4 More Ways to Turbocharge Your Writing

Came across this excellent article on copywriting. And I thought I share this with you. Enjoy!

By Yanik Silver

Sales copy can make or break your marketing campaign. That’s why it’s so important to ensure that it is as strong and persuasive as possible.

The first step, of course, is to get the first draft of the copy down on paper (or computer screen) as quickly as possible. I always tell copywriters not to worry about getting every word right. Just "let it all hang out."

Then, the real work begins: the editing. That’s when you transform your copy from decent to good – or even great. As copywriting expert Clayton Makepeace says, "The more compelling you make each section of your sales letter, the greater your response and average order will be."

In my last article for ETR – "4 Simple Ways to Turbocharge Your Writing" - I said that the best way to do the editing is to focus on one thing at a time. And I walked you through the first four phases of the process.

There are four more steps to take in order to polish your copy to perfection. Put them to work for you, and you’re sure to end up with sales letters that blow past your competition.

1. Call Out the Bucket Brigade

In this phase of the editing process, you smooth out and "stitch" everything together by using "bucket brigade" copy transitions. Like the old-time firefighters who transferred buckets of water from hand to hand, these phrases keep propelling the reader forward. Phrases like these:

· And that’s just the beginning…

· As you read on, I’ll tell you more about how…

· But before we go into that…

· But better still…

· But don’t take my word for it…

· But I’m jumping ahead. Let me tell you how this all came about…

· Here’s more…

· Fact is…

· Here’s the deal…

· Here’s the scary part:

· Listen, there’s more. Lots more…

· My strong hunch is…

· Needless to say…

· What this all boils down to is…

· What’s more…

· What’s the catch?

· Then it hit me…

Anytime you can use a copy transition, you will improve the readability of your copy and move the reader closer to the sale. (I have compiled 226 copy transitions that I use on a regular basis.)

2. Read It Out Loud

I don’t know what it is about reading sales copy out loud, but it gives you lots and lots of insight into how good (or bad) it really is. All the bumps and rough spots jump out at you.

Even better than reading it out loud yourself is to have someone else read it to you while you take notes on a printout of the copy. One big advantage of this is that he is completely impartial. He won’t stress certain words to make the meaning clearer. And if he stumbles over a phrase or sentence or paragraph, you know that’s an area you need to rework.

Another thing I do during this editing phase is make sure the copy is geared to the prospect’s benefit. I do it by changing some of the "I’s," "We’s," and "Me’s" to "You’s" – e.g., changing "We are giving you 6 must-have bonuses" to "You’ll get 6 must-have bonuses."

Much stronger that way.

3. Sleep On It

At this point, let your copy sit for at least a day. If you don’t have the luxury of an extra day, even a few hours will help. When you come back to it, it will be with new eyes and a fresh perspective. You’ll find errors that weren’t apparent before, and better ways of saying what you want to say.

Every sales letter is significantly improved with rewriting. I will often do three, four, or even five rewrites before I’m satisfied.

4. Grammar and Spelling – the Final Phase of the Edit

On my final pass-through, I check the grammar and spelling. Often, I will have someone who is better at "proper English" take a look, too. I take their suggestions with a grain of salt, because sales copy is more "conversational" than formal writing. Still, I definitely want to make sure I don’t make stupid mistakes like confusing "their" and "there."

Despite the importance of the editing process, most copywriters don’t bother with it – or, at best, give their copy one or two quick "final" reads. But if you take the time to do a thorough job – going through all eight phases, one by one – you will see a guaranteed improvement in the selling power of your writing!

[Ed. Note: As master Internet marketer Yanik Silver (www.MaverickBusinessInsider.com) says, careful editing can make the difference between mediocre and blockbuster sales copy. Learn how you can spend two days with one of the best copywriters in the world and get all his most powerful secrets to writing copy for the Web right here.]

As usual, let me know what you think by leaving a comment below…

And don’t forget the feedbacks too!

All success,

Jag Foo

[tags]E-MoneyMarketing, copywriting, sales letter, sales copy[/tags]

One more important point I owuld like to add is:

Always use a PS, or post-script when sending a sale s letter.

I find it always, always gets read- and whatever you write here has better recall value.

There are ongoing debates whether a sales letter should be short or long. The greatest advice I got about writing effective sales copy is to test every idea whether it works. There are surprising results when we test out an idea for the first time.

You are right. Sales copy is like wine you need to let it sit. Unlike blogging, which is a balance of volume and conciseness.

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Jag – The info on transitions is very interesting. I had noticed them in the various sales letters that I receive, but hadn’t paid them specific attention (until now).

The point about the PS is good, too (esp. if the sales letter is short, I think).

I agree with the opinion that sales letter must be short and exact and these tips are main weapon of copywriters

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@Zen cart:

The length of a sales letter is dependent on a variety of factors. Long or short – we have to test. Sometimes a short copy sells better. For some products in a particular niche – a long one may sell better.

I wrote an article on this. You can find it here:
http://emoneymarketing.com/copywriting/long-sales-copy-dont-work-think-again/

Cheers,
Jag

Very good post, I think the most important point is to get in the head of the reader, and write as if you are wriitng exactly to them. Think about where they work, their age and gender, the entertainment they like, etc.

Of course, to be able to do this, you have to know exactly who your target market is, because if you try to sell to everybody, as we all know, you end up selling to nobody.

Great tips! By the way, I can explain why sleeping on it is so beneficial. Often when you are working, you can run out of creativity, but giving it some time allows ideas to incubate. During incubation, your subconscious works out problems without your conscious attention, and then when you come back, those solutions will be waiting for you. Interesting, hmm?

Know your target audience! If you know them you’ll know what makes them tick, what gets them hyped/excited about stuff and what makes them CLICK the buy button! :)

Great post. I let my writing sit, but usually works for me if it’s a week or so later. And then I will come back and read it again and make sure everything lines up, but 9 times out of 10 I will change something for the better.

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The last part is where I usually mess up! Haha!

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I could never let mine sit for a week. I lack the patience. A day or two is fine for me. Great article, Jag.

Yanik is definitely a master internet marketer so any free tips you can get from him are great! Very good post. Thanks for sharing.

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Great post, this is such a great blog. I will have to work on this things, like Jennifer said I could not let it just sit I am just to impatience.

Thanks for the bucket brigade explanation. For me, i’ll just let it sit for 1 day or two and start tweaking and tweakign and tweaking until I feel there’s nothing more to tweak about. Not trying to be perfectionist though. :P

Hi Jag,

Good post.
My problem is writing, or lak of skill for good writing.
I allready know SEO, have a good backlinks campaign, but wen it comes to write, man, i a newbie.
Your post enligthed me a bit.
I`m allready a Yanik reader and for today, i`m also a Jag reader.
Cumps,

Glad you guys enjoy it!

Ganhe (Cumps):

Thanks for being a Jag reader. That’s a new
phrase! =)

Very much appreciated!

Cheers,
Jag

The biggest impact your article gave me was the first thing to do, get everything down initially…that’s where I get stuck up… I want it complete and perfect the very first time…I lose interest when I edit…

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I agree with Choose Your VoIP. The hardest part for me is getting an initial copy done. Then it’s smooth sailing from there. I think that not worrying too much about the quality for the first draft but just get the main points down is a strategy I’m going to have to try out.

I think one secret of writing is doing it again and again. If we edit one article 3 to 4 times we could do a 50% better article than first one.

Great post about copy writting.I agree with your statement which you describe it…thanks…cheers..

Very nice post! I agree dat sales letter should b short n exact…bcz hve always seen the ongoin debates abt short n long letter..
Anyways ur post gve me sme good info too…

Interesting Article! your bucket brigade are very useful!It’s use to link up every paragraphs.With the flow of it, readers are keen to read on.

I always have problems with grammar and spelling or the final phase… and then I re-write everything once more, and I forgot the idea… I don’t know this is a mess…

Nice post. The best known way for marketing through the Internet today, is by writing articles. First you need credibility among the peoples that can support your ministry.

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@Lok:

Don’t worry about the grammar and spelling. Get the flow and message right first. If someone reading your message can get the connection – you are on the right track.

You can always edit grammar/spelling later. Don’t let tha get in the way of the message you put out.

@ Mattie:

You definitely can get a exposure through articles. Don’t have to be a lot. But start with quality ones first.

@ MPE:

The hardest part is indeed – and always – the starting part. That can be a real pain!I think that’s where most people get stuck.

Jag

Great writing tips.The problem with me is that I am not satisfied with the sales letters I create and rewriting is the major work

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great tips, i have used some of these myself, i especially like to sleep on it for more than a day reading it aloud between the couple of days to decide if its good enough.

Points 2 and 3 should be in reverse order. You should go about it like this write the first draft > wait a day > read it out loud > correct all the mistakes > wait another day > read out loud… and so on untinl you’re perfectly satisfied. Sure it takes a lot of time but you’ll end up with a lot better final product.

Those are all outstanding comments. I usually write an article and sleep on it. The majority of the writing I do is at night after work. I review my writing in the morning to fix all errors.

I agree with the opinion that sales letter must be short and exact and these tips are main weapon of copywriters. I think that not worrying too much about the quality for the first draft but just get the main points down is a strategy I’m going to have to try out.

Writing is not my greatest strengths, I will keeps these tips in mind when writing my next sales copy.I really like your 3rd point it’s so true.

Ben

Dear Jag,

Thank you for sharing your writing tips. Much appreciated. Could you also share the list of 226 copy transitions you mentioned in your post? I hope I am not asking for too much.

Dave Tuborg

I totally agree and appreciate. Your tips are really praiseworthy. Today’s fashion is to keep short and understandable. Most of online visitors are in hurry and have no more time to read all the things. They just want what they expect. So, you just look at their requirement and try to provide them in a short. Thank you for sharing such a great stuff.