Tom Trush | Phoenix copywriter and marketing strategist

A Copywriting Cure for Boring Marketing Materials

Boredom.

It’s the demise of all marketing materials.

If you can’t instantly grab your prospects’ attention, any piece you use to promote your business becomes invisible. This is one reason why a strong headline is essential.

But once prospects read past your headline, you still must keep them interested. You also want to make them active participants in your marketing message.

The following copywriting strategy is one way you can maintain your prospects’ attention and keep them engaged. What makes this approach so powerful is your copy gets readers to realize they need your product or service. Best of all, they come to this conclusion without you actually telling them.

Here’s how it works …

After you write your headline, begin your body copy with a series of questions. The secret to this strategy is the answers to these questions.

Your prospects should only know the answers if they have the knowledge to achieve their desired end result. If they don’t know the answers, then your product or service becomes the logical solution to their problems.

The easiest way to understand this strategy is with an example. So take a minute to read the following squeeze page copy I recently wrote to target Canadian consumers shopping for a mortgage:

Do you know how to lock in the guaranteed lowest interest rate on your mortgage (for as long as 120 days) — even before you begin shopping for your next home?

Do you know what time of the year offers the best opportunity for buying property at a discount?

If you have bruised credit or a bankruptcy, do you know the steps you must take to prove you can manage your money and how to then find lenders who will eagerly give you low interest rates?

As you know, today’s economy has changed the rules for lending. But that doesn’t mean you still can’t save thousands of dollars on your mortgage or refinance.

The problem you face is confusion. With so many changes, it’s nearly impossible to stay on top of all the programs and pitfalls facing today’s consumers. It’s no wonder why so many people have given up on getting their dream homes.

If the lending process has left you more confused than empowered, take a deep breath and relax. You’re about to get an entirely new outlook on how you can secure a hassle-free home mortgage.

Notice how the questions point out to prospects their lack of information. The only way to get the knowledge they need is by requesting the free special report I wrote for the client as a lead-capture tool. The instant a report is requested, the client knows that prospect needs a mortgage.

Pretty painless way to get qualified leads, isn’t it?

Here’s another example of the same copywriting strategy used in an article I wrote for a client about choosing the right type of employee:

Do you know why you instantly eliminate up to 90 percent of available job candidates when you limit your search to temporary workers?

If your firm struggles with efficiency or redundancy, do you know why immediately filling your full-time vacancy with a full-time employee can cause you to squander time and money?

Do you know why you should avoid sharing your company, department and job role needs before questioning candidates during your interviews?

These are innocent mistakes that nearly everyone makes when filling vacant positions. But with some simple knowledge, you’ll have no problem avoiding them the next time you hire new staff.

In this case, prospects must continue reading the article to find out the answers.

In both examples, did you notice there are no “me” messages (i.e., messages about a company or individual)? Instead, all the copy appeals to a prospect’s needs and wants.

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Small Business Marketing Strategy: 5 Ways to Catch Attention in a Sea of Chaos

When it comes to marketing your business, two variables constantly work against each other.

First, your prospects are inundated with information. From an advertising perspective, the average person is exposed to more than 3,000 messages a day — and most are missed because our society has become so immune to information.

Think about the last time you watched TV, surfed the Web, listened to the radio or talked on the phone. Were you also doing something else at the time?

Maybe the TV was on while you scanned the paper … maybe you browsed some websites during a conference call … maybe you listened to the radio while talking on your cell phone and driving your car …

As you can imagine, this multitasking contributes to even shorter attention spans.

The second variable is unfortunate for you and your business — you’re starving for attention. But the more messages you put in front of your prospects, the more you contribute to their information overload.

With everyone’s brains so stimulated, how can your message cut through the chaos?

Here are five ways:

1. Focus on “you.” Ever met someone who only talked about himself, laughed at his own jokes and never let you utter a single word? Most company’s marketing materials are just like this person because the communication is focused on what they want to say and not what prospects want to read/hear. The words “you” and “how to” tell prospects information is for them.

2. Deliver on the spot. You can’t let your prospects wait, so give them what they want now. Better yet, provide them with instant value. When you give prospects immediate access to beneficial information focused on them, you get rewarded with action.

3. Engage the senses. Remember, the mind “thinks” in images, not words. So use your words to paint a picture of your product/service in action and the end result it offers to your prospects. Work in fears, agitate pains and then promise a better life in some way. And don’t be hesitant to tell a story.

4. Provide exclusivity. Who doesn’t like being part of a select group? While everyone else trumpets “me too” promises, your limited-time offer, special privileges or members-only invitations offer your prospects access to something others only wish they had.

5. Engage and encourage interaction. Prospect involvement helps you establish closer relationships and proves you want to better understand your potential customers’ needs and desires. As a result, you gain greater trust and, ultimately, more sales.

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Small Business Marketing Strategy: How to Craft a Unique Advertising Message for a Common Product or Service

About 80 years ago, Claude Hopkins had a problem you probably faced at some point during your business career.

The advertising writer had just landed a campaign with a struggling company. But the fact that the company had trouble attracting the customers they wanted was only a minor issue.

The primary problem was the product — it was anything but unique. Several companies shared what essentially was an identical product. In fact, the product was so common that it was already in homes and taverns throughout the United States.

The new client was Schlitz and the product was beer.

At the time, Schlitz held fifth place in its industry. The strategy you’re about to read propelled the Milwaukee brewer into a tie for first after only a few months.

Schlitz’s rise to prominence has been called the greatest success in beer advertising. Not only do you see beer’s biggest brands using the same strategy today, but it’s also something you can apply to any business.

When Hopkins began studying other beer companies, he noticed they all announced the same claim in their advertising — “pure.” In his book, “My Life in Advertising,” Hopkins explained how brewers would publicize the word in big letters. Some would even buy double-page ads so “pure” was displayed as large as possible.

Hopkins recognized the claim had little effect on prospects. So he went to a Schlitz brewery in search of a solution …

Once there, he saw plate-glass rooms filled with filtered air where beer dripped over pipes. The process allowed the beer to cool in purity.

Next, he saw large filters packed with white-wood pulp, and then watched how every pump and pipe was cleaned twice daily to avoid contamination. Even the bottles were washed four times by machinery.

Although the brewery sat on the shores of Lake Michigan, Hopkins saw how Schlitz tapped artesian wells to collect pure water from 4,000 feet below the ground. He was also shown vats where beer aged for six months before it went to users.

A stop in the laboratory revealed how the yeast used in Schlitz beer was developed from an original cell that required 1,200 experiments before the finest taste was discovered.

Once back at the office, Hopkins asked, “Why don’t you tell people these things? Why do you merely try to cry louder than others that your beer is pure? Why don’t you tell the reasons?”

“Why?” was the response. “The processes we use are just the same as others use. No one can make good beer without them.”

Hopkins had a hunch people would respond to reading how Schlitz achieved “pure” beer. So he used print ads to tell stories that gave purity meaning.

Here are a couple of those ads:

Notice how Hopkins supported his claims with specific facts and didn’t assume prospects knew information his client believed was common knowledge. Too often, we’re so close to our companies that it’s difficult to realize what prospects truly understand.

Also, Hopkins was a master at educating his readers. When you walk away from reading one of his ads, you feel a little wiser.

And, finally, Hopkins wasn’t hesitant about using long copy. He understood prospects crave as much information as possible before making a purchase. After all, who would ever handicap a salesman by only allowing him to speak a certain number of words?

If you’re actively advertising your business, make certain you also avoid the two common mistakes described in the following video:

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Marketing Message: How to Steal Attention from Your Distracted Prospects

If you get the daily Help A Reporter Out notifications (you should if you want free publicity from the media), then you probably saw the following question last Friday evening:

So many advertisers focus their marketing messages on their own goals as opposed to the goals of the customer. Why is this? How can someone avoid this mistake?

Since I often address this common communication error in my articles, I sent a reply to the media contact who submitted the inquiry. My answer is posted below.

There are two primary reasons why advertisers focus their marketing efforts on their own goals as opposed to the goals of their customers:

It’s easy … and it’s familiar.

Trying to figure out what your target audience wants is a big challenge that takes time. But determining what you (as the advertiser) want is simple. As a result, the focus on far too many companies’ advertising and marketing materials is on making a sale, instead of developing a relationship, building trust, establishing credibility, etc.

Worse yet is when advertisers copy their competition. I recently tackled this issue in a blog post titled, “What’s the Purpose of Your Marketing?”

The easiest way to avoid these mistakes is by educating your prospects. Also, the information in your marketing piece or ad should be so valuable that prospects can’t ignore or throw it away. When you apply this suggestion, there’s little chance your advertising/marketing efforts won’t improve.

In effect, you’re no different than an artist who starts with a blank canvas. Your words are the “paint” that determines what prospects are willing to pay for your product or service. You have the power to create unlimited value for your prospects.

When you consider thousands of messages contend for your prospects’ attention each day, you can understand why communication focused on a company’s goals is so easy to ignore. After all, why would prospects care about your objectives when they want to achieve their own?

Another major issue with self-centered copy is it doesn’t offer prospects an emotional tie-in because the topic isn’t relevant to their needs. This problem is especially critical when you understand all buying decisions are based on emotions. So it stands to reason the likelihood of getting a sale with your ad or marketing piece is minimal if your text doesn’t have an emotional appeal.

These days, getting your prospects’ attention requires presenting information that’s relevant, useful and immediate. The most effective communication targets your prospects’ needs and desires - and is delivered in a way that requires them to put forth as little effort as possible.

Remember, you don’t have the luxury of time. Your prospects are so besieged by messages that your communication must cut through the clutter and offer something more compelling than your competition.

Here’s a video where I explain two methods you can use to cut through the clutter and write your way into prospects’ minds: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h6NMZ0lU6DQ.

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Have You Missed a Chance to Add Persuasive Muscle to Your Marketing?

If you’ve seen the recent Priceline.com commercial where William Shatner introduces Big Deal, a burly, goateed intimidator, to “negotiate” a lower price on a hotel room, then you’ve observed a powerful lesson in persuasion.

But it’s likely not the message you think. (You can watch the commercial here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1U0ohKpz84Y.)

“Is it wise to allow a perishable item to spoil?” Big Deal asks the hotel clerk after cracking and slamming his tattooed knuckles on the registration desk.

Shatner and the menacing figure then present reasons why the hotel clerk should accept their $65 request …

“Why leave a room empty?”

“The additional revenue easily covers operating costs.”

“Sixty-five dollars is better than no dollars.”

Of course, their request is eventually accepted. And although intimidation was the obvious technique used to get the desired outcome, Shatner and Big Deal also applied some persuasive muscle by explaining what the hotel clerk would miss by not agreeing to the offer.

Often, I stress the importance of telling your prospects the big benefits of using your product or service. But if you stop there, you ignore a major piece of the persuasion puzzle that targets a powerful emotion …

The fear of loss.

No one enjoys losing. So by telling your prospects what they will miss if they don’t take immediate action on your request, you tap into an internal desire.

In the case of the hotel clerk, he risked losing an opportunity to fill an otherwise vacant room if Shatner and Big Deal left. He also risked losing an opportunity to collect $65; whereas an empty room would generate $0.

Remember, your prospects are less likely to take action the longer you let them want. But when you tell them what they will lose by waiting, you encourage quicker responses.

Many in the marketing world argue the fear of loss — whether it’s something you have or losing a chance to get something you want — is stronger than the hope of gain. The only way to truly know is by testing your marketing materials.

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