Welcome to the digital age, where the rules are made up and your perfect grammar no longer matters. Almost everything we see nowadays is written and with so much activity online, you need quality copywriting to get noticed. It’s even more important to catch a potential customer’s attention quickly and keep it, as the average person only spends about 7 seconds on a page or a post before scrolling by. You want to stand out, you want them to keep reading and you ultimately want them to purchase your products or services.
How do you do that? By writing copy that doesn’t suck.
But how can you tell if your copy doesn’t suck? Well, it’ll get you results. I do a lot of writing in my line of work, whether it’s writing blog posts, email marketing, website creation or social media posts. I know when my copy does and doesn’t suck. The good writing always gains some kind of traction, even if it’s small. But the writing that isn’t so good, well, it doesn’t do so well and the content goes unread, alone in a dark corner with the other trash articles I’ve written.
Every single business needs good copywriting, especially nowadays. Without any further ado, here’s a few of my favorite little tips and tricks for creating effective copywriting that absolutely ANYONE can do:
It should be all about the customer. Your customers want it to be all about them. So give them what they want! Good writing switches the conversation with your customers from your product to your customers. How are your customers benefiting from your product/service? How will it improve their lives? What do current customers say about it? It’s cool that your product has a bunch of health benefits, but what does that mean to that customer in particular? Once you demonstrate to your customer that your product has a certain use value to their lives, you’ll have them heated up and ready to buy.
If I know my target audience is middle-aged moms juggling parenthood and a full-time job, then obviously I’m going to write copy talking about how my babysitting services will benefit their and their children’s lives. What keeps your target audience up at night? What do they love more than anything? And what do they struggle with daily? Once you get an in-depth, personalized understanding of your audience, writing capturing copy geared to them becomes a million times easier. This gives you an edge over your competition – your customer will feel like your product was made for them and will want it in their lives.
Every industry has its own unique jargon, or language. Speak to the people in your industry and use this jargon. It will make you come off as professional and an expert in your field, instead of an outsider trying to penetrate a new market. It will catch the attention of others in the industry and attract them to your product, which could result in partnership opportunities with other companies. Plus, customers who are regularly buying in that industry will recognize the language and appreciate it. They’ll identify more with you, your brand and your products, making them more likely to buy from you and keep coming back for more.
Keep things up-to-date and current by incorporating references to current trends and events in your writing. It’ll help people relate to your brand and products better and helps you keep things current and fresh in your marketing strategies. By talking about things happening in the world around your customers, you bring your products into their world. Once in their world, it’s only one small step to buying from your business.
No one likes reading boring content because it’s well….bland. Not fun. Boring content is like poking yourself in the eye with a fork and slowly putting more pressure on it every minute. Okay, maybe it’s not exactly like that, but it is very hard to get through for a customer. You only have 7 precious seconds to catch someone’s attention and keep it; you, quite literally, can’t afford to be boring. Your business depends on it. Keep your content funny and interesting, let your personality shine through. You want your copy to illicit reactions and evoke emotions – both good and bad. Make it funny, disgusting, disturbing, happy, sweet – the stronger the reaction, the better! When you make your customer’s feel something, they’ll be prompted to buy your product based on these emotions. Make them feel something and then sell to them while they’re in the moment.
Use these tips in every single thing you write for your business. Your copywriting will improve and you will notice the difference immediately (so will your customers!).
