how do YOU transition from initial hook to main piece?

[HaveFaith]

Hey there,
first off, thank you. Yes, you =)

Thank you for the feedback you've given me. You've helped me get my sales page started, and now I have a solid hook that will get the target audience to not only read my page, but relate to the stories I've put in it.

I, like you when you first started, need help with transitioning from the initial hook that gets the readers, to the main piece, where I talk about what I have to offer to help them. I'm stuck on how to proceed, mainly because like you when you first started, I have no clue as to what to stack it up with next.

Imagine you're writing a sales page, and you've got the initial part just the way you want it. You read and re-read the hook and even get some people to read it, and from their actions, you know they're hooked. You're happy =).

But then...how do you proceed from the initial hook to the next part? How would you proceed into the next section of your sales page? "What is" the next section on the sales page?

What would YOU do in order to keep yourself happy with the sales page and satisfied with its results?

Thanks in advance for your opinions. Thanks for helping a newbie out.


HaveFaith

[John_S]

It's a little difficult to give any specific advice to a general question. An example might help, but I'll take a guess.

Too much of newbie copywriting resembles a Rube Goldberg contraption of gimmicks. To be any good, copywriters have to give up on the component snap-on gimmick and develop a coherent whole letter.

Your hook should suggest a theme for your whole letter. Each section should support the hook, and the transitions should almost suggest themselves. In other words, never transition from your hook -- your central premise and offer -- elaborate it.

However, on a more basic newbie level there are transition helpers like "In other words" and "however."

Others are...

Better Still
What's in it for you is
Here's why
Consider this

Something like "don't just take my word for it..." can transition to your testimonials or other proof. It really depends on what you've got as to what best to use and how.

The point is flow, smoothness, and coherency. For example, let's say you show someone doing a backflip to get attention (the first section of the copywriter's AIDA formula).

Rookie copywriters botch it ...let's examine how. They append a gimmick like "But wait there's more," and pile on one unbelievable claim upon another. The Better Way: Explain the reason you have a person doing a backflip is the way you tailor pants means change, keys, wallets and costly personal electronics will stay put -- no matter what.

Too many copywriters forget "hooks" are useless by themselves. People who fish know a simple truth. You cast your hook. Once the fish takes the bait, a skilled angler will give the rod a sharp pull to "set" the hook in place. The fish can wriggle free when the hook isn't set.

Setting your hook applies to copy. Fewer fantastic claims, more belief structure. Cast the hook. Then set the hook. Keep the hook throughout the letter, don't transition away. So, for instance with a headline like "Is Your Computer an Overpriced Under-Achiever," then your call to action is "Do it now - before you face your underachieving computer again - call toll free ..."

When you don't do this the flashy, gimmicky, headline gets attention. But the artificial transition gimmick to the loosely related main copy lacks flow and consistency. You can see such swipefile poisoning all over the place, with copy-and-paste sections stitched together by artificial transitions like Frankenstein's Monster. All the pieces are there, but it's a horror show with clearly visible transitions stitching everything together.

[zapseo]

Excellent post, John -- and so, so true.

BTW -- you may want to fix the links in your sig so I can click on 'em and some place useful.

[John_S]

Yeah, for the new forum, I think I'll do new material and link that. ...Just need to get around to doing it.

[zapseo]

Originally Posted by John_S

Yeah, for the new forum, I think I'll do new material and link that. ...Just need to get around to doing it.

Your links will work perfectly fine if you simply remove the "\" charactes before the double quotes.

My sig refernces something in the old forum just fine.

HTH,

Judy Kettenhofen

[David Raybould]

Hi Havefaith,

John's made some excellent points.

Something else that makes life easier with transitions etc is to research other sales pages in similar niches.

You can quite easily find some similar ones in clickbank or just on google etc and make a note of how they get from section to section.

Once you've seen how a few others are doing it, you'll probably have an "aha!" moment.

Actually, saying that, even salesletters in other niches can be pretty eye opening.

Hope that's helpful...

David

[HaveFaith]

Hey guys,
thank you very much for your advice. I'm going to read a few sales pages and work on mine. Thanks again guys.

HaveFaith