The Copywriter's Toolbox

 Copywriting is one of the most important parts of internet marketing. Once you get visitors to your site, you must depend largely on your sales copy to convert the visitors into customers. Sadly, many webmasters neglect the art of web copywriting. Copywriting truly is an art, but have a checklist of important points is also helpful. Here are some of the major components of good web copywriting. 1 – Your Headline Does your headline grab the readers' attention and compel them to read further? It is essential that your headline do that. Web surfers generally move about on the internet very quickly. Research says that you have a matter of seconds to catch your website readers' attention, or they will move on. That is why your headline is so important. 2 – Your Introductory Copy Do the first few paragraphs of your sales copy reinforce the headline, and convince readers to continue reading? 3 – Benefits Does your sales copy sell the features or the benefits of your product or servic...

 Add a little sparkle to your ad copy and increase your sales. Get started today with one or more of these tried and true techniques. 1.Hand Written Letter. Write your ad on a piece of paper scan it, optimize it, then publish the ad on your web page. Your sales will always increase when you add a personal touch. 2. Publish Famous or Respected Customers . Listing famous or respected customers who have purchased from you on your ad copy spark interest and trust. Others will think that if these people bought from you then they should also trust your business and purchase your products. Make sure you get permission from your customers before listing them on your website first. 3. Show Before and After Photos.   First show the problem picture. Besides this show the picture which show how your product solves the problem. 4. A Review.   Including a review about you, your business and or your product will instill respect for you with you customers. Increasing credibility increas...

 Ever wanted a job where you could spend all day, every day, writing clever and inspiring prose? Yes? Well don’t become a freelance copywriter! Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great job, and for some of us it’s a calling that won’t be denied. And you definitely do get to write clever and inspiring prose. It’s just that you don’t do it all day, every day. In fact, when you sit down at the end of the day and think about what you’ve done, the percentage of time spent writing is surprisingly low. So what does a freelance copywriter do other than write copy? Well, basically, they run a business. This article discusses 11 daily rituals involved with running a freelance website copywriting or advertising copywriting business (other than writing). It also provides some tips for performing them successfully.  1) Quoting Freelance copywriters serve many masters. They generally have quite a few clients, and spend quite a bit of time quoting on new jobs. When you quote, you’re calculating how ...

  Looking for inspiration for your next marketing communication? Try the children’s bookshelf. Dr. Seuss has entertained young (and old) audiences for nearly 50 years with titles such as The Cat in the Hat, Hop on Pop and Green Eggs and Ham. The reason why his books remain so popular says something about what makes for good writing (and reading), no matter who or where the audience is. Nouns and Verbs Nothing keeps readers moving like strong noun-verb combinations. If the sentence were a train, nouns and verbs would be the engine. Adjectives, adverbs and the other parts of speech make the train longer and slower. Dr. Seuss' sentences have strong engines pulling light loads to keep readers moving down the tracks. Lots of Periods A byproduct of eliminating the extraneous words is shorter sentence length. Lots of periods. Paradoxically, more sentences of shorter length increase reading speed and comprehension. Dr. Seuss, as are many children's authors, is a champion of the short...

 Copywriting has again transcended from its usual form and practices into the new internet era; Copywriting as utilized by the Professional SEO business is also known as Internet Content Writing, Web Content Writing, amongst other terms. This article will try to tell you about the basics of copywriting and its advanced application on the SEO aspect. This article aims to provide the beginners in the Search Engine Optimization industry, an in-depth but friendly guide to seo content writing, as well as providing the more advanced copywriters with a guide to remind them of the several tricks they might have forgotten about the craft. This guide shall be divided into the three parts of the copywriting process: the before, during, and after. This is the first part of the guide dealing with the things a copywriter must do BEFORE writing the copy. Succeeding parts shall be posted separately because of the size. Before Writing Before doing any writing you should first know the purpose...

 To write successful copy, you need to know as much as you can. It goes beyond reading background materials, reviewing old marketing pieces and doing some cursory research on the Web. You need to get inside people’s heads. Start with your clients. They know their business and their customers better than you do. (If they don’t, they should. You can help them learn more.) How? Use a marketing/creative brief to get the information you need to ace the copywriting (and marketing) assignment. (A marketing/creative brief is a tool used by ad agencies and corporate marketing and creative departments.) Following is a marketing/creative brief adapted from one I used during my stint at a Seattle ad agency. Even though I now work solo, I still use it today. (Begin form) Marketing/Creative Brief (Note: Designed for B2B; much of this brief is also applicable to B2C.) Good input is key to a successful project, campaign, or marketing program. This marketing/creative brief is designed to elicit goo...

 Do you use weak verbs?  Are you needlessly redundant, or robotic in your use of long sentences? Do you sometimes overstate the obvious? Here are 9 handy tips that can improve and economize your writing. We all learned how to write in school, but in advertising, there are some simple techniques that experienced writers use to convey messages with greater impact and brevity.  Without being too tutorial, you’ll find these 9 tips quite handy when writing your next sales letter, brochure or web page. Avoid the wimpy verbs—is and be. These “do-little” verbs only occupy space and state that something exists.  So don’t write “There is one simple omission that can transform a sentence from boring to brilliant.”  Do write “One simple omission can transform a sentence from boring to brilliant.” Similarly, avoid “We will be running the new program from our Dallas office.”  Instead, opt for “We will run the new program from our Dallas office.”  Place the longest i...

 It’s pretty much a given…when you hire a copywriter for your newly designed web site, your getting someone with above average writing skills. But the best copywriters are more than merely good writers. They are expert interviewers, researchers and marketers. Before sitting down to compose those lead generating or sales gems, they must completely understand all the benefits of your product or service, your goals for the project, what makes your customers tick and what distinguishes you from the competition. If your copywriter is not covering these topics and asking these questions before he begins writing your copy, you will not get the biggest bang for your buck. Website copywriting components: ·        Project Objective  Is the purpose to make a sale, educate your customers, raise market awareness of your product or service, enhance your company image…or perhaps , internally, excite your sales force, improve company esprit de corps, build company loyalty?...

  I am about to share with you 8 quick ideas and suggestions to dramatically help you improve your copywriting skills as you get going.  You can use these tips when it comes to creating offers, E-mails and sales letters that grab people’s attention. So without further ado, here they are! Number one:  Always write your sales letter with the individual in mind. Whenever you’re writing a sales letter or an E-mail, you want to write that E-mail or sales letter as though you were talking to one person. Number two:  Pull them in with the first line.  You’ve got to create interest with the reader, the very first line that they read. Number three:  Use bullets.  People like to scan, they like to quickly read things as fast as they can, and using bullets makes that whole process a heck of a lot easier. So use them. Number four:   Just let it flow.  When you’re starting to write a letter, it is very difficult to just start from top to bottom and w...

  Nothing can turn strong copy into a 97-pound weakling faster than a flawed review process. The result is severely handicapped marketing efforts and, alas, fewer sales. Find out how you can avoid this dire marketing situation. Nothing can turn strong copy into a 97-pound weakling faster than a flawed review process. The result is severely handicapped marketing efforts and, alas, fewer sales. How can you avoid this dire marketing situation? By having a smart and consistent review process that preserves the selling power of your marketing communications. Following are 7 essential tips for reviewing and approving copy. 1. Review the copy from the customers’ perspective. On the first pass, read the copy (all of it) without your red pen in hand or editing hat on. That’s how your customers or audience will read it. Now, what do you think? Does the concept work? Did the headline grab your attention? How was the tone? Does the copy flow? If you begin by editing the first sentence or sweat...

  Here's a terrific new article from ForCopywritersOnly.com: The demand for case study writers is booming. Yet very few freelance writers are aware of this fun and lucrative market. This article explains. I remember the first time a client offered me a case study writing assignment. I was petrified. It was early in my freelance writing career and I didn’t even know what one looked like. I had a lot of questions. “What the heck is a case study?” “How long is it?” “What is the format?” “How much do I charge?”  I didn’t have a clue. Of course, these days, I know more. A lot more. In fact, I write dozens of case studies for clients each year. Case studies now rank high on my list of the most fascinating — and lucrative — projects I handle. (I’m sure glad that client offered me the job all those years ago!) If you’re unfamiliar with case studies, don’t worry. They’re really quite simple. A case study is just a fancy name for a success story – the tale of a happy customer and his or...

  Direct marketing success relies on understanding your audience and catering to their needs. Whether you are targeting impulsive or analytical buyers, there are key copywriting techniques to help you capture their attention and boost your sales. To increase your direct marketing success, it is crucial to understand your audience and tailor your copywriting techniques accordingly. When targeting impulsive buyers, use attention-grabbing headlines, sub-headlines, and graphics such as photos, captions, varying fonts, and bold headlines. Highlight key information with shaded areas or bullets to draw their attention. For analytical buyers, use the same techniques as above, but add detailed information under the appropriate headings. Analytical buyers want proof, so provide it through in-depth explanations and supporting data. Incorporating both impulsive and analytical buyer needs into your copywriting will create a marketing piece that appeals to a broader range of customers. By doing ...