“Be inventive,” they say. 

“Cliches will make your writing feel tired,” they say. 

“And unoriginal,” they say. “Avoid them.”

I promise you they are referring to literary or journalistic writing. Novels, news articles, magazine articles. Not direct-response copywriting, writing intended to make readers take action. 

Let me explain.

Years ago… 

A copywriter named Richard Dennis analyzed every single sales letter* by the late, great Gary Halbert, a master copywriter (and one of the most original direct-response minds of the 20th century).

He found the following cliches peppered throughout Halbert’s writing:

• “As common as sawdust around a sawmill.”

• “Blood is thicker than water.”

• “Easy as pie.”

• “Open and shut case.”

• “The real McCoy.” 

• “Speak of the devil.”

• “Every Tom, Dick, and Harry.”

• “Sacred cow.”

• “A picture is worth a thousand words.”

• “Needed as a pen.”

• “Naked as a jaybird.”

• “Out of sight, out of mind.”

• “Make a clean breast of it.”

• “Let sleeping dogs lie.”

• “Kill the goose that laid the golden eggs.”

• “Red carpet treatment.”

• “In the heat of battle.”

• “Get up and go.”

• “Work your fingers to the bone.” 

Turns out, Halbert used these tired, painfully unoriginal phrases a lot. Constantly, in fact. He almost never invented a new, clever turn of phrase. He could’ve. But he didn’t. And if you’re writing conversion copy, you shouldn’t either. 

Why?

Because why take the risk?

Why risk making the reader think? 

Direct-response (i.e., conversion) copy isn’t supposed to make the reader think. Because if you’re thinking, you’re working. And people hate work. Work means they have to stop reading your copy to process it, to get it. And each time they stop, you risk losing their attention for good. 

Cliches will make your copy more efficient.

You’ll use fewer words to make a clear point. And because you’ve made your point with less literal language, it can actually make the copy more colorful, less boring, more fun. 

Just don’t overdo it.

Xa-xa. 

P.S.

I decided to write about this after listening to David Garfinkel’s delightful Copywriters Podcast.

*I looked far and wide for Richard Dennis’ analysis online. Couldn’t find it, though. I’ll have to take Garfinkel at his word. (Easy to do.)

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