For many people, luxury branding is the standard they’re shooting for. There should be a class taught at some MBA school about luxury branding. (Maybe there is? I have no idea…)
The point is: luxury brands have mastered the art and science of elite branding – and their revenue reflects it.
And despite the gorgeous models, stunning imagery, and celebrity endorsements, luxury brands still need copywriting to match their brand’s elite status.
Luxury copywriting is all about expanding the universe the brand has created, and most importantly, creating more sales for the brand.
So, if you’re wondering how these brands get people to spend thousands of dollars gleefully? Let’s take a look at some of their tactics and see how they can help your own brand, whether you’re a luxury brand or not.
First: Do you actually need luxury copywriting? Or do you just want to feel confident charging a lot?
Let’s get this out of the way: there are too many brands out there that are calling themselves luxury that definitely aren’t.
If you’re subscribed to my newsletter, Wired & Inspired, you’ll know that my apartment complex is one of these brands calling themselves “luxury” when they definitely aren’t. (And the many issues I’ve had with management and their sloppy paint jobs are just the tip of the iceberg as to why.)
If you take nothing else away from this blog, let it be this: calling yourself a “luxury brand” when you aren’t is going to be harm your brand – not help it.
Because what’s the most nightmarish thing that could befall any luxury client? Paying luxury prices for a knock-off Gucci belt.
Be really honest with yourself on if you’re actually a luxury brand, or if you just want to justify your premium prices with a fancy label.
Because one thing about luxury brands: they don’t need to go around calling themselves “luxury” to convince people to buy. They own their value and don’t need to over-explain themselves to make sales.
These 7 pillars of luxury copywriting can help grow your brand and make more sales
That said, let’s take a look at some actually tactics you can use from luxury copywriting to give your brand a more elevated presence.
1. Keep your copy as short as possible
Luxury brands do not go on, and on, and on about how great they are. They know their brand speaks for itself.
So that said, luxury copywriting isn’t wordy. You should speak in short, confident sentences, which is honestly a challenge for a lot of people who aren’t copywriters.
Like this section on the Ritz Carlton website:
This section of their homepage presentation is pretty good. They aren’t trying to oversell you on why you should book with them. They let their strong, minimal copy do the talking and give you the space to process the feeling they want to leave you with.
2. Speak to the decision makers
Luxury brands speak to the person who is ready to lay their credit card down on a four-figure price tag.
Lots of us have seen luxury ads when we’ve had 0 intention of buying from them.
We’re not their target audience at that moment. They’re not speaking to us.
As a luxury brand, you need to feel confident speaking to your people, and letting everyone else get mad, confused, or shake their heads in dismay.
How this translates in your copy: again, keep your copy short. Leave them wanting more.
Normally, this goes against the grain for copywriting. The difference with luxury copywriting is that you should have such a strong brand strategy that they have plenty of awareness of your brand prior to reading your copy, that they’re already strongly leaning towards saying “yes” to your offer.
Which leads us into this next point…
3. Understand the motivation of your buyers (hint: it’s elevating their status)
The underlying motivation for why people buy anything is often much simpler than what you’d expect. For example, in the marketing space, you can divide buying decisions into these four categories:
- Save time: A business owner hires a VA to do several tasks in their business so they can get more of their time back.
- Save money: A couple chooses to buy a hybrid vehicle to reduce the cost of gas they pay for each year.
- Make more money: A creative entrepreneur hires a website copywriter to make more sales off of her website. 😉
- Elevate their status: A hard-working business owner buys herself some Channel sunglasses to feel like *that girl*
Obviously, there are a lot more motivations than that, but for luxury brands, the motivation is always the human desire to elevate one’s status.
Understanding someone’s motivation is key for writing copy. A luxury brand isn’t going to be talking about all the time you’ll save by booking your luxury travel agency, or the money you’ll save by bundling your luxury hotel stays into a multipart trip.
Make sure your copy stays focused on the feeling they will experience ones their status is validated by your product or service.
4. Including your pricing is part of your copywriting strategy
Luxury brands do not keep their pricing a secret. They also don’t bend over backwards to justify why their purse costs $3k.
Take a look at this Dior bag listing:
That’s all the description you get of the bag. It’s literally only 130 words.
That’s all you get to sell you on a purse worth $3,250.
(To put this into perspective, I use an entire website, a strategy call, and a proposal to sell my clients on a $4,500 website copywriting package. That’s a lot of words.)
But think about it: wouldn’t it be weird if Dior went on and on about how “the quality is really good!” for this bag? Yes! It’s Dior. You expect it’s going to be good. They don’t need to convince you.
In a way, the $3,250 price tag is communicating more about this purse than the words are.
5. Sell the experience, not the product or service
As we established, you’re not trying to convince people of the quality of your product or service (although that should definitely be there!)
You want to sell the experience of your product or service.
When you think about the “experience” of your brand, what comes to mind? Is it ease? Excitement? Validation? Or security? Is it being a part of something exclusive?
This part of the Ferrari website is a good example of what I’m talking about:
What feelings does this line of copy evoke in you?
For me, it reads as exciting, cutting-edge, elite, and sophisticated.
Like many luxury brands, Ferrari is implying that this purchase will bring you into an elite group of people experiencing something only their brand can offer.
So for your own brand’s luxury copywriting, how can you invite people into the “experience” of your brand?
6. I know we’re talking about luxury copywriting, but your images, design, and user experience should be on point too
Ok, I know I’m a copywriter, but I would be lying to you if I said good copywriting can save bad design or imagery.
For luxury brands? A picture is worth a thousand words.
I know I don’t have to tell you that, because if you go to any luxury brand’s website or see one of their ads, you’ll know that the imagery, photography, and design is just as intentional and strategic as the words they use.
Just saying, don’t skip that step. Plan for the design and copy to work together, and you’ll get the best results.
7. Lean into sensory language whenever possible
Luxury brands are great at creating a sensory experience with words.
That’s literally how 99.9% of perfume ads run. They can’t share the scent with you, so they have to share the sense with you.
This section of copy from the Belmond website, talking about the Britannic Explorer train does a great job of filling you in on the sensory experience of the train.
Rolling hills, sparkling blue waters, and jagged mountains are all painting a vivid picture of what you’ll experience on the train. They’re using vivid language to draw you in, almost so you can see, feel, or taste what the experience is going to be like before you even get there.
Think about how the five senses will impact how someone will experience your brand, and infuse that into your copy.
Luxury copywriting doesn’t mean slapping a “luxury” label on your brand. It’s about creating an *experience* for the reader.
Truthfully, if you do all these things, slapping a “luxury” label on your brand should be the very last thing you do, if you even do it at all.
And listen, if these pillars of luxury copywriting are simply too much for you to handle by yourself, it’s time to bring a copywriter on board who understands how to create an experience for your reader (and elevate your brand at the same time.)
Check out my copywriting services if you want me to write copy for your luxury brand, or send me an email at delaney@darkroastcopy.co if you want to talk about a specific project.
