Why You Need A Copywriter

Every communication builds or erodes your brand. There's no middle ground.

Rather than TELL you why you need a professional copywriter for your communications, I'm going to SHOW you.

With realio trulio photos from the field.

Enjoy these blunders. Then visit my website (link below) to make YOUR communications perfect!

NEWS FLASH: 9 FEB 2012. THIS PROJECT HAS JUST BEEN CANNED BY VCAT. A RARE WIN FOR RESIDENTS. AND A CONVINCING EXAMPLE OF THE POWER OF COPYWRITING. YAY! :)

If your home is threatened by an over-the-top skyscraper, you need to pull out the big guns. This is where copywriting can come in handy.

Below is the protest I've sent to an in-your-face residential tower development that threatens my tiny cottage. See what you think:

'Proposal by Abbotsford Joint Venture Pty Ltd. 17 storey redevelopment at 247-259 Johnston Street, Abbotsford.

I object vehemently to this development for the following reasons.

01. Height

17 storeys is an over-the-top, in-your-face height. It references nothing in the immediate neighbourhood - just the 21-storey commission towers in the next suburb.

These towers (two of Melbourne's most hideous buildings) should not constitute a source of inspiration.

The higher you go, the less community you have, and the more isolation. There are far better low and medium density housing models out there - especially in Europe.

I can only imagine the developer has doubled the requested height to 'give ground' and end up getting what they really want (and realise is reasonable).

This may be a common tactic for seeking pay rises, but we're talking lives and community here.

02. Appearance

A 17-storey tower is utterly out of character with Abbotsford's village feel.

It's like dropping a besser brick into a bird bath.

03. Car Spaces

Abbotsford residents already have to fight tooth and nail to park their cars.

Flooding the streets with hundreds more competitors will destroy amenity and raise tensions in an already stressed area.

It's particularly galling that the developer is seeking to provide far fewer car spaces than dwellings.

Despite claims of bicycle use, it's completely unrealistic to assume less than one car per dwelling in a huge, dispersed capital city with poor public transport like Melbourne.

Even if off-the-plan buyers sign in blood that they won't have a car, there's nothing to stop them selling to new owners who do.

One car park per dwelling should be the absolute minimum.

04. Resident Access

Stafford Street is very narrow. Each week I witness bitter arguments about trucks, cars (and even people) blocking the road.

Some of these disputes verge on violence.

The prospect of tower residents trying to access their homes via Stafford Street is therefore chilling.

05. Traffic Noise

A constant stream of construction and then resident traffic will create noise, pollution and drama by day (when I'm trying to work) and by night (when I'm trying to sleep).

06. Resident Noise

It's already hard to get a good night's sleep in Abbotsford.

Concentrating hundreds more people in such a tiny space will be akin to setting up boom boxes along the railway line.

07. Construction Access

Stafford Street is very fragile. And the earth below it is highly reactive.

It takes just one laden truck to crack the kerb.

Several times each year, trucks break the water main under the road - releasing geysers and debris and compromising structures.

Take a walk and see for yourself; the many patches of asphalt show where this has happened.

Each time the repair crews come, there are delays and inconvenience. Sometimes, the water main is rebroken the very day it's repaired.

The equipment and materials necessary to build a large tower will destroy Stafford Street and the services beneath it.

Large vehicles may even end up in the century-old subterranean sewer.

08. Privacy

From about the ninth storey up, tower residents will have a fine view into my front and back yards.

These spaces are tiny, but at least they afford a modicum of privacy. That privacy will be lost.

My standard of living will go down, followed by the value of my home.

09. Light

The shadow diagrams don't show the massive footprint of this tower at dawn.

My house and garden are right in the firing line, so it's goodbye morning sunshine for me.

10. Sky

Any time of the day, there's not a lot of sky to be seen in Stafford Street. Few avenues let your eye travel many metres before you hit a wall.

A 17-storey tower will blot out a big chunk of the sky for me and other locals.

11. Damage

The homes along Stafford Street are 110 years old. Built of highly frangible, hand-made bricks tenuously bound with crumbling mortar, they will not survive the vibration of passing construction vehicles or earth compaction.

Yours sincerely, Paul Hassing'

If you want to see plans for this crazy development, go to http://www.yarracity.vic.gov.au/Planning--Building...

Good copywriters don't just check words and grammar. We apply our obsessive compulsive super powers on the whole communication.

This way, if the art director is having a bad day, we can gently point out that the woman in the picture is holding her magazine upside down!

THAT'S why you need a copywriter!

This shop sells fabulous rugs. They should leave their signs to an expert. Like the one who got it right in their press ads. Do-it-yourself signs may save a few bucks. But they KILL your brand (the brand you've lovingly built for years) stone dead.

Think I'm joking? Note that this is a Closing Down Sale!

THAT'S why you need a copywriter!

We've recently had a spirited blog debate on whether copywriters should take deposits before starting jobs. Your view on this pressing point will greatly facilitate our discussion. My big thanks go to Micky @contentwriteroz for this excellent survey idea. You can find the back story at http://myob.com.au/blog/bird-in-the-hand/

Would you transfer your home loan to a firm that can't spell? Yes, it's a 'simple typo'. But this is an ad for big bucks in Australia's most prestigious online newspaper. The many loan providers behind this link should be VERY upset.

THAT'S why you need a copywriter!

The traditional abbreviation for Wednesday is Wed. My local council, however, has other ideas.

You still get the drift, but you have to wonder what's going on in City Hall. Especially as all the other signs in this street have the correct spelling! Guess you could call this a tin typo.

THAT'S why you need a copywriter!

A nice little logo on the right. Looks like a couple of Aussie critters. Can't knock patriotism ...

The emu can only watch and say: 'Nice work, Skippy! Good job dryin' yer bloody kangaroo paws, Mate!'

This farcical take on our national crest torpedoes brand credibility.

THAT'S why you need a copywriter!