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Hi, I’m Trevor Campbell

Previously a journalist, I have been a creative copywriter since 1999. Since first joining HSBC as a copywriter (later becoming head of copy) I have worked with companies such as J.P. Morgan and ING through to firms like Brewin Dolphin and Drayton Bird Associates.

The most important things I have learned is that clarity and simplicity work best and there are a number of techniques you can use to persuade people to act.

Creative writing works much better when backed up by science

I became a copywriter before I truly learned the ropes. It was thrilling to conjure up inventive ideas for campaigns but they also need the oomph of results. So I was lucky enough to later ‘serve’ with Drayton Bird. He "knows more about direct marketing than anyone else in the world” said advertising kingpin David Ogilvy.

Like I said, I was lucky.

I learned about the key principles of persuasion: valuable tips that help to increase response. It was only afterwards – working with ING’s behavioural economics team – that I found out why people act in a certain way. It’s our basic psychological nature. Our wiring.

As I helped ING to get their message out (and ever since) I studied as much as I could. From great practitioners such as Daniel Kahneman, Dan Ariely, Thaler and Sunstein and in particular, Professor Robert Cialdini. Their findings are not guesswork – but backed up by extensive science, tested over decades in the field.

At Nudge Copywriting, we apply their research on an everyday level for clients who want that bit more from their messaging.