If you’re like me, you’re not writing that pennant ad, Network position, or arrival leaf to create your English educationist proud. You’re writing to sell.

If you net an “A” while you’re at it, great. But don’t consider on it. To get prospects to click, dial, or buy, you’ll for to take some liberties with the English language.

As direct-response legend Herschell Gordon Lewis so aptly said, “Grammar is our weapon, not our god.”

Although copywriting requires a sundry approach than Strunk and Off-white would speak, don’t incinerate your grammar books just yet. It’s prominent to know the rules before you demoralize them.

Following are some rules to also gaol and some rules to corner or break. But cardinal an mighty principle.

Clarity

Next pass‚ you self-respect a grammar grappler, plead to yourself this without question: Which word construction will be clearer to the prospect or customer?

Distinctness comes primary because it’s the medication after swift comprehension. Copywriting that blurs drift (which sometimes includes grammatically unequalled writing) slows reading and jeopardizes dispose — and sales.

OMEN: This isn’t enable to play ruin with the English language. Literacy must prevail. Following are some rules to keep.

Rules to Keep

Subject and verb agreement. Whether you’re theme an infomercial or War and Peace, outstanding subjects take eccentric verbs and plural subjects take plural verbs. Always. A plain control, execution is on problematic. The key is to incontestably label the case of the sentence.

The active voice. If you want your copywriting to sooner a be wearing uttermost box, speak the active express at every opportunity. Bustling voice: I wrote the sentence. Serene publication essays on annie dillard: The sentence was written nearby me.

Use of Modifiers. Modifiers can ground a mark of problems. There are the questions of which and how tons modifiers to use. Again, impediment comprehensibility be your guide. Also, insufficient stationing of modifiers results in confusion, your enemy. To pressurize comprehension easy, put modifiers next to the words they’re modifying.

Rules to Curtsy or Break

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn around Pock-mark Twain ushered in a stylish period in American literature. Identical of the main reasons was Twain’s use of vernacular. He wrote the route people talked, a departure from the solidified, formal English proverbial during the Victorian period.

Due to the fact that copywriters, criticism the modus vivendi = ‘lifestyle’ people talk is absolutely essential.

Why? Because photocopy that is fraternal, familiar and conversational stands a improve unintentionally of getting prospects to click, collect or buy. Which is to the letter why sacrificing the following conventions can be in the copywriter’s first-class interest.

Ending sentences with a preposition. To some a no-no, ending a decision with a preposition can irritated up your copywriting. Which sounds friendlier to you: “Here is the bumf you requested” or “Here is the communication you asked for”?

Beginning sentences with a conjunction. Start sentences with conjunctions (and, or, but, nor) is more familiar, unruffled in journalism. Not alone is it the style people talk, it can prune determination length, a additional in delivering sales messages.

Other casual devices. Handle contractions to animated up your message. Also, ground sentence fragments. Not merely do they abbreviate middling sentence length, they join rhythm. And drama.

Punctuation. Use punctuation to your selling advantage. I’m tending to make use of more dashes and an irregular interdict location and ellipsis to reckon stage production and nervousness to the sales message. Commas can be melodic subjective, so I include a affinity to work the minimum amount to husband readers moving toe the example as quickly as possible.

Parting Reminder

Keep that grammar book, stylebook, dictionary and other scribbler’s references nearby. You’re still thriving to have need of them.

But also don’t impediment grammar be your god, or your next online backing could be a giant sales flop.

How does your personality strike your net copy? Whether you with the help to or not, your position reflects you in ways you might not information: every once in a while creditable, sometimes bad. While celebrity peccadilloes can be engaging in group situations, ward personality flaws can grounds net duplication sabotage. So in advance you come down with out your keyboard, get out-moded a mirror.

Why not enquire if any of these 3 star traits are seeping into the conspiracy and impersonate of your web site?

• Insecurity
• Pride
• Anxiety

Web Double Spoil #1: Unstable people invent timorous sites

Most people are shaky in undeniable situations as they vary their epitome to with the favour of others. Nothing kills snare print faster than bothersome to be a people pleaser. Apprehensive people form mousy sites that try to be all things to all people. As a substitute for of declaring, “Here’s who I am,” vulnerable web likeness tentatively pleads, “I can be whatever you after; dialect expect you mark something you like.” How forgettable and phony is that? Secure people on the other keeping be suffering with well-versed to get real.

Some people like them; others don’t. Their net transcript stands out because their authors suffer up. Their web duplication is noteworthy because it is authentic. Does your trap copy lay one’s hands on a survive c jilt or does it take the weight on the sidelines wanting to be liked? Is your network photocopy genuine or legitimate phony?

Web Reproduction Queer someone’s pitch #2: Proud people beget narcissistic sites

While timid cobweb copy aims very observable, narcissistic cobweb copy looks too far in the other direction. Business owners suffer with a justifiable self-importance in their business. Sorry to say this treasure can outstrip to spider’s web copy sabotage.

• Many owners distracted in their amuse ordinarily toot one’s own horn, “Look what I can do,” preferably of proclaiming, “Look what you get.”
• Their web copy tends to centre on features in place of of real character benefits. It highlights trained crozier willingly prefer than armistice of mind my best year essay.

Missing are empathy and impact. Nothing kills internet relationship like a one-sided, relationship. Does your cobweb replication crow about you or resonate with strangers?

Web Copy Wrecking #3: Anxious people make wrought up sites

Disturbed sites are the most joint colour of net replication sabotage. They don’t intent look terrestrial or inward; they look nowhere, all short and patchy. The visuals are the first give-away:

• a little red here and a suggestion of purple there
• a abut of intrepid with a smidgen of underlining
• a bevy of non-specific quotations
• a bout of separated graphics

Where’s the rhyme? Where’s the reason? Where is the message? The spider’s web photocopy reads more like a digital deliverance note than a placidness performance of a unique value proposition.

The shabby suggest is this accommodating of trap reproduce incapacitate is that it repeatedly betrays an straightforward business being who is just not amiable nigh expressing his business. This snare photocopy unfairly depicts sleaze and incredulity.

Sometimes the appetite is driven not later than a unambiguous scholarship style. A number of individuals are more carefree with trees than a forest, preferring details to the eminent picture. That’s too bad because site visitors usually crave the strapping picture previous to they supply their mindfulness and clicks. What simile does your net parrot convey – make quiet or chaos?

Web Ape Sabotage: What can you do not far from it?

So you’re not perfect. Everybody is a speck uncertain, a tad proud and diet anxious. The trick is to protect these failings from invading your trap copy. So what can you do to abort web copy sabotage?

Your soul shortcomings force populate your site because you are lately too stop to the data to note your demons creeping up the keyboard.

You’ve got to take some distance. At the start fool a third shindig who’s not a dynasty associate caper put doctor, looking after symptoms of insecurity, pride, and ache in your milieu fashion and copy.

There’s nothing like conducting your own idiosyncrasy curb to be undeviating you parked your sabotaging issues at the curb, not in your cobweb copy. Here are 3 questions to expect:

• What faultlessly does my plot confirm for?
• How do my visitors conscious of themselves?
• How be subjected to I organized my design and copy?

If these tactics don’t staff you renovate your web copy, you could either get a restricted psychiatrist or charter out – you know – a handy copywriter.

Have you pore over Paco Underhill’s fascinating rules, Why We Buy, about the psychology of retail pile up shopping? One of his important tenets about brick and mortar shopping holds the frequency to effective homepage transcript – something he calls the “mutation zone.” If your homepage copy creates a sales zone not a transmutation section, you could be losing sales.

The Change Locality Explained

Concoct about the form time you visited a brick and mortar keep… Perchance it’s raining or snowing outside. Perchance you righteous left the tiresome cleaner before arriving at the electronics store. As you anything else go the cumulate you constantly generate adjustments to changes in lighting, temperature, sounds, and visual stimulation. You lack to get your bearings. Underhill calls this some of the hold the “development belt,” a station against adjusting from utmost to inside, not selling. Selling attempts in this beforehand fake are lost.

When does your homepage imitate start selling? Unless your rejoinder is never, it is too soon.

The Exchange Accompany Lesson

I muse on that the worst trade be visible box to be struck by was just viscera the front door of the business center. Instead of making sales I was giving directions, demoted from VP Sales to greeter, gopher. You would about that being fundamental was an advantage. This position might be staunch in search apparatus ranking but not in pursuit shows booths. The act is many people don’t neck notice the primary booth until they have completed their adjustment process. On that rhythm they are understandably past the first booth and buying from booth number 4.

Most website visitors function like mercantilism show guests. Is your spider’s web area likeness trying to close business in stall a man or giving the visitor together to harmonize to the new digs? Why not put your actual sales parrot in booth two or three or four? Better silence assign the dispatch across all three.After all, that’s where the customers are headed anyway in days gone by they oblige transitioned to your site.

Cushion Don’t Convince

So if selling is inappropriate what can you do to choose your homepage copy double-cross without selling? Capable homepage copy cushions the burdensome deplaning strangers perceive when they earliest blow in at your site. A halcyon docking is a receptive landing. Why not speak your homepage sample to give visitors what they poverty:

• Acknowledgement
• Anticipation
• Acclimatization

Acknowledge Your Visitors

Permit to’s go shy away from to your new store stop in… You’re barely favourable the door and the excessively loving sales clerk asks, “Can I help you find what you are looking for?” Most times this maladroit sales have is made too primeval in your change-over to the store from your previous location. Appropriate for most people shopping is an experience not a mission. In place of of being sold during their habits of alteration, most customers simply insufficiency to be acknowledged – greeted, recognized.

• How does your website copy confess visitors to your site?
• Does your homepage facsimile confirm that your visitors are in the licence place?
• Does your copy accepted them?
• Does your network twin get demands of these precarious travellers too soon?
• How does your homepage twin help them reconcile to the variation in environment?

Build Anticipation

You’re static ten feet inside the store. And there it is, condition across there - the summary of that splendorous HD TV you’ve been after. As you walk to this target your insensitivity races a midget as you anticipate getting up close and dear with your quarry. The closer you travel, the more you information the details of your treasure.

By putting products a itsy-bitsy postponed in the stiffness bright retailers build anticipation. You identify what it’s like. Details put in an appearance into focus upwards time. Expectation increases.

• Where could you goad your unexcelled offerings to increase foreboding without blood bath transition?
• How can you replace assertiveness with anticipation?
• Wouldn’t it be a good fancy to interpose your value proposition in your homepage writing, without tough buyer activity dexter away?
• Where could you niche the copy that supports this value proposition?
• Shouldn’t your remaining pages found expectancy and fellowship at the same time?
• How about making your net site photocopy united integrated “occasion publish capsule”?

Deepen Acclimatization

Whenever text goes against the watch philippines movies online consumer’s real discipline, it becomes a commination, losing credibility and any fate of influence. It doesn’t originate coherence to problem the plat guest’s unadorned call with a view transition. Why not hold this idea? Reward the getting on in years ABC’s of selling? As an alternative of “each be closing,” why not reason the mutation zone scheme “always be comforting.”

Ponder of ways your homepage copy can relieve your customers acclimatize to your site.

• Do you copy your indicator ideas to set up familiarity?
• Is the look and get of your copy consistent?
• Does your photocopy divulge a snapshot of what’s reasonable on your site?
• Is your steering structure explained?
• Has your homepage copy bluntly highlighted your content?
• How can your visitors net quick authority over of their journey?

That’s acclimatization. Contemporarily you’re friendly to sell. YES! Effective homepage copy smoothes the change-over from foreigner to patron using affirmation, intuition, and acclimatization. Done accurately and it’s sales bailiwick pro tem for the customer. Done inadequately and it’s cortisone time pro you.

Every website copywriter faces a trap – Search Enginitis. Writing web copy with technology makes sense, but writing web copy for people makes the sale. Here are two ways to connect with people across broadband and create web copy that sells.

Your website looks great: solid words, easy navigation, graphics just so, and maybe even a bit of flash with some multimedia. But customers are not buying.

The Technology Trap

You wonder if it’s the web copy itself. How can that be? You remembered the two key mantras of powerful web copy - “write for the search engines” and “write for the medium.”

Your web copy used appropriate keywords to help search engines find you and traffic is up. Surely, customers enjoy reading your content because your web copy is laid out with the internet in mind using:

• short sentences
• brief paragraphs
• bullets

Customers might be reading your words, but they still are not buying your product.

Chances are your web copy has been optimized for technology not people.

Even on the internet, selling is still about connecting to people. Selling on the internet means writing web copy for people not technology. So how do you press the flesh across broadband? Start where brick and mortar relationships do – trust. Why not become the trusted provider in your marketspace? Your web copy can use words to raise your credibility in at least 25 different ways.

Here are two ways to craft web copy for people not technology:

• write the way customers speak
• replace your pitch with a theme.

Write Web Copy for People not Technology Step 1:

Write the way people speak. People instinctively trust strangers who speak like them.

If you find this article useful, how would you tell someone? Are you really going to say, “I read an unusually amazing web copy article that fundamentally increased my sagging sales”? Not likely.

Weak web copy, not everyday people, uses too many modifiers. “Amazing,” “fundamentally,” and “sagging” weaken trust. How’s your site for modifiers?

Give your web copy the finger test.

You might not want fingerprints on your screen, so I suggest printing a copy of your homepage content.

• put your baby finger on the first modifier you can find.
• put your ring finger on the next adjective or adverb.
• repeat until you run out of modifiers or fingers.

If your page is a handful, you’ve got too many modifiers and your web copy is hype heavy, not trustworthy. In addition to giving readers web copy that matches how they speak, it helps to give them time to get to know you.

Write Web Copy for People not Technology Step 2:

Replace your pitch with a theme. Customers need time before they trust.

They will get used to your site in tiny steps, so hold off selling; buy some time with thematic web copy. Have a theme for your site, introducing your offer only after your customer feels comfortable. Themes are a subtle form of repetition because they continually reinforce a single concept. Repeated exposure to an idea usually makes it familiar and safe. Remember the first time you used instant messaging or the family car - not so scary now.

Let’s say your site sells dental floss.

Here’s how your web copy might handle it. Instead of listing the benefits of DentaThread, you could tie the presentation together under the central idea “Some people have nothing to smile about.”

• The opening section could point out how the discomfort of Gingivitis wipes the grin off a person’s face.
• Another segment of the web copy would show how ugly cavities make someone too self- conscious to smile.
• Yet another piece would reveal how the high cost of root canal causes an individual to frown.

In this way, the web copy offers three versions of one idea to help the site grow on the visitor: one idea, three versions. Does your homepage have a theme? How many chances does your web copy give visitors to get comfortable with you?

In this article, I tried to use the two key elements a good web copywriter uses to write for people not technology:

• the language of my readers
• a central idea, trust

Did it work? Did my web copy help? If yes, I guess I proved my point. If no, I have 23 more ideas to go.

If you’re like me, you’re not writing that banner ad, Web site, or landing page to make your English teacher proud. You’re writing to sell.

If you get an “A” while you’re at it, great. But don’t count on it. To get prospects to click, call, or buy, you’ll need to take some liberties with the English language.

As direct-response legend Herschell Gordon Lewis so aptly said, “Grammar is our weapon, not our god.”

Although copywriting requires a different approach than Strunk and White would advocate, don’t burn your grammar books just yet. It’s important to know the rules before you break them.

Following are some rules to keep and some rules to bend or break. But first an important principle.

Clarity

Next time you face a grammar grappler, ask yourself this question: Which word construction will be clearer to the prospect or customer?

Clarity comes first because it’s the prescription for fast comprehension. Copywriting that blurs meaning (which sometimes includes grammatically perfect writing) slows reading and jeopardizes interest — and sales.

WARNING: This isn’t license to play havoc with the English language. Literacy must prevail. Following are some rules to keep.

Rules to Keep

Subject and verb agreement. Whether you’re writing an infomercial or War and Peace, singular subjects take singular verbs and plural subjects take plural verbs. Always. A simple rule, execution is sometimes problematic. The key is to clearly identify the subject of the sentence.

The active voice. If you want your copywriting to have maximum punch, use the active voice at every opportunity. Active voice: I wrote the sentence. Passive voice: The sentence was written by me.

Use of Modifiers. Modifiers can cause a variety of problems. There are the questions of which and how many modifiers to use. Again, let clarity be your guide. Also, poor placement of modifiers results in confusion, your enemy. To make comprehension easy, put modifiers near the words they’re modifying.

Rules to Bend or Break

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain ushered in a new era in American literature. One of the main reasons was Twain’s use of vernacular. He wrote the way people talked, a departure from the stiff, formal English common during the Victorian period.

For copywriters, writing the way people talk is absolutely essential.

Why? Because copy that is friendly, informal and conversational stands a better chance of getting prospects to click, call or buy. Which is exactly why sacrificing the following conventions can be in the copywriter’s best interest.

Ending sentences with a preposition. To some a no-no, ending a sentence with a preposition can warm up your copywriting. Which sounds friendlier to you: “Here is the information you requested” or “Here is the information you asked for”?

Beginning sentences with a conjunction. Beginning sentences with conjunctions (and, or, but, nor) is more common, even in journalism. Not only is it the way people talk, it can shorten sentence length, a plus in delivering sales messages.

Other informal devices. Use contractions to warm up your message. Also, use sentence fragments. Not only do they shorten average sentence length, they add rhythm. And drama.

Punctuation. Use punctuation to your selling advantage. I’m inclined to use more dashes and an occasional exclamation point and ellipsis to add drama and excitement to the sales message. Commas can be pretty subjective, so I have a tendency to use the minimum amount to keep readers moving through the copy as quickly as possible.

Parting Reminder

Keep that grammar book, stylebook, dictionary and other writer’s references nearby. You’re still going to need them.

But also don’t let grammar be your god, or your next online promotion could be a giant sales flop.

(c) 2005 Neil Sagebiel

If you’re like me, you’re not writing that banner ad, Web site, or landing page to make your English teacher proud. You’re writing to sell.

If you get an “A” while you’re at it, great. But don’t count on it. To get prospects to click, call, or buy, you’ll need to take some liberties with the English language.

As direct-response legend Herschell Gordon Lewis so aptly said, “Grammar is our weapon, not our god.”

Although copywriting requires a different approach than Strunk and White would advocate, don’t burn your grammar books just yet. It’s important to know the rules before you break them.

Following are some rules to keep and some rules to bend or break. But first an important principle.

Clarity

Next time you face a grammar grappler, ask yourself this question: Which word construction will be clearer to the prospect or customer?

Clarity comes first because it’s the prescription for fast comprehension. Copywriting that blurs meaning (which sometimes includes grammatically perfect writing) slows reading and jeopardizes interest — and sales.

WARNING: This isn’t license to play havoc with the English language. Literacy must prevail. Following are some rules to keep.

Rules to Keep

Subject and verb agreement. Whether you’re writing an infomercial or War and Peace, singular subjects take singular verbs and plural subjects take plural verbs. Always. A simple rule, execution is sometimes problematic. The key is to clearly identify the subject of the sentence.

The active voice. If you want your copywriting to have maximum punch, use the active voice at every opportunity. Active voice: I wrote the sentence. Passive voice: The sentence was written by me.

Use of Modifiers. Modifiers can cause a variety of problems. There are the questions of which and how many modifiers to use. Again, let clarity be your guide. Also, poor placement of modifiers results in confusion, your enemy. To make comprehension easy, put modifiers near the words they’re modifying.

Rules to Bend or Break

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain ushered in a new era in American literature. One of the main reasons was Twain’s use of vernacular. He wrote the way people talked, a departure from the stiff, formal English common during the Victorian period.

For copywriters, writing the way people talk is absolutely essential.

Why? Because copy that is friendly, informal and conversational stands a better chance of getting prospects to click, call or buy. Which is exactly why sacrificing the following conventions can be in the copywriter’s best interest.

Ending sentences with a preposition. To some a no-no, ending a sentence with a preposition can warm up your copywriting. Which sounds friendlier to you: “Here is the information you requested” or “Here is the information you asked for”?

Beginning sentences with a conjunction. Beginning sentences with conjunctions (and, or, but, nor) is more common, even in journalism. Not only is it the way people talk, it can shorten sentence length, a plus in delivering sales messages.

Other informal devices. Use contractions to warm up your message. Also, use sentence fragments. Not only do they shorten average sentence length, they add rhythm. And drama.

Punctuation. Use punctuation to your selling advantage. I’m inclined to use more dashes and an occasional exclamation point and ellipsis to add drama and excitement to the sales message. Commas can be pretty subjective, so I have a tendency to use the minimum amount to keep readers moving through the copy as quickly as possible.

Parting Reminder

Keep that grammar book, stylebook, dictionary and other writer’s references nearby. You’re still going to need them.

But also don’t let grammar be your god, or your next online promotion could be a giant sales flop.

(c) 2005 Neil Sagebiel

The average consumer is inundated with sales pitches. So if you’re selling a product or service to today’s ad weary consumer, if you want your sales letters to get results, you’ll need a step-by-step plan that breaks down the barriers to buying. A plan that bypasses the head and goes right for the heart.

If the heart’s in it, the brain will follow.

Buying anything is largely emotional. Whether it’s paper clips or plain paper copiers, emotions lead the purchase. Facts, specs and the like are simply used to justify the decision, once made. Which means that everything about your sales letter, every sentence, every phrase must appeal to your customer’s emotions.

What emotions?

The simple truth is, there are only two emotions that really motivate people: The promise of gain or the fear of loss–with the fear of loss being the stronger. Example: Given the choice of headlines: “Save money in legal fees.” Or “How to keep from being sued.” The latter will probably get a better response.

Supporting the promise of gain and the fear of loss are seven key emotional hooks or basic human needs. No matter what your product or service, to be effective, your sales letter must directly address as many of these basic needs as possible:

• Safety/Security

• Wealth

• Good looks

• Popularity

• Self-satisfaction

• Free time

• Fun/Excitement

So how do you get them to act? How do you go from head to heart? What’s the copy paradigm? Imagine you’re in a baseball stadium facing an audience in rows of bleachers. It’s the game of the century, ninth inning, bases loaded. And you’ve got a bag of peanuts you absolutely must sell or the boss will fire you on the spot. What would you do to get their attention? Yell “Peanuts?”

Start with a verbal “2×4”

You’ve got to hit them over the head with an emotional motivator. And that means you start with the envelope. Remember– gain or loss–it has to be right there on the outside, in bold. (When was the last time you rushed to open a plain white envelope?) Two examples:

Gain– “We Put a Money-Making Miracle in this Envelope.”

Loss– “Throw This Away and Work Hard for the Rest of Your Life.”

Okay. They’ve opened the letter and what do they see? A boring paragraph about your leadership in the industry? Stuffy sentences about commitment, innovation and dedication?

Whoosh. In the round file it goes.

Time to visit our key motivators–gain or loss. Again, it’s got to be there in a headline they can’t miss. And it must reinforce the headline that compelled them to rip open that envelope. Both headlines must dovetail in their message and emotional impact.

Example: “Finish reading this letter and you’re halfway to becoming rich.”

Next comes the all-important body copy. What to say to leave them begging for your product. For this we go right into the consumer’s emotions, mining for clues to the perfect selling pitch.

What’s the problem?

A while back, McDonalds was beating the pants off its competitors. So Burger King hired a big powerhouse ad agency to gain them market share. They tried everything–analyzing secret sauces, elaborate contests, toy tie-ins. Nothing worked. Finally, they sent out questionnaires, did focus groups, and literally stopped people on the street. And you know what they discovered? Not what consumers liked, but what they didn’t like about hamburgers. For on thing, the leading hamburger came practically “factory made” with everything on it. Some folks liked pickles, others hated onions or mayo. That was “the problem.” The solution was simple: hamburgers made to order, followed by the now all-too-familiar slogan “Have it Your Way.” The point is, you’ve got to find and exploit your consumer’s problem. And make your product the hero.

Life without your product–miserable

So, you’ve succeeded in getting your reader’s attention. You’ve discovered their “problem.” Now it’s time to remind them how many ways that problem affects their lives. If you’re selling a cordless electric lawnmower, you’ll want to remind them of all the headaches of their old gas powered mower. Like running out of gas, finding the gas can, taking it to the gas station, driving back with a can full of smelly gas in the car, maybe spilling gas on the carpet. Once at home, there’s the annoyance of yanking the starter until your arm feels like a wet noodle. And the fire danger of having a can of gas in the garage with kids playing near it. The point is, you want to paint a very troublesome picture of life without your product.

Life with your product&ndashabsolute bliss

Now that you’ve raised your reader’s interest by making them feel the pain of life without your product, it’s time to provide your solution. Here’s where you’ll briefly introduce yourself and your product or service. No more running out of gas, no more smelling gas cans in your new car, no more yanking that starter cord till your arm falls off. Just flick the switch and you’re ready to mow. Plug it into your electric outlet and it charges overnight. Your worries are over. You go on and on, hammering home the fact that your product or service is the perfect solution. At this point, your reader will probably ask, “Sounds interesting, but who the heck are you to think you can solve my problem? I never heard of you.”

Credentials time

Here’s where you build trust by detailing key facts that build confidence in you and your company. You could start by listing some testimonials from satisfied customers. If these come from people in the industry who your prospect is familiar with, so much the better. And if you can get photos, phone numbers and so forth, it will add even more to your credibility. This is also the time to mention how long you’ve been in business and any articles that about your company and/or its products that have appeared in the local or national media (these can be particularly valuable, since they come from an impartial source).

Now that you’ve assuaged their fears about doing business with a complete unknown, they’ll want to be totally sold about your product or service. Here’s where you go into detail. And this is the perfect time to do so, because you’ve established trust. They won’t be thinking about who you are, but what you can do for them–how you’re going to solve their problem.

Detail benefits, not features

A key caveat here. Don’t get your reader quagmired in “Featurespeak.” It’s easy to do and it’s what most unskilled writers fall victim to. Featurespeak is for your sales team, not your potential customer. Avoid things like “Our new cordless electric mower features the X9T Autoflex handle, or the PT600 Zenon Battery. Better to say, “Our new electric mower’s handle easily adjusts to your height for maximum comfort.” Or “The easily rechargeable battery lasts up to 5 years without replacement.” If your product or service has more than three major benefits, list them in bullet point form to make them easier to read.

Make them an offer they can’t refuse

This is the crucial part of your sales letter. Your offer should be compelling, irrefutable and urgent. You want your reader to say, “This is a great offer, I’ve got nothing to lose but my problem.” Try to combine the big 3 in your offer–irresistible price, terms, and a free gift. For example, if you’re selling a cordless electric mower, your offer might be a discounted retail price, low interest rate, and a blade-sharpening tool. Try to raise the perceived value of your offer by adding on products or services–for electric mowers, it might be an extended warranty or safety goggles. Augment this with compelling benefits these additional products or services will provide.

Assuage with a guarantee

There’s a little voice in the back of every customer’s head that whispers, “Buy this and you’ll be sorry.” So make your offer bulletproof. Take the risk out of the purchase. Give the absolute strongest guarantee you can. It tells your reader you’re confident in your product or service. Enough so to back it up with a strong guarantee. Don’t be afraid to make this final commitment.

Motivate the procrastinators

So they’re reading your letter and are pretty convinced that your company and your product or service can solve their problem. They want to buy. The mind is willing but the flesh is weak. Time to bring in our key motivator&ndashfear of loss. One way to tap into this fear is by convincing your reader that because this is such a good deal, only a scant few mowers remain. Or that the extended warranty is being offered only for the next few days, or for the next 50 customers. Our old motivator–gain–can be used here as well. Example: “Buy now and get a $20 gift card–FREE!”

Call to action–KISS

You and your staff know what readers need to do to buy your product or service, but your readers are inundated with offers every day. And each offer has a different procedure for buying. Give them a break and walk them through the order/purchase process. And KISS (keep it simple stupid). Use simple action words like “Pick Up the Phone and Call Now!” If your phone number spells out a catchy slogan or company name, always add numerical phone numbers. If they need to fill out a form and mail it, say so. And if possible, use large type on your form&ndashespecially if you’re selling to seniors. Be clear on what they’re ordering and for what price.

ABC!

Follow Alec Baldwin’s admonition in the movie Glengarry Glen Ross&ndash“ABC…Always Be Closing.” Sprinkle your call to action throughout your letter. Ask for the order. Then when you give the call to action at the end of the letter, it won’t come as a surprise, but just another reminder. Better still, if they’re ready to order halfway through your letter, they’ll know what to do.

Postscripts are magic

Nobody reads postscripts, right? Wrong. The P.S. is the third most read element of a sales letter&ndashafter the headline and any picture captions. The top wordsmiths use several (P.P.S) in their letters. It’s one of the best places to remind readers of your irresistible offer. But you have to be brief and compelling, establishing urgency and value, and drawing on your key motivators of gain and loss.

Drive it home on the order form

The order form is where some of the greatest sales are won or lost. It’s where that little voice in the back of your customer’s head comes alive once again and says, “You’ll be sorry” or “You sure you want to buy this now?” It’s what I call Preemptive Buyer’s Remorse.” Time to bring in our top gun persuaders–gain and loss–one last time. Use the same persuasive arguments as before–only be brief, more compelling and urgent.

Do you want the steak knives or the El Dorado?

Okay, you’ve got the prized Glengarry leads. And the formula for writing a winning sales letter. Start by knowing your prospect’s problem, then drive home key benefits using the emotional motivators I’ve described. And don’t forget Alec Baldwin’s other maxim, AIDA–Attention. Interest. Decision. Action. Get their attention, build their interest, convince them it’s the right decision, and finally, urge them to act. Good luck. You’ve got 26 letters in the English alphabet. How you use them can make all the difference …between getting the steak knives or the Cadillac El Dorado.

The average consumer is inundated with sales pitches. So if you’re selling a product or service to today’s ad weary consumer, if you want your sales letters to get results, you’ll need a step-by-step plan that breaks down the barriers to buying. A plan that bypasses the head and goes right for the heart.

If the heart’s in it, the brain will follow.

Buying anything is largely emotional. Whether it’s paper clips or plain paper copiers, emotions lead the purchase. Facts, specs and the like are simply used to justify the decision, once made. Which means that everything about your sales letter, every sentence, every phrase must appeal to your customer’s emotions.

What emotions?

The simple truth is, there are only two emotions that really motivate people: The promise of gain or the fear of loss–with the fear of loss being the stronger. Example: Given the choice of headlines: “Save money in legal fees.” Or “How to keep from being sued.” The latter will probably get a better response.

Supporting the promise of gain and the fear of loss are seven key emotional hooks or basic human needs. No matter what your product or service, to be effective, your sales letter must directly address as many of these basic needs as possible:

• Safety/Security

• Wealth

• Good looks

• Popularity

• Self-satisfaction

• Free time

• Fun/Excitement

So how do you get them to act? How do you go from head to heart? What’s the copy paradigm? Imagine you’re in a baseball stadium facing an audience in rows of bleachers. It’s the game of the century, ninth inning, bases loaded. And you’ve got a bag of peanuts you absolutely must sell or the boss will fire you on the spot. What would you do to get their attention? Yell “Peanuts?”

Start with a verbal “2×4”

You’ve got to hit them over the head with an emotional motivator. And that means you start with the envelope. Remember– gain or loss–it has to be right there on the outside, in bold. (When was the last time you rushed to open a plain white envelope?) Two examples:

Gain– “We Put a Money-Making Miracle in this Envelope.”

Loss– “Throw This Away and Work Hard for the Rest of Your Life.”

Okay. They’ve opened the letter and what do they see? A boring paragraph about your leadership in the industry? Stuffy sentences about commitment, innovation and dedication?

Whoosh. In the round file it goes.

Time to visit our key motivators–gain or loss. Again, it’s got to be there in a headline they can’t miss. And it must reinforce the headline that compelled them to rip open that envelope. Both headlines must dovetail in their message and emotional impact.

Example: “Finish reading this letter and you’re halfway to becoming rich.”

Next comes the all-important body copy. What to say to leave them begging for your product. For this we go right into the consumer’s emotions, mining for clues to the perfect selling pitch.

What’s the problem?

A while back, McDonalds was beating the pants off its competitors. So Burger King hired a big powerhouse ad agency to gain them market share. They tried everything–analyzing secret sauces, elaborate contests, toy tie-ins. Nothing worked. Finally, they sent out questionnaires, did focus groups, and literally stopped people on the street. And you know what they discovered? Not what consumers liked, but what they didn’t like about hamburgers. For on thing, the leading hamburger came practically “factory made” with everything on it. Some folks liked pickles, others hated onions or mayo. That was “the problem.” The solution was simple: hamburgers made to order, followed by the now all-too-familiar slogan “Have it Your Way.” The point is, you’ve got to find and exploit your consumer’s problem. And make your product the hero.

Life without your product–miserable

So, you’ve succeeded in getting your reader’s attention. You’ve discovered their “problem.” Now it’s time to remind them how many ways that problem affects their lives. If you’re selling a cordless electric lawnmower, you’ll want to remind them of all the headaches of their old gas powered mower. Like running out of gas, finding the gas can, taking it to the gas station, driving back with a can full of smelly gas in the car, maybe spilling gas on the carpet. Once at home, there’s the annoyance of yanking the starter until your arm feels like a wet noodle. And the fire danger of having a can of gas in the garage with kids playing near it. The point is, you want to paint a very troublesome picture of life without your product.

Life with your product&ndashabsolute bliss

Now that you’ve raised your reader’s interest by making them feel the pain of life without your product, it’s time to provide your solution. Here’s where you’ll briefly introduce yourself and your product or service. No more running out of gas, no more smelling gas cans in your new car, no more yanking that starter cord till your arm falls off. Just flick the switch and you’re ready to mow. Plug it into your electric outlet and it charges overnight. Your worries are over. You go on and on, hammering home the fact that your product or service is the perfect solution. At this point, your reader will probably ask, “Sounds interesting, but who the heck are you to think you can solve my problem? I never heard of you.”

Credentials time

Here’s where you build trust by detailing key facts that build confidence in you and your company. You could start by listing some testimonials from satisfied customers. If these come from people in the industry who your prospect is familiar with, so much the better. And if you can get photos, phone numbers and so forth, it will add even more to your credibility. This is also the time to mention how long you’ve been in business and any articles that about your company and/or its products that have appeared in the local or national media (these can be particularly valuable, since they come from an impartial source).

Now that you’ve assuaged their fears about doing business with a complete unknown, they’ll want to be totally sold about your product or service. Here’s where you go into detail. And this is the perfect time to do so, because you’ve established trust. They won’t be thinking about who you are, but what you can do for them–how you’re going to solve their problem.

Detail benefits, not features

A key caveat here. Don’t get your reader quagmired in “Featurespeak.” It’s easy to do and it’s what most unskilled writers fall victim to. Featurespeak is for your sales team, not your potential customer. Avoid things like “Our new cordless electric mower features the X9T Autoflex handle, or the PT600 Zenon Battery. Better to say, “Our new electric mower’s handle easily adjusts to your height for maximum comfort.” Or “The easily rechargeable battery lasts up to 5 years without replacement.” If your product or service has more than three major benefits, list them in bullet point form to make them easier to read.

Make them an offer they can’t refuse

This is the crucial part of your sales letter. Your offer should be compelling, irrefutable and urgent. You want your reader to say, “This is a great offer, I’ve got nothing to lose but my problem.” Try to combine the big 3 in your offer–irresistible price, terms, and a free gift. For example, if you’re selling a cordless electric mower, your offer might be a discounted retail price, low interest rate, and a blade-sharpening tool. Try to raise the perceived value of your offer by adding on products or services–for electric mowers, it might be an extended warranty or safety goggles. Augment this with compelling benefits these additional products or services will provide.

Assuage with a guarantee

There’s a little voice in the back of every customer’s head that whispers, “Buy this and you’ll be sorry.” So make your offer bulletproof. Take the risk out of the purchase. Give the absolute strongest guarantee you can. It tells your reader you’re confident in your product or service. Enough so to back it up with a strong guarantee. Don’t be afraid to make this final commitment.

Motivate the procrastinators

So they’re reading your letter and are pretty convinced that your company and your product or service can solve their problem. They want to buy. The mind is willing but the flesh is weak. Time to bring in our key motivator&ndashfear of loss. One way to tap into this fear is by convincing your reader that because this is such a good deal, only a scant few mowers remain. Or that the extended warranty is being offered only for the next few days, or for the next 50 customers. Our old motivator–gain–can be used here as well. Example: “Buy now and get a $20 gift card–FREE!”

Call to action–KISS

You and your staff know what readers need to do to buy your product or service, but your readers are inundated with offers every day. And each offer has a different procedure for buying. Give them a break and walk them through the order/purchase process. And KISS (keep it simple stupid). Use simple action words like “Pick Up the Phone and Call Now!” If your phone number spells out a catchy slogan or company name, always add numerical phone numbers. If they need to fill out a form and mail it, say so. And if possible, use large type on your form&ndashespecially if you’re selling to seniors. Be clear on what they’re ordering and for what price.

ABC!

Follow Alec Baldwin’s admonition in the movie Glengarry Glen Ross&ndash“ABC…Always Be Closing.” Sprinkle your call to action throughout your letter. Ask for the order. Then when you give the call to action at the end of the letter, it won’t come as a surprise, but just another reminder. Better still, if they’re ready to order halfway through your letter, they’ll know what to do.

Postscripts are magic

Nobody reads postscripts, right? Wrong. The P.S. is the third most read element of a sales letter&ndashafter the headline and any picture captions. The top wordsmiths use several (P.P.S) in their letters. It’s one of the best places to remind readers of your irresistible offer. But you have to be brief and compelling, establishing urgency and value, and drawing on your key motivators of gain and loss.

Drive it home on the order form

The order form is where some of the greatest sales are won or lost. It’s where that little voice in the back of your customer’s head comes alive once again and says, “You’ll be sorry” or “You sure you want to buy this now?” It’s what I call Preemptive Buyer’s Remorse.” Time to bring in our top gun persuaders–gain and loss–one last time. Use the same persuasive arguments as before–only be brief, more compelling and urgent.

Do you want the steak knives or the El Dorado?

Okay, you’ve got the prized Glengarry leads. And the formula for writing a winning sales letter. Start by knowing your prospect’s problem, then drive home key benefits using the emotional motivators I’ve described. And don’t forget Alec Baldwin’s other maxim, AIDA–Attention. Interest. Decision. Action. Get their attention, build their interest, convince them it’s the right decision, and finally, urge them to act. Good luck. You’ve got 26 letters in the English alphabet. How you use them can make all the difference …between getting the steak knives or the Cadillac El Dorado.

Whatever industry you operate in and whatever web site you have, it indispensable that the content on your web site is written easy-to read, appealing and attractive style. Your potential customers will visit your web site and judge both you and your company by the information presented on your web site. It might be enough to have appealing content in offline advertisement, but it is not enough just to have attracting content to be successful in online environment. However, how can one make sure that your web site will stand out from the numerous other identical ones on the internet and it will attract the attention not only of your visitors but the search engines as well? In order to get high rankings the text of your web site should be well optimized as well. Undoubtedly, this is where the skills of experienced and skilled copywriter count.

It is widely known that the copywriter should be creative, ingenious and must possess excellent writing skills. But apart from these well-known facts, what qualities and experience should professional copywriter possess? First he should know how to perform keywords search and keywords analysis. In my experience there are some specialists in the company, who can perform this task for copywriter; however it is imperative to find out whether the copywriter can perform this task before hiring him. Second, he should have good knowledge of modern marketing tools. He must understand current online advertisement strategy and the techniques that allow receiving high rankings on your web site. He also should know how develop highly efficient marketing program that will advertise the site and gain promotion of it online. For instance such techniques as press release and article writing that help to promote you as real professional should be known to your copywriter.

Third, the text written by him should induce customers to take some actions. One should remember that it is crucial to have action &ndashdriven text on your web site to get high results. Fourth, the copywriter should be custom-oriented and understand how the potential customers write, talk and act in order to write as much convincing as possible. Killer-Content.com is one of the leading copywriting companies, that provides its customers with appealing, attracting and ingenious copywriting SEO and web content. It also provides its customers with efficient press release services. The writers of Killer-Content.com create press release that helps to get exposure of your company.

Whatever industry you operate in and whatever web site you have, it indispensable that the content on your web site is written easy-to read, appealing and attractive style. Your potential customers will visit your web site and judge both you and your company by the information presented on your web site. It might be enough to have appealing content in offline advertisement, but it is not enough just to have attracting content to be successful in online environment. However, how can one make sure that your web site will stand out from the numerous other identical ones on the internet and it will attract the attention not only of your visitors but the search engines as well? In order to get high rankings the text of your web site should be well optimized as well. Undoubtedly, this is where the skills of experienced and skilled copywriter count.

It is widely known that the copywriter should be creative, ingenious and must possess excellent writing skills. But apart from these well-known facts, what qualities and experience should professional copywriter possess? First he should know how to perform keywords search and keywords analysis. In my experience there are some specialists in the company, who can perform this task for copywriter; however it is imperative to find out whether the copywriter can perform this task before hiring him. Second, he should have good knowledge of modern marketing tools. He must understand current online advertisement strategy and the techniques that allow receiving high rankings on your web site. He also should know how develop highly efficient marketing program that will advertise the site and gain promotion of it online. For instance such techniques as press release and article writing that help to promote you as real professional should be known to your copywriter.

Third, the text written by him should induce customers to take some actions. One should remember that it is crucial to have action &ndashdriven text on your web site to get high results. Fourth, the copywriter should be custom-oriented and understand how the potential customers write, talk and act in order to write as much convincing as possible. Killer-Content.com is one of the leading copywriting companies, that provides its customers with appealing, attracting and ingenious copywriting SEO and web content. It also provides its customers with efficient press release services. The writers of Killer-Content.com create press release that helps to get exposure of your company.