15 "Conversion Boosters" You Should Be Using

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Hey Warrior,

Over the last few months I've been focusing on selling my own products - and I've come away from the experience with a lot more first-hand knowledge than I had before.

I've decided to share some of my "Conversion Boosters" here for free. No opt-in, no payments, but a click on the Thanks button would do (if you like this post that is...)

Let's go.

  1. Use a belcher button.
  2. Use "Involvers". I.E. forms that can be filled out but not submitted where a user can answer questions you ask them
  3. Use less than five words in your first paragraph
  4. Kill "Dear Friend" with a cleaver
  5. Add a signature to the end of your letter
  6. Have three P.S.'s that focus on the benefits, limited availability, and your guarantee
  7. Explain why the price is such a great deal. Compare your product to something more expensive, or use the "$X per day" technique
  8. Have some sort of money-back guarantee
  9. Capture all visitors email addresses
  10. Keep your headline short
  11. Buy the books, "Phrases that sell" and "Words that Sell"
  12. Stuff as many bullets in your copy as you can
  13. Use some well written testimonials all through your copy
  14. Write at least 30 headlines before you choose the one you're going to use
  15. Step away for 24 hours or more and come back to edit once the first draft is finished

There's a lot more you can do, but this list is absolutely going to increase the money you're making from your sales letter.

If you have any questions about anything on this list, please don't hesitate to ask here or via PM - I'm sure somebody else will have the same question.
#copywriting #conversion boosters
  • I immediately went to my sales page and got rid of "Dear Friend"

    Thanks for the advice...
    • [2] replies
    • Thank you so much! I have been looking for great info like this.
    • Great info! Really helpful, thanks!
  • Great tips, thank you.
  • Quite possibly the single most important piece of advice I ever got regarding the writing process and still the only one I'm religious about.

    Its vital to both the grammar, presentation and content that you WAIT before you edit.

    Also extremely helpful to have someone else read it to you, so you can hear how your copy flows in the minds (and voices) of others.

    Great post all around!
    • [1] reply
    • See, information like this is why I joined Warrior Forum.

      Thanks for the tips. I think I'll print them out and file them with my "how not to screw up your sales page" stuff. (Yes, I really do have a file like that.)
  • Banned
    Yes, good tips Chris. Except I don't agree with #12. Stuff as many bullets in your copy as you can

    That just leads to eye-strain. Instead be judicious with the use of bullets and don't use more than 7 in a block. And Odd numbers have tested better than Even. So 3/5/7. A whole bunch of bullets one after the other don't get read.

    And thank God you said Kill "Dear Friend". Gary Halbert was fond of that but these days it just sounds hokey - don't you think? Along with "Dear Frustrated Marketer".

    Personally I was always a fan of The Rich Jerk's "Dear Loser".
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    • [1] reply
    • I was always taught have more bullet points for bigger ticket items

      $19.95 ebooks and what not keep the bullet points more selective
  • Like your tips, Chris. Especially point 15.

    But on these points:

    ...I'm just not too sure if these are universally true for
    all niches/audience/products.

    The overly beaten cliche - test it - still applies.

    Jag
    • [1] reply
    • Hey Jag,

      You're absolutely right - test, test, test.

      However, I'd say a good 90% of the time, these rules are going to apply - let me explain why. I'll try not to keep accidentally rhyming as well...

      1. Less than 5 words in the first paragraph - The first thing you want to do with your sales letter is get the reader to keep reading. That means using SHORT sentences and powerful words.

      This is why you'll see most top copywriters using phrases like "It's ironic" or "Oh God..." in their first line. I've gone so far as to say "This sucks!" and it's pulled readers right into my copy.

      2. Kill Dear Friend - Boy do I ever hate seeing "friend" written in a sales letter. I'm not the friend of whoever wrote it... so don't call me that. If you're writing in the IM market, kill this - but if you do choose to use it elsewhere, please test it like Jag said.

      3. Keep your headline short - This is universal, no matter the niche. Using 40 word headlines that focus on four different benefits doesn't work well. Stick with just one.

      I used to do this a lot, until a thread here on the forums prompted me not to. I can't find it... but it was a thread that compared a new copywriter's headlines to an experts. The new copywriter would write headlines like "Discover why a simple berry can increase your lifespan, make you grow taller, catch Bin Laden, and a whole host of other ..." Yeah, you get it. But the expert would take the time to figure out EXACTLY what it was the reader wanted, and give it to them... "Here's the secret to adding years to your life."

      Maybe somebody else can find the thread... it was a good one.
      • [1] reply
  • great tips. first time i heard a couple of these and will try them out.
  • I took your advice and put "Dear Notmyfriend"
    ...

    Conversion rates have gone up through the roof

    :p

    Seriously I love the tips. Dear friend or anything that people get accustomed to hearing starts to make the mind go..."Blah"

    In fact I bet for a gutsy persona and copy writer a 'Dear probably not my friend but possibly if you keep reading." would work better than ""Dear Friend".
    • [1] reply
    • I agree with a lot of your points Chris but c'mon... is this a bad headline?

      "The Amazing Money-Making Secrets of a 28-year-old
      Convicted Felon Who Earns More Money Per Year Than The CEOs of FedEx ...
      eBay ... Amazon.com ... Time Warner ... Apple Computer ... McDonalds ... Microsoft ...
      Nike ... Yahoo ... Ford Motor Company ... General Motors ... and Goodyear COMBINED!"

      It only seems too long if it's badly written, wouldn't you say?
      • [1] reply
  • short headlines? thats bs.... really big bs..... and that headline by halbert is classic.

    oh and 30 headlines? lol dude thats it?

    we write over 100... and then start testing them to see the winner... we don't just pick one we like as you suggested.
    • [1] reply
  • You're not telling these people 'Lies, Lies, Lies' about short headlines are you?
  • Hey,

    Good list. Not too keen on #9 though - I don't want to distract people from buying by having them opt-in for something that they think could solve their problem for free.

    Also, I find that "Dear Friend" still works... As long as you actually write to the person like they're you're friend. It's when you say "Dear Friend" then talk at someone lecture-style that it falls apart.

    David
  • HI Chris,

    Thank you so much for sharing such valuable information. I have them saved in my computer for rehashing. Look forward to more tips from you.

    Terence
  • VERY good post, however a few things need to be cleared up.

    #1 - Use less than five words in your first paragraph - This is absolutely not true. I understand the point of keeping it short, but if you found that you need 5 or less, you might look at whether or not you're saying something interesting enough to the prospect.

    #2 - Kill "Dear Friend" with a cleaver - This depends on the niche/product, etc. I know Halbert used to be a huge fan and did extensive testing on it, but that was also years ago. I could or could not work - always test.

    #3 - Keep your headline short - Once again, if you've found that only short headlines work, you should be working on coming up with more interesting things to say. I'll agree that in probably 70% of the time, short headlines are better. However, it's DEFINITELY not a universal truth.

    #4 - Stuff as many bullets in your copy as you can - Having too many bullets actually detracts sometimes. I would slightly change to the following:

    WRITE as many bullets as you can, but then take out the ones that aren't amazing.

    #5 - Write at least 30 headlines before you choose the one you're going to use - Good start, but make it 100

    Again I'm not saying these things were "wrong" - it was a VERY good post... I think they just needed to be expanded on a bit more.

    Great stuff!

    P.S. In case anybody is wondering, yes, I've tested these things personally. I'm a freelance copywriter and have my own projects with partners, so I have a lot of "tests" under my belt
    • [ 1 ] Thanks
    • [1] reply
    • Hey Chris... thanks so much for starting this informative thread.

      Good stuff!
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  • Thanks for taking the time to share this list - I'm going to put that belcher button to use ASAP!
    • [1] reply
    • Haha, no - but I do see "You've been lied to" or "Stop believing the lie" a bit too much.

      The way I see it, the first couple lines are ONLY for getting the reader involved in your copy. If you can get them to read the first few lines, you've already won a big part of the battle for their attention.

      Yes, it does need to fit with your copy.
      Yes, it does need to be interesting.
      No, it shouldn't be just filler.

      But if you can keep the reader's attention for even just the first three paragraphs, you're doing a good job towards getting them to read the whole way through.
      • [ 1 ] Thanks
      • [1] reply
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