F@#%ing Dirty Talk – How Understanding Profanity Can Improve Your Copywriting

I like to swear. I mean, I really like to swear. In fact, I love it. Not the half-ass, watered-down, safe-while-your-mom-is-in-the-room swear words. The real ones. The words that make heads turn in public. The seven words George Carlin spoke of. The kind you use when a client sends back copy for the 5^th time. I love swearing so much that Cursebird.com claims I do so like a “Scottish Comedian”. You might be asking yourself, what does this have to do with copywriting? My answer is “everything,” and not just because so many great ads include it.

While I may not get the chance to swear much in my day-job as a copywriter, I do believe curse words are valid in the copywriting discussion based simply on their importance to the art of language. Many people abhor trucker mouth, saying dirty words are unnecessary. But I disagree, instead claiming the very reason curse words exist is the reason they are indispensable. If they didn’t exist, what would you say when you slammed your hand in the car door? Frick? Darn? Shucks? No, you would use the real ones. The ones that pack the sort of punch that make a difference. These ones.

Copywriters have millions of choices when picking words. Often, we are asked to use ones that dance around the message we really want to communicate. But using anything other than the perfect word only makes the message muddier. When you want to say “ugly,” don’t say “unsightly”. If you want to say “kick-ass burritos,” don’t say “fantastic burritos.” Conveying the subtle nuances and unique characteristics of a brand does not happen with vague descriptors, so when you want to say it,  step up and fucking say it. Don’t “fricking” say it. Your message should be precise. So should the words you use.  – Mike Berard

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