Want to Become A World-Class Copywriter?

22 replies
Want to Become A World-Class Copywriter?

Do you sometimes wonder why it's so damn hard for you to write
great sales copy, and have it convert the way you want it to?

Are you frustrated because whatever version of a sales page you
use, none of them get the sale?

Please listen up right now.

I mean stop looking at other things, and pay attention to these words
because they are very important. Don't think for a minute that just
because they are written in a forum thread, they mean nothing.


Big mistake if that's what you think. Ok..

What's going to grab you by the eyeballs next may shock you, because
I'm going to show you EXACTLY how to sell to ANYONE at ANY TIME,
with almost any product.

And I'm going to do this with three things that are so simple, even
my friends 8 year old can understand it. By the way, that is NO hype.


If you think positive on these three things, you'll realize that these
are very important steps that will lead to a solid foundation for
anything you decide to write.

They also happen to be something that many, many, many aspiring
copywriters are NOT doing
. Think about what that could do for you.

So, lets get right to the first thing you need to end your frustrations,
and sell anything to anyone, whenever you want. Are you ready?

First..

1. Slow Down Your Thinking & Start Showing A Genuine
Interest In Other People


This is actually two things, but they serve the same desired outcome.
I'll list them as "A" and "B".
A. Slow Down Your Thinking
This means that in order for you to have a meaningful conversation
with someone, and to even have one, you need to slow down your
thoughts.

You need to LISTEN to what it is that they are saying.

Do you want to concentrate better? Want to stop being so stressed out?
Slow down your thoughts. If you have mostly negative thoughts, try
this exercise and simply replace them with more positive ones.

Now, don't try this once and decide "oh, this doesn't work" or
"this is stupid".

Do you see what you're doing? Do you see what thought process
you are in if you think like this? And do you see what might come
after those thoughts?

Probably more negitive thoughts.

Stop. Slow down. And replace it with a positive thought. Simple.
And you'll be better for giving yourself this gift.

Did you know that scientists have proven that everything you want
to do, or have happen in your life starts with a thought? It's true. I
have no reason to lie to you.

Why not make those thoughts positive, instead of negative? Again,
practice this enough, and it will become a habit.
B. Show A Genuine Interest In Other People
In other words, before you begin to write a sales message (it's not
a page, not a pitch, it's a message) how much research do you do
on your target market?

Do you know who your target market is?

If you don't, that's ok. I'll tell you.

Your target market is the person, or persons to whom you are writing
the message.
You have to first know who your target market is. From
what I've seen, some here are giving incomplete advice about copy
writing, and people are not questioning it.

These people mean well, but are missing the most important things that
make people like Gary Halbert (the late), Michael Fortin, Paul Myers, and
Allan Says, great copywriters. They got great, because they study their
target market. How do they do that?

They ask questions.

To themselves, or to the market they are trying to understand. Simple so
far? It's ok to ask questions, because that's how you really get good at writing great copy.

Stop assuming things about people. Ask questions. Get to know what is
most important to them.


If you do this, half the "How To Write" battle going on inside your cranium
is over. The more you know about your target market, the more you
can connect with the buyer. The more you will know the language
they speak. The more you will know how to help them.

Which leads to the next one..

2. Don't Worry About Offending The Wrong People

Did you see what happened after your eyes got past the headline of this
thread? Did you feel that I was talking to you and you only?

It's because I'm really not interested in sharing this information with people
who are not interested in learning how to write good copy. Who cares
about them.

Ask yourself this question right now..Remember, slow down
your thoughts, and really expect an answer:


"How does the information in #2 relate to #1B?

Press the virtual "Pause" button in your brain, and think about that for a
second. Ok?

I want you to imagine right now, that you are getting ready to write a
sales message for a Gorilla. This gorilla needs socks. Why?

How should I know? Maybe he's a compulsive buyer. Slow down again
and lets move on...

When you're writing copy for a gorilla, don't worry about offending
the monkeys. Just focus on giving the gorillas what they want.


Socks.

Guess what time of year it is..oh, never mind..

Are you with me so far? Are you sure? Good. Besides, who the hell
cares what the monkys want. The socks wont fit them anyway.

Finally..

3. Be Honest & Communicate Truth In Your Copy

Especially in your headlines and sub-headlines.

You should really start with these first, before the body of your message,
but everyone has their own process. Just choose the one that works best
for you.

You can say I'm a nut for thinking this way. Go ahead, I don't mind one bit.
But did you know that most of the copy writing greats use this way of
thinking as a foundation for copy writing success?


If this was "how to be successful with women and dating" this would be
the "inner game" stuff. The Jedi Warrior things that matter the most,
but everyone "thinks" they already know.

Do yourself a huge favor..don't be a know-it-all. Choose to be truthful.

All you really have to do to test this yourself, is click to clickbank and look
at all the hyped up sales "pitches" to know you really have no competition!
Communicating something that is 100% true, in a way that includes benefits
to the reader is the tricky part. But when you search for an answer about
how to do this, it's more powerful than any hyped up copy out there.

Hope this gets you on the right track for success! If you study this truthfully,
I believe you can sell anything, to anyone, any time you want.

Grant
#copywriter #worldclass
  • Profile picture of the author Nrat
    im just mad because I do write good sales ads but get no response

    Nancy
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    • Profile picture of the author IdeasNotWords
      Originally Posted by Nrat View Post

      im just mad because I do write good sales ads but get no response

      Nancy
      Could you enlighten me as to how a good sales ad can receive no response? Isn't the point of a SALES ad to elicit a response from a potential buyer?
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    • Profile picture of the author GrantFreeman
      Originally Posted by Nrat View Post

      im just mad because I do write good sales ads but get no response

      Nancy
      You might consider looking at this differently. Ask yourself if getting mad is a reaction worth continuing. In other words, it's ok to get frustrated, just get over it quickly, because it doesn't serve you, or your prospect.

      Change your thinking to positive. This will put yourself in a better mindset.

      This is key: Don't try to make positive changes to copy when you're in a negitive state of mind.

      See how silly that sounds? Feel like a fish swimming upstream? That's because your mind doesn't work that way.

      Some questions you might ask yourself (after changing your mindset to postive)..

      ? Could there be something about my prospect that I'm overlooking?
      ? What items on my sales page DO NOT speak the LANGUAGE of my prospect?

      Good sales ads get good responses. Incredible sales ads get incredible responses.

      Grant
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      • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
        Grant, I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess that you're a copywriter.

        Great thread...thanks for the smile.
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        • Profile picture of the author GrantFreeman
          Originally Posted by Steven Wagenheim View Post

          Grant, I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess that you're a copywriter.

          Great thread...thanks for the smile.
          I kinda prefer "learner of people". Thanks, Steve.

          Grant
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    • Profile picture of the author wrcato
      Originally Posted by Nrat View Post

      im just mad because I do write good sales ads but get no response

      Nancy
      If your copy is good... then why?
      Signature

      William Cato
      Sit Down, Have A Cup Of Coffee
      and read my blog http://www.2ultra.com
      follow me on Twitter
      www.twitter.com/wrcato

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  • Profile picture of the author dhughes
    Good sales copy is only good if it sells. I write copy daily, and I feel like my copy is pretty good too. But...much of what I write bombs.

    Even Dan Kennedy and the late Gary Halbert said the same thing. A lot of the time what you write is simply not going to sell. There are a lot of psychological factors that go into making a sale.

    In my experience I agree very strongly with Grant Freeman that you must know the market. I cannot stress this point enough. You have to do your research otherwise your copy is almost guaranteed to bomb. I know it sounds silly, but many of my clients have never even gone out and talked with their target market. They make assumptions...assumptions which are nearly always wrong.

    Seriously, knowing the market is THE most important factor in writing good sales copy. Because, only by knowing the market do you begin to understand their hopes and fears...their enemies...their heros...their triggers. You will learn, one way or another that this is a fundamental truth in advertising and copywriting.

    Knowing the market directs the whole copywriting effort. Through your knowledge of the market you will know how to create headlines that command the attention of your prospect, craft bullets that resonate, develop credibility and develope trust like you are an old friend. You'll know how to present your price in a way that connects with your market like no others. You'll know your market's hopes and fears and you'll be able to present you guarantee in a way that uses those triggers to put your prospect at ease. You'll close the sale tidily by capitalizing on psychological triggers and creating a sense of urgency for the product. Finally...you will summarize everything for your prospects in a way that instantly makes sense to them and triggers that emotional longing. You will sell them.

    If you don't know your market then here is what is going to happen. You will have the opposite affect of the attributes in the above paragraph.

    So...know the market, know the prospect, make the sale.
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  • Profile picture of the author BrianMcLeod
    2. Don't Worry About Offending The Wrong People

    Did you see what happened after your eyes got past the headline of this
    thread? Did you feel that I was talking to you and you only?

    It's because I'm really not interested in sharing this information with people
    who are not interested in learning how to write good copy. Who cares
    about them.

    Ask yourself this question right now..Remember, slow down
    your thoughts, and really expect an answer:

    "How does the information in #2 relate to #1B?

    Press the virtual "Pause" button in your brain, and think about that for a
    second. Ok?

    I want you to imagine right now, that you are getting ready to write a
    sales message for a Gorilla. This gorilla needs socks. Why?

    How should I know? Maybe he's a compulsive buyer. Slow down again
    and lets move on...

    When you're writing copy for a gorilla, don't worry about offending
    the monkeys. Just focus on giving the gorillas what they want.

    Socks.
    That's beyooteeful, right there...

    Nice post, Grant

    Best,

    Brian
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  • Profile picture of the author mmurtha
    Hi Grant,

    Good to see you a bit more lively these days kid! Great post too!

    I'm no copywriter as most people around here know, but I do read a lot of sales pages lol, and the very best of them (the ones that sell) do exactly what you are stating in your OP. Plus, the sellers who do well, also follow up, and their customers know if they are genuine or not, or simply seeking more money. There's a very big difference between the two situations.

    It's like those throw away lists people build simply to bombard people with pitches. They build their lists with one thing in mind most of the time, and that's money. When the list becomes unresponsive, they simple throw it away and build a new one. If they were smart, they'd put the customer's interest first by groming them, then pitch.

    When they take a genuine interest in their list, they could keep that list for years, and get at least a 50% improvement rate over the throw away lists, and do much less work. Take Paul Myers's TalkBiz list for instance. I bet he's had this list for a very long time. He continues to add to it because people have come to respect him. But that's only because he shows that he cares first, and knows the money will come later. The man seems to love teaching people.

    Now before anyone gets the wrong opinion, I'm not saying Paul doesn't have other lists. I wouldn't know to be frank about it, but I do know about the one I mentioned. I just wanted to mention it because he writes the simplest copy I've seen that draws in people's attention. That's because he knows what he has to offer, and gets straight to the point on how it can benefit his readers.

    Some of this comes from his reputation, and some of it shows thru his copy in the way he writes, so I think there are other things you can add to your OP.

    All in all, it boils down to how each person views and treats their clients and future clients.


    Mary
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  • Profile picture of the author OnlineWriter
    It works great to really focus on one specific demographic at a time. General copy is boring and nobody will read it all. If you have a product, narrow your focus so you can get up close and personal with a specific group. This could be seniors, stay at home moms, teens, parents, "anonymous" types, etc.

    A good example is home repairs. By the time someone has to look on the Internet for how to do something, they may be frustrated and angry but will do it themselves anyway. Empathize with that guy who can't figure out how to lay tile properly and use humor and stories to help clinch sales.
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  • Profile picture of the author Aristocratic
    My problem is I hate long salespages. I rarely read a 1/4 of them because I usually already know if I want the item or service or membership or not when I come to the page. After all, that's why I came to it. So I just don't like to write a long drawn out salesletter that I myself would not want to read anyways.
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    • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
      Banned
      [DELETED]
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      • Profile picture of the author Aristocratic
        Originally Posted by alexa_s View Post

        Let's hope that you're exactly your own target market, then - otherwise you have a problem!

        Not really. If I want a professional copywriter, I'll pay for one. Just as I will pay for anything else I cannot do effectively myself. But I am sure I am not the only one that does not care for those long drawn out sales pages either. The odds are just not stacked up against me like that.

        If your product, service, or membership is worth it, you shouldn't have to be trying to stuff a whole bunch of sensational words at the readers. But that's just me. Does not mean I won't get a professional salespage made if I want one though.
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    • Profile picture of the author Keeslover
      Originally Posted by Aristocratic View Post

      My problem is I hate long salespages. I rarely read a 1/4 of them because I usually already know if I want the item or service or membership or not when I come to the page. After all, that's why I came to it. So I just don't like to write a long drawn out salesletter that I myself would not want to read anyways.
      When I have to write something that I find boring or feel like I've run out of things to say, I put myself in the client's shoes.
      What does he or she find exciting about this topic/product/whatever?

      Then I put myself in the shoes of the reader.
      What would he or she want to know to get excited about the product and order?

      Then I write.

      Maybe you could use something like that to help you put more length on your sales pages.

      Melody
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  • Profile picture of the author Amitywill
    WOW great post Grant. I really felt
    like you were talking to me personally.

    Will Cooper
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  • Profile picture of the author jasonl70
    When you're writing copy for a gorilla, don't worry about offending
    the monkeys. Just focus on giving the gorillas what they want.
    my favorite part
    Signature

    -Jason

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  • Profile picture of the author Roy Carter
    It's all rubbish!

    I just did a bit of keyword research and nobody is searching for 'socks for gorillas'.
    It'll never work

    Seriously though. Nice post Grant.
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    • Profile picture of the author Phalanx
      Originally Posted by Roy Carter View Post

      It's all rubbish!

      I just did a bit of keyword research and nobody is searching for 'socks for gorillas'.
      It'll never work

      Seriously though. Nice post Grant.
      You got me interested enough to try googling for "socks for gorillas".

      The first result was a page titled "Gorilla Socks" (With part of the description being "Animal lovers super store!"). Holding my breath, I clicked through. You can really find ANYTHING on the internet...

      Phew. It turns they were simply socks with pictures of gorillas on them. You had me scared there, for a bit :p
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  • Profile picture of the author lantil5
    Banned
    I am really grateful to you for this helped. I had got lots of help by this.
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    • Profile picture of the author TimSchaefer
      Originally Posted by GrantFreeman View Post


      When you're writing copy for a gorilla, don't worry about offending
      the monkeys. Just focus on giving the gorillas what they want.

      A primate variation of the statement Halbert made regarding the full-page personal ad he ran back in the 80s.

      From his newsletter archive:

      I Didn't Worry About Offending The "Dogs"
      Instead, I Concentrated On Selling The "Foxes."

      I don't think there's much of a market for gorilla and/or monkey socks. They use their feet for gripping, so you'd probably be better off selling foot "gloves" or at least those socks that have separated toes.
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      • Profile picture of the author GrantFreeman
        Originally Posted by TimSchaefer View Post

        A primate variation of the statement Halbert made regarding the full-page personal ad he ran back in the 80s.

        From his newsletter archive:

        I Didn't Worry About Offending The "Dogs"
        Instead, I Concentrated On Selling The "Foxes."

        I don't think there's much of a market for gorilla and/or monkey socks. They use their feet for gripping, so you'd probably be better off selling foot "gloves" or at least those socks that have separated toes.
        Yup. Very powerful statement. I thought it would be useful if I repeated it here. I heard that from an audio conference call Michael Fortin had when his guest was the late Gary of Halbert.

        Great stuff. I think you can still find the complete interview at hardtofindads.com?

        Grant
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  • Profile picture of the author wrcato
    This is a great post.
    A.I.D.A
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    William Cato
    Sit Down, Have A Cup Of Coffee
    and read my blog http://www.2ultra.com
    follow me on Twitter
    www.twitter.com/wrcato

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  • Profile picture of the author activetrader
    Excellent info! You have the talent of hypnotic writing. As I was reading through I was looking for the "buy now" button so much I was sold on it ;-)
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    Me

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