Growth Newsletter #206

Be a little unclear and cryptic ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­  [Demand Curve]( [Read on demandcurve.com]( The Growth Newsletter #206 Be a little unclear and cryptic Today, we will break one of the core concepts of copywriting.  But don't worry, Charlie Munger agrees with me. Let's dive in 🕵️  – Neal Brought to you by [Insense](.  Save valuable time this Q4 with [Insense's no-commitment influencer management service](.  Their influencer managers handle everything from; - Writing the creative briefs for your campaigns, - Hand-picking the best influencers on your behalf, and - Managing all influencer communications from product shipment to receiving the final deliverables.  Join 1,700+ brands like Victoria Beckham Beauty and GoPure, who trust Insense for their UGC and influencer marketing needs.  Book a free strategy call and [get up to 20% off influencer management]( until September 13. Want to be featured in front of over 101,000 founders and marketers? [Learn more here](. Be a little unclear and cryptic Insight from us, collected from a few sources.  Every copywriter will tell you to be as clear as possible.  Today, I’m telling you to be the opposite.  Being cryptic can be powerful.  For example: The beauty and hilarity of this ad is in its lack of clarity.  It’s not saying: “Don’t drink and drive, or else you’ll be arrested, go to the hospital, or maybe even die.”  If it did, it would have elicited an eye roll.  Instead, the unusual sight of the 4 cars and 4 people hooks and intrigues you.  You read the line.  You look at them again.  A light bulb goes off.  You get it.  Dopamine surges through your brain.  You chuckle.  All because they didn’t tell you everything you needed to know.  Instead, they presented all the information, left some key things unsaid, and let you bridge the gap.  Some examples of this done well  This is one of my favorite ads from The Economist: This ad cleverly nods to the horrors of smartphones/watches: This ad leverages the familiar image of the Hulk’s hand to shortcut understanding: And lastly, this ad makes you put two and two together to explain the weird scene: Don’t always be crystal clear  As Charlie Munger said in his 1996 Stanford commencement speech about a lesson his father taught him: Instead of just pounding it in, he told it to me in a way that required a slight mental reach. I had to make the reach myself in order to get the idea that I should behave like Grant McFayden. And because I had to reach for it, he figured I’d hold it better. And, indeed, I’ve held it all the way through until today, through all of these decades. These types of ads are intriguing, memorable, and funny.  Which is hard to say about 99+% of ads.  But hopefully, now, I'll be able to say it about yours 😉 What did you think of today's newsletter? 😍 Loved it: Forward to a friend, or reply—a simple 😍 will do! It really helps. 🤷‍♀️ Meh: You can unsubscribe [here](), or manage your subscription [here](. 🤔 I'm new here: You can join the party [here](. 🤩 Give me more: Check out all previous growth tactics in our [Growth Vault](. Something fun  Possibly the greatest Doordash text I've ever seen: How we can help you grow - Read our free [playbooks](,[ articles](, [growth guide](, and [teardowns](—we break down the strategies & tactics used by fast-growing startups. - Need help running ads? We’ve built [the]([ ads agency]( for startups. - Looking for a growth freelancer or agency? [We’ll match you]( with a vetted partner for free. - Get in front of 101,000+ founders by [sponsoring]( this newsletter. Thanks, everyone! [Neal]( [Neal O'Grady]( [Grace]( [Justin Setzer]( [Grace]( [Nick Costelloe](   © 2024 Demand Curve, Inc. All rights reserved. 4460 Redwood Hwy, Suite 16-535, San Rafael, California, United States [Unsubscribe]() from all emails, including the newsletter, or [manage]( subscription preferences.