Is your USP finished? Super! That means, you have
accomplished the following...
• figured out your
Most Wanted Response (MWR),
• built a detailed thumbnail sketch of your ideal customer,
and…
• have a good sense of the key parts of an effective Web
site. And that means that you know...
• how to start your
site (with the focus on theme-based content, of course!),
• how to end your site (where you generate income through
your selection of appropriate monetizing models), and…
• what to add in between. And you know to apply all this to
your customer who is firmly sketched in your mind.
Like anything else, preparation is 90% of any job. That goes
double for Netwriting! Let’s continue...
The sales copy advice in The Netwriting Masters Course goes
beyond writing copy for your Web site. It’s for all of your online
communications... e-mails, newsletters, free offers, advertisements, contests,
etc., etc.
However, no matter which approach you use to begin the
relationship with your visitor, you can only cement it once you have grabbed
her attention first, in a direct one-on-one interaction. For example, what good
is creating an e-mail signature file (sig file) if the recipient deletes your
message right away?
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A sig file is a powerful and free advertisement. With an
appealing signature file, every single person you communicate with will read
about your business. Its job is to persuade your reader to click through to
your Web site. Make it visible with just the right amount of words that are
subtle and persuasive. Your sig file lets the reader know why you are unique.
But, to continue with this example, the subject of your
e-mail must first get its job done… the recipient opens the e-mail.
Joe Robson, a professional copywriter who describes the Net
as a bustling crowded street, full of a million shouting, honking, blaring
distractions. Somehow, as a vendor, you have to find a way to flag your surfing
visitor so that she will slow down long enough to read what you are saying.
Note what was just said… “Slow down,” not “stop.” That’s
another part of the Net challenge. Once you catch her eye, your words (i.e.,
your content) have to increase interest enough that the visitor stays to learn
more info. At that point, you take possession of the screen... temporarily.
So what type of flag do you need? Something extravagant?
Something noisy? Something colorful? Something cutting-edge? The answer is no
to all four. Pretend, for a second, you are on Joe’s crowded street. What could
someone say that would make you turn around and stop? “Nothing,” you think?
What if the person said your name, just loud enough for you to hear? Of course
you’d turn around! Why?
Because you just heard something that was important to you…
something that connected. Your Opening Headline on your Web site, pure and
simple, is that flag. Your sales copy must open with the same attention-getting
power as calling your name on a crowded street. There is only one way to do
that... with your USP. Oh-oh. Look sharp. Here comes your ideal customer now,
hitting your site. Look at her. She doesn’t automatically stop to read. She
scans, looking for “relevance” clues. She quickly breezes through your “Opening
Headline”… if it does not click, her mouse does!... Good-bye!
However, if your Opening Headline does get her attention,
then the whole picture changes. She’ll slow down enough to read the Subheadings
and your Opening Paragraph. And if there’s enough there, she’ll continue on and
read the whole accompanying message, right to the part where you generate
income... as long as you keep delivering benefits that help her.
Your headline will grab eyeballs only if it has emotional
appeal and offers your USP. No logic is involved. It has to answer this
question in the reader’s mind... What’s in it for me?
(This is such an important part of PREselling and selling
effectively that it is worth repeating over and over again!) So pull out that
benefits list, your USP and your thumbnail sketch of your ideal customer. This
is where your foundation work pays off. Create your top headline. It must
contain your USP. It understands your ideal customer’s mindset. That’s the only
way your message will get heard on the busy Net street and shift those
speeding, scanning eyes into lower gear… pulling them into your sales copy.
Now, turn more of your benefits into lower level headlines.
You don’t have to be fancy or clever. Just write benefit-laden headlines that
are aimed at your ideal customer. Put lots of effort into this. Don’t be
satisfied with a pair. Write ten. Take a look at your Opening Headline and ten
Subheadings. Order them so that they “tell the story” that you want to tell. If
you need one or two more Subheadings to fill in the blanks, add them.
Your
Opening Headline and Subheadings accomplish several important functions...
1) They pull the reader deeper and deeper to your sales
page.
2) They divide your information into small, digestible
chunks.
3) They create the structure, the story, around which you’ll
add your Body Sales Copy.
4) The final Subheading is especially important since it
leads to the MWR and your monetization model. As you see, you’ll die or fly
according to how your Opening Headline and Subheadings perform. So they must be
perfect. It’s all part of creating a great content site.
So… create, refine and
polish. Then repeat. It’s not finished until you share it to a friend for a
“test read.” If she asks to buy, you’re ready!
Make your Opening Headline the best flag possible. A
positive start makes all the difference when you interact with your reader. A
negative start is almost impossible to overcome.
OK! From this point forward, your challenge is twofold... •
Build your reader’s interest as you flesh out your subheadings site with sales
copy.
• Get your MWR (Most Wanted Response). For example, let’s
say your MWR is to get the reader to place an order.
Everything you write on your Web site must pull your reader
to your order form. Smoothly. Carefully. Be constantly aware of that twitching
mouse-finger. How do you become an e-persuader? By becoming your customer. Let
your passion and excitement about your product or service fuel your creative
energy as you write your content. Remember to use a minimum of hype-laden
adjectives and adverbs. Stick with solid benefit-laden copy. Every word must
contribute towards the MWR. This same effort extends to how you present your...
• guarantee
• privacy
statement
• testimonials
• order form
Your order form is especially important.
So many Netwriters ease up at this point, just as they should be restating key
benefits and closing the sale. The key is to eliminate all objections… and then
keep them eliminated.
The different parts of your Web site should work like an
orchestra. All parts of them must be playing the same tune beautifully to keep
the patrons in their seat. So step on the podium, conductor. Use your MWR as
the baton. Let your sales copy flow. Present your information in short tight
bursts. Make every line snap. Inject personality!
Make each paragraph, each section fit together. Make each
headline magnetic. Compel the reader to continue on with enthusiasm and
excitement all the way to your MWR. Format your copy in such a way that you
reduce the pain of reading online. (Reading from a computer screen is 25%
slower, and far more uncomfortable than reading on paper.)
Add “breathing space” so that your text doesn’t appear dense
and time-consuming. Important reminder… You only ever get a chance to sell, if
you first PREsell. So write valuable content first. It builds targeted traffic
and it warms up visitors for your sales copy.
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