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Copywriting Tips: 13 Steps to Creating the Perfect Sales Letter Template

By Donna Gunter in Writing

Once you have created an information product, you may think you’ve completed all of the hard work. Unfortunately the most challenging piece of product creation is yet to come — the creation of the sales letter landing page where you talk about and sell your product.

Creating an effective sales letter is really all about following a formula. If you look at enough sales letters, you realize that most of them follow the same template. While there aren’t necessarily any hard-and-fast rules, here are 13 steps to help you create the perfect sales letter for your product or service:

1. Headlines. First create an intro headline, which appears in smaller font just before your primary headline and gets your reader warmed up for the headline to follow. Then comes your primary headline, which is a large font in a different font color that must grab your reader’s attention. The best way to get your reader’s attention in your headline is to tug at an emotion, like fear, insider secrets that no one else knows, or how to do something.

   Then, you have mini-headlines that are scattered throughout your text. Usually they contain a benefit and are meant to draw the reader’s eye to a certain section of text. They are in a larger font although smaller than the primary headline and in a different color than the text of your letter.

2. Greeting. Start your letter with “Dear Target Market Name”, a date, and your geographic location.
3. Introduction. This is section where you reiterate the details of a particular problem suffered by your target market, empathize with those who have a similar problem, outline why it’s important to seek a solution, and begin to drop hints that you’ve got the solution to this problem.
4. Your story and credentials. Elaborate on your background and credentials that make you qualified to sell this product or service, as well as the story that led to the creation of this product.
5. Product introduction. Here’s where you talk more about your product and begin to list and explain the main benefits (not features), or what’s in it for your reader if your reader buys the product.
6. Bullet points. While this isn’t technically a part of the template, you’ll want to make full use of bullet points throughout your sales letter as a way of cleanly listing the many benefits and features of your product. Bullet points make it very easy for a reader to scan your page and pick up the pertinent information she needs to make a decision to buy your product.
7. Testimonials. Testimonials serve as social proof that your product works. If others have purchased and used your product and gained the benefits that you promise, the reader feels more certain that they can purchase it, too, and receive similar benefits. Make your testimonials believable by including a photo, web site URL, phone number, audio, or video of the person giving the testimonial. The more that your visitor can identify with the person giving the testimonial, the more likely she is to purchase from you.
8. Product details/benefits. Here’s where you get to break everything down for your reader, with all of the details of all of the specific components of your product.
9. Your offer and bonuses. Your offer can make or break the sale of your product. Make the offer so irresistible that your reader can’t help but think, “I’ve gotta get that!” When you add bonuses to the mix, you increase the value of the offer immediately. Make sure that your bonuses are directly related to your main product so that your reader sees the enhanced value.
10. Guarantee. Make your reader feel safe by offering an iron-clad guarantee that takes all the risk out of the purchase.
11. Price justification. Compare your pricing to other products/services that you sell, or to items your reader might use regularly. Your goal here is to make the price a non-issue for the reader by reminding her how much continuing to deal with this problem is costing her.
12. Final call to action. Again make your offer here, with clear, specific instructions on how your reader can purchase the product. Remind her of your guarantee and any bonuses she receives for purchase. Remind your reader why she should take action now, and include a sense of scarcity here, as in time limits, product limits, or limiting the bonuses to the few xx number of orders.
13. Closing and postscripts (P.S.). Sign off on your letter and include at least one post-script. The post-script serves as a a powerful place where you give readers a reason to go back and consider the offer. Believe it or not, the P.S. the third most-read section of your sales letter, so don’t forget to include at least one. The P.S. is also the last place many of your readers will end up after reading your offer – just before they leave. Your P.S. needs to be the last persuasive offer to get them to stay and buy.

When you follow these 13 steps, you have now created a powerful sales letter. By following this 13-step formula, any online business owner can create an effective sales letter that sells her product or service.

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Internet Marketing Automation Coach Donna Gunter helps independent service professionals create prosperous online businesses that make more profit in less time. Would you like to learn the specific Internet marketing strategies that get results? Discover how to increase your visibility and get found online by claiming your FREE gift, TurboCharge Your Online Marketing Toolkit, at ==> http://www.TurbochargeYourOnlineMarketing.com

I Am Not A Golfing Instructor, But I Played One On The Internet

By Bill Platt in Writing

I will be honest with you. Until two days ago, the only thing that I knew about golf is that I used to play miniature golf at the local Putt-Putt Miniature Golf Center, a couple times a week during the summer, when I was in my teens.

I have a unique job, as a professional article ghostwriter, which forces me to do research on topics that I may not normally be interested in learning. Certainly, golf was one of those topics I thought I would never learn about in my life.

If I were to ever retire, I might reconsider my position on golf. But at this time, I cannot foresee a day when I might consider golf and activity that I would consider fun or worthwhile. I figure that if I have not taken up golf by now, at the age of 44, then chances are pretty slim that I would ever consider taking up that sport.

Article Marketing Expert Reveals 5 Article Templates for Thought Leaders

By Eric Gruber in Writing

Thought leaders are experts who are recognized among their peers as an authority on innovative ideas within a particular industry. Thought leaders confidently promote their ideas. Most importantly, thought leaders have earned respect from the outside world for their deep understanding of their business, the needs of their clients and the broader marketplace in which they operate.

You can become a thought leader just by writing articles – just like I have. Because I’m found on top websites like About.com Home Business, SiteProNews.com, IMNewswatch and in ezines like John Kremer’s BookMarket.com ezine, I…

• Have gained recognition from around the world. For example, I have customers and clients from Australia, Israel, France, Thailand, Taiwan, UK and Greece – and I’m based in the United States.
• Get booked for speaking engagements.
• Have people coming to me asking if I can do article writing and article marketing training programs.
• Have my articles published in hard cover books like “Calling All Authors.”

I’m getting all this attention because I’m publishing free content that makes me the authority on article marketing. And, I’m getting these articles published on top, credible websites and not just article directories where anyone can get published as long as you follow the guidelines.

With that being said, are you ready to start writing articles that make you the “authority” in your industry?

Here Are 5 Article Templates to Help You Become a Thought Leader Fast

1. Case Study Article Template – With this template, you prove to your prospects that you are a true expert who has already gotten results using the formula you share within your article. By writing an article that a) explains a problem that your prospects are experiencing b) gives a step-by-step solution and c) reveals an outcome that your prospects desperately want — you will become the expert in their eyes. You will give prospects no choice but to want to go to your website and get on your list so they can get even more information. For an example of my of a case study article, check out my article: ” How to Promote Your Book to the Top of the New York Times Best Sellers List” .

Go to: http://tinyurl.com/yc7caq6

2. Top Mistakes Article Template – With this article template, you take a stand against what others in your industry are doing. For example, one of my new article marketing clients, James Sinclair who runs a restaurant consulting firm recently wrote an article titled: ” Restaurant Marketing: How $5 Promotions Are Killing Casual Dining Restaurants’ Profits.” Using TGI Friday’s and some other big name restaurants as examples, he proves to restaurant owners that you should not compete with Quick Serve restaurants by offering the same kinds of promotions that they use! Find out what mistakes are being made in your industry and let your prospects know what is going on, why it’s a mistake and what they should be doing instead.

3. Controversy Article Template – One of the best ways to achieve market “thought leadership” status is to stir up the market by taking some gray issues and make them black and white. This is a good opportunity to take current events and provide your expert analysis and supporting reasons why certain issues are good or bad for the market, economy and world.

4. Differentiation Article Template – If you want to be a thought leader then you must show you are different. When we first started ArticleMarketingExperts.com we set our prices at premium levels unseen in the article marketing industry. If we wanted people to invest in our services, we had to show prospects that we are thought leaders in the industry and that we have a different approach when it comes to article submission. That’s why we wrote the article: ” Choosing an Article Submission Service: 10 Questions You Must Ask Before You Spend Your Hard Earned Dollars.”

View the article here: http://tinyurl.com/ydgynb9

5. Your Questions Answered Article Template – If you want to be a thought leader than you have to be willing to provide top, unique information. And, you have to be willing to answer questions that everyone else is afraid to answer. If you can provide the information that your targeted prospects want that is found nowhere else, guess who will be the expert in their eyes. Guess whose sites they will want to visit so they can get even more information. And, guess whose products and services they will buy. So seek out the questions that your audience is asking that no one is answering. Then answer the questions in a Q & A article template.

If you write thought leadership articles using these article templates, you will become the “expert” in the eyes of your prospects, clients and the media (both online and offline.)

To see how you should organize your articles using these templates, check out my Instant Article Writing Templates Kit at http://www.StartWritingArticlesFaster.com

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Article Marketing Expert Eric Gruber uses the power of articles to create online opportunities for Internet marketers, small business owners and entrepreneurs who want to experience the benefits of becoming a thought leader in their prospects’ eyes. Now, you can get his instant article writing templates that will help you write thought leader type articles in 30 minutes or less. Just for going to http://www.StartWritingArticlesFaster.com, he’s going to give you 3 of his favorite article templates for free!

Article Writer – Do You Need One?

By Enzo F. Cesario in Writing

Content is king. Your web presence needs content that your audience will be interested in, period. People go to websites for the content they provide. They read web comics for amusement, visit consumer advocacy sites to inform themselves, visit political blogs to find causes to champion – in short, people visit websites to find things out. Whether it’s for shopping or simple erudition, a large part of the web process involves reading, and the people doing the reading want to look through something of quality. You have a website, you have a product, and you have the motivation. Now you need to ask yourself – do you have the writer?

Who Needs a Professional Article Writer?

At the basic level, everyone seriously looking to make an impact on web audiences needs a dedicated article writer. Hobby writing for web content is fine for personal projects, but it doesn’t drum up a great deal of interest in the long term. It has been demonstrated again and again, the most successful websites are those that regularly produce the content their audience wants, the more frequently the better. So the need for an article writer should actually be taken as a given. The more pressing question then becomes, “Who should that writer be?”

Who Indeed?

In some cases, the answer is obvious – you. You know your material, you’re able to write confidently, and you’ve got inspiration in buckets. In this case, good, the problem is solved. Go and write that content, and perhaps pass it by a talented associate now and again for review.

However, this obviously isn’t always the case. Some site owners are good promoters and businessmen, but lack the highly developed writing skill necessary to really dig into a piece and make it shine for the audiences even once, much less week after week or day upon day. Or perhaps the owner feels comfortable writing some articles, but wants another point of view in specialized or technical pieces. In this case, the owner needs to acquire a professional writer to provide these services. The trick here lies in recognizing your strengths and limitations, and identifying exactly what the needs of your site are.

The Writer You Need

As with any hiring process, selecting a good writer requires understanding the business in question. Each site has its own unique needs, and should seek to acquire writers who meet those needs. It certainly is true that many people can write effectively on many topics, but the impact will be greatest when the writer is chosen for abilities directly relating to the job at hand.

For example, a site focusing on producing highly technical how-to manuals for home chemistry will demand a very different writer than a site focusing on topical, biting political satire. Each demands a professional who cannot only write well, but understands the topic itself and can write believably. Someone with no experience in politics will quickly be identified in the latter case, and in the former someone who flunked basic chemistry won’t be able to write more than superficial material at their best.

Obviously, the writer also must be good at writing itself – they must be able to construct effective sentences, use proper syntax, and command the language in a manner that keeps readers both interested and informed. Most importantly, they need to be able to write specifically at the level of the typical audience for the site. Masters’ degree level academic writing can be marvelous and compelling in peer reviewed journals, but would be entirely out of place on the aforementioned satirical archive.

How to Find Them

The key to getting the best writer for a website is research. Once you understand your needs as far as the writer goes, it’s time to begin looking for them. Fortunately, there are a number of ways to do so despite the overwhelming anonymity and size of the web.

First, consider your own colleagues and acquaintances. Frequently we have many associates in our field of specialty, and many of them harbor hidden talents. Consult with your co-workers and others that you know, to see if they can meet the needs at hand.

Another source of information on professional writers is the plethora of freelance writing websites. There are dozens of sites employing short-term writers on a variety of projects with skill levels ranging from high school and college level writing to highly technical productions involving text and multimedia elements. Frequently, these sites employ a ratings and review system, allowing you to look into their reputation and perhaps their prior work history.

Additionally, there is always the interview. This need not be a physical sit-down session – it can consist of posting an advertisement seeking a talented writer along with a requirement that they submit writing samples (either previously published pieces or unique work based on the site’s requirements). This will frequently result in a deluge of applicants, so owners are advised to be prepared to so some heavy reading in this case.

For good content on your website, the key is to identify the exact needs of your site, find the exact style and skill of writer you need, and then to strive to meet that need unfailingly. Have an open mind and be willing to adapt to new, good ideas, but stick with the goal and vision for your site and find the best person to fill the position you’ve created.

About The Author:
Enzo F. Cesario is a Copywriter and co-founder of Brandsplat. Brandcasting uses informative content and state-of-the-art internet distribution and optimization to build links and drive the right kind of traffic to your website. Go to http://www.Brandsplat.com/ or visit our blog at: http://www.brandsplatblog.com/

Read more articles written by: Enzo F. Cesario

How to Write Headlines That Make Readers Slam On Their Eyeball Brakes

By David Jackson in Writing

The title of this article just stopped you dead in your tracks didn’t it?

Well, that was the intent, and the entire subject matter of this article. And I intend to deliver exactly what I promised in my headline.

You see, the key to successful advertising is the right people seeing your ad and responding. However, your ad has a far greater chance of succeeding, if your headline is strong.

How Important Is A Strong Headline?

If your headline is weak, chances are, it won’t get noticed, and your ad will fail. At the very least, it won’t be nearly as successful as it could be.

Here’s a stat that will help drive home my point. On average, 8 out of 10 people will read your headline, but only 2 out of 10 will read the rest of your copy?

Think about that for a second: On average, 8 out of 10 people will read headline, but only 2 out of 10 will read the rest of your copy. Do you understand the full import of that statement?

In a nutshell, it means people will decide whether or not to read your ad, based solely on how compelling your headline is. In other words, if your headline doesn’t capture the readers imagination, your ad is pretty much destined to fail. That’s how important it is to get the readers attention.

This is especially true for online copy, because Internet users are notorious scanners. You have to literally make them “Slam On Their Eyeball Brakes!”

What Makes A Good Headline?

Before you can write a good headline, you first have to understand what the job of a headline is. The number one job of a headline is to get the readers attention – period. All other considerations are secondary. It doesn’t matter whether you’re writing a sales letter, article, flyer, brochure, postcard – whatever.

Now there are two ways that you can grab the attention of the reader – with a direct headline or indirect headline. What’s the difference?

In an direct headline, you get directly to the point. You let the reader know right upfront what you’re selling, and what your amazing offer is. For example:

“How to Win Friends and Influence People”

That headline is about as direct as it gets. Conversely, an indirect headline is much more subtle and mysterious. The main function of an indirect headline is to create curiosity in the reader – to make her want to read more. For example:

“The Man With The Grasshopper Mind”

Is that a provocative headline or what? By the way, Those two examples are both classic headlines, and are two of the 100 Greatest Headlines Ever Written.

Direct or Indirect Headlines: Which Is Better?

Actually, both types work. So it’s basically a matter of personal preference. Personally, I prefer direct headlines. I believe in respecting the readers time, so I like to get right to the point in my headline. That way, the reader can decide immediately if she wants to continue reading the rest of my copy.

That being said, do you remember what I said earlier? The number one job of a headline is to get the readers attention – period. Remember, all other considerations are secondary.

So even though I prefer direct headlines, there have been occasions when I’ve used indirect headlines to accomplish that goal.

You Have To Know Your Target Audience

However, regardless of which type of headline you use – direct or indirect, it’s important to understand your target market. It’s absolutely imperative that you know your audience.

Knowing your audience will help you write more effective headlines, as well as more effective copy in general.

For example, one of my websites is a marketing blog. And being a marketing guy, I happen to know for a fact that one of the things my readers are interested in is writing more effective headlines. How do I know this? Market research. I conducted a survey among my readers.

Always, Always, Always research your market! Do whatever it takes to completely know and understand your target audience. That can be your greatest edge over your competition.

Anyway, back to the topic at hand. My target audience for this article are readers interested in learning how to write compelling headlines. So in my headline, I focused on what my audience wants – to write compelling headlines. Hence the headline:

How to Write Headlines That Make Readers Slam On Their Eyeball Brakes

You have to admit, that’s a pretty provocative headline. That being said, results are the true litmus test for any headline. However, my gut instinct and twenty years of sales and marketing experience tells me that’s a strong headline and will be very successful. “How To” headlines are generally very effective.

Now I simplified the writing process here for the sake of brevity. But you’ll more than likely have to write dozens of headlines, before you come up with something you like – something that’s going to be effective. It’s all part of the writing process.

For me personally, my best headlines are usually the ones that sort of just pop into my head. But remember, I have twenty years of experience doing this.

Generally speaking, you’re better off writing a bunch of headlines, until you end up with your strongest one.

How To Determine Your Strongest headline

So how do you determine your strongest headline? Well, if you’re an experienced marketer, you could always split-test your headlines. But if you’re not that experienced, the easiest way is simply to show your headlines to your friends, and family. Get their opinions.

Also, if you’re a member of any small business forums, show your headlines to forum members to get their feedback.

Let me walk you through the steps of writing another headline.

Let’s suppose I own an ice cream shop. Now since I already did my market research, I know that most consumers like having a variety of flavors to choose from. So I’m sure that I would get an ice cream lovers attention with a headline like this:

“Ice Cream Lovers: We Have More Flavors Than Tiger Woods Has Girlfriends!”

Now let’s discuss exactly what I did for a moment. My target audience for this ad are people who love ice cream – which is pretty much everybody. Nonetheless, in my headline I targeted my audience by using the words, “ice cream lovers” and I gave my audience what they want by using the words “more flavors.”

Let me explain what else I did. I used the name of a famous celebrity in my headline, which is always guaranteed to get attention. Remember, the number one job of a headline is to get the readers attention.

But I also did something else. I brought emotion into the mix – the emotion of humor – coupled with a current, hot news story. In my headline, I told readers that my ice cream shop has “more flavors than Tiger Woods has girlfriends!”

That headline has strong emotional appeal. After all, who wouldn’t get a chuckle out of the headline, other than Tiger and his wife, right?

By the way, emotional appeals and hot news stories are very powerful in headlines. So use them as often as possible. Are you starting to get a feel for writing effective headlines yet?

Well, let’s write one more to make sure.

Pizza Anyone?

Let’s suppose I own a pizza shop. Again, start with the fundamentals. My target for this ad is a general audience. After all, nearly everyone eats pizza, right?

But despite that fact, I’m still going to target my audience by using the word, “pizza” in my headline. Now this one’s a little trickier because pizza ads are a dime a dozen.

So I need to do something to make my headline different – to stand out. I’ve decided to give my headline instant credibility by using a feature that is unique to my pizza shop. Here’s the headline I came up with:

“Jackson’s Pizza: Voted Albany’s Best Pizza For 10 Straight Years!”

Do you know what the reaction of most people reading that headline would be?

“Wow…voted Albany’s best pizza for 10 straight years! It must be good!”

This headline also has strong emotional appeal. Why? Because everyone likes to be associated with a winner. It’s human nature.

5 Steps For Writing Effective Headlines

Wrapping everything up, I’m going to summarize what it takes to write effective headlines into 5 simple steps:

1. You must know and understand your target audience. Research your market.
2. Target your headline to that audience.
3. Give your audience what they want.
4. Get the readers attention. Be creative.
5. Use emotional appeals, and hot news stories in your headlines whenever possible. Again, be creative.

By the way, when writing headlines don’t try to trick or mislead people. Get people’s attention, yes. Be creative, yes. But also, be honest.

Write Your Headline Before First, Before Writing Your Copy

One last thing: Different experts have different schools of thoughts on this. But I’m a firm believer in writing your headline first, before writing your actual copy.

Why? Remember at the beginning of this article, when I promised to deliver on what I promised in my headline? Well, I’ve worked extremely hard on this article to do just that. Hopefully, I’ve succeeded.

The point is your headline is a promise to prospective readers – a promise that you should be committed to keeping. And I believe that if you write a strong, compelling headline first, it will force you to work harder to write copy that lives up to the promise you make in your headline.

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David Jackson is a writer, marketing consultant and entrepreneur. Which online services can you trust? Find out here: http://reviews-by-customers.com

New Article Template: Get your next 5 article ideas from your last 5 articles

By Steve Shaw in Writing

I know that it can be mentally taxing to try to come up with new ideas for articles. After a while you may feel like you’ve written about every aspect of your subject that you possibly can.

Here’s some good news–you don’t always need to come up with new writing ideas. Sometimes all you need to do is look at your previous articles and go more in depth.

Your Homework:

• Look at your last 5 articles.
• In each article, search for at least one point that you covered that you could cover more in depth in a new article. No matter what your article was about, you should be able to dig a little deeper on every major point you make in your articles. You may even find some minor points that could use elaboration.

I’d like to give you an example:

I recently wrote an article outlining several ways to get out of a writing slump. As I was writing that article, I came up with about 7 or so ideas for getting your brain out of a creative rut with your articles, including some article template ideas and some writing productivity techniques.

I submitted the article, and then thought– Each of those ideas for getting out of a writing slump needs to be elaborated on and explained further. I can do a new article for each idea.

And so I did–so far I’ve bounced 4 or 5 articles off of that first article, and I have even more ideas that I’ve gotten from that first article that I haven’t written about yet.

This approach tends to work better for articles that are jam packed with information and/or those that take a broad, aerial view of the topic, but it can also work with articles that are a close up view of one specific topic.

For example, I’ve written many articles on how to create an effective resource box, and from that one very laser beamed topic I have branched off articles on extremely specific elements of that already specific topic.

I assure you, no matter what your article is about, you can write about it more in depth in a new article.

Alternative Homework for Blog Owners:

Look at your recent blog posts–are there any insightful comments that are worthy of being addressed more in depth in an article?

I get ideas all the time from comments on my blog. Or look at your blog comment replies–do you find yourself writing an in depth reply to anyone’s question about your post? That is often a good indication of a related topic that could use some more detailed attention.

Conclusion:

A trick to writing fresh content on a consistent basis month in and month out is to learn to look at your topic from all angles and all levels.

This is beneficial for your readers, because you are creating a library of information that covers your topic inside and out. This is also beneficial SEO-wise, because you are systematically creating a collection of resources that covers your subject backwards and forwards. This creates a greater chance of your article turning up for searches on every aspect of your niche.

Last but not least–learning to cover your topic from all angles and all levels of depth is beneficial for YOU, because it forces you to establish your expertise in your field. If you are not already an expert in your field when you start writing articles, you surely will be after a year of consistently writing articles on every conceivable angle of your topic each month.

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For more info on how you can use article marketing to reach thousands of potential prospects for your website, go now to http://www.submityourarticle.com/report Steve Shaw is an article marketing expert and founder of the popular article submission service used by thousands of business owners.

10 Tips for Copywriting Success

By Enzo F. Cesario in Writing

While video and multimedia technologies are rapidly expanding, the Web remains a largely a text-oriented system. Text utilizes far less space than video or audio, and remains the go-to medium for the majority of the web’s public content. This means that there is a lot of copy on the web, so a savvy copywriter should be on the lookout for any technique that will improve the material he puts forward.

Tip 1 – Know Yourself

This piece of advice has been kicking around for several thousand years, and it has persisted for a reason – people make better decisions when they know their strengths and limits. If your writing lends itself to narrative structures, find ways to tell stories about the product, perhaps in the form of a testimonial or an interview. If you aren’t capable of writing technical articles, don’t try to bluff it.

Tip 2 – Improve Yourself

The web changes, language changes, people change, products change… in short, everything changes. This is a good thing. Improvement and training are important changes that everyone must go through in some degree if they want to remain relevant. You may want to consider enrolling in a writing course, study new SEO and copywriting tips, pick up a highly rated style manual, or continue refining your skills in some other way.

Tip 3 – Target Your Language to the Audience

There is always an audience. Whether writing a letter specifically to one individual or composing for a website to be viewed by international customers, take the time to find out who your audience is and tailor the writing accordingly. Academics will have different writing standards than a DIY auto repair services, and neither will appreciate receiving articles targeted to the other.

Tip 4 – Write Coherently

Compare the following two statements:

• The Large Hadron Collider, created and maintained by CERN in Geneva, is designed to locate and study the Higgs-Boson particle, which will provide insight into the origin of the universe.
• CERN intends to use the Large Hadron Collider to locate and study the Higgs-Boson particle in an attempt to gain insight into the origin of the universe.

The first sentence is full of asides and parenthetical statements while the second conveys the information more fluidly. There are times when asides and references are important, but as a general rule, take any opportunity you can to simplify your writing. Your message will be stronger and clearer for the effort.

Tip 5 – Write Specifically

Again, consider this ambiguous sentence; “Anti-nuclear protestors released live cockroaches inside the White House Friday, and these were arrested when they left and blocked a security gate.”

While it seems innocuous enough on the surface, this statement does illustrate the problem with ambiguous grammar. Good copywriting is precise and unambiguous. Here it comes across as funny, but if your customers aren’t coming to your site to laugh, go with a clearer example.

Tip 6 – Write Concisely

Strunk and White’s ‘The Elements of Style’ sums this up as ‘Omit needless words.’ Stick to short, clear paragraphs and sentences. Elaborate where needed, but focus on efficient writing that gets the message across without pointless extras.

Tip 7 – Start Strong

Journalism focuses on a technique known as the lede. In short, this is all the relevant detail of the story conveyed in one sentence, and it always comes at the start of the article. “A local man was arrested today in connection with the recent kidnapping of a foreign exchange student.” Notice it doesn’t give names or quotes, just the hard-core facts. While online copywriting rarely needs to emulate this exact approach, it still illustrates a key point; good articles present their best facts quickly while hooking the reader.

Tip 8 – End Strong

There are countless examples of writing that start out with the proverbial ‘bang,’ only to wander off pointlessly. Focus your writing on its key message and make sure the final statement is as strong as the first. Write your beginning statement and ending statement at the same time and make sure the article is always leading toward that killer end sentence that ties the article up in a powerful way.

Tip 9 – Read

While this partially falls under the idea of improving yourself, it’s also a specific example that deserves its own mention. Read constantly. Read good articles and bad, seeing what works and what does not. People who are widely read write better than comparable writers who don’t read as much.

Tip 10 – Write Constantly

Copywriting is a talent like any other. Daily practice with writing will expand your ability to try new ideas and reinforce good habits. Even if you have no copywriting assignment at the moment, browse the web looking for websites in your area of expertise, and see if you can’t improve their copy. Then you can either consider it free practice, or perhaps give the authors a call to see if they’re interested.

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Enzo F. Cesario is a Copywriter and co-founder of Brandsplat. Brandcasting uses informative content and state-of-the-art internet distribution and optimization to build links and drive the right kind of traffic to your website. Go to http://www.Brandsplat.com/ or visit our blog at: http://www.brandsplatblog.com/

Each Customer Is Unique

By Kathy Dobson in Writing

Every successful copywriter is familiar with the Internet acronym “WIIFM.” This acronym stands for “What’s In It For Me” and is the first position your customer will take when reading your sales copy.

Your customer may believe they are purchasing something based on need, but in reality, they are buying a “feeling.” The feeling that ownership gives them. This is a 100% emotional act.

Being friendly and honest in your sales letter is only the beginning to keeping your customer’s interest. And, although you can address the “WIIFM” with a clear list of benefits for buying, the tone of your sales page must also deliver the same message.

Writing a successful sales page is not difficult if you treat it as though you are writing to one person…not to a crowd of strangers. The tone and feel of your sales copy must make your customers feel as though they are part of your business. This is not difficult if you treat them as though you were talking to a close friend.

Never write your copy as though you were talking “at” someone. That’s a sure fire way to loose your prospective customer early on. You must talk “to” your customer. You must be personal and make them feel special.

Pay attention to any sales copy that stimulates you into buying. That’s the easiest way to become adept at writing great sales copy. What is their approach? Start noticing the tone used on the websites that you frequent…including your competition. Pay attention to the ones that make you consider buying a product or any that keep your attention long enough to read the entire page.

What emotional appeal does their sales copy stimulate in you? That’s what you are looking for. Determine what was said by reading the sales page over a few times…what emotional trigger was used to tempt you to buy. Whether you buy or not is irrelevant…it is enough that you were tempted.

In order to deliver a passionate response from your customers, your marketing copy needs specific attention to every word and every sentence. Allowing your personality to show through is a large part of this process. Note your own reaction to sales pages that are cold and impersonal.

Infuse your personality into your sales page. It is not difficult to be friendly and passionate when writing riveting sales copy. Remember, selling and buying is an emotional act and must be treated as such.

Should your sales copy or emails concern solutions to problems, you can make your sales copy personal by admitting that you have experienced a similar problem many times. Reveal how you handled the situation, add details about the problem and how it affected your life or business.

Never be afraid to admit failure, frustration or any self doubt you may have experienced. Admitting these things will only make your more human and approachable by your audience.

When you open up on a personal level, your customer starts bonding with you and that creates loyalty and a sense of belonging. Don’t be afraid to explain how your product or service solved your problem or made your life easier. Rather than just listing benefits, present them as tools that will make your customers life easier, fulfill a need they have or solve a problem.

Whatever you do, never emulate those late night TV commercials. High pressure may work in that environment, but it is death to an online marketer.

Keep it real, write as though you are speaking to one individual…make it personal, address a need and you will experience success.

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Kathy Dobson is a free spirited business owner and entrepreneur dedicated to helping others achieve financial and personal freedom through Internet marketing with an emphasis on membership sites.
Learn more about membership sites please visit: http://www.crazycashmembershipsites.com |  For further tips and resources visit: http://www.kathydobson.com

How To Write Articles Faster with an Article Skeleton

By Steve Shaw in Writing

Have you heard of “blank page syndrome”?

That’s when you sit down to write and the absolute blankness of the page becomes overwhelming to the point where you just can’t think of anything to write.

For a writer, there is nothing worse than starting out writing with a blank page.

I’ve heard that professional writers will purposefully end their writing day in the middle of expressing an idea, so that when they start writing the next morning they just pick up with the thought they left off on, rather than starting a new idea from scratch.

That is a writing trick that allows you to keep your momentum flowing so that you don’t have to go through “blank page syndrome”.

When you’re doing article marketing, you need to produce a steady stream of articles every month. That means that you will be writing pretty regularly, and you’ll have to find a way to contend with “blank page syndrome”.

I’ve got some good news for you–in the same way that professional writers create a cycle of writing momentum by arranging their writing so that they never (or rarely) have to look at a blank page, so you can use what I call an “article skeleton” to rid yourself of the dreaded blank page syndrome.

An article skeleton is the bare bones of a future article. It can be a title, an intro paragraph, or just a few points to more fully elaborate at a later date.

If you can get in the habit of creating article skeletons, your will relieve much stress from the writing process, make it easier to write articles faster, and even have some fun with the whole process!

Here’s how to create an article skeleton:

1. Set aside some time to spend on brainstorming. The purpose of this session is not to write a complete article, but rather come up with several ideas for future articles.
2. You may already have some ideas–quickly start writing down makeshift titles and major points to cover. I find that sometimes the intro paragraph writes itself. The power behind coming up with article skeletons is that the pressure is off–you do not need to do anything final. You are just coming up with ideas, possible intros, and points to cover. The ironic thing is that once there is no pressure to produce a great piece of writing, your writing will often improve along with your creativity. Many times when I look back at an article skeleton I find that I’m very happy with what I’ve written and don’t need to change a thing. Then the little bit that I have already written just propels me to finish out the article.
3. Come up with as many article skeletons as you can–don’t spend too much time on it though. You should not be thinking too much about this or laboring over wording or crafting sentences. A good time limit for each article skeleton is about 5 minutes.
4. Get the skeleton in place and then set it aside for a rainy day.
5. When you sit down to write and are drawing a blank, look through your collection of article skeletons. Look at the titles and see what topic catches your attention. When you open the draft and see that you already have a head start, it’s a huge relief! It’s much easier to write the article once it’s already started.

I’ve got several dozen of these ‘article skeletons’, and it’s always a joy to open one up to find that the article is already started for me. Articles get written so much faster when you don’t have to deal with the “How should I start writing this article?” feeling.

Are you ready to kiss “blank page syndrome” goodbye? Will you try this technique of creating a reserve of article skeletons?

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Steve Shaw is an article marketing expert, and founder of the popular articles submitter, SubmitYOURArticle.com, used by thousands of business owners. Discover how to use the power of article marketing to reach thousands of potential prospects for your website – download a powerful free report on successful article marketing from http://www.submityourarticle.com/report

Stumped For What to Write About? 15 Article Topic Ideas…

By Steve Shaw in Writing

Do you ever dread sitting down to write because you’re just not sure what to write about?

When you’re doing article marketing, you need to create a steady flow of articles. You may be just getting started and haven’t gotten into a writing groove yet. Or maybe you’ve written tons of articles and are feeling like you’ve written about your topic in every way you possibly can.

I assure you–you have more creative writing ideas in you. You just need a little help in looking at your topic in a new way to come up with new writing ideas.

Use these 15 article ideas to start your next brainstorming session:

1. Use a keyword suggestion tool such as WordTracker to look up searches that people are doing related to your topic. When you find a search term that is popular for your topic, then write an article to satisfy that term.
2. Take a look at your website stats and see what people have been typing into search engines to reach your site. Write articles to satisfy those searches.
3. Forums: Look at popular forums in our niche and see what topics are hot. Pick out some questions that people are asking that you think your target market might also be wondering, and then write an article that answers that question.
4. Blogs: Start following some popular blogs in your niche, and see what topics strike a nerve with the readers. You can usually tell what topics are hot by how many comments the post has. Sometimes just looking at the comments on a topic is enough to spark ideas for new articles.
5. Newsletters: Subscribe to newsletters in your niche and see what catches your eye. Use a compelling newsletter topic as a jump start for your next article.
6. Google Alerts: Create Google Alerts for each of your keywords and see what other folks are writing about your topic. The idea is to just catch an idea–you can cover the same or similar topic in a new way, with a new perspective, and with different information.
7. Solicit questions. If you have a blog or a newsletter list, ask your readers if they have any questions for you. Take the best questions and write articles that provide answers.
8. How To articles. What can you teach your readers? Think of a specific lesson, technique, or skill that your target market needs to know in order to succeed in your niche, and then walk them step-by-step through how to do it. Numbering each step helps readers follow your instructions more easily.
9. Top Tips articles, or any list article. All articles do not have to be in essay form–some articles can be lists. Be sure to include an intro and concluding paragraph and to choose an overarching theme that your readers would be interested in. For example, this article is a list article. My overarching theme is “article topic ideas”. All of the elements of my list contribute to that theme.
10. Got an e-book that you’ve written? You can break your e-book(s) up into articles. You can also use your table of contents as an article idea list.
11. Look at your newsletter messages–turn them into articles.
12. If you’ve done any audio interviews, you can turn them into articles. Just re-listen to the interview, take notes, and then create articles based on the information you covered in the interview.
13. Customer support replies–have you ever written a customer support reply that was so thorough, instructional, and useful that you thought you should share it with all of your readers? Some customer support replies are worthy of being turned into articles.
14. Forum replies and blog comments. If you leave really insightful, helpful, and knowledgeable blog comments, consider turning them into articles. Now, these comments have to have some depth and meat to them. You might have to develop the idea further to make it into an article.
15. Write a “Top 7″ article and then bounce an article off of each of the 7 items. That way you get 8 articles out of one Top 7 list!

Use this article idea list to brainstorm your next 15 (or more!) articles. How many article ideas were you able to come up with from this list?

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Steve Shaw is an article marketing expert, and founder of the popular article submission service, SubmitYOURArticle.com, used by thousands of business owners. Discover how to use the power of article marketing to reach thousands of potential prospects for your website – download a powerful free report on successful article marketing from http://www.submityourarticle.com/report

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