‘Most good copywriters . . . fall into two categories. Poets. And killers. Poets see an ad as an end. Killers as a means to an end.’ If you are both killer and poet, you get rich.
David Ogilvy
The challenge, however, is that a copywriter/marketer who’s both a killer and a poet is a rare combination. Most lean towards either being a killer or a poet, seldom both. And here’s why I think that’s a bad idea:
- Killers tend to overly focus on the concrete stuff — sales, metrics, marketing strategy, branding and so forth. The think creativity and talent are overrated, and the results (sales) are what matters the most.
- Poets obsess over the art and craft of their copy or whatever they are creating/producing. They would get into the nitty-gritty of language, type, style, formulas, templates, word-count, and everything else that takes time, effort, and a lot of brainpower to process.
As a writer, there was a time when I couldn’t help but get into the “poetic” mode. It took the “killer” within me to tone things done and keep things under control. Else, I still wouldn’t have gotten past 12 posts on this blog!
Aiming for balance, as with all great things in life, is not just a terrific but a great idea!
Listen, obsessing over metrics is just as bad as wasting time on analysing the language, tone, and how creatively a copy is written. It doesn’t matter. What matters is how the copy educates, entertains, and sells your product or service? If not, it doesn’t matter if you’re a killer or a poet.
Get them working together and see the magic happen.