Harry’s three fundamental rules for good copy

Today, we talk about why this classic ad was so effective.

This ad increased Rolls Royce's sales by 50 to 100% with a $50,000 advertising budget—just 2% of Cadillac's.

Let's dive in 🚙

– Neal

Insight from Harry Dry’s interview.

Harry Dry is my favorite copywriter.

He obsesses over brevity and clarity.

And leverages visuals to enhance both.

Here are Harry’s three fundamental rules to good copy:

Can you visualize it?
Can you falsify it?
Can nodody else say this?

As Harry says:

“If you have three no’s, you’ve probably written a lot of rubbish. If you have three yes’s, you’re on to something”

Let’s dive into each.

But first, here’s an ad that does all three:

Rule #1: Can you visualize it?

If you can’t visualize it, you won’t remember it.

The more concrete and specific the visual, the better.

For example, most companies write copy like this:

Worn by everybody
Get fit again
32GB storage capacity

You can’t visualize the first. The second is ambiguous. The third is too broad.

Here are better examples of each:

Worn by supermodels in London and dads in Ohio
Couch to 5K
1,000 songs in your pocket

Rule #2: Can you falsify it?

Can your words be proven to be true or false?

This weeds out meaningless copy like this:

Revolutionize an industry
Quality you can trust
Next-generation technology
World-class service

To do this, point at concrete facts and examples. Don’t just describe.

Let’s illustrate with an example:

You’re setting up a date for your best guy friend. Most people say things like:

Smart
Funny
Good values
Tall and attractive

Those are all subjective descriptions that don’t tell you anything about him. But instead if you say:

Reads every day
Has made me pee myself laughing
Volunteers with seniors
6’2” and looks like Ryan Gosling

Now they have a real idea of who this person is, what they’d be like to be around, and whether they might be someone they’d be interested in.

And Heinz can prove that people put competitor’s ketchups in Heinz bottles:

Rule #3: Can nobody else say it?

Draw a line in the sand and say something unique to you

That makes someone buy your product instead of your competitors.

For example, Volvo points out that their odometers have more numbers than everyone else:

Note: Volvo used “speedometer” because at the time “odometer” was an uncommon word. They define it in the body copy.

Chevrolet points out that Corvettes are the fuel for countless songs:

Next time you’re writing copy, pass it through this test

Can you visualize it?
Can you falsify it?
Can nodody else say this?

Keep re-writing until you get three yes’s.

I highly recommend watching the entire interview with Harry Dry on How I Write.

And if you want to get more of Harry’s copywriting tips directly from the man himself, subscribe to his newsletter, Marketing Examples. It’s one of my faves.

Something fun

PS: I love Land Rover’s reaction to Rolls Royce’s old ad.

Car companies used to draw a line in the sand. Today, they all sell all types of cars and write copy that breaks all three of Harry’s rules.