Recently I spent time working on a new monologue (another story entirely that I might share soon). As I worked on memorizing the lines and then bringing the piece to life I realized that there were a lot of lessons I could apply to my copywriting business. Now, I will freely admit that I’m a sucker for the moral of the story and actively look for those types of lessons in just about everything I do, but I think I’m onto something here when it comes to the similarities between writing copy and character analysis, so I wanted to share.

What’s my motivation?

For those of you who are fellow theater nerds, you probably remember the cliche line, “What’s my motivation?” Heck, even non-theater peeps have probably heard and/or said that a time or two. While it has taken on a semi-comical tone, the question is a valid one, whether you’re learning a new monologue or whether you’re writing copy for your own business or for a client.

Every line of copy should have a motivation for its existence. If it doesn’t, then it’s simply filler and no matter whether you’re writing emails, landing pages, brand stories, or anything else you can dream up – there is no room for filler copy. Trust me. In the same way there’s also no room for throw away lines in acting – They have no meaning and they will bore your audience in both scenarios.

Copywriting and acting

After thinking about the many ways that acting and copywriting are entwined (I feel a series coming on!) I realized that for the past several years I have been approaching my copywriting the same way I approach getting into character for acting. I believe this is one of the big reasons why my copy will often resonate with those it’s intended to reach. I think long and hard about the motivations behind the lines I’m writing and I always make sure they are well within the character analysis of the target market.

Want an example? I knew you would.

I recently wrote copy for a new app that is trying to reach small retail business owners. In order to figure out what those small business owners needed to hear I conducted interviews, and did my research. I explored a “day in the life” of these types of business owners. What is their daily experience like? What keeps them up at night? What expressions are they constantly saying online or in person? Where do they go for advice? What are their dreams and goals? I created a profile (similar to a persona, but much cooler in my opinion).

In this profile I also thought through characters from TV shows and movies who are in this role. I like doing this because it helps me put them in a situation I can recall in my mind rather than just ideas on paper. Then, being the actor that I love to think I am, I took on the role as I wrote the copy to make sure that it would be true to the character.

The copy is currently in testing so I’ll report back when I have results to share, but for now I think it’s safe to say that the words on the page are much more than words. They should in theory (and hopefully in practice) resonate in the same way internal dialogue might…You know the type…the camera is slowly focusing in on the character as their words are overlaid with the scene. Their thoughts are coming to life for the audience. This is what good copy should do. It should speak back to your target customers their thoughts and concerns (and then it should offer to solve them).

So, what do you think? Do you see the connection between copywriting and character analysis? Do you have any tricks you like to do when writing copy for your own business? Leave a comment below and let me know your thoughts!