“7 Little-Known Copywriting Tactics to Instantly Boost Your Sales� Alex Cohen
www.BoostYourResponse.com Copyright 2009
Disclaimer You may freely distribute this report as long as the content and file format are not changed or altered in any way. The author does not assume any responsibility for errors, omissions, or contrary interpretations of the subject matter. Nothing written herein is intended to be legal, accounting or other professional advice. The author does not accept any liability whatsoever for the use of this information. Nor does he assume any responsibility for your level of success as an Internet Marketer.
Introduction Increasing the conversion rate of your online sales letter = more sales. And more sales = more money in your pocket. There are a number of things you can do to boost your conversion rate. For example, changing the headline of an ad, without changing anything else, can have a dramatic effect on your conversions. Another way to improve your salesletter is to make certain changes to its formatting. This report focuses on a third great way to increased conversions ... using advanced copywriting tactics. These techniques are little-known outside the inner circle of professional copywriters. By including even just one of them in your ad, you could dramatically increase your sales. So without further ado, let’s go!
1. Turn flaws into selling points Objection resolution is a fairly well-known copywriting technique. In your sales copy, you anticipate your prospect’s objections and answer them head on. This is usually done by showing how irrelevant the objection is or by making the objection seem minor compared to the benefits of the product. Turning flaws into selling points is even better, because it removes the need for objection resolution. Instead of admitting that the objection is a negative thing and explaining it away somehow, you actually present the flaw as a good thing! This example is an excerpt from a salesletter for writing system. Specifically, the writer (John Carlton) is selling a set of DVDs recorded at a live workshop. For many people, attending a live workshop is superior to watching a set of DVDs. There’s a certain energy and interaction that can’t be experienced sitting at home in your living room staring at a TV screen. To these folks, the fact that only a DVD is available is a flaw in the product. Watch as John turns this perceived flaw into a selling point.
The advantage with DVDs over attending an actual workshop, of course, is that you can rewind, and go at your own pace, in your own style.
The entire salesletter can be viewed at … < not available online at the time of this writing >
2. Presupposition The excerpt below is from an early salesletter for TrimSpa. It was written well before Anna Nicole Smith was their spokesperson. TrimSpa was a diet pill that claimed to produce extremely fast weight loss. The claims made in the salesletter bordered on the unbelievable. For example, it claimed that the pill literally destroyed fat and worked even if the person refused to diet. Another wild claim was that the pill burned off more fat than running 98 miles per week.
To help negate the reader’s skepticism, the author of this salesletter used a tactic known as presupposition. In the copy, he just assumed the reader would lose weight when using the product. By doing so, he moved the reader past the question, “Does it really work?” and got them wondering just how quickly the product would work for them. There is a tendency in this country (especially among young women) to want to be dangerously thin. This is very unhealthy and can have serious side effects. Therefore, since this pill is now so incredibly effective (and, has no side effects whatsoever) you must be careful not to lose weight too rapidly.
The entire salesletter can be viewed at … http://news.google.com/newspapers? nid=1356&dat=20020928&id=GEEVAAAAIBAJ&sjid=zQgEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4729,40 18238
3. Eliminate the competition For just about any problem these days, there are numerous solutions available. Many at different price points, using different methods, and so on.
The excerpt below is from a salesletter for a weight loss product. It tells the story of a high school student who lost nearly 600 pounds. The salesletter includes many excellent copywriting techniques including empathy, authority and mental imagery. But unlike most sales letters, it also mentions its competitors by name and effectively dismisses them as the solution of choice. There are many well-known weight-loss solutions on the market. By listing them and saying that they couldn’t help him, the writer eliminates each one in the prospect’s mind. This establishes his solution as the only one that really works. Look, I don't mean to brag, but darn it, I'm pretty proud of myself. The doctors couldn't help me. All those diet "experts" couldn't help me. Even my family couldn't help me. (But God bless them for trying.) I didn't get help from Weight Watchers, Richard Simmons, Optifast, Nutrisystem or anybody else. No, I did it all on my own and I learned how to do it fast and cheap.
The entire salesletter can be viewed at … < not available online at the time of this writing >
4. Tell, then show This example is from a short lead-generation piece. It drove prospects to a website selling a stock trading system. The system was unique. It identified a certain pattern that occurred during the first 47 minutes the NASDAQ was open and showed how to make substantial profits by understanding this pattern. You may have heard the old saying, “Show, don’t tell”. This is not true for sales copy. In your ads, “Tell, then show” whenever you can, because it increases believability. In the example below, the writer used this tactic. Instead of just saying “the first 47minutes of trading” he also gave a very specific example. This tactic makes the product more real in the prospect’s mind. He actually sees himself getting out of bed each day at 9:00am and making money in a short time span. However, if you know how to use these simple tools and, you have the ability to focus on the market for approximately one hour each morning, there is no
limit to the amount of Nasdaq stock profits you can make. This means you can get out of bed at 9:00 a.m., watch the market and trade until about 10:47... and then... go back to sleep a happier and richer person.
The entire salesletter can be viewed at … http://www.thegaryhalbertletter.com/newsletters/zjll_most_valuable_skill.htm
5. Comparing apples to oranges One thing you must do in your copy is establish value. Show your reader that the price he will pay is a mere pittance compared to the benefits he will receive. Most salesletters do this by explaining what the prospect has to gain by buying the product. Or what they have to lose by not buying the product. Here’s a comparison method as old as mankind itself. An “apples to oranges” comparison is another way to establish value. It compares two unequal things (but related) with each other as if they’re equal. In this example, the writer is selling a fitness e-book. He increases its perceived value significantly by linking it with two higher-priced alternatives. Let's do a quick comparison - last time I checked a NordicTrack would set you back over $1,000.00. And almost everyone I know who bought one uses it as a clothes rack within a few weeks anyway. Or you could easily pay $50 - $75 bucks per month for a gym membership you'll probably go to a few times (that's over $500.00 per year!). But I'm not going to charge you anywhere near that amount or even my minimum hourly rate. In fact, your total investment for the entire "Get Fit While You Sit" program is just $29.95.
The entire salesletter can be viewed at … http://www.getfitwhileyousit.com
6. Reluctance to sell the product People love buying stuff. It’s just that they hate being sold to. If you position yourself as not needing the sale as much as your prospect needs to buy the product, you allow him to reach the buying decision on his own. This is a very effective selling strategy when done correctly. In the excerpt below, the writer states that the product is so good, the creator originally didn’t want it on the market. Because a credible explanation is given for why she had that attitude, and why she has now changed her mind, the strategy works. Actually, Julie created this product more than 1-1/2 years ago. But she's never put it on the market before now. She felt if she had sold it before now, the result would be millions of women almost crazy to have hot sex... but... these women would be with men who did not know how to satisfy them. Recently though, something happened which changed her mind.
The entire salesletter can be viewed at … http://bestsexpossible.com
7. The Zeigarnik effect “The Zeigarnik effect states that people remember uncompleted or interrupted tasks better than completed ones.” (Wikipedia) Also known as the Open Loop, this phenomenon was first studied by Bluma Zeigarnik, a Russian psychologist. She noticed that waiters remembered orders as long as it took to serve a meal. Because people have a need for resolution, you can use this principle as a way of keeping prospects reading your sales letter. And it’s a great way to build curiosity. This is how the tactic works. A topic is brought up early in the copy with a strong element of curiosity. Then, the copy promises to address the subject later in the message. Here’s an example. In my book, I address these issues ... and a lot more. I give you the unbiased advice you need to safely buy a good business.
A little later in this message, I'm going to share with you a "secret" many business brokers hope you don't find out about. But first, let's talk about some basics.
The entire salesletter can be viewed at â&#x20AC;Ś < not available online at the time of this writing > Alex Cohen is a niche marketer and copywriting coach. His sales letters have generated product sales from $27 all the way up to $1,495. In addition, his lead generation copy has helped professionals bring in thousands of dollars in fees and commissions. He formed www.BoostYourResponse.com with one goal in mind --- to help Internet Marketers, who write their own copy, boost the response of their online sales letters and lead generation web pages.