Short form

When space is limited, every word matters. It’s a careful balance between simplifying complex concepts while maintaining personality. Our short-form copy appears on the Adyen website, our social media, at events, and in advertisements.

Website

The golden rule: stay benefit driven. Our offering is complicated and requires niche knowledge to understand why a particular feature or technique would help a business. If you make sure the advantages shine through, you can demonstrate Adyen is worth knowing more about. Which means the prospect can dig into the details later by talking to the Adyen sales team and by reading other content. Avoid cliches and filler copy, and apply keywords that relate to your audience.

 

Minimize subclauses and adverbs

Though they might help sentence flow and add some stylistic flair, they take up valuable space. Stick to shorter, snappier sentences to get your point across fast. Don't make anyone work too hard.

 

   Do
Messaging
Each issuing bank has different risk preferences and technologies. Automatically send the right payment data every time for maximum approval rates.

   Don't
Messaging
Messaging adapts the format of payment messages to best suit an issuing bank’s preferences. It automatically reformats the data sent with each payment request according to the issuing bank's specific preferences, based on the issuing bank's past behavior.

 

Don’t shy away from the imperative

The imperative mood ensures the sentence is active and the advantage for the prospect is at its core. Plus, it often means you can cut a word (the subject).

 

   Do
Integrate with a simple web-based API
Easily integrate POS systems with terminals, initiate payments from a range of devices and systems, perform refunds, and collect customer information.

   Don't
Our simple web-based API
You can easily integrate with your POS systems with terminals, as well as initiate payments from a range of devices and systems, perform refunds, and collect customer information.

 

Spice up "Read more" CTAs

We want to grab the visitor’s attention, without confusing them. Tons of “Read more” or “Learn more” can get quite repetitive and it’s also not clear where the visitor will go if they click the link or button. Try to make your CTAs more interesting than “Read more” and more specific, so the visitor knows what to expect.

   Do

   Don't

 

Social media ads

Though we’re trying to sell our product or a piece of content, we still want to remain human and not overly salesy.
 

Be as specific as possible
Make it seem like the ad is just for them.

 

   Do

   Don't

 

The CTA needs to be crystal clear

We need to help the reader know what they should do next. Not only does this help increase the CTR, it also reduces bounce rates as the reader goes to the content they expect. From an aesthetic perspective, try to avoid shortened links (like bit.ly) and make use of the button options offered by the social media site.

 

PPC ads

To write a good PPC ad, you need to have a good understanding of the mechanics behind it. Knowing what the primary keyword is, how dynamic ads work, and which metrics to track is crucial to be aware of before you even start writing. It’s also worth noting that sometimes tone of voice may be sacrificed if the copy is performing better from a conversion perspective.

Google will also help out a lot too. You’ll need to write many different versions of copy and Google will automatically show the text that’s the most successful in engaging visitors.
 
A lot of useful writing best practices can be found in this guide by Google. The most important things to know are:

  • Include the primary keyword in the heading (preferably at the start) and in the description
  • Pay close attention to _Expected CTR, Landing page experience, _and Ad relevance measurements in the ads dashboard to understand if your copy is performing
  • Write close to the maximum character count

 

Social

Our channels

Adyen on LinkedIn
Our key channel. The most followed, most engaged with, the most pertinent. We use it to:

  • Share information about the company, its employees, the product, and the industry.
  • Share local events, local stories and highlight local execs.
  • Establish Adyen as an expert in the industry.

Adyen on Twitter
A place for brand awareness and media relations, where people go to espouse their views, no matter their industry or outlook. Twitter is used for engaging with other people, whether that be peers or other folks in the industry. It’s a chance to be a part of the conversation.

Adyen on YouTube
Our home for video content. Vimeo is used for technical demos and internal videos. Our main use of YouTube is archiving, but it shouldn't be a dumping ground for any and every video. Also used for paid ads.

Adyen on Facebook
Mainly used for paid ads.

We share our social media channels with various markets in different regions. As a result, our cadence, style, and approach can vary. The Social Media Guidelines help us in keeping a consistent style and visual language across channels to leverage social media effectively.
 
Find here the design social principles.

Key writing insight from the social guidelines

Length

  • In LinkedIn posts, write up to 210 characters until the ‘read more’ button appears.
  • For Twitter, the maximum number of characters is 280 and you cannot exceed it.

Tone of voice
Always consider Adyen’s tone of voice when writing organic copy for social media. Our tone of voice is:

  • Influential
  • Straight talking
  • Approachable
  • Dynamic
    Write social media copy with a positive note. An example:

Trigger
Try to make your copy appealing so that your audience will actually stop, read and click through. Some tips and tricks:

  • Always include a Call To Action in your posts to give your audience something to click through to. Examples:

    • Discover in our blog / on our website:
    • Sign up for the event / newsletter now:
    • Get in contact with our sales team here:
  • Write a question in your copy:

    • Do you know the difference between end-to-end and point-to-point encryption?
    • Want to offer your customers the best ecommerce experience?
    • Interested in what we have to offer?
  • Include numbers or percentages as they attract readers.

  • Include tags (people or companies) and hashtags (around 3) to increase reach.