A simple technique for writing punchy slogans
Yesterday, some friends circulated a new Hewlett-Packard ad.
With an amazing end line: âAccelerating nextâ.
I marvelled at this tightly written piece of communication.
I wondered if I could crack their secret and use it myself.
Now HP is a top company.
Really smart people who make great computers.
And then it struck me â one of their computers probably wrote this.
I wondered if I could get my hands on one of these wonderful âAccelerating nextâ machines.
I started looking around.
Seems quite a few people have found the same computer already.
Hankook Tyres â who Iâve picked on before â âDriving Emotionâ.
Or those wonderful, abstract Japanese T-shirts that have equally concise, witty creative collisions.
(I hadnât realised HP was so big in Japan :)
You, too, can write material like this.
And you donât need Copy School or even a computer.
Why not build your own slogan generator?:
1.Get a hat thatâs deeper than it is wide (so you canât peek inside). 2. Find pretentious words randomly in your dictionary. 3. Toss them in. Draw them out 2 at a time. 4. Hey Presto (no, thatâs taken already) youâll have instant punchy lines 5. Hold them up against the Japanese T-Shirts. If they pass the âsufficiently bizarre' test, youâre onto a winner. 6. Present it with conviction â Clive Pompous-arse style - and no one will argue lest it should appear theyâre not as bright as you. OrâŚ
You could find yourself a genuinely good writer. (Theyâre rare these days)
Someone who truly cares about communicating.
Someone like Paul or Sharon:
âEvery generation should live better than the lastâ (Paul Fishlock for Westpac Bank)
âThe simple things in life are often the bestâ (Sharon Howard for Kelloggâs Corn Flakes)
As much as Management-speak tries to infiltrate and mutilate our language, donât let it invade your communication.
If in doubt, eavesdrop on normal people.
Listen to the way they speak.
Iâm willing to bet â unless theyâre poking fun at HP â youâre not going to hear anyone âAccelerating Nextâ in my lifetime.
















