[What I Learned] Day One: Find The Back Door
I play a lot of Starcraft 2, recently...
For those of you who don't know, Starcraft is a video game. And it's
incredibly complicated. Very "deep." With strategy and tactics and
levels of play ranking from the lowest of the low, to the most elite
of the elite.
Just like our "game." Our copywriting game. Our marketing game.
Our "game" to sell stuff to people... And to be as good as we can, at it...
Now, because Starcraft is so deep, people take lifetimes to master it.
And there are commentators who analyze every single aspect of the
game, in order to "teach" others.
The odd thing is - These "commentators" get better and better with their
own play, as well. In the same way a math professor in college becomes
better and better at math, over time.
Teaching is a quick, easy way to consolidate your thoughts. And it
promotes quick, definite learning in the teacher, as well as the student.
So, with ALL of that in mind, I'd like to introduce you to MY take on "daily
teaching" for copywriting: "What I Learned Today."
The GOAL is to start a daily series of threads or posts where I lay out my
big take away for the day. Usually on an aspect of copywriting, or
persuasion, or marketing in general.
Hopefully, these daily "rants" will be helpful, to you.
And hopefully, they'll help me, as well :-)
What are my qualifications? Well... It really doesn't matter, does it? I can
honestly say I've sold millions of dollars of products online...
... But unless YOU take something away from each and every one of these
posts...
... And unless YOU can find a way to use what we talk about, in your own
business / life / career...
... Then who I am is highly unimportant, don't you agree?
So please, sit down and read this first post. See if there's a way you can
use it in your own life. If you can - keep reading. I'll try to update every
day.
If you can't - It was nice to know you. Good luck with your career :-)
>> TODAY'S TOPIC: "Find The Back Door"
I'm currently working for a business hell-bent on increasing their affiliate
presence. Because of this, we're working with a lot of "odd" requests from
larger JVs and super-affiliates alike.
One of these requests went like this:
"OK - I'd love to sell your program. But I'd like to run the initial order
through MY forms, to verify the orders. You can run the back-end through
your forms, to generate upsells and the like."
Since his potential to make money is very high, we agreed.
And this put us in a sticky situation. Because it meant customers would
have to fill in an order form for the initial program... And then immediately
fill out a whole NEW order form, for our upsell path, and their continuity
program.
When you take a second to step inside your consumer's brain, filling out
two whole order forms in a row looks something like this:
"Wait... Didn't I just fill this out? This is a scam"
And no matter how hard you "sell" them on the benefits, you're dealing
with this MAJOR objection.
So how do you overcome it? I'd like to think my solution was simple and
elegant. Most important of all - It teaches a lesson!
My suggestion was to make our order form an exact model of the original
order form, in every way. The forms were the same color, the same order
and the same size. The background was exactly the same color and
decoration.
And instead of "selling" the benefits for "redeeming" their free trial to our
continuity program...
... We added "SECURE" to the logo of the initial cart page. And we told
them the following:
[not exact copy, for legal reasons. not "good" copy, for lazy reasons ;-)]
"Welcome To Your Secure Log-In Form. Your copy of X Program is secure,
and waiting for you. Now, I want to give you two options. You can:
a) Skip right ahead and log-in with our standard security...
... or...
b) Upgrade to our 3-Diamond Level secure log-in service. Your account will
have a unique name and password (encrypted for extra protection.) And
no one will ever be able to access your account, but you.
Simply fill in the form below, exactly as you did on the last page to
CONFIRM YOUR IDENTITY.
And as a Welcome bonus, once you upgrade to 3-Diamond Level security
(at no additional cost), you'll also get the ability to customize your
X-Program exactly how you see fit.
Your settings, changes and preferences will be stored under the user name
and password you choose, below:
USER NAME:
PASSWORD:
- order form -"
Why this route? Why talk about security and safety and 3-Diamond Level
encryption? [name changed from an impressive sounding, real encryption]
Because here is their main objection to RE-entering credit card information
they JUST entered:
"I am going to get scammed. This is not safe. They are trying to pull one
over on me"
And no matter how hard you try to PUSH or TWIST their thoughts into
some BENEFIT for "getting scammed"... you're still pushing against the
STRENGTH of the security objection.
Instead, you can look for a "back door." A way to transform your desired
sale into something that "slips in behind" their main objection. And satisfies
YOUR intended sale, without facing their buying resistance, head on.
Other uses for me, in the past, have been:
--> OPTING-IN: Selling in the pre-opt-in email: "Fill in your email
address, so I know where to send this report..."
... or even better...
"And confirm your email address, so I can send you this free report without
Google stopping it, and sending it to spam"
--> PRICE RESISTANCE: "Pay Me" The common attack on a program's
price is saying - "It's worth five times that! But you can get a great deal!"
Which focuses on the price. It makes people think, "Yeah, but I'm still
gonna have to pay you $97. Screw that."
Instead, there's the common back door of "redefinition." It's gonna cost
you $.02 per day... Fix Your Back Pain Forever, For Less Than 10 Bottles
Of Advil - A Ten Day Supply, In Our Kind Of Agony... Pay Me Nothing,
Until It Works For You...
You're taking a "back door" because you're not saying "The $97 You Pay
Me Today Isn't A Big Deal"... You're pointing his attention at smaller
amounts of money he's gonna pay you today. Or in the future.
You're changing the hundred bucks he's giving you into only a few bucks
over time. Or NO bucks - right now.
--> WITH WOMEN: The Age Objection. I'm young and date women who
are typically 5-10 years older than me. I get a lot of "you're so young, and
I'm almost ready to marry and settle down... What if we simply aren't on
the same page?"
Part of this is an honest concern. And when it is, I break off the
relationship. No need or desire to cause drama in a beautiful woman's
life.
But most of the time - I date career-focused women, who are still busy
achieving her life's vision. That's what makes her sexy. And what she
REALLY is scared of is: "What if you leave me for a younger woman?
And what if this relationship doesn't have a future? What if I waste
my time, and it's too late?"
To face ANY of those objections head-on is suicide. It goes against
her biological drives. And there's no way to "prove" you're ready to
settle down, besides tell her over and over and over again...
... Which, honestly, doesn't work on an emotionally charged ANYBODY!
So the back door is simply saying: "I'm wild about you, and I'm young, so
maybe I don't know what I want yet. Neither of us can tell where this is
going, for sure... But what I do know is I don't want to be with anyone
but you. I've got a wild enough life with my work and my music... I just
want to know that at the end of the day I can come home and relax,
with you."
... Or something like that. It's much tougher remembering that kinda stuff
than copy. But you get the gist - Focusing on my age is a sure-fire way
to screw everything up.
Focusing on my own need to not waste my time goes hand in hand with
her objection. And makes the "sell" that much more effective.
[reading that again, I'm almost positive someone's going to flame me for
that section... quick note: still on great talking terms with all my ex-girl
friends. if they don't hate me... neither should you :-)]
...
Hopefully this post helped you do a few things:
A) Figure Out What A "Back Door" Is: And as a summary, a "back door"
is any way you circumvent an objection by attacking it's WEAKNESSES,
instead of it's STRENGTHS.
For example: Instead of overcoming the "I have to enter my CC info twice?
This is a SCAM" objection... I took a back door, and re-sold it as additional
SECURITY for their order.
B) Seeing "Back Doors" In Common Techniques: Because what good
is knowing a new technique... or simply a new way of thinking... If it goes
against everything you've already learned?
Common "back doors" are: Price Redefinition, Guarantees (it works, or I'll
buy it back from you), "Tricky" Double-Opt-In Pages... etc...
C) Finding "Back Door" Solutions To YOUR Problems: This is the main
goal of today's post. Next time you come across a "hard sell"... try looking
for ways to attack it's WEAKNESS, instead of overcoming it's STRENGTH.
It will save you heart-break, stress and time. And you'll come up with
a bunch of your most creative ideas.
At least... That's the goal ;-)
- HR
PS. Gimme feedback.
Want more? On what topics?
I know I said my credentials don't matter... But I'm at least minimally
qualified to give new copywriters advice to grow by. Or remind you old
wolves of the most basic of basics.
I'm no "Flashy Copywriter Who EXPLODES!!! Profits"... But I've got a few
clients who owe millions to my mind and my pen. And I've got a few years
in the freelance business.
Along with the peace of mind and freedom that come with it :-)
So maybe... just maybe... I can help YOU out, as well.
Why don't you ask me a question, and find out for yourself?
For those of you who don't know, Starcraft is a video game. And it's
incredibly complicated. Very "deep." With strategy and tactics and
levels of play ranking from the lowest of the low, to the most elite
of the elite.
Just like our "game." Our copywriting game. Our marketing game.
Our "game" to sell stuff to people... And to be as good as we can, at it...
Now, because Starcraft is so deep, people take lifetimes to master it.
And there are commentators who analyze every single aspect of the
game, in order to "teach" others.
The odd thing is - These "commentators" get better and better with their
own play, as well. In the same way a math professor in college becomes
better and better at math, over time.
Teaching is a quick, easy way to consolidate your thoughts. And it
promotes quick, definite learning in the teacher, as well as the student.
So, with ALL of that in mind, I'd like to introduce you to MY take on "daily
teaching" for copywriting: "What I Learned Today."
The GOAL is to start a daily series of threads or posts where I lay out my
big take away for the day. Usually on an aspect of copywriting, or
persuasion, or marketing in general.
Hopefully, these daily "rants" will be helpful, to you.
And hopefully, they'll help me, as well :-)
What are my qualifications? Well... It really doesn't matter, does it? I can
honestly say I've sold millions of dollars of products online...
... But unless YOU take something away from each and every one of these
posts...
... And unless YOU can find a way to use what we talk about, in your own
business / life / career...
... Then who I am is highly unimportant, don't you agree?
So please, sit down and read this first post. See if there's a way you can
use it in your own life. If you can - keep reading. I'll try to update every
day.
If you can't - It was nice to know you. Good luck with your career :-)
>> TODAY'S TOPIC: "Find The Back Door"
I'm currently working for a business hell-bent on increasing their affiliate
presence. Because of this, we're working with a lot of "odd" requests from
larger JVs and super-affiliates alike.
One of these requests went like this:
"OK - I'd love to sell your program. But I'd like to run the initial order
through MY forms, to verify the orders. You can run the back-end through
your forms, to generate upsells and the like."
Since his potential to make money is very high, we agreed.
And this put us in a sticky situation. Because it meant customers would
have to fill in an order form for the initial program... And then immediately
fill out a whole NEW order form, for our upsell path, and their continuity
program.
When you take a second to step inside your consumer's brain, filling out
two whole order forms in a row looks something like this:
"Wait... Didn't I just fill this out? This is a scam"
And no matter how hard you "sell" them on the benefits, you're dealing
with this MAJOR objection.
So how do you overcome it? I'd like to think my solution was simple and
elegant. Most important of all - It teaches a lesson!
My suggestion was to make our order form an exact model of the original
order form, in every way. The forms were the same color, the same order
and the same size. The background was exactly the same color and
decoration.
And instead of "selling" the benefits for "redeeming" their free trial to our
continuity program...
... We added "SECURE" to the logo of the initial cart page. And we told
them the following:
[not exact copy, for legal reasons. not "good" copy, for lazy reasons ;-)]
"Welcome To Your Secure Log-In Form. Your copy of X Program is secure,
and waiting for you. Now, I want to give you two options. You can:
a) Skip right ahead and log-in with our standard security...
... or...
b) Upgrade to our 3-Diamond Level secure log-in service. Your account will
have a unique name and password (encrypted for extra protection.) And
no one will ever be able to access your account, but you.
Simply fill in the form below, exactly as you did on the last page to
CONFIRM YOUR IDENTITY.
And as a Welcome bonus, once you upgrade to 3-Diamond Level security
(at no additional cost), you'll also get the ability to customize your
X-Program exactly how you see fit.
Your settings, changes and preferences will be stored under the user name
and password you choose, below:
USER NAME:
PASSWORD:
- order form -"
Why this route? Why talk about security and safety and 3-Diamond Level
encryption? [name changed from an impressive sounding, real encryption]
Because here is their main objection to RE-entering credit card information
they JUST entered:
"I am going to get scammed. This is not safe. They are trying to pull one
over on me"
And no matter how hard you try to PUSH or TWIST their thoughts into
some BENEFIT for "getting scammed"... you're still pushing against the
STRENGTH of the security objection.
Instead, you can look for a "back door." A way to transform your desired
sale into something that "slips in behind" their main objection. And satisfies
YOUR intended sale, without facing their buying resistance, head on.
Other uses for me, in the past, have been:
--> OPTING-IN: Selling in the pre-opt-in email: "Fill in your email
address, so I know where to send this report..."
... or even better...
"And confirm your email address, so I can send you this free report without
Google stopping it, and sending it to spam"
--> PRICE RESISTANCE: "Pay Me" The common attack on a program's
price is saying - "It's worth five times that! But you can get a great deal!"
Which focuses on the price. It makes people think, "Yeah, but I'm still
gonna have to pay you $97. Screw that."
Instead, there's the common back door of "redefinition." It's gonna cost
you $.02 per day... Fix Your Back Pain Forever, For Less Than 10 Bottles
Of Advil - A Ten Day Supply, In Our Kind Of Agony... Pay Me Nothing,
Until It Works For You...
You're taking a "back door" because you're not saying "The $97 You Pay
Me Today Isn't A Big Deal"... You're pointing his attention at smaller
amounts of money he's gonna pay you today. Or in the future.
You're changing the hundred bucks he's giving you into only a few bucks
over time. Or NO bucks - right now.
--> WITH WOMEN: The Age Objection. I'm young and date women who
are typically 5-10 years older than me. I get a lot of "you're so young, and
I'm almost ready to marry and settle down... What if we simply aren't on
the same page?"
Part of this is an honest concern. And when it is, I break off the
relationship. No need or desire to cause drama in a beautiful woman's
life.
But most of the time - I date career-focused women, who are still busy
achieving her life's vision. That's what makes her sexy. And what she
REALLY is scared of is: "What if you leave me for a younger woman?
And what if this relationship doesn't have a future? What if I waste
my time, and it's too late?"
To face ANY of those objections head-on is suicide. It goes against
her biological drives. And there's no way to "prove" you're ready to
settle down, besides tell her over and over and over again...
... Which, honestly, doesn't work on an emotionally charged ANYBODY!
So the back door is simply saying: "I'm wild about you, and I'm young, so
maybe I don't know what I want yet. Neither of us can tell where this is
going, for sure... But what I do know is I don't want to be with anyone
but you. I've got a wild enough life with my work and my music... I just
want to know that at the end of the day I can come home and relax,
with you."
... Or something like that. It's much tougher remembering that kinda stuff
than copy. But you get the gist - Focusing on my age is a sure-fire way
to screw everything up.
Focusing on my own need to not waste my time goes hand in hand with
her objection. And makes the "sell" that much more effective.
[reading that again, I'm almost positive someone's going to flame me for
that section... quick note: still on great talking terms with all my ex-girl
friends. if they don't hate me... neither should you :-)]
...
Hopefully this post helped you do a few things:
A) Figure Out What A "Back Door" Is: And as a summary, a "back door"
is any way you circumvent an objection by attacking it's WEAKNESSES,
instead of it's STRENGTHS.
For example: Instead of overcoming the "I have to enter my CC info twice?
This is a SCAM" objection... I took a back door, and re-sold it as additional
SECURITY for their order.
B) Seeing "Back Doors" In Common Techniques: Because what good
is knowing a new technique... or simply a new way of thinking... If it goes
against everything you've already learned?
Common "back doors" are: Price Redefinition, Guarantees (it works, or I'll
buy it back from you), "Tricky" Double-Opt-In Pages... etc...
C) Finding "Back Door" Solutions To YOUR Problems: This is the main
goal of today's post. Next time you come across a "hard sell"... try looking
for ways to attack it's WEAKNESS, instead of overcoming it's STRENGTH.
It will save you heart-break, stress and time. And you'll come up with
a bunch of your most creative ideas.
At least... That's the goal ;-)
- HR
PS. Gimme feedback.
Want more? On what topics?
I know I said my credentials don't matter... But I'm at least minimally
qualified to give new copywriters advice to grow by. Or remind you old
wolves of the most basic of basics.
I'm no "Flashy Copywriter Who EXPLODES!!! Profits"... But I've got a few
clients who owe millions to my mind and my pen. And I've got a few years
in the freelance business.
Along with the peace of mind and freedom that come with it :-)
So maybe... just maybe... I can help YOU out, as well.
Why don't you ask me a question, and find out for yourself?
Always looking for badass direct-response copywriters. PM me if we don't know each other and you're looking for work.