Copywriting That Sells More By Selling Less

Copywriting That Sells More By Selling Less

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The one thing that separates copywriting from all other forms of writing is its purpose: To persuade the reader to take action. Copywriting is the use of words and ideas to promote or sell something to someone. The toughest copywriting arena is direct response. Measurement of results is meticulous. Results or lack thereof are painfully obvious.

The most important skill the best copywriters have is the ability to use words to sell. That's really what it all comes down to. Can you transfer the sales process into words so that you can leverage the result through repetition via whatever media you are using. If you can, you're in high demand. If you can't you constantly struggle to get clients.

But there's one problem with all this selling. Prospects don't want to be sold. Sure, they want to buy…if they are persuaded. But ultimately, they want to feel like they made the decision. Not that they got pressured into buying something they really didn't want. That's why over-the-top headlines screaming unbelievable benefits are easy to write but don't help sell more. Amateur copywriters figure the harder you sell, the more you'll sell. Not true. Why? Because the more you attempt to sell, the faster and the greater the resistance of your reader becomes.

We live in a time where prospects are more skeptical than ever before. They tend to not believe overstated claims. So what's the secret? Don't be perceived as the sales person. Become the knowledgeable expert in your industry. And have the copy written from the voice of an industry leader educating the prospect with valuable information.

The absolutely best copy in the world doesn't look like copy. It looks like an informative magazine article, a good book, or an entertaining video. It's really hard to understand sometimes but it's a subtle mix of empathy, educating the reader, and entertaining the reader along the way. The reason this type of copy works so amazingly well is because nobody realizes they are being sold…until it's too late. All resistance by the prospect completely disappears. And the "switch to selling" is so smooth they never know what hit them. This is sometimes called the slippery slide.

But what I'm talking about is much more devious. Making the format that contains the copy look valuable. And have the copy itself contain valuable information. When it's done all the way, you can successfully charge money for whatever format contains the copy. Why? Because it BECOMES valuable to the prospect. When it's done poorly, (Like one of the many promotional books out there) it gets poor reviews and you can't even give it away. For the simple reason it is overt and blatant self-promotion for the author. The key is in being subtle and being indirect.

One of the true masters of this style was Gary Halbert. Take a look at his old newsletters. You'll see what I mean. There just plain fun to read, even if you aren't in marketing. That's why it's a good idea to read some really gripping novels, trashy romance novel, or other fiction that compels you to finish reading without putting it down. To get a sense of how great writers do this.

The first thing you can do is stop selling so blatantly. Know where you are going, but don't be so obvious about letting on to them. To be clear I'm not advocating using this as an excuse to waddle around aimlessly being afraid to grab 'um by the throat and sell! Just be aware that the harder you sell the greater the resistance. Depending on what market you are writing for it could be more, or less. Great copy is really invisible. Transparent. The reader gets the intended feeling without getting bogged down in the words. And truly great copy doesn't look like copy. It's just good writing…with an ulterior motive: salesmanship in print.


Copyright (c) 2011 Ken Hoffman

About the Author:
Ken Hoffman is a strategic business advisor and direct response copywriter. He is the author of "Scientific Advertising For The New Economy." Download his free report, "17 Website Conversion Strategies To Boost Your Bottom Line." Download it now from http://www.goodmarketingforbadtimes.com/ezine.html



Article Originally Published On: http://www.articlesnatch.com


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