Copywriting The Tortoise Way

by CathyG on October 19, 2011 · 2 comments

As a business owner who wants to get clients and sell products online, you know you need to create website content. Writing this content involves copywriting.

So… how can you get your own website content? Here are 3 ways that many business owners use. They’ll get your copywriting done (if you don’t mind operating with tortoise speed).

Write Your Own Website Content

Many service business owners opt for DIY – Do It Yourself Copywriting. This option wlll seem attractive, especially if you already work with words. Lawyers and tech writers often try to write their own copy.

Advantages: The biggest advantage here is that you know your own business and you know your own clients and customers. You won’t need a learning curve and you can skip some research steps.

Disadvantages: Conversely, just as you know your business, you lose objectivity. You may not be aware of benefits you could be promoting.

The biggest disadvantage, though, comes from your time investment and your opportunity cost. You will need 15-20 hours to write your website, as a minimum. Multiply these hours by your hourly rate. That’s the ballpark number you should spend for copywriting.

Service professionals and business owners typically get too caught up in the details of how they provide the service. It’s easy to get so caught up in process that your copywriting slants toward you rather than your clients.

One variant of DIY is, “Adapt content from other sites that target the same market.” You certainly can get inspiration and ideas from competitors and colleagues.

Copywriters do use “swipe files,” but they have training and expertise. It’s easy to get into trouble. Besides the obvious plagiarism danger, you may be applying content that’s wrong for your market. You may inadvertently find yourself swiping copy from someone who’s a lousy copywriter.

Combining Content With Web Design

Sometimes your web designer will try to be helpful by writing your copy. It’s tempting! She says, “I’ll just write it. Already know you.”

Your next question should be, “What are you charging to write this content for me?” Often you will find that you can get stronger copy for the same investment by going directly to a copywriter. In fact, you may find you pay less for the copywriter. While your copywriting may get done with the speed of the hare, this method ultimately grows your profits with the speed of the tortoise.

You will ultimately save money *and* time in the long run when you start with the copywriting, whether you write your own or hire a copywriter. Your designer will work faster when you have the copy ready. He will also be more likely to design a site that’s in line with your message – and get it right the first time.

Obviously I recommend hiring a copywriter or investing time in learning how to write your own. I offer a variety of programs. If you’d like to learn to write your own, start with Lorrie Morgan-Ferrero’s QuickStart guide. Lorrie was my own copywriting mentor. She manages to capture a weekend of intense training in just one affordable resource: http://budurl.com/quickstartcopy

Most of my clients are surprised at how much they gain by working with a copywriter – not just in terms of earnings but as a way to learn about your own business and your own marketing.

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Copywriting For A Can’t Miss Landing Page

by CathyG on October 16, 2011 · 0 comments

Just came across this post about a 12-point landing page “rehab” from SEO Moz. Read it here.

First – what is a landing page?

Think of a plane that flies from one place to another. The plane’s landing isn’t haphazard: it’s a planned destination.

By way of analogy, your visitors are flying around the Internet looking for a solution to a problem. They choose a destination – your landing page. They may have come from a search engine or they may have come from your ezine, solo email message, blog post, or pay-per-click ad.
Here’s a definition from Copyblogger:

A landing page is any page on a website where traffic is sent specifically to prompt a certain action or result. Think of a golf course… a landing page is the putting green that you drive the ball (prospect) to.

And here are just a few tips from the above article:

(1) Create a separate landing page for each target niche.

For example, let’s say you are a financial planner. You have a site related to helping clients cut back credit card debt. Let’s imagine you have 3 types of clients:

– Clients who were always on time with payments – maybe they even had some surplus funds – but got laid off. That’s the “unemployed” segment.
– Young married couples with children who just never learned how to manage money.
– Clients with a personal crisis, such as a health problem, divorce or death of a spouse.

Each group will respond to a different message. The young marrieds will be turned off when you talk about widowhood and divorce. So you need 3 separate landing pages. You may need 3 freebie giveaways or you may get by with just one. Ultimately you’re inviting all these audiences to become your clients.

(2) No surprises: your landing page headline should be similar (if not identical) to the email message, pay-per-click ad or blog post that directs visitors to the pay.

For example, let’s say you have an ad promising, “How to cure tension headaches – fast.”

Your landing page should refer directly to fast cures for tension headaches – not general stress reduction or personal growth.

(3) Make it easy for visitors to navigate the page.

Include directional cues, such as arrows, colors for “click here” buttons, white space, and large, clearly marked headlines.

Following just a few steps can make a huge difference in landing page conversions, whether you are selling a product or motivating visitors to sign up for an opt-in freebie.

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Lessons from Spammers You Can Use For Your Ethical Online Marketing (including: Copywriting Matters)

by CathyG on October 15, 2011 · 0 comments

Copyblogger recently introduced 4 lessons we can all learn from spammers. Read the original post here. /

Of course they hate spammers and I do too. I’m not suggesting anyone spam. But the success of spammers will reinforce some totally ethical, legitimate things we can all do.

Lesson 1 – Make sure someone wants what you offer. To use their metaphor, if you fish in an empty sea, you won’t catch anything.

Here’s what they say:

“Spammers know this, and they always focus their efforts on the niches with the largest number of fish. That means they always target known customers willing to spend money.”

The best resource I know for mastering this mindset (as well as identify a really hungry market) is still Reach Desperate Buyers: http://www.ReachDesperateBuyers.com
Don’t be put off by the tired old sales-y sales letter: I regularly get notes thanking me for this recommendation. And it’s got a 100% money back guarantee.

Lesson 2 – Never underestimate the power of email. If you don’t have a list, you need to build one.

There are a few niches where prospects either buy right away or never buy at all. In that case, building a relationship is a waste of time. But if you have a responsive opt-in list, you’ll outdo the spammers without annoying your readers.

Lesson 3 – COPYWRITING MATTERS. (Did we say copywriting matters?)

Here’s what the Blogger.com people say:

“Spammers may not always write the most poetic English. But they do use solid, time-tested copywriting techniques. If you master the essentials of copywriting yourself, you’d be able to sell crappy products to a fair number of people. (Not that we recommend that.)”

Of course when you deliver solid benefits, you grow your business two ways. You attract buyers from those who respond to your copywriting. And these buyers in turn will generate referral business.

You can learn about copywriting on copyblogger.com and get started with no charge. I also recommend Lorrie Morgan-Ferrero’s Quick Start Copy.

(4) Grow your list and/or your traffic.

Spammers use numbers. Even good marketers consider a 5-10% conversion rate excellent, in most markets. Spammers get less than 1%. But they have numbers on their side.

Here’s what the Copyblogger.com post says:

“Numbers aren’t the only thing, but they do matter. If your main income source is your website, learn how to get as much traffic as possible. If your main income source is your email list, learn how to get as many subscribers as possible.”

You’ve probably heard these tips before. Learning that they’re used by spammers seems to give them an odd sort of credibility … and hey, whatever works!

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Website Marketing Without Giving Away The Store

by CathyG on October 14, 2011 · 0 comments

Service business owners often express a legitimate concern about website development: how much information do you have to share so prospects get to know you – and at what point are you giving away too much?

As a first step in addressing this challenge, I will introduce a cliche from journalism. Every story needs to answer the Big 5 questions: Who, What, When, Where and Why. I’m not sure journalists still think this way. But when you analyze your own website marketing content, you may find this system helpful as you assess the effectiveness of your copywriting. I’ll illustrate with an example.

Let’s say you are a fitness trainer. You work with clients who want to get in shape to lose weight and enjoy more energy.

WHO: You introduce yourself to answer the question, “Who will help me reach my fitness goals? Is this person (or team of people) qualified? Why should I trust them?”

You demonstrate credibility with testimonials and credentials. You can also show you’ve got the right stuff by referring readers to articles and blog posts you’ve written.

On your home page, you also demonstrate credibility by crafting bullet points that resonate with your target market. For a fitness pro, one bullet might be, “My 7-step no-drug energy program that banishes the 3 PM fadeout forever (so you get 2 more productive hours a day)”

WHAT: It’s not about specific actions you take to get results. It’s more like, “What do I have to do?”

Your home page includes some “what” info, especially in the bullet points. The “what” focuses on features. For the fitness program, you might say, “You learn techniques to move your body differently. You get systems to choose high-energy “fuel foods” that increase your energy (and you don’t have to give up coffee and chocolate).”

This information also belongs in your info products, with considerably more detail.

You have to use the “What” info carefully. Readers will get frustrated if you offer a giveaway or a series of blog posts where you promise how” info but offer “what.” Website visitors can be scared away with too much detail

WHEN: How often? What times of day? What season? These are the questions related to your service. For instance, an exercise pro might say, “as little as 60 minutes a week.” (I’ve seen ads for those programs but I must admit I’m skeptical!) Do you provide service evenings and weekends?

This info typically belongs on the service page. Most clients realize you won’t be available 24/7 but I occasionally requests for appointments at 9:30 PM on Friday.

WHERE: How will the service take place? Virtually? If live, your place or theirs? If your offering is unusual, you might consider highlighting the “where” info on your home page. If clients want to have this info before proceeding, make sure it’s on your home page.

For instance, many people have strong preferences about services like fitness and massage. You want the provider to come to your home … or you absolutely don’t! Trust me – a person with multiple pets (who yowl loudly when you lock them up) will not get a peaceful massage at home.

WHY: “Why do I need this service? Why are you the best?” These questions absolutely have to be answered on the home page, with supplemental information on your About page and perhaps Services page.

The “why” information also belongs in the first part of nearly every info product and teleseminar you provide. It’s critical to remind those who download or purchase your info products -but you can’t go on too long. Otherwise your reader gets annoyed.

Of course, neither your site nor any specific page will be organized along the 5W lines. But an understanding of the type of content you are writing will help you create a stronger marketing message.

HOW: This understanding is especially critical when you get into the “HOW” dimension. When you write content for your website, you are often advised, “Tell readers WHAT to do, but not HOW to do it.”

The truth is, you may have to reveal some “how to” info to keep your readers interested and to demonstrate your own credibility. No recommendation can be universal. But generally I recommend including information about how to do something.

For instance, a fitness professional might offer a free giveaway like, “How to do a sit-up without hurting your back.” This type of giveaway would accomplish several purposes. First, prospective clients could try out the method to see if it worked. Alternatively, some clients would be turned away because they want a program that doesn’t include sit-ups or crunches. That’s fine: they’re not a fit for this program.

Would you like to learn how to set up your home page so you create content that motivates readers to keep reading so they get interested in working with you? Check out my mini-workshop starting next week: http://budurl.com/homepagerun

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How business owners can end “offer overwhelm” once and for all

by CathyG on October 11, 2011 · 0 comments

One of the biggest complaints I hear about working on the Internet is, “I have SO many emails with offers to help me run my business.”

A variation is, “If I listened to every call and read every Report, I wouldn’t have time to do anything else.”

Another question is, “What do I choose first?”

You will also be invited to workshops, Reports and calls that warn you, “Don’t take advantage of Bright Shiny Object syndrome.”

So how can we deal with all these invitations?

I’m reminded of working with two different real estate agents – one awful and one really good. I gave the “bad” agent a list of properties I’d found and we drove all over town. We wasted a whole afternoon and my head ached at the end of the day.

The “good” agent took my the list of properties I’d found on Craigslist. He asked me where I spent most of my time and what kind of lifestyle I wanted. On that basis, he screened out 99% of the properties I’d found.

“This one’s out in the middle of nowhere,” he said. “You’d hate it.”

We spent less than an hour and I had a neat list of choices that I could research further.

On the Internet, you have to be your own agent.

Sometimes it’s easier to get perspective when you work with a coach or consultant, so you get clarity on what’s important to you. Sometimes you really know … if you’re just willing to be honest.

For instance, “Alice” realizes she hates live networking. She needs to buy manuals and take workshops so she can create an online-only business. She might have to revise her business model. If she signs up for a program that requires her to attend live events, she’s doomed.

“Ben” likes working with live clients. He really hates the time he spends creating products. He needs to screen out offers for programs to create content and use keywords to sell.

Alice and Ben are simplistic examples and often it’s hard to recognize what’s important. Regardless, it’s best not to wait till you are absolutely sure. I’ve seen clients recognize what their business model needs to look like as we wrote the copy for a specific product or program.

And if you know you need a website to promote your service business, my next workshop starts next week: http://www.CopywritingWithCathy.com/homepagecourse.html

You can create your home page – the page most clients want to develop first. We talked about this topic and introduced the workshop on last week’s call: http://budurl.com/chatoct6

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Copywriting to Create A Compelling Website Marketing Presence

by CathyG on October 8, 2011 · 0 comments

Copywriting for a service business requires creating a compelling website marketing presence. You have a presence when you walk into a room. Now your website has to create a presence when visitors stop by.

One way to create a website marketing presence involves creating your Free Report and promoting it on every page -especially your Home Page.  This step is your gateway to list-building. Therefore your report’s title represents a critical element of copywriting: you need to communicate that you offer a genuine difference.

I don’t recommend reports like,   “101 things a coach [accountant, consultant, speech coach, office organizer or virtual assistant] can do for you.”

These report just aren’t interesting.  Who wants to wade through a list of 101 items?

If you’re an accountant, your visitor won’t be astounded to discover you’ll prepare her taxes. If you’re a virtual assistant, she’ll expect you to help with mailing lists and phone calls.

Often these lists are prepared by a central service. You find the same giveaway on a dozen or more websites.  Your visitor’s eyes start to glaze over. She decides maybe she should forget the whole thing.

How can you prevent the bleary-eyed visitor blues?

(1) Create a problem-solving Call for Action – before you design the rest of your web site. “How-to” titles work best because you demonstrate that you understand the problem and showcase your unique approach.

  • A Virtual Assistant: “How to delegate the 10 most critical tasks that keep your business alive and profitable.”
  • A speech coach: “Five techniques that tell your audience you’re a professional speaker”
  • An office organizer: “It’s 9 AM – do you know where your Top Priority is?”

(2) Make it easier for prospects to figure out why you’re different from the competition on the other 43 websites your prospect just visited.

A hairstylist: “Curly hair is my specialty (and we’re never late with appointments).”

A virtual assistant: “I can program the Internet’s top shopping cart system to save you 5 hours each month.”

A speech coach: “Five clients I coached last year are now listed with speaker bureaus.”

(3) Identify benefits your prospect may not have anticipated.

For instance, prospective clients may not realize that some office organizers can help them choose furniture to make their lives easier. Others employ feng shui principles.

Bottom Line: Visitors who see a big grab-bag list of offers will tune out if they recognize the first few. “Ho hum. I know that.”

Instead, find ways to showcase yourself and your expertise –professionally.  You’ll be taking the first steps to creating a powerful online presence.

To learn more about copywriting for a compelling online marketing presence, check out my website marketing workshop starting October 20:

http://www.CopywritingWithCathy.com/homepageworkshop.html

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Revenue opportunity for life coaches and career coaches

by CathyG on October 4, 2011 · 0 comments

Are you a life coach or career coach? Then you probably know it’s hard to find quality products to sell to generate passive income. I’d like to tell you about 2 opportunities I offer.

My first website was a career site. I still keep it open and sell products. You can benefit from becoming my affiliate and selling some of my products.

Most recently I made a few minor revisions to my book on moving: Making The Big Move: How To Transform Relocation Into a Creative Life Transition. Very few resources offer help with the psychological aspects of relocation. If you’ve got clients who are considering a move a part of a career change, you can offer them this one. I recommend purchasing your own copy first so you can say honestly, “I bought it myself and found it valuable.” And adding your testimonial to my site will give you some more exposure.

Visit
http://www.RelocationStrategy.com

I pay 50% of sales so you get $18.50 for each item sold. Join my affiliate program at
http://www.CopywritingWithCathy.com/affiliate.html

And I offer one of the very few PLR products related to career change. PLR stands for “Private Label Rights,” which means you can use these 20+ articles as your own, any way you like. See
http://www.MidlifeCareerStrategy.com/careerbook.html

Of course if you’re marketing to life and career coaches, feel free to refer them and collect commission too.

 

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How Hiring A Copywriter Gives You 10 Surprising Ways To Grow Your Service Business

by CathyG on October 4, 2011 · 0 comments

Many business owners think, “When you hire a copywriter, you get content. Words. Headlines. At most you might get a message strategy or content strategy.”

The truth is … you get a lot more when you hire a real copywriter. I’m not talking about the rent-a-writers on Craigslist who charge as little as $30 an hour. But when you hire the Real Deal you get a whole business makeover system, including:

(1) Get help with decisions on whether to go with 1 website or many. This decision seems fairly straightforward but I’ve seen business owners paralyzed or stuck with websites that baffle their visitors (and sometimes their creators).

You may be better off with several sites or you may create an umbrella website that spins a story across multiple products and services.

(2) Create your website navigation. What should be on the top and side menu bars? What is the sequence of pages – and how do you want your audience to move through the site?

(3) Choose your photo (or edit the one you have). OK, I get jealous: I’ve got the kind of face that makes grown photographers cry. But I’ve seen so many photogenic business owners who allow themselves to get caught wearing inappropriate clothes, striking bizarre poses and more.

(4) Fill the holes in your marketing. Are you presenting a new workshop or teleseminar? If you’re not fully prepared, your copywriter will tell you what you need (and probably suggest ways to fill the gaps more easily than you anticipated).

(5) Write the script for your video. You’ve been told you need video (and you’re right) but what can you say if you want to make the most impact? Your copywriter helps you take your message to the third dimension.
(6) Describe your services honestly and realistically. When you exaggerate, you risk angry clients and even legal  consequences. When you understate your benefits, you can’t command the highest possible fees.

(7) Communicate with your web designer so your message doesn’t get lost behind overwhelming graphics. Many copywriters know some HTML and CSS – the building blocks of websites – and many use WordPress. Your web designer will be more likely to give you – and charge for – only what you really need.

(8) Recognize your most lucrative niche and develop a campaign to reach it. Writing the copy for a website or sales letter often reveals a potential market the business owner hadn’t recognized…which may turn out to be a gold mine. Copywriters often have techniques to help you recognize your niche, even if you’ve tried working with a consultant or specialist.

(9) Recognize hidden dimensions of your expertise and experience that translate into higher fees. Often your “fab factor” – what makes you fabulous – lies hidden on a remote website page. The diligent copywriter often finds gold while researching your benefits.

(10) Increase traffic without resorting to arcane SEO methods. Search engines reward well-written content, navigable websites and targeted web pages. Clients are often surprised to find themselves getting more traffic – without hiring SEO specialists – after working with a copywriter.

If you’d like to work with me we can start with a Laser Marketing Makeover.

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Giving things away free as a way to get buyers: A business model to study

by CathyG on September 30, 2011 · 0 comments

Here are some notes from Armand Morin’s free webinar.

Case study: Armand Morin wanted to show he could apply these techniques anywhere; in other words, he wasn’t just trading on his name and fame. So he created a product and sells successfully by using the “FREE model.”

Some companies have grown by offering free products – but you can’t using them without buying the “paid” product. For instance, Jell-O has a recipe book that’s free … if you buy the Jell-O. A shaving company gave away razors to soldiers, figuring they’d get used to the razor and buy blades for it. Armand shares the details..

He took a product where he wasn’t known – completely outside his industry. He chose weight loss. He created a free product with PLR – private label rights.  His model: Give the list something  free…but attach residual income to it. So instead of charging $5000 up front, you can often motivate buyers at $27 or $97 a month. Not bad.

“Give them a taste” is another principle Armand recommends.  “We like to buy but we don’t like to be sold.” We want them to be drawn in by our information.

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Guest Post: Spiders or Peeps? Why Writing for SEO Can Hurt Your Website Rankings

by CathyG on September 28, 2011 · 0 comments

Guest Post from MichelePW: Here’s yet another indication that there’s no reason to spend hundreds (let alone thousands) of dollars on SEO specialists. In fact, these SEO experts can actually harm your rankings.

In my copywriting trainings, this topic invariably comes up. And usually it’s because I’m questioning my students’ choice of words on their websites or other online promotional copy.

“I chose that word because it’s a good SEO keyword,” they say.

Ah. It may be a good SEO keyword but it’s certainly not a good people word.

But before I get too far down this path, let me give you all a little background info. SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. What that means is you make your website and other online copy “search-engine friendly” so the search engines will rank you high for your chosen keywords. (Like on the first page when someone does a search for that keyword.)

One of the main tactics used to optimize your site is to scatter your chosen keywords throughout your copy (the frequency and positioning seem to change depending on how close the Moon is to Jupiter so I’m not going to even go down this path today.)

Why do you want that? Presumably so you get more online visitors to your site.

On the surface, it makes sense. Your website ranks high on the first page when people do a search for your keywords, they see your website and click on the link.

Easy, right?

Well…

First off, SEO (like everything Internet-related) has changed. A few years ago, SEO made perfect sense. That WAS the main way people found things on the Internet.

However, with social networking taking the world by storm, and more people on Facebook and YouTube then Google, people using the search engines have dropped significantly.

Now, that’s not to say you don’t need to take the search engines into consideration. There’s no question people are still using the search engines. But their searching habits have changed. Now they’re more likely to search for you after hearing about you via offline methods (like newspapers, magazines, television, direct mail, speaking, meeting you at an event, etc.)

Of course, people will still do generic searches for keywords that relate to what you sell. But trying to get yourself on page 1 of those rankings can be really difficult. And with Google changing their algorithms every time the wind changes directions, you can be on Page 1 one day and knocked down to Page 20 the next. (Also known as the dreaded “Google Dance.”)

So what do you do?

Well, my thought is while optimizing is not a bad idea, I wouldn’t put too much energy into it. And I certainly wouldn’t put words that sounded weird or off to my ideal clients on my online materials even if they were strong keywords. (Look, if you’re going to do all this work to get your ideal clients to visit your site, do you really want to turn them off with bad writing and poor language choices?)

Google and all the other search engines are going to reward you if your website isn’t deceptive, offers great content, and the content changes regularly. If you do that, the search engines WILL like your site regardless of your SEO. (You might not end up on Page 1 but the search engines will regard you fondly and will probably not move you around too much during any dances.)

And the reality is, it makes far more sense to focus on other avenues for people to find you. Be active on social networking sites, post articles, upload video, blog more. All of these things will increase your visibility out in that wild world we call the Internet FAR more than simply focusing only on SEO.

And if you focus on those activities, then you can put your very best writing on your website — the kind of writing that will make your visitors eager to learn more about you and do business with you — instead of suffocating your copy with keywords that may make those very same visitors click away.

Michele PW
(Michele Pariza Wacek)
Your $Ka-Ching!$ Marketing Strategist

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