The Copywriter – November 2009

by Stratton Craig

image overlay

“The written English of British undergraduates is significantly worse than that of overseas students – they make 52.2 punctuation, grammatical and spelling errors per page on average, whereas international students make just 18.8.” Times
A worrying statistic, but one that does not come as a surprise considering the lack of focus on spelling and grammar in schools, combined with the country-wide vogue for ‘text speak’. Yet, as the standard of written English continues to plummet, the corporate world refuses to lower its expectations. And rightly so, we say here at Stratton Craig, for we are equally committed to maintaining such standards of excellence in our copywriting, which is why more and more clients are relying on us to deliver written material of impeccable quality. Our experience spans from working with one of the largest law firms in the world, adhering to strict house style guidelines, to training large in-house marketing teams, meaning we are thoroughly equipped to consistently and effectively help our clients reap the inestimable benefits of commissioning first class communication.
Business journalism
The Stratton Craig team includes some of the UK’s most experienced business journalism writers. So, when Create Marketing asked us to write an advice article for the Independent Practitioner, a publication aimed at private healthcare professionals, we were confident we had the expertise. We started with some robust groundwork, interviewing MD, Darren Clare, to really get to grips with the subject and the messages he wanted to convey. Working to a tight deadline, we then created a readable, informative and engaging piece containing targeted business advice, delivered to Create Marketing within a few hours of receiving the brief and which they said “hit the nail on the head” first time.
Integral
We recently helped Integral Engineering Design commemorate their 10th birthday by creating the text for a new celebratory brochure showcasing ten of their favourite projects. From sample copy to the finished product, we worked closely with the client to ensure that we delivered material that really captured the essence of their company, articulating their core brand values and demonstrating their passion for innovative architectural design.
Favourite Words
At Stratton Craig we understand the power of words, that they are the ultimate weapons when it comes to gaining territory in a competitive commercial landscape. But we also know that, for individuals, some words matter more than others.
We are always looking for ways to celebrate the importance of words and we would like to invite you to tell us which ones matter most to you. Whether you like a word for the memories it conjures or merely for the way it sounds, simply reply to this email with your favourite word and a brief description as to why. The most interesting examples will be featured on postcards early next year.
To give you a flavour here are some of ours… delicious, giggle, verbose, pamplemousse, cumbersome, flummoxed…

Get in touch. Let us know how we can help.