NICE BIT OF DIY-ED COPY IN B&Q

This is proof that you don't need a huge agency (or even a studio of wickedly talented brothers 😉) to write good copy. This copy had been quickly typed up, printed, laminated and then stuck on the Venus Fly Traps in Jack's local B&Q by a member of staff just having a bit of fun. But that doesn't mean it isn't an absolute banger.

Look, we're not going to over intellectualise this one. We could talk about the role of humour in getting people to follow instructions. Or the role of anthropomorphising objects to get people to care. But really, the big takeaway here is just the value of delighting and surprising your customers with your copy.

Think of your returns policy, the out of stock message, the error page, the small print... all the stuff that brands write on autopilot because you're in a hurry.

Research has found that the traditional linear funnel is dead. Customers now arrive through unpredictable digital signals, at any point, via any channel.

Which means any piece of copy could be somebody's first impression of your brand. The T&Cs checkbox. The unsubscribe page. The order confirmation. Anything.

So here's the thing to nick: go through your customer journey and find every bit of boring functional copy. Is your brand voice showing up there? If you hide the rest of the page, would you know this was your brand?

Can you turn any of those into a chance to make a customer smile? Or laugh? Or surprise them in some way? If so, that's a massive opportunity. Dial it up. Not to 11. Maybe not even to a 7. But sneak some personality in there. It makes a massive difference.