I’m 20 days and 20 tips into this journey.

So far, we’ve looked at how to start the writing process.

How to open your copy: in the reader’s world.

How to craft your writing, shorten those sentences and words.

But how do you finish your piece of copy?

My brother, Piers, is a conductor.

No, not a bus conductor. A musical one.

Here he is at work:

And here he is with the Queen:

But that’s a story for another time …

Piers tells me that sonatas have three movements.

The first movement is called the Exposition: introducing the musical theme.

The middle section, the Development, goes off and explores that musical theme.

But the last movement, the Recapitulation, returns to the original musical theme.

It’s a reminder, for the audience, of what originally drew them in.

There’s a finality. Closure. Like the full stop at the end of a sentence.

Good copy does the same thing.

End with a reference to the headline or opening line of your copy.

For example, let’s say you’ve got an opening line of:

Our new range will save you an arm and a leg on servicing costs.

We go into beautifully-crafted copy. Then, the last line:

So, save an arm and a leg. To use for better things.
Like picking up the phone, or walking to your nearest store.

Can you feel the relief? We’ve arrived.

There’s a completeness.

It’s known as the copy loop: looping back at the end.

(But I call it the copy sonata.)

What you can also do is build in a threat.

For example, an opening line of:

Content marketing is the future.

A positive copy loop would be:

So, to see what the future holds, call us.

But a threat version would be:

So, don’t get stuck in the past. Call us.

Careful. Don’t threaten them with death. Or divorce. Just a gentle reminder of the repercussions.

So, always end your copy with a reference back to the first line or headline.

You’d be loopy not to.

This tip is based on my 30 Tips in 40 Minutes webinar.

Feel free to download a version of the slides and watch a video of the one-hour webinar.

Image source: Pixabay