Punch Up Your Copy – Content Marketing Tips for Real Estate

When your audience is reading the copy you write for your real estate business there’s certain things that they’re looking for. They want your copy to be engaging, to be clear and to be interesting.

And one way that you can give them exactly what they’re looking for is to punch up your copy.

Punching up your copy is about taking what you’ve written and taking it to the next level; making it more engaging, more readable and easier for your audience to understand.

Here are 4 tips for punching up your copy that will take your content marketing from “just ok” to “WOW, I want to work with you”:

1. Use Descriptive Language

Descriptive language might be the most important aspect of punching up your copy. Good, “punchy” copy paints a picture in a reader’s mind. Using adjectives and descriptive language can help to bring your words to life for the reader.

So, for example, instead of saying “The house is red”, you could say “The house is cranberry red with white shutters”. The latter, which uses more descriptive language, creates a clearer or more fleshed out image when you read it.

2. Trim the Fat

Nothing will weigh down your copy more than unnecessary words. If you want to punch up your copy, you need to trim the fat, cut the clutter and eliminate any unnecessary words.

After you’re done writing, read through your copy and see what words are unnecessary to your point. Some common culprits include words like “really”, “very”, “fairly” and “sort of’.

So, for example, instead of saying “We were really excited by the fairly fast time-frame that we were able to sell this property in”, you would say “We were excited by the fast time-frame we were able to sell this property in”. The “really” and “fairly” in the first sentence don’t add anything to the copy, and removing them immediately punches it up.

3. Focus On Your Headlines

One simple method for punching up your copy is to focus on your headlines. Marketing experts say you should spend just as much time writing your headline as you do writing your copy, and for good reason: your headline is the first thing your audience will see, and will help them decide whether or not they’re interested in reading on.

A great headline can set the tone for the entire piece. If you craft a punchy headline, often times you’ll craft the rest of your copy to fit the tone established in the headline. So, while you would likely write one type of copy under the headline “Emerging Market Trends in Brisbane”, you would probably write completely different (and punchier) copy for “10 Real Estate Trends in Brisbane That You Have To See To Believe”.

4. KISS

As in “keep it short and simple”. One of the key elements of punchy copy is that it’s short, concise and to the point. When writing your copy, look at your sentences and paragraphs and ask yourself “is there any way that I can make this point in a more concise way and tighten up this copy?”

So, for example, let’s say you were writing about a new lending trend in your local market. You could say:

“Last week, after careful and considerate review, a variety of team members from the local bank, XYZ Real Estate Trust, determined that they would only lend to prospective buyers who met strict guidelines in determining their level of risk”.

Or, you could say:

“XYZ Real Estate Trust recently decided that they would no longer be lending to high-risk borrowers”.

Same point, but the second example is much more clear and has more punch.

Remember, Not All Words Are Created Equal

About Us

At Rogue Print and Mail, our proven track record of delivering the highest quality graphic design and print services to real estate professionals speaks for itself. With fast turnaround times, industry specific templates and designs, an online portal available for any groups that wish to work with us to be able to store and manipulate their templates and an in-house team to guide you in all of your branding, design and printing needs, Rogue Print and Mail is the preferred design and print partner for many hundreds of real estate professionals across Australia.

I sincerely hope you found this information valuable. For advice on effective branding, design and cross media marketing, please don’t hesitate to call me on 1300 65 85 00 or email me at paul.stenhouse@rogueprintandmail.com.au to arrange an obligation free 10 minute discussion with a member of our expert team.