Most of us remember that line from the movie Field of Dreams starring Kevin Costner. But many entrepreneurs who start web-based businesses mistakenly believe it themselves.
They figure all they have to do to make money is create a website and get traffic.
The grand vision most entrepreneurs have of money rolling in while they sleep quickly becomes a fleeting dream as they realize it’s not quite that easy.
Don’t get me wrong a great looking website and powerful products are important parts of making sales. However, without effective sales copy your website and products are useless. Words make sales, not flashy websites.
The hard part is knowing which words to use. You have a few precious seconds to convince the reader to read your sales letter. If the headline is not intriguing or catchy you’ve lost your audience, and a potential sale. That’s why those two things are the most important part of your sales letter.
How do you grab a reader’s attention, solve their problem, and promise them it works in ten words or less? That’s the job of the headline.
No headline can be successful without first knowing who your audience is. In addition to knowing their demographics like age, income bracket, sex, etc. it’s also important to know what the root problems of your prospects are. Remember you are not selling a product; you are selling a solution to your customer’s problem. Successful business owners know they aren’t selling fishing lures. They’re selling the promise of catching more fish.
Start with stating the benefit of your product. Don’t confuse this with feature. A benefit is what the product does for the customers. A feature is something the product has. A sales rep might tell you that the smart phone you’re looking at has some great features such as a high resolution camera. But what they should sell you on is the benefit of a high resolution camera, taking high-quality pictures. Benefits are what motivate people to buy.
Make a list of all the benefits your product provides. Then try to come up with a headline for each one of those benefits. Evaluate your headlines for confusing or misleading information. Try to use “power” words in the headline too. Some examples are “Free”, “Proven”, “Now”, “Instant”, “Cash”, “Easy”.
Another trick I use to write good headlines is to make an announcement. Tell your audience you are introducing them to something new, one of a kind. Use this technique in conjunction with your products biggest benefit. A company selling hair care products might lead with something like this: “Revolutionary Breakthrough in Hair Care. No More Frizz-EVER AGAIN!”
Once you’ve got some you like it’s time to move onto the introductory paragraph. This is where you expand upon the headline and give information on how the offer works. A great way to start your sales letter is with a story that relates to the product you are selling. Create a clear mental image for the reader of a time in which you used the product.
While writing it’s important to appeal to the reader’s emotions. Include how using the product solved your problems and how that made you feel. A little trick I use to do this is that I pretend I am sitting across from a dear friend in a coffee shop or restaurant discussing said problem with them. It helps me write in a more empathetic tone and reminds me to use personal terms instead of generalizing. For example always say “you” and “your” instead of “we” and “our”.
Once you’ve got something going the rest should flow pretty easily. Use the rest of the benefits you came up with about your product as subheads or additional points you make to help sell your product.
I don’t want to go into too much about the body of the sales letter because in my opinion it isn’t the most important part of the sales letter. Master the headline and lead first before moving onto the easier part of writing the long copy.
Good luck!
Ethan Warrick
