‘Because Y’s a crooked letter and neither you nor I can straighten it’. Remember that expression? 'Why' is a very powerful device for content marketing and copy writing. Here's why...
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‘Because Y’s a crooked letter and neither you nor I can straighten it’.

I usually heard that expression from my mother after I had asked 'why' once too often.

I never really lost my love of the word 'why', which is probably the reason I went into journalism. And now that I have three daughters ranging from 2 years to 15 years, I've found that telling them why I want them to do something almost always secures their co-operation.

It's a very powerful conversion device that isn't used nearly enough in content marketing, copy writing and even journalism nowadays.

Why? Because us humans are naturally curious, somewhat lazy and a bit cynical, so when somebody tries to get us to do something, we usually want to know 'why' (?).

The next time you have to write sales copy, or ask somebody to do something, provide a reason 'why'. You're much more likely to achieve 'buy-in'.

'Why' also stimulates creativity.

If you're stuck for words, you might find that answering the question 'why' is a great way to get the muse going again. Perhaps you're thinking of writing a piece about travel insurance, or investing in stocks or about how to conduct a successful job interview. Begin by answering the question 'why', and then rest should flow from there...

When you answer the question 'why', you're establishing yourself as having a reason, and as reasonable. You're presenting motive and evidence and that builds credibility which in turn creates trust.