Run don’t walk to Nick Usborne’s Excess Voice site to grab your free copy of his new e-book, Writing for the Web: 7 Challenges Every Writer and Copywriter Faces.
It’s 35 pages and nicely illustrated with screenshots. And of course written in Nick’s inimitable style. I like Challenge #2 — How to write for a site’s three audiences: the company behind the site, visitors to the site… and search engines. A great read and a keeper.
Bryan Eisenberg, a ClickZ colleague, has just published a compendium of his best columns in a new book: Call To Action: Secret Formulas To Improve Online Results. It’s terrific and I highly recommend it. Lots of articles on persuasion architecture (one of his favorite topics), as well as online copywriting, measuring success, etc. The book has been edited and organized into sections. A great resource. Sample chapter here (scroll down).
For a blast from the past, here are the almost 50 columns I wrote for ClickZ about B2B email marketing and e-newsletter marketing.
Great article by MarketingSherpa’s Anne Holland on why “exact verbiage” is so important online. I.e. the specific words you use on landing pages, in text ads, on your site, on (yes) your blog…
You need to be aware of what keyword phrases your customers search on. That translates into how you’ll be found in the search engines. And you need to be absolutely consistent in your use of words and phrases in order to get higher response rates (more click-throughs) from online readers.
People like consistency. Sounds boring. But it’s not. When the title of your sponsor text ad matches the headline on your landing page, visitors know they’re in the right place… and what to do next. Click & buy.
Great article by Nick Usborne on why long copy sales letters work on the Web. He articulately explains the difference between two types of “long copy” Web pages. Approach #1: Selling with hype and extravagant claims related to instant riches, happiness and success. Somehow, many of us want to believe this stuff… and so in fact it does sell. At least once. But Nick doesn’t recommend this style (nor do I). Approach #2: Copy that sells with a distinctive, credible and authoritative voice. He uses Bill Bonner of Agora Publishing as an example. Here’s a Bill Bonner long copy sales letter. This style is tried and proven. It takes a page right out of the best direct response mail techniques. And builds relationships with repeat customers. Not surprisingly, Nick’s article on his site is… long but an effortless read.
That’s Bill Myers’ Tip of the Week. He writes, “… if a customer is going to make a purchase, they decide to do so early on in the sales presentation. After that, they are just looking for reasons not to buy.”
And yet… tests show that looong Web page sales letters are effective. My gut instinct is to side with Bill on this one. Trouble is, that’s my gut. It may not be my customer’s. Read his article here. Waddya think?
Sat in on Bob Bly’s excellent presentation on “Best-kept Copywriting Secrets” at yesterday’s Direct Marketing Association of Washington (DMAW) annual conference here in D.C. His key takeaway?
Before developing a sales letter, direct mail piece, Web landing page, etc. - write out your product’s RFB… Reason for Being. Force yourself (or your copywriter) to fill in the following blanks:
My product is the only one that does what? __________
for whom? __________ how? ___________ . Try it; not easy. But it will force you to articulate your, er, USP (unique selling proposition
Find out here. Just upload a Word document or enter a URL and find out if an 8th or 9th grader could make sense of your prose. Too complex, and your words won’t be effective.
Nick Usborne is one of the sharpest guys around when it comes to online copywriting. Fun to see him again in person today at an all-day workshop here in Washington DC on this topic (produced by uie.com). And gratifying also to see that nearly 60 people are willing to give up a day at the office to focus on “words” on the Web and in email.
As Nick puts it, “Character and voice rise to the surface online.” It’s individual voices that resonate through Web sites and email. Marketing-speak just doesn’t work. Makes sense. When you’re writing to sell online, you’re aiming your words at those “pesky readers” (as Nick calls them). Your readers are also writing online, in emails, discussion lists, news groups, chat rooms. They’re playing your game. Get them to respond to your site or email by writing in a warm, credible, articulate voice.
I was intrigued by the following instructions from veteran copywriter Jim Sinkinson of Infocomgroup: “Create a one- or two-page ‘copy platform’ for one of your products. Include a solid, well-thought-out description of the audience (including the audience’s biggest problems and untapped opportunities) and a strong list of product features and corresponding benefits.
Ask candidates to write a headline and the first two paragraphs for a magazine ad for the product. Assuming you know the difference between good advertising and bad (don’t use this method unless you have an advertising pro in on the judging), you should get a good idea pretty quickly. Don’t judge whether the head and copy are “correct” (since you may not know that without testing), but rather the creativity and sophistication of the approach.”
Publishing an e-newsletter on a regular schedule is a heck of a lot of work. Every now and then a subscriber writes in with a comment that makes my day. Here’s one from Steve Quartermaine: “Debbie, you are one of the few ‘real’ people on the net… ”
I believe he’s referring to authentic voice, the single most important ingredient of an effective e-newsletter (or blog). Everyone who publishes on the Web is “real,” of course. They just don’t all sound that way. Here’s an example - verbatim except I dropped out the names - from an email “sales letter” I received recently. Is this voice credible?
“Dear Debbie,
This is unreal. When Internet marketing guru told me about this, I was dumbfounded.
First, when he told me about the fact that he’s a long-time admirer and follower of guru, I wasn’t surprised.
Considering that guru has a track record of success worth (listen to this) $13,000,000.00 to his credit - yes, that’s 13 billion dollars, with a “B!” - it’s NO wonder.
(Plus, when you think about it, thirteen billion dollars is more than the GROSS NATIONAL PRODUCT of some countries!) But here’s what really shook me (and how YOU benefit).”
Doesn’t work for me… what about you?
I talk a lot about voice in Insider Secrets of Profitable E-Newsletters: Get Opened. Get Read. Get Results. Sign up to get 8 free mini-chapters in a PDF.
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