When Words Meet Pictures: The Value of Copy in Design

Chatting to experienced copywriter Jess Turner who we have been lucky to work with over the last year or so!

Firstly, why is copy important?

So many reasons! For brands with something to say, copy can be the difference between people looking and people listening. It can be used in tandem with powerful visuals to tell a far richer story, making sure the audience comes away with a clearer understanding of the brand, its mission and how they’re supposed to act as a result of engaging with the communication.

“Copy can be the difference between people looking and people listening.”

What’s the relationship between design and copy? Is there one?

Copy and design are two sides of the same coin – they’re both trying to communicate something to an audience. Whether that’s a feeling, a sentiment or a story. Getting the two to work in harmony means the audience enjoys a more holistic interaction with the brand – they get a complete sense of its personality and its values, and clearer understanding of its message. 

When should a copywriter be involved in the process?

It depends on the project and its requirements. A brand might know exactly what it wants to say, just not how to say it. Or else it might need help finding the words from the get-go. In any case, if your project includes copy in any capacity, it can be useful to get a copywriter to glance over your initial brief, to see where they might be able to add value. At the very least, they’ll help you weed out any pesky typos.

Why can’t clients just write their own copy?

(Treading carefully here…) It’s definitely true that no one understands their brand as well as the client does. But as a client, it can be hard to separate what you know from what your audience knows. You can make assumptions that everybody will understand a certain term, or will be privy to the same insider knowledge as you are. Which means you might not tell readers exactly what they need to hear. You may also have less experience of what works across different formats, like websites or social media, and struggle to know where to keep things brief and when to expand on a point.  

Finally, writing for a brand is different from writing as yourself. Understanding tone of voice – and upholding it across every piece of copy –  is one of the key things a copywriter can help you with. Whether you want your comms to be fun and fluffy, informative and educational, slick and serious, or something in between, that’s not for you to worry about. Leave that to me.

Any Noble Studio ft. Jess Greatest Hits?

I’ve learned so much from working with the lovely team at Noble across a number of projects, and have been proud to play my part in accelerating positive change across various social and environmental impact sectors. Some personal favourites include an informative animation for HEAL (Health and Environment Alliances), designed to raise awareness of the reform needed on legislation regulating harmful chemicals in the EU; a website rewrite for Major Group, a for-profit Housing Association dedicated to providing quality homes to people in need; and my role in the radical transformation of Lambeth Council’s Housing Repairs and Maintenance team and its resident-focused vision for the future.

Tell us more about a particular project: the starting point, your process, the final outcome?

The starting point for any piece of work (in my opinion) should be a written brief. Even the scrappiest notes or some simple bullet points can help to define the goal of the project and are useful to refer back to throughout the process. 

From there, a collaborative workshop with the client can help to expand on the written brief, answer outstanding questions and unearth any important nuggets that may have been missed previously.

In in the case of our HEAL animation, this workshop helped us dig deeper into the audience, the tone of voice, the proposed content and what we wanted people to understand from it. 

Next begins the writing process. This is where all the information captured from the brief and workshop is crafted and condensed to fit a particular design format – for HEAL, a snappy animation script – and is adapted to the desired tone of voice, and honed to land all the necessary points in a clear, concise way. 

This first draft is then sent back over to the client for feedback, and a few rounds of amends can take place before the work is signed off and the all-important design process can begin. Throughout the design process, I’ll usually check back in to make sure the copy is still making sense in its new format, tweaking and refining wherever needed.

As for the final outcome, you can see our HEAL animation here, or hear from HEAL themselves:

“Noble Studio is full of creative minds, that know our team and our messaging well. Your team is a pleasure to work with! We especially appreciate the fact that your team is always happy to think alongside us to find the best ways to convey a message. You know us through and through, and are always ready to brainstorm with us on creative ideas and the best ways to relay messages.”

Which Noble Studio pet are you vibing with today?

Django No.5 definitely – it’s been a pretty caffeine-heavy day.

Check out our full range of Pet Check-in posters here!

Any last nuggets of copy wisdom?

Good copy should always have a purpose. It can be used to tell a story, to make a connection, to raise a laugh (or at the very least, a smile), or set a different tone altogether. It can be used to pull at heartstrings, make a point or make a sale. Or at its best, when combined with considered, impactful design like the work that comes out of Noble Studio, it can be used to make a real, genuine difference for people and the planet. 

See more of Jess’s work here, or contact us to talk about an upcoming project that could benefit from copywriting!