“Uestarday I playd my conpudar. It was fun. I had dinar. It was dullishish. Thin I had a popsicol.”
– As written by my 5-year-old son in his Kindergarten journal, translated as: “Yesterday I played my computer. It was fun. I had dinner. It was delicious. Then I had a popsicle.”
Copywriting for variable data communications is a lot like learning to write for the first time. At first it seems uncomfortable, and the result can be clunky copy that is readable, but doesn’t flow well. With practice, variable data copywriting takes less effort, becomes more impactful, and the copy flow smooths out until you don’t notice the use of variable information.
A few quick tips to quickly adapt to including variable data in your writing projects:
- Know your data
- Include the use of variable information in your Creative Brief
- Focus on relevancy to the recipient
- Incorporate variable data only where it improves the communication
- Employ a great editor
- Have another great copywriter review your work
- Don’t forget to utilize the data to create relevant imagery
Copywriting for variable data communications requires a skill set that goes beyond typically copywriting. And as my 5-year-old would write, “If yu wont 2 be gud, yu hav to praktis.”