Blog
5 tips for writing compelling compliant ad copy
”HOW DARE YOU?”
“Yeah I said it”
“Why don’t you come over here and say that to my face?”
“😂😂😂“
Michael — head of Facebook campaigns — had just called me “Compliance Queen”.
UGH!
That’s just code for “you’re so great at writing boring copy”
… Right?
Well, the truth is, compliant copy doesn’t have to be boring.
We just LOVE complaining about it. It’s our little inside joke.
We come up with endearing names for it, such as…
Word Xanax.
Written rabbit food.
The copy equivalent of dry mouth.
And that’s because compliant copy in the supplement space is a whole different animal —
It’s not just compliant. It’s Holier Than Thou.
→ Every little claim gets mercilessly torn apart.
→ Every interesting verb is watered down with “may help” “may support” “may promote”.
→ Every “you” is sprayed with holy water and exiled.
But even so…
Compliant copy can and should be just as compelling, fascinating, and bold as
“Melts fat in 27 seconds without diets or exercise*”.
*Well… almost.
Here’s how I do it:
1. I write 1st-person stories
1st-person stories are so fun to write — and they don’t require the use of “you”, aka the Forbidden Fruit.
Now, if you’re wondering where these 1st person stories come from…
Here’s what I use for inspiration:
Reviews & testimonials
There are so many before/after stories hidden in reviews.
But you need to stop looking for the classic “I had X problem, I tried Y solution and now I feel fantastic” structure.
If you know your customers well, you can fill in the gaps accurately.
Uhm… you DO know your customers, right?
Messages the Customer Service team receives
One of my clients in the supplement space has a dedicated Slack channel where the CS team posts screenshots of relevant messages from customers.
It’s my first stop when I have ads to write.
Survey answers
I once read 1004 survey answers to understand our customers’ pooping habits.
And now I have 10 years’ worth of story-based ads. I’ll take it as a win.
Groups & forums
Oh, this eternal spring of vulnerable stories and requests for help…
This is where you can see the exact words people use to describe:
1. their problems, and
2. their desired outcome(s).
Take notes.
Notice patterns.
Then write ads that test your theories out in the wild.
2. I focus on emotional pains and benefits
Sure, people want to get rid of their IBS, their Hashimoto’s, their aches and pains, their itching and burning — and all those conditions and symptoms that you can’t touch with a 10-foot pole.
But if you talk to your customers — and I mean really talk to your customers…
You’ll discover that what they want to get rid of has nothing to do with their diagnoses or physical symptoms…
And everything to do with the MEANING they give to their diagnoses and physical symptoms… the limitations of living with their conditions… and the constant worry about what their future holds.
It’s the same with their needs and desires —
Yes, they want a cure. A miracle pill if possible.
But if you dig a little deeper, you’ll discover that what they TRULY want is to feel safe in their body… get their lives back… and feel like themselves again…
Important Note:
You need to nail down the specific flavor of doom & dream outcome for YOUR customers…
Instead of using general, one-size-fits-all emotional pains and benefits.
So make sure you know your Ideal Customer inside and out.
This way, you can tap into those deeply-rooted fears, hopes, and desires.
But PLEASE, for the love of all things compliant…
Don’t be a scammy mcscammster marketing bro. Do it ethically.
3. I use dialogue
“The exorcist girl is gone!”
This fantastic line was buried in a review of a menopause supplement.
When she started taking it, her mood swings disappeared almost overnight and her teenage daughter told her:
“Wow, mom, you’re acting like yourself again. The exorcist girl is gone”
I knew this was the perfect ad opener the moment I saw it.
We also used it as a headline. Coupled with a freaky creative, it’s a scroll-stopper.
You can use dialogue anywhere in the copy:
→ Works great as an eye-grabbing opener
→ You can use it to make long-form ads easier to read and more engaging
→ You can turn long testimonials and reviews into dialogues (like I did in the exorcist girl example)
I’m sure you’ll come up with dozens of different ways to play around with dialogue.
And if you like writing engaging copy, this will quickly become your favorite technique.
4. I explain the mechanism rather than make claims
Comedian Dara O’Briain does a hilarious bit about selling products to men.
Take razors, for example.
✘ It’s never about the soft skin and feeling fresh as a daisy.
✔ It’s about adding two more blades to the 3-blade razor.
And it’s not like the 4th blade shaves off your skin…
And then the 5th one cauterizes the wound so you never grow hair in that place again, Dara says in his stand up.
Nope, they do the same thing.
Only now you have a whopping 5 of ’em doing the same thing.
Sounds absurd, but having a unique mechanism works — even if it’s not ground-breaking.
So instead of making claims and getting penalized for it…
Identify the unique mechanism — and make it sound like the best thing since sliced bread!
5. I ask myself this question
“Is this REASONABLE?”
I feel like many copywriters and marketers forget what “reasonable” is — especially those of us trained in the old school of direct response.
Compliant copy is, first and foremost, REASONABLE copy that makes REASONABLE claims.
It’s easy to get high on writing punch-in-the-gut emotional copy…
Or making over-the-top promises that tickle the customer’s deepest desire.
But the fact is…
Most times it’s simply not reasonable.
So before you roll your eyes at all the unsexy “may promote”, “may reduce”, and “may support”…
Ask yourself:
“Is this claim REASONABLE?”
And if your answer is a solid YES, then use one of the tricks above to make it compliant.
I promise, it’s a lot more fun than complaining about the Compliance Police.
To recap:
If you want your copy to be holier-than-thou compliant without turning into a snoozefest, try one of these nifty tricks
Use 1st person stories
Use past tense
Use dialogue
Explain the unique mechanism
Ask yourself if the claim is reasonable — if it is, then you should have enough evidence to support your claim using one of the techniques above.