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The newsletter which rips words from scripts and songs to help you craft standout copy.

Copy Cues Club #15

Hey Reader,

Last month we talked about making big promises tangible.

This month? We’re talking about making them certain.

Real talk: this one feels extra special.

It was our first dance song.

‘Til Kingdom Come - Coldplay

Why does it work?

There’s no hesitation in that chorus.

Not:

✨ I’ll try

✨ We’ll see

✨ Maybe

✨ Hopefully

It’s steady.
Certain.
Unapologetic.

“I’d wait ’til kingdom come.”

That’s conviction.

And conviction builds trust.

Told you brand communications + marriage had a lot in common

Make it work for you

Where this shows up in business copy isn’t in what we say.

It’s in how we soften it.

✨ Stop hedging

Small businesses love phrases like:

We aim to…

We strive to…

We hope to…

We try to…

They feel polite.

But they also feel unsure.

Coldplay don’t say: “I might wait for you.”

They say: “I’d wait ’til kingdom come.”

💪 Strong brands sound certain.

Let's look at brands which aren't afraid of commitment

Here are a few everyday examples.

🚚 Fedex

No hedging.
No we aim to deliver quickly.

It’s decisive.
Memorable.
Certain.

✨ L’Oréal

Not: “You might be worth it.”

It’s declarative.
Confident.
Clear.

✨ Ronseal

This one is brilliantly boring.

And that’s the point.

It doesn’t promise transformation.
It promises certainty.

It just works.

Just say you will

When a brand sounds certain, we relax.

Because certainty makes things clear + gives us confidence.

When we’re choosing who to work with?

Confidence matters.

Find one sentence on your homepage that uses:

Aim
Strive
Hope
Try

Delete the softener.

Say it like you mean it.

⌛ Before kingdom come

If you’re not sure whether your copy sounds confident or cautious, send me a sentence.

I’ll tell you which side it’s landing on.

🎵 On my playlist:

👰‍♀️ We got married!

And it was the best day ever. Did I plug my brand comms course in my speech? Who could say. 5000/10 recommend marrying your best friend.

🏝️Less work, more honeymoon

I'm currently in the Maldives so there's nothing on my desk. Bliss.

📚 Project Hail Mary

Read it. See the film. Fall in love with one of my all time favourite characters.

📺 Paradise

Season 2 is delivering. Excited to see how all the threads come together in the last two episodes.

Chat soon,
✨ Bex ✨

💌P.S. I'd love you to send me your favourite song or movie so I can use some copy from it in a future newsletter and give you a shout out. Just hit reply and let me know. I promise I'll read and reply to every email.