Lazy copywriting is fairly easy to spot.

All you have to do is look for those worn and trite expressions you’ve seen over and over again.

For example, how many times have you seen articles that promise to reveal how to… write “killer” headlines or how to write “killer” copy?

Probably too many times to count. And, as a result, the word “killer” applied to any form of writing has lost most of its punch.

News flash… If you ever want to be a great copywriter, then you can’t merely parrot the catch-phrases you’ve grown accustomed to reading.

You can’t just copy what everybody else is saying and expect it to work for you… in your market… with your customers.

Repeating the phrases that others have used — without tweaking them or injecting them with your own personality — is a clear mark of laziness.

Now, there is a place for lazy copywriting. It’s called the first draft.

But if you let lazy copy go out the door “as is,” you’re setting yourself up for poor results and possibly outright failure.

So how do you break free from lazy copywriting?

Always edit your copy thoroughly. Make sure you get rid of all your lazy expressions — and replace them with creative expressions that have both meaning and impact.

It’s work… and it takes effort… but it’s worth it.

Here’s an example of how I did this.

When I wrote an in-depth article about how to write blog post titles, it would have been easy (and lazy) to title the article, “How to Write Killer Blog Post Titles.”

Of course, I didn’t do this because it would have been a sign of lazy copywriting. Not only that, imagine teaching people how to write good blog post titles… and then just parroting back some catch phrase that’s already been used hundreds of times!

That wouldn’t be good at all.

So I put some thought into it and drafted a few different headlines based on what I had written. Here’s the title I settled on: “3 Unexpected Rules for Writing Blog Post Titles that Demand Attention.”

Much better, don’t you think?

This headline gets attention and arouses curiosity without relying on any tired or worn-out phrases.

Please, don’t let yourself fall prey to lazy copywriting. Put in the extra effort to make your copy fresh, distinctive, and persuasive.

-Ryan Healy

P.S. You can get instant access to all my best copywriting tips at CopywritingCode.com.

©2012All Rights Reserved by Charlie Cook or Blog Post Author..

One of the best ways to learn the craft of copywriting is to read and study classic advertising literature.

The classics are affordable, accessible, and packed with wisdom. And when you buy them, you won’t be …

added to an email list or tempted to buy any expensive upsells.

With that in mind, here are three must-read classic copywriting books for the eager student.

Scientific Advertising by Claude Hopkins

This slim volume is an excellent primer on the purpose of advertising copy and how to write it. Because it is one of the earliest advertising books ever written, it is essential reading for the student of copywriting.

It is rumored that marketing genius Jay Abraham read the book 50 times. David Ogilvy said that no person should have anything to do with advertising before reading it. High praise, indeed.

Fortunately, Scientific Advertising is in the public domain, so it is easy to obtain. There are inexpensive copies for sale on Amazon. And you can find a free PDF of it fairly easily by searching Google.

Breakthrough Advertising by Eugene Schwartz

Breakthrough Advertising is a unique book because of its approach. While most copywriting books start right away by teaching you how to write copy, this book teaches you about prospects and markets.

In the first three chapters, you learn about a prospect’s state of awareness and how that affects your copy. And you learn about market sophistication, which also shapes the copy you write.

No other advertising or copywriting book covers this material. But I consider it vital knowledge for anybody trying to sell through the written word. (While the book is still in print, expect to pay $50 to $100 to get a copy of Breakthrough Advertising.)

Advertising Secrets of the Written Word by Joseph Sugarman

While Hopkins and Schwartz made careers out of writing copy for clients, Joe Sugarman made a career of writing copy for himself. That is, he wrote ads to sell his own products.

One of the things I like about Sugarman’s book is how it guides you through the ad writing process from start to finish. In a way, it’s almost like a copywriting course — but in a book format.

Sugarman also includes reprints of space ads he wrote that performed well. These ads are useful illustrations of the principles and techniques he teaches. You should be able to get Advertising Secrets of the Written Word on Amazon or other online booksellers for $20 to $40.

More Top Copywriting Books

Naturally, once you’ve gone through these copywriting books, you may be interested in reading more. I’ve put together a list of the best copywriting books and organized them into categories: Classics, Rare Books, Modern Books, Memoirs, and Reference Books.

If you’re interested in viewing or bookmarking this complete list, please visit my Best Copywriting Books lens on Squidoo. Thanks.

-Ryan Healy

©2012All Rights Reserved by Charlie Cook or Blog Post Author..

It took me years to discover how to use this computer key properly. It has been critical to my success as a copywriter. I am tempted to keep it a secret.

This computer key is almost universally underutilized and misunderstood. Mastering it will change your life (well, it will make you a better communicator, and that may change your life.) I wish someone had revealed to me the secret of using this key, years ago.

Okay, enough with the cheesy buildup: the key I’m talking about is the ENTER key. Here’s the simple secret of using it effectively: press it more often!

How this key improves your thinking
Want to learn to think more clearly? Learn to write better paragraphs.

Let’s say you decide to write about a topic: anything from the mating habits of muskrats, to how your business serves clients. Here’s how to get started:

Step One: Come up with exactly one thought about that topic.

Step Two: Write from one to three lines about that thought—lines, not necessarily sentences.

Step Three: Hit the Enter key to transform it into a paragraph.

Keep repeating the steps until you have organized the topic—in your mind and in your writing.

The primary unit of thought
I know what you’re thinking. This three-step copywriting formula is too simplistic. Yes, I must admit that there is more to copywriting than that.

But it is the right starting point.

Here’s what the three-step process forces you to do:

• It makes the paragraph your primary unit of thought.
• It forces you to reduce each thought to its essentials.
• It makes your writing reader-friendly.

Four amazing tricks you can try at home
Once you’ve written a first draft, use these easy techniques to make improvements.

1. Try deleting the first two paragraphs. Inexperienced, untrained writers have trouble getting to the point. In journalism it’s called “burying the lead”. Cut out unnecessary language.

2. Break up your writing into even shorter paragraphs. Don’t be afraid to use a few one-sentence paragraphs. It’s a great way to emphasize key points.

3. Rearrange the order of sentences within the paragraph. It is easy to bury the lead in a single paragraph too. Think of each paragraph as an upside-down triangle: important sentence on top, supporting sentences below.

4. Move the paragraph closer to the beginning or more toward the end. If a paragraph doesn’t sound right, it may be in the wrong place. Find the ideal placement for each paragraph, and the writing will flow better.

Writing with a business purpose in mind
When I am hired by an entrepreneur for a copywriting project, the client often learns as much as I do.
Together we think about his message. We tailor it for those in his target market. We tweak it until it’s perfect.

Getting your message right enables you to
• Attract ideal clients
• Engage them with your ideas
• Convert prospects into clients

Want to improve your business? Then get serious about copywriting your marketing message. And don’t forget to keep hitting that ENTER key.

Practice makes perfect
In the comment section below, write about one (only one) thought you had while reading this post. Keep it under 3 lines. Shuffle the sentences around until they suit you. I’ll respond personally to every comment.

©2012All Rights Reserved by Charlie Cook or Blog Post Author..

Did you know that writing articles is one of the best ways to make it BIG on the web?!

More leads, more sales, more profits … all from a few well-placed articles!

Years ago, I started using this powerful… tactic to generate nearly unbelievable results faster and more effectively than any other marketing technique I had ever tried before.

It’s hands down the best way I know to drive traffic, generate leads, maximize small sales, and rapidly spike your profits.

I’ve been using it ever since and the results just keep getting better and better.

When I was starting out article marketing helped me grow my business by 75-127% each year and thanks to article marketing I continue to experience massive growth.

In my professional opinion, there is no better way to get people to know, like and trust you – so they’ll buy from you … over and over again!

But, writing professional and engaging articles that attract prospects is not easy… Unless you plan to boost your copywriting skills overnight.

Wouldn’t it be great if there was a way to implement this marketing strategy without ever having to write a single word, submit a single article, or add an extra minute to your already busy schedule?

Find out the right way to do it (that doesn’t require an ounce of work from you).

Get Access Now >>

If you choose to do article marketing the “old way,” you’ll need to master two very tough roles: copywriter AND marketing specialist.

But, do you really have the time, energy or money to master both copywriting AND marketing? Especially when you’re already working 60+ hours a week.

Do you really have the time to figure it all out?

If you try to do it haphazardly, your results – or lack thereof – will speak for themselves.

You see, when I first started out, I learned firsthand copywriting and submitting articles sucked up a ton of my time and energy.

Article marketing works, but the traditional way of doing it also takes a lot of hard work.

And, let’s be honest here… if you’re like most online entrepreneurs, you didn’t get into this business because you loved writing.

But I’ve recently found an awesome secret solution so you don’t have to put in the hard work – just get the results.

Now, I’m sharing it with you.

Get Access Now >>

How great would it feel to have increased traffic, more leads and ultimately, more sales because you’ve got a powerful article marketing program working for you, but one that that requires no additional work from you?

That’s right – you don’t do a single thing. It all gets done for you. You just sit back and reap all the
benefits.

I would have killed for this when I was getting started. Something that would have gotten me all the results I needed without all the time, energy and effort.

To your success,

Charlie Cook

P.S. – Don’t wait! You will not find this opportunity anywhere else on the web AND space is incredibly
limited.

Spots are filling up fast, so click the link now to get started today:

Get Access Now >>

©2012All Rights Reserved by Charlie Cook or Blog Post Author..

If you owned a restaurant, you’d only be as good as your last meal.  If it wasn’t any good, your customer won’t be back.

If you owned a print shop, you’d only be as good as your last job. Deliver poor printing, or deliver late—you’re outta there.     In direct mail, you’re only as good as your…last two paragraphs.

You see, in direct mail, you get less of a shot.

You can entice your potential customer to open your package with great teaser copy; you can write the most brilliant opening line, then have a compelling set of benefits to keep your reader reading.

But as soon as your copy becomes dull, boring, stiff—or worse, less interesting—your mail piece will hit the round file faster than you can get gas eating at Denny’s.

And therein lies the danger of long-copy packages in direct mail.  Any time you put together two paragraphs that aren’t crisp, fluid, and fun reading, your readership drops off dramatically—and fast. So does your response, and your income.

In today’s busy environment, readers simply no longer have time for long passages.  Just give me the essence; the Cliffs Notes.  Don’t bother me with the long, lurid details, just give me straight-up information in a fast and easy-to-digest form.

Information is presented in catch phrases and synopses.  News—and information—is delivered today in bits and bytes. TV news, the ultimate presenter of hyped stories and trivial information, is delivered in soundbites, in three-second bursts, just like videos on MTV.

In direct mail, if you can hold a reader’s attention for a couple of minutes, you’re doing much better than average.  Five minutes in your package is excellent.  And if they look for it, can they find the order form in all the clutter?  If they do and they can, you’re probably about 85% of the way home.

Just keep in mind, the longer your package, the more chances you give your reader to find those two not-quite-up-to-snuff paragraphs, and the faster your mail piece goes from the black “we made money” to the red “we lost money” side of your profit and loss statement.

©2012All Rights Reserved by Charlie Cook or Blog Post Author..

You’re sitting in front of your computer with a blank screen.

The cursor is blinking on an empty document, the clock ticking and nothing’s happening.

Your mind is blank and you’re in a time crunch – you’ve only got 45 minutes before…your scheduled client calls and you’re stuck.

The harder you think, the more frustrated you get and eventually, you just give up, with nothing written down and no new ideas.

But there is a way to keep a fresh stock of ideas at hand so that when you’re ready to sit down and write, you can.

Try this: Start a word document and put it somewhere you can easily access.

Every time you read an article, talk with a friend or have a question, pull that doc up and just jot down your ideas – whether they’re complete thoughts, ideas, or questions you want answered.

Pretty soon you’ll see your list grow and you’ll notice that writing your ideas down comes naturally.

Writers block is unavoidable but by keeping your document handy you’ll always have a way around it.

I’ve used this method for years and not only has it helped my blog posts, it’s inspired spin-off projects and helped to improve current material.

©2012All Rights Reserved by Charlie Cook or Blog Post Author..

Learning to write great headlines means more views, more hits, and better search engine results.

If you practice this key copywriting skill you’ll soon be producing top-notch, attention-grabbing headlines.

Besides being a valuable publicity tool, learning to write terrific headlines will force you to:

- Sharpen your focus

- Clarify your objectives

- Deliver messages with the greatest clarity and impact

- Before you write a headline, answer these questions:

- What is the story about?

- Why are you telling it?

- Who are you communicating to?

- How do you want them to react?

- Characteristics of Great Headlines

All great headlines have three essential characteristics: clarity, conciseness, and cleverness.

Clarity. If your headline doesn’t clearly describe what your story is about, it won’t attract its target readers, which means your copywriting failed. Readers must be able to get the message on the first pass—it has to jump right out and grab them. Few readers will spend time figuring out unclear headlines; they’ll turn their attention to other items. When readers read headlines they want clear information, not puzzles.

Conciseness. This is essential because most people won’t even read long headlines. As it is, most readers simply scan pages for key words that alert them to matters that interest them. When a headline grabs them, they think about it or read further. If a headline is long, most people won’t read it all; they will move to another item. Long headlines are counterproductive because readers might as well read the opening sentence or paragraph, which most won’t.

To write concise headlines:

1. Summarize your material in one sentence. This sentence can be as long as you wish.

2. Scrutinize each word in the sentence.

3. Underline each word that’s essential in getting the message across.

4. Circle each word that isn’t essential in getting the message across.

5. Rewrite the sentence without the circled words.

6. Examine each remaining word to determine if it can be improved.

7. Put the headline aside at least overnight and then reexamine it with fresh eyes.

Cleverness. Clever, witty headlines attract attention. But, watch out! Drafting clever, catchy headlines can divert writers from the main objective of the story. They can be seduced by their wit and forget the headline’s purpose. In their desire to create amusing headlines, writers can fail to clearly convey their message. They also may fall victim to the sins of being too cute and cloying. Never sacrifice clarity in order to be clever.

Cleverness can be elusive. Often, writers draw blanks and can’t come up with clever headlines. When that occurs, and it will, simply compose clear and concise headlines. Make your point and move on!

With narrow-column newspapers, newsletters, and such, keep headlines to two or three lines.

Headlines are intended to attract attention, so bending the rules of grammar, style, or even spelling may help—and is generally acceptable. Not having to always comply with the rules of grammar makes writing headlines a little less confining. It also helps in creating clever headlines. Often, an incorrect usage is just the thing that will catch a readers’ eyes and interest them in the article.

A great way to try your hand at writing headlines is by asking friends or family members to cut headlines from a newspaper and place them in an envelope. Have them seal the envelope and give the newspaper and sealed envelope to you. Read the headlineless stories and write your own headlines.

Compare the headlines you composed with those that originally ran with the stories. Decide which you prefer; note the reasons why and the particular techniques that appeal to you. Continue this exercise for at least five days until you feel adept at writing headlines.

When it comes to writing headlines, writers take different approaches. Although the following suggestions are time tested and seem to work for most, don’t be afraid to strike out on your own and experiment with different methods. However, if you’re just getting started, it may be advisable to first follow these suggestions and then branch off:

Write the headline after you’ve completed the piece. Writing stories usually crystallizes your thoughts, resulting in sharper, more descriptive headlines. If you write the headline first, you risk making the story fit the headline, which zis opposite to how it should work.

Draft at least four or five headlines for every story and let them sit. After you’ve taken some time away from the process, the right one should jump out at you. Although sometimes they all stink and you have to write a second batch.

Ask someone for help. Have a friend, relative, or whoever happens to be around sit with you and brainstorm. Come up with buzzwords and angles to take, bounce your headlines off them, and see what your combined efforts produce. Everyone thinks that they can write great headlines, so give them a chance to help you out.

When you’re stuck, change gears. Often your approach to writing a headline doesn’t work because the idea is limited or unsound. If you try to force it, you will only get more frustrated. When that occurs, abandon your original approach and try something new.

Ultimately, the best method for creating a headline is whatever works best for you.

Headlines are meant to provide order by informing us what the article is about. Readers have become very headline oriented and expect headlines to catch their attention. The best headlines are clear, concise, and clever. Headline writing, like copywriting, is a learned skill that requires lots of practice.

©2012All Rights Reserved by Charlie Cook or Blog Post Author..

As a MarketingforSuccess.com reader, you probably already know how important good copy is. Good copy is a 24-7 salesperson, constantly driving leads, sales, and profits. Over the life of your business, one great sales letter could easily pay for itself 100…500…even 1000 times over.

But there’s just one problem: good copy ain’t cheap.For instance, if you want to hire someone who’s good—not great—at copywriting, you can expect to pay at least $2000 for a sales letter or long form web copy. And you should get that money back—many times over—within 3-6 months, assuming you’ve done your marketing homework.

Now, if you want to hire a really good (still not great) copywriter, you can expect to pay $3000…$4000…or $5000+ for a sales letter.

That’s because really good copywriters are worth their weight in gold. They’ve proven that they can make sales skyrocket-or else they wouldn’t be getting those rates. And in many cases, they’re booked 30-60 days in advance…because past clients are clamoring for a spot on their schedule.

And if you want to hire someone who’s copywriting skills are A-list—the guys like Clayton Makepeace, John Carlton, or Parris Lampropulous—you’ll have to plunk down a cool $15,000-$25,000 upfront…plus a piece of the profits on the backend. Over time, a top copywriter can earn millions in royalties from a single promotion. And their clients will make much, much more.

But if you’re a small business owner—or you’re just starting out—even “good copywriter” prices can be too steep.

Now, I’m not going to try to sell you on why you should shell out money for copywriting. But I am here to warn you about a dangerous trap many business owners fall into.

You see, when it comes to copywriting—like most of things in life—you get what you pay for. You may be tempted to hire a copywriter who’s willing to work for peanuts.

And, in some cases, you find a talented newbie copy cub who really “gets it”. They understand your market, they’re clear on your pitch, and they come up with a great hook. And they knock it out of the park.

But that’s not what usually happens. What usually happens is that you discover—after you’ve spent your hard-earned money—that a $250 sales letter ends up costing you a lot more in lost sales. And good luck getting that newbie to re-write it.

So if you can’t afford $2000-$5000 for a sales letter, and you don’t want to take the risk of hiring the wrong copywriter, what can you do?

Simple. Become very well educated on what makes for good copy.

You see, when you really get the underlying mechanics of good copy, you can spot it a mile away. That makes choosing a good copywriter easy. If they don’t follow the rules laid out in those books…well, they’re probably not very good.

Luckily, there’s a simple way to get really good at spotting great copy. And it should only take about a week!

All you have to do is read a few short, easy-to-read books by the old-school masters of copywriting:

“How to Write a Good Advertisement” by Victor Schwab

“Tested Advertising Methods” by John Caples

“Scientific Advertising/My Life in Advertising” by Claude Hopkins

You may have heard of these books before. You may have even read them. If so…read them again. I read each one at least once a year—usually more. And each time I come away with something new.

So if you can’t quite swing hiring a good (or great) copywriter yet, these books are your ticket to success.

When you apply the lessons from these advertising classics, you’ll be able to spot good (and great) copy from a mile away. And you’ll avoid wasting your hard-earned money on copywriting that doesn’t deliver.

And you might get good—really good—at copywriting yourself. In fact, when you apply what you learn in these books, you can’t help but write solid, money-making copy!

And when you combine those new copywriting skills with your passion for your business and your knowledge about your prospects…the sky’s the limit!

In most cases, the copy you write will be far superior to anything a newbie or even “good” copywriter can produce. And you won’t have to pay anyone else a dime.

Now if you really want to make that new copy of yours shine, you can always ask an experienced copy pro for a critique. Some copywriters don’t like to do this. Personally, I love reading other people’s copy, especially if it’s a business owner’s copy. There’s usually a great energy to it that most copy lacks. And after a few tweaks, it becomes even more successful. It creates a win-win situation; the business owner is happy and makes more money. Next thing you know, they’re too busy taking orders to write…so they hire me. Everyone wins!

©2012All Rights Reserved by Charlie Cook or Blog Post Author..

If you want to remember the key points of really effective sales copy, and see your customer responses soar.you should learn the ABC’s of Stunning Sales Copy.

A is for AIDA, which is what your whole sales letter should provoke: Attention, Interest, Desire, and Action.

B is for Benefits and what’s in it for the customer: the start, middle and end of everything you write.

C is for the call to action – the offer that makes your customer act.

D is for the deal, your mix of price, bonuses, benefits and value.

E is for empathy or the way you let your readers know you understand their needs.

F is for features, your list of what your product can do.

G is for the gap between their headache and your remedy.

H is for the headlines that make your readers sit up and take notice.

I is for imagine – a simple way to get your readers to picture what life will be like when they get your product.

J is for Johnson boxes, named after copywriter Frank Johnson, who highlighted his key points in shaded boxes and saw his response rate triple.

K is for knowing your customer like the back of your hand.

L is for limited offers, that force waverers to make up their minds before time runs out.

M is for money-back guarantees that put all the risk on you.

N is for nested loops, that tell stories inside stories and keep your readers gripped.

O is for opening hooks, such as drama, or proof, or statistics, or benefits, or unusual features, or news.

P is for postscripts that remind your readers of your # 1 benefit and the need to act NOW.

Q is for qualifying questions such as “Are you looking for better sales?”

R is for repetition, in case they didn’t get it first time.

S is for stories of discovery and magic, miracles and marvels.

T is for testimonials that are proof of your claims.

U is for urgency because the offer won’t last.

V is for value for money where $364 is less than a dollar a day.

W is for what this means to you after everything you say.

X is for xtras, bonuses, and freebies – the more the better.

Y is for yes questions that put them in a positive mood.

Z is for the Zeigarnik effect, named after Bluma Zeigarnik. It’s what happens when you tease people with an idea but make them wait for it. A bit like Z itself.

Master this alphabet, put the techniques in your copy, and watch your sales soar!

-Tom

©2012All Rights Reserved by Charlie Cook or Blog Post Author..

When I first looked at the price I thought there must be a typo. Twenty-five to thirty-seven dollars a pound? For cheese?

Now I like cheese and I’m always interested in trying something new, so when my wife and I wandered into the small country store in Warren, Vermont…I was excited to see a selection of sheep and goat cheese. And I thought I’d buy some…until I saw the price.

What I didn’t realize was that this wasn’t just any cheese but it was “Artisanal” cheese personally hand made from a couple of lovingly tended sheep in extremely small quantities.

In accordance with full disclosure, I should tell you I didn’t actually buy any cheese that day – though from the sample I tasted it was truly delicious. But what I noticed was that the people who were selling this cheese were doing a very smart thing. Something you could be doing too.

With just one word, they were defining their product as exclusive and only available in limited quantities, two characteristics which enabled them to charge more, in this case much more for their cheese.

A decade ago, the cheese might have been labeled “Gourmet” but smart marketers know that “Artisanal” sounds better. I mean having my product hand-crafted by artists just makes it all worth more, right?!

That was over five years ago, and since then more and more businesses are adding the word “Artisanal” to their product descriptions. Now in addition to artisanal cheese, you can get artisanal chocolate, artisanal shirts, artisanal wool blankets and artisanal almost anything.

You can even pay $15 to get your pencils artisanally hand-sharpened by someone with a pen knife. Though from what I understand this last enterprise isn’t making money yet.

Artisanal is a great word to use to increase the perceived value of your product – if it actually is hand-made by artists.

But when Sugarbush, where I ski, starts to tell me that the snowflakes made by their snow guns are artisanal, they’re going to far – of course it may just be their reaction to the overuse of the word already.

The Bottom Line

In all seriousness how much you charge for your products and services has a lot to do with how it’s packaged and promoted. This point was brought home to me as I watched my neighbor, here in Greenwich CT make a fortune by repackaging…

…water.

Twenty years ago, my neighbor was just hitting his stride with his business. He was the then founder and president of Perrier and helped create the perceptual shift from water as something you could get out of the tap for free to being worth $1-2 a pint when bottled. Thanks to a bit of savvy packaging he made tens of millions and today the bottled water industry makes over ten billion each year.

Want to make more this year?

Find out which words sell >>

Look at how you’re marketing and packaging your product and services. With just a few changes you could reposition it and charge much more and dramatically increase your profits.

Gotta go! It’s time for me to step out for lunch and pick up a sandwich made from Artisanal bread, local farm raised and cured ham, hand-made goat cheese and heirloom lettuce with an Artisanal green tea soda…

To your success

-Charlie

P.S. Want to instantly make more?

Find out which words make more money >>

©2012All Rights Reserved by Charlie Cook or Blog Post Author..