Originality in Professional Writing
As writers, we all want to deliver that exceptional, unparalleled line of prose, that all-unique gem that perfectly fits the situation and purpose, rewards both you and the customer, and leaves you showered with public accolades and shining with personal satisfaction. But in the professional writing ring, does unproved originality really trump tried effectiveness? That is, there have been so many well-written and successful examples of ad copy, copywriting, help content, User Experience content, etc. Regardless of what you can do and how good it feels, should you really reinvent the wheel every time? After all, isn’t it better to recognize a good idea than to create one?
Ogilvy and Originality
David Ogilvy is probably the greatest and best-known ad men of the 20th Century (beyond Don Draper). He wrote Confessions of an Advertising Man and Ogilvy on Advertising, two great texts on ad writing. Perhaps the best known among his many renowned ad campaigns is the 1960s-era Rolls Royce ad that touted, “At 60 miles an hour the loudest noise in this new Rolls-Royce comes from the electric clock.” However, Ogilvy did not actually write that line, he snagged it from a review of the car. The full line Ogilvy wrote is, “‘At 60 miles an hour the loudest noise comes from the electric clock,’ reports the Technical Editor of THE MOTOR.” So, he cited the source, which is great and he did nothing wrong, but the line is still incorrectly credited to his writing genius.
But Wait, There’s More
On Robert Rosenthal’s Optimarketer blog, I found proof that the famed line dates back even further, in a 1933 ad for a Pierce-Arrow car that presents an inordinately similar line, “The only sound one can hear in the new Pierce-Arrows is the ticking of the electric clock.” So, it was an idea that was passed forward many times through the years. While it may not have actually originated with Ogilvy, his use of it was spot on in purpose and timing. I’m betting this happens quite a bit in repurposing, sampling, snagging, homage-ing, and finding close inspiration in existing lines.
A Bit of Meta Conversation
You know that question I posed in the first paragraph (isn’t it better to recognize a good idea than to create one?)? Well, I repurposed it from a statement I wrote in the Banana Book. And before that, it was an idea I got from a similar thing GoDaddy’s Chief Architect tells his DEV guys. And I’ll bet that it did not originate with him. Clearly, a solid idea can have legs and take on various forms and repurposings while staying true to the foundational idea.
In User Experience/Content writing, there are certain elements you want to keep consistent. Error messaging, buttons, instructional text, etc. should all be consistent in style, tone, and structure if not repeated verbatim. If a given UX message does the trick for a given purpose, don’t be afraid to put forth some close variation of it for a similar situation. You need not feel as though you’re cheating, being lazy, or not working to your potential by reworking/reusing content in this way. In fact, doing so shows you are working to your potential by efficiently using content that’s proven effective. It doesn’t take a completely original thought for an idea to be deemed a creative breakthrough. Many breakthroughs come from the adaptation or combination of time-tested ideas that have been used in the past.
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