Whether you're wet-behind-the-ears or a seasoned copywriter [url=http://www.cowboysauthenticofficialonline.com/authentic-connor-mcgovern-j Starting the process
While studying creative writing, I learned this storytelling maxim: every character has a motive for being in a scene. The same is true in a sales situation.
The salesperson's motive is simple. He wants to make the sale and get his commission. But what does the potential customer want?
First, what type of customer are they? Are they ready to make an immediate buy? Are they information shopping, looking for a great deal? Are they even looking for our product or service?
When selling to prospective customers ask questions that get them to reveal their needs. It's a mistake to sell the product on the tip of your tongue. ?Model X? might work, but if you listen you might discover that the more expensive ?Model Z? is what the customer really needs.
Once you know why the prospect is there--whether they have an unresolved need, an emotional reason for buying, or they're just shopping around--tailor your pitch to their specific reason.
Now when you make the pitch, tell how your product benefits the customer, rather than rattling off product features you think he cares about.
By this point your spiel should be unforced. You know the customer's ?hot-buttons? so everything should be smooth sailing.
After you've explained the last product benefit, you (as the salesperson) are obligated to close the deal. The way you do that is simply to ask, ?Are you ready to make your decision?? or ?Is this the product you'd like to buy??
Hopefully the answer is yes. If not, then you ask, ?When would you be ready to make your decision? Can I contact you then??
What Does This Have to Do with Copywriting?
Remember, you're nothing more than a salesperson. So you Leighton Vander Esch Cowboys Jersey , so while writing copy, you should go through similar steps.
1. Qualify the prospect. How you write your copy, and the ratio of hard selling to information-based soft selling, will change with the medium you're working in. But the first thing your copy should do is state outright what business you're in and what you're selling.
If your pitch is too vague, if it's implied, or it depends on prior knowledge for comprehension Demarcus Lawrence Cowboys Jersey , then your prospect might never realize he needs what you're selling.
2. Sell Benefits, not Features. I've heard many sales trainers say, ?It's not about you, it's about them.? That's golden advice. The best way to apply this idea to your copy is by focusing on your product's benefits.
A sports car's features might be power steering, fast acceleration, and fuel efficiency. The benefits of that same car to a man a mid-life crisis Amari Cooper Cowboys Jersey , however, are the social status and appearance of youth it gives him. Which reason, the benefits or the features, would cause him to buy?
In a face-to-face sales environment it's easy to ask for a specific customer's needs. When writing sales copy you can create the same rapport by being customer-centered. To do this, write in the second person, or ?You? voice. If your copy repeatedly says your company does this Dak Prescott Cowboys Jersey , or your product does that, you're being self-centered. Your prospect won't see himself benefiting from your product.
3. Close the Deal. I can't count how often I've read a brochure, watched a commercial, or visited a website and had no clue about what I was supposed to do.
Always end your copy with a Call-to-Action.
Tell the customer exactly what you want him to do. This isn't the time to be cute, so be exact. Do you want him to call you? Click a ?Buy This? button? Make a donation? Tell your customer, or else he won't do anything.
When asked what I do I usually say I'm a freelance marketing and publicity copywriter. I'm might revise the statement to Ezekiel Elliott Cowboys Jersey , ?I'm a freelance sales copywriter,? because that's what it all comes down to: sales. Whether your copy creates a direct response or creates publicity and general awareness of your company, if you don't sell you might as well not be in business.
Start Thinking Strategically About Your Business
By Erica Olsen
“You’ve got to think about the big things while you’re doing the small things, so that all the small things go in the right direction.” - Alvin Toffler
While we all know it is important to plan for the future, very few businesses actually do. Instead of citing the benefits of business planning and strategic planning, which we’ve all heard Emmitt Smith Cowboys Jersey , here is a list of warning signs that indicate whether or not your business has a clear focus and if you are ready to be strategic this year.
- If someone asked where your business would be in 2007, you would have to think about it. If you asked your partners or management team the same question, you would get different answers. And you would not know what you are doing in 2006 to make 2007 a reality.
- Your company will not hit its revenue goals this year. While there can be many reasons for the shortfall, you are not sure how to grow the top line. Maybe it is time to apply the 8020 rule. Do you know what 20 percent of your customers contribute the 80 percent of your revenue?