Terrific Tag Lines Use Words to Tickle and Tantalize
by Marcia Yudkin
Published on this site: November 23rd, 2005 - See
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Every year, the ceremony for the Webby Awards - the online
equivalent to Oscars and Grammies - gets extensive publicity
at least partly because of a quirky rule regarding acceptance speeches. Winners coming up to the podium
to accept their awards may speak just five words.
This limitation generally spawns scrumptiously creative verbal
concoctions that word-loving journalists can easily build
a fun-to-read story around.
These are a few of my favorite five-word offerings:
Lonely Planet Guidebooks: "Love your country.
Leave it."
Home and Garden Television Online: "Where paint
drying is inspirational."
E*Trade Financial: "Pleasure in paying bills...
almost."
Newzealand.com: "New Zealand: More Than Hobbits!"
All four of these zingers take a conventional idea related
to their subject and turn it on its head.
They remind me of tag lines, the subheads that follow a business
name on web site banners, newsletter mastheads, business cards,
billboards and other ads.
In those contexts, space is at a premium. The tag line must
explain what's distinctive about the business in a compressed,
catchy way.
Tips for Generating Tag Lines
- What's featured in the tag line should be something that
benefits the customer or client. So begin by brainstorming
a list of what the client gets from doing business with
the company in question. What’s distinctive about the
way this company does business or what it offers customers?
- Added to that should be some snappy element - either
alliteration (repeated initial sounds), rhyme, paradox,
contrast, a twist on some conventional saying or unexpected
word choices. Play around with words at this point. Pretend
you’re a poet, a kid, a gangland rapper, a late-night
comedian, a punster.
- Tag lines should normally be less than 10 words - even
better, five words or less.
- Make sure the point in the tag line cannot be validly
applied to every business in the industry. In that case,
notes venture capital guru Guy Kawasaki, it really says
nothing. Wherever possible, a tag line should highlight
what's distinctive about a company, product or service.
- Does the tag line need a long, involved explanation?
If so, give it the boot. The tag line should be self-explanatory.
A great tag line, to use the five-word Webby format...
Melts in their ears. Persuades.
Marcia Yudkin is the author of 6 Steps to Free
Publicity and ten other books hailed for outstanding creativity.
Find out more about her new discount naming company, Named
At Last, which brainstorms tag lines, company names, new product names and more for entrepreneurs on a budget, at www.NamedAtLast.com
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