Tuesday
2:04 PM
CALIFORNIA PST TIME
I’m going to tell you a secret.
Yeah a secret.
It’s a copywriting secret that the immortals — from Aristotle to Ogilvy to Draper — have known, but few have stated as directly as I’m about to.
Make sure you take notes because if you don't, you've more or less pissed away a million dollars. Seriously.
What I'm about to share with you will rock your world if you know what TAKE ACTION means.
By now, you know the standards of effective copywriting …
(Well you do if you're reading this blog every other day.)
1. Know your audience.
2. Know your product cold.
3. Research.
4. Nail the headline.
5. Write plainly, in the language of your audience.
6. Research more. Write fascinating bullets.
7. Craft a great offer.
8. Include a strong call to action. And so forth.
These elements are the standard for good reason.
They’re how you get the job done, and you get the job done right.
This little truth I’m about to tell you is the foundation that makes all the rest of it work.
Ready for this?
Hold on because this is the essence of copywriting.
Every sentence you write must make your reader want to read the next sentence you write.
WOW! That's it?
Yup, that's it.
If you can do that, you're going to make a lot of money.
Yes, this entire business of copywriting, persuasion, and sales can be boiled down to that ONE simple statement.
The headline only exists to get the first sentence read.
The first sentence only exists to get the second sentence read. And so forth, pulling the reader right through your content or your piece of persuasive copy.
It’s that simple.
And it’s that tricky.
The secret is in the line.
The headline of this post makes use of the word “Art.” I didn’t choose that word arbitrarily. Copywriting is art as much as it is science.
A great headline is followed by a single compelling sentence engages the reader’s interest. And then another, followed by another, and another.
Go back and read the first sentence in this post. Did it get you read more? It did if you're interested in making money.
Don’t worry, you won’t be able to pull it off all the time. Hell, you won’t even pull it off most of the time. Even the copywriting greats didn’t write perfect sales pages.
But they got as close to it as they could.
If you keep the raw horsepower of The Single Line in your mind and in your gut as you work every day, you’re going to make something good.
-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-`-
And when you make something good, all those lines are going to go to work for you, day and night, for a long, long time.
So write urgent, unique, ultra-specific, and useful headlines.
Demonstrate the benefits, not the features.
Make an offer they can’t refuse.
And do it all by deliberately crafting each sentence to honestly, accurately, and entertainingly tell your products story.
Difficult?
Sure it is.
Guess that means you’d better get to work.
Yeah it's not easy, but hey, everyone has to start somewhere right?
Dr. Carney
PS As of January 1, 2012 I'll be going up on all my copywriting and sales page costs. The reason is I've realized that I've basically been giving my services away int he past, so it's time that I stepped up and took the bull by the horns and said, "Let do it."
So if you want to get a project going, let me know. Otherwise, you'll be paying more in 2012 than you will right now. That's it for today. Stay calm, stay cool, and get adjusted.
Life is good when you know what marketing can do for you!!
It is a GREAT LIFE!
