Doing the copywriting for your own website without the proper knowledge and tools is pretty much like flying blind in a snowstorm without piloting experience or instruments.
It doesn't work too well.
A very basic knowledge of copywriting and direct marketing principles will take you a long ways on the Web.
Here are three simple keys to writing better online copy. Armed just with these, you'll have a jump on 90% of the folks out there doing the copywriting for their own sites. And you'll increase the pulling quality of your site's copy today -- even if you've never written a word of copy in your life.
1) Wake up your prospect
In today's overkill ad world most people have become numb to standard sales messages. Television, newspapers, magazines, Internet, radio, etc. all blast us non-stop with advertising. After a while we just naturally tune most of it out.
Copywriting great John Carlton says to imagine that your prospect is a giant blob sitting there on the couch or in a chair. Now what would you need to do to get that blob to take action to buy?
Getting someone to stop... actually read your website copy... AND click through (or fill out a form) is serious heavy-duty action on the click-and-run Web. Your prospect has a million things on his or her mind.
Reading your copy isn't exactly Priority One...
So how do you wake your prospects up and get 'em to read your copy?
The secret is right here in this headline:
"ARE YOU TOO BUSY EARNING A LIVING TO MAKE ANY REAL MONEY?"
This is from Joe Karbo's sales letter for his "The Lazy Man's Way to Riches" book. The letter was probably responsible for over a million dollars worth of sales for Joe.
Joe's secret here, and one which you can use too, is based on a simple principle for getting a prospect's attention.
You need to...
2) Enter the conversation going on in your prospect's mind
You should know enough about your target market to know what keeps them awake at night. If you don't yet, then you'll need to find out right away.
In the example above from Joe Karbo, it's about working like a dog and barely making enough to pay the bills. Marketers like Joe who target opportunity seekers understand that frustrations about money cause a lot of people pain.
But what concerns does your target market have? What problem(s) do they need solved? What itch(es) do they need scratched?
You can find the answers to these questions fairly easily. Lurk on the forums where your prospects hang out... Read the online and offline newsletters, magazines and journals they read...
Or better yet, just ask them!
Set up a survey page on your website or else survey them through your newsletter or blog. Or use a Web tool like AskDatabase.
Once you know what your prospects are thinking about most of the time your copywriting job becomes a heckuva lot easier. You'll be on a more intimate basis with your market. Which is never a bad thing...
Good copywriting is wooing your customers in print, after all. Just like you would woo a prospective mate. And the more you know about them the more you'll be able to say the right things!
So now that you know what bothers your prospects you'll need to...
3) Make a compelling offer
This is an area where most website copy really falls short.
Ask yourself this question:
What exactly is it that I want my prospects to do?
You want them to buy! Right? Or at least opt-in to your newsletter... or get your free report... or sign up for your autoresponder series...
In other words, you want them to take an action! You don't want them to browse around, look at your pretty graphics and then click out. The Web is just too too big. And your site is just one tiny place in that giant Web ocean. Once they leave, their chances of coming back are one in a billion. Or worse...
So you need to use your copywriting skills to build an offer that forces them to make a clear decision.
Make it irresistible. "Make them an offer they can't refuse," said the old godfather.
He would've made a good marketer.
By making your offer as seductive as possible, you force action. You force that clear decision. With pure lead generation sites this means they give you their contact info. With direct sales sites it means a sale. Or if it's a combination of the two they buy and/or give you their contact info so you can follow up.
If your offer is good enough, then a good percentage of your prospects will be energized.
Your copy will be like a jolt of electricity...Zap!
That blob on the couch might actually get up and do something...
So make your offer hot. Load it up with perceived value. Tell 'em how your product is going to make their life better. And give 'em a good deal!
To summarize...
Wake 'em up by entering the conversation already in their minds, and then make 'em an offer they can't refuse. If you do this, you'll instantly increase the power of your online copywriting. I guarantee it!
© 2005 by Bruce Carlson
Want to become a better online copywriter? Sign up for Bruce's The Dynamic Copywriter and see how easily you can improve your online copywriting skills and boost your sales!
http://www.dynamic-copywriting.com
In this article, I am going to reveal a dozen... Read More
Copywriting ChecklistOkay, you know you have your product (or service)... Read More
A subscriber to my newsletter asks: "Got any good pointers... Read More
The single most important element of your website's copy is... Read More
The huge demand for writers online is really for ghostwriters.... Read More
Content is king. Without content your website is an empty... Read More
Would you like to get more sales from your online... Read More
Last quarter I talked about interviewing / gathering data. So... Read More
Freelancing is a competitive business, especially in today's fast-paced, e-focused... Read More
In a crowded market, clients will be seeking personality as... Read More
Building a professional reputation requires a campaign founded on your... Read More
Want to know the secret of creating MEMORABLE promotional copy?... Read More
Most people with an online presence will have to regularly... Read More
A passionate debate is currently raging in the Copywriters Forum... Read More
Even for those with the skills needed, finding copy editing... Read More
Everyday when I read promotional emails and advertisements, or listen... Read More
I've seen this ongoing debate debate jump up again recently... Read More
These days, there's widespread acceptance that a website is an... Read More
Several years ago, when I was working for an agency,... Read More
Just as great fiction is an art, so is great... Read More
Internet Marketing- Forget the experts, latest software program or even... Read More
COPYWRITINGAfter determining what we are going to sell, the next... Read More
One of the biggest challenges a copywriter faces is to... Read More
Having worked as a digital publishing specialist at a large... Read More
Most of the sales pieces people ask me to rewrite... Read More
Hands up if the title to this article made you... Read More
I confess--I'm a marketing heretic! I've built my career on... Read More
Do you have the training and skills needed for copywriting?Are... Read More
A letter or postcard allows you to "talk" one-on-one to... Read More
From the early days of search engine optimization, keywords and... Read More
Ask yourself these questions:Are you an experienced writer?Do you want... Read More
I want to tell you how I go about writing... Read More
Here's a fundamental difference between copywriting offline and copywriting for... Read More
The art of writing profitable classified adsEverybody wants to make... Read More
Quotations are expressions, usually in the spoken form or in... Read More
In order to get ahead in your copy writing business,... Read More
You know what it's like, you're reading the sales material... Read More
"It's the headline, stupid," is the sign that hangs over... Read More
It's a common approach to writing copy. You begin by... Read More
We all know words are powerful. Whether written or spoken,... Read More
Want to know the secret of creating MEMORABLE promotional copy?... Read More
WHAT'S THEIR PROBLEM?How do you begin a dialogue with a... Read More
It doesn't matter if you're writing an article, a newspaper... Read More
Most people can write. Some can even write well. But... Read More
Every person has secrets that only he or she knows,... Read More
Are you a freelance copywriter working from home? If so,... Read More
When I critique, edit or rewrite sales copy, I discover... Read More
If you're hunting for a good freelance copywriter and have... Read More
You've done it. Gotten that press release written. Now you're... Read More
You're ready to launch that new product or promotion, &... Read More
When you are going to write a press release probably... Read More
Is it out there? The chance to be a freelance... Read More
All the world's a story. Video games have storylines; newspapers... Read More
The difference between good copy and great copy is the... Read More
At times, it can be frustrating to find freelance business... Read More
Think you have what it takes to be a freelance... Read More
So, you have something you want to sell. It may... Read More
One of the most important priorities of evey online business... Read More
When you receive a sales letter with typos or grammar... Read More
Your sales copy is the life source of your business.... Read More
I like to use power phrases when writing sales material.... Read More
Not everyone is a writer. Good copy writing is a... Read More
Most of the sales pieces people ask me to rewrite... Read More
It's time to write your next ad or brochure. Maybe... Read More
Many of the solo professionals whom I coach are people... Read More
Your sales letter is the most important component in your... Read More
Copywriting |