In Dr. Robert Cialdini’s book, Influence, he cites a research study showing that simply adding the word “because” to a request multiplies the likelihood of compliance.

Interestingly, the study seems to indicate that the legitimacy of the reasons supplied did not seem as important to the outcome as you might suppose. In fact, it seems hardly necessary to have a real reason at all.

For example, you might ask to cut line at the post office, and be more likely to get a “yes” response from the person in front of you if you simply frame your question by saying something like, “Would it be possible for me to please cut a front of you in line, because I’m really in a hurry.”

That’s hardly persuasive salesmanship, yet having some reason seems to be better than having none.

I’m not suggesting that you engage in meaningless marketing. I am suggesting that you take the extra step that most people do not … and supply good reasons for your promotions and campaigns. Practically said, this means simply telling the truth about a situation.

If you own a retail store, for instance, and you need to sell your overstock of a certain line of kitchenware, it’s much better just come right out and say, “We thought these would sell better, they didn’t, and now we need to get rid of them. So we put them on sale to motivate you to buy them.”

While that may not seem like brilliant copy, and admittedly it isn’t, it is a legitimate reason why you’re lowering the price of your merchandise. People respond to such reasoning, and the result is usually more profits.

This is not a new concept. John E Kennedy wrote an entire book on the subject, called Reason Why Advertising. I highly recommend that you read this work, and apply its principles to your own marketing.

See how long it takes before you see a “branding” commercial.

These are commercials that work to make some kind of “indelible impression” on the mind of viewers. An impression about the business.

Why do they do this? In the hopes that somehow, someday, someone will buy something.

And maybe it works.

But who knows? How do they measure it? Does it really cause anyone to buy anything?

Repeat after me: “If I can’t measure the results of a marketing activity, I shall not engage in that activity.”

Want to improve your marketing – and make it marketing that can be measured, every time? That’s just one of the things we deal with at http://writingriches.com.

Click here to watch a video that explains why you might want to consider joining us.

There are no spoilers here.

But there’s an important lesson in the movie for marketers and evangelists alike.

In the film, Cobb (played by Leonardo DiCaprio) is talking about the act of “inception” – planting an idea in another person’s mind.

Here’s what Cobb says:

“What’s the most resilient parasite? An idea. A single idea from the human mind can build cities. An idea can transform the world and rewrite all the rules.”

What this means to marketers (or to anyone who wants to spread their ideas) should be obvious: once you have planted an idea in the minds of your audience, it’s very, very difficult for that idea to be dislodged.

This is why, for example, in a courtroom there is an advantage to telling your side of the story first: the weight of the idea you planted in the jury’s mind is hard for your opponent to overcome.

The more powerfully and indelibly you can imprint your idea on a large number of minds, the more influence you have. This is the “secret” behind clichés, stereotypes, and proverbs.

For instance, the advice “look before you leap” is a powerful way of simply and briefly summing up a powerful idea, and that maxim influences many of us when we are about to make a crucial decision.

The only way to counteract a powerful idea like “look before you leap” is with another idea just as powerful: “he who hesitates is lost”.

Your goal as a marketer should be to plant your ideas early and often.

Here’s the takeaway:

1. Formulate your idea simply and memorably (“Delivering Happiness”, “Getting Things Done”, “Unleashing the IdeaVirus”).
2. Put your idea into distributable form.
3. Encourage the free and massive distribution of your idea.

I know… the question burning in your mind is, “But how do I make money doing that?”

Good question – with many answers. Three short ones:

1. You make money explaining the idea. (No matter how simple it is, people will always want you to explain it, and they will pay you to do so.)
2. You’ve told people what to do (your idea) – now tell them how to do it (and charge them).
3. Leverage the Authority gained from spreading the idea into other, profitable jobs, gigs, and businesses.

Good sales people identify the emotion driving their prospect, and then line up the “reasons why” the purchase is a good idea. They use logic to close the sale, but logic is not making the sale.

“Reason why” selling even worked with Captain Kirk on Star Trek.

Kirk was a hot-head, you will remember. He wanted to spring into action. Spock, the non-emotional, scientific Vulcan, deftly supplied his Captain the logic needed to justify the decision.

Get this: Spock was the consummate sales person. A pro. Kirk was not.

Most sales people who turn us off are selling from the Captain Kirk school of sales – all emotion, passion and pushiness.

The sales people we love, the ones we happily buy from, are from the Mr. Spock school of sales; they simply supply us with the logical reasons that support what we wanted to do already.

Be like Spock; supply the reasons why. It’s the logical thing to do.

Ogilvy is famous for saying 50% of his ads work – he just didn’t know which 50%.

It doesn’t have to be this way.

You can make your advertising – and more importantly your marketing – a profit center instead of an expense.

How do you do that?

Simple. Make it a no-way-to-lose proposition.

1.    Make sure each ad has a call to action you can measure (call this number, click this link).

2.    Measure the response to each ad and each call to action.

3.    Do more of the ones that work and less of the ones that don’t.

This way you get something from every ad – even if the something is only knowledge of what not to do. You never lose; you always profit either by knowledge or dollars.

Because you’d know their world.

You’d understand their pain.

You’d know their deepest fears, and you’d understand their highest aspirations.

So how do you do that? Here are 7 practical tips. They sound simple, but when you actually use them their impact can be profound.

1. Learn everything you can about your prospect. If you’re in direct marketing, it’s easy: just look at their data cards. When you have demographics, you can infer a lot about the “average” person who represents the group. If you don’t have that kind of data… guess. It’s a lot more accurate  than what most marketers do (which is: they don’t bother with any of this stuff).
2. Imagine yourself living your prospect’s typical day. Go through it step by step – from rising out of bed in the morning to getting back into the sack at night. Use all five of your senses: what do you see, hear, feel, taste, touch and smell? Make notes.
3. Think about their biggest fear – the one that wakes them up at 3 in the morning in a cold sweat.
4. Think about  their highest aspiration – what do they dream of? Not the little dreams (the ones we all tell our buddies), but the big dream in their “secret heart” (the dream that they don’t dare tell anyone).
5. Go where they live. Find a neighborhood that is like your prospect’s and walk through it (driving doesn’t work – looking at it through a window is just more TV… nice to look at but not REAL). Talk to people.
6. Read what they read. Read their magazines, newspapers, blogs and Twitter.
7. Watch what they watch. Watch the TV shows your prospects watch. Especially the ones  that don’t interest you.

If you do this, you’ll develop the apparent ability to read your prospect’s mind.

And you’ll sell more.

But something funny about this is: you’ll also most likely care more. And that’s far more important than any selling technique.

The world’s a funny place, ain’t it?

This is a resource you’ll have fun playing with – and it may spark some profitable ideas, too.

As you’re crafting your next marketing campaign, here are 7 questions to ask yourself.

Answering them will virtually write your sales copy for you.

It’s easy to do.

But very powerful. Try it and see.

1. What problem are you solving?
2. What is your solution?
3. Who is it right for?
4. What will it do for those people?
5. How does it work?
6. What are the reasons someone might NOT buy it?
7. Why should they trust you?

After each answer, ask ‘why is that so important?’

People are in a flutter about the new FTC guidelines.

This affects you if you are a blogger, and affiliate marketer, or an Internet marketer of any stripe.

Now, there are a lot of snake-oil salesmen who are ready, willing and able to take advantage of your FEAR of the FTC.

Usually they have an “FTC Protection Kit” to sell you.

Well, my friend and colleague Jim Edwards just interviewed Richard Cleland, the FTC director in charge of advertising and claims.

I think this interview is top-notch, clear, and brings a voice of sanity to the whole discussion.

There is no pitch for anything, and this is not an affiliate link. It’s just a service.

http://jimedwards.s3.amazonaws.com/ftc-advertising-interview/index.html

Take some advice from your ol’ buddy Ray – watch this interview now.

(Also, it’s not required but I’d recommend signing up for Jim’s email newsletter. It’s one of the very few marketing newsletters that are worth subscribing to.)

Failure to live up to this rule could get bloggers fined up to $11,000.

Per violation.

There are lots of questions about what this means for affiliate marketers, if anything.

It really seems to me that the best policy is also the easiest to implement: if you’re being paid to promote something, say so. End of story.

Where it gets murkier is what the FTC’s rule will mean for those who run affiliate programs – are they now going to be held responsible for what their affiliates do? That seems like a responsibility most business owners are going to be unable or at least unwilling to bear.

What do you think about the new FTC rules for bloggers? Has the FTC killed affiliate marketing in one fell stroke? Or are paranoid marketers blowing this all out of proportion? Post your thoughts below.

But is it?

Not really.

Online retailers do much better.

Check out Futurenow’s posting on “the top 10 converting websites for December 2008“.

Here are the top five:

1. ProFlowers 31.1%
2. LL Bean 25.7%
3. Amazon 23.7%
4. VitaCost 23.0%
5. Coldwater Creek 22.4%

Hmmm.

What do they know that you don’t? Something to think about.

If you’re not already getting at least 10% conversions, I suggest reading this site.

It needs to be relevant – in other words, you need to write about stuff your market cares about.

Most bloggers (and newsletter/ezine publishers, and speakers, and authors, etc.) don’t have a clue what their market cares about.

Oh, they think they know what the market wants. That’s the problem. Don’t be too upset if this has happened to you, because I’m about to give you 5 easy ways to always know exactly what’s on the mind of your market.

It’s almost as if they were wearing signs around their necks proclaiming, “Here’s what has my attention right now…”
This is going to seem brain-dead simple.

Just find out what they’re already talking about, or what they’re already paying attention to, and give them more of that – but with your own unique spin.

And of course, in a way that adds value to their lives (and at the same time leads them to your door).

So here are the “5 Easy Ways”… really they are 5 websites that are like magical marketing x-ray machines. Just look at the screen, and see what’s inside the mind of your market.

http://del.icio.us
http://digg.com
http://answers.yahoo.com
http://stumbleupon.com
http://google.com/news

Of course, it’s up to you (or your copywriter) to figure out how and why today’s hot topics matter to your market. And how they relate to your message about who you are and what you bring to the world.

We’ll be talking more about exactly how to do this at my upcoming workshop in Las Vegas (there are only 5 seats left, so you might want to take a look and see if it’s right for you).

Where is this money – and how do you get it?

Most businesses have many hidden opportunities for discovering “windfall profits” – but I want to focus on just one of those opportunities in this article.

That “opportunity pocket” is: marketing and advertising.

In my experience, almost every business – whether it be retail, service, professional practice, or “business to business” in its nature – is unconsciously letting profits slip away.

Your biggest opportunity most likely lies hidden inside your underperforming sales copy (copy that isn’t selling as many units/contracts/ memberships as it potentially could be).

If you want to make more sales without spending a single dime in additional ad costs, this article might be the most important document you read this year…

Make Piles of Money With “Upside Leverage”

“Upside Leverage” is a concept I learned from marketing genius Jay Abraham.

We all know what leverage is: using other people’s money to build your business, or other people’s efforts (through delegation, for instance) to increase your own productivity.

“Leverage” involves using one asset (the lever) to increase the value or power of another. The only problem with using “leverage” is the potential downside: if you use financial leverage to borrow money for a business project, the project could possibly fail, and you would be forced to pay back the money. If you use the leverage of delegation in order to make yourself more productive, there’s a chance the person you’re relying on might let you down.

“Upside” leverage is leverage that involves little or no potential downside.

It’s my belief that underperforming sales copy is the most potentially profitable of all forms of “upside leverage”.

Please read that sentence again, because it’s too easy to let the profound meaning it contains slip past you:

Underperforming sales copy is the most potentially profitable of all forms of “upside leverage”.

Think of it this way: any ad or promotion costs the same whether it performs well or not, right? If you spend $100 on an ad, and you get $500 in business as a result, you made a 5-1 return on your investment. That’s a good return. You did what you set out to do, you made a profit.

But… what if you could take that same ad, and change it in some way that made it 10 times more effective?

What if now it returned $5,000?

You spent the same $100 for the ad… but you got back $5,000.

Instead of a 5-1 return, now you’re getting 50-1! That, my marketing friend, is “upside leverage”!

Change Your Copy, Change Your Income

There is so much bad copy on the web, it’s almost laughably easy to be better than most of your competitors.

Why is that?

I believe there are a number of reasons, but here are a few of the common ones:

1. Some people just don’t realize their copy is bad. They wrote it themselves, or their brother or their niece wrote it. They think it’s wonderful – but in reality it stinks like a dead skunk.

2. Others don’t realize how important their sales copy is. This is a naive belief, and it astounds me that so many people hold it – but they do. Some people seem to think that as long at the copy has “just the facts”, that’ll be good enough. It never is.

3. Some people are just cheap. They spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to start a business, buy furniture, hire staff, provide benefits, etc., but when it comes to the one piece of communication that might actually cause someone to buy from them – they don’t want to pay for it. They “delegate” this crucial task. Big mistake.

Are you making any of these mistakes? If you are, this is your wake-up call.

Take advantage of the potential “upside leverage” that exists in every ad or promotion. Make sure you ads are performing – that they are making you sales every day. And that they are making you more sales this week than they did last week, etc.

You do this through constant improvement and testing/tracking.

You also do it by either hiring a copywriter, or investing in educational materials that will teach you how to write your own copy. Either one can work – it’s up to you. If you love to write, and you think you have a knack for it, then by all means get a good home-study course on copywriting and do it yourself.

Don’t put it off – do it right now. Otherwise, you’re throwing money away that rightfully belongs to you.

I should be working on other stuff.

For instance, I have 8 more small business profit boosters to write for you (I’m up to #13 and I promised 21). But…

I felt compelled to write this post instead.

I’ve been reflecting on who I owe my success to in the copywriting and internet marketing world. Because you know, none of us do this on our own. I’m not an island. I’ve been helped by a number of people along the way. And as we move into the new year, I want to publicly thank and acknowledge a number of them.

Disclaimer: making a list like this always opens up the risk that I’ll leave someone out. If you have helped me, and I somehow forget to mention you, remind me privately and I’ll add your name to the list.

Armand Morin. Armand is the guy who has taught me the most about Internet Marketing, and he pushed and prodded me to create my own info-products (I went from zero to over 20 in less than a year) and to get serious about my speaking career. Without a doubt, I recommend Armand’s Big Seminar and his Internet Marketing Newsletter.

Alex Mandossian. Alex taught me how to use Teleseminars to build my business (even though I was a copywriter at the time, my first year using Alex’s techniques easily made me over $100,000). He’s also a man of deep integrity.

Brad Callen. One of my top clients, I am actually involved in a site with Brad and his brother Matt. These guys have been with me as clients for a long time now, and have been a great encouragement to me.

Willie Crawford. One of the first friends I made in this business. Willie and I had some pretty amusing adventures together.

John Carlton. Possibly the world’s greatest living copywriter. I have learned so much from John, I can’t even begin to tell you. I attended a seminar once just so I could buy his “mother of all offers” where he sold a $5,000 box of his materials. Pay attention: I went to a seminar so that I could spend $5,000 with John. That ought to tell you something. I had the privilege of hanging out with John in Vegas recently, and it was the highlight of my trip.

Harlan Kilstein. Killer copywriter and Carlton’s top student, Harlan is also a master of hypnosis and NLP. Harlan taught me how to get paid what I’m worth as a copywriter. Seriously. After attending one of his seminars, I TRIPLED my fees. Thanks Harlan.

Matt Bacak. One of my top clients, Matt was one of the very first people to hire me to write copy. We met because I saw him sitting in the bar… with his laptop! I knew he was a kindred spirit. We’ve done some great things together (recently we did a $3.5 million promotion), and I’ve learned a lot from Matt. He’s also been a good friend.

Mike Litman. Mike was the first Internet Marketer to pay me for copy. He paid me a scandalously low amount of money. When he ordered 2 more sales letters from me, he coached me on raising my prices – on his project! His was the first IM event I ever attended, and it’s where I met my long-term friends (and now clients) Armand Morin and Matt Bacak.

Mike Stewart. Mike showed me “lifestyle business” at its best when he invited me to spend a couple of days at his lake place in Georgia. We played around on the lake, ate a lot of good food, and created a new video product (on copywriting) in his home studio (said product to be released soon).

Frank Kern. I’ve learned a lot from Frank, and he’s hired more than once to write copy for him. Frank gave me my all-time favorite testimonial (it’s a bit off-color, so I won’t quote it here). It’s through Frank I first met John Carlton, Sarkis, Neil Strauss, and a bunch of other “fancy people”. And Frank recommended me to Tony Robbins for some copywriting work – so how could I not acknowledge Captain Kern?

Ed Dale. I actually met Frank Kern and Ed Dale at the same time. They had hired me to write copy for their Underachiever Conference before we ever actually met. What endeared me to Ed first was his love for all things Apple. Instant bonding. And Ed actually gave me the testimonial that ties with Frank’s for my all-time favorite. Since it doesn’t contain the “F Word” I’ll quote it in full: “Ray, I bless the day your copy met my bank account”.

Jeff Walker. The creator of the Product Launch Formula, Jeff taught me the art of Product Launches. I was one of the first customers for the original PLF, and ended up in Jeff’s high-end Platinum Coaching group. Jeff coached me through my first launch (of my own product). Jeff had made me… well, a lot of money. And he’s also a good friend. Jeff credits me with being the first person he’s ever actually paid to write copy for him. I can’t thank him enough for all the guidance, encouragement, and generosity he has shown me.

Jon Walker. Jon is Jeff’s brother. I actually got to know him before I got to know Jeff, and I count Jon as one of my very favorite people. He’s kind, diplomatic, and has a razor-sharp business mind. He is truly one of those “guys behind the scenes” who is responsible for some big stuff in the online world. Jon has given me some invaluable counsel, advice and insight on my own business, and he’s one of the people I love to bounce ideas around with.

Michel Fortin. One of the first people I got to know in the copywriting world, I owe Michel several debts of gratitude. I’ve learned a lot from him about copy, marketing, and online technology (Michel convinced me to migrate from Movable Type to WordPress, for instance… and was at least partially responsible for getting me hooked on Photoshop). He’s also helped me navigate through a couple of difficult situations, and has unselfishly helped me grow my business.

Sylvie Fortin. Sylvie is one of the most vibrant, determined and principled people I know. She has the courage to speak her mind even when it might be unpopular to do so. I am astounded by her willingness to share personal challenges publicly so that others may benefit. And her keen insight played a crucial role in rescuing me from total burn-out in 2008. Really. I love Sylvie Fortin for these reasons and more.

Craig Perrine. Smart, funny, intelligent, and willing to encourage me in my tendency to sit in the back of the room and cause trouble, Craig is a great friend and a smart marketer.

Kirt Christensen. One of the first people I bought an information product from, Kirt agreed to meet with me not knowing for sure whether I might be a stalker. We ended up become friends and business partners. Kirt helped me form my pursuit of the ideal business: working 20 hours a week and making $100,000 per month. That’s not too much to ask, right?

Eric Graham. I’ve never met a person more dedicated to rigorous scientific testing of copy, marketing tactics, and web page factors. Eric takes the “voodoo” of marketing and makes it science. From him I’ve learned discipline and tenacity. Plus, he flies stunt planes. Yep, upside down, loop-the-loops, and all that stuff.

Christina Hills. Christina is the CEO of “Shopping Cart Queen” – a company that educates online businesses on how to use their shopping cart software. They also teach a lot more stuff, including other software and systems. Christina was crucial to my first product launch coming off well, and she’s helped me in a pinch on more than one occasion.

Stu McLaren. Stu was one of my early clients. I wrote the copy for his Idea Incubator Seminar. I was so excited by it I decided to attend. Stu and I became friends, and through him I met Stephen Pierce, David Frey, Alex Mandossian, Jeff Walker and many others. Now Stu not only is a big-shot Internet Marketer but is now working with his wife Amy to change the world. Bravo!

Mike Filsaime . I met Mike before he was “famous”. We had a conversation outside the seminar room in Denver where Mike told me the story of this new product he was creating called “Butterfly Marketing”. We have remained friends over the years, and Mike recently had me work on the “7 Figure Code” launch with him (which was a blast).

Tom Beal. Tom and I were in a Mastermind Group together for a while, and when we met through that group I only had a vague idea that he worked with Mike Filsaime. Tom and I have laughed together, hung out in the back of many a seminar room, and worked together on a few projects. I count him as both a friend and a great marketing mind.

Joel Comm. Joel and I knew each other a while before we ever did any work together. Joel has been a true friend, and has done a lot to help me as a person and on a business level. Joel got me my publishing deal, invited me to be a guest expert on The Next Internet Millionaire, hired me to write copy, and has been a true supporter.

Andy Jenkins. You know him as the StomperNet guy – and so do I. I’ve written some copy for the Stomper guys (Andy and Brad Fallon). Andy has been encouraging, enthusiastic, and promoted me in places where it counted.

Rich Schefren. Controversial, smart, challenging, and able to wear you down. And that was just my first dinner with Rich! Rich is not only a client, he’s one of the people I’ve learned some of my most valuable business lessons from.

Brian Johnson. You may know him as Schefren’s right-hand guy. I know him as a trustworthy friend and tireless supporter. He’s also a guy who will be there to get the job done, even when other people have gone home.

Ryan Healy, Ben Settle, John Angel and Daniel Levis are all part of a secret mastermind group I belong to. The weird thing is we’re all copywriters. And it’s one of the most profitable and enjoyable groups I’m a member of. This group has been referred to as “The Five Horsemen of the Copywriting Apocalypse”.

Jeanette Cates. She’s organized, she’s diligent, and she’s one of the best teachers I’ve ever met. She’s also fun to hang around with.

Dave Bernstein. One of the first products I ever created, I created with Dave. He’s absolutely nuts about all things audio. And he is smart enough to live where it’s warm all year.

George Callens. George works with Armand to run a $25 million dollar a year company and makes it looks easy. He’s on top of things, he’s in charge, and he’s one of the most stunningly competent people I know. George has helped me sort through some important challenges in my business.

Chris & Jim Howard. I’ve been friends with Jim & Chris just about as long as anyone in this business. They are a continuous inspiration, and “go to” people when I need help or advice.

Dr Mike Woo-Ming. He’s a friend, he’s a client, and he’s an International Man of Mystery.Remember that time you rented that house in Vegas and we all hung out there? That was awesome.

Howie Schwartz. One of the smartest and funniest people I have ever met and someone I am proud to know and call friend.

Yanik Silver. Brilliant marketer, tireless entrepreneur, and peerless promoter. I love the Underground Seminar, and his YSS is brilliant. I’m also inspired by what he’s been doing with the Maverick Brand.

Dan Kennedy. What can I say about Dan that hasn’t been said? I think he mostly invented the info-product/coaching business. He’s a writer’s writer. He lives the life he chose to live. And he seems to be a true genius when it comes to this stuff.

Jason Moffatt. Jason and I are probably about a much alike as East and West – but I count him as a friend, a keen marketing mind, and one of the very best salesmen I have ever met.

Tracy Childers. Tracy and I have held a few late-night brainstorming sessions involving large quantities of what another friend of mine calls “barley pop”. Every time I talk to him, I get about two dozen new ideas. And Tracy is inspiring in his ability to get products created, and his integrity and kindness.

Marlon Sanders. The first marketing product I ever bought was “The Amazing Formula”. It blew me away. Since then I’ve had a chance to get to know Marlon as one of the funniest, most intelligent, and most interesting people I know. Plus, have you seen this guy’s hats?

David Frey. He’s the “gentle giant” of Internet Marketing, He’s been an encourager, a good teacher, and someone I’ve felt inspired by since we first met at Stu McLaren’s Idea Incubator.

Ken McArthur. One of my favorite clients, Ken has been another ardent supporter of mine. He’s someone who is universally loved by everyone who knows him. And he invited me to speak in Orlando in February (Disney, here I come).

Clayton Makepeace. One of my copywriting “heroes”, Clayton is one sharp guy. And Clayton is the guy about whom I have the strangest “how we met” story of all. Sorry, I’m not telling. Not today, anyway.

Mary Mazzullo. She took the pictures that make me look good. Of course, that ‘s what she does. She also got me into the mysterious “Club 33”. And she’s a true friend.

Bob Bly. The copywriter’s copywriter, a scholar, and a gentleman. Bob really got me started down this road, and one of the highlights of my career was being quoted on the cover of “Secrets of a Freelance Writer”.

Mari Smith. First she was my student (in copywriting) and now she is my teacher (in Social Media Marketing). Thanks Mari!

Seth Godin. Some of the most intense learning I ever did, I did at Seth’s office. Thanks Seth!

This post grew as I was writing it.

The truth is, there are so many people I should thank I probably could never write it all down. So please, if you don’t see your name here, don’t take it personally. I love and appreciate you — and if you know me at all, I hope you know that’s true.

Bear with me, I have a couple more acknowledgments: my business could not exist without the support of my family (both near and far).

My wife and son are the two most important people on earth to me. I love you both with complete and reckless abandon.

Finally, and most importantly, I would be nothing if not for the love and grace of Jesus Christ. Every good thing I have (or ever will have) comes from Him.

Or you felt like they were talking over your head, using a lot of buzzwords and lingo you didn’t understand?

Me too.

That leads to this little tip that will REALLY help your copy make more sales (or generate more leads, or whatever you need it to do)…

Keep it simple! Yes, even “dumb it down”.

Copy should read like conversation; it should flow naturally and be easy to listen to (or read).

By the way, this does not mean your readers are “dumb” (they’re not). It means they are busy and distracted: simplifying your copy respects your reader’s time.

Using big words and jargon might sound impressive, but it won’t get you sales. Which would you prefer?

Use strong, punchy words. Write simply and clearly.

Read Strunk & White’s Elements of Style – and follow its advice.

Avoid jargon.

“And how about Taguchi testing – do I have to use that, too? What about multivariate testing?” The questions go on and on in this often-confusing subject!

Now for the good news: split-testing is easy! By using simple, yet sophisticated, split-testing techniques, you can increase your conversions and gain more business.

Today’s resource is for you if you want an easy way to test your copy. By using Website Optimizer, you can easily test your writing. No, I’m not making bunches of money by recommending it – you can’t buy this software, so there’s no affiliate link here. But you can have it free, and it’s all courtesy of Uncle Google.

This is truly wonderful software. While it is very sophisticated, it is also easy to use. With all these features, you would expect to pay hundreds, even thousands of dollars. Not only can you use it to perform split-testing, it even does simple multivariate testing too.

While doing a traditional “split-test” means you test one element at a time, with multivariate testing you can do so much more. Test everything all at once, from your headlines and sub-heads to your background and graphic elements! The statistically-reliable testing offered by this program can help you sell more of whatever you sell by increasing your conversions.

Google has great tutorials right on their website to teach you how to use it, so I won’t spend a lot of time explaining that. Just read and watch the tutorials.

Here’s the easiest way I know of to start testing, and it will take you one hour or less to get started:

1. Get a Google account. Use this link to set it up.
2. Set up your first test. Follow the step-by-step instructions in Website Optimizer.
3. Start your test. Just click and let Google do all the work. The software can test all your copy, headlines, and so on, advising you which version will convert the most sales for your business.

It couldn’t be easier, and you sure can’t beat the price!

Check out Website Optimizer today. It’s the best way I know to get started split-testing.

A chain is only as strong as its weakest link.

One way to get quick sales boost is: find the weak or broken links in your sales process and strengthen or repair them. And almost every website has at least a few week or broken links. I’m not just talking about hyperlinks, here… I’m talking about any crucial part of the sales process. Here are some examples of things you might want to do:

Fix Broken Links. The most obvious example is actual broken links. These are frustrating at best for your visitors, and for many it will kill the sale instantly (“if they can’t get their links fixed, what must their product be like?”).

Remove Inconsistencies. Even seemingly small inconsistencies send a subconscious signal to your prospects that all is not right. Some specifics to look for: different typefaces or look & feel on your pages; lack of consistent layout from one section of your site to the next; jarring differences between your major sales pages (opt-in page, salesletter page, order page, thank you page). Get fanatical about consistency.

Remove “Mind Stoppers”. Some things just cause us to “stop our mind” when reading a website. For example, strange or unnatural wording can cause us to stop in the flow of reading and ask “What? Huh?” Even though these “Mind Stoppers” may only cause a pause of 1 or 2 seconds, they interrupt the flow of your sales message. Avoid “Mind Stoppers” at all costs. The best way to find them: read your copy aloud, to another human being, in a natural tone and at an easy pace. Then have them read it aloud back to you. In each case, mark any section that causes you to pause or stumble. Re-write those sections and remove the “Mind Stoppers”.

When you forge stronger links in your “Sales Chain”, you’ll increase the results. And that means more sales and profits for you and your small business.

And how to fix it.

Here’s what you need to know:

1. Visitors: how many people show up to your website each month? You can track these easily in your web hosting account, or you can use a service like Google Analytics.

2. Optins: How many of your unique visitors join your optin email list? In other words, how many of them raise their hand saying, “yes, you have my permission to market to me via email”? If this number is not at least 25% of your Unique Visitors, you have a problem with your opt-in conversion process. You need a more compelling “ethical bribe” to get the opt-in… or better copy describing that bribe… or a more effective page design… or to add/delete/alter some of the elements on the opt-in page (more on opt-in pages in a future post).

3. Order Page Conversions: Between your opt-in page and your Order Page is your “sales page”. That’s the page where your sales letter lives. This sales page has one job and one job only: to persuade the reader to click the order button (which takes them to the Order Page). When that happens, we have an “Order Page Conversion”. 10% of your total Unique Visitors is the bare minimum conversion you’re looking for. I have written sales pages that convert at 30% or more. That’s not as unusual as you may think. If you’re not getting at least a 10% conversion to the Order Page… your sales letter needs work (could be the copy… could be the design… could be the offer… but something is not working!).

4. Sales Conversions: When someone actually fills out the order form on the Order Page, and clicks the button completing their credit card transaction… that is an actual Sales Conversion. It’s different from the Order Page conversion; there is always a certain level of “abandonment” from the Order Page. Some people put their credit card information in wrong; others receive a decline notice; and some, remaining unconvinced and perhaps merely curious as to what Order Page looked like, simply abandon their purchase and click away. So your third conversion is from the Order Page to the Thank You or Download Page… and this is your actual Sales Conversion. If that Sales conversion is below 5% of your total unique visitors, examine your Order Page for possible bottlenecks (is the order form easy to understand? Does it work? Does it look like the rest of your site or totally alien? Could you add something that might increase conversion, like a testimonial, or audio, or video? Could you take something away, like too much copy or garish graphics?).

Market by the numbers – these four simple ones – and watch your results improve.

Our year is marked by signposts.

Dates on the calendar around which we plan our annual journey.

In the USA, some of the major calendar signposts include:

•    New Year’s Day
•    SuperBowl Sunday
•    Valentine’s Day
•    St. Patrick’s Day
•    Easter
•    Memorial Day
•    Mother’s Day
•    Father’s Day
•    Independence Day
•    Back to School
•    Labor Day
•    Halloween
•    Veteran’s Day
•    Thanksgiving
•    Christmas

There are many others, of course, and your list will vary depending on your cultural and religious background.

The point is, the major signposts are easy to identify. And easy to construct a marketing calendar around. What’s the point of that?

We copywriters talk a lot about “joining the conversation already taking place in the prospect’s mind” (a phrase borrowed from Robert Collier).

When you tie your marketing efforts to major mindset changing calendar dates, you go a long way toward “joining” that conversation.

John E. Kennedy identified the power of “reason why” copy: prospects are more likely to respond if you give them a reason why they should. They’re more likely to pay attention to your promotion if you give them a “reason why” you’re doing the promotion to begin with.

Retailers have done this so long (and with so little imagination) we’ve grown accustomed to it. (“The January White Sale”… “The Sweetheart Sale” for Valentine’s Day… “Saving the Green” sales for St. Patrick’s Day… etc.).

The good news for your online business is that all of these “old school” ideas work very well online. And if you can get a little more creative with them (for instance, having a “Click Your Treat” promotion around Halloween) they work even better.

The point is: give your prospects and customers a new reason to visit your website at least once per month.
Planning your promotional calendar becomes very easy when you adopt this model. The list above is not a bad start.

If you’re more ambitious, you can select from hundreds of “reasons why” at 2009 Holidays & Observances Calendar … and have a reason to do a promotion 52 times per year.

Need ideas about what sort of promotions to do? Borrow ideas from the businesses that have made an art form of this method: brick & morter retailers. Car dealers, big box stores, and grocery stores in particular will supply you with a rich “swipe file” of ideas.

Just visit your local library (yes, they still exist) and get the back issues of your local newspaper’s Sunday issues (it’ll have the most ads) for the last year. You’ll have 52 “mini-swipe files” to build your library of promotions from.

What do you suppose might happen to your sales and profits then?

I hope you’re making use of these ideas — feel free to post your success stories if you want. I’d love to read them, and I’m sure others would, too.

Okay… on to today’s Profit Booster: postcard marketing.

Sometimes the simplest ideas are the most effective ones. Here’s the scoop…

Send everyone on your list (your prospect list and your customer list) a simple postcard.

The card can say something like, “just wanted to say thank you for being part of my world…” and then offer a link to a special webpage.

I recommend you register a new domain for the special webpage, because you want the address to be short and easy to type. Don’t obsess over the domain name. You can easily find plenty of good ones-for instance, www.ThanksFromBob.com (I suggest using your own name).

So, what’s on this page? Why, a special offer of course. Available only to the people who received your postcard. And of course, to all the people who read your postcard. Because postcards are what’s called “naked mail”-anyone who wants to can read it. That’s why it’s a good idea to put the benefit of the special offer right there on the postcard (“I’m giving you a gift worth $500 at a special webpage…”).

Also don’t obsess about getting the postcards out. You can upload your customer lists and create your postcard copy dirt cheap at www.USPS.com -they’ll even stamp and mail the postcard for you!

So go ahead, send some “naked mail” today, and start watching the profits pour in.

For most companies this is a disaster.

Every contact with your prospects and customers is either an opportunity, or a problem. There is no in between.

Question: why do we leave these interactions to chance?

We all instinctively know there is usually a “best way” to answer the phone, greet a customer, run an interview, or deal with a customer service issue.

Yet we (and more frighteningly, our employees) do absolutely nothing to prepare for these interactions. What if you changed that?

Write a script for every interaction you can anticipate with your prospects and customers. This means you’ll have a script for:

• Answering the phone
• Greeting customers
• Conducting a client needs analysis interview
• Running a consultation
• Giving a presentation
• Dealing with customer complaints
• And every other interaction you can think of

Creating a script for each situation-and making sure your employees actually use the script-can make a world of difference for your company.

So get busy. Write your scripts. Know your lines.

And make sure your people know their lines too.

To get other people to do what we want them to do.

There is a tactic that gives almost magical powers of persuasion.

You can, quite simply, get practically anyone to do practically anything.

It’s so simple you’ll be tempted to shrug it off.

Don’t.

Here it is…

“Enter the conversation already taking place in your prospect’s mind.”

As far as I know, that idea originated with Robert Collier. It’s a simple principle, but not easy to do. So how do you do it?

Listen. Pay attention to what people say. Hang out in online forums. Track trends on twitter. Collect the words, phrases and ideas your market uses. Speak back to them in their own words.

Watch. Be conscious of what your store or website visitors actually do. What causes them to opt in? To opt out? To buy? To ask for a refund? Nothing teaches like behavior. People vote with their feet. Watch their feet.

Think. How can you solve their problems? How can you solve them quickly… easily… and with simplicity? Be the aspirin for their headache and abundance will be yours.

If you can do these things, your readers/visitors/ listeners will be nodding their heads, slapping the table top, and saying, “Yes! That’s exactly how I feel!”

And when that happens, Constant Reader, they will do anything you ask.

Because anything you ask will be in alignment with what they already desire.

That’s a deep well I just pushed you into. Follow it all the way down, and be rewarded with the cool fresh water of more sales, more often.

Create instant cash flow?

Sometimes the big answers are the obvious ones.

The ones that sit right in front of our faces.

Take for instance the time-honored retail practice of: having a sale.

I’ve written copy for (probably) thousands of sales, most of it while I was in the radio business.

I’ve seen many sales that worked very well… and many that failed miserably.

And I have identified some of the key common elements of successful sales. Successful sales:

1.    Have a reason for being. “After Thanksgiving Sale” works as a reason.. but telling the story of why you’re so thankful for your customers and how to you want to give them a substantial discount works better. And stories that are not tied to “traditional” sale days (Christmas, New Year’s Day, Back to School) work best.

2.    Offer true value. Either the price is enticing enough to motivate your customers to act..or you’ll need to add something that will motivate them (additional bonuses, etc.)

3.    Are time-bound. They have a definitive start and end date. The shorter and more immediate the better.

Coming up with a reason for your sale shouldn’t be tough. Just think about what your actual reasons are (beyond “I want to make more money”) and build on that story.

The best way to get your sale done – and putting money in your bank account – is to set a date in the immediate future and commit to it. Put a stake in the ground.

Let’s say you have an online business, and your sale is going to be a 3-day sale. You’ll want to send an email the day before (to grab a little attention and “get on the radar” of your customers), one each day of the sale (to drive mores sales), and one “thanks for your business” email the day after (provides a proof element and teaches your customers that when you say it will be over… it will be over).

If you do this, it will be like strapping a rocket to your profits. So… go have a sale!

Our next Profit Booster: Use This Power To Get Anyone To Do Anything

According to Wikipedia, “As a teenager, Fischer became famous as a chess prodigy. In 1972, he became the first, and so far the only, American to win the official World Chess Championship“.

When I was a teenager, I became infatuated with the game of chess largely because of Bobby Fischer.

One of the first things I learned was that it’s necessary to think many moves ahead if you stand a chance of winning the game. You must anticipate the consequences of your moves, and the consequences of your opponent’s potential moves.

This requires a lot of thinking. And so it is with your business.

What I’m going to encourage you to do is not too tough, though… I’m going to ask you to think only one move ahead.

By thinking one move ahead, I believe you can win the game of business. Here’s what I mean…

Think about your most successful competitor. I mean really think about them; go look at their website, examine the e-mails they’ve been sending out to their opt-in list, and analyze their promotions over the course of the past year.

I actually want you to be very specific about this. You’ll see why.

What is the next significant holiday coming up on the calendar? As I write this, it’s Thanksgiving in the United States. The next significant holiday for us is Christmas. Of course Christmas marketing has already begun in most industries, so for this exercise we need to jump to the next significant holiday (the reason will become apparent in just a moment).

The next significant holiday (after Christmas) is New Year’s Day. So while everyone else is thinking about how they’re going to market during the Christmas holiday, thinking one move ahead leads us to consider New Year’s Day.

Now look at those marketing materials from your competitor (in fact look at the marketing materials from all your significant competitors). What did they do to use New Year’s Day as a marketing angle last year?

Put on your thinking cap. Is there a way you can use, but modify and improve upon that idea this year?

The trick is that you have now done is thinking well in advance of New Year’s Day-while your competitors are still thinking about Christmas. This gives you the opportunity to get your promotional marketing materials into the hands of your prospects and customers long before your competitors do.

Now the fact is, the New Year’s Day holiday is actually bundled up (at least in the United States) in the triumvirate of holidays: Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day come as a three pack for us here.

So most companies already know what they’re going to be doing promotionally for the New Year’s Day holiday. But our little thought experiment has at least shown you how this process of “thinking one move ahead” works.

Now Think One More Move Ahead

It should be simple for you to see that the next significant holiday after New Year’s is in fact Valentine’s Day.

My suggestion for you is: start thinking about your Valentine’s Day promotion now.

Craft it carefully and strategically.

Put together superior marketing materials, copy, audio, video and what ever else you plan to use in your campaign. And launch that sucker on January 2. Your competitors won’t know what hit them.

And while they’re scrambling to figure out how to counteract your Valentine’s Day promotion, you’ll be busy assembling your promotion for St. Patrick’s Day… and Easter… and Mother’s Day.

Not Just For Holidays

You can apply the same principle to trends within your particular market segment.

Are most of your competitors only just now beginning to use audio on their webpages?

Or, are the people you compete with only just now discovering the power of blogs?

Time for you to think one move ahead: move onto video, video blogging, and social media. Establish a footprint long before your competitors do, and you will be nearly unassailable… all because you simply thought one move ahead.

And you don’t even have to be Bobby Fischer.

Tomorrow’s profit booster: Strap On The Profit Rocket.

In the United States, we’re celebrating Thanksgiving. In our tradition, this means expressing our gratitude for the bountiful harvest. It is a long-standing tradition, steeped in the mythology of the birth of our nation.

For many people, it is one of the very few times of the year they pause to truly reflect on what they’re thankful for.

In keeping with the idea of giving thanks, I’m about to suggest a simple strategy of thanks-giving that can also have a “boomerang effect”; by giving thanks, it’s possible to get thanks back in return. In the form of dollars in your bank account.

Which leads us to Tactic #2 in our 21-part series. Here’s the tactic…

Get out your trusty list of all past customers.

Even the ones who only spent a few dollars with you.

Now send each one of them a hand-written thank you note.

Yes, I said a hand-written thank you note.

Not one printed by computer, using a handwriting font.

Not a photocopied “hand-written” note. No, I’m suggesting you send each individual customer a short, quickly-written, perhaps even a little tough to read… hand written note. (HINT: I never said you personally had to write each one; just that it be written by a human hand.)

“But That Will Take Forever!”

I can already hear the protests that this is much too time-consuming.

I beg to differ.

Follow my reasoning: which has more impact on you… a computer printed note (which you can always detect, right?), or an obviously hand-written one?

My questions are a setup, of course. We all know that hand-written note is magnitudes more important and attention-getting to each of us.

How important do you think it is to create those emotions in your customers?

If you can reach a large number of your past customers, and grab a little piece of their attention, and make them feel a little special… do you think that’s likely to result in new or repeat business? Do you think it’s possible that they will recommend you to their friends and loved ones? Do you think it’s possible that when one of your competitors starts marketing aggressively to this customer, they’ll remember that handwritten note from you?

Now, if you simply stop with the thank-you note I don’t think your results are going to be very outstanding; although I do predict you’ll get some business if that’s all you ever do. But here comes the real power play…

How To Follow Up Your Thanks-giving Note With a Thanks-getting Note

The timing on this nextmaneuver is crucial.  If you wait too long, it won’t work nearly as well. Within two days of sending the thank you note, send a marketing communication.

My suggestion is this marketing communication be simple and to the point. It might say something like, “as an added thank you for being a loyal customer in the past, I’d like to make you aware of a special opportunity right now…”.

The keys to this tactic working  are:

1. The fact that the first note is genuinely handwritten.
2. The proximity (in time) of the second note to the first
3. The words “added thank you”. Because they evoke the memory of the thank you note.

Mess up one of those variables, and your results will diminish.

Is this groundbreaking?

Is it earth shattering?

No.

But it will work. The hand-written note will stand out from among all of the “fake” thank you notes your customers are getting from other businesses. Trust me. You’re going to be on a whole different level.

If you send a marketing communication within 48 hours of your customer receiving your hand-written note, your marketing communication will be at least seven times more effective than it would have been on its own.

Many of your past customers will thank you for your personal attention-and they’ll thank you in the form of new business.

Tomorrow’s profit booster: Bobby Fischer marketing.

Now, you may know that I worked in radio for over 25 years, and was very successful in that industry. I think I know my stuff when it comes to radio. But even I was blown away by some of the ideas Dave and I ended up discussing on this call.

There’s nothing for sale on the call; it’s pure ideas, tools, and tactics.

Listen to it online by clicking below.

Click to listen.

Enjoy.

The Point: Don’t make getting clients harder than it is. Physician, heal thyself!

The Resource:

5 Ways To Get More Clients Now:

1. Send an email.
2. Call people on the phone.
3. Go fishing in the forums.
4. Release a white paper.
5. Do a teleseminar.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

Click Here

The Answer: There are lots of options, including a very simple way to take online payments.

Three Ways To Take Online Payments:

1. Use Clickbank (for digital products).

2. Paypal works for physical products.

3. For full-fledged merchant accounts, use iPowerPay.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

How To Take Online Payments

Don’t worry about the podcast thing. If you don’t have an iPod, it still works with any MP3 player. And if you just don’t understand what “podcasting” is all about, simply download the audios from right here on the website.

First Question: “What are the basics of getting started online?”

This is a great question because there are plenty of people willing to sell you stuff in order to get your online business up and running.

First you need a domain name. You need to register a domain name. A place where your website “lives”. This is your address — which might be something like YourName.com.

For instance, RayEdwards.com is a domain that I own.

The second thing you need is a hosting account. This is an account that allows you to put your website up on the Internet for other people to see.

You can get a good hosting account at HostorixOnline.com.

The third thing you need is either web-design software or a web designer / webmaster… because somebody is going to need to be able to put together the web page that you put onto your hosting account.  If you want to do it yourself you’ll need some basic software to get the job done. If you’re going to have someone else do it, that means you’ll need a designer and/or webmaster to put that all together for you.

The fourth thing you’ll need is a graphic artist or some graphics to put on your website. Now, for a lot of reasons we won’t go into on today’s training I recommend not using a lot of graphics. But you do need a professional look and feel for your website so you may need some graphic elements — and you’re either going to have to create them yourself, buy the right to use certain graphic elements, or have a graphic artist to put that all together for you.

The next thing I would recommend you get is an autoresponder account, which is an account that allows you to build a mailing list so that you can mail to your customers or prospects.  It can also do this for you on an automated sequential basis, so once someone signs up for instance they get an email from you once a week for the next seven weeks or something of that nature.   I use aWeber.com for my autoresponder and email management.

Then finally you’re going to need shopping cart software or an account with a shopping cart company and that’s what allows you to take payments online when people buy your product or service. The company I use is NewMarketingAutomation.com.

Now each of these are somewhat complex discussions that we could probably spend a one-hour teleseminar talking about each of them. We may do that later on in the series — or I may create some videos that allow you to watch over my shoulder as I go through the process of each of these steps.

Let me know your preferred deliver method for this kind of material — do you prefer audio, text, video, or static screen shots?

I’d love to hear from you. Just leave your comments below.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

Click Here

“And how about Taguchi testing – do I have to use that, too? What about multivariate testing?” The questions go on and on in this often-confusing subject!

Now for the good news: split-testing is easy! By using simple, yet sophisticated, split-testing techniques, you can increase your conversions and gain more business.

Today’s resource is for you if you want an easy way to test your copy. By using Website Optimizer, you can easily test your writing. No, I’m not making bunches of money by recommending it – you can’t buy this software, so there’s no affiliate link here. But you can have it free, and it’s all courtesy of Uncle Google.

This is truly wonderful software. While it is very sophisticated, it is also easy to use. With all these features, you would expect to pay hundreds, even thousands of dollars. Not only can you use it to perform split-testing, it even does simple multivariate testing too.

While doing a traditional “split-test” means you test one element at a time, with multivariate testing you can do so much more. Test everything all at once, from your headlines and sub-heads to your background and graphic elements! The statistically-reliable testing offered by this program can help you sell more of whatever you sell by increasing your conversions.

Google has great tutorials right on their website to teach you how to use it, so I won’t spend a lot of time explaining that. Just read and watch the tutorials.

Here’s the easiest way I know of to start testing, and it will take you one hour or less to get started:

1. Get a Google account. Use this link to set it up.
2. Set up your first test. Follow the step-by-step instructions in Website Optimizer.
3. Start your test. Just click and let Google do all the work. The software can test all your copy, headlines, and so on, advising you which version will convert the most sales for your business.

It couldn’t be easier, and you sure can’t beat the price!

Check out Website Optimizer today. It’s the best way I know to get started split-testing.

Now, you may know that I worked in radio for over 25 years, and was very successful in that industry. I think I know my stuff when it comes to radio. But even I was blown away by some of the ideas Dave and I ended up discussing on this call.

There’s nothing for sale on the call; it’s pure ideas, tools, and tactics.

Listen to it online by clicking below.

Click to listen.

Enjoy.

Spam and the spam filters it has given rise to make it harder than ever to get your email delivered.

It’s even hard to receive email we want. How many times have you been frustrated because a friend, co-worker, or relative was supposed to send you an email that never arrived… only to discover that email in your “junk mail” or “spam” folder?

Here’s the good news: the death of email marketing has been greatly exaggerated.

Even though deliverability rates are lower than ever, email marketing still works, and is still responsible for many millions of dollars worth of sales. It can work for you as well.

3 Keys to Successful Email Marketing

First of all, keep a clean double opt-in email list. What this means: if someone signs up to receive email from you, you need to get them to confirm that they actually want to receive the email. Most email marketing providers, (like aweber and 1ShoppingCart) automatically require people to double opt-in to any email list. In some cases the “double opt-in” feature is optional… but I think it’s the best way to manage your email list. Single opt-in (no confirmation required) may yield bigger subscriber numbers (it does), but that list will be less responsive to your offers.

Secondly, educate your customers on how to white-list or authorize your emails to get through to their inbox. Usually this is just a case of having them put your email address into their address book; if they use a service like Spam Arrest they’ll have to go to the actual website and authorize your email address. Teach them how to do that, either using text and illustrations or with screen capture video.

The third key to successful email marketing is about boosting response rates to your messages. How do you do this? Make sure you send relevant and expected content to your list. Emailing your list frequently will get your emails through more readily and get you a lot fewer spam complaints. Why? Because if you send frequently people are going to do one of two things: they’re either going to read your email or unsubscribe. If you email them less frequently, you run the risk that they will forget who you are or even forget that they subscribed to your list… and that will generate spam complaints.

Use these keys to successful email marketing and watch your list numbers and response rates grow. Long live email marketing!

The Point: Internet readers don’t read; they skim, scan, and scroll.To suck them into your copy, use bullet points that are attention-arresting, super-scanable, scroll-stopping statements.

The Resource: My own Bullet Point Copy Explained

3 Simple Bullet Point Blueprints:

1. “How To [INSERT YOUR BENEFIT HERE]“. (“How to lose weight three times faster without ever feeling hungry or deprived”

2. “The Secret To [SOLUTION] They Don’t Want You To Know”. (“The secret to getting 60 mpg that big oil companies don’t want you to know”)

3. “The Single Most…That Even…”. (“The single most effective method of reversing heart disease that even Harvard-trained physicians have never heard about”)

Click for the Podcast Audio:

Click Here

The Point: Long copy sucks (the money right off the table!). The reason long copy works is the same as ever. You must answer every possible objection in order to make the sale.

The Resource: The Death of the Salesletter

3 Ways To Use Long Copy To Rake In More Sales:

1. Tell more (and better) stories.
2. Pile up a Preponderance of Proof
3. Explain your key points and propositions in a simple, step-by-step manner.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

Click Here

He really is offering some discounts on his products that are just… well… crazy. But hey, don’t let that stop you from taking advantage of him.

]]> http://rayedwards.com/stu-mclarens-pre-wedding-video/feed/ 4 http://rayedwards.com/dissolve-skepticism-like-magic/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=dissolve-skepticism-like-magic http://rayedwards.com/dissolve-skepticism-like-magic/#comments Fri, 05 Oct 2007 08:23:39 +0000 Ray Edwards http://rayedwards.com/list-building/dissolve-skepticism-like-magic/ The Story: Let’s assume you’re writing your own copy (maybe you can’t afford to hire a professional, or you just love writing copy for your own products).

One of your first tasks as a copywriter is to break down the skepticism that your prospects (readers, site visitors, subscribers) are feeling, and get them to believe you – even just a little bit.

The Point: How do you break through that skepticism? Testimonials and proof elements.

The Resource: Any late-night infomercial

3 Ways To Use Testimonials or Proof:

1. Add more testimonials.
2. Show photographs (before and after).
3. Show evidence (pictures or screen grabs).

Click for the Podcast Audio:

Click Here

The Story: It’s one of the most common mistakes in all forms of selling – not asking for the sale.

Hard to believe? Maybe. But it’s true anyway; people just don’t want to ask for the order.

The Point: There comes a point where you’ve presented all the benefits of your offer; you’ve demonstrated its value; you’ve supplied lots of credible testimonials; you’ve shown your iron-clad guarantee… and you just need to ask for the sale.

On the Internet, this can be as easy as putting in a link that says “Order Now”.

The Resource: Gitomer

3 Ways To Un-Wimpify Your Copy:

1. Ask for the order plainly.
2. Ask for the order early.
3. Ask for the order more often.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

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Or you felt like they were talking over your head, using a lot of buzzwords and lingo you didn’t understand?

Me too.

That leads to this little tip that will really help your copy make more sales (or generate more leads, or whatever you need it to do)…

The Point: Copy should read like conversation; it should flow naturally and be easy to listen to (or read).

The Resource: Any tabloid. I like the Enquirer.

3 Ways To Keep It Simple:

1. Use strong, punchy language.
2. Write in short sentences and paragraphs.
3. Avoid jargon.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

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The Point: The reason the old formulae are less effective is: it’s harder to get people’s attention these days. Time to step up your game.

The Resource: Attention Age Doctrine

3 Keys To Grabbing Their Attention:

1. Change Their State.
2. Stop Their Inner Chatter.
3. Appeal To Their Greed, Lust, Or Moving-Away Values.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

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The Point: It’s not your website. It’s theirs (if you want to succeed).

The Resource: YouTube

How To Make It About The User:

1. Know your users.
2. Know your users.
3. Know your users.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

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The Point: Learn to repurpose your products as well as those of others for maximum profit.

The Resource: Apple

3 Ways To Repurpose Your Content or Products:

1. Change print to text.
2. Change audio to text.
3. Change text to articles, blog posts, press releases, and emails.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

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It seems hard to believe.

But a TechCrunch article seems to show that MySpace is stealing content from Paul Colligan.

Am I missing something?

Can someone explain to me how this is okay?

Has the world gone mad?

The Point: Carefully consider the message you’re sending when you employ scarcity in your marketing message.

The Resource: Influence, by Dr. Robert Cialdini

3 Mistakes To Avoid When Using The Scarcity Tactic:

1. Telling lies.
2. Not demonstrating the reason why there is scarcity.
3. Allowing readers to form negative conclusions about the scarcity.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

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How did they do that?

The Point: We already know how to do what Apple did. We just don’t like to do it.

It takes imagination.

It takes guts.

It takes money.

The Resource: Apple

3 Ways To Use iPhone-style Marketing In Your Business:

1. Do what others do… in a way that is infinitely more cool.
2. Marry good function with oustanding form (packaging).
3. Fill the experience of doing business with you with pleasant little surprises.
Click for the Podcast Audio:

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Stories are attention magnets.

The Point: Too many online marketers adhere to the “just the facts” approach — or worse, they engage in “hype”.

This costs these unfortunate marketers sales and profits.

Integrate a powerful story into your copy and test the results.

The Resource: All Marketers Are Liars, by Seth Godin

3 Ways To Use Stories In Your Marketing:

1. Attention grabbers that draw people into the copy.
2. Rapport builders that mirror your reader’s dominant emotion.
3. Proof elements that create mental images of your product working for the reader.
Click for the Podcast Audio:

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The Point: Writing copy that sells without using hype is easy to do.

The Resource: The Copy Doctor

3 Ways To Eliminate Hype In Your Copy:

1. Talk about the reader’s pain.
2. Tell relevant stories.
3. Use detail, not description.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

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The Point: Spend an hour adding audio to key parts of your website and watch conversions soar.

The Resource: AudioGenerator

3 Places to Use Audio For Better Conversions:

1. Squeeze Page
2. Sales Page (in the Guarantee!).
3. Order Page.
Click for the Podcast Audio:

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The Point: A few simple steps can start an endless flow of testimonials you couldn’t shut off if you tried.

The Resource: Ray’s Automated Testimonial Machine

3 Ways To Get More Testimonials

1. Ask for them.
2. Set up an ATM (Automated Testimonial Machine).
3. Ask repeatedly (in your autoresponders).

Click for the Podcast Audio:

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The Point: For a quick boost in the results your copy brings, bone up on these books.

The Resource: SFS Bookstore

3 Books on Copywriting… And One Other:

1. The Robert Collier Letter Book, Robert Collier
2. Scientific Advertising, Claude Hopkins
3. Reason Why Advertising, John E. Kennedy
4. Green Eggs and Ham, Dr. Seuss.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

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The Point: The secret of slaughtering your competition is to be 2mm better… in at least 3 categories that matter to customers.

The Resource: 21 Fundamentals of Online Success

5 “2mm Differences” That Matter:

1. Look and feel.
2. Followup Marketing.
3. Testing and Tracking.
4. Adwords Campaigns.
5. Backend Sales.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

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The Point: When you know how, it’s easy to get all the clients you can handle.

The Resource: Gitomer

5 Step System For Getting Copy Clients:

1. Develop your marketing site.
2. Use a sales process.
3. Screen your clients carefully.
4. Use followup marketing.
5. Attend seminars and network.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

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The Point: Anyone can increase their conversions by using simple split-testing.

The Resource: Website Optimizer

Here’s the easiest way I know of to start testing (one hour or less):

1. Get a Google account (use the link).
2. Set up your first test.
3. Get the test started.

What do you think?

I welcome and invite your comments (click the link at the bottom of this post).

Click for the Podcast Audio:

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The Point: There are specific reasons why long copy works, has always worked, and will always work… when used correctly

The Resource: www.WebCopyWritingExplained.com

Here are three reasons long copy works:

1. We love to read about what we love.
2. Online is not like selling face to face; you need to answer all possible objections.
3. Long copy allows you to tell a story.

Here’s the Four-Part Sales Letter Formula (credit to John Carlton):

1. Here’s what I have to offer.
2. Here’s why it’s right for you.
3. Here are some questions you may have.
4. Here’s what to do now.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

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The Story: If you sell to narrowly focused niches, you’ll make more money.

The Point: A lot of people say “niche marketing” is dead; nothing could be further from the truth.

The Resource: “5k In 30 Days”

5 steps to your niche market empire fast and easy:

1. Locate a product.
2. Set up your sales page and testing software.
3. Link payment pages to Clickbank or Paypal.
4. Use Adwords to drive traffic.
5. Repeat.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

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Just in case you need something to do over the weekend, here’s a selection of fine, hand-picked links for your surfing enjoyment.

Is there money in blogging? Depends on how you intend to make that money.

How to write better titles. Worth your time, trust me.

Is advertising on its way out? Or is it just changing?

The best bloggers are connectors. So says my buddy Ryan Healy, and I agree. Subscribe to Ryan’s feed.

Great “swipe file” material. And while you’re at it, subscribe to Ben’s feed too.

Not for the easily offended. But filled with great information.

Enjoy the links… and consider subscribing to this blog in your RSS reader.

New podcast on Monday… have a great holiday weekend (US readers)!

The Point: The techniques of list-building are really quite simple; three techniques you can use today.

The Resource: www.MyFirstListOnline.com <– Free List-Building Tips

Here are three tactics you can use to build your list fast:

1. Use a “squeeze page”.
2. Do “ad swaps” with other list owners.
3. Use forum postings to get opt-ins.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

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The Point: While it’s true that the “standard” product launch won’t produce the way it did a year ago, the strategy of using product launches is as strong as ever.

The Resource: www.TheProductLaunchFormula.com

Here are three tactics you can use to boost launch results:

1. Use the “reverse squeeze page”.
2. Give away your best material right up front.
3. Give your sublist a strong, personal story to follow.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

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The Point: There are proven methods for increasing your opt-in conversions; all it takes is a small amount of work.

The Resource: www.WebCopyWritingExplained.com <– Copywriting Videos

Here are three tactics you can use to get more opt-ins:

1. Make a stronger offer.
2. Use a bigger, “responsive” HTML button
3. Keep all distractions off your opt-in page.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

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The Point: You can instantly increase your optins and sales by correcting these specific mistakes.

The Resource: www.WebCopyWritingExplained.com <– Copywriting Videos

What are the three most common mistakes made by copywriters? They’re not grammar or syntax errors. They are rather errors in approach or mindset. While these may seem to be “soft” topics, they directly affect your results. The mistakes are:

1. Not writing to the reader
2. Writing copy that sounds like copy
3. Not taking the time to know their product

Click for the Podcast Audio:

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Where is this money – and how do you get it?

Most businesses have many hidden opportunities for discovering “windfall profits” – but I want to focus on just one of those opportunities in this article.

That “opportunity pocket” is: marketing and advertising.

In my experience, almost every business – whether it be retail, service, professional practice, or “business to business” in its nature – is unconsciously letting profits slip away.

Your biggest opportunity most likely lies hidden inside your underperforming sales copy (copy that isn’t selling as many units/contracts/ memberships as it potentially could be).

If you want to make more sales without spending a single dime in additional ad costs, this article might be the most important document you read this year…

Make Piles of Money With “Upside Leverage”

“Upside Leverage” is a concept I learned from marketing genius Jay Abraham.

We all know what leverage is: using other people’s money to build your business, or other people’s efforts (through delegation, for instance) to increase your own productivity.

“Leverage” involves using one asset (the lever) to increase the value or power of another. The only problem with using “leverage” is the potential downside: if you use financial leverage to borrow money for a business project, the project could possibly fail, and you would be forced to pay back the money. If you use the leverage of delegation in order to make yourself more productive, there’s a chance the person you’re relying on might let you down.

“Upside” leverage is leverage that involves little or no potential downside.

It’s my belief that underperforming sales copy is the most potentially profitable of all forms of “upside leverage”.

Please read that sentence again, because it’s too easy to let the profound meaning it contains slip past you:

Underperforming sales copy is the most potentially profitable of all forms of “upside leverage”.

Think of it this way: any ad or promotion costs the same whether it performs well or not, right? If you spend $100 on an ad, and you get $500 in business as a result, you made a 5-1 return on your investment. That’s a good return. You did what you set out to do, you made a profit.

But… what if you could take that same ad, and change it in some way that made it 10 times more effective?

What if now it returned $5,000?

You spent the same $100 for the ad… but you got back $5,000.

Instead of a 5-1 return, now you’re getting 50-1! That, my marketing friend, is “upside leverage”!

Change Your Copy, Change Your Income

There is so much bad copy on the web, it’s almost laughably easy to be better than most of your competitors.

Why is that?

I believe there are a number of reasons, but here are a few of the common ones:

1. Some people just don’t realize their copy is bad. They wrote it themselves, or their brother or their niece wrote it. They think it’s wonderful – but in reality it stinks like a dead skunk.

2. Others don’t realize how important their sales copy is. This is a naive belief, and it astounds me that so many people hold it – but they do. Some people seem to think that as long at the copy has “just the facts”, that’ll be good enough. It never is.

3. Some people are just cheap. They spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to start a business, buy furniture, hire staff, provide benefits, etc., but when it comes to the one piece of communication that might actually cause someone to buy from them – they don’t want to pay for it. They “delegate” this crucial task. Big mistake.

Are you making any of these mistakes? If you are, this is your wake-up call.

Take advantage of the potential “upside leverage” that exists in every ad or promotion. Make sure you ads are performing – that they are making you sales every day. And that they are making you more sales this week than they did last week, etc.

You do this through constant improvement and testing/tracking.

You also do it by either hiring a copywriter, or investing in educational materials that will teach you how to write your own copy. Either one can work – it’s up to you. If you love to write, and you think you have a knack for it, then by all means get a good home-study course on copywriting and do it yourself.

Don’t put it off – do it right now. Otherwise, you’re throwing money away that rightfully belongs to you.

To see a model that’s getting up to 80% opt-ins, take this quiz.

After you take the quiz, you’ll get a video that will show you how to build opt-in pages that average between 60-80% conversion from visitor to subscriber.

You’ll even get a download link to a free beta of the software that creates these opt-in pages for you. Seriously. No “upsell”. No “one time offer”.

I’m going to be testing the software on my own pages, and I will update you with the results.

For now, I recommend you give it a try yourself: get the software here.

So how do we put Seth’s ideas to work in our own businesses?

Why are some businesses remarkable and others are not?

A story about my friend Felix will help you understand how to make your business or service stand out — even in a field where there are many choices all offering much the same service.

Felix is a cab driver.

When I travel to the many Internet Marketing Seminars I attend each year, I often have Felix pick me up from my front doorstep and deliver me to the airport.

That’s because I’m forced to take early flights (from Spokane, you must connect to a major airport to get anywhere), and my wife is usually not thrilled about taking me to the airport at 4:00 in the morning.

Felix owns and operates a single taxi cab in Spokane, and he does it with spectacular success.

What makes him different from all of the other taxi cab operators? I like to think it’s three factors which I denote by the initials PSA.

P is for Personality. Felix’s service is personality-driven by his irascible, talkative, and friendly style.

S is for Service. Felix is service-oriented. He never says no, his cab is immaculately clean and in top physical condition, and there are always candies in the dish on the dashboard.

A is for adaptable. Felix is always adaptable, even if he cannot supply my ride to the airport, he’s the first one to suggest another cab driver who will be able to get me to my destination on time. Integrating these parts of the Felix Factor into your own marketing for your company can make a world of difference.

So What Do You Do With This Information?

Ask yourself how you can you make your product or service more personal, more service-focused, and more adaptable to the needs of your customer, and you just might find you’ve learned some valuable lessons from a small-town taxi driver named Felix.

Bret Ridgway, the founder and CEO of Speaker Fulfillment Services, has a great article on his blog about integrating Paypal and 1ShoppingCart.

It’s a simplified set of step-by-step instructions.

If you’re interested in taking payments via Paypal, and you use 1ShoppingCart (or any of its many private label versions like Marketer’s Choice, Website Automator, and 1AutomationWiz), you will find this article very helpful.

A list of prospects and buyers that you can use as a foundation for your online business. 

It’s harder than ever to build e-mail lists online, as customers are more reluctant to opt in for free e-zines (or other mailing lists) than ever before. 

What’s the best way to build an e-mail list?  Rest assured, e-mail marketing is just as important now as it ever has been, and perhaps even moreso.  So what do you do?  My advice is to use offline marketing to build your online e-mail list.  This is a tactic that is seldom employed by online marketers, and yet it is the most powerful way to build an e-mail list I know of.  Why is this?  Because people who move from an offline promotion to an online mailing list make up the most responsive e-mail list you will ever have.

Here are three ways you can use offline media to build your online mailing list.:

Radio

Radio is an overlooked but inexpensive and effective medium for building an online e-mail list.  If you’re going to use radio, make sure your radio ad is a direct response style. The key to this kind of ad is that it simply directs people to a landing page (or squeeze page) that offers them something for free in return for their name and e-mail address.  Even though the squeeze page technique is harder to implement in today’s online marketing world, with the people who move offline to online response rates are stellar.  

Direct Mail

Using postcards, you can build an e-mail list very quickly using inexpensive direct mail promotions.  Make sure that you buy quality, targeted lists to mail to. Also make sure that the copy you used in your direct mail is targeted, effective, and powerful.  

Outdoor Advertising

If you can squeeze your opt in message into seven words or less, including the domain name, consider using outdoor advertising.  Billboard companies frequently make killer, bargain-basement deals to fill up unused billboard space each month.  Negotiate your deal toward the end of the month, and let them know that they are competing with other media for your business, and you should be able to get the best available rate.

Use these offline methods to build your online list and watch response rates rise.

“As the go-to copy writer for many of the web’s most successful marketers, Ray Edwards has had the opportunity to observe the businesses and more importantly the thought processes of the top “players” in the online business world.
 
Ray has masterfully distilled the wisdom gained from these million dollar clients (and many other mentors, teachers and authors) into 21 fundamentals that anyone can adopt and apply in their own lives to achieve real and lasting success.
 
As someone who has already achieved a certain degree of success online, I can tell you from experience that the fundamental principles ray explains on this CD will transform the quality of your life.
 
The principles Ray shares will not only ensure your online success, but also (if acted upon) ensure your success in all areas of your life.
 
Anyone who has not yet achieved their goals online or offline (and even those who have) should listen to this powerful audio program a minimum of 7 times and then refer back to it on a regular basis.
 
I know I will.  Thanks Ray!

Eric Graham
http://conversiondoctor.com

Grab your copy at the low $47 price before it goes to $97 at 9am Pacific on Thursday 5/24.

A "squeeze page" is one that forces your site visitors to give you their name and email address in exchange for some kind of bribe… an audio training, a special report, or piece of software.

Making a free offer to your site visitors in exchange for their name and e-mail address is a great way to grow your e-mail list, but it has to be done carefully so that you don’t also drive away potential customers. 

Here are some things to think about…

You know it’s important to grow your e-mail list. The bigger the list, the more people will see your offers, and the more money you will make. 

The challenge in today’s internet marketing world is it’s harder than ever to convince people to opt in.  A squeeze page is probably the best list building tool available, but you must be careful.  Using a squeeze page the wrong way can hurt your business more than it helps. 

It’s best to use a squeeze page on a site that is built to sell one product.  For example, if you have a site that features a sales letter selling a particular product or service, placing a squeeze page in front of the information about that product or service is a good idea.  This keeps readers from being distracted; it sifts and sorts potential buyers by level of seriousness; and it gives you a list of interested parties that you can go back and market to repeatedly. 

One of the biggest mistakes I see being made online is putting a squeeze page in front of the wrong kinds of sites. 

Don’t put a squeeze page in front of your portal site, your branding site, or your blog.  Putting a squeeze page in front of  those kinds of sites does not make sense.  Those sites have a very different purpose than sites that are intended to sell one targeted product or promotion. 

Remember that your squeeze page is a gate. 

It keeps people out of your website and it can potentially scare off your customers. 

If you have a strong enough offer, a video, an audio, or special report, you may be able to get people to opt in and build a very targeted list using a squeeze page. 

The growing problems of spam, viruses and spyware have made people more reluctant than ever to give up their name and e-mail address. 

Squeeze pages can definitely build your list fast. These pages are a powerful tool that I recommend to all of my clients; just be sure to use them in the appropriate situation. 

What do you think? Are squeeze pages more or less effective than they once were? Post your comments below.

Last night I conducted a coaching call for my private coaching students group, and I was nervous about doing it.

  The reason: up until now, I had only done practical, "how to" information on our group coaching sessions.

This one was different.

It was about something more "touchy feely" and I wasn’t sure how it would be received.

Last night’s call was on "The 21 Fundamentals of Online Success". It was a 70-minute call, and I jammed as much value into that session as I possibly could.

As a copywriter, I’ve had the privilege of working with some very successful clients (including Alex Mandossian, Mark Victor Hansen, Ed Dale, Brad Callen, Frank Kern, Jack Canfield, Joel Comm, Willie Crawford, and many others).

I’ve seen what makes them tick.

I’ve studied their businesses, and observed the common success factors that they all share. I have also combined that knowledge with my long-standing study of greats like Napoleon Hill (hence, Napoleon Hill’s Internet Marketing secrets…), Brian Tracy, Tony Robbins, and others.

That combined information — which is available nowhere else at any price — formed the basis of what I taught on last night’s call.

Still, I worried that my students might not find it "practical".

I should not have worried; I’ve already gotten more rave reviews for last nights call than any other single session I’ve conducted.

One example: "Really enjoyed tonight’s call (module 9). In retrospect I think it was worth the cost of the entire course, just by itself. I’m not exaggerating."

I’ve already converted that call into a standalone audio product. It’s a physical audio CD, which will be shipped automatically to my customers without me lifting a finger.

I did it in less than 24 hours from creation to completion.

Within the next week or two, I’ll teach a few students how to do exactly what I did to get their first product out the door and making sales.

In the meantime, you can get a copy of the product for only $27.

I will keep raising it until it reaches $97.

Note from Ray: Response has been great! Thanks to everyone who purchased a copy. As of Sunday 5/6/2007 (and as promised), the price has been raised to $47. The next increase will come later this week, and will go to $67… so if you want a copy, you should buy it now.

So my advice is, if you want to know the specific, concrete, 21 Fundamentals of Online Success, grab a copy for yourself while it’s still only $27 $47.

Claim your copy here.

I offer regular teleconferences where you can get some questions answered in a live call.

1. I’ll always email you ahead of time about the call details, so you don’t have to worry about that.

2. To make sure you get your questions answered, just input them at: http://www.AskRayEdwards.com .

We also do some Q&A on the calls, but it’s best if you can get your questions in early at the above address.

Not only did he win the cash, he also got a brand new laptop computer.

Andrew didn’t win by luck — it was a contest of skill. He (and the other contestants, who all were remarkable) worked feverishly over the last few months improving his online business and documenting the results. Andrew’s presentation showcasing his efforts included a video and a superhero costume. I don’t currently have any pictures, though I’m sure some will turn up. Congrats, Andrew!

You may know his incredible story of how he went from selling a few copies of an ebook to doing a full Product Launch and raking in over $44,000 in a single week. He has an incredible product for pet lovers, by the way.

If you’d like to know the whole story, I did an interview with Andrew not long ago about how he did it — and you can listen to that interview by pressing the triangular “Play” button below. It’s an inspiring tale of how a person with no past experience was able to start a whole new business online.

Ray Edwards interviews Dr. Andrew Jones

Now don’t get confused; long sales copy websites almost always sell more than "short copy" sites. But…

WITHIN your long copy, keep everything short; specifically, I mean you should keep your sentences and your paragraphs short.

A paragraph in a sales letter should be no more than 3-4 sentences long – and they should be short sentences.

People will read more of your copy if the sentences and paragraphs are short.

This is especially important on the first page (or the first screen, if it’s online) of your sales letter, when you are trying to draw them into your story.

Don’t scare people off with big blocks of text.

Short and sweet is best.

One of your first tasks as a copywriter is to break down the skepticism that your prospects (readers, site visitors, subscribers) are feeling, and get them to believe you – even just a little bit.

Once that initial barrier of skepticism comes down, you have a chance of making a sale.

How do you break through that skepticism?

Testimonials.

You need lots of testimonials in your copy. How many? As many as you can get.

Here’s a good rule of thumb: however many you have now, get 25% more.

Hard to believe? Maybe. But it’s true anyway; people just don’t want to ask for the order.

There comes a point where you’ve presented all the benefits of your offer; you’ve demonstrated its value; you’ve supplied lots of credible testimonials; you’ve shown your iron-clad guarantee… and you just need to ask for the sale.

On the Internet, this can be as easy as putting in a link that says "Order Now".

Online software mogul and marketing expert Armand Morin usually has anywhere from 5-14(!) order links on each of his sales pages; he says that the more "order links" he adds, the more sales he makes.

And by the way…all of these tips, techniques, and tactics are incorporated into copy I write for my clients. Does it make a difference for them? Just ask Aden Rusfeldt – the copy I wrote for him created a 197% increase in sales.

That’s what my good friend Michel Fortin (a great copywriter) says, and he’s paraphrasing the great sales trainer Zig Ziglar (the original quote was "Wimpy salespeople have skinny kids.").

Here’s why this is important to your sales copy:

In the beginning, you only have one chance to grab the reader’s attention. That chance is the HEADLINE.

Make sure your headline is strong, aggressive (without being pushy), and compelling.

Think of your headline as the sales pitch to get the prospect to read the whole ad, letter, or web page.

You get one shot. You can’t afford to blow it.

A poor headline for an automotive shop:

"Our Experienced Staff Can Tend to Your Every Automotive Need, And Are ASE Certified with the Guaranteed Lowest Prices."

A much better headline for the same client:

"Hidden Mechanical Problems With Your Car Are Threatening The Health And Safety Of Your Family!  Our 9-Point Safety Inspection Could Save Their Lives – And Give You Peace of Mind…"

Try it! It will make a difference.

Now, you may know that I worked in radio for over 25 years, and was very successful in that industry. I think I know my stuff when it comes to radio. But even I was blown away by some of the ideas Dave and I ended up discussing on this call.

There’s nothing for sale on the call; it’s pure ideas, tools, and tactics.

Listen to it online by clicking below.

Click to listen.

Enjoy.

When it comes to writing ads (and when I say ads, I mean everything from web pages to emails to postcards!), it’s  hard to find better advice than Ernest Hemingway’s Four Rules of Writing.

Hemingway’s Four Rules of Writing

1. Use short sentences.
2. Use short first paragraphs.
3. Use vigorous English.
4. Be positive, not negative.

Those rules are posted on the wall behind my computer monitor. You could do worse than to post them near yours.

There are only a few simple things you need to get started making money with your own internet-based business.

It’s not complicated, really.

Let me break it down for you. I’ll tell you the basic items you need, and Google can tell you the rest (just search for information on the areas where your knowledge is weak or incomplete). Here’s what you need:

1. A Product. Obviously, you need something to sell. This could be software, or items you sell on eBay, or a service, or an information product. People get hung up on how to come up with a product — and the truth is that products are the easiest thing in the world to get. It’s taking action that’s tough.

2. A Domain Name. This seems obvious, but you need a name for your business. You can get one at http://NewHostingPlan.com.

3. A Web Page. I say “page” instead of “site” because a “site” seems complicated. A “page” seems easy, doesn’t it? You can get one through http://NewHostingPlan.com.

4. Web Page Software. You need to build a page with content on it. You can do it yourself with free software from http://nvu.com, or you can use a paid product like Dreamweaver (which is available at http://www.adobe.com/products/dreamweaver/). If you don’t want to do it you can get a designer at http://sitepoint.com.

5. Graphics. You need a logo and a “look and feel” for your products or services. Again, you can use free software (like that at http://www.gimp.org) or you can buy something like Photoshop (at http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop/compare/). Or you can get someone to do it for you at http://sitepoint.com.

6. Autoresponder Account. This is an account that allows you to build a mailing list so that you can mail to your customers or prospects. It can also do this for you on an automated sequential basis, so once someone signs up they get an email from you on a regular basis (automatically). The service I use and recommend is http://RaysAutoResponder.com.

7. Shopping Cart Software. You need to be able to take payments somehow, right? My advice is to get a nice, proven, all-in-one solution. I use http://newmarketingautomation.com.

Now, each of these are somewhat complex discussions that we could probably spend a one-hour teleseminar talking about each of them. Do a quick search on Google – there are plenty of online resources that will teach you more about each of these subjects.

You now know the basic building blocks needed to build your online business.

Can you spend years learning to master it all? Yes. But is it simple enough to get the basics in just a few minutes (as you just did)? Yes.

Don’t let yourself get overwhelmed. Just remember these basics, figure out which pieces you already have… and figure out what the next logical step might be. Then just do it!

Spam and the spam filters it has given rise to make it harder than ever to get your email delivered.

It’s even hard to receive email we want. How many times have you been frustrated because a friend, co-worker, or relative was supposed to send you an email that never arrived… only to discover that email in your “junk mail” or “spam” folder?

Here’s the good news: the death of email marketing has been greatly exaggerated.

Even though deliverability rates are lower than ever, email marketing still works, and is still responsible for many millions of dollars worth of sales. It can work for you as well.

3 Keys to Successful Email Marketing

First of all, keep a clean double opt-in email list. What this means: if someone signs up to receive email from you, you need to get them to confirm that they actually want to receive the email.  Most email marketing providers, (like aweber and 1ShoppingCart) automatically require people to double opt-in to any email list. In some cases the “double opt-in” feature is optional… but I think it’s the best way to manage your email list. Single opt-in (no confirmation required) may yield bigger subscriber numbers (it does), but that list will be less responsive to your offers.

Secondly, educate your customers on how to white-list or authorize your emails to get through to their inbox.  Usually this is just a case of having them put your email address into their address book; if they use a service like Spam Arrest they’ll have to go to the actual website and authorize your email address. Teach them how to do that, either using text and illustrations or with screen capture video.

The third key to successful email marketing is about boosting response rates to your messages. How do you do this? Make sure you send relevant and expected content to your list.  Emailing your list frequently will get your emails through more readily and get you a lot fewer spam complaints. Why?  Because if you send frequently people are going to do one of two things: they’re either going to read your email or unsubscribe. If you email them less frequently, you run the risk that they will forget who you are or even forget that they subscribed to your list… and that will generate spam complaints.

Use these keys to successful email marketing and watch your list numbers and response rates grow. Long live email marketing!

Bob Bly’s ‘Copywriter’s Handbook’. This really is the gold standard that gives the best overall explanation of what copywriting is all about. It covers not only direct response copywriting which, is primarily what this blog is devoted to, but all sorts of copywriting. Whether it’s for radio, brochures, or even business cards I think you’ll really get a lot of value out of Bob’s book.

Dan Kennedy’s ‘The Ultimate Sales Letter’. He’s one of the deans of copywriting… and this book is pure gold. Dan lays out a good basic system for writing copy in this brief and highly-readable book.

Claude Hopkins, ‘Scientific Advertising’. This is one of the classics of direct marketing advertising, especially for copywriters. It’s a little bit tougher read just because it was written not long after the turn of the previous century, so the language seems a bit archaic and a bit more formal than what we’re accustomed to, but the principles stand clear and true as ever.

Eugene Schwartz’s Breakthrough Advertising. Not the kind of “light and easy” read you find in the business and marketing books of today, this volume will yield wealth to those who study it. Gene managed to squeeze the most “content per paragraph” into his work I think I have ever seen. Read it and see if you don’t agree. Yes, some of the examples and copy seem dated, but like Hopkins work the principles remain true.

That ought to keep you busy for a few days!

1. It’s good for business. It wasn’t always this way. When I started blogging it was more about self-expression. It didn’t take long for me to realize blogging was building my business, too. I get a steady flow of new business from people who say something like, “Well, I started reading your blog and finally decided I would call you.”
2. Self-expression. Once upon a time, I was a radio DJ. Highly-rated, successful, and loving it. Being on the radio was my own personal megaphone. It was my way of being heard. Now I get that same satisfaction from blogging. You can too. Now everyone’s a DJ!
3. Building a relationship with my readers. There’s nothing like a blog to build a relationship with your readers. My blog is the source of most of the conversations I have with my readers. Why? I have some theories, but the fact is they don’t matter. It just works.
4. Marketing. I know there are many who say you can’t “monetize” a blog. Really? My own blog has brought me… well, let’s call it “a substantial amount” of revenue. And I don’t even use Adsense (as of this writing). One of the very best Internet Marketers is a guy name Dave Winer. And you’d never categorize him as a marketer… but last year he made over 7 figures using his blog as the primary marketing medium. Even as as I write this, he’s in the beginnings of a “product launch”, though most of his readers probably don’t realize it.
5. Research and testing. The quickest way I know to test a new idea, get some feedback, or get an answer is… make an appropriate post on my blog.

Okay, those are my 5 reasons for blogging. And now, I tag:

• Ben Settle
• JP Maroney
• Stu McLaren
• Jeff Mills
• Alice Seba

I don’t believe in “writer’s block”. You shouldn’t either. I think it’s a myth. Worse, I think it’s an excuse for just not doing your job.

I’m not saying that it isn’t sometimes difficult to sit down and start writing. It often is difficult, for one reason or another.

However, the same could be said of a plumber, a carpenter or even a doctor. Have you ever heard of a surgeon saying, “I just can’t do this surgery today. I’ve got surgeon’s block.”?

Of course not.

But there are undoubtedly days where even surgeons don’t feel like doing their job. Maybe they’re distracted, they’re tired, or they have other things on their minds. But there is no such thing as “surgeon’s block”… or “writer’s block”.

What should you do on days when you just don’t feel like writing anything?

I’ve found the quickest cure is to decide: there’s no such thing as writer’s block… and just start writing.

Write anything. Start with the easy stuff.

Write the contact information that’s going to go on your sales letter or website.

Write the copyright information.

Write filler text such as “Insert Brilliant Headline Goes Here”.

Write the details of what you’re offering. I’m talking about the simple stuff you don’t have to think in order to write.

What’s the price? What’s the address of your company? Where do customers send the checks?

Just start writing.

Once you’ve loosened up a bit, start writing some bullet points. Write as many bullets as you possibly can, remembering to keep each of them focused on benefits of the product (not just features of the product).

You can just write pages of bullets and eventually you’ll get into the flow of writing.

Most of the time, you’ll disover you can use a lot of the bullets you’ve written as thought starters for headlines, for sub-heads, for section heads, etc. Heck, maybe you’ll even use them as bullets.

And guess what?

Now you’ve “broken through your writer’s block”.

Don’t you already know the answer? Templates are not a substitute for good copywriting. However…

They are a great tool, if you keep three key points in mind.

Three Keys to Making Effective Use of Copywriting Templates

1. Recognize the templates for what they are. Templates are not a “fill in the blanks” substitute for writing copy. The most obvious reason is the likelihood that others are using the exact same templates. Do you want your salesletter to read word-for-word like your competitors? Of course not!

Here’s what templates are: a proven example of copy that works. When you are using a proven template (like Dr. Kilstein’s Steal This Book! or David Gafinkel’s Copywriting Templates (perhaps not available anymore – sorry if the link is dead), you have winning copy to model. So there are definitely things to be learned from them. Study and mimic the rhythm, cadence, style and structure of a template and use that as a guide when you’re writing your copy. It’s much easier than staring down a blank page, but not the same as “fill in the blanks”.

2. Don’t use the template as a crutch. I think everybody who has used copywriting teimplates has fallen into this trap – at least I know I did in the early days of my copywriting career. Now don’t get me wrong: I’m not saying you should reinvent the wheel every time we write. We should study and learn from successful campaigns of the past. That does not mean we should take a template, do a “search & replace” to put our product name in the letter and call that good. I know of at least one fairly well-known copywriter who does just that (no, I won’t say who it is. You can figure it out if you try hard enough.)

There is another danger in copying too much from a template; our prospects, the people we are writing our copy to, are getting bored with our copy. They see the same headlines, the same deck copy and the same approach over and over and over. Often what’s really needed is a fresh approach.

I’m not saying reinvent the wheel.

I’m not saying don’t study the great masters of copywriting.

What I am saying is don’t let your templates become a crutch.

3. Study what’s already being done in your field. No, you’re no looking for more templates! I’m recommending you study what’s being done by other marketers in your niche so that you know (a) what’s working and (b) how to avoid looking like a copycat! I alluded to this earlier: what if your direct competitor is using the exact same template as you? Then you’re going to look like an unethical copycat. Or even worse, you’re going to look like a thief.

If you keep these points in mind, copywriting templates can be an incredible resource that accelerates your pathway to profits.

That’s my opinion – what’s yours? Please share your thoughts by adding a comment below!

I agree with most of what Michel has to say in that report.

Want to see some very short sales copy for a $1,250 seminar that is converting like crazy? Then take a look at this. It breaks all the so-called rules. But don’t try this on your own, kids. There are some very important reasons why this is working, and they are not all obvious.

That being said…them that hath an eye, let them see.

Seth Godin was looking for someone to take over the Z List lens. I volunteered.

I want to do my best to make this lens as good as it can possibly be — so your input is valuable. Take a look, add your own site, vote. Thanks!

Click here to see The Z List on Squidoo.

This myth has always struck me as false — or at least only partially true.

I believe that when it comes right down to it, you must have some writing talent. If you don’t, your copy will not be brilliant. It may not even be good. In most cases, it will just be bad.

I see plenty of evidence that the last is the most common result.

There is another myth that if one studies enough of the right manuals, or attends enough of the right seminars, one can learn to write well. Frankly, if you don’t have some native talent — a “knack”, if you will — I don’t think all the classes, courses, or seminars in the world can help you much.

Stephen King would agree with me, I suspect. In a recent article he penned for the Washington Post, King wrote: “The only things that can teach writing are reading, writing and the semi-domestication of one’s muse.”

So there it is, then.
My opinion is that not everyone can learn to be a great (or even good) writer. Everyone is born with a certain aptitude (or lack of it), and they’re pretty much stuck with that aptitude. They can take classes or be taught to make the most of it, but they are always limited to a certain range in the development of their craft.
What do you think?

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=87122591528

Take 2 minutes, fill out the survey, and I’ll give you exclusive access to a live “Q&A” telephone call with me…

There’s no obligation, and nothing for sale…

1. Focusing On You, Not Your Customer. In the context of an ad, your prospects don’t care about you. They care about themselves, and whether your product can help solve their problem(s). Look for and eliminate phrases like: ‘our friendly staff’, ’20 years in business’, ‘for all your [INSERT PRODUCT HERE] needs’. Those are about you. Use phrases that speak to the solution to your prospect’s most pressing problems.

2. Using Cliche Language. Cliches are like wallpaper, nobody notices them unless they’re so bad they can’t be ignored. Some cliches to look for: ‘giant blow out’, ‘explode your sales’, ‘save like never before’, ‘savings throughout the store’… There are too many advertising cliches to list here. You probably recognize them when you hear them. Get them out of your copy.

3. Speaking Inappropriately. No, this doesn’t mean correcting your grammar – unless your intended audience is English Teachers. Speaking inappropriately means using language patterns that cause your audience to disagree with you on some minor subject. Once that happens, it will be much more difficult to get their agreement on a more important topic (such as buying your product). For example, if you are selling to English Teachers and you use poor grammar in your copy, it will be much harder to make the sale (even if the sale has nothing to do with grammar). Why? Because you have lost credibility with your audience – you are not ‘speaking their language’.

Dictionary.com defines “hype” as: “an ingenious or questionable claim, method, etc., used in advertising, promotion, or publicity to intensify the effect.”

One of the additional definitions is: “a swindle, deception, or trick”.

I rather think the second one is what we have in mind when we say a copy is full of hype.

There is a place for the kind of hype that is “an ingenious…claim, method, etc., used in advertising, promotion, or publicity to intensify the effect”.

There is not a place in a respectable copywriter’s toolbox for the kind of hype that is “questionable” or that uses “deception or tricks”.

The most reliable test for whether your copy is filled with the “bad” kind of hype is simple: is the claim being made in the copy true? If so, and if you can prove that it’s true, then it’s not the “bad” kind of hype.

What’s more, if your copy is presented to the true prospects for your product or service, it won’t be perceived as hype.

Here are three ways to grow your list:

1. Pay per click advertising: Take out a Google Adwords ad that leads subscribers to a landing page. On that landing page, offer visitors something of value in exchange for their name and email address. The trick is, this is harder to do that it once was, for a variety of reasons. The biggest key: make the “something of value” a TRUE value. Just putting up a page that says “sign up for my newsletter” will not produce many subscribers.
2. E-zine ads. Buy ads in e-zines that are mailed to people who are likely to be interested in your offer. Test the results carefully; while this method can bring you subscribers, it can also be a quick way to lose money.
3. Do “swaps” with other e-zine owners. You run their ad in your ezine, and vice versa. Often you can do this at no cost, and gain subscribers in the bargain.

I am doing a teleseminar next Tuesday night with the person who may be the very best list-builder in the “Internet Marketing World”…if you want to join us for the call, register at:

http://whatrayuses.com/myfirstlist

I’ve found that I get much better results if I use some “jump starters”–they keep me focused, and get me started on the right track with a copy project.

Here are 3 “tricks” I use–maybe they’ll work for you, too:

1. Write the benefit bullets. Don’t worry about writing body copy just yet. Just start banging out all the benefits of owning the product. This will be more extensive list than the one in the order box (which is our next “jump-starter”).
2. Write the order box copy. This is the part of the copy where you clearly spell out the price of your offer, and the bullet points of all the main benefits of owning the product. Select the MAIN benefits (the one with the most “persuasion power” for the order box.
3. Write 10 possible headlines for your copy. Don’t worry if they’re not “good enough”. You can even use some of the bullets you’ve written as starting points. Use a headline “swipe file” to spark ideas. Just get 10 headlines written.

Once you’ve finished the 3 “jump-starters” above, you will have written quite a bit of copy. It will be focused on the benefits of owning the product. You’ll be off to a good start on your copy project.

How can you write effective headlines if you’re not a professional copywriter? Simple – use “template” headlines as starting point.

I’ve provided 3 template headlines below. Fill in the blanks as appropriate for your product offer. You may need to do some re-wording to make the headline work for your product–but you’ll be off to a good start.

TEMPLATE HEADLINE:
Give Me (amount of time) And I’ll Give You (benefit of product)

EXAMPLE:
Give Me 3 Minutes, And I’ll Show You How to Write 3 Killer Headlines

EXAMPLE:
If You Can Send And Receive Email, Then You Can Make Money With My Email Marketing Course

EXAMPLE:
Who Else Wants To Double Your Sales — And Triple Your Time Off?

I am frequently asked, “Ray, how do I get started with testing?” Here are 3 simple ways you can start testing today – without complex math, expensive software, or arcane technology.

1. Test your current headline against a new one. Don’t worry about getting software or other tools just yet. Simply run one headline for a while — then run the other headline for an equal amount of time. If you can run equal amounts of traffic past both headlines, you will have at least a general idea which one works best.
2. Test your current price against a higher one. That’s right — I said higher. If the higher price loses the test, THEN test a lower price. It may surprise you that higher prices often bring more orders! So, this week track your numbers at your current price — and next week test a higher one.
3. If you use graphics on your page, test the page without a header graphic. Often, the page without the header will produce more results. The theory is that the graphic distracts from the copy, possibly causing your prospect to bypass reading the headline. But don’ t accept the theory – test it yourself. It is true that to do mathematically reliable tests, you will need some kind of software to track the results.

If you’re not doing any testing at all, start with these 3 simple tests. You may end up increasing your profits!

Dear Hilton Hotels,

I realize that a human will probably not read this.

And I also realize that if a human does read this, I’ll likely get a “canned” response.

But…I hold out hope that a real person will actually read and respond.

I travel quite a bit.

I’m a Hilton Honors member, but I don’t stay at Hiltons very often…and here’s an example of why:

This weekend I’m staying at the Hilton Long Island/Huntington, 598 Broad Hollow Road, Melville, NY 117475002.

First of all, I object to having to pay $10 per day for internet access. I only pay $50 per month for an 8-megabit connection at my home (much faster than the mediocre connection at your hotel).

That’s $1.66 per day, if you’re paying attention.

Secondly, if you’re going to extort $10 per day out of me then don’t require me to ALSO obtain a PIN number each day.

Come on, people!

I have to go to the front desk, and get a PIN code…for the “privilege” of being ripped off for $10 per day?!

Talk about adding insult to injury!

And the icing on the cake: when I asked the young lady at the front desk, and asked her if I still had to pay the internet access fee as a Hilton Honors guest, I was told, “It doesn’t matter that you’re a Hilton Honors member.”

That’s a quote.

Verbatim.

So, far from feeling “honored”, I feel ripped off.

And Hilton’s response?

“It doesn’t matter that you’re a Hilton Honors member.”

Read all about it on my blog…

http://rayedwards.com

-Ray

PS – Warm my heart. I don’t want my money back…I want you to change your policy. Be enlightened. Really “honor” your guests. Will you?

If I get a response from Hilton, I’ll let you know. Fair is fair. Maybe they’ll do the right thing.

I welcome your comments below.

The Holy Grail of online marketing is getting the prospect’s email address (so you can start building a permission-based marketing relationship with them).

In the not-too-distant past, you could generate leads online simply by offering a free newsletter or special report. This doesn’t work so well anymore. Why?

The reason is simple: there’s too much ‘junk’ being offered, and prospects are wise to this. People just won’t give up their email address for a junky ‘special report’ like they used to.

So what’s a marketer to do? Here are three ways to break through skepticism and get your prospects to give you their email address:

1. Offer Superior Premiums

Offering a superior premium will help you “cut through the clutter”, but to be effective your premium must be clearly superior.

Commonplace and boring: “Special Reports” and “Free Tele-Seminars”.

Better: software that performs a specific task, a free telephone consultation (make it clear this is not a sales pitch), or a free membership website.

2. Use Video Testimonials

There’s a reason infommercial producers make their 30-minute ads over 70% testimonials: testimonials overcome skepticism.

These days, it’s cheap and easy to make video testimonials for your website. Get your best customers singing your praises on video, and put these snippets on your website. Lots of them.

3. Use The “Reciprocity Sequence Method”

You’ve no doubt heard of the ‘Reciprocity’ principal:
If I give you a gift, you feel compelled to reciprocate.

The trouble is, your prospects often have heard of it too, rendering it somehwat less effective.

I use a technique I call the “Reciprocity Sequence Method”… which is simply giving your prospects a series of gifts so that the “Reciprocity Impulse” becomes almost overwhelming.

It sounds elementary, but few people do it. And it’s very powerful.

Think about how you can ‘stack’ a sequence of 3-5 gifts in a short period of time, and THEN make an offer to your prospect.

Key points to remember: keep the sequence confined to a short time period, make the gifts relevant to (and an enhancement of) your core offer, and make the offer immediately after giving the final gift.

While it’s true that skepticism is at a higher level than ever, it’s also true that breaking through is easy when you know how.

What do you think? Have you run into increased skepticism in your marketing – and if so, how have you successfully over come it? Post your comments below!

We’re ready to roll.

http://copywritingsuccesstips.com/

This will only interest you if you make your living as a copywriter (or aspire to).

Unadvertised bonus: when you sign up, you will get access to a free tele-seminar in which I will lay out every step to starting and succeeding in your copywriting business.

No bull. No hype. Nothing for sale (the call is the product that will be sold — but if you act quickly, you get it for free).
http://copywritingsuccesstips.com/

Sign up now…you will only get access to the tele-seminar if you are on the list when it happens. Period.

http://copywritingsuccesstips.com/

It’s a full seminar put on by Inc. Magazine and the link above will take you to a place (once you register) where you can watch the whole thing for free.

One of the presentations I especially like was Bernie Marcus (Co-founder of Home Depot). His story of how and why he started Home Depot was inspiring but what was more intriguing was the advice he gave for entrepreneurs in today’s marketplace.

You’ll also be able to watch a presentation delivered by President Bill Clinton.

To get the video, just click here.