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Do Copywriters Have a Far Above Average Vocabulary?

by Marvin Johnston
28 replies
I was just reading a day or so ago about people with above average vocabularies, and I would think copywriters would be near the top of that group.

So do you (as a copywriter) have a far above vocabulary than most people? Or is it even necessary? Or do you know the vocabulary of your target markets very well, and others not so well?

Marvin
#average #copywriters #vocabulary
  • Profile picture of the author Ross Bowring
    Knowing the vocabulary of your market is of prime importance. And if you work in several markets you need to know each market's verbiage.

    One of my partnership deals is in a very unique niche where participants have their own "language." It's taken me a good few days of watching YouTube vids and surfing forums to get their slang down.

    If I didn't I'd risk setting off their radar as being "the other." And people hate "the other!"

    But to answer your question more broadly... I've always loved words and loved language.

    I'm not big on finding long words to look smart.

    More drawn to finding slang in books, TV, magazines, on forums, that lets me say the same stuff in different and engaging ways.

    Good sales writing hits on the same points over and over. You just have to hit those points in a different way language-wise each time to keep things interesting.

    Hence the need for a wide vocabulary.

    --- Ross
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  • Profile picture of the author shawnlebrun
    The single most important thing about copy is that it's understood.

    You have to write so that your intended market understands what you're saying.

    So, like Ross said... that means knowing the specific lingo and language of THAT market.

    If you have ANY question, when writing copy, if a word will be understood by your audience... DON'T use it. Use a simpler word.

    Big words, just for the sake of sounding smart, do NOT have a place in copy.

    Your main goal is to be understood and that the benefits of the message absorbed.

    If that takes slang or other niche-specific words... so be it. But I'll almost always choose a simple form of word over a longer one if I can.

    I'd say the size of vocabulary you have doesn't matter as much as knowing WHEN to use certain words in certain situations.
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    • Profile picture of the author Alex Cohen
      Originally Posted by shawnlebrun View Post


      Your main goal is to be understood and that the benefits of the message absorbed.

      If that takes slang or other niche-specific words... so be it. But I'll almost always choose a simple form of word over a longer one if I can.
      Exactly.

      Clarity is the foundation of a sales presentation. Without it, persuasion tumbles to the ground like a house of cards.

      Alex
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  • Profile picture of the author RonGold
    Originally Posted by Marvin Johnston View Post

    I was just reading a day or so ago about people with above average vocabularies, and I would think copywriters would be near the top of that group.

    So do you (as a copywriter) have a far above vocabulary than most people? Or is it even necessary? Or do you know the vocabulary of your target markets very well, and others not so well?

    Marvin
    If you're a great writer, everything will come naturally. I mean, obviously we know some words that the average person wouldn't know how to use, but that's only because we find joy in writing and expressing ourselves through words.

    That's just my opinion though.
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  • Profile picture of the author DanSharp
    There are two schools of thought on this. They don't necessarily conflict.

    One, like Mark so elegantly illustrated... is all about fitting your words to your audience. Learn their language, and then speak it. Don't be "the other," speak it like you've been a surfer or whatever all your life. And, as Shawn pointed out, don't overdo it. If you have any doubt at all, go with the safe choice and use a simpler word.

    On the other hand... you have the "John Carlton Power Words" school of copy. The one where you use "nanoscopic," "quasi-legal," "befuddlement," and "financial bodybag..." not because your market uses those words, but because they can jam a whole story into one little word. Seed your copy with enough well-chosen "power words" and reading it is like chewing a stick of gum with "flavor crystals." Little sparkling explosions of written flavor bursting in your prospect's mind as he reads.

    But... I said "well-chosen." That means words that have meaning to your audience. Words they understand instantly. After all, the whole point is to tell a story in a millisecond -- not send them reaching for the dictionary.
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    • Profile picture of the author KingOfContentMarketing
      Originally Posted by DanSharp View Post

      On the other hand... you have the "John Carlton Power Words" school of copy. The one where you use "nanoscopic," "quasi-legal," "befuddlement," and "financial bodybag..." not because your market uses those words, but because they can jam a whole story into one little word.
      Dave Miz made me laugh when he used these phrases in a post a while back:

      "It wasn't always pretty flowers, puppy dogs and candy sprinkles."

      "I was your typical AFC (Average Frustrated Chump)."
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  • Profile picture of the author shawnlebrun
    Damn Dan... your post was like your last name... Sharp!

    Well said my friend!
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  • Profile picture of the author Raydal
    I think the opposite is true. Nothing has diminished my vocabulary
    like copywriting. When I took my GRE exam some years ago and
    had to try and write at "another level" I found this almost impossible
    because I was so accustomed to writing at the grade 9 level. I think
    that I got a 4/6 for the writing section. I blamed copywriting!

    -Ray Edwards
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    • Profile picture of the author shawnlebrun
      Originally Posted by Raydal View Post

      I think the opposite is true. Nothing has diminished my vocabulary
      like copywriting. When I took my GRE exam some years ago and
      had to try and write at "another level" I found this almost impossible
      because I was so accustomed to writing at the grade 9 level. I think
      that I got a 4/6 for the writing section. I blamed copywriting!

      -Ray Edwards
      Ray... a grade 9 level?

      Where are you finding these higher end markets... I've been hanging out in the 5th grade with my writing :-)
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    • Profile picture of the author DanSharp
      Thanks Shawn!

      Originally Posted by Raydal View Post

      I think the opposite is true. Nothing has diminished my vocabulary
      like copywriting. When I took my GRE exam some years ago and
      had to try and write at "another level" I found this almost impossible
      because I was so accustomed to writing at the grade 9 level. I think
      that I got a 4/6 for the writing section. I blamed copywriting!

      -Ray Edwards
      This is also true... in a manner of speaking. But you should work on it! As a copywriter you want to be able to write any style, so you can fit it to an audience.

      Not every letter is written "at the grade 9 level." Ever seen the Admiral Byrd Transpolar Expedition letter? Or the "Two Young Men" Wall Street Journal classic? If you write high-brow high-ticket, time to sharpen up your language.

      But, yes, it happens to me too. I've had the occasion to write in a more "stiff and formal" proper English manner... and found it a royal pain after pounding out sales copy. Whaddya mean, I can't use ellipses and "emphasis quotes" and one-sentence "bridge paragraphs" all over the place?!
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  • Profile picture of the author Pusateri
    Originally Posted by Ken_Caudill View Post

    Some do. Some don't.

    Some would call a large vocabulary a liability.

    Fear those people.
    What's a liability?
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    • Profile picture of the author MikeHumphreys
      At the risk of sounding like I'm bragging... I have 2 college degrees (both health-related) and profession licenses/certifications in physical therapy & massage therapy, so I'm probably one of the more academically trained copywriters actively working right now.

      The vast majority of the time, all of the college vocabulary has been useless to me for writing copy.

      That's because I need to write the way people in a given target market speak. A lot of the higher-education vocabulary... I had to "unlearn" it when I started writing marketing simply because most people don't use jumbo-sized words when they talk.

      The primary time my college background helps me is with health or medical related copywriting because I'm already deeply familiar with much of the medical/health lingo attached to the product. That and when a family member has to go to a medical professional... I know almost all of their lingo and many times I also know what follow-up questions to ask too.

      Ironically, having 2 young kids tearing around my house forces me to use even less of my vocabulary range. They're just too little (right now) to know what words like "tenacious" or "aggravated" mean.
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      • Profile picture of the author GlenH
        While it's absolutely important to fully understand the nuances of the words being used in your specific market, I believe that in general, mastering the different ways to use many of the powerful expressions and magical colloquial sayings in your copy, is even more important.

        Phrases like ... stacking the deck ... lightning fast ... have your cake and eat it too ... taken to the cleaners ... a king's ransom ... like money in the bank ... worth its weight in gold ... and so many more.

        The emotional impact and imagery these types of powerful words and phrases convey can't help but supercharge anyone's copy in any market

        But actually knowing how to put this into practice is a skill that would normally take many years to master, simply because it doesn't really come natural to most people.

        Then there is the 'real skill' in knowing what 'power words or phrases' do you use to replace those boring everyday words most people generally use.

        There are many 'old' master copywriters who have turned this skill into an art form,...and thankfully, there are now many 'new' masters who also understand the power of this skill..
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  • Profile picture of the author Aveiur
    imo it's best to keep the copy simple and easy to understand for your target audience.
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  • Profile picture of the author Josh Rueff
    Vocabulary is pretty low on the list of importance for most copywriters, because most people don't like having to conjure the meaning of a more complex vocabulary word from the back of their head.

    Consider the following:

    "The bona fide antidote of the hedonistic bourgeois, in regards to the diminishing size of the class is something of a dichotomy:"

    vs

    "The problem of the shrinking middle class can be solved in one of two ways:"

    The first sentence makes me sound like an overreaching clown who wants to sound smart, and the second cuts straight to the point without wasting time and fluff on words no one cares about.

    I believe that successful copywriters have above average curiosity and life experience though,which is far more important than an extensive vocabulary.
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    • Profile picture of the author Josh Rueff
      Originally Posted by Ken_Caudill View Post

      Certainly, as long as they write for idiots.

      No doubt about it.
      Hi Ken - you crack me up (: You're a sarcastic sort of person so I'm not sure if you're 100% serious, but just in case you are - can you give any examples of successful copy that involves an above average vocabulary?
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  • Profile picture of the author Pusateri
    You can use words your customer doesn't know, so long as their meaning is clear from the context. Then he thinks you think he's smart, which is a nice frame of mind to have him in.

    Unless HE doesn't think he's smart, in which case he might go looking for a product that isn't for smart guys.

    But he's more likely to think, "This is what the smart guys buy. I can get my kid to explain it to me."

    He doesn't realize his kid is a booger eating moron.
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  • Profile picture of the author illiptic
    Given that the vast majority of people do not read above an 8th grade level, not really.

    And the whole "get them thinking you are super smart" idea is just kinda not true in my experience.

    When you start going out of your way to talk over people's heads, they will start to get bored and dislike you.

    I write copy as conversationally as possible...as if I would talk to a friend.

    I have found that doing that just plain gets better results.
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  • Profile picture of the author TerryX
    It's more important and valuable to talk to people in a way they understand. That means using everyday words.
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  • Profile picture of the author Pusateri
    Bill Jayme never dumbed it down. Managed to be crystal clear and interesting too. Of course, he was a real writer. Had a bit of success too.
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    • Profile picture of the author Josh Rueff
      Originally Posted by Pusateri View Post

      Bill Jayme never dumbed it down. Managed to be crystal clear and interesting too. Of course, he was a real writer. Had a bit of success too.
      Finally, an example to work with - thanks for that. I don't know a whole lot about Jayme, so bear with me...

      This pdf has examples of Bill Jayme's copy (pg. 8-13) and aside from one or two culture-implicating words, it's all at the 9th grade reading level and below:

      Bill Jayme-the greatest copywriter
      of them all.pdf

      I assume there's better examples of how he never dumbed it down, and I'd love to see them - I think I'd enjoy using a higher level of vocabulary and get the same or higher conversion rates. It's fun to switch it up as much as possible.
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  • Profile picture of the author bizgrower
    Yes. They just don't use it all the time.
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  • Profile picture of the author John Jonas Phil VA
    I think so because most copywriters are also avid readers. That's how most of us stay sharp. I know some technical jargon but I don't use them, unless I'm writing for scientists or engineers.
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  • Profile picture of the author shawnlebrun
    The interesting thing is... Marvin titled the thread...

    "Do Copywriters Have a Far Above Average Vocabulary?"

    And from the copywriters I've met and talked to online and offline... I'd have to say "Yes"... they do HAVE an above average vocab.

    I just think it comes from years and years of reading and writing copy.

    BUT.... the key difference being... just because they have it doesn't mean they use it.

    Pros know when a situation calls for a certain word and when to just play it safe.

    So yeah, I think just the nature of this biz... over the years you DO develop a large vocab from dealing with so many clients, businesses, niches, etc.... but you STILL gotta know when to dumb it down and NOT use the big words. And that's MORE often than not.
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    • Profile picture of the author Josh Rueff
      ^^Agree.^^
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