Long Sales Copy Don’t Work? Think Again.

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You know, I have been before in quite a fair number of marketing discussions whereby the opposite party will frequently say, "Why bother writing a long sales copy?"

"Nobody will read it."

"It doesn’t work."

"Nobody is going to wade through the pages of words"

Is it really so?

Will interested buyers not even read it at all?

Here’s the truth - long sales copy has been around because - it works! It as simple as that.

I’m not saying long sales copy out-pull short ones ALL the time. But generally, it does.

Here’s a simple example to illustrate my point.

Nothing beats face to face selling where you can see the person, talk to him and address his concerns up front right? There is an inter personal connection you can forge more easily.

Now say you are going to sell a 50 dollar product to a prospect…how long will you take to convince him (assuming that you do)?

10 minutes? 15 minutes? Half an hour?

Okay…let just assume you are a pretty good salesman…and you take ONLY 5 minutes to convince your prospect to buy?

If you were to transcribe your sales pitch, how many words do you think you would have spoken? And how many pages of words that would have filled up?

I’m going to bet with you. At least more than 1 page.

Going back…do you think you could have sold someone with a short sales copy that contains a mere few paragraphs?

Yea maybe. But how effective will that be?

Generally, the higher priced the product, the longer the sales copy should be.

I think you get my point.

Here’s what Bob Bly, one of the highest paid copywriters in the world, got to say about long copy in his recent article on EarlyToRise.com:

"But long copy often out-pulls short copy when:

• You are marketing information products (or other products) that are sold by telling stories or conveying ideas.

• You are generating a direct sale… via mail-order… rather than just generating a lead or inquiry.

• The reader is unfamiliar with your product and its benefits.

• You are demanding payment with order. The prospect has to pay up front with a check or credit card. He cannot order the product on credit and get an invoice he can choose to pay - or not pay - later.

• The product is complex and, therefore, requires a lot of explanation.

• The product is something people want rather than something they need. It is a discretionary purchase.

• The product is expensive, representing an expenditure the prospect is likely to consider carefully."

It’s Not What You Think…It’s What The Customers Who Votes With Their Dollar Think

And Bob Bly goes on to say:

"What matters is that, in a statistically valid split test, the long copy generated more orders than the short copy - and that’s why those long letters are in the mail.

I close with this quote from advertising legend Claude Hopkins: "Advertising arguments should only be settled by testing, not arguments around a conference table."

100% dead on the ball. I frequently do testing myself. But I can tell you sometimes, what works is totally opposite of what I expected.

So testing is important. And tonnes of marketing studies shown that long copy is not dead. It’s still alive - AND - effective.

What do you think?

Let me know your thoughts.

I’m all ears.

Tags: Online Marketing, E-MoneyMarketing, Marketing, Business

I really liked the example you have taken for reference. I too agree that sales copies do work…but i am not sure about how long or short they need to be.

This blog is excellent, im glad I checked out this site

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When I am shopping for a product or software as soon as I see it’s a long sales page I hit the back button. Long copy tells me that the item will be over priced and not very good, that’s why they need long copy to convince people to buy a bad product.
Usually long copy is associated with info products of little real value then they add in lots of other info products as bonuses, these are either products they cant sell any more or they bought a re-sell license at an IM forum.
Real products with REAL benefits don’t need long copy, just the facts.
Quality products that work don’t need bonuses, if the product is good and there is a market, the people will line up for it.

Thank you. I have announced this your post in philipphine forum,this is a nice forum.

I like long copies. It shows me that it can answer my questions and also, long copies show me that the product is unique and few words can’t describe it. Usually long or short doesn’t matter to me. If it is something I am interested in, I will take the time to find out exactly what “it” is all about.

I’ve always been amazed at the success of long sales copy. I don’t even think that most people make it to the end of the sales page. If it is good copy, it makes it seem like the product/service has a ton of benefits!

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@ Mark:

Thank you for your pointers. I can understand some of your assertions. Let me reply you on some of them:

Long copy doesn’t mean that the product is over-priced. Just as short copy doesn’t mean that the product necessarily is under priced.

A lot of the time, a long copy is needed because the customer simply demand more information in order to make a purchase.

No one really reads through a copy word for word the first time round. They skim through.

And that is why it is important to have good subheadlines and bullet point benefits for the prospect to quickly scan through.

When that gets his attention, and if it fits his needs/wants, he will want to take a second look to read further.

Now if the copy is too short, even if he is interested, he may not buy - because he may not have enough information to convince him enough to come to a buying decision.

You say quality product with real benefits don’t need long copy. Just the facts.

What that may be true in some cases, often, if the product comes at a high price, long copy IS needed. And there are statistics to prove it. That long copy works.

Unless, you have a human representative to sell for you. You might not need a copy at all.

But if you are selling through print or online media such as email, how can you convince a prospect to buy a $50 product through a mere few paragraphs? Let’s not even talk about a high value high priced event that cost, $10,000.

Anyway let me give you an example.

A recent marketing event cost $10,000 to attend. It’s an exclusive event for only 100 participants.

Now, it was sold out within a few days of promotion. High priced? Yes definitely. But the customers are convinced the value they will get will far outweigh the price they pay.

And as you would expect, it’s a long sales copy that did the trick.

Remember - price is what you pay. But value is what you get.

The copy is supposed to convey the value. And it’s will be 10 times…100 times more value that the price they pay.

Jag

@ Affiliate Guy:

Most people don’t read the whole sales copy. That help weeds out the non buyers to the ones who are interested.

If one is attracted by the bullet point benefits and sub headlines, and if he is sufficiently intrigued enough to want to find out more…he will read the copy again in greater detail.

Jag

Very much agree with this: “It’s Not What You Think…It’s What The Customers Who Votes With Their Dollar Think”

Of course it also depends on what the product is. If it really requires a long copy, you can’t just cut it short and make a short copy. It dosen’t work.

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I dislike long copy myself but can see how it increases engagement and sales. I guess the problem with short copy is that it’s too easy for people to scan the page in a few seconds and then leave.

“I dislike long copy myself but can see how it increases engagement and sales. I guess the problem with short copy is that it’s too easy for people to scan the page in a few seconds and then leave.” me too

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I’m building some pages like this now. Anyone have any information about how this varies - if at all - in a upscale and wealthy demographic?

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If it really requires a long copy, you can’t just cut it short and make a short copy.

I’m a big fan of long sales copy, as the way I see it, the more you tell about a product, the more likely a person will want to buy it. And according to the studies, my opinion is the correct one (and who doesn’t love being right?)

Well, i agree with you. I am sure long sale copy cant hurt the sale at all. More over, it can boost the sales, as visitor can learn more about the product and its benefits.

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This is one of the most informational blog I have come across so far.

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Sorry dear I don’t know what size would be better but I agree with those who says long sales copy are appropriate for long matters what to write. But I would say it totally depends on lenght of text.

The true essence is manly to “catch the eye” of the buyer. In my opinion there is a huge diference between selling and making people buy, nad it´s not a question of semantics, it´s simply a question of using the right marketing tools.
Good example you´ve given.

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Of course it works. The only people who say that it doesn’t work are those who don’t know how to write anything that catches people’s interest.

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I agree with you that sales copy works but in my opinion only short and medium length copies work not too long copies.

i dislike long copies i dont have time to read all of it.

I wonder if article writing is the same as sales copy? If then would writing longer articles be more effective than say, 300 word articles? Sounds like an interesting experiment to conduct. Like Mr. Hopkins suggested, I guess this can only be settled by testing.

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that’s exactly what I am looking for

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Weeding out interested buyers from just browser is a very interesting pro for long copy. If one after having read all of the text buys the item sure will be a happy customer because he is full informed and a happy customer is more likely to return and buy again.

Hi all:

I think the crux of the matter here is not just about the length of the copy. But rather how long it takes to convince a person to buy.

If it takes only 2 sentences, then the copy should be 2.

If it takes 20 pages, then it should be 20.

The only way to find out is through testing.

But as earlier pointed out, for products that are generally:

- Expensive
- Complex
- New
- A “Want” product (rather than “Need”)…

…a longer copy is necessary.

Cheers,
Jag

Long article often have lots of words that is good for SEO. But, the trend of reading all the article might be at lower rate. Simplicity could be a preferred trend but long sales copy would help.

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Generally, each style of Sales copy has their place in a good marketing tactic, and each works well in that place. On the contrary, each would fail if used inappropriately. The winner here is the marketer who knows when short copy will do the job and when the long copy should be used. Just as the sales word goes “long copy for big absorbing purchases and short copy for the easy stuff”.

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i guess it depends on the products price. for things $25 and under, i think shorter descrips would be better. for more costly things, people are going to want to know everything they can before purchasing it.
-jack

Nice article there by you. even I agree with the sales copy do works. But the only thing is that I hate long copies.

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@Monty J:

I do understand. I don’t read all long copies myself.
Except for those I’m really interested in.

You may like to think back about some of the purchases you made recently. I’m talking about products you were really interested in.

Were they long or short copies?

Did you re-read the brochure or copy a 2nd time?

Jag

I do agree that Long sales copy is the best, but I think if you are targeting a younger audience, the longer sales letter approach may not be the best. But then again… it just depends on the product you are trying to market. At least that is my opinion. But in the end I do agree that yes the long sales has the best overall conversion.

Being specific, clear & informative is what really matters according to me.Then whatever it may take…being long, short or descriptive.

good when you next post write?

Thanks for these excellent suggestions. I will use these to market my stevens johnson syndrome website.