Whats Your First Step When Creating Copy

by 18 replies
23
When I start to write for a website/blog I always start with keyword research and then proceed to writing my article or product description. Some of my colleagues however do the exact opposite, and really dont give to much weight to keyword research at all. They're arguing that writing to achieve higher conversion rates, are more important then the search ranking's. How do you all feel about this?
#copywriting #copy #creating #step
  • First you've got to decide whether you're writing for bots or people. I usually write for people unless I have a paid assignmet that focuses on SEO. The following applies much more to writing for people.

    Ther are several important things to cover. First find out who your target market is and write for them. If you aren't familar with your customers, get familar with them. Then you need to be familar with your product. Sprinkle your copy with benefits, then display your benefits as bullets, then more benefits in the copy itself.

    Then let your customers know the rewards for having the products. Finally, show them the downside for not having the product. Some people are motivated by rewards while others are motivated by unpleasant consequences.

    These are just a few of the basics but should get you started.
    • [ 1 ] Thanks
    • [1] reply
    • I like that.

      I have never thought of writing from that perspective. Instead of selling the reader on benefits, sell them on the consequences. "Do you really want to be stranded on a dark dreary Interstate at 2am with no one to call? That's where your AAA Membership is there to provide you safety and security"

      Something like that, lol. Great Stuff Travlinguy
  • Keyword research is definitely important. It takes a while to do it thoroughly but it's definitely worth it in the long run because it helps you come up with great copy! And again it's important to have the perfect balance between putting in keywords but not completly overcrowding it because search engines don't like that.
    • [1] reply
    • There are various things you have to think about, but one of the most important is your demographics research and constructing an Avatar, something I learned from the best copywriter alive today from a very expensive course I bought, what you have to do is find out as much as possible about the kind of audience you'll be selling to, then create the Avatar and put a face, a name, the kind of job and hobbies that person could have, so then when you write the copy do it as if you're actually talking to that person and craft your sales letter around that.
      That's one of the best tips I can give you Happy writing
  • The most basic thing you have to ask is, "Why am I writing this?"

    In other words, what is your purpose for writing this piece of copy? Is it to sell something? To provide information? To lend credibility and authority to the author or site? To generate publicity? What?

    Once you know the purpose of your copy, you can begin to figure out the rest:

    - Who am I writing to?
    - What do I want them to do?
    - How can I help them to do what I want them to do?
    - How will I know they've done what I want them to do?

    Determining these things before you do keyword research will save you oodles of time. You'll be able to separate the search phrases of the 'browsers' from the 'buyers'.

    Knowing these things before you write a single word will increase your conversion rate for any piece of sales or marketing copy. You'll know exactly how to guide your reader through the copy, anticipating objections, providing assurance, and smoothly delivering them to the finish line.

    You'll also be able to calculate and track the success of each piece of copy you write.
  • Call me crazy, but SEO and Keyword Research should not be in your copywriting vocabulary....
    • [2] replies

    • Good call. Copywriters write for people not crawlers or bots...








      • [2] replies
  • Forget all that keyword and other stuff. Focus on this:

    why would you buy what you're selling?

    Seriously.

    What one main reason would make you click and buy now, with your credit card.

    Than start with that point.

    Dig into the feeling that would make you click - -and build a story around it, insert keywords, yada, yada, yada.


    Need to really focus on that main buyer's point, though - -and start right out the gate with it - full speed ahead!


    Example: are you sick of the way other people's similar products are and want something different - -something that REALLY works? Or what?

    OK, go get 'em!
  • My first step is to become as knowledgeable as possible about the product's market... I'll learn the lingo, the current fads, etc.

    Then I'll become an expert on the product... how many chapters/modules/pages, how long are the videos, how many ways does it show to do something, etc.

    And then I'll go back to the client to discuss my findings - I might have suggestions on how to improve his product or there might be things I don't understand.

    Finally, when I'm down with the market and the product, I'll create a persona of the ideal customer that I'll be writing to, e.g. sex, age, etc.
    • [ 2 ] Thanks
  • I saw something here: that u have to decide if you write for bots or people. that is a good question, I wonder how the majority will respond to this question. It's a hard decision, if u write for people the bots wont find you, but if u write for bots, then the people won't find you.
    • [1] reply
    • Thats the dilemma that we face no matter if your just writing copy or optimizing a website for search. You almost have to pick your poison: low rankings and great copy or high rankings with poor copy.

      Collette had a good point about having two separate pages one that would rank high to bring consumers into the site, and a second (maybe directly on the product page) with great copy which would yield higher conversion rates.

      This is a great discussion guys keep it coming and thanks for contributing.
  • The target market stuff should be next, after keword stuff, IMO. If you take the time to do that (which most people don't do), half the battle is over. I'm guilty too, and took me a long time to make it a habit.

    Grant
  • Market research and creating that customer avatar, once you know who you're talking to the copy really comes naturally...

    If I'm working with a client with an existing product, then review the product and their story behind is my second step to develop their hook...
  • [DELETED]
Join the discussion

Next Topics on Trending Feed

  • 23

    Whats Your First Step When Creating Copy

    When I start to write for a website/blog I always start with keyword research and then proceed to writing my article or product description. Some of my colleagues however do the exact opposite, and really dont give to much weight to keyword research at all. They're arguing that writing to achieve higher conversion rates, are more important then the search ranking's. How do you all feel about this?