Learn to Copywrite

Archive for March, 2010

I hate it when I am stuck without any idea on how to write good copy for ads. My boss tells me that my choice of words aren’t good enough, or my words are too complex, or I don’t have the tone of the people I’m speaking to.. I mean, what the hell? As long as I’m writing good copy with interesting words, isn’t it enough?

Maybe I need copywriting lessons. So, any idea where I can get copywriting lessons from an expert? I can’t be stuck at this position anymore!!!!!!

just go to Google and put in copy writing cl;asses for the area where you live

this site could help without classes
http://www.copywriting.com/

To have a successful Internet business, you need only three things:

1. Product
2. Copywriting

It really is that simple. If you have those three things competently performed, you will have a successful, profitable Internet business. Let’s talk about competency in each of those three areas and how you can quickly master each one.

Product

You need a product that people want. Don’t fall in love with a product just because you think it’s cool. I’ll go into details in a future article, but I look at two things to determine if a product is wanted enough for me to sell it:

1. Are there people searching for that product (I use the Overture tool)

2. Are fellow marketers willing to pay a significant amount of money for traffic for that search term because people are buying (I also use the Overture tool).

I multiply those two numbers. If the result is higher than the result for the product “air guns”, I’m willing to get into that market. Why “air guns”? It was simply my first profitable product. Can products that score lower than “air guns” be profitable? I’m sure they can, but there are enough markets that score higher than “air guns”, I’m not willing to chance it.

BTW, don’t get too hung up on the product. It is the least important of the three items. Copywriting and traffic are infinitely more important to your business. Don’t spend two years developing a product. For more details go to www.free-ad-system.com. There are already thousands of products available on the Internet that you can market and earn a percentage as an affiliate. Choosing your product should take no longer than a half an hour, not two years. You can run the numbers for 6-10 product ideas in less than half an hour and make your decision. Then start concentrating on what really matters which is

copywriting

Now you need to describe your product. You will do this in many ways. You will create a sales page on a web-site that will describe the product and try to sell it. You will write small text ads to run on PPC search engines. You will write similar one and two line descriptions to enter into affiliate networks. You will write articles and resource boxes for those articles. For more details go to www.internet-marketing-online-goldmine.com. you may even write a signature line for use on forums.

The point is that copywriting is what conveys the message about your product. It is simply some words. You can sometimes use pictures and videos, but it is generally the words that actually do the selling. Don’t forget that you are in the business of words.

How do you decide what words to use? You have three choices if you are a beginner:

1. Hire a high priced copywriter. Generally you will want to pay $5,000-$10,000 per sales page for a decent copywriter. Drop me a note if you want referrals. I know two of the best.

2. Use copywriting software that scores words. I recommend Glyphius which you can read more about at Glyphius.com. It scores your prospective ad copy against a massive database of profitable ads. You can simply make up some copy and click the score button. Then change it and click the score button again. Pick the highest scoring text after you have worked with it for awhile. You’ll have copy that the pros will envy and more importantly copy that will convert that traffic into customers.

3. Fail for a long time while you are learning. Don’t laugh. Most Internet marketers choose this path. If you are persistent enough, you will learn what works and what doesn’t.

Guleria
http://www.articlesbase.com/internet-marketing-articles/overview-on-internet-marketing-business-690800.html

The phrase has been used before, but if you have a website you really need to read The Ultimate Web Marketing Strategy, by Ed Rivis.

Ed covers 22 important web strategies you need to know for all websites. Equally important, any brick and mortar company can also use these strategies to their advantage in their existing markets, or use them as they move online.

Every year thousands of new websites come online.

Many companies create pretty websites. And six months later the website owner finds out that ‘pretty’ does not sell.

Slow loading graphics are a real turn off for most people. It only takes a few seconds waiting before a person leaves your site. Fancy graphics are actually a tool to drive people to your competitor’s site.

The Ultimate Web Marketing Strategy is a 200 page book. I got the book when it was pre-released in electronic format for comments. I easily read it over a hectic weekend.

This is a useful resource to have on your desk. That’s why I was one of the first in line when the book came out in hard copy. It is the only book that sits on my desk.

Chapters follow a logical progression, but each chapter is stand alone.

If you already have a solid grasp in Front-End Acquisition and a good idea of Integrated Marketing you might consider skipping the first 2 chapters and only reading the second half of the book. But this is probably foolish. There is a lot of solid content in each chapter.

The second half of the book is about Back-End Marketing, Scientifically Optimizing Sales and the conclusion Putting It All Together.

In the very beginning Ed lists the 13 most common reasons for poor web performance.

If you have:

• Perfectly targeted traffic
• THE PERFECT keywords
• A site that is not pushy
• A website that radiates trust
• Rock solid design that is not too flashy and nor too slow.

Then you may not need this book. Of course your website still needs to meet the other 8 factors before you can say that this book is not for you.

Ed is a strong believer in copywriting, so you will read a fair bit about the importance of content. Remember; no graphic heavy and flashy websites. Content is still king.

Your website is like a growth hormone for your business. Most websites do not take the time to go through a good checklist and get everything right. If you don’t work at improving your website through an expert checklist like Ed’s, you can easily drive prospects away from your products and services.

Ed uses images and graphics very clearly to help visualize parts of his book. The graphics are examples of what Ed recommends you use on your website, just where you really need it. He makes his points very clear.

A sneak peak - Ed has another product coming out soon on statistics.

Now you may be like Ed was a while ago and think that stats are not the most exciting subject.

But this is a huge mistake.

If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it, and since most business owners have no idea how their website is doing they may as well be running advertising in a foreign language. The Ultimate Web Marketing Strategy, a must read for any serious internet marketer.

Cindy King
http://www.articlesbase.com/internet-marketing-articles/book-review-the-ultimate-web-marketing-strategy-by-ed-rivis-712438.html

Making money as an actor can be a tough gig - but voiceover work is one of the few ways you can top up your acting income without resorting to a ‘proper’ day job. This short article gives you 7 tips to getting more voiceover work.

Many actors achieve great success in this industry. Its fun, they make great cash, and they keep getting work over and over again. Then there are others who are struggling to even get one gig. After many years as a copywriter working with successful (and a few not-so-successful) voiceovers, and founder of online voiceover directory - I’ve been studying what makes certain voiceovers successful. Here are 7 tips:

1. Is your demo good enough?

You can promote yourself as much as you like - but at the end of the day, it comes down to your demo. You’re competing with some very talented people out there. An “ok” demo is not good enough.

2. Call back immediately. If you get a message that someone is trying to book you for a gig, don’t wait a minute. Ad agencies are usually up against very tight deadlines, and if you take too long getting back to them, they’ll simply book someone who is answering their phone.

3. Do a special offer Offer a producer in an ad agency that you’ll do a free gig - IF it’s for a charity ad. Or you could try something like giving concession tickets of a show you’re acting in to a producer or copywriter. These things don’t cost you money, but they spread good karma, and hopefully drum up some business for you in the future.

4. Get some training. If you are inexperienced, try to go on a training course. It’s a small investment in comparison to the amount of money you can make doing voiceovers.

5. Pick someone’s brain. If you are inexperienced, go for coffee with a more experienced VO and pick their brain. Ask them everything about what to expect when you do a gig - from the minute you walk in to the minute you leave. Sometimes just knowing what to expect will calm the nerves when you’re doing your first gig. You can also take a few scripts along to this coffee and ask them to crit you doing a read.

6. Spam yourself Create a database of ad agency copywriters and producers and send them a link of your voice sample. This takes time, but doesn’t cost you a penny.

7. Get a Dictaphone. Buy yourself a Dictaphone and recite and record scripts for practice. (Some mobile phones also have voice recorders.) Sometimes it’s amazing how great something sounds in your own head, but only once you hear it out loud can you really figure out which bits need improving. This is fantastic exercise - schedule ten minutes a day to practice.

You can find the full 25 Things the Successful Voicover Artist in Ebook called 7 25 Things the Successful Voiceover Artist Knows (that the Rest of the Plebs Don’t)

peter lawless
http://www.articlesbase.com/advertising-articles/7-things-the-successful-voiceover-artist-knows-that-the-rest-of-the-plebs-dont-673344.html

Let’s face the facts. People are inundated with advertisement all the time. It’s becoming more and more difficult to get their attention, and keeping their attention until they read your offer to the last word. If you plan to send mailers to a list, you need to understand how it works, if you want your prospect to read your offer.

First of all, you need to visualize how a prospect reacts to the mail he gets every day. Put yourself in his place - what do you do when you receive a bunch of mail from the postman? You separate the mail into 2 sections - “to be opened” and “to be trashed”. It’s true - a lot of mail lands straight into the bin without even being opened. And with it goes all the creativity, the fancy graphic artist’s work, the copywriter’s teaser copy, et al. So the first thing you want to do is make your prospect open the envelope. To open it, he has to be convinced that it is not a junk mail.

My first tip is to use a plain envelope that only has a return address. This address should not be a P O box, it should be a real address. Additionally, if your company name is something like “John Reese Direct Mail Service”, I would advice not to mention it at all, just put your complete address. The moment your prospect suspects that it is a direct mail letter, he will trash it. Do not use fancy teaser copy on the envelope, like “special offer 25% off” or “lose weight now” or “make easy money” etc. Your job is not to attract him, just get the damn thing opened! While teasers sound attractive, they don’t change the fact that such mailers are trashed more often, unless the prospect is specifically looking for this product / service and was desperately waiting for someone to offer it to him. While these could be a small percentage, don’t count on it.

Next, I would advice you to manually write the name and address directly on the envelope and not type it. This is because a handwritten address gives the impression that it is coming from a known person. I know it is a daunting task but it is certainly worth the effort - after all, your interest is to get the mail opened every single time, isn’t it? If you have to mail millions and prefer not to take this advice, I would recommend you to at least get the address typed directly on the envelope and not on a label. This is because labels are used by the majority of the direct mail companies and you do not want to give the impression that you’re also one of them!

If you can afford it, I would advice you to send your mailers by first class mail and not bulk rate. This will boost the authenticity and perceived urgency of the letter. I would also advice you to stick stamps on the envelope and not get it franked. This way you will add to the impression of being a personal letter. A tip here is to stick several smaller denomination stamps instead of one big denomination stamp - don’t worry if it covers a lot of surface area!

OK, we’ve reached to the point where the receiver opens your mail. But remember - he is not entirely unsuspicious and once he opens your envelope, you don’t want him to see the brochures, discount coupons, order form, etc and throw it in the trash. You want him to read the offer. So how do you do this? Simple - you just place all your color brochures, order form, coupons, etc in another envelope, seal it, and write something on it like - please open this envelope only after you have read the letter. You then place this envelope along with your “personal letter” into a larger envelope, one that you will be mailing out!

This “personal letter” should be a normal plain typed letter that first addresses the prospect by name. If you can afford one, get a good copywriter to draft this letter. You can begin the letter with the greatest benefits that your product / service offers. It should preferably solve a problem, give pleasure, help save time or money, help make money, or do something that the prospect would love to experience. End the letter with a call to action of opening the sealed envelope that contains instructions for ordering, claiming discounts, etc. This method is very effective because your letter has put him in the right frame of mind to buy your product / service. Once you have him all worked up, it’s very easy to get the order as long as your offer has value.

If you cannot afford a copywriter, I recommend you to visit http://www.bharatbhasha.com/author.php/Nirjara%20Rustom where I’ve written several articles on copywriting, sales and marketing, and other business growth tips.

Nirjara Rustom
http://www.articlesbase.com/marketing-articles/how-to-get-all-of-your-direct-mail-opened-and-read-every-single-time-you-send-it-out-671999.html

Anyone involved in online marketing is always looking for ways to improve upon their copy writing skills. The ability to use the written word thereby influencing the reader to take certain desired actions is an invaluable skill.

It all starts with knowing what your readers really want and how to present it to them without making them feel uncomfortable or pressured.

Here are 6 tips to help increase the effectiveness of your copy writing skills.

1) Product Knowledge

Possessing first hand knowledge of whatever it is you’re promoting is a must. You need to know your product and its capabilities as to whether it can produce or accomplish what it advertises it can. Knowing this gives you the passion and confidence you need to endorse the product.
With knowing the product you are endorsing is legitimate and effective the task of copywriting becomes much easier. The enthusiasm you genuinely feel will be conveyed thru the copy you compose and readers will pick up on this.

2) Know Your Target Audience

Obviously any product you may promote is not suitable for all customer types.

Determining the product benefits along with the needs and wants it may fill will help you better identify the customer type you need to target.

Knowing your customer now makes it easier to decide what type language or slang would be best suited to communicate your message to them.

For instance if your customer type is well read or scholarly delving deeper into your vocabulary to speak to them would seem more appropriate. If however you’re targeting the younger generation the use of slang would be more applicable in this instance.

What you’re doing is just trying to relate better to your customer by addressing them more within their comfort zones.

3) Emphasize Benefits

To capture anybody’s attention you’ll always want to answer the unasked question they have which is ‘what’s in it for me’ or they’ll likely lose interest.

Be sure to address product benefits quickly within the body of your copy or readers will just as quickly leave your site!

Would you buy anything that didn’t benefit you in some way? Of course not!

Showing readers thru examples of how your product would make their lives better, easier, more profitable, healthier, enjoyable, etc. The idea here is that readers will then start to ‘realize’ how they can’t live without these benefits.

4) Develop Sense of Urgency

You want the reader to take some sort of action while on your site. By offering a ‘time limited or quantity limited’ bonus for their order you’ve now lit a bit of a fire under them to make a decision.

This aspect of your copy is important from the standpoint that once a reader leaves your site there’re gone so do your best to entice them to order. If nothing more offer them a free ‘thank you’ gift just for visiting your site so you can capture their contact info for future online marketing efforts.

5) Be Brief

When ever possible say more with fewer words. People are always in a hurry so get to the point but cover all the important bases.

6) Proofread Your Work

Check your work for spelling, formatting, or grammatical errors you likely missed during your initial composition.

Using these 6 tips as a guide should help you improve upon or maintain your current copy writing skills for any online marketing endeavor.

TJ Philpott
http://www.articlesbase.com/internet-marketing-articles/6-tips-to-improve-your-copy-writing-skills-681432.html

Let’s face the facts. People are inundated with advertisement all the time. It’s becoming more and more difficult to get their attention, and keeping their attention until they read your offer to the last word. If you plan to send mailers to a list, you need to understand how it works, if you want your prospect to read your offer.

First of all, you need to visualize how a prospect reacts to the mail he gets every day. Put yourself in his place - what do you do when you receive a bunch of mail from the postman? You separate the mail into 2 sections - “to be opened” and “to be trashed”. It’s true - a lot of mail lands straight into the bin without even being opened. And with it goes all the creativity, the fancy graphic artist’s work, the copywriter’s teaser copy, et al. So the first thing you want to do is make your prospect open the envelope. To open it, he has to be convinced that it is not a junk mail.

My first tip is to use a plain envelope that only has a return address. This address should not be a P O box, it should be a real address. Additionally, if your company name is something like “John Reese Direct Mail Service”, I would advice not to mention it at all, just put your complete address. The moment your prospect suspects that it is a direct mail letter, he will trash it. Do not use fancy teaser copy on the envelope, like “special offer 25% off” or “lose weight now” or “make easy money” etc. Your job is not to attract him, just get the damn thing opened! While teasers sound attractive, they don’t change the fact that such mailers are trashed more often, unless the prospect is specifically looking for this product / service and was desperately waiting for someone to offer it to him. While these could be a small percentage, don’t count on it.

Next, I would advice you to manually write the name and address directly on the envelope and not type it. This is because a handwritten address gives the impression that it is coming from a known person. I know it is a daunting task but it is certainly worth the effort - after all, your interest is to get the mail opened every single time, isn’t it? If you have to mail millions and prefer not to take this advice, I would recommend you to at least get the address typed directly on the envelope and not on a label. This is because labels are used by the majority of the direct mail companies and you do not want to give the impression that you’re also one of them!

If you can afford it, I would advice you to send your mailers by first class mail and not bulk rate. This will boost the authenticity and perceived urgency of the letter. I would also advice you to stick stamps on the envelope and not get it franked. This way you will add to the impression of being a personal letter. A tip here is to stick several smaller denomination stamps instead of one big denomination stamp - don’t worry if it covers a lot of surface area!

OK, we’ve reached to the point where the receiver opens your mail. But remember - he is not entirely unsuspicious and once he opens your envelope, you don’t want him to see the brochures, discount coupons, order form, etc and throw it in the trash. You want him to read the offer. So how do you do this? Simple - you just place all your color brochures, order form, coupons, etc in another envelope, seal it, and write something on it like - please open this envelope only after you have read the letter. You then place this envelope along with your “personal letter” into a larger envelope, one that you will be mailing out!

This “personal letter” should be a normal plain typed letter that first addresses the prospect by name. If you can afford one, get a good copywriter to draft this letter. You can begin the letter with the greatest benefits that your product / service offers. It should preferably solve a problem, give pleasure, help save time or money, help make money, or do something that the prospect would love to experience. End the letter with a call to action of opening the sealed envelope that contains instructions for ordering, claiming discounts, etc. This method is very effective because your letter has put him in the right frame of mind to buy your product / service. Once you have him all worked up, it’s very easy to get the order as long as your offer has value.

If you cannot afford a copywriter, I recommend you to visit http://www.bharatbhasha.com/author.php/Nirjara%20Rustom where I’ve written several articles on copywriting, sales and marketing, and other business growth tips.

Nirjara Rustom
http://www.articlesbase.com/marketing-articles/how-to-get-all-of-your-direct-mail-opened-and-read-every-single-time-you-send-it-out-671999.html