Copywriting Lessons From The Big Bang Theory

Oct. 29 Copywriting no comments

I spent the whole weekend watching The Big Bang Theory, I got so hooked up from the second season and I can’t stop, there’s just two seasons left. I don’t know why I like it so much, I’m not a geek, actually I don’t even like Star Wars, Star Trek and most of the comic heroes, but I found this TV show very amusing.

After spending so much time watching The Big Bang Theory and not working on my business I started to feel bad and started to think of ways how I could justify it. I started thinking what I might have learnt about marketing from the show and I come up with quite a few things. So, here’s what I learnt from watching The Big Bang Theory:

1. Storytelling

Sheldon Cooper always has a story to tell, you can learn a lot from him about that, when to start a story, where to squeeze it in a conversation, what’s worth storytelling and how to come up with stories. He has opinions about everything and Sheldon expresses them mostly through stories. Even though he has a hard time connecting with other people, because of lack of social skills, but one thing he does know and that’s telling stories. There isn’t a better way to connect than by telling a story, without stories Sheldon would have hard time.

Stories can be used in marketing when you write emails or sales copy. Telling a story will help you bond with your customers and they will be happy to buy from you. You can tell all kinds of stories and turn them into valuable lessons for your audience. Storytelling is the way to go.

Also I should mention the story of the whole show, it’s just amazing, after watching one episode you want to see the next one and so on, they rarely even use the unanswered questions card. By the way do you think all the geek stuff: comics, movies etc. became more popular after this show got popular? Hell yeah I even caught myself wanting to buy a T-shirt that I saw on The Big Bang Theory. Well, that’s marketing and that proves that stories work.

2. Using Rare Words

Sheldon all the time uses very rare and unheard (at least for me) words that draw attention and demand explanation. For example, Sheldon has the haphephobia, the fear of being touched.

Using rare words is a great copywriting trick. When you use a word that no one knows what it means it will grab the attention of your readers also by explaining the meaning of a rare word you set yourself as an expert, because you just taught them something. This will definitely help to liven up your copy and amuse your readers as well.

3. Asking Questions

The gang on The Big Bang Theory ask each other weird questions like: How do vampires shave, if they can’t see themselves in the mirror? Can zombies starve to death, if they are already dead?

Asking questions is a good way to start a conversation and engage with your audience. Asking a question and then answering is a good way to start a blog post, email etc. Answering common questions in your field will help you to set yourself as an expert.

So, this is what I learnt from The Big Bang Theory, there’s probably a bunch more things I have learnt, but I don’t know how to put them as marketing lessons. We learn all day long, we just need to spot the lessons.

By the way what have you learnt from The Big Bang Theory?