Many ads look professional but feel interchangeable. The problem is a combination of the copy, the brief and the approval process.
There is a strange quality to a lot of digital advertising now. It has the right number of words in the right places. But it vanishes from memory almost instantly.
“Smarter solutions for modern teams.”
“Take your business further.”
I’ve seen this referred to as ‘the sludge problem’. And it happens when advertising copy is built from safe phrases rather than creative thought.
Ai has made this easier to produce, but it did not invent the problem. Committees were doing it long before, as were vague briefs. Good copy usually starts somewhere more uncomfortable, naming a real problem and using language that human customers might actually use.
A bland ad is often trying to keep every possible message alive at once. The smart copywriter homes in on something solid.
- One clear problem.
- One useful claim.
- One reason to believe it.
- One next step that feels worth taking.
This requires a business to accept that distinctive copy may not sound like everybody else’s. But that’s what gets us noticed.
Tomorrow: Why we need to stop making broader claims and start using evidence that makes us unique.