Understanding first principles lead to an evolution of something becoming your own.Ĭopying is simply that – copying – without never truly understanding why the writer made those specific choices. Swiping leads to discovery, learning, and inspiration. It’s essential to know the difference between swiping and copying somebody else’s work. It’s why when you’re learning a new instrument, you first learn to play what others wrote before writing the next Grammy award-winning pop hit. Here’s a table Austin used in his book to illustrate his point: Good TheftĬopying what others have successfully done seeps into your writing – like a habit – good or bad – it’ll start finding its way into your work. We didn’t invent the English language, but we speak it.Īnd when we first learned to speak, we imitated our parents.Įventually, what starts coming out is your own voice and unique outlook.

We learn by copying.įrom music to art to digital marketing, we learn by mimicking others. In the beginning, we learn by pretending to be our heroes. We don’t come out of the womb knowing who we are. In his book, Steal Like An Artist, Austin Kleon says nobody is born with a style or voice. You can learn a lot by studying those who came before you. Several benefits come from having a swipe file. These “hard copies” were called swipe files and professional marketers turned to them whenever they needed to find inspiration for their work. Swipe files help you find yours.īefore digitization, old-school copywriters would take news clippings, ads, and other marketing materials and store them in folders.

Once you study enough, you find your own voice. Their examples can serve as your foundation when drafting your next piece. A swipe file presents you with a learning opportunity to study the success of other marketers. You can use swipe files to cure writer’s block, find new ideas, see what other marketers are doing, and hone your own copywriting skills. These can be writing samples from landing pages, Facebook ads, sales letters, or any other memorable piece of content for copywriters. What Is A Swipe File ?Ī swipe file is a collection of inspirational marketing materials. Don’t have one? Luckily, this post will show you how to create yours, along with organizational tips and helpful tools to guide your process. Need inspiration for your next writing session? Not a problem refer to your swipe files.

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