Seth’s point was: knowing which one you offer.

My point is: decide to offer products that are bought, thereby bypassing the need for selling altogether.

This doesn’t mean, by the way that no storytelling (copywriting) is required. Apple products are bought, but stories are told just the same. The “little hinge that swings big doors”: it’s often the storytelling that fuels the buying.

1. Work from an outline. If you’re a copywriter who’s earned your stripes, you already have an intuitive sense of the structure of good sales copy (different structure for different media or format, of course… But always a basic structure for each). It’s a good idea to have that outline available to use as a template (in Microsoft Word, for instance). Save yourself the mental effort of having to create the structure from scratch each time; organize your notes, clippings, and bits of copy within the outline. That way, when you’re ready to start writing, all your preliminary scribblings are at least in the right order.
2. Speak, don’t type. As long as you aren’t experiencing physiological or neurological problems, you speak much faster than you type. If you’re working from an outline (as suggested above) you should be able to dictate your copy at an incredibly rapid pace. You can either use software, such as DragonDictate, or you can pay to have a human being transcribe your copy. Either way, it’ll be much faster and more efficient. Unless you’re my friend Michel Fortin, who has supernatural typing ability.
3. Build up a bank of “copy chunks”. Chances are, if you do much writing for clients, you end up writing very similar opens, guarantees, closing segments, and so forth. Why not start collecting those “chunks” of copy, so you can simply cut and paste them into your first draft? This technique alone can save you many hours of laborious and needlessly repetitive work.

Here’s to speedier copy for you.

SPECIAL NOTE: For a limited time, you can become a member of my new Writing Riches Community at our special Preferred Member Rate. Right now, membership is a no-obligation $97… but in the near future, we may raise the price to $147. Click here right now to lock in your Preferred Rate and save $50.

1. A love of the craft. Successful freelance copywriters simply love writing. They love doing it. And they love reading the work of others who love doing it. Make no mistake; we are making ads, but we are also making art.
2. Discipline. Get rid of the preconception that copywriters are irresponsible, disheveled, professorial types. The successful copywriter is a creature of sometimes frightening single-minded focus. That’s why clients who find such a creature become loyal for life.
3. Discontent. While this might not be a great personal quality (or maybe it is… but that debate is not the topic of this post), successful freelance copywriters are never satisfied with their work. Yes, they deliver on time, and they deliver excellent output. But they are forever obsessing over how to make the copy better, how to improve the conversion rate, and how to beat the control. In my book, that kind of self-motivation and positive discontent is a good quality when it comes to business.

If you are a person or a company who hires copywriters, look for these qualities.

If you are a copywriter who wants to be hired, look in the mirror. Possession of the three qualities outlined in this post will make you a happy, healthy, and wealthy writer.

The Captain Kirk Guide To Romancing Your Customers

Simple Tricks Top Copywriters Use To Sell More

3 Ways To Write Better Copy Faster

Top 5 iPad Apps For Copywriters

What It Takes To Succeed as a Freelance Copywriter

Well, I suppose it should go without saying that the first requirement is the ability to write good copy. But just for safety’s sake, I will say it anyway.

That detail out of the way, here are some qualities less common among copywriters that are of equal importance.

The ability to treat your service like a business. Too many copywriters are woefully ignorant of the realities of running a business (and a copywriting practice is a business, just like a law practice or any other professional service provider). If you are playing the role of the “temperamental artist as copywriter” it probably means you’re a dreadful business person. Your clients (almost all of them skilled entrepreneurs) hold that sort of mentality in great disdain. Want more respect as a copywriter? Start acting like a businessperson.

The commitment to meet deadlines. Clients expect you to do what you say you were going to do, and they expect you to do it on the schedule you agreed to. There are no excuses. I have never missed a deadline. I have, on occasion renegotiated a deadline-but always ahead of time. Repeat after me: “Deadlines are sacred. I shall not break them.”

The skin of a rhinoceros. Look, I understand; writing is hard, and taking criticism is harder. But clients pay you to write, and they have an expectation that their input will be accepted by you. After all, they’re paying for the end product. They are going to be critical of what you write. You’re writing about their baby-their business. You’ve got to be able to smile when your clients are offering “constructive criticism”… even when they’re wrong. You must be able to handle such situations with grace. A crucial skill for you: the ability to subtly persuade clients that your way is the correct way. Even more difficult, you’ve got to be able swallow your pride when your client has a good point… such as a point about some weakness in  your copy (which is accurate more often than most copywriters would like to admit).

These skills are more difficult to develop than the skills of actually writing copy-at least for most copywriters.

Most copywriters tend to be more right-brained and creative instead of left-brained and logical; I was gifted with a weird 50-50 combination of “artist/businessman” genetics.

I understand that not everyone was so fortunate.

But trust me… being conscious of the need for the skills I’ve outlined in this article, and becoming diligent in the development of these skills, will make you a much happier (and much richer) copywriter.

And the thing I love most? Apps, of course!

Here are the 5 iPad apps I use the most for my copywriting business, and a word or two about how I use them.

1. Mindmeister. This is a simple online mind-mapping app, and it synchronizes with the website of the developer. That means I can create a mind-map on my iPad, and access it later on my MacBook Pro. Mindmeister allows me to export the mind map in different formats, including rich text-ideal for outlining sales copy, white papers, or book chapters. Indispensable.
2. OmniFocus. I am an unvarnished fan of David Allen’s GTD methodology for managing one’s time and tasks. This is my app of choice for implementing GTD. It synchronizes with the Omnifocus app on my iPhone and on my MacBook Pro… but the iPad app is my favorite iteration of the software.
3. Instapaper. The perfect way to “clip” articles, blog posts, and websites that I want to look at later. I frequently find bits and pieces I want to use for copy projects, and I simply save them to Instapaper. Beautiful.
4. Evernote. How do I describe Evernote? It’s my universal notepad, perfect for saving images, business cards, websites, notes (including hand-scribbled ones) and so much more. Try it. You will understand.
5. Angry Birds. Hey, what can I say? Sometimes the most productive thing you can do is play.

What about you? What are your most-used iPad apps?

1. Work from an outline. If you’re a copywriter who’s earned your stripes, you already have an intuitive sense of the structure of good sales copy (different structure for different media or format, of course… But always a basic structure for each). It’s a good idea to have that outline available to use as a template (in Microsoft Word, for instance). Save yourself the mental effort of having to create the structure from scratch each time; organize your notes, clippings, and bits of copy within the outline. That way, when you’re ready to start writing, all your preliminart scribblings are at least in the right order.
2. Speak, don’t type. As long as you aren’t experiencing physiological or neurological problems, you speak much faster than you type. If you’re working from an outline (as suggested above) you should be able to dictate your copy at an incredibly rapid pace. You can either use software, such as DragonDictate, or you can pay to have a human being transcribe your copy. Either way, it’ll be much faster and more efficient. Unless you’re my friend Michel Fortin, who has supernatural typing ability.
3. Build up a bank of “copy chunks”. Chances are, if you do much writing for clients, you end up writing very similar opens, guarantees, closing segments, and so forth. Why not start collecting those “chunks” of copy, so you can simply cut and paste them into your first draft? This technique alone can save you many hours of laborious and needlessly repetitive work.

Here’s to speedier copy for you.

The most persuasive techniques usually are the ones that are simplest. Here are three simple tricks the top copywriters know will help them sell more (of whatever they’re selling)…

1. Know your prospects. This means doing your homework, and knowing the audience you’re writing to (and selling to) inside out. You must know, at the very least their FFA’s (fears, frustrations, and aspirations). If you know those three things, you have some powerful mojo at your disposal.
2. Speak the language of your audience. If you are writing to golfers, for instance, you absolutely must not call the instruments of play anything other than clubs. Referring to “ball striking sticks” will earn your copy a quick trip to the trashcan. I know the example is ridiculous, but I see copywriters making mistakes equally as ridiculous all the time. Just sayin’.
3. Know your product. Again, a seemingly obvious point, yet one of the most frequently violated principles of writing persuasive copy. The more you know about your product, the more persuasively you will be able to communicate about it. Newbie copywriters would do well to study the greats, particularly Eugene Schwartz, who often read a book four (or more) times, and had 100 pages of notes written in his own hand, when he finally sat down to write the copy that would sell the book.

As I said, simple. Not necessarily easy.

Here’s what this has to do with you and your business: wooing customers is a lot like wooing a lover. You want them. You want them to want you. Here’s what we can learn from Captain Kirk that will help us woo our customers.

1. Let them know you’re interested. No time to be coy, no time to be subtle. Look him in the eye and tell them, “you are beautiful to me.”
2. Strut. Look, Captain Kirk was not a slump-shouldered mealy-mouth. He stood up straight, looked women in the eye, and was supremely confident in what he had to offer. Somehow, he managed to do all that without seeming arrogant (most of the time). Your business could learn a thing or two from the confidence of the Captain.
3. Have the goods to back it up. Face it, it’s probably easy for Captain Kirk to be confident at least in part because he commands a starship. He has hundreds of people ready to do exactly what he tells them. He’s got the goods. If your business does not have the goods to satisfy your customers… well, you know what you need to work on.

I know, I know. You’re doubtless impressed that I was able to somehow work Star Trek into a Valentine’s Day post about copywriting and marketing. Or you’re revolted. Either way, I think my points remain valid.

Kirk out.

Even so, you might want to buy a copy right now:

Order from Amazon: click here.

I have taken all my most valuable copywriting secrets… all my best tips, tricks, and checklists… and put them into a step-by-step handbook.

Think about it.

You’re getting the same systems and copywriting tips I use myself when creating copy for my $50,000 clients… for less than a fine dinner for two — at McDonalds!

Inside “Writing Riches”, you’ll discover:

• The 14 Magic Building Blocks of Sales Copy That Sells Your Products Like Crazy (page 1)
• How To Create Headlines That Grab Your Readers By The Eyeballs and Suck Them Into Your Message (page 19)
• The Secrets Of Quickly Writing Magic Emails That Make You Money (page 35)
• How To Write Bullet Points That Virtually Force Your Prospects to Buy (page 57)
• The Secret, Triangular “Vice Grip” That Always Sells More (page 77)
• The Most Explosive Tactics For Making More Sales, More Often, With Less Human Effort Than You Ever Dreamed Possible (page 95)
• The Effortless Way To Attract A Flood Of Web Site Visitors As Easily As Turning On A Water Spigot (page 109)
• The Secrets Of Getting Your Prospects So Excited About You They’ll FIGHT For The Privilege Of Buying Your Stuff (page 129)
• Secrets Of Writing Blockbuster Sales Copy… By Watching Movies (page 149)

Grab your copy of the book right now by clicking here:

Order from Amazon: click here.

As if this weren’t a great deal already, I have really made this an irresistible offer — like any good copywriter would! Here’s the story…

…when you buy the book this week (and this week only), you get a free, “live” web class taught me personally. The estimated retail value of the online class is $197.

It’s called “7 Simple Ways To Double Your Profits In The Next 12 Months”… and registration is easy! You simply send me your online receipt for your book purchase, and you get a free pass to the class!

Get the book here:

Order from Amazon: click here.
Do this right now, while you’re thinking about it.

Then email your receipt to support [at] rayedwards.com

And thanks in advance for buying the book!

They are skills that few possess; this is, however, by choice and by habit, not by gift or talent. While this is not the exhaustive list of skills required to succeed as a freelance writer, these are three crucial skills absent from most of those unable to make a go of it:

1. Discipline. To get lots of copy written, one must apply liberal amounts of backside to chair, and repeat daily. Your results may vary (but if you fail to apply this skill, your results will be depressingly uniform).
2. Chops. In the world of music, if you are a talented player, you are said to possess “chops”. The same is true of writing as is true of music: if you want people to listen, you’ve got to be able to play. This is distressing news to some, who for some inexplicable reason believe they can be a writer without being able to write. For information on how to become a better writer, see skill number one.
3. Invulnerability. To make it in this business, it’s essential you are invulnerable to unjust criticism. You’ll get plenty of it. Because writing is so akin to speaking, everyone thinks they can do it. Which is, of course, amusing – since very few people seem able to do either. You get to ascend one full level of mastery when you learn to distinguish just criticism from unjust. Take a moment to let that one sink in.

Yes, you will need other skills in addition to these three; but these three can cover for a multitude of other sins. Try them on for a while. They are all eminently learnable.

If this topic of making money with your writing skills interests you, then you might want to join me for a live, once-only, no-recording-available later webinar. It is entitled: “The Hidden Opportunity For Anyone Who Can Write (In 2011 and Beyond)”.

Long title. Short path to a new profit paradigm if you’re a writer.

Do you have the discipline to show up and learn something? Then click here and register now.

And I didn’t check email over the Holiday, so I was shocked to see what a huge response we got.

After all, the email wasn’t about a “magic button”.

And I made it clear I had identified an opportunity, but that the opportunity would require work…

…but for those who can write, and want to make their living from doing so, I believe this can be a true game-changer.

If that’s you, this is important.

I have identified what I believe to be the biggest “hidden opportunity” I have seen in a long, long time.

If you have any writing chops, you need to see this.

If you also have some marketing know-how… you’d be foolish to ignore this.

Strong words? Yes. But I think I can back them up.

This is a potential windfall for anyone who can write a basic business memo.

I believe this to be the most potentially lucrative, high-leverage, low-risk opportunity for anyone with writing skills that I’ve seen since I started writing copy.

I think (with good reasons for thinking it) anyone who ignores this opportunity, who fails to make this distinction, faces more potential “hard times” in 2011…

…while those who can grasp the reality of the situation stand to profit (with relative ease).

I am sharing this opportunity during a live webinar tomorrow (Thursday) evening.

Click here to register for that webinar now.

This webinar WILL NOT BE REPEATED, and there is NO replay.

You need to  decide right now if this is important to you.

AND YOU NEED TO SHOW UP FOR THE WEBINAR.

I wonder if you’ll take the time to register right now? Click this link:

Click here to register for the webinar now.

In fact, I sometimes find myself muttering, “I see illiterate people…” (apologies to M. Night Shyamalan).

So what’s the problem? Why is there so much bad copy? I think the answer is rather simple. It’s contained in some advice Stephen King offers in his book, On Writing. King says that the two keys to being a good writer are, “read a lot, and write a lot.”

If you say that you just don’t have the time to read very much, you’re kidding yourself. You’re not serious about your craft. Even more so if your excuse is you don’t have time to write very much.

If you want to improve your skill as a writer, you have your marching orders: read more, and write more.

1. The ability to understand other people and empathize with them.
2. Face-to-face selling skills.
3. The ability to shrug off rejection and criticism.
4. Discipline that enables you to sit down and actually do the work (lack of this skill is more common than you might think).
5. The ability to set realistic goals that stretch you, and then to employ pigheaded discipline in the achievement of those goals.

If you possess those five skills, you’re way ahead of most other writers in the race. In fact, those five skills (along with your craft) can get you pretty much any others you need-either through instruction, or by hiring someone else.

The reason we are turned off by “pushy” salespeople is their attempts to be likable are almost laughably transparent. And absolutely inauthentic.

The key to creating a bond through your writing (and any other form of communication that involves language) is surprisingly simple.

Be yourself.

For sure, be the best self you can authentically be. But don’t try to be something you’re not; people can smell that incongruence a mile away, and it’s definitely a turnoff.

So how does this apply to writing in order to achieve bonding?

In my experience, most people who write for the purpose of strategic influence (to get other people to do something) develop a rather formal way of writing. Part of what happens when they adopt that formal style of writing is their natural voice disappears. It’s as if this particular style of writing sends the unspoken message, “I’m not going to let you know anything about me, because if you did you wouldn’t like me.”

This is where we get rules of thumb like, “never talk about religion or politics”. That’s good advice if you don’t want to offend anyone. But how will you bond with people if you never let them know who you really are?

I’m not suggesting you try being purposely offensive. I’m simply saying let people see the “real you”.

You don’t have to write long diatribes about politics or religion. But you can certainly mention who you voted for, where you go to church… as well as the fact that you like to bowl, you’re vegan, you raise greyhounds, and even more unusual things (like your fear of wigs, or how you still watch Saturday morning cartoons).

All of this does start from a premise, which you need to be aware of: it is that you are, in ways that count, very similar to your prospective audience. I’m assuming that you’re in business because you have a love of certain things, and that you share those things in common with your customers and potential customers.

Thus, as you strategically reveal true qualities of your personality, your customers will be struck by a sense of recognition. And what they recognize is themselves. This, my friends, creates bonding. And it’s not the result of manipulation; it’s the result of being real.

Fair warning: this technique will not work if you’re the exact opposite of your customers.

I once worked with a client with a rather substantial business. During our first meeting we were discussing his customers and his prospects. I asked him, “What can you tell me about your customers?”

His answer startled me: “I don’t like them very much.”

It wasn’t difficult to figure out why his company was experiencing a downturn in business.

Do you like your customers very much?

And, more telling: are you very much like your customers?

While you don’t have to be like the people you sell to, it certainly doesn’t hurt.

And I propose to you that if you don’t like the people you sell to, it might be time to consider another line of work.

We obsess over our favorite celebrities, their lifestyles, relationships, and illnesses.

In her book, Fascinate, Sally Hogshead claims that the ability to create fascination is one of the most powerful ways of influencing behavior. She says, in fact, that it is “more persuasive than marketing, advertising, or any other form of communication.” While I don’t agree with all her conclusions, I do recommend her book.

So how do you make yourself, your ideas, your products and services more fascinating? The answer is surprisingly simple. Human beings are fascinated by a fairly narrow band of phenomena. Some things to keep in mind when writing to influence, with the end of creating more fascination in mind:

1. Curiosity. Who among us does not understand the intense allure of curiosity? This powerful point of fascination is magnetic in its ability to draw people into your story, to make them want to hear your message.
2. Fear. While I absolutely do not advocate the invocation of fear as a tool of manipulation, the recognition of pre-existing fears can be a powerful illumination for your communications. Know what makes people afraid, and you know how to engage them in conversation.
3. Power. Whether they admit it or not, nearly everyone wants more influence over others, in some way. “Power” in itself is neither good nor evil, but its appeal is nearly universal.
4. Identification with the object of their admiration. This is the very source of intense devotion, the driving force behind “fans” of all kinds. When we grant a person or even an organization our admiration, we experience an intense desire to be identified with that person or organization.

What is it about you, your company, your organization or product that already fascinates your customers?  Are there ways in which you can focus more on those aspects that are natural points of fascination for your audience? Are people fascinated with the wrong things about you? Are you?

All questions worth considering.

Strategy in this context means: the overall approach to achieving the outcome you want.

This may not be as simple as you think.

Even if you know your desired outcome is the sale of a product, you have only identified the target; that is not an answer to the question of strategy. The question of strategy is: how will I hit the target?

One possible strategy is: the creation of advocacy in the mind of your prospects. Let me explain.

The most straightforward product sale can be strongly influenced by first defining a position of advocacy you want the reader to adopt.

For instance: let’s assume you sell a highly commoditized product, like machine screws. How on earth could advocacy for some position or other influence the purchase of machine screws? Well..

Perhaps you begin by realizing your company has a commitment to using only the finest quality materials in the manufacture of your machine screws. Perhaps you further realize that you have unusual attention to detail in your manufacturing facility, and that this grows from the quality philosophy of your business. Maybe you believe that a lack of such strong standards is one of the things that have contributed to our current economic woes.

In the above scenario, you might choose to write and publish an essay on the importance of high standards not only in the manufacturing process, but also as the foundation of success upon which our country was built.

You might even go so far as to suggest that the solution to the economic problems facing our country is rooted in a return to this kind of commitment to quality.

If you publish this essay (or blog post, or podcast, or brochure, newsletter, even postcard) in a place where your potential buyers will encounter it, and if it is written powerfully, you stand a good chance of influencing their buying decisions about machine screws without ever overtly writing about that particular subject.

Of course, before you can authentically write to persuade people to adopt a position of advocacy, you first have to possess such a position yourself.

A worthwhile question to ponder: what do you stand for, and how does that relate to the world of the people you wish to influence?

Changing behaviors of your audience can be merely temporary; changing mindsets is more permanent, and changes behaviors automatically.

No, I’m not talking about ancient Greece. When I say “mythology”, I’m referring to “story”.

I believe great marketing-and thus, great influence-starts with great stories. I’m not alone in this thought.

Seth Godin writes in his book All Marketers Are Storytellers, “Either you’re going to tell stories that spread, or you will become irrelevant.”

All the ground-shaking movements in history started with great stories. Our ancestors sat around the hearth and told stories that transmitted their values, their ideas, their wisdom and faith.

Jesus taught primarily through the telling of stories.

John F. Kennedy, Ronald Reagan, and Martin Luther King all told stories that moved people to take action. You don’t have to agree with the ideologies of any of these people, by the way, to get the benefit of what I’m saying. All I’m attempting to do is point out the power of the story as a form of persuasion.

It’s important to understand that the story must be true. Telling lies simply won’t work, not to mention the fact that it’s wrong.

Before you begin your next writing project, whether it’s the book you’re working on, the sales material for your website, or the next speech you’re giving, become aware of the stories you’re telling (or the ones you’re not telling that you should be). Here are some qualities your stories (or mythology) should possess:

1. The stories you tell must, first of all, be true.
2. They must be told in the service of others. The goal of your story should be to impart something to hearer, not to manipulate them.
3. Your stories should appeal to emotion. No matter what people tell you, they buy your ideas, your products, and your services based on emotion-not based on logic.
4. Your stories should be told quickly, and in an entertaining fashion. In today’s world, people have limited patience for long-winded stories.
5. Don’t hit them over the head. The more subtle your story, the less overtly self-serving, the more you allow your reader to come to their own conclusions… the better.

So, what stories are you telling? Are they the right ones? How do you know?

Something to think about.

This will be of interest if you want to use the power of persuasive writing to change, improve, expand, and empower your business.

But first, I’ll need you to bear with me; it’s necessary to explain the ideas behind this new series of articles.

The time has come to move beyond our old models of writing to persuade.

In the world of old media (radio, newspaper, and television) there was a clear distinction between writing that was intended as content, and writing that was intended to be persuasive.

The “content writing” took the form of entertainment, commentary, and news; the “persuasive” forms of writing were self-promotional, advertising, and marketing.

Today, the Internet has fundamentally shifted the way we receive, process, and act upon information. The walls that separated content from marketing have not just been taken down, they have been obliterated.

Michel Fortin has written convincingly about “The Death Of The Sales Letter”. With seemingly prophetic insight, Michel accurately predicted the coming trend that would spell the end of the stunning effectiveness of traditional online “sales letter websites”. They still work-only not nearly as well as they once did. Things have changed. I recommend you read his work on this subject.

Seth Godin writes with equal prescience about the end of what he calls the “TV industrial complex”, and the advent of the “Linchpin” (the essential individual who makes a powerful difference).

These are striking insights into the new world of persuasion and marketing; and I propose to you that they are only partial glimpses of the reality that has already begun to manifest around us.

I propose that far from simply being a different way of delivering persuasive copy, the new “content marketing model” is actually a reflection of something far more significant.

No longer do our customers accept our neatly packaged, carefully honed, isolated messages about our own products and services.

In today’s world, our customers (and our prospective customers) are able to see the entire persona of an individual or company with startling accuracy. They can read praise from clients and customers, read articles written by and about the company, and see reviews from actual buyers.

They can also easily identify complaints against a person or company by doing a simple search on the Internet. They can assess how the person or company deals with such complaints. They can read the market’s response to mistakes the person or company may make in the pursuit of their business. In other words, everything is marketing, and marketing is accurate because it’s no longer possible to control it.

Thus it becomes more important than ever to think about the written words we generate, both content and marketing. In fact, my proposal is that we stop thinking about them as two different forms of writing.

I find it more useful to adopt a new paradigm: that of writing for strategic influence. Let me explain…

Let’s begin with this tacit assumption: if everything our company (or an individual, if the person is a solopreneur) engages in is in fact visible, transparent, and available for public inspection… gone are the days we could “have a marketing message”.

A new day has arrived. Instead of “having” a marketing message, we must “be” a message.

Every communication we engage in with our customers and our prospective customers should be thought of as simply writing another page in our “book of communication”.

What this means is: we have arrived at a time when accountability is no longer optional, it is simply reality.

We have to think more carefully about everything we say, and everything we do. This is a good thing. It raises the bar for all of us who work in the service of other people (and what is work, or business, if it is not being in the service of other people?).

So if every communication (answering the telephone, handing off a business card, putting out a flyer, a Google ad, a blog post, e-mail, or public talk) is in fact marketing… it becomes necessary to be conscious of what sort of influence we wish to have in the marketplace.

The marketplace is, ultimately, a marketplace of ideas. Spread your idea far and wide, and see it have an impact on the world. Good or ill, time will tell.

Ideas have always been influenced by the written word. Literature has been the medium that molds mindsets. Literature has now expanded and moved off the printed page. Literature now includes blogs, e-mails, and YouTube. Writing happens in all sorts of formats-from essays like this one, to 140 character blurbs on twitter.

It’s time to start thinking about what sort of strategic influence we wish to have on the world around us-and how we are going to craft our messages to achieve that influence.

This is “the new copywriting”.

Your life (and your business) is literally an open book. The pages, starting today, are blank, and yours to write. What story will you write?

I can’t tell you what your message should be; first, as I have already alluded to, I think you must become your message. Whatever you’re selling, you first have to live. That part, I cannot do for you.

The upcoming articles in this series will focus, instead, on the actual techniques you might wish to consider in the process of spreading your ideas through persuasive writing.

To be clear, these techniques will apply whether what you are selling are concepts, products, or services. The techniques we will discuss should be applicable whether the group you wish to influence is your family, your city government, your church, your Board of Directors, or customers and prospects.

I look forward to your feedback.

Often that question is followed up with: “And who are the ‘Bad Guys’ I should avoid?”

I’m not in the business of judging who the so-called ‘bad guys’ are. But what I can do is recommend the people who have helped me. I was going to write up such a post, and then I realized I had already done so — back on January 1, 2009. As I went back and read it, I realized it needed very little editing… so I present the updated (only aesthetic updates, really) list of people I have been helped by.

When I originally wrote this, it was at the beginning of a New Year. I had been reflecting on who I owe my success to in the copywriting and internet marketing world. Because you know, none of us do this “internet business thing” on our own. I’m not an island. I’ve been helped by a number of people along the way. And I wanted 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. Also, this list includes people who have strong points of view on some matters – in many cases, points of view that are in conflict. I think a diversity of opinions is a good thing, don’t you? I don’t agree with everything any one person says. But I do value and recommend them all. How do I reconcile their differing opinions or approaches? I take personal responsibility for making my own decisions, after having considered their advice.

“Without counsel plans fail, but with many advisers they succeed.” (Proverbs 15:22)

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 me 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 has 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 define 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? (Still workin’ on it, FYI…)

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). We’ve worked together on several other projects, too. I’m amazed by Mike’s willingness to work harder than just about anyone else I know, and his adaptability to changing trends and technologies.

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 (Orlando is always a great place to visit in February!).

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 his “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. His books are amazing. His blog is legendary. He is generous. 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.

The discussion turned to “back end promotions”. Which means, “what you sell people after they bought your entry-level product”.

And the topic was the copy used to sell “back-end promotions”. One of the well-known, high-profile marketers on the call said something like, “Heck, you don’t need a great copywriter to write  that stuff. Those people are already your customers. A monkey could write that stuff.”

BUZZER.

That player is out of the game.

If you think any piece of your copy can be written by “a monkey”, you’re in trouble.

Because if that’s what you think, you’re saying your customers are monkeys, too. See how that works?

And if you still think there’s nothing wrong with all that, try this exercise: imagine your mother or your grandmother is the customer in question. Now imagine telling Mom or Grandma you hired a monkey to handle this part of their transaction, because that’s all the respect you needed to give them.

How’s that working for you?

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 discover 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”.

Eliminate all the adverbs.

What’s an adverb?

It’s a word – often ending in the letters “ly” – that modifies a verb (or even adjectives or adverbial phrases). Examples of adverbs: quickly, instantly, amazingly, powerfully.

If you find the above passage puzzling, don’t worry about it; just go through your copy and try to eliminate as many of those “ly” words as you can. Here’s an example:

“Quickly and easily motivate clients to buy stuff.”

~ becomes ~

“Motivate clients to buy stuff.”

Now you may be tempted to ask: “But Ray, I want them to know it happens quickly and easily!”

No problem. Just be specific.

“Motivate clients to buy stuff starting the minute you install the software, without any extra effort on your part.”

You may need to do a bit of rewriting to make the copy flow without the adverbs, but your language will be stronger and more persuasive for the effort.

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 infomercial 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 somewhat 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!

Let’s find out.

Today I’m giving away a “Mind Map” (a visual outline) that gives you an overview of the keys to writing effective copy.

Whether you’re writing email copy, a blog post, a sales page, or a sermon – the same principles apply. This mind-map is a great tool to clarify your writing and make it more persuasive. You might thing of it as a one-page copywriting course.

Click here to download the full-size, suitable-for-printing Copywriting Overview Mind Map.

No email required.

If you like this, and want me to offer up more free resources like this in the future, my request is simple: spread the word. I’ll be watching the number of “like” button submissions and re-tweets on Twitter. If it makes sense (based on response), I’ll have more “in the clear” freebies for you in the near future.

No promises – this is an experiment.

Call in your questions or comments to our new, fancy “request line” at (509) 713-2679

Click for the Podcast Audio:

Click Here

And as I was looking at that check, it made me think about how much fun this particular client is to work with — and I was reminded that I had an audio interview with this guy somewhere in my archives.

I found the interview, listened to it, and realized it’s just as relevant as it was the day we recorded it. So I’m giving it to you today.

This interview is a case study from one of my clients. I present it for inspiration and education only, and there is nothing for sale (not that there’s anything wrong with sellin’ stuff, mind you).

I worked on this Product Launch with Real Estate teacher Jack Bosch back in 2008. That was almost two years ago. Jack remains a client of mine (he’s still paying his royalties, like clockwork). This interview was recorded the day after we closed the cart on the launch.

It’s worth noting that, on day two of our launch…it seemed luck was not with us.

On the second day of the launch, a massive US Financial Collapse began.

The largest bank failure in US History was in the headlines. And yet…

We brought in over $1.12 million in 7 days. (Please note: I’m not claiming you can do the same. Most launches don’t do these kinds of numbers – this is definitely atypical… which is what makes it worth studying.)

Click Here To Listen To The $1.12 Million Launch Case Study With Ray Edwards

Listen to this case study interview and learn…

• How a penniless immigrant with no money and no English made $1.12 million in just a single week.
• The secrets that allowed Jack to create a massive info-product… assemble a team… and do a $1.12 million dollar launch in less than 3 months.
• If you think you have no experience, no expertise, and no chance of success… once you hear Jack’s story you will NEVER let those excuses hold you back again.
• How Jack learned the secret of rapid product creation, and how it changed his life (his first ebook took him 5 months… while his massive 26-CD course and 400 page manual only took 8 weeks!).
• The simple, easy-to-duplicate tactic that allowed Jack to create a 400 page workbook… without writing a word!
• What gets people “stuck” in creating their own product, and the magic that dissolves those mental blocks and makes things happen.
• Why Jack was shocked at my $30,000 retainer… and why he’s now GLAD he paid that amount (and more).
• Why copy is so important to JV partners — and it has NOTHING to do with the sales letter!
• The power of having an organized approach to doing a product launch… and which pieces are critical to your success.
• The “unexpected benefit” that brought in new JV partners like bees being drawn to honey… and it happened totally by accident (but from now on, Jack will be doing it on purpose).
• How to develop content for your videos and other marketing pieces using the power of persuasion in print to make your VIDEOS and AUDIOS more profitable.
• Why Jack was able to pull off a seven-figure launch even though disaster struck on Day 2… the largest bank failure in US History! (The secret tactic that allowed us to bring in 60% of our sales AFTER the bad news about the economy…and how you can apply this same secret in your own marketing).
• The one critical element that accounted for $400,000 in sales that would not have happened otherwise (how much money are you leaving on the table right now because you’re not doing this?).
  
• The deadly pitfalls that can stop your launch (or your business) in its tracks… and the simple steps you can take to avoid them every time (the secrets of how Jack picked a launch date 3 months in advance and actually launched on that day!).
• Why it’s okay to start even before you “know what you’re doing” — and why it might even be crucial that you do in fact “start before you’re ready”.

Click Here To Listen To The $1.12 Million Launch Case Study With Ray Edwards

From time to time, I am asked some version of the following question: “Why do you write the blog, and what exactly is it you do for a living? How do you make money?”

For those who are curious, here are some answers…

Why I Write This Blog

While I doubt this question can be answered completely in a few simple sentences, I can at least give you a fairly accurate, if somewhat incomplete answer. Here are a few of the reasons why I write every day:

• I write because I feel compelled to write. There’s something about expressing my ideas on paper that leaves me calm, cool, and collected.
• I write to prove that I know I’m talking about (and lest you think that is a shallow motivation, please note that this is not about ego gratification: it’s about the development, training, and getting of clients and customers.)
• I write to develop a relationship with my readers, to dialogue with them, and to learn from them.
• I write to develop material for my books. My next book will be published in November, and I have plans to publish no less than four books next year. If I wasn’t writing every single day, it would be difficult to keep up such a grueling publishing schedule. My books, incidentally, are a key component of my marketing machine and designed to feed into my overall strategy-everything I do is designed to build credibility, establish my expertise, train and develop potential client and customers. You would be well-advised to pursue a similar method of operating.

How I Get Paid

I do very little direct work for clients these days, preferring to work in partnership with other entrepreneurs, and to develop my own business properties. However, I do derive a substantial amount of income from the writing of copy for clients, and the giving of advice to clients. The reason that I say I do “very little direct work” is because I do a lot of work for a very small number of clients. This is by design.

When I started in the business of writing direct response copy, and providing consultation services, I juggled as many as 8 to 10 clients at a time and produced a voluminous amount of copy. This quickly took a toll on me mentally and physically, so I raised my prices so that I could devote more quality time to fewer projects. It’s a course of action I recommend to anyone who’s interested: I promise you it’s a healthier, more profitable way to do business.

Now, because I know this next is the question that is really on your mind, I will answer it… with some misgivings. Maybe this is a mistake – time will tell. I’m  sure I will attract some criticism because of what I’m about to reveal. So I guess I will just pinch my nose, jump into the deep end of the pool, and see what happens. Here’s what I charge…

Profit Strategy Retainer: $120,000 and 10% of gross revenues.  This usually means I’ll be helping to manage a product launch or similar campaign for a client with an established business and track record. This arrangement typically lasts for a full year. For those who can’t afford this kind of arrangement…

Profit Strategy Coaching: $12,000 per year,  payable in advance.  This is a small group of hand selected coaching students, whom I deal with by telephone and Internet almost exclusively, helping them create profit architecture for their business that is superior to what they may have been able to achieve on their own.

The Apprentice Program: I also oversee a small number of apprentice projects, which means copywriters who have been trained and approved by me do the actual writing work for clients who are seeking my advice but cannot afford to pay my direct fees. I have oversight on the copywriting project, offer critique and direction and final stamp of approval for any work that is done, and this proves much more economical than having me do the work directly. Even though this allows me to work with more clients, there are still only a limited number of these projects I can oversee, because my schedule is very full.

Information product publishing: I produce a number of information products, training programs, and online classes each year. These training programs and products are offered at a variety of price points, delivery methods, and time intervals. This is the area of my business that provides me with the most leverage, and is also the area of my business under the most scrutiny at the moment. I’m developing a strategy for expanding and multiplying this particular income stream.

Book publishing: my first business book will be published in November of this year, and as I’ve mentioned previously I will be publishing no less than four books next year. This is a new arm of my business endeavors that is designed to bring more clients and customers into our marketing funnel, and I’m pursuing it with a vengeance. Don’t be deceived; this is part of a larger strategic initiative, and should not be attempted by the faint of heart nor the ill-prepared. Publishing books as a sole means of producing income is not a very good way to make a living. In fact, it’s a very good way to stay broke and frustrated. However, publishing books as part of an over-arching strategy for building a financial empire, however, is a very good way to make money. I’m sure I’ll have more to say on this in the near future, but for now the overview should suffice.

That’s probably enough self-revelation for the time being.

I get lots of questions about these sorts of things almost constantly, so I’m offering this posting as a bit of an experiment: if you’re truly interested in knowing more about how I run my own business, I’m happy to share (up to a certain point). However, I don’t want to be boorish and spend too much time talking about myself-so you’ll have to let me know whether you want more of this kind of information or not.

I’m about to show you how you can double or triple your conversions without lifting a finger.

Seriously.

So, if you have a money-making site online right now, keep reading.

The rest of you may be excused (sorry, just figured I might as well be up front about who this is for).

Here’s the deal…

Have you ever heard that story about the ocean-going ship engine that failed?

In the version I heard, it was the Queen Elizabeth luxury liner.

The vessel’s owners brought in all their on-staff engineers to fix it, but none of them could get the engine running.

Finally, they brought in an expert who had been fixing ships all his life.

The old expert hauled in his bag of tools and looked around a bit.

He crawled all over that engine room, looking, touching, thinking.

Finally, he went to his bag, pulled out a small hammer, and tapped a few times on a valve.

The engine roared to life.

A week later, the owners of the ship received a bill for ten thousand dollars.

They were outraged. After all, the man had only tapped on a valve with a hammer!

They immediately demanded he send them an itemized bill explaining his charges. He sent them a bill that read:

“Tapping with a hammer…………………$2

Knowing where to tap………………$9,998″

Knowing where to tap is important to your sales copy, too.

The simplest changes can make the most profound difference in your results.

There is an art to writing copy, but there is also a science to getting the maximum result. And that science is called “testing”.

Here’s the “magic formula”: get a sales letter that makes SOME money.

That gets SOME conversions and sales.

Then TEST the heck out of new headlines, deck copy, subheads, offers, guarantees, pictures,etc.

In other words, use the ART of copywriting plus the SCIENCE of testing to find out…

WHERE TO TAP.

As marketers and copywriters – knowing where to tap is what we get paid for.

How often do you stop to consider that question?

For decades, a majority of American car buyers thought Toyota made the highest quality and safest cars for the money.

What do you suppose the majority of American car buyers think about Toyota cars right about now?

Key question: what caused the change?

The easy answer is: the recalls caused the change.

A more sophisticated answer is: the news coverage of the recalls caused the change.

But neither of those answers recognizes the deeper lesson: management (or mismanagement) of how and when a story is told powerfully influences the stories we believe and tell ourselves.

How many of your beliefs did you choose consciously?

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?

If you’re one of those folks who would like to know that formula, I have some disappointing news: there isn’t one.

“But Ray,” I hear you say, “Haven’t you yourself  taught several different copywriting ‘formulas’?”

Yes.

But.

They are not “magic” and they don’t work universally.

What a formula can do is give you a basic structure on which to hang your “argument” (your logic for why someone should buy your stuff); what the formula cannot do is somehow magically compel people to buy something they don’t really want or need.

What a formula can’t do is teach you the fears and aspirations of your readers, so that your persuasion power comes from the point of intersection between your audience’s needs/desires and your product’s features/benefits.

Only you, as an empathetic writer, can do that.

Gary Halbert – one of the greatest copywriters to ever work in the field – used to wear a hat that had two works embroidered on it: “Clients Suck”.

Do they?

A lot of people say they do.

For a long time I bought into that idea. I had good reasons. Most of my clients seemed to be too demanding, too unwilling to follow my advice, and too determined to carry out some weird idea even though it was clearly not in  their best interest. Some of my clients were even abusive, taking advantage of me in ways I don’t want to go into here (it wouldn’t help anybody to do so).

The one day I realized I was making a contribution to each of those relationships that helped create that situation. My contribution was three-fold, and it directly contributed to making those relationships miserable for me (though they were, in fact, great for my clients). One lesson for you: if the relationship is only great on one side… it’s not great. It’s dysfunctional, and somebody is getting hurt.

Here are the three things I was doing that made it seem as though “clients suck”:

1. Not carefully selecting clients from the beginning, screening out those with whom I was not a good match.
2. Not setting boundaries for the relationship so that both parties know what those boundaries are, and teh reasons tehy are in place.
3. Not realizing that I was free to “fire” clients who were “problem children”.

Once I finally figured those three things out, and changed the way I selected clients, how I set boundaries with them, and how I communicated with them when those boundaries were crossed, I was completely freed from the notion that “clients suck”.

Because mine don’t … now.

And that’s the lesson: you too can quickly reach a place where you love and appreciate your clients, where they don’t trample on your schedule or your value, and where you can easily resolve any conflicts that might arise.

All you have to do is:

1. Develop criteria that describe your ideal client and use those criteria to screen out any clients who don’t meet them.
2. Carefully and respectfully set the boundaries in your relationship from the beginning – and stick to them.
3. Communicate immediately with the client when those boundaries are crossed – and when you suspect that you need to “fire” a client, do it sooner rather than later. Trust me, you’ll know when it is time.

If you will do those three things, then when someone says to you that “clients suck”, you’ll be able to give them the same response I do: “Mine don’t.”

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?’

He’s the fumbling, bumbling, mild-mannered newspaper reporter who wears the big geeky glasses.

A nice guy, but not exactly a role-model for manhood.

After all, we can ALL identify with Clark.

But when an emergency arises, Clark sheds the glasses and the business suit, revealing a being of extraordinary strength and power: Superman.

The Man of Steel.

The “strange visitor from another planet … [who] … fights a never-ending battle for truth, justice, and the American way!”

You don’t really need me to explain Superman to you.

And that’s the point of this piece.

If you’d like to really amplify  your marketing message, one of the best ways to do it is to become the superhero of choice for your prospects.

Here’s how you do that…

Identify The Villains Your Customers Face

These could be economic villains like rising interest rates, or psychological villains like poor self-esteem, or even health-related villains like arthritis. Once you’ve identified the villain – get specific and identify the villains superpowers and weapons.

Name Your Hero And His Powers

This could be you personally or your company – but you need to have a “title” or “superhero name”. Something that sums up who you are and what you’re about. It should be short, catchy, and self-explnanatory.

Clearly State Your Mission

Superman’s mission statement is a great model: “Superman … fights a never-ending battle for truth, justice, and the American way!”

Build  your own mission statement – it should be short (ideally one sentence like Superman’s – more like a “slogan” than anything else).

A Real Life Example

VILLAIN: Anemic Advertising. This creepy character sucks the life our of small business advertising budgets – by spending all your money on ads that get very little response. Ad dollars go out, but revenue doesn’t come in. Leaves victims penniless and discouraged. Destroys many businesses.

HERO: Captain Copywriter. Magically transforms limp, lazy, lackluster ads into profit-pulling powerhouses. Multiplies revenue while at the SAME TIME slashes your ad spending. Produces sales, profits, and peace of mind.

MISSION STATEMENT: “Captain Copywriter fights a never-ending battle for better ads, producing more profits, more often.”

Use Your Identity

So how do you use your “superhero identity”?

Well, first of all, start “living it”.

If you were a copywriter who had now become Captain Copywriter — how would the Captain behave?

How would he talk?

What would his costume (web site) look like?

Does he have an insignia?

What are his sayings and catch-phrases? (Superman had “Up, up and away!” – what would YOURS be?)

Even more important than all of this: once you start putting yourself into the state of mind of your “superhero character”, you’ll easily start thinking like he would think!

Let me prove it.

If you came across a bank robbery in progress, you might not know what to do (other than maybe call the police).

But let’s say you were Clark Kent and you came across that same robbery in progress. NOW what would you do?

You’d intervene, of course.

You’d duck behind a door or into a hallway, put on your super-suit, and then move into action.

See how simply IMAGINING a super hero identity gives you access to superhero strategies?

The only thing you need to do is step into the ROLE of your business superhero… and then just as yourself, “What would Captain Copywriter do about this?”

And then walk it out.

So.

What are you waiting for?

Take off those glasses, snap on that cape, and commence your crusade!

(NOTE: This is an update of a previous post… enhanced with video. Please be sure and let me know what you think of this “multi-media” approach, okay? It’s quite a bit of work, and I’m happy to do it if you think it’s worthwhile.)

As marketers and entrepreneurs, we have a simple job – to get other people to do what we want them to do.

I’ll leave the discussion about the ethical side of this for another time; let’s just assume that you and I will always work for the best interests of our customers and prospects, okay?

So. We want to get people to do what we want. It will help them. It will help us. But exactly how do we do it?

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.

Take just a moment to think about the fact that you already know this works, because you already know people who have this power. Don’t you know at least one person who seems to be able to persuade people on just about any issue?

Don’t you know at least one person who can seemingly “sell ice to the Eskimos”?

So how is it that some people are able to do that – and more importantly, how can you do the same? Wouldn’t that make an enormous impact on your business?

Here is the big secret…

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

As far as I know, that idea originated with the late, great copywriter Robert Collier.

If you can “join up” with what your prospects are already feeling and thinking, get in synch with them, and get them to identify you as a “friendly” in a hostile world… they will listen to what you have to say.

Think of it this way: the easiest way to influence someone is with whatever is already influencing them.

It’s a simple principle, but not easy to do.

So how do you do it? Here are some tips that will help you harness this seemingly magic power:

1. 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.
2. 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.
3. 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.

Back in my radio days, one of the shows I was in charge of was a morning radio team.

And this particular morning team had a regular feature where a couple of psychotherapists woud come on each week.

When I say a “couple”, I mean it. They were actually a COUPLE, and they were both actually THERAPISTS (can you imagine the dinner table conversations?).

Anyhow, I knew this couple only as characters on this particular morning show. “Judith and Jim” was how I knew them. And I knew only their voices.

Fast forward a few years later.

I had left the radio business, and was at an Internet Marketing seminar.

During one of the presentations, I noticed this couple sitting near the front, and I noticed  they were asking lots of questions. And their voices sounded familiar. And their names were… Judith and Jim.

We connected for the first time in person, and we’ve been friends ever since. (Okay, so it was “funny” as in “coincidence” and not funny as in “LOL”).

To continue my story…

I discovered that Jim and Judith ventured into online marketing just four years ago. Along the way, they had to overcome their technical deficiencies and learn to make friends with their computer. Even more so, they had to, in their own words, “open our minds to an entirely new way of being in the world, a whole new and very different mindset-a marketing/business mindset”.

But there was a problem. As they attended lots of marketing conferences, they felt something was wrong.

According to Judith and Jim, “We always felt a sense of displacement, a feeling of not belonging, of somehow being outsiders.”

As they connected with people at those same  conferences they learned that others had the same complaint. And they noticed a pattern: All those who voiced this kind of discomfort were service providers, care-givers, change agents of some kind, men and women who had dedicated their lives to helping others-heart-to-heart.

“It became clear that there was a segment of the Internet marketplace that was not being served,” says Judith.

Jim chimes in, “That segment is peopled by soft sell marketers-all of us who are care-givers and life-change artists as distinct from accumulation artists whose focus is money first and foremost.”

And now these two friends of mine have written a book on the subject of soft sell marketing for service providers… and for people who don’t like hard-sell approaches. I recommend you get a copy of The Heart of Marketing.

The discussion turned to “back end promotions”. Which means, “what you sell people after they bought your entry-level product”.

And the topic was the copy used to sell “back-end promotions”. One of the well-known, high-profile marketers on the call said something like, “Heck, you don’t need a great copywriter to write  that stuff. Those people are already your customers. A monkey could write that stuff.”

BUZZER.

That player is out of the game.

If you think any piece of your copy can be written by “a monkey”, you’re in trouble.

Because if that’s what you think, you’re saying your customers are monkeys, too. See how that works?

And if you still think there’s nothing wrong with all that, try this exercise: imagine your mother or your grandmother is the customer in question. Now imagine telling Mom or Grandma you hired a monkey to handle this part of their transaction, because that’s all the respect you needed to give them.

How’s that working for you?

At every seminar I attend, someone asks me this question: “Does anybody really make a living selling information online?”

I also hear this one: “You can’t make any money as a copywriter or marketer now that the economy has gone down the toilet.”

What a load of garbage! Aaarrrgh!

Here’s why…

It’s easier than ever to make money online.

Especially if you’re a copywriter.

Why would I say that? Simple.

If you know how to write great copy, you have three ways to make money online:

1. You can get paid to write copy for others.

2. You can make money writing copy for your own products that you sell online (that may have nothing to do with copywriting or marketing).

3. You can make money as an affiliate for other people’s products (because you have copy skills, your promos will be far more effective than those of mere mortal marketers).

Not one way to make income, but three ways.

You might think I’m exaggerating. Heck, you might even think I’m lying.

Doesn’t matter.

Because I’m proving every day that what I’m saying is true.

And I look around me and I see lots of evidence that the “economy” has not “stopped” the wheels of commerce.

For instance, I’m traveling the country in my new motor home. Over the last 2 months I have visited both Disney parks in the USA (Disney World in Florida, and Disney Land in California)…

…plus I’ve been to Las Vegas, Phoenix, and a few other sunny places.

And looking out my window right now, I see lots of motor homes (which cost anywhere from $80,000 – $700,000 or more).

Nobody told all these people the economy was “in trouble”.

And…

While I was in Vegas, I visited the Coach store, the Apple Store, and many others. Crammed with people spending money.

Now, some people are spending money, right?

OBVIOUSLY.

And just as in the retail business, and in the RV business, and in the exotic car business… in the marketing business, people are still buying.

(Look, I’m not minimizing anyone’s pain here; I understand that there are many people experiencing real problems. Far from criticizing them or minimizing the seriousness of their situation, I’m simply pointing to one possible way out of those problems.)

And the good news, if you’re a copywriter, is that you have three ways to make money.

Trust me, other marketers will pay you LOADS to write killer copy for them. Because they  hate writing their own, in most cases.

And… it gets even better.

Because when you can write your own copy, you can roll out as many of your own products as you like.

One little online money machine after another. See how that works? And because you write YOUR OWN COPY, you bypass the single biggest expense in marketing. Copy.

So my message in today’s post is really quite simple: whatever you have to do…

GET GOOD AT WRITING COPY.

It’s the one skill that pays you back for the rest of your life. I know it has for me.

So do what it takes. Get good at copy.

If you need fast cash, you can write for other people.

Then, if you want to build long-term income, write copy for your own products. And/or promote affiliate products.

It’s the winning skill in today’s “economy”.

(If you’re curious about how you could start a career as a copywriter, or learn the skill for your own business, you might want to take a look at this resource.)

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).

Wondering how to get started writing your copy?

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.

“I just don’t think I can make a living online,” said Jack.

I was on the phone with Jack because he’s one of my subscribers. He sent me an email saying his back was to the wall.

He had been trying and trying to make this “online business thing” work, and had spent thousands of dollars over the last year or so.

He had only made about $200 to show for all his efforts.

Jack was ready to give up.

“Jack,” I said, “if you’re willing to listen, I think I can help.”

“I’m ready to try anything,” he said.

I smiled.

“And that is your first problem,” I answered…

Which leads me to the reason for writing this article.

Maybe you’re not in Jack’s situation. Maybe you’re not desperate.

But I know that a lot of people are asking the same questions as Jack. Among those questions:

• Can I really make a living online and quit my day job?
• If I put in all this effort and work, will I make money?
• Am I being ripped off by people who sell me all this “make money” stuff on the Internet?
• Are there secrets being held back that I don’t know about?

My best answer is the same one I gave to Jack (not his real name, by the way): yes, you can make a living online…and yes, you are probably wasting some money right now.

The good news is, if you’d start taking the right actions, you could turn it all around in just a day or two.

Here’s what I mean:

Most people struggling to build an online business are too busy buying the latest “system” or “course” or “software” or “service”…too busy BUYING stuff to ever MAKE any money.

For these people, their primary online “business” activity consists of evaluating their next purchase!

Think about it.

How much time do you spend reading salesletters, or reviews of products, courses, and seminars?

How much time do you spend reading and posting in online forums, discussing the merits of this or that new program?

And once you buy that new “thing” – whatever it is – how far do you get with it?

Do you have any big courses sitting on a shelf that you haven’t finished yet? Haven’t watched all the DVDs or listened to all the audios?

Have you any courses that you DID watch all the stuff, and got all excited by it…but didn’t follow through with all the STEPS?

Be honest.

It’s just you and me here.

My guess is that this line of thinking leaves you a bit uncomfortable.

Don’t worry – I think we’re all at least a little bit “guilty” of this syndrome.

But there is a solution – and I’m going to offer you three steps that may help you finally get your business “off the ground”.

The same three suggestions I offered to Jack.

Action Step 1: Set an Achievable Short-Term Goal

We spend too much time trying to figure out how to achieve some huge goal, like “make $10,000 a month”.

Set a more achievable, short-range goal.

For instance, why not just shoot for $500?

Once you make $500 online, you can work on increasing it, right?

The power in this is simple: once you MAKE that $500, you have a lot more BELIEF that you can do it again…and again…and again.

And there is REAL power in that belief.

And if $500 seems out of reach for you, then just set a goal you CAN believe in. Even if it’s only $100.

On the other hand, there are those reading this letter who are already making $10,000 or $20,000 per month…you’ll need a bigger goal, but the principle is the same no matter where you are.

Action Step 2: Pick a Tactic For Achieving That Goal

Notice I didn’t say pick a “Strategy”.

That’s because if you’re struggling to get your business off the ground, “Strategy” may be too big for you to tackle right now.

What you need is one effective “tactic”: a specific set of actions you can take to achieve your objective.

For instance, if you want to build a list of subscribers, one tactic to use is: post in forums to drive traffic to your “squeeze page” (a forced opt-in page used to get subscribers). Make your posts helpful and informative, and put the link to your “squeeze page” in the signature block.

If you work at the above tactic diligently, you WILL start seeing subsribers signing up for your list within a few short days.

There are many other tactics you might choose, I only offer this one as an example.

There a lots of tactics that do in fact work.

Your problem is likely not a lack of good ideas for tactics. It’s that you have too many good ideas and can’t focus on any one of them! Which leads us to…

Action Step 3: Stick With It Until You Achieve The Goal

Too often, I see people get started with a tactic they’re excited about – only to watch them give up on it too early.

Stay with your tactic.

Notice what works.

Notice what doesn’t.

Adjust your approach accordingly – but stick it out until you’ve made your $500 (or whatever your goal was).

Until that time, keep blinders on.

Ignore all the other offers, emails, and attractive “tactics of the week” that come along.

Just focus on YOUR chosen tactic until you have that $500!

And Then What Do You Do?

Once you’ve achieved your goal, you’ll be faced with a decision: what do you do next?

Do you keep at it, employ the same tactic for the next $500? Maybe.

That choice will be up to you, and is beyond the scope of this article.

But keep this in mind: what you will have learned from this exercise is vital.

You will have proven to yourself that:

1. You can make money with your online business.
2. You can achieve a goal you set for yourself.
3. And you know at least one tactic for doing it.

Don’t you think the next step will seem just a little bit easier now?

I hope that if you, like Jack, have been wondering whether you can “really” make it in your online business, you will take this message to heart and at least give my suggestions a shot.

And if you do, I hope you’ll let me know about your success story!

It doesn’t have to take long. In fact, it can be done in as little as one weekend.

Have a great weekend.

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.

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.

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.

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.

I think one of the real tricks of success is to simply recognize these things you tend to do, and then find ways to make these tendencies support your success. In fact, I think most people are miserable because they fail to do just that. Instead of working with their tendencies in order to succeed (almost effortlessly), they identify their tendencies as the problem and vow to change.

That, my friend, is called swimming against the river. And while you may get credit for working your tail off while doing it, you’re not going to make much progress relative to the shoreline.

Case in point: for the longest time I was worried about my information addiction.

And make no mistake… I am an info-addict.

Just this morning, I read the six magazines I bought yesterday. Read part of a book. Checked out the over 1,000 new items in Google Reader. Watched a brilliant little video by Ed Dale over at the Thirty Day Challenge site. And sifted through 52 emails (it was early, and it’s the day after a US holiday, so email was light this morning).

I have dozens of PDFs in my “To Read” folder on my Macbook Pro. I have dozens more videos and audios to go through in my “To Listen” and “To Watch” folders.

And once upon a time I thought something was wrong with me because of this kind of behavior. So I struggled against it. I read books about it. I read articles about it. I listened to self-help material about it. Is anyone other than me seeing the irony yet?

One day I stumbled across an article by Dan Kennedy in which he detailed his working habits… and I was shocked to discover they were identical to mine (at least when it came to info-consumption)! And Dan saw it not as a weakness to be changed… but rather as a strength to be nurtured.

That was life-changing for me.

It gave me a way to stop struggling against my natural tendencies, and to embrace the way God made me. That tendency to process large quantities of unrelated information allows me to form connections between ideas, concepts, and methods that I would not possess if I limited my information intake. So now I structure my work and my routine in such a way that my behavior in this regard in strengthened, reinforced, and nurtured — and then put to profitable use in my writing.

I look for ways to channel that stream of information so that it’s not wasted.

For instance, I found this excellent piece by Chris Brogan on focused blogging just this morning. You can bet I will be implementing many of Chris’s suggestions in my own routine.

Another source of inspiration and information on effective ways to channel my own natural tendencies is at the blog of my new friend Brian Clark (we met in Vegas last week at a blogging/marketing get-together). Brian’s site, Copyblogger, is an excellent resource no self-respecting copywriter or blogger should ignore.

So what does this all mean to you?

In my experience, it means that if you find yourself fighting the same old battles (chronic lateness, procrastination, forgetfullness), you’ve probably unwittingly been holding yourself back by resisting your own gifts.

If you have trouble with authority, why work in a job when it’s clear you’d be happier as an entrepreneur?

If you are always late for appointments — why not just stop making appointments (Arnold Shwarzenneger reportedly refuses to make appointments with anyone, and he seems to be doing okay running the state of California).

And if you have tendencies that are frowned upon by others — for instance, sleeping during the day and staying up all night — why not look for a way to turn the tendency into an asset (for instance, by working via Internet with clients or companies in a different time zone… where suddenly YOU are the early riser!)?

My friends Frank Kern and Jason Moffatt are both self-admitted “lazy surfers”… yet they’ve managed to turn these personality “quirks” into a financial asset. Frank and Jason both market products and information to other people who are drawn to the very personal traits that would be frowned upon in most business settings.

Just because certain tendencies, behaviors and attitudes are not “acceptable” in one context does not mean those qualities are “bad”. It simply means — at least in my experience — you need to find a different context! And that decision — how you live your life — is (for most of us) entirely a choice.

(And to ward off the inevitable objections to my premise: yes, I recognize that there are behaviors and “tendencies” that are illegal, immoral, and unethical. That’s not what we’re talking about here, okay? Anything that falls into those three categories should be jettisoned from your life. ‘Nuff said on that.)

Now take a moment to think about this…

In what ways could your “limiting tendencies” become strengths?

How could your re-arrange your life to make it so?

If you can find positive, proactive ways to answer those questions, you just might find yourself more productive, profitable, and happy.

The Answer: Yes. This is the only way to remove the biggest objection your prospects have to buying from you.

Three Things To Consider When Creating Your Guarantee:

1. The length of the guarantee (the longer you can make it, the more credible your offer).

2. How you word your guarantee matters. If you can denominate your guarantee in a fresh way, it will be more effective.

3. Check with your merchant provider about the length of guarantee you’re allowed to offer!

Click for the Podcast Audio:

Should You Have A Guarantee

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

The Answer: It’s not that difficult – don’t over-complicate things.

How To Improve Your Sales With Better Copy:

1. Model successful copy of companies whose ads you know are working (don’t steal – model!).

2. Use multi-variate testing. Yep, sounds complicated. But when you use software, it’s pretty easy.

3. Use software like Split Test Accelerator to do your testing. (NOTE: Multi-Track Generator is now off the market…sorry!)

Click for the Podcast Audio:

Get Started Testing Your Copy

The Answer: Improve the architecture of persuasion on your website: change the words!

How To Improve Your Sales With Better Copy:

1. Have your copy reviewed by a professional (NOTE: I no longer offer free consultations at this time – sorry!).

2. Make changes and measure the results.

3. Next step: start a rigorous testing regimen (more on how to do this next time!).

Click for the Podcast Audio:

When Marketing Doesn’t Work

The Answer: Avoid hype and use proven structure.

How To Improve Your Headlines:

1. Strip the headline of any adjectives and adverbs.
2. Think about what the PRIMARY BENEFIT of your product is and let the reader experience that emotion in the headline.
3. Avoid superlatives in your headline.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

Headline Writing Shortcuts

“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.

It means that as a salesperson, if you don’t take time to relate to your potential customer, to get to know them and their needs…

If you just jump right in and hit them with your cheesy, canned sales presentation right off the bat…

…it’s like saying “hi” by throwing up on their shoes.

Gross analogy, I know. But apt, yes?

Jeff Sexton wrote a great little piece on how to avoid this phenomena at GrokDotCom (and that site should definitely go into your RSS reader).

Check out their post on web copy that makes you sick.

Using product launches is a great strategy, one that works as well as ever. However, the “standard” product launches aren’t producing the same results that they did a year ago.

By “standard” I mean: copying only the externally obvious tactics, and neglecting the psychological triggers that make launches so effective. The only person I know of who teaches those triggers is the guy who invented the whole idea: Jeff Walker.

To make a successful product launch now, you need to follow a formula. Let’s face it, all the low-hanging fruit has already been picked. But with this formula, created by Jeff Walker, you can have a successful product launch. Here’s an example…

You may have heard of the Membership Site Bootcamp launch. Jeff was the quarterback for that launch (I wrote much of the copy), which created $1.7 million in the first week! So, yes, product launches are still an effective way to create a profit windfall.

I encourage you to check out Jeff’s Product Launch Formula. Even if you don’t plan on purchasing his course, he still gives away great free information on this site.

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

Use a “reverse squeeze page”. This term was created by John Reese, I believe, and not too long ago at that. In this case, you offer free content before you ask for their opt-in information. As an example, you offer them a free article or video. At the end, advise clients that you will be creating more of the same. “If you’d like to get more videos absolutely free, fill in your name and e-mail address.” In this case, you give something to get something.

Give them your best material up front, for free.

No, I’m not crazy.

When I suggest this, the most common response is, “But if I give them my best stuff for free, there won’t be anything to sell them!” In fact, this is not a problem. The great copywriter Eugene Schwartz, author of Breakthrough Advertising, pioneered this method, and it works! He found that when you gave away something terrific, people’s perceived value of your other products increases. Readers think, “WOW! If this is what they give away for free, their other stuff must be incredible!”

So what happens if they get into your site and find that your product isn’t as good as the stuff you gave away free? That’s when you benefit from the “Halo Effect”. People will be amazed by your great freebies, and so credit your saleable material as being better than it may actually be. It takes no manipulation on your part.

Share your story with your sublist. Don’t e-mail them to tell them that you’re going to sell to them (“watch your email Monday!”). That’s not a story – it’s a statement. People love stories. Offer them personal insights into the business, tell them how the launch is progressing, or take them to blog posts. Use all the principals of influence that Jeff teaches in his course. It’s worth it!

I highly recommend Jeff’s Product Launch Formula, and think it’s a wise investment. If you can’t get it right now, use these three tips for your next product launch. You’ll improve your conversions and get more business.

Actually, it’s a lot easier to build a list than you might think.

The fact is the techniques of list-building are really quite simple.

These three tactics will help you to build your list quickly:

Use a “squeeze page”. I find that, while everyone seems to know about the effectiveness of a squeeze page, few are actually doing it, or if they are, they’re not using a true squeeze page. You must admit, it takes a little bit of backbone to say, “You don’t get to see anything until you give me your e-mail address!” I promise you, though, use a squeeze page and you’ll get subscribers, and you’ll build your list. If you look at my squeeze page for Ray Edwards Copywriting, you’ll see that I don’t even offer an ethical bribe to get people to opt-in, yet my conversion rate for this page is about 38%.

Do “ad swaps” with other list owners. Look for people with ads in their e-zines, contact them and say, “Hey, I have an e-zine, too! How about we trade ads?” Then, you run an ad for their list and they run an ad for your list. Or, if they don’t offer ads (or you don’t offer ads), simply contact them and say, “I would like to promote your email newsletter to my subscribers, would you do the same for me?” In your e-mail newsletter, then, you just write a little paragraph that says, “I’ve discovered a great newsletter that I think you’d enjoy. Here’s the link.” This, by the way, is one of the best and fastest ways to build your list. I know, I know, it’s too easy. But, it works.

Look for opt-ins through forum postings. You can post good content to forums. Many forums will allow you to add text to your signature line. Try something simple, like “To get my ‘Seven Tips on List Building’, click here”. That link leads readers directly to your opt-in page. Make sure you have a decent ethical bribe to offer – a special report, audio clip, video clip, a .pdf, even free software. Don’t subscribe to any forums? Now may be the time to start! All you need is twenty minutes a day. Use that time to check out ten forums, add quality posts, answer any questions, and include your signature line link. This really works – I get new subscribers every day from this method, and I don’t even have time to post to forums anymore.

Want more information about the quickest ways to build your list?

I recommend Tellman Knudson’s List-Building Club.

Great writers improve their writing by reading books. This is a great way to improve your skills in the copywriting field, too. Today, I’ll offer you a few suggestions for books that will quickly boost your copywriting results.

Here are three books on the subject of copywriting, and one is off the subject, that I have for you.

My first recommendation is The Robert Collier Letter Book, by Robert Collier. This book has become a classic in the copywriting and marketing industry. Collier himself wrote many of the ads in the book. While the language is somewhat antiquated, giving an old-fashioned feel, the basic principles of the book still stand the test of time.

Next on the list is Claude Hopkins’ seminal work, Scientific Advertising. Again, the language is quaint but the lessons are still valid.

Finally, John E. Kennedy’s Reason Why Advertising is a fantastic book you should have in your library.

And my fourth suggestion is my off-the-subject book. It is not a book about copywriting, but it IS about selling! This is a book that you will enjoy if you are a mouse, or if you live in a house; if you are a fox, or if you are in a box. That’s right… it’s Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss.

It may seem silly to read a children’s book to improve your business, but this book is all about persistence in making a sale. Dr. Seuss teaches us valuable marketing lessons which we can apply to our advertising strategy. Convert more clients into buyers – read Dr. Seuss!

As promised, I have a good resource for you, and here it is – hard to find marketing classics at TwiPress. This site is run by a friend of mine named Bret Ridgway of Speaker Fulfillment Services. He specializes in hard-to-find books on marketing and copywriting. It’s well worth taking a look there.

Buying good books on copywriting is a great investment in your business. The books I have recommended here will be valuable additions to your copywriting library. They don’t cost much, and you’ll get a great return on your investment. The lessons you learn will pay off in ways you can’t even imagine.

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!

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?

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.

Wondering how to get started writing your copy?

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.

It’s not your fault.

Most business people are not trained as copywriters. But once you’ve read this article, you’ll know exactly what to do to correct the problems that are killing your sales and lead generation efforts.

This is “Part 2” of a 2-Part series; while this post stands on its own, I urge you to read my previous post, and also learn about the first “5 Deadly Mistakes”.

And now, “5 Additional Deadly Copywriting Mistakes You’re Probably Making…”

Deadly Mistake #6: Sentences and Paragraphs That Are Too Long

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 are 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.

Deadly Mistake #7: Not Enough Testimonials

One of your first tasks as a copywriter is to break down that skepticism, 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.

Deadly Mistake #8: Offers That Stink

If your offer stinks, the best copy in the world won’t help you.

By your offer, I mean the bundle, widget, or information as presented for sale. This includes your price, and how you demonstrate the value of your offer versus what you’re charging for it.

It’s best if you’re in the position of “selling dollars for dimes”. Then it’s easy to show the value of your offer.

For instance, if you sell a device that causes a 20% increase in a car’s fuel efficiency, you might frame the offer like this: “The FuelSaver is $99 – but you’ll save ten times that amount per year in fuel costs. So you get back more than TEN TIMES YOUR INVESTMENT in just one year!”

Is your offer good? If not, figure out how to make it good!

Deadly Mistake #9: Forgetting To Ask For the Sale

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.

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 Marketer Armand Morin often has 5-7 order links on each of his sales pages; he says that the more “order links” he adds, the more sales he makes.

Deadly Mistake #10: Pricing Before Benefits and Offer

Sometimes business owners want to use price point as a selling feature, and so you see lots of web pages that right near the top will say something like “Now Only $24.95!”.

That’s a deadly mistake.

First, you are signaling readers that this page is an ad, not a page of information. That will cause you to lose readers before you’ve had a chance to tell them your story.

Second, you haven’t had a chance to elaborate on the benefits of your product or service, or to show the value of your offer.

Long before the price ever shows up on your page, you need to make the prospect feel that they must have the benefits that your product offers. They must desire those benefits in a strong and intense way.

Don’t reveal your price before you spell out the benefits of your product, and the value of you your offer. If you do this well, and you do it in the correct order, price will never be an objection; your offer will always seem like a bargain.

What to Do Now

Here’s your “takeaway” from this blog post: it’s the same advice I gave in Part 1 of this series.

Grab your own sales copy, this list of copy mistakes, your favorite beverage, and go through your copy line-by-line. Ferret out these mistakes and eliminate these mistakes.

Do it now.

Don’t put it off.

You’ll be glad you did.

And if writing is “not your thing” – hire a professional. Having great copy is the single most important tool you have at your disposal to sell your products or services.

Let me make you a bold promise: examine your own sales copy and eliminate these copywriting mistakes, and you will see an instant improvement in your sales.

Let’s get started…

Deadly Mistake #1: Being Focused On You, Instead Of On Your Market

This is the easiest mistake to make, and the most common. Most ad copy is focused on the advertiser, not on the consumer. Big mistake.

When you read copy that says things like, “We’re the best in the industry… we’ve been in business since 1979… we have the most well-trained associates… our facility has won many industry awards…” what is your reaction?

Most likely, your reaction is, “So what? What does that mean to me and my life?”

If you’re using copy that says “we”, “us”, and “our” a lot – find a way to change that copy so that it says “you”, and “yours”. Speak about the things that matter to your customer.

Here’s a hint: those things are probably not what you think they are. Why not ask your customers? They know the answer, and they’ll be glad to share it with you if you’re wise enough to listen.

Deadly Mistake #2: Using a Weak, Wimpy, or Just Plain Bad Headline

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. It has to be compelling enough that the reader thinks, “Hey, if this is true, I need to know about it…”

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

Deadly Mistake #3: Not Using Enough Bullets

Bullets break up your copy into short, readable bursts. Especially on the web, people tend to scan copy before they read it; breaking your benefits into bullets increases the chances your copy will “catch the eye” and thus get read.

To recap the benefits of bullets:

• They break up copy (just like this) into short pieces.
• They make the copy easier to scan.
• They make it easier to pick out key words and phrases.
• They get more of your copy read.
• They make you more sales.
• The more bullets the better (usually).

Deadly Mistake #4: Using big words and jargon.

Copy should read like conversation; it should flow naturally and be easy to process.

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.

Deadly Mistake #5: Using Weak, Wimpy, or Just Plain Bad Sub-Heads

You should use subheads every 3-4 paragraphs in your copy.

Make subheads strong and compelling; think of them as headlines for each section of your copy.

If read in sequence, your subheads should sound like an abbreviated version of your sales pitch (which is what they are). Sub-heads done correctly are a way to “stop the eye”, catch the reader’s interest, and get him to slow down enough to read that section.

What to Do Now

Here’s your “takeaway” from this article: Grab your own current sales copy, this list of copy mistakes, your favorite beverage, and go through your copy line-by-line.

Ferret out these mistakes and eliminate them from your copy.

Do it now, and don’t put it off.

You’ll be glad you did.

And if writing is “not your thing” – hire a professional. Having great copy is the single most important tool you have at your disposal to sell your products or services.

The winners are shown in the screen cap to the left. Remember, it was about quality and not just about numbers. There was a tough call to make… Jeff Wells worked his tail off and did a lot of posting, but Cheryl Antier wrote some brilliant posts that were long and thoughtful. It was a tough call. So I’ve made a decision to award BOTH of them the Grand Prize. They’ll each get a copy of the Robert Collier letter book plus the two products from me.

One decision that was challenging was to decide what to do about Ed Erickson, whose posts were also of very high quality. As much as I would like to give away copies of Robert Collier to everyone, I can’t really do that (not at $100 a copy!). So Ed gets the Runner Up nod, meaning he gets copies of both my products. Nice work, Ed!

The remainder of the list will get a copy of one of the products I showed in the video.

So if your name is on the list, please send an email with your name and shipping address to copycoach [at] gmail [dot] com. That’s the only way I will know where to send your package — so please do it now. If I don’t hear from you before December 20th, I’ll assume you don’t want your prize. Fair enough?

New Contest, New Prize Worth $1,497

This contest worked out so well, I’ve decided to do another one.

This one lasts a little longer… from now until Friday January 4.

The prize is full access to my Web Copywriting Explained course on writing persuasive sales copy. The course has been selling like crazy for $997. In fact, you can’t currently buy it on the web — it’s only been for sale via speaking engagements and webinars for the last few months.

The best part is that if you win you also get access to the upcoming new version of the course, which includes live interaction with yours truly, this spring. That version of WCE will be selling for $1,497. What’s in the course?

This course is, in my belief, your absolute fastest, easiest and most economical way to do all of the following…

	Live the lifestyle you’ve always dreamed of, with no bosses and no commute.
	Use sales letters (and other sales copy) to bring in record profits (and no, salesletters are not “dead”).
	A step-by-step system for profit-pulling copy that make sales.
	Use the latest Web 2.0 design elements to boost sales overnight.
	Motivate and persuade prospects to buy faster, with less hype.
	Exactly what works now – in 2007-2008 – and not “yesterday’s tactics”.
	How to use audio, video and interactivity in the world of Web 2.0.
	Learn how to hire a copywriter without getting ripped off every time.

So What’s The New Contest?

Simple.

Make regular comments on the blog (this one!).

Your comments don’t have to be lengthy, but they need to be quality (no comments like “great post!” will be counted). Say something in your comment that contributes to the conversation. You certainly don’t have to agree with everything I say.

The winner will be selected by someone other than me (takes the heat off Uncle Ray, see?).

The criteria for winning: the person with the highest number of consistently quality posts will win. Period.

Jeff Wells did a great job this last contest. His comments were short, but they showed that he had read the posts and thought about his response.

Cheryl’s comments were much longer (they could have been posts in themselves!), but they were far fewer in number.

I think the winner of the next contest will be someone who finds a happy medium between those two approaches and takes the time to comment once every day or two. For a guideline, take a look at Ryan Healy’s comments lately.

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

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:

Click Here

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:

Click Here

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:

Click Here

The Story: Follow Ernest Hemingway’s Four Simple Rules to improve your copywriting (or any writing, for that matter).

The Point: The more effusive and melodious your prose, the greater the certitude you will obfuscate the concept you are laboriously attempting to elucidate; eschew obfuscation.

The Resource: The Elements of Style

Hemingway’s Rules:

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

Note: I have written about Papa’s rules in the past. This time I decided to do a little research before doing the podcast, and found different versions. So who is right? I don’t know. My favorite version, though is at Brian Clark’s Copyblogger site.

Click for the Podcast Audio:

Click Here

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:

Click Here

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:

Click Here

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:

Click Here

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:

Click Here

His name is Ben Settle, and if you don’t know about Ben you should. He has one of the best copwriting blogs on the ‘net.

Anyway, the interview was supposed to be a one-hour interview. It ended up being well over 2 hours.

After listening to the finished product, I realized it was pretty darned good (Ben is a great interviewer).

Here’s some of what we covered in the interview:

• Why studying successful ads can actually hurt your copywriting!
• How to use an ordinary copyright notice to instantly banish “writers block.”
• A free piece of software that can realistically nab you well over an 80% opt-in rate on your squeeze pages!
• What to do if you’re starting from scratch online and need to make a lot of money—fast!
• How to set up profitable online joint ventures—even if you live in a cave with no friends, contacts or business connections whatsoever.
• A little-known way to build a hyper-responsive email list without turning on your computer!
• How to use dopey little ad “jingles” to drive thousands of qualified leads to your websites.
• An almost unknown way to make a TON of money from your email list… without sending them any emails!
• How to make more profits from your sites by purposely getting a lower opt-in rate.
• A secret trick (even an “SEO dummy” can use) to almost instantly get top google rankings on any key words you choose!
• How to use video on your sites for little or no money and without any big learning curves.
• A little-used “loophole” in the Warrior Forum that lets you quickly add a few thousand cash-in-hand subscribers to your email list—without spending even one thin dime.
• Why your telephone is your #1 most profitable “tool” for making money online!
• The secret of getting world-class marketers (with gigantic lists of buyers) to joint venture with you—even if your list is puny and they have no idea who you are.

Grab your copy of the interview by clicking here.

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:

Click Here

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:

Click Here

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:

Click Here

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:

Click Here

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: Use these tested methods to dissolve writer’s block instantly.

The Resource: The War of Art, Steven Pressfield

What we call “writer’s block” is merely resistance to writing. Three ways you can dissolve this resistance:

1. Sit down and write. Anything.
2. Use one of the 3 ways to change your state… focus, physiology, or language.
3. Write about why you’re not writing.

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.

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.

From Kottke: "Perhaps the way to true personal acheivement and happiness is through lying to yourself instead of being honest, loafing instead of practicing, and purposely forgetting information."

FreshBooks: "an online invoicing and time tracking service that saves you time and makes you look professional – Fortune 500 professional. FreshBooks is easy to use and you can try it for free."

From Ben Settle: "A couple months ago I listed a bunch of rare swipe file resources. Today I want to give you a different list. Not a swipe file list…but a list of copywriting and marketing resources that have had a HUGE impact on my business and life. These are not the “usual suspect” sites."

Lifehacker offers the means to pimp your Google Reader account.

And finally, some very important advice from Steve Miller: "My buddy, Nido Qubein, once told me the most important time to market is when you’re busy. He’s right. That way your revenue stream stays more consistent."

“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.