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Basics Advertising 01: Copywriting
£17.00£18.00 (-6%)
This title is the first in the “Basics Advertising” series, which follows on from the successful “The Fundamentals of Creative Advertising”. It highlights the importance of being able to think both verbally and visually by conveying the idea that creative ad concepts, with their combination of words and images, often arise as a result of collaborative efforts between both the conceptual copywriter and designers or art director. Subjects covered include: how to generate ideas, improving and mastering your language skills and how to create effective advertising copy. The book also features a chapter on ‘Advertising around the World’, which highlights the increasing dominance of English as an international language of commerce and marketing. This title is suitable for first and second year undergraduate students of advertising and marketing courses, all students needing to understand the basic concepts of the discipline before moving into more specific areas of advertising, and practising conceptual copywriters.
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Additional information
| Publisher | 1st edition (16 Jun. 2008), AVA Publishing |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Paperback | 176 pages |
| ISBN-10 | 294037368X |
| ISBN-13 | 978-2940373680 |
| Dimensions | 16.99 x 0.97 x 24.41 cm |
by Wunderkammer
A very different book from the usual copywriting tomes, actually well written (many are not) and lavishly illustrated and produced. In particular the book really speaks to copywriting in the context of communication as a whole. I have worked in small and medium size business where copy is a constant headache, I would recommend this to anyone!
by Melanie Lynch
Copywriting’s a tough old business; and with so many books coming highly recommended, it’s hard to know which ones are worth reading.
Bowdery’s ‘Copywriting’ is a fantastic place to start; laying down the basics of writing copy, whilst giving a genuine and honest insight into the advertising business itself.
The book is written in a friendly, witty, almost tongue-in-cheek style, meaning the pages fly by as you begin to pick up the ins-and-outs of writing copy. Tasks set along the way keep you on your toes and allow you to practice what you’ve learnt; gently easing you into writing your first copy.
But this book isn’t just useful for budding copywriters; Bowdery’s insight into the industry allows Art Directors to understand exactly how copy can explicitly affect their job.
So, if you’re looking for a starting point, from which to launch your advertising career: look no further. Get this book and you’ll be well on your way.
by Aspiring Author South Coast
Really useful to refresh one’s memory. Also sparked some new ideas.
by Reviewer
The most fun and interesting educational book ever witten.
Couldn’t put it down. Learned a lot and laughed out loud.
Highly recommended starting point, covers everying you could possibly want to know on the subject.
Written in the very style it teaches.
Brilliant.
by Bianca Okros
The book is fantastic. It has some appealing advantages like the higher paper quality, the illustrations used to provide examples are good visual aids. However what i love most about this book is that it gives you homework. Unlike most books you actually want to do it. The tone of the author is so relaxed that you don’t even realize how quick you can finish the book. He also covers all the basics like where do copywriters work, the relationship between copywriters and art directors; the audience, the styles and the tone and many more. It is strictly basic copywriting only and does not go into detailed theory, but I love the book and will keep with me for a while.
by Mark Olsen
Only scratches the surface as to what copywriting is, although it’s part of an advertising series, so that’s perhaps why. Recommended as a read for someone interested in advertising in general, rather than copywriting, which covers more industries than advertising.
by Gurminder
As with a review of another copywriting book, I’m going to recommend that anyone who is interested in copywriting should read the excellent
Write To Sell: The Ultimate Guide to Great Copywriting
by Andy Maslen before reading any other book on copywriting.
Copywriting by Rob Bowdery is a mixture of useful nuggets of information hidden amongst the garish layout, tacky writing and the fact that the book seems to be exclusively aimed at people working in advertising agencies.
The layout makes it quite difficult to read the book, with differing column lengths, images just thrown in and strangely coloured pages (orange, brown and white). Perhaps the book was given a retro style on purpose? Content-wise, the author covers understanding your product, knowing your audience, mastering the language, sharpening style, rules, effective copy and advertising around the world.
As with other books of this genre, the author tries to cover too much and ends up over-complicating copywriting. The book becomes a jack of all trades and master of none. No topic is explored properly or adequately and there are flippant references to examples of what the author considers good/bad advertising. The text is occasionally informative, but on the whole very bland. The author has also decided to throw in a healthy sprinkling of tacky puns. The book often loses focus on copywriting and regularly strays into advertising and how advertising agencies deal with copywriting. The author also has a tendency to treat readers as idiots.
If you can put up with the ad agency bias, and the waffle and padding, for example, “No one is likely to choose words more carefully than a copywriter. Which is presumably why most copywriters love dictionaries and spend a great deal of time poring over the words in their pages, observing their playful shades of meaning , delighting in their sensual forms and uncovering their rich and fascinating origins.” – then this may be just the book for you.
If you’re after something that is easy to read and can sit on your desk as a very useful reference book, then Maslen’s Write to Sell is the book you want to buy. It covers all areas of copywriting and you come away feeling you’ve learned something, and could apply the principles and guidance to anything that involves writing.
by K. Anderson
A well written and easy to follow read- perfect for both budding writers and those who want to improve. The ideal choice for any students interested in advertising, particularly as many courses these days seem to spend little or no time on copywriting. Ironic as most Creative Directors I have met come from a copy background…
Two thumbs up!