I did there?) copywriter Nick Parker went to the bother of creating a whole website to end the debate for good: www.andyoucanstartasentencewithand.com.

2 . You should steer clear of jargon

Wrong! Generally, the rule is to avoid jargon at all costs. But really, it's the corpspeak wiffle-waffle kind of jargon we want to avoid. In the right circumstances, jargon can be pretty powerful.

A shared lingo known only to members of a particular community can unite readers around a shared identity. For example, the average bod on the street may not know what a WOD is, but the Crossfit community who need your bespoke, snatch-friendly thumb sleeves certainly do.

Well-placed insider jargon helps build trust and credibility.

3 . It’s all about the reader

Wait, what? Yes, 99% of the time your copy absolutely should be all about the reader. It should focus on their hopes and desires, their worries and frustrations, and the transformation they can expect to experience.

But you also need to add a sprinkling of your own magic dust.

What makes you YOU? Why should they care about you? If you have a personal brand (and if you're a coach or service provider, you should), you need to share your own story over and over so people get to know, like, and trust you.

One copywriting rule you should NEVER break

Clear over clever

No explanation needed. Step away from the puns. Forget the alliteration. Yes, a clever tagline is half-price-ben-and-jerry's-after-a-long-day-in-lockdown irresistible – but it should never come at the expense of a clear message to your reader.

One copywriting rule I’m on the fence about

Use contractions

The rule used to be that you shouldn’t use contractions in writing, because it’s UnPrOfEsSiOnAl.

But then the rule changed. Some copywriters say contractions are up there with sentence-starting prepositions. We use contractions in our speech, so we should use them in our copy to sound more human and less I, Robot.

One thing to consider, though, is accessibility. Contractions may be more conversational and engaging, but for any readers with learning or reading difficulties, they can cause issues. As discussed in these helpful accessibility guidelines, we never want to sacrifice understanding for style.

What are some writing rules you love to break? Got a writing rule you want permission to break? Let me know.

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