The Key to the Kingdom

Copywriting can mean a lot of things. In the terms of internet marketing, it means the act of writing sales copy. An effective copywriter has an ability to persuade his reader to take action on whatever objective the copywriter desires.

The objective may be for the reader to submit their name and email for a free report, making a blog comment or something else entirely different. But the eventual goal for most copywriting is to persuade the reader to click the order button.

As you can probably imagine the act of persuasion is not always an easy one. The elite copywriters spend years honing their craft. Copywriting is an art as well as a science. It is a skill that can only be perfected with massive doses of experience, testing and education.
 

When you posses the skills of an elite copywriter, it's like having the key to the kingdom. A true wordsmith can wield his pen like a magic wand creating income almost at will. Imagine having the ability to take product after product and write copy that is so effective, that you can create a constant flow of sales.

Yeah, I like the sound of that don't you?

As I have said, it takes a great deal of work, and some time paying your dues in order to reach the level of master copywriter. To be completely frank with you, I think reaching that level is beyond the capabilities of most of us. However you will be glad to know that you do not need to be a master to write effective ad copy. Later in this section I will show you some resources for developing a copywriter's skill set. But for now let's just talk about dipping your toes into the pool and getting your feet wet.

Beginner Copywriting

When you are first starting to write copy I think it is important that you don't allow yourself to get overwhelmed. I find that many people do not know how, or just don't like to write. This is easy to overcome. The reality is that if you are not willing to do whatever it takes to write your own copy, then you are going to have to pay someone else to do it and that's not usually cheap.

I tend to be of the type that doesn't necessarily enjoy the writing task, but once I begin, it tends to flow rather easily. I think the best way to make this happen is to just write as though you are standing in front of the person having a conversation with them. That is usually the most effective way to make a persuasive presentation for a beginner.

Writing in a conversational tone doesn't mean that you can take a "shoot from the hip approach" though. Your writing must be organized and stimulating to the reader so that they will read your offer all the way through. This is where the art of copywriting comes into the equation.

The Basics

Much of the ad copy that we see written online today attempts to follow one of the most basic standards in copywriting, and is modeled using the AIDA approach while composing the copy.
 

If you are marketing information you will typically be writing your copy in the form of a sales letter. These sales letters seem to work best when they are presented on a web page where the letter itself is the only focus of the page. I look at the sales letter as a child's slide. Your reader starts with the headline at the top and "slides" their way down the letter to the order button at the bottom. Your challenge as a copywriter is to write your ad in such a way that it greases the slide and keeps your reader moving through the letter so that they will digest the information you feel is necessary for them to be persuaded favorably. The "grease" that you will apply to your sales letter comes in the form of many different techniques. This talent for greasing the slide is what will take you quite a while to develop through study and experience.

So at least in the beginning just stay with the basics. Grab your readers attention with a gripping headline. Then go for their interest by stating the features and benefits that your product provides. Then you gain their desire (and trust) with an irresistible offer, testimonials, and a solid guarantee. If you are able to accomplish all of this, then asking them to take action by clicking the order button will be a piece of cake.

So Where Do You Start?

You can be the best copywriter in the world, but if your product offer is weak you still aren't going to make sales. Your offer must be strong, very strong. In fact it needs to be irresistible. You do this by conducting your market (niche) research in such a way that you are able to identify a need. Your product should over deliver on fulfilling that need. People get highly motivated when they are trying to find solutions to their needs. The more motivated they are to find a solution to their needs, the more motivated they are to purchase something to fill their needs. Makes perfect sense right?

To once again be very frank about things, what you are looking for is somebody that has a desperate need to solve a need or condition, and offer them the solution. This is not to say that people aren't spending millions to satisfy their desires. But when you are first starting out you need to maximize your potential for success and you do that by focusing on the person that MUST satisfy a need or condition. Think health, wealth and love.

It is interesting to note that some folks prefer to write a sales letter first, and then create a product that fulfills the contents of the sales letter. I think that would be a very confusing approach for a new copywriter / product developer. I do however often think of a feature to add to my products when writing the ad copy however. While you are new and growing your skills I think you are best served by creating your product and then writing the sales letter. Of course you will keep your mind open to revisions of both while doing so.

Now let's start the letter...

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