Sometimes a copywriting project goes swimmingly. Other times, it can feel like you’ve fallen down a rabbit hole and the rules of engagement keep changing around you. These are situations to try to avoid when you’re crafting marcomms…
Messaging Buckaroo
What’s the game?
Buckaroo is a plastic mule that you load up with items – shovels, buckets, ropes… When the mule has been stacked up with more than it can take, it bucks and throws all the stuff off its back and onto the floor. The person who puts the last item on is out of the game, until there’s only one person left.
What’s the significance?
Messaging Buckaroo is when you try to load way too many messages into a communication. Your organisation is professional, a trusted partner, you’re innovative, you’re prize-winners, you prioritise DEI, your initiatives are world-beating, you have solutions for 10 different audiences and BUCKAROO… all your messages are on the floor, and no-one’s listening anymore.
Messaging Sudoku
What’s the game?
Sudoku is where you have a bunch of numbers to fit into a grid. You can’t repeat the numbers in a line – or something like that (honestly, never played it – can’t be bothered). The numbers don’t have to add up or make any sense, they just all have to go into the grid without repetition.
What’s the significance?
This is when you squeeze every message into one paragraph or sentence. You feel a sense of accomplishment when you’ve ticked every message off your list and all your stakeholders are happy that their input has been included. However, no matter how long it took you to get all the messages in the grid, and no matter how your paragraph whizzed through sign-off, it probably doesn’t mean anything to your audiences.
Sign-off snakes and ladders
What’s the game?
Throw a dice and progress around the board, from square 1 to 100. Land well and you’ll find yourself climbing a ladder and jumping ahead. Land badly and you’ll hit a snake and fall back down to the bottom of the board.
What’s the significance?
If the stakeholders in the review, feedback and sign-off process haven’t been prepped, you’ll find yourself taking three steps forward and six back on a regular basis. You’ll have to explain, “Yes it is fine to start a sentence with a conjunction…” and, “…yes, your widget sounds great, but we need to show customers what it does for them…” All the while, the number of hours you’re pouring into the project keeps growing.
If you want to avoid snakes and ladders, then make sure roles and responsibilities are clearly defined and understood – and that your project management skills are up to scratch.
Tiddlywinks try-outs
What’s the game?
In tiddlywinks, you have a cup and you have a bunch of plastic counters. You press one counter against another to make it fly in the direction of the cup. Get all your counters into the cup, and you’re the winner.
What’s the relevance?
If you’re not working to a solid brief, there’s a very good chance you’ll end up playing tiddlywinks try-outs with your copy. You’ll email a draft over to your client, cross your fingers… and boo! No! It didn’t go in the cup. So you try again. And again. And you think, hold on, this cup keeps moving… but let’s press on with V15 anyway…
If you don’t want to play this game, get a good brief – and be prepared to have a conversation if the cup keeps moving.
