Thursday, January 31, 2008

[Copyblogger] 11 Top Secret Recipes for the Aspiring Copywriting Chef

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11 Top Secret Recipes for the Aspiring Copywriting Chef

Copywriting Chef

Melt 3 tablespoons of butter in a fondue pot. Stir in 3 tablespoons of flour and cook on low for 2 minutes. Mix in 1 1/2 cups of dry white wine and stir until thick. Slowly stir in 1 1/2 cups grated Swiss Cheese. Beat 4 egg yolks and 2 tablespoons of thick cream and add to mixture. Season with 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg and white pepper. Add a dash of Kirschwasser. Serve with cubes of your favorite breads and diced vegetables.

If copywriting were only as simple as this tasty cheese fondue, writing sales copy would be easy.

Alas, it’s not.

Copywriting is a craft. And those who excel at it do so only after years of study and practice. But once top copywriters attain a high level of skill, they often formulate their own secret recipes to add a kick to their results.

So here are 11 of the best copywriting recipes from some of the world's greatest salesmen. It's possible you've heard of the first. But it's doubtful if you've ever heard of the other 10.

These are not magic formulas. They are advanced concepts for copywriters who want to add depth, polish, and selling power to their writing. None is perfect for all situations. Each can be useful as a way to guide and analyze your copy.

AIDA — In the copywriting world, this is the recipe most often quoted. It suggests that every successful selling message must attract Attention, arouse Interest, stimulate Desire, and present a compelling call for Action. If any of these elements are missing from your copy, your message will fail. Look closely at the copy of any good Web sales page, catalog, sales letter, or ad, and you will see AIDA at work.

ACCA — Awareness, Comprehension, Conviction, Action. This is similar to AIDA, but Comprehension stresses the importance of clarity and understanding, which is vital for any persuasive message. Also, Conviction is much stronger than Desire. It suggests certainty.

Attention-Interest-Description-Persuasion-Proof-Close — This is another AIDA variation by Robert Collier. Intended for sales letters, it outlines what he thought was the most effective sales sequence.

AAPPA — The eminent Victor O. Schwab suggested this commonsense, clear formula. Get Attention. Show people an Advantage. Prove it. Persuade people to grasp this advantage. Ask for Action.

AIU — This is my own formula that can be used for direct mail envelopes, e-mail messages leading people to a sales page, or postcards leading to a Web site. It stands for Attention, Interest, Urgency. Something about the message must get your Attention and make it stand apart from other messages. This should lead to Interest in the contents of the message and a sense of Urgency to open the envelope, click on a link, or type in a Web address immediately. Notice that it's an incomplete formula—there is no close to the sale because the purpose here is to get you to find out more.

PPPP — This is a formula by Henry Hoke, Sr. It stands for Picture, Promise, Prove, Push. In many ways, it’s easier to implement than AIDA because it shows you four basic tasks you must perform to make a sale. Picture: Get attention early and create a desire. Promise: Make a meaningful promise or describe benefits and what the product will do. Prove: Demonstrate value and support your promise with testimonials. Push: Ask for the order.

Star-Chain-Hook — This is Frank Dignan’s charming and surprisingly fresh way to approach an advertising message. Hitch your wagon to a Star with an attention-getting opening that is positive and upbeat. Create a Chain of convincing facts, benefits, and reasons and transform attention into interest and interest into desire. Then, Hook them with a powerful call to action, making it easy to respond.

ABC Checklist — William Steinhardt’s formula is more detailed than most and very practical. Attain attention, Bang out benefits, Create verbal pictures, Describe success incidents, Endorse with testimonials, Feature special details, Gild with values, Honor claims with guarantees, Inject action in reader.

The String of Pearls — This is a particular method of writing sales copy. The idea is that you assemble details and string them together in a long line, one after another. Each pearl is complete in some way. Collectively, their persuasive power becomes overwhelming.

The Cluster of Diamonds — Similar to the String of Pearls, this formula suggests assembling a group of details under an umbrella concept. For example, an ad might have the headline “7 Reasons Why You’ll Save Money With XYZ.” The copy would then list these seven reasons. Each detail is a “diamond” in a particular setting.

The Fan Dancer — The analogy here is perfect, though a bit racy. The idea is to tantalize with specific details that never reveal any actual information. It’s like teaser copy or what one influential writer called “fascinations.” For example, let’s say you’re selling a book on reducing your taxes. Part of your copy might read: “The one secret way to pay zero taxes and get away with it — page 32. How the IRS uses your mailing label against you — page 122. Three clever ways to turn a vacation into a business tax deduction even if you don’t own a business — page 158.” As with a fan dancer, you’re left wanting more.

If you don't fully understand some of these recipes, don't worry. Keep them handy and be patient. Just as the fine points of cooking escape the novice chef, the fine points of copywriting escape the novice copywriter. But with time and experience you will come to appreciate and savor these recipes.

Dean Rieck is one of today's top direct marketing copywriters. For tips on copywriting and direct selling, sign up for Dean's FREE Newsletter or subscribe to the Direct Creative Blog.


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[Copyblogger] Why Cutting Clichés From Your Copy is as Easy as Pie

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Why Cutting Clichés From Your Copy is as Easy as Pie

Apples and Oranges

This post is by Mohsin of Blogging Bits.

Want to take your copywriting to the next level?

Avoid clichés like the plague.

OK, so there’s a cliché in the headline, the opening and the picture of this post, and we’re all in on the joke. But outside of irony, are clichés something you want in your writing?

Clichés are the words and phrases that come to your mind when you write your first draft. They are the language you hear and use when gossiping with your pals. Put simply, in writing, clichés are bland and overused phrases that fail to excite, motivate, and impress your readers or prospective buyers.

Two years back, when I read great copy, or compelling writing in general, I was sucked into it and couldn't pop my head out until I reached the last full-stop. I wondered what was in such a writing that made it so irresistible.

I kept wondering until I became a blogger, and saw writing from a writer's standpoint. I discovered that it was the clever use of words that hypnotized me. It was the art of presenting routine stories in such ways that left a deep imprint on my mind.
And, yes, it was writing that engaged my attention by avoiding clichés.

Clichés are boring

What makes clichés so boring? The fact that clichés are so generic you can attach them to any idea makes them ineffective.
Given that clichés are the phrases that have struck our eardrums uncountable times, we either don't associate them with particular ideas and products, or we associate many products and ideas with a particular cliché.

Maybe a cliché was a unique expression when you first came across it, but since then, you have heard it repeated so many times, it has lost all the original shine.

Remember what radio show hosts say when they announce a commercial break? They usually go like "Stay tuned. We'll be back after a short break". The problem with the cliché "stay tuned" is obvious. It makes us yawn.

Whenever I hear a host announce the break, I tune into another station. But on this Sunday, when I was listening to a music show at a local FM station, and as usual the break time came, the host of the show emphatically said "Don't tune into another channel while we bother you with a few commercials, there are some very special songs on the other side of the break".
The host didn't use the ineffective cliché, and he got my attention with his unique presentation of a boring announcement.

Well, I did stay tuned.

Going cliché hunting!

Now, if you start writing with strong phrases, you are going to run into a problem. You might overdo it, and your writing might start looking artificial.

A very straightforward solution to this is to let the clichés come.

As I noted in above lines, clichés are the very first thoughts that occur to you about an idea, and they help you quickly figure out what's on your mind. It makes sense to get the general ideas out of your head before coming down hard on unworthy expressions.

But when you are done writing, equip yourself with the right armory, and snipe at them clichés one by one!
Replace clichés with more energetic, invigorating, and exciting phrases. Phrases that give your copy a unique aura and hypnotize your readers.

Here are some examples of clichés and their alternatives.

  • Cliché: It was an emotional scene.
  • Original: It was a scene so sad that I had to look away. (long but not trite)
  • Cliché: Our product sold like hotcakes.
  • Original: We sold out the whole stock in just a week.
  • Cliché: Lost hope? Don't give up on life yet!
  • Original: Ran out of reasons to live? We'll give you one!

See… it is easy as pie (whatever that means).

What about you? Do you tolerate clichés in your writing?

Check out Blogging Bits for more blogging-related content from Mohsin.


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Wednesday, January 30, 2008

[Copyblogger] Is Digital Coaching Right for You?

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Is Digital Coaching Right for You?

Seth Godin recently wrote about the concept of digital coaching, and how there seems to be a shortage of people providing this kind of service. And there’s no doubt that this is a huge growth area for online training and coaching concepts.

How do I know? Because it’s one of the seven business models we’ve already explored inside Teaching Sells.

Here’s a really meaty article that explains how it works.


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[Copyblogger] Why ‘New’ and ‘Knew’ Create Intensely Powerful Headlines

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Why 'New' and 'Knew' Create Intensely Powerful Headlines

Headlines

The post is by Sean D’Souza

Writing headlines for articles is like witchcraft. You have to know the spells, and chant before you can create awesome headlines, right?

Nah!

What you really need is a factor of new.

And also a bit of knew.

So what do I mean by new and knew?

New is kinda obvious. If you have something new in the headline, then the reader is instantly interested.

The curiosity trigger is launched, and the reader wants to know what’s next. But if your entire headline had a factor of new you’ll cause anxiety, not curiosity.

So let’s look at a few examples to see what I mean. Let’s go back into the last century to the year 1999.

And being that it’s 1999, you’ve heard nothing about the iPod. Or podcasts. Or RSS.

And your headline read: How to Create RSS Podcasts with the iPod.

Aha, it’s all new information if you’re still stuck in 1999, right?

So why did it cause your brain to go waka-waka?

Because it’s all so new. And running into all new is like running into an InDesign Toolbar with five-hundred palettes.

Or a strange city where you don’t quite know your way round.

Notice what I just did?

I put two scenarios in front of you:

  1. InDesign Tool Bar with five-hundred palettes.
  2. A strange city where you don’t know your way around.

And if you’re familiar with InDesign, you’ll have coasted through both analogies in a few seconds. But even if you didn’t know what the heck InDesign or palettes are, the second example of the strange city would be something you could quite easily relate to.

The concept of the strange city is the factor of knew, which is something your know.

While the new is something that’s kinda still unknown.

So how do we use this magic spell for article headlines?

We mix the new and the knew. Throw in a bat wing or two. And some shitake mushrooms. Et Voila, we have a bunch of headlines that looketh like this:

  1. Why the ‘Yes-Yes’ Factor Helps You Raise Prices.
  2. Is There Too Much Sugar In Your Testimonials?
  3. The Critical Importance of Sandwiching Your Articles.
  4. How Segues Reduce Friction in Sales.
  5. Why Consumption is More Important Than Attraction and Conversion.

You noticed, didn’t you?

There are new elements in the copy. And there are knew elements.

Some things you recognized right away, while others arouse your curiosity. The factor of new attracts you, but equally important, the knew signals what topic is being covered.

So you can clearly see what those five topics are about:

  1. Raising prices.
  2. Testimonials.
  3. Something to do with article writing.
  4. Reducing friction in sales.
  5. Something that’s more important than attraction and conversion.

When the ‘new’ and the ‘knew’ mix, they create dynamite:

  • Too much ‘new’ and the headline is intimidating as hell.
  • Too much ‘knew’ is a yawn, and a siesta comes to mind.

But mixed together just right, you’ve got yourself a great headline.

Do you need to write every headline with ‘new’ and ‘knew?’

And the answer is no. This isn’t a formula for every article headline you write. There are other ways to get curiosity.

A smarter way to write article headlines is to mix and match:

  • Headlines with a ‘How To’ factor do really well.
  • Headlines with questions do really well.
  • Headlines with new and knew, however, have a special magic, and cast a spell.

But use the spell sparingly, ok!

Note: To get a free report from Sean on ‘Why Headlines Fail’, go to Psychotactics.com. When you subscribe, you get the free report + other useful articles on ‘how customers think.’


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