Sometimes, when you’re selling, it’s easy to forget that you’re also a buyer.

We all are. We all take part in the exchange of goods and services.

We, as sellers of products, can do well to remember what we appreciate in our own shopping experiences, online and off.

Hell, I walked into a hardware store the other day and one of the employee’s walked with me to each and every item I needed and helped me decide what would work best for me (I am a newbie with hardware stores, his help was very welcome).

In fact, he carried the items to the front counter for me. I had no idea what the price on any of them was.

And, I didn’t care.

I was overjoyed with the ease and genuine attention paid to me that I happily paid. Once everything was rung up, the price was fair, too.

So whenever I need an item from a hardware store, where will I go?

I won’t even attempt to find some particular screw (or something like that) in the black hole that is a large discount store…

But will get the help I can rely on from a friend that I now trust. Yes, a friend. I suspect that if he is there when I re-enter the store, he’ll remember me. THAT sort of thing.

My overjoy-ment with the hardware store experience goes back to pre-eminence. Always ask yourself one simple question… How can we help our clients and customers? What type of product do they really need?

Other questions that may assist in leading you to answer this larger question include:

In what way is my prospective customer suffering (even if he or she doesn’t fully realize that suffering)?

McDonald’s could say… the pain of shelling out $9 on a re-heated diner burger.

Does my prospective customer think a solution is possible?

What has your customer tried before, or what could they try?

Why did other potential solutions fail, or why will other solutions fail?

We don’t even need to get into a discourse about branding you or your product here. Notice how from these questions, the unique selling points in your product will naturally stand out. It’s like adding shadows to make something else more prominent.

If what your customer really needs is a less expensive version of something, how long do you think you’ll get away with selling them the super-deluxe?

Not long. No one is in the business of wasting money.

And if you approach your customers or client with that mutual respect and understanding, and seek to provide the greatest value to them, you will earn their trust, continued business, referrals, etc. — i.e., everything you want.

I encourage you to think about it.

How else can you get closer to your customers or clients? Feel free to share YOUR insight!

And It Still Makes WSO Of The Day!!!

And it still converts at 17% and made over 150 sales in 3 hours…

1.48 EPC…

Another WSO Of The Day under my belt, this time working with Jay Boyer:

Woo woo woo — conversions are rounding out at 19%, after Mike Lantz mailed out to his list

You may have heard me mention in my squeeze page tutorial the importance of punchy, interesting language.

For me, it’s what makes copywriting fun, and I hope that these tips on how to be punchy and compelling make writing copy more fun for you, too.

1. All Writing Is Copywriting

You may think that you do not need to know how to write copy, but I’ve got news for you, all writing is copywriting. If you’re trying to convey a point, if you’re writing a resume, if you’re debating with a friend through e-mail, or if you’re reviewing an affiliate product… you’re copywriting. So make the decision to let loose and have some fun with your copy, and the process will be more fun and enjoyable than you imagined.

2. Write To Your Best Friend

Do not worry about being professional. There is a time and a place for stiff, professional writing, but it isn’t in sales copy.

When you write sales copy, you’re talking to a friend. So speak how you would to a friend… I do this by saying things like “And what you’re really going to love is…” or “I know such and such stresses you out.”

Notice how in fact, these claims are pretty bold. I’m claiming that I know what you’ll love and want, and what you don’t like so much. That’s because you’re my friend, and I have a pretty good sense of what my friends like and dislike, and that’s how I treat my readers.

Since I’m confident with my delivery of what they want, it’s pretty hard to question. Make sure you complete these ideas with things that everybody in your particular market loves or hates.

So for a traffic generation product, I’d say, “And you’re going to love sucking in targeted traffic and making sales all day, every day.”

See, I had “pulling in traffic” for that line at first, but since this is a post on punchy talk, I changed it to “sucking in”

Yes, it’s a bit more graphic, and with that, much more powerful.

Notice how I also tie in the end benefit… more sales, all day.

So even though this line sounds personal, it really relates to anyone in the market. Anyone looking for traffic will love sucking in targeted traffic and making more sales.

3. Almost Curse But Don’t Curse

You don’t need profanity to make your copy interesting, and being profane may have a negative impact on your readers and put them off… it’s simply not necessary. But the “almost curses” do A LOT to increase readability, convey that you’re relatable, AND convey your passion for the subject material.

Here are some “almost curses” I tend to use

B.S.

Crap

Freakin’

Ish (for a young market)

Suck/sucks

Damn

Hopefully you get the idea

4. Cut, Cut, Cut! & Avoid The Passive Voice Like The Plague…

Shorter is punchier, by definition. If you can convey your point in fewer words, it hits home harder.

One sure fire way to trim down your copy is to eliminate the use of the passive voice and the verb “to be.” For example, here’s a headline I saw in a sales letter not too long ago:

“Using This Stupidly Simple Software I Can Produce Huge Paychecks By Ranking High Up Google For Some Of The Most Competitive Keywords In The World”

Woof, man, that is word chunky, and for no good reason.

Issues With This Headline

“Using” is in the passive voice and it’s awkward…

It’s about the product creator, and not the potential customer…

It doesn’t really sell anything or stir up any curiosity.

No workie.

Let’s scan this headline for some GARBAGE WORDS — ones we can cut cut cut, that don’t convey anything.

-using this

-I can produce

-for some of the most

-in the

Let’s disallow these “chunk” words from ruining our party, add some “punchy” compelling words and service statements… and see what we get:

HEADLINE: Stupidly Simple Software Will Pocket You Huge Paychecks, Guaranteed

SUBHEAD: (and imagine #1 Google rankings for the world’s most competitive keywords, too)

Bam. Don’t you want this ish now?

The headline is short, punchy, conveys huge value, speaks to your friend, and assumes all of the risk.

Then the subhead builds curiosity to lead you into the body copy, and paints a compelling picture that the reader can really visualize… the #1 spot!

Notice how a whole lot more gets done, in way fewer words.

5. If You Feel The Slightest Twinge Of Discomfort Writing It, Keep It In

When you write something cool and punchy, like, “Admit it, you’re sick of the B.S.,” you may take yourself a little aback. I know I did when I was first starting out… and I’d think to myself, “Damn, that’s a bold claim and command, would my readers find it too harsh.”

The overwhelming answer to this question is NO, it is not too harsh, SO KEEP IT IN AND GIVE IT A GO.

And the main way to guarantee that you’re never too harsh, is by following the 6th and final step…

6. Don’t Sacrifice Believability

Punchy and hyperbolic are NOT the same thing. Here’s a good example of the two, and how one works, and the other doesn’t…

Punchy: “If you come back to this offer and see a higher price, I know you’ll feel pretty crappy for not getting access right now.”

Hyperbolic: “If you miss this, you will surly cry yourself to sleep at night.”

One is true, and the other isn’t. The modifier “pretty” before crappy makes the sentence calm and believable, and still a bit fun.

BONUS: A SECRET WEAPON IN MY ARSENAL (totally free!)

Check this handy tool out: http://www.aztekera.com/tools/tobeverbs.php

You simply copy and paste your text into that box and the software will automatically tell you each and every time you use the passive voice.

You’ll see how easy it is to switch to the proper, active voice once the tool has done it’s work for you.

Here’s an example of how it helped me out with this very article: Look above, and you’ll see I slipped and used the passive voice when I said you can write things like “And what you’re really going to love is…”

Instead, that’d hit harder if it read, “And you’ll really love….”

Shorter, sweeter, more powerful.

So definitely bookmark that tool because it is awesome!

Hope this has been helpful for you… feel free to leave questions and comments below.

So one of my client’s was kind enough to share this screen shot of the results I deliver…

This is from one product with my sales copy… and it’s generated over $55,000.00 during the past 7 months.

So if you’re ready for results like this… Tell me about your product.

VIDEO

This video will walk you step by step through how I make killer, yet simple, squeeze pages for my clients. This is a real life example of a page that is sucking in subscribers right now, and I give you all the inner workings… check it out!

AUDIO

If you’d like to save the audio, click the link below, right click and “Save As”

Squeeze Page Audio

PDF TRANSCRIPT

If you’d like to save a PDF transcript (that actually makes grammatical sense) to your computer, click the link below.

Squeeze Page Secrets Transcript

Here’s some results from an epic launch I just worked on with Tim Castleman.

$7K in 12 hours with a $7 product?

Heck yeah!

In under 36 hours we’ve made $13,800+

Oh, and it made WSO Of The Day, too…

So, you know, if you’re not getting these results… Get at me.

K – Keep

I – It

S – Short

S – Simple

versus

K – Keep

I – It

L – Long

L – Lengthy.

People will wonder and debates will flare over the appropriate “length” certain forms of copy should take ’til the end of writing time.

Because there is no answer. This isn’t uncommon. We typically clamor after the unanswerable, and that’s usually a good thing.

In this situation, it’s not a good thing. It keeps us from the deeper, more worthwhile question…

when should we kiss something, and when should we kill it?

The positive connotations of the word “kill” work well here.

But before we get to that, let’s talk about when you should kiss something:

Generally, you’ll hear that the price point plays a role in determining the appropriate length of your copy.

And while it may play some role, experience and testing find that it doesn’t play nearly the biggest role.

So when structuring your copy, don’t think about the price point…

Think About The Market.

If they’re warm, wallets-ajar, ready for what you’ve got. You had better kiss it.

Think: Warrior Forum.

The moment you begin to beat something over someone’s head, he’s lost interest, and you’ve lost a sale.

The more knowledgeable, advanced or specific the audience is, the shorter your copy – they’re already keen to what you’ve got, so use that to build interest and curiosity by being as succinct as possible.

From an Internet Marketing perspective, it’s incredibly powerful to “kiss” affiliate reviews for Amazon and other tangible or digital products.

Kiss it by sharing just as much as the reader needs to know in order to click your link. There is no need to over-detail a product when your visitor is going to the product’s page, anyway.

When to kill it…

The more innovative, abstract, and intangible the item you are selling, the longer your sales copy must be to convert well.

Simply, people have to have a good grasp on what they’re getting, and how it’s going to benefit their lives.

So if you’re selling software to newbies, you have to give them a good explanation of the exact, various ways the software will save them time or make them money.

Consider your target market’s pain points and grievances and and describe them back in your letter “SEO is confusing as crap!” and so on, then offer a solution.

Build rapport by sharing your story.

Because with an unawares, cold market, you’ve got to build rapport, curiosity, share benefits, and call to act. And each of these steps has to have some time devoted to it.

If a product is abstract or new… you must drill the benefits of your product into your readers’ heads. You can repeat these 3-4 times over in different ways.

You have to write to your market.

Gosh, makes so much sense when said plainly like that.

C.R.E.A.M get the money. Dollar dollar bill y’all.

As far as doing anything online goes, we can change cash in the classic Wu Tang “cash rules everything around me” to content. You know why?

Because content is synonymous with cash. One leads to the other and here’s how.

Well written content (and definitely nothing “written” by a computer) increases your search engine position. Google’s latest algorithm shift is a clear indicator of this, and there will only be more to come. It’s less about keyword density, and more about, well, reading like a human wrote it. Marketers may cry about the shift and the added emphasis on good content (what a crazy thing…) but as a writer, I love it.

Now it’s less about making sure the keywords “lose weight” (or what have you) appear 4% of the time, but that your article provides value to the reader. Content rules.

Content improves your readership and traffic. If people like something you’ve got on your site, well, they’re more likely to bookmark it, visit again, share it with a friend, etc. The more traffic you’ve got, the more profitable your site — REGARDLESS of how you monetize it.

Lastly (for now) content directly leads to sales. No one is going to buy anything from you, without you. You know what I mean. The higher the caliber of your content and sales copy, the more correct, the more compelling, the more tailored and powerful, the more leads, sales, sign-ups, and money for you.

See how content rules everything around you? It’s what leads you to cash. Don’t skimp on it.

Get the money. Dollar dollar bill y’all.

I’m serious.

We’ve all heard everything before. Therefore, I’ve written very brash copy lately. To be honest, it’s really fun.

And by “brash,” I don’t mean unbelievable.

Believability is  one of the most important aspects of your sales copy, easily. If a prospect doesn’t buy it, well, exactly, that’s why “buy it,” is the expression we use for that. I’ll spell it out anyway. If a prospect doesn’t buy your copy, they don’t buy your product, or your clients’ products. Super simple stuff here. So, by “brash,” I don’t mean hard-to-swallow, like broke joke to millionaire overnight with 7 clicks of your mouse…

I mean bullish, not bearish. Have bravado. Talk to the reader. Tell them you got “it.” Whatever “it” is that you got that they need. Break certain grammatical rules at certain times to raise rapport and establish a tone. Tell them you’ve got the stuff they’ve been looking for, but you don’t want anyone to buy who isn’t ready for your stuff yet. Show indifference.

Then hit them with hard-hitting margarita drinking beach side benefits.

Try it. If you write something that makes you the slightest bit uncomfortable, leave it in. So long as you don’t isolate or insult your reader, you can see a lot of success just by writing in an upfront manner that most people aren’t used to seeing. Don’t write from the position of a sales person. Write from the position of someone with something incredible. You should be in that position anyway, just remember to write like it!