Surprising Copywriting
Why you should write slightly surprising copy
Whatever you’re writing, from web copy to social posts, if you say it in an unexpected way, you can really grab your reader’s interest.
Using less predictable words, in a less predictable order, isn’t just more interesting – it can also tangibly boost your conversion rate.
But you don’t have to take our word for this. A recent study by Ariyh (Academic Research In Your Hands) proves that slightly surprising copy delivers better results…
Ariyh even have a free calculator that analyses your sentences and gives them a surprise rating.
To put it to the test, we ran some of our own copy through the Syntactic Surprise Calculator.
Below is the web copy we decided to test…
Example webpage copy:
Professional racing ropes
As a professional sailboat racer, you know that success isn’t given – it’s earned. In towering waves and powerful winds, with blood, sweat and the occasional tear.
And success starts with finding the right equipment. Which is where we can help.
Our racing ropes are tested in the toughest conditions possible and made from the very latest materials, including Kevlar, Technora and Dyneema®. All to help you find your greatness.
For our slightly surprising copy test, we chose the following snippet, which puts a slight twist on the stock phrase ‘blood, sweat and tears’:
Success isn’t given – it’s earned. In towering waves and powerful winds, with blood, sweat and the occasional tear.
We then ran this copy through the Surprise Calculator (results below)…
There are many ways you can make your copy slightly surprising. Here are just a few examples:
- Use less predictable words – like Ikea
- Put a twist on a familiar phrase – like Oxford University
- Play with spelling – like The Economist
- Play with grammar – like Right Move
For surprising and surprisingly good copywriting, please contact us.
