Short copy vs. Long copy? Think again...

I'm most likely in the minority when I say that long copy doesn't interest me. The fact that I'm even looking at the ad is because I already know what I'm looking for, I just want to know the price. So I might do a cursory scan of the copy, and look for the bottom line. Then I make my decision.

Of course there are the few exceptions, but mostly that's how it is. Short copy I'm willing to read, long copy wastes my time. But I'm not blind to the point(s) made by Mr. Kalb. Just sayin'.

I am not reading 10 pages of copy unless I am doing a critique or if I am doing a study on a past promotion. If I am shopping for me it needs to be 800 words or less

- Jonathan Webb

It depends...

bottom lines is : know your market

Don't feed him enough. Keep him hungry

Hi All,

I find the length of the copy totally depends on these things...

1. Where is the traffic coming from? Cold PPC, Optin, SEO or Organic, Warm List... this will make a huge difference on how much I need to educate them.

2. What is the product? A simple, inexpensive ebook sale takes only a couple hundred words while a video series or membership offer or a marketing even may take several thousand.

3. How complex is the subject? If it is a complex health related topic it make take more copy to show the research to illustrate the proof.

4. How many testimonials do I have? This can be an a major selling point if the testimonials are woven into the copy to help prove the product works as stated and so adds to the length of the copy I need to write.

5. How long is the story? More expensive products mean a longer story to get on the same vibe as the visitor.

6. How many bonuses? And what cost and length? Again this adds more copy the more complex and expensive the bonuses are.

7. What is the buyer's age group, needs, demographics, mindset? Will they tolerate longer copy or not?

8. What are the social proof elements? Do they require description?

9. What is the price structure? Multiple payments requires more copy to be written to explain the pricing program.

10. What is the guarantee? Is it to be based on any performance by the buyer? If so the guarantee needs to be longer to explain the refund policies.

That is just the tip of the iceberg as far as knowing for sure how long the copy needs to be.

What do I do?

I write several versions of the sales letter to split test.

A. Long one with all the bells and whistles.

B. Medium length - to remove some of the areas where the copy may slow down to try to help to speed it up and keep the reader on the slippery slide to buying.

C. Short length - to try to cut out as much filler copy as I can for those that want to "speed read" to the sale.

Then I suggest we split test all 3 with the same headline, same ads, same keyword phrases etc. You need to do this to throw out the variations as far as length. I also add code to verify the time on site and heat maps to help to understand the bounce rate and where the copy may be slowing down.

Then we take the winner with the best time on site versus conversion rate and we edit that one with 2 different flavors of headlines to determine a final winner.

Then that winner is edited to increase time on site and boost conversions.

Now most copywriters are lucky to write one version.

That is fine for most people, but you really need to know your market and what they will tolerate to boost time on site, because if the bounce rate is too high it does not mean the sales letter is too long -- instead it means the copy bored them and they clicked away.

So you need to test everything to know for sure what works to make money and what doesn't.

Some of my highest converting WSOs are over 4,000 words and Warriors read the whole thing because they are entertained and they want to know what the end of the story is...

So if you can keep them excited long enough to take the time to effectively remove all of their objections to buying -- they will buy.

In a short sales letter it is 10 times harder to sell with fewer words than it is with a longer sales letter. So it is always easier to write a little longer one and try to handle all the objections to buying and then tweak that copy down to boost conversions.

Hope this helps you all with your copywriting projects.

P.S. if you read this whole thing as long as this answer is... Then my long copy kept you interested and the copy was speedy enough to get you to read all the way to the bottom --
so long copy worked!

Jennie Heckel
Sales Letter Copwriter

How long does copy need to be? The old chestnut yet again. The answer is - as long as it takes.

If I wrote a 100,000 word page on your life - here's $1k that says you'll read every word.

I think there is a place for it in B2C BUT it should be the educate on a new product/solution. B2B are just not going to read it. The sales letter is just to grab attention, not make the sale.

It seems pretty clear to me that "long" copy generally does better than short copy, but keep in mind, when people say "long copy" they're going by the standards of mainstream advertising; where 15 second television spots are the the norm. The 5000-6000 words that many internet marketers use in their sales letters is clearly overkill.

I read a long sales letter back in the 80's. I spent over several thousand dollars with that individual over a 10 year period. I guess it works!

ELMO