Swiping or too close to the original?

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I'm a copywriting virgin so please be gentle...

Here's the challenge: I'm not too clear on the whole "swiping" concept... I mean I kind of get it. But do you simply capture the "essence" of what they're trying to say and then write your own paragraph, or straight up jack and modify what they're saying?

Here's what I concocted:


... from two different letters by Sir John Carlton (he's been knighted, right?).

I partially jacked the headline from this one:


... and this subheadline from another:


Is what I've done cool (in terms of the whole "swiping" concept) or does it need to be modified further?

Thanks in advance!

P.S. This copy isn't for my product or a client... purely created because I need to get some practice. Captain Weirdo McNoBalls is a fictitious character. I'm sure he'd be a cool dude but no, he does not have a Facebook profile. :p
#copywriting #close #original #swiping
  • Write your own original content. Don't steal someone's hard work and "straight up jack and modify what they're saying".




  • Sweet, thanks for the info/feedback...

    After reading some books and getting a little practice, I feel like I'm finally starting to break into this secret little world...

    ... and I'm realizing just how much thought goes into word selection, sentence structure, flow and rhythm, your voice, hooks and stories, USPs, the market, the prospect, the product, etc... lots of stuff to consider and learn but it's ridiculously awesome.
    • [1] reply
    • You are right. Only copywriters understand just how closely copywriting is to writing poetry. Every word must be spot-on!

      That's what makes copywriting so much fun!

      As for swiping... headlines and subheaders are not copy-right-able. But flat out text is. IMO the main use of swipe files is for hand-copying them to boost your own copywriting skills.

      Although I did swipe (used the style, not the wordings!) a Dan Kennedy letter recently when I needed to adopt a more masculine-sounding "voice" in my own copy. Then I wound up combining the Dan Kennedy style swipe and my very own first draft all together in the final sales letter - and very effective it was, too.

      Hope this helps,
      Dot
  • When we say "swipe", we basically mean save it for reference, so you can refer to it later and understand the structure... not necessarily copy it outright.

    I "swipe" short phrases, such as Joseph Sugarman's "Let me explain." - which we can use in copy to plant seeds of interest, and grease the slippery slide (to use two copywriting metaphors) - and I'll use them pretty much "as is".

    But for headlines and paragraphs, to "swipe it" is really about understanding the structure, and what makes the words work... not copying it word for word...

    ... which doesn't make sense anyway, because the product you're writing for is not going to be the same as the product's copy from which you're swiping.
  • Banned
    Sex it up a bit. Use "Trainer To the Stars" for starters.

    • [ 1 ] Thanks
    • [1] reply
    • I agree on all counts! In fact, I had been writing poetry for years (got a bunch of it published too, including a book), before I got into copywriting.

      ROFLMAO! (especially about the guarantee!)
  • Hah, thanks for the info!

    I found a sample of the good Dr. Harlan Kilstein's "Steal This Book!" and seeing some swiped letters gives me a good feel of how it's done... like page 47 is swiped from one of Carlton's golf letters:

    Steal This Book!: Million Dollar ... - Google Books

    Hopefully Amazon has this book in stock!
  • Keegahn, this classic Gary Halbert letter explains the thought process involved when you use a swipe file.

    The Gary Halbert Letter

    Hmn? Hmn?
  • Keegahn,

    swiping is one of the best tools you can have at your disposal once you get it down. It's not about stealing material, it's about taking something that has been proven to work and referencing it for voice and tone.

    Think of it as a giant mad-lib. Don't over-complicate it, and don't add things that don't need to be there. Doing so is only going to break the flow and then you might as well be writing from scratch (not that that's a bad thing )

    Get yourself a good thesaurus, and match the tone exactly, don't fluff it up, and don't tone it down. Match it exactly.

    Your swipe file should be something that you're building as fast as, if not faster than your own portfolio. Scratch that. It should be huge. Buy Harlan Kilstein's book "Steal This Book". He's got the ones you'll need in there. Kick down and make the investment, it's worth it.

    Good Luck!

    Remember- mad libs
  • Hmm, interesting.

    I've heard of the concept of swiping but I didn't know there was an official "label" to this process. Learning tons from this forum.
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    Swiping or too close to the original?

    I'm a copywriting virgin so please be gentle... Here's the challenge: I'm not too clear on the whole "swiping" concept... I mean I kind of get it. But do you simply capture the "essence" of what they're trying to say and then write your own paragraph, or straight up jack and modify what they're saying?