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THIS WEEK
Copywriting Success: Sales Success with Long Copy
ALSO IN THIS EDITION
Copywriting Success: Sales Success with Long Copy |
We have all seen them – the web pages that seem to go on and on and on. One big, long, ugly page of copy – full of bright red headlines and lots and lots of dot points. If you print the page – you end up with anywhere from 8-20 A4 pages.
They are massive ... and they sell like gangbusters!
But what are they? These types of pages are called in the industry "long copy" as compared to "short copy" that you see on most web pages. Long copy originated in the direct mail industry and if you have ever found yourself on the Readers Digest mailing list you will have experienced long copy in paper form (at least a few times every month).
Direct mail is the one industry that can tell you the exact percentages of how many people open their letters and how many people actually buy the product based on their letter. They spend millions testing every possible combination as their financial results depend on getting it right.
And putting it simply – long copy has been proven over and over again to outperform short copy when it comes to getting sales.
Why? Well to answer that comment you have to first remember the psychology behind it.
If you go to a shop to buy a washing machine, the salesperson will talk to you about the machines, why one is better than the other, show you all of the great features on the machine you are most keen on. They then generally talk about other people who have bought the machine and how happy they are with it, and they talk with you about easy payment plans or price discounts. Finally they discuss the warranty and extended warranty options and then take your money.
 In a nutshell – that is what long copy does. It acts the same way that a regular salesperson does, covering all of the same points – but just in written form.
When people buy on-line, or from a direct mail mail-out, they don't have a person to talk them through their purchase. There is no-one to ask questions. If they email you and then wait for the answers, chances are they will not buy your product. People want answers the moment they want to buy something – and they want the answers now. All you are doing with long copy is helping the person easily answer all of their potential questions.
The funny thing is the comment as a copywriter I most often hear is "surely no one will read it all – it is so long!"
You have to remember in terms of how people absorb information there are people who love detail and others who just want the key facts. If we look at many psychological profiles such as Myers Briggs Type Indicators, there are big picture thinkers (N's) and more detailed/practical thinkers (S's).
Each of these different types of people uses information in different ways. Many big picture thinkers just scan through headlines and when they find something interesting, they stop, scan a few lines and then go on to the next headline. Detailed readers often read every word and analyse every concept.
As copywriters, we work on making sure that each reader can have their personal information preferences met. So we use lots of bold, attention grabbing headlines and sub-headlines for the scanners, and give lots of juicy detail for those for love the facts.
The other thing we do is work very carefully on ensuring each paragraph leads carefully into the next one, using things called "copy joiners". We ensure each paragraph builds on the one before and leads into the one following. It becomes like a great story, leading the reader through the different concepts until they reach their conclusion.
I mean, who would have thought before Harry Potter that kids would queue for hours to buy books as thick as they were – and avidly read each word and each line. If the story is interesting and flows well, people will read the content no matter how long it is.
The interesting fact is that long copy over the years has developed almost a set format or recipe in terms of how to take readers on the story or journey with you. This format has come about through millions of dollars spent on testing every permutation and combination of colours, fonts, flow and language.
At the moment, this format is the one proven to get the best results with current readers. Of course this may change in years to come with the increase in Gen Y's coming onto the market, but from all the research at this moment, long copy is a great sales tool for most businesses.
So, if you follow the standard long copy format and flow, and remember to keep the story interesting, then people will read every word and your sales will increase as a result.
If you would like a long copy sales letter written for your product, then call Heart Harmony on (07) 3351 8844 – we love writing long sales copy that grabs great sales!
| HR Tip of the Week - Fair Work Bill is in |
 After much argy bargy in the Senate, an amended version of the Fair Work Bill was passed late last Friday night, designed to finally replace Workchoices.
This means from 1 July many businesses in Australia will be affected by the changes. In coming weeks when a final copy of the amended Act becomes available, we will be going through it with a fine tooth comb and amending our HR Policies and Procedures Manual. All current owners of our manual will automatically be sent the revised version free of charge.
The main areas of impact for businesses relate to:
- changed unfair dismissal provisions,
- extra protection for workers earning less than $100,000,
- increased flexible work conditions,
- introduction of individual flexibility agreements,
- workers over $100,000 pa now award free and outside unfair dismissal provisions.
We will keep you posted!
Brett McFall is one of Australia's top copywriters and internet marketers. To be blunt, most people couldn't afford to have him write their long copy, which is why when I had heard he had created some software using his personal approach to writing long copy I had to try it out.
And ... it is great! It helps you work out what you need to put in each part of the sales page, taking you step by step through a long copy sales letter.
All you do is fill in the blanks on each screen, hit next and you are taken simply and easily through the process. You add your own spice to the recipe through the content you write in the boxes.
At the end, the generator creates your long copy sales letter for you in in html and word format so you can just cut and paste it into your website or document.
So how did I trial it?
Well I already have my own personal system that I use for long copy, so to test it out I blended my own system into his for some copy I recently completed.
I then went back at the end of the process and tweaked the copy a bit more until I was 100% satisfied.
Why?
Because I am a perfectionist and a professional writer ... but the good thing about it is you don't have to tweak your copy it if you don't want to - it is generally good enough to go as is.
And the results were brilliant.
It saved me hours in layout time and prompted me with a few different ways of of thinking about things outside my normal system.
To be honest, I reckon many people could create some quite decent copy just by using the software and answering the questions as they went along.
Of course it may not be as fantastic as a professional copywriter can write for you - but not everyone has the budget to work with us. This is a great, simple and cheap alternative.
The bottom line for me is if you want to create long copy but don't have the budget for a professional copywriter - then give Burpies a try.
www.burpiesbybrett.com
 OK this falls into the shameless plug category.
WNA is a fantastic women's networking group across Australia who publishes a high quality glossy magazine that goes out to 20,000 women. ... and they asked me to be their Autumn cover girl. Check out the photo!
Just as an aside, this is a great magazine to advertise in if your target demographics are professional women with generally high disposable incomes.
Taking responsibility for performance management
exuberantly yours
Ingrid
Heart Harmony
PS: This week's Small Business Tips blog also included a post about another cool niche idea - Harley Davidson mobility scooters.
Legal stuff: This newsletter is intended to provide you with general guidelines for your business. You should seek specific advice for your situation rather than relying only on this newsletter.
Earnings disclaimer. Some of the content may include advertorial information, which means I may receive financial compensation for the products I recommend. But - unless I know and trust the product, I will not recommend it.
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