What is a Swipe File?
Posted 4th November 2008 at 11:22 AM by Robert Plank
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ypN-mF1skDQ
It is doubtful that you will ever find a successful copywriter who does not have their own swipe file. As a copywriter, a swipe file is a list of stuff that you like from other copywriters: pieces of ads, hot phrases, even entire sales letters or web sites. Your swipe file is your stockpile of ideas for your next copywriting job.
Building up a swipe file is just as easy as it sounds. If you see something you like on a web site, save that phrase in a text file or even use the "File, Save As" feature in your browser to save it to a folder on your desktop.
Because you want to avoid any kind of copyright infringement, you need to avoid using large chunks of someone else's copy as your own. Look at hot headlines or bullet points and replace keywords when you get stuck.
An even better way to absorb swipe files is to rewrite the headline or bullet point in question. When you rewrite part of someone else's sales copy over and over, it eventually becomes intuitive and you understand the exact phraseology the original copywriter used. You can understand if the headline you just rewrote was a challenge, an outrageous claim, how they introduced emotion and urgency in just a few short words, and so on.
The most important thing you need to know about swipe files is that you should not become a collector. A common saying with copywriters that the content your swipe file does not contain is more important than what it does contain. It is tempting to save every single sales letter you come across, but that will stifle your creativity because your idea file will become cluttered. I routinely write several sales letters in a row simply to exhaust my swipe file and make room for new entries. If you use a swipe phrase, delete it. If you see you have some cool phrases or headlines sitting in your swipe file that you never use, consider deleting those as well.
I hope you learned enough to get started with swipe files. Maybe you already had one and never realized it. In any case, remember to save phrases and web pages that get your attention, or might inspire you to write your next world-class sales letter.
Robert Plank, internet marketer, PHP programmer, and 23 year old homeowner, made an average of $10,000 per month every month in 2008. Check out his marketing ideas worth STEALING at: http://www.robertplank.com
It is doubtful that you will ever find a successful copywriter who does not have their own swipe file. As a copywriter, a swipe file is a list of stuff that you like from other copywriters: pieces of ads, hot phrases, even entire sales letters or web sites. Your swipe file is your stockpile of ideas for your next copywriting job.
Building up a swipe file is just as easy as it sounds. If you see something you like on a web site, save that phrase in a text file or even use the "File, Save As" feature in your browser to save it to a folder on your desktop.
Because you want to avoid any kind of copyright infringement, you need to avoid using large chunks of someone else's copy as your own. Look at hot headlines or bullet points and replace keywords when you get stuck.
An even better way to absorb swipe files is to rewrite the headline or bullet point in question. When you rewrite part of someone else's sales copy over and over, it eventually becomes intuitive and you understand the exact phraseology the original copywriter used. You can understand if the headline you just rewrote was a challenge, an outrageous claim, how they introduced emotion and urgency in just a few short words, and so on.
The most important thing you need to know about swipe files is that you should not become a collector. A common saying with copywriters that the content your swipe file does not contain is more important than what it does contain. It is tempting to save every single sales letter you come across, but that will stifle your creativity because your idea file will become cluttered. I routinely write several sales letters in a row simply to exhaust my swipe file and make room for new entries. If you use a swipe phrase, delete it. If you see you have some cool phrases or headlines sitting in your swipe file that you never use, consider deleting those as well.
I hope you learned enough to get started with swipe files. Maybe you already had one and never realized it. In any case, remember to save phrases and web pages that get your attention, or might inspire you to write your next world-class sales letter.
Robert Plank, internet marketer, PHP programmer, and 23 year old homeowner, made an average of $10,000 per month every month in 2008. Check out his marketing ideas worth STEALING at: http://www.robertplank.com
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