Category: Advice for copywriters

WHY YOU SHOULD WRITE DAILY BLOG POSTS (EVEN IF NO ONE READS THEM)

Posted on by Alastair Walton

Let’s talk about copywriting and how to improve your skills.

Anyone who sells products or services online will know that marketing is paramount.

Your business will die unless you have a continuous flow of leads, clients and sales.

That’s why mastering the skill of writing copy that converts is absolutely critical.

The better you are at copywriting the more money you will make.

That’s a guaranteed fact.

If you’re struggling with this my advice is to start a blog.

Try to write at least one post a day.

(Even if no one reads them)

It doesn’t have to be long 200-300 words is more than enough.

You see, one of the easiest ways to get good at something is to do it every day. Writing daily blog posts gives you a chance to practice and internalize various copywriting techniques. Your blog is like a lab where you get to experiment and play around. You can practice everything: stories, headlines, transitions, your P.S.

The sky’s the limit.

Once you get into the habit of doing this you’ll find yourself rapidly improving.

Writing a daily blog also means you have to come up with new ideas every single day.

Doing this will train your creative ability.

“Writers block” will become a thing of the past.

You’ll dramatically increase the speed at which you write copy.

One more thing:

A copywriting blog is hands down the best marketing tool for copywriters

You wouldn’t believe how many people have hired me after reading my blog.

It really works like magic.

Start today.

Cheers,

Alastair Walton

P.S. Another benefit of writing daily blog posts is that you can repurpose them into other content. Your blog posts can be turned into emails, social media posts and even products eventually.

AN EASY WAY TO MAKE YOUR COPY MORE POWERFUL

Posted on by Alastair Walton

Want an easy way to make your copy more powerful?

Here you go:

Reading copy out aloud can dramatically increase the quality of your work.

Every time you do it you’ll find something to change.

You’ll pick up on mistakes you otherwise wouldn’t have noticed.

Plus it makes everything smoother and easier to read.

Reading copy out aloud also gives you a completely different perspective on it.

This technique works like magic and it’s something that every copywriter should do.

How many times should you read it out?

At least ten.

It’s usually by the tenth time that the copy really starts to click.

Yes, this is hard and takes a while but it’s worth it.

And if it can increase sales then it’s DEFINITELY worth it.

Give it a whirl and see what happens.

Cheers,

Alastair Walton

P.S. What’s also interesting is that old school copywriters swore by this technique. In fact, what they would often do was take an in person sales pitch (something that had been used 100’s of times to make sales in real life) and simply transcribe this and edit it into copy. Supposedly this was one of the most effective ways to write sales copy. It’s also the secret behind some of the most powerful sales letters ever written.

THE MOST EFFECTIVE WAY TO SELL MORE PRODUCTS

Posted on by Alastair Walton

Story telling is an enormously powerful tool for selling.

Here’s an example of this:

I recently read an award winning article about mental health.

This article opened up with a long story detailing the writers history with mental illness. How they were arrested and placed in a mental hospital. Their suicide attempts, medication and eventual recovery. It was a dramatic and compelling tale. By comparison the rest of the article was fairly dry.

What’s funny is that a week later I couldn’t remember a word of this article.

But what I did remember (can still remember) is the story that it opened up with.

The point I’m trying to make is that stories are unbelievably powerful.

There are a multitude of reasons for this.

The first is that stories get read. People are more likely to read your copy if it’s built around a story. Stories also create curiosity and draw readers in. When you use stories prospects are more likely to stay actively engaged and read your copy all the way to the end. Another reason why stories are important is because (as we’ve said) they get remembered. Stories are also incredibly persuasive. You’re far more likely to believe something if it’s told to you in the form of a story.

Bottom line, always look for the story behind your product.

Then make prospects a character in that story.

Do this and everything you write will always be that little bit more persuasive.

Cheers,

Alastair Walton

WHAT TO DO IF YOU’RE STRUGGLING TO GET COPYWRITING CLIENTS

Posted on by Alastair Walton

A lot of copywriters are obsessed with having work.

If they don’t have multiple clients and something to write every day they freak out.

Their blood pressure rises and they think it’s the end of the world.

How they feel is entirely determined by whether or not they have work.

I used to be exactly like this.

But here’s what you have to realize:

There’s no such thing as having no clients.

Why?

Because you are your #1 client.

What I’m trying to say is that you should always have a side project going on. You need to be working on something that can make you money. Whether that’s doing consulting work, building a businesses or selling courses. If you do this you won’t have to worry about clients ever again. What’s more, your side business might eventually blossom into a full time gig. You should also be continually improving your skills and finding ways to market your business.

If you had done that in the first place you would have avoided the no work problem.

Personally I love not having clients.

It gives me a chance to take a break, relax and not have to deal with the stress they cause.

Yes, if you have bills to pay you probably don’t want to hear this.

But that’s why you need to be confident in your abilities and believe that work will always come.

Otherwise you’ll turn into a nervous wreck.

(And that’s no good for anyone, is it?)

Cheers,

Alastair Walton

OMERTA

Posted on by Alastair Walton

If you watch the Godfather (or any mafia movie) you’ve probably heard about Omerta.

Omerta is the mafia’s code of silence and honor.

It’s basically about keeping your mouth shut.

This is a useful rule to follow in business and life as well.

Actually, it’s one of the most important things I’ve ever learnt.

You see, from time to time you’ll have to deal with problematic clients or difficult situations.

Bad clients can get pretty abusive and will say horrible things.

The knee jerk reaction is to get upset and be just as abusive.

But this is something you should NEVER do.

Never lose your temper or say anything when you’re angry.

As soon as you do that the game is over.

You can expand this code of silence into the rest of your life.

Never show emotion and play your cards as close to your chest as possible.

Keep information to yourself unless it’s advantageous to share it.

Don’t ever tell anyone about your plans or goals.

Most importantly, avoid spilling your guts or sharing your secrets with people.

You need to develop a cool, unflappable persona and keep your mouth shut no matter what.

In fact, you should act like a stone cold killer at all times.

Bottom line, never say anything when you’re angry.

It simply isn’t worth it.

Cheers,

Alastair Walton

SHOULD YOU WRITE OUT SALES LETTERS BY HAND?

Posted on by Alastair Walton

Want to get good at writing copy fast?

The easiest way to do this is by writing out sales letters by hand.

This is something I used to do religiously every day of the week.

In fact, I did it for years.

What you’ll notice after writing out a letter by someone like say, Gary Halbert, is that anything you write afterwards will sort of sound like him. Another thing is that writing out ads  gives you a far deeper look into them. You get to see under the hood so to speak. Plus it gives you a kind of, “Neurological imprint” for writing A-Grade copy.

But there’s one mistake which a lot of people make when doing this.

They write out the wrong type of ads.

You see, what you need to do is stick to offline ads by world class copywriters.

The reason for this simple:

Online ads are not nearly as good. On the internet you can get away with a lot that you just can’t in the real world. What’s more, running ads online is, in most cases, almost completely free. This makes writing out online ads a total waste of time, and actually counterproductive.

Now compare this to old school direct mail and space ads.

These cost huge amounts of money to run.

(They even cost money just to test)

Meaning they had to be vastly better than the stuff you see on the internet.

Bottom line:

Writing out ads is the fastest way to get good at writing copy.

But stick to the classic stuff and avoid online ads.

Cheers,

Alastair Walton

WHY ACTORS SUPPORT CHARITIES

Posted on by Alastair Walton

As I’m sure you know everything in Hollywood is fake:

If you read the Wikipedia page of any actor you might notice something…

They all seem support some or other charity. 

Why do they do this is?

Is it because actors want to, “Give back…”

No, the reason why they do this is mostly for publicity. It’s basically to boost their public image as a good person. It’s one of the secrets to becoming a powerful A-list celebrity and part of the business of being a movie star. The point I’m trying to make is that you shouldn’t trust people who seem too nice.

People who seem perfect usually aren’t.

Even worse they are often hiding something.

For example, I was going to work for a guy who wanted me to write blog posts. To do this I had to read through his blog. What I immediately noticed was that he went on and on about what a good person he was. How he supported this or that charity and how much he loved his wife and kids and all that. But in the end he turned out to be a complete scum bag. He basically took my posts and used them and never paid me a cent.

(Oh well lesson learnt get the money upfront.)

What does this have to do with copywriting?

There’s a technique known as, “Admitting to a damaging flaw.”

You basically want to reveal that your product or service isn’t perfect.

Doing this makes you seem more human and relatable and strengthens belief.

It’s something you should do in every piece of copy you write.

Remember, perfect is boring and totally unbelievable.

Cheers,

Alastair

WHY DO GANGSTERS WEAR BLING?

Posted on by Alastair Walton

Why do gangsters wear bling:

Is it because they enjoy the feeling of golden chains around their neck…

….or because they like the way it looks?

The reason why is a lot simpler.

Bling is, “Evidence of wealth.”

It’s basically advertising and proof they have money and can run a successful enterprise.

(After all, you wouldn’t want to join a gang that isn’t RICH, would you?)

Proof is also what I want to talk about today.

You see, in marketing proof is paramount.

The first step is always to prove that your product does what you claim.

Without proof no one will ever buy.

There are dozens of ways to do this.

The easiest is to get into the media. Appearing in newspapers, magazines, or on TV and the radio provides instantly credibility and proof. Just mention that you’ve been interviewed by this or that outlet and people will believe whatever you say. I mean if it was in the newspaper it must be true, right? Then you have scientific studies, testimonials, and also before and after examples. Celebrity endorsements are great if you can get them and so is a world class guarantee.

But probably the best form of proof is demonstrating the product.

Old school salesmen relied exclusively on demonstration.

(Think about those classic Billy Mays adverts.)

All of these will help to prove your claims.

Remember, proof is paramount.

At the end of the day it’s not about your traffic, affiliates or connections.

You first need to make people believe 100% in what you’re saying.

If you can do that they will fight to give you money.

Cheers,

Alastair Walton

SHOULD YOU TELL PEOPLE ABOUT YOUR QUALIFICATIONS?

Posted on by Alastair Walton

The other day I was on a message board for freelance writers.

Someone asked a really great question:

Basically this person had a PhD. In Biochemistry.

They wanted to know if they should tell this to prospective clients.

Would it make a difference in them being hired?

The answer is yes and no.

You see, your credentials and qualifications don’t actually mean anything to most people.

Clients don’t care about your education or the rewards you’ve received.

What they care about is the RESULTS those qualifications are going to get them.

That being said, you don’t have to stay quiet about what you’ve achieved.

Instead, you have to present your credentials in the right way.

Realize they’re features and features are benefits.

What you need to do is frame them in a way that provides benefits to your client.

You do this by:

1. Writing them down.

2. Putting them in context and telling clients how the credentials benefit them.

3. Figuring out what type of clients you want.

4. Displaying credentials that appeal to the type of client you’d most like to attract.

For example:

Let’s say you’re a real estate agent and you’ve won an award for sales.

Don’t tell clients this directly.

Frame it in a way that lets them know the award was given for selling the most houses.

Therefore you should be able to quickly sell their house.

Bottom line?

Clients don’t want to know about your degrees and achievements.

They want to know what you’ve done for other clients.

And more importantly what you can do for THEM.

That’s it for now.

Cheers,

Alastair Walton

WHY DO COPYWRITERS CHARGE SO MUCH?

Posted on by Alastair Walton

If you’ve ever tried to hire a world class copywriter you’ll know they charge through the nose.

But have you ever wondered why they charge so much?

It’s simple.

You see, copywriting is the art (And science) of writing adverts.

More specifically, it’s the art of writing direct response advertising.

With this type of advertising you can measure your response.

By response I mean the number of people who read your ad and buy the product.

What this also means is that you can measure your ROI.

Here’s an example that illustrates this:

Say you have a product with a price tag of $47.

You spend $500 on advertising.

Your ad costs $1000.

1000 people see this ad and 5% respond.

This works out to 50 people which means you make $2350.

Ultimately this means you spent $1500 to generate $850.

At this point you can scale things up, run the ad again and make a fortune.

The fact is that winning sales letters can turn a profit year after year after year.

This is why you need to STOP seeing copywriting as an expense.

Instead you need to start looking at it as an investment which can pay dividends for decades.

Good copywriters know this, which is why they charge so much.

Here’s an even better way to illustrate this idea:

If I gave you $10 for every $8 you gave me, how fast would you give me those bills?

Something to think about.

Cheers,

Alastair Walton