Buttery Smooth Caramels Drenched in Belgian Chocolate

Copywriting is what marketers use to use words to make people FEEL like they need to change their behavior and take action on an offer.

If you are a good copywriter, you’ll be able to turn your words into wealth.

Many top copywriters have been paid or made several millions of dollars just for writing short or long sales letters that get people to take action and make a purchase.

See all marketing is… is getting people to change their behavior (do an action).

It’s that simple.

Writing good copy will allow people to want to buy, click, optin and do much more.

Much of the fact why people don’t get good sales on their sites is simply because of poorly written sales copy.

Copywriting allows a person who is reading your site who wouldn’t normally buy to … BUY IT TODAY!

No one is sitting there right now thinking… “Wow, I wonder if someone has a cool CD about Outsourcing, I sure would love to listen to it and buy it!”

What they are doing is surfing sites and “stumbling” upon sites then they make a decision to buy from that site if the copy speaks to their needs, wants and benefits.

Good copywriting is formulaic, without one noticing the use of the formula.

The kind of copy I love to read and use is Direct Response copy.

This is copy that directly calls the reader to respond with some type of action.

Unfortunately, most copy on websites suck because they never ask for a strong call to action.

Good copy sucks the reader in with an eye jolting headline and then follows up with riveting and interesting story copy to keep the reader reading from the headline to the subheadline to the next paragraph, and on down to the bottom of the page, where an action will be recommended or specified.

Pre-supposition, NLP and many other “subconscious or mind stimulating effects” should also be used as well, as long as it’s done ethically to  persuade and not forcibly manipulate action.

For example, “Once you buy my widget, you’ll see how easy it is to use right outa the box and how much fun it will be to see how it works instantly, removing stains from your dirty bathroom bathtub.”

Usually a well known formula used in ad copy is the AIDA formula used in advertising, which stands for:

Attention – headline, opening statement

Interest – allowing the buyer to see them self in the story of your copy and needing what you offer, create some interesting connection so they see this is something they think they need.

Desire – building a fire in their brain to ethically persuade them to want to get your widget. State the biggest benefits.

Action – buy today, click here to order, add to cart, opt in here, gimme your email address now!  Get this to end your pain today!

I’ve studied copywriting sine 2004 to be able to best use it on my sites.

One of the sites I made for Coastal Vacations, when I was a member of it, helped me get over $800,000 in sales, almost automated simply because I used really good copy on that site. It pre-sold people on the value of doing business with me and what they would get when they did business with me.

So I can tell you without a doubt, good copy does work!

MMMMmmm…. Chocolate!

Recently, I was eating my favorite holiday chocolate treats, the Dark Chocolate Sea Salt Caramels from Trader Joe’s.

If you have not tried these, they are simply the best mouth watering chocolate treats on the planet, and they are only available from Trader Joe’s stores.

As I was looking at the box, I noticed the way they used copy to describe the holiday treats, which they only sell during the Christmas season it seems.

Notice how they sell the story and use very descriptive phrasing instead of a plain boring phrase:

“Buttery smooth caramels drenched in Belgian chocolate, then sprinkled with crunchy rock salt from the Dead Sea.”

Doesn’t that sound much better than saying it like:

“Dark Chocolate Caramels with Sea Salt”

On the back of the box, they go into much deeper descriptions, saying:

“Our Trader Joe’s Dark Chocolate Sea Salt Caramels have just the right sweet-salty balance for a decadent treat. A buttery smooth caramel is enrobed in luscious dark belgian chocolate. The finishing touch is sprinkling of crunchy rock salt from the Dead Sea.”

I think as marketers, you need to use more descriptive, flavorful language in your writing too.

Instead of a widget that just “saves your time and money” why not say…

“This product allows you to have your life back because it allows you to spend more time doing the things you love with the people you care most about and it will allow you to save hordes of cash because it won’t break your budget!”

Now, I understand what “hype” is, and sometimes, often too many times, people mistake hype for exaggeration and they don’t believe the claims of your product.

Long vs. Short Copy

Some readers would only like to scan a page, and get the short ‘n sweet outa it without having to read the entire thing.

It comes back to the “long copy” vs. “Short Copy” debate and long copy should be. And the answer to that argument is … “as long as it should be”

That’s why it’s good to break up your page copy with subheads often which a person can easily scan and get a quick summary of your offer.

How about using imagery in your copy?

Some would say, “a picture is worth 1000 words.”

Others would say, “Spare me the words and show me the pictures.”

While my 11th grade English teacher, Mr. Emery would say… “I want those 1000 words… write them down!”

So, you’ll need to test how well it works to put images into your copy versus not using them.

Does this image help you appreciate the caramels more?

Well, I hope you enjoyed the lesson on using good copy.

I may have made you hungry for some chocolate too, and you might be craving some Sea Salt Caramels right now. If so, I hope you have a Trader Joe’s close by!

For other great resources on how to write good copy, check out the box below, as there are several really good offers that you will want to buy at the recommended links below.