Category: Copywriting

Techniques of the Week: Chronicle 8

10/9/2015

Ahoy,

This is my 8th iteration of “Techniques of the Week” which is an ode to simple writing and marketing techniques that can be used immediately with measurable results in the Before, During, and After of your sales process.

Before we get started, I’d like to thank you for being a Big Part of Techniques of the week as it’s the only time where my zany style of writing can be at the forefront of my blog. As always, I do hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing it.

With that said, let’s be off…

The Before

Fact: No One Likes You

Fact: Especially in the Very Beginning of Your Sales Process

Fact: Which is why you need a Sales Funnel

A Sales Funnel

A sales Funnel is a series of contacts with a prospective client where you slowly build trust and ultimately have them use your product.

Within this funnel is different levels of the sales process that you must do to get them to like you and ultimately make a sale.

#1: Courtship

Don’t sell them anything.

Inform them of what you do.

Tell stories of people just like them.

Never, ever sell them.

Telling them what you do and the stories of people you have done it for will elicit a response from people who are actually interested in what you do without alienating those who aren’t. This way you’re not being a pushy salesman, but just someone telling others what you do for a living.

This is the key to courtship.

When doing this in copy, you use information. This can be a free E-Book, Video, or Audio. The key here is to give them free information to see if what you do is what will work for them.

How:

#1: Build Exposure

Step one is exposing your business to the world through any media format this can include both print, video/audio, and internet marketing. (Includes links to articles about each type of marketing.)

·         Direct Mail

·         Landing Pages

o   Landing pages are single web pages with sales letters that describe your offer, the free class, e-book, or other giveaway while asking for personal information through an online form.

·         1-800 #’s –

o Use 1-800 #’s to track people who call in from your advertising and allows you to call them back

o   The 1-800# should be a voice recorded message that tells people more about the product you sell and the offer your providing

o   Or should lead to a sales representative who can take care of the caller

o   The usefulness of an 1-800# is that it captures the phone number of your prospect so you can easily call them back to see if they would like a demo, e- book, or complete a sale

·         Email Database with Email Drip Campaigns

·         Marketing Materials – Brochures, E-Books, white papers, etc.

· Webinar –Education Series webinar using an online webinar program

·         Audio – Build a Podcast, Broadcast, or other audio based content

·         Video – Build YouTube videos, commercials, and other video based content

·         Internet Marketing

·    In-Person Sales (One-on-one, Group, and Event)

·         Phone Lists – Getting the numbers of potential prospects and calling them

#2: Build the Funnel

Using the different types of exposure you can build a sales funnel. The beauty here is that you can mix and match each exposure technique to best funnel you prospects through the sale.

Here are just a few examples:

Direct Mail Campaign:

·         Mail out a post card, sales letter, or other piece of marketing material with an offer, discount, or Marketing Materials (free E-book/Merchandise)

·         Track response with either a response sheet, 1-800# to call, or URL to your website/landing page.

·         Mail up to 4 times to the same address over 1 to 4 months depending how you want to stagger them. (1 every 2 weeks, 1 every month, etc.)

·         Do it by buying a mailing list of your perfect prospect ($0.49 per parcel unless you buy a Bulk Mail Insignia $0.24 per parcel) or douse the area with Every Door Direct Mail (EDDM – ($0.17 per parcel)

Pay-Per-Click/Display Advertising for Major Websites Funnel

·         Run Ad campaigns on Google, Facebook, Pinterest, or other major website that offers Pay-Per-Click / Display Advertising

·         Send them to your Website, Landing Page , or wherever you want them to go

·         Capture their information or get them to buy

Cold Calling Series:

·         Buy or scour the internet for a list of your perfect prospects

·         Call Prospects with a Survey or a Discounted Service/Product

·         Offer Free E-Book for their time

·         Call them back a few days later to see if they enjoyed the e-book and would be interested in more

·         Offer more free information and attempt an in person appointment

·         Call back a week later to see if they enjoyed new material

·         Repeat until rejected completely or complete sale

Content Marketing Funnel:

·         Have a Educational or Entertainment Series that keeps your prospect coming back

·         This can be videos, audios, or articles

·         Advertise your products and services to your audience as they consume your content

The Webinar:

·         Advertise for your webinar using internet marketing, email campaigns, etc.

·         Educate people with useful information

·         Ask them to pay you at the end for information, product, or service

*Sales Funnels – Funnel people into your business using internet, print, video, and audio. Anything to get them through the door.

The During

Sometimes people want what you sell, but don’t want to pay for it. Make them.

Negotiations.

Many times people want what you sell, but they will only buy if they feel like they win. This leaves you in a situation where you have to negotiate the price in the beginning so they will pay full price later. You can do this by giving built in concessions that allow the prospect to win while you still make money. Making it a win-win.

This can include price discounts, free merchandise/extras thrown in, and anything else that incentivizes your prospect to buy.

This works if the buyer has all the power.

Another good technique is to start the transaction with a seller and use the time, money, and energy that everyone has put into the process as a hostage. Essentially putting the seller in a position of take my demands or I will take my business elsewhere

*Negotiations – What will you have to do to make the sale?

The After

Follow-up Service

Sometimes people want to buy what you do, but are more than willing to pay more for what you do after.

This includes a warranty for your work, great customer service, technical support, as well as loyalty discounts, promotions or just updated information from a newsletter.

Warranty for Your Work

Be generous with making your client/customer happy after service. This includes replacing broken items for free or fixing any other issues.

Follow-up Customer Service

Ensure that you provide them with complimentary calls and have good customer service if they have any questions after the service and purchase.

Technical Support

If your product or service is technical in nature, ensure you have the support for any questions your customer/client may have after the purchase/service.

Loyalty Program

The best way to keep people coming back is with a loyalty program. This involves making them a member or part of the club that is your business. Have reward cards that give free product, discounts, and other incentives for members to keep coming back and shopping with your business.

Constant Contact

Some clients/customers just lover to stay up to date with your industry and service. This is especially true for investment type business like paper assets, real estate, and others that are based on the variable market.

Follow-up Service – business is built on long-term relationships. Don’t burn your bridges after you’ve just started.

And there you have it.

Three ways to get your prospects and clients to knock down your door for your products and services.

Let me know how you get people to knock down your door for everything you do in the comments.

7 Comments

Top 10 ways to write a speech and Increase your Influence

10/9/2014

10 Comments

The 10 Things you don’t know about writing Speeches

How to write a speech?

Speech writing is an art in and of itself.

Due to the fact you are not writing to read, but writing to be spoken.

Because of this, you have to know these fundamental figures…

Average speaker - speaks 100 words per minute

20-minute speech - 2,000 words long (Eight double-spaced, typewritten pages).

Best length of time - 20 minutes

20 minutes is the opitmal speech time as any time after is considered long-winded, and any time before is not enough time to portray fully what you want to say. Therefore 20 minute keeps them from being bored, but not wanting more.

But how do you write the perfect 20 minute speech?

Doesn’t sound hard but you have to consider these 10 things…

1. Find out What the Speaker Wants to Say

Interviews with the client reveal the basic thrust of the speech and provide most of the facts. Information gaps can be filled in through library research or by browsing through the client’s private files on the subject.

2. Know Your Audience

Learn as much as you can about the group you’ll be speaking to. This will help you tailor your talk to their specific interests.

3. Write a Strong Opening

An engaging opening grabs attention and gets the audience enthusiastic about your topic.

4. Then, There’s Humor

Pepper the speech with little tidbits of warm, gentle, good-natured humor. Not big gags, old jokes, or nightclub-comic routines.

5. Don’t Try to Cover Too Much

Break off a little piece of the subject and tell your story with warmth, wit, humor, and authority. Delete trivial information and limit your talk to the important key points.

6. Write in Conversational Tone

Write in a conversational tone. That means short words. Short sentences. Plenty of contractions. Even a colloquial expression every now and then.

Read it aloud. If it doesn’t sound natural, rewrite it until it does.

Use bullets, headings, and numbers to divide the speech into sections.

o Use as pauses for speaker to catch her breath between sections.

7. Keep It Simple

Ideally, your speech should be centered on one main point or theme. Give the listener easy-to-grasp tidbits of information and advice.

8. What About Visuals?

In some cases, visuals can be useful. If you want to introduce the new corporate logo, you must show a slide or a chart; words alone can’t adequately describe a graphic concept.

Avoid Word Slides!

9. Handouts

Do not distribute your handouts until after the speech is over.

A typed or typeset copy of your speech, cleanly reprinted on good-quality white paper

10. Pick a Catchy Title for Your Speech

The title will be used in mailings, flyers, and other promotions aimed at attracting an audience

There you have it.

The 10 ways for a successful speech to build your listening base, customers, or organizational members.

Now go and take over the world with the most powerful tool at your disposable.

The “WORD”.

10 Comments

11 Tips for making money in print...

10/2/2014

8 Comments

11 TIPS FOR WRITING CLEAR COPY

In the world, tips are for the most part, are the most important things to us in any industry. They are helpful in remembering what you need to do as well as the seed to change your thinking, and views to turn your world upside down. Inspiring you to take the next step to your success.

And the best part, they are easy to remember and many times roll right off the tongue. Now here are 11 tips to effective, clear copy

1.       Put the Reader First

Write not for yourself, but others. Unless all they want is you of course.

You have to put the reader first. Not doing so ends in much confusion as they may not know what you know.

This means you could be explaining for 10 pages, but you lost your audience on the 1st page because they don’t understand what you’re saying.

2.       Carefully Organize Your Selling Points

Organize your selling points logically and have them flow from one to another. This helps with communicating and with keeping the audience involved.

a.       Primary headline – main selling point

i.      Sub-Headlines enhance it

b.      Examples –

i.      Make a promise
ii.      How to Fulfill that promise
iii.      And the rest proves the product is everything that the copy says it is
iv.      How to order
v.      And how the price is insignificant to how much value the product creates
3.       Break the Writing into Short Sections

Break up the flow with easy to read and understandable pieces. Having them in this form make it easy for people to remember.

c.       Bullet list points

d.      Break five sentence paragraphs into three paragraph sentences

e.      Make simple sentences

4.       Use Short Sentences

The memory is fickle and remembers best in story-lines and bites. SO feed it small chunks of sentences.

Sentence Chunks Scale:

f.        Best – 6-12 word sentences

g.       Good 14-16 words

h.      Passable 20 -25

i.         Bad - Up to 40

j.        Unreadable – 40 +

i.      Good punctuation to use to break sentences up

1.       -------

2.       …

5.       Use Simple Words

Don’t use big words. People are not impressed, and don’t understand what you are saying.

k.       Use short words in comparison to large words

i.      The shorter the better

ii.      7 and above is too much

6.       Avoid Technical Jargon

Use words only as select people know, and only a select people will know. Not much sense for the rest of us.

l.         Leave the noobs to the geeks, the electrons to the physicist, and the compounds to the chemists

7.       Be Concise

Write the best with the most. But slim it down to what you actually need and what people actually want.

m.    Write with vigor, then apply Occam’s razor to glean the best clarity from your work

8.       Be Specific

Don’t be ambiguous. Vagueness doesn’t tell people anything.

n.      Bullet list your points and give only what matters, and only that

9.       Go Straight to the Point

Go for the jugular. People understand quickly and effectively when you do. As there is not much room for interpretation.

o.      Don’t warm-up with fluff or try to explain background information to the reader in the first paragraph, the reader should know already what your selling

p.      We do this and this and this and that’s why you friggen want it.

10.   Write in a Friendly, Conversational Style

You don’t like monotony. I don’t like monotony. Nobody likes to read monotony.

Don’t force it on others.

q.      Talk like I’m your lost best friend who wants to talk of good old times

11.   Avoid Political Language

Its best to avoid political incorrectness as it promotes emotions in the audience that distort anything else they read.

r.        Be politically correct or you will be in trouble.

So…

Use one or use them all to have clear communication to your prospects and customers. Because no one likes to not understand what someone is saying, especially when you’re trying to sell them something.

8 Comments

The Five Writing Habits Killing your Productivity

9/26/2014

5 Comments

Habit 1: Being a slave to the squiggly line

When writing, do not try to make every word right. Let a few words stay red as you unleash your writing. The reason to let things stay wrong because going back to change every wrong word, interrupts your flow, and makes you have to rethink each time to regain your flow. Letting things stay wrong, and letting the spell checker take charge will free up hours of your time.

Habit 2: Being an ever-ready editor

When writing, do not let your perfectionist take over and continuously rephrase the same sentence over and over, the same paragraph over and over, and even your paper over and over. Waiting until the end allowing yourself to free write, will create greater flow and save more time by eliminating any edits until the end.

Habit 3: Mapping it all out

When writing, do not map out everything you need to write. It forces you to put blinders on your writing, limiting your ability create new ideas, as your stuck trying to fit it to your outline. It’s better to have an idea of where you want to go, but allowing yourself room to expand your ideas, create new ones, and build it into something incredible.

Habit 4: Not paying attention

Another bane to every writer’s existence is not paying attention. Being distracted by everything from emails, texts, knocks at the door, calls from friends, and at worst “the internet”. Not being focused in your writing and gravely effect your productivity as you are unable to write effectively and anything you do write is not your best. Therefore, take the time to escape your home and find a nice quiet place where you can concentrate on your work.

Habit 5: Forgetting to take time out

Another major habit of bad writing is forgetting to take time out while you write to refresh your batteries. Trying to force yourself to write will cause you to drag your writing down more. Take a walk, a swim, or even a step out for a breath of fresh air will allow you to energize your writing again and again.

Understanding that you have these habits is the first step in breaking them. But once you have broken them you will experience an instant increase in your productivity of ten-fold. This will allow you more time to do what’s important and not to write. Like live your life.

5 Comments

5 ways to get PAID!

8/28/2014

3 Comments

5 ways to get PAID!

Welcome to the FIVE WAYS to get paid.

If you have ever been interested in making money, then you are in the right place.

Now just exactly how do you get paid, get paid right, and more importantly, get paid again.

All you have to do is follow a few tested techniques that are fundamental in nearly every situation.

And we start with...

#5: Enhance people’s lives by creating value
·         Valuable Relationships (Enjoy your Company)

o   Create relationships that others value through combined prosperity, mutually gratifying amity, and general goodwill (People love to pay people they like.)

·         Valuable Advice (Mentorship)

o   Be there for people in their times of need. Give advice and guide them through the angles. Everyone needs someone sometimes.

·         Valuable Service/Work (Solve Problems)

o   Use your business not to sell people stuff, but help them solve problems.

·         Value (Make/Save them Money)

o   Help others make money or save money, and they will let you share in the spoils.

#4: Reward and Appreciate Customers
Customers are the lifeblood of your business.

In good times and bad, customers can support you. They are what makes your business run.

They are the people who grow you, the people who tell their friends about you, and the people you create value for.

Treat them well and they will return the favor. Which is why the #5 way to get paid is to reward and appreciate your customers because without them, you are nothing.

And the best ways to maintain those business to consumer relations is to keep them engaged with your business and appreciate them.

Ways to keep them engaged…

101 Ways to Engage Your Customers to Build Ultimate Brand Loyalty from mplifyr

Ways to appreciate them…

·         Reward your customers by paying them for any work they do for you such as loyalty, referrals, and becoming a champion for your business.

o   This can go as far as having a loyalty program where you give prizes, merchandise, and discounts on future service and products.

o   And soft techniques such as Thank You Notes, Gifts, and shows of appreciation such as a follow-up phone calls, emails, and favors

·         Ensure the quality of your work and your products

o   If there are any errors in those things, do not hesitate to fix it by any means necessary, especially if they pay extra for it

·         For even more ways to keep them happy:

o   http://www.helpscout.net/25-ways-to-thank-your-customers/

#3: Build Relationships by Appreciating Others
If customers weren't important enough, business cohorts are just as well. Suppliers, Advertising Partners, Sponsors, and any number of people who help your business sometimes without ever even using your products.

Ways to keep them engaged…

·         Involve them in business events, if going to a large event, invite them, having a seminar, let them come.

o   Invitations to places where they can expand their business, meet new contacts, and learn something new is always a good way to keep them engaged

·         Keep them up to date in your business happenings. Let them know if you are unveiling a new product or service

o   The more they know, the easier it is to sell you as a referral

·         Refer them information that is useful to their daily lives.

o   Make their lives easier by giving them the information that pertain to their interests and they may need

Ways to appreciate them…

·         Create goodwill with others in your business such as complimentary servicers (graphic designers, etc.), your suppliers, and partners

o   Refer them people to their products or cause and they will do the same

o   Wine and Dine them to show your appreciation and support of what they do

·         Having a large network of supporters allows you options in good times and bad

o   Stay in contact, remember birthdays, special events, and more

o   Always have a way to go that extra mile to show you care

#2: Reward and Appreciate Employee
In any business that relies on employees, it is always best practice to treat them well and have active ways to engage them in your business. As the old saying goes, happy/engaged employees don’t sabotage your business.

In appreciating and rewarding employees, it takes advantage of the Pygmalion Effect: The Power of the Expectations. This Effect occurs when your expectations of an outcome help to make those expectations become true.

So many times the expectations of your employees directly relate with their success. Therefore you have to keep them engaged and appreciated. This will help your Employees become successful, your business, and in turn, you will be successful.

Ways to keep them engaged…

1.    Give them a Tour. Take your employees for a tour of one of your vendors or suppliers' facilities. It’s a cool way to learn more about who you work with, and can be as fun as a field trip was in grade school days.

2.    Give them a Way Out. Let your employee ditch one project they like the least, and you do it yourself instead.

3.    Adult Education. Pay for one adult education class of their choosing. Maybe Cooking, Yoga, or Something else of interest.

4.    Take them to Dinner. Take them and their family to dinner. Make it a nice restaurant of their choice.

5.    Training and Conferences. Provide training opportunities to employees, or send them to an annual conference they’d enjoy.

6.    Training Videos. Put employees in your training videos. This gives them exposure to the rest of the company and gives them a day to shine.

7.    Talk About Anything. Converse with your employees. Ask them about Life, What they enjoy, and get to know them as people. It shows that you care.

8.    Time. Give the gift of your time and attention. Offer to mentor or coach employees

Ways to appreciate them…

1.    Flexible Hours. Let your team work when they want to work. The flexibility can be worth a lot more than cash. Maybe they won’t need daycare services for their child, for example, if they can make their own schedule.

2.    A Thank You Note. Saying thanks about something specific may be the ultimate reward. If you do it selectively yet authentically, a thank you note may be pinned above your employee’s desk for years.

3.    Massage. Have a massage therapist come to your office for the day and give every recognized employee a chair massage. A chiropractor isn’t a bad idea either

4.    A New Chair. Many employees sit for at least eight hours a day. Reward their exceptional effort with a new comfortable, supportive chair.

5.    Acknowledge Employees in Meetings. When an employee has a good idea, performs above and beyond, secures a big win or account, or does something worthy, acknowledge him or her by name in meetings.

6.    Know everyone’s Name. Learn everyone’s name and use it. Say, “Thank you, Carol,” not just “Thanks!” People love to hear their names, so use them and use them often, especially when acknowledging their efforts and achievements.

7.    Close Early or Open Late. Close down unexpectedly early one day and give everyone the afternoon off. Or, open half a day later after a holiday like St. Patrick’s Day.

8.    Show Respect in Everything You Do and Say. All your hard work and appreciation of an employee can be destroyed in an instant if you yell at them, disrespect or belittle them in private or public. They won’t remember the 100 times you said you appreciated them. They’ll remember the one time you didn’t. Bite your tongue, smile and always show respect regardless of your personal feelings.

#1: Leverage it.
Once you have all this goodwill and powerful relationships.

Use it.

Leverage it to get people excited about what you do, and grow your business.

In fact, record everything as it all can be utilized as marketing.

o   Help a customer have a great day. Use as a Promotional video.

o   Bring a partner to your seminar. Interview him to see what he learned.

o   Appreciate an Employee’s Charity. Use the video at your next conference.

o   Take a tour of a supplier. Use as a Training video.

Without leveraging everything you do. You are missing opportunities to get paid.

You are missing bigger and better opportunities to get paid.

And to use that to give back to those who got you paid. Your Partners, Customers, and Employees.

There you have it...

The FIVE WAYS TO GET PAID.

All involving creating value for others and ensuring they are satisfied.

Because no one likes to do business with people they don’t like.

3 Comments

Animation? Smanimation?

8/14/2014

7 Comments

Make animation simple. As simple as a bug on a flower. Simple Simple.

We have an amazing idea for an animated short video. We think it would completely set us apart from our competition and promote our business in the process!

It could be HUGE for our company!

But we don’t know how to animate…

How do Animators create 2D/3D projects?

How will they take our idea and make it a reality?

How does one get it to work from IDEA, DEVELOPMENT, and to DEBUT.

Well here is the inside scoop.

PRE-PRODUCTION

This is the FIRST and MOST CRITICAL part of the process.

This is where animators create the Visual Layout of your video.

The animator storyboards, mapping out how each shot and scene will play out.

Then model sheets are prepared to capture every expressions your characters may have.

Once concluded, it off to the Pre-Visualization Department to get the first mock-ups of the animation, called ANIMATICS.

A moving visual sketch that lays the groundwork for….

PRODUCTION

With the help of Layout Artists, 2D/3D versions of your story are mapped out. The animation is roughed in and given to the Animators to begin work. Directly working with the director to get the best camera angles, shot designs, and composition of the scenes with props and character models prepared.

Next moved to Modelling where things start taking shape. Where two types of Modelers get to work. One sculpting the figures and forms of the characters in a free-form style. And the other who works industrial to craft the hard edged pieces, like weapons, props, vehicles and buildings. Essentially, taking the 2D story and make it come to life in the 3D world!

Then a huge team of Art Directors, Visual Effects Supervisors, Animation Supervisors and Technical Animators work together and create a Skins for all the rough skeletal mock-ups with figures and scenery.

Then returning to the Modeler for details of facial expressions, muscle tone, and tension.

With that it is ready for paint! With the Texture Paint Departments, where all the models are prepared for Animation and Rendering. Giving all figures, objects and props they need, down to the tiniest detail!

Once complete, LIGHTING sets the mood and and polish of a finished product. With Lighting Artists placing and manipulating lighting for maximum impact.

Then everything gets RIGGED. By Animators adding bones to the characters to show movement.

And finally… they ANIMATE! Through motion capture and digitized images, the effects teams add scene detail and fills in the important background details that make a scene look real and in motion.

POST-PRODUCTION

Once filming is complete, editing and splicing begins.

Where images are com-posited to form final shots. Sound is edited. And crafted together to provide you a finished product.

And there you have it.

The process is an art-form. An art-form of many artists collaborating to bring your ideas to life.

7 Comments

Do you know the Marketing Fundamentals?

7/17/2014

12 Comments

Wish you had a quick list of all the ways to market yourself that you didn't know you needed?

Then the journey that is your life has crossed our paths.

Which is a good thing.

Now lets begin…

Web Design and Development.
Build your online foundation with an easily navigable and well maintained website. Professionally designed to more than appeal to your ideal customer.

Allowing you to build a community of people that can’t go without your products and services.

Mobile Advertising –

Which includes a developed Mobile Website, applications, and the advertising avenues that go with it.

And with your NEW Website up and running, generate traffic by developing ads and content for…

Website Advertising.

·         Display/Banner/Frame Ads –

See the texts that appear on the top, right, and sometimes the left of the content you’re trying to read?

Then you know what Display, Banner, and Frame Ads are. And you know they use text, logos, animations, videos, photographs, or other graphics to persuade your prospects to traffic your site. Using Big Data Targeting to get your Message to those most likely to heed it.

·        Active Website Ads

Such as…

Pop-Ups/Unders that appear in a separate window above and below the window a prospect opens.

Floating ads that appear superimposed over the content that a prospect wants to see.

Expanding ads that pop up when a certain action takes place such as staying on a website for a certain time, hovering over a word or image, etc.

And…

Interstitial ads that ask for an email for people to access premium content.

And with your intense use of Active Ads, you must harness the power of…

Search Engine Advertising.

·       Search Engine Marketing (SEM) –

Where everyone goes to find what they need on the internet. For entertainment, research, or to make a purchase, everyone goes through one search engine or another.

And you need to be at the top.

At the top with content, at the top with advertising, at the top with value.

All through…

·       Search Engine Optimization (SEO) –

… you can put yourself there by using the most up-to-date techniques so not only will search engines find you, but rocket you to the top.

But if you can’t wait to get to the top organically, you can pay your way there and be first to meet that prospect ready to buy with…

·       Sponsored searches –

Or Pay-Per-Click advertising, where you only pay when an interested prospect likes what they see. Placed at the top of Google, Bing, or other search engine.

Now that you have your very own website with consistent traffic coming in. It is high time to take those who love your products and services. And build a good ol’ community for them to talk about and interact with your company.

And to do that you need…

Social Media Marketing.

Getting it right will garner unprecedented publicity and establish your online presence.

Not only improving your results on search engines, but molding your brand in the minds of others.

Turning passive customers into Champions who build your community and get those ever-appreciated referrals.

Because a company is only as successful as the community of people who support it, starting with your customer.

Once your business is booming, your online presence growing, and your Mailing List is developing. You have only one choice…

To GET EVEN BIGGER USING...

Email Advertising.

Getting your customer base who have purchased and those interested in purchasing from you updates on new products, services, and deals they just can’t miss.

Or my personal favorite, giving them Info-products that tell customers new ways to use your products, services, and other generally useful information they need about your business, industry, or day-to-day.

And just when you thought you had your hands in every advertising avenue possible.

You can put your advertising into overdrive with…

Affiliate Marketing.

Where you get other people to find ‘you’ business and pay them a percentage of the sales they generate.

Giving you the ability to pay only for performance as they pay for themselves.

And just when you thought that was enough…

LT Copywriting can help you advertise in all of these media.

Actually developing all the content for you.

And with the end of Part One, check out...

Content Production.

NEXT WEEK!!!

12 Comments

Benefits of Online Advertising.

6/12/2014

4 Comments

Low Cost

Online marketing has by far one the best ROI of any other marketing because of its low cost and effectiveness.

Because people are increasingly spending more time online, Love to shop there, and adore it when personalized advertisements get them the best deals.

In fact, many is completely free with Social Media, Email, and YouTube.

So if you are looking for more bang for your buck then Online Advertising is the way to go.

Measurability

If only offline advertising was as easy to track and measure than Online Advertising.

Life would be so easy.

As being able to see instantly which ads are working and how they are working. Letting you budget more on ads that give you a greater return.

And most importantly, you can see where prospects come from and how many become actual sales. Telling you if you are getting your message to the right people and not generating traffic that has no interest in your company.

Letting you hit the mark more and more often.

Formatting

If that’s not enough, Online Advertising beats offline advertising by not only topping its ability to reach a people in multiple formats from…

·         Copy – content people want to read about

·         Images and Photographs – aesthetically pleasing sights to please prospects eyes

·         Audio – entertaining and informational podcasts and sounds

·         Video – Professional Videos that wow and amaze with style

But goes beyond it by being interactive with consumers. With games, surveys, questionnaires, and many other ways to entertain as well as advertise. Making Online Marketing a step above traditional.

Targeting

Online Advertising allows an unprecedented amount of ways to reach different segments of consumers, groups, and organizations.

Allowing you to target any niche based on…

·         Geography – Reach only your local customers, national customers, or if global, your international customers by their location.

·         Affiliations –  Touch your customers through their relationships and affiliations. Be it an organization, a fan base, or job position.

·         Behavior & Tastes – advertise to them using their behaviors and preferences. Such as the websites they visit, the things they buy, and what they search for on search engines.

Giving you the full spectrum of ways to find your prospect and persuade them to buy.

Coverage

And unlike most traditional offline forms of marketing that have limited coverage, Online Advertising is worldwide, instantly giving you the capacity to become a Global Business.

Opening you up to the world, letting you sell everywhere.

Speed

And the best part…

It can be done almost immediately.

No need to wait for openings in media, publishing schedules, or any other obstacle.

You can start to advertise as quickly as you can write a one sentence advertisement with a picture, shoot a 2-5 minute video, or produce a podcast.

With benefits like that, how can you not get your online advertising on its way today.

As every passing moment, is a moment of opportunity to make a sale, lost forever.

Get more information now.

4 Comments

Techniques of the Week: One. Two. Three...

6/5/2014

4 Comments

FOUR.

Howdy,

This is my fourth iteration of “Techniques of the Week” which is an ode to simple writing and marketing techniques that can be used immediately with measurable results in the Before,

During, and After of your sales process.

Interested in past and future iterations? Then stay up-to-date by subscribing.

With that said, let’s be off…

The Before: Guard-Lowering Pictures

Have you found yourself clicking on an advertisement just because of the cute cat picture or the really weird looking thing that you have to tilt your head to figure out?

We all have.

And you can utilize it yourself. Right now. This second. To lower the guard of your prospects to catch their attention and throw them a pitch.

Just pick a picture that…

Has nothing to do with what you’re selling, and is used as a segue to your sales pitch.

Don't get left behind. Stay up-to-date!

Has something to do with what your selling, but is very interesting looking.

Knick-knacks! Have them take up space in your garage today!

Directly relates to what you’re selling, but is friggin’ awesome.

Cow Takes Selfie. P.S. I sell cows.

Just remember to make it something that piques someone’s curiosity.

SO CUTE, WEIRD, or FUNNY is the way to go.

* Guard-Lowering Pictures – have a picture so cute, so awesome, so absolutely amazing your prospect has to click it, lowering their guard.

The During: The Feelings

Best way to sell?

Hit a nerve.

Tap into a person’s emotions through stories, opinions, and trigger words.

Riling up the emotions of your prospects, calling them to action, and getting them to make a decision.

All in one emotionally charged piece of copy, video, or audio.

Here is what to aim for…

· People want THINGS THEY DON'T HAVE and MORE OF WHAT THEY DO.

Like…

o   Money — saving it, spending it, and giving it to others

o   Time — for themselves, family, and interests

o   Praise —for being intelligent, knowledgeable, attractive, and other superior qualities

o   Self-confidence — to see themselves as worthy, and physically or mentally superior

o   Comfort —for indulgence, convenience, and luxury

o   Fun — to have no worries and feel like a kid again

o   Pride of accomplishment — excelling, triumphing, and beating the competition

o   Leisure — to travel, have hobbies, rest and play, and for self-development

o   Prestige — being important, a member of a select group, and having power

o   Enjoyment — food, drink, and entertainment

o   Security — at the job, in the home, and as they get older

o   Exclusivity — being able to go where others can’t

o   Envy — to have what others want

o   Ego Gratification — to grow their ego

o   Business advancement — feeling successful, getting a better job, being one's own boss

o   Social advancement — to be in the social circles they have always wanted

o   Health — to have strength, vigor, endurance, and longer life

o   Popularity — to be liked by others

o   Better appearance — to have beauty, style, physical build, and cleanliness

· People want to AVOID LOSS OF THINGS THEY HAVE (See list above)

And to AVOID THINGS THAT ARE UNPLEASANT.

Like…

o   Embarrassment – being ridiculed, looked down upon, and a certain way

o   Offense to others – being confrontational and hurting others feelings

o   Effort – having to try is a no-no

o   Domination by others – having to submit to another forgoing dignity and grace

o   Loss of reputation – losing the trust, appeal, and benefits of a reputation

o   Pain – people don’t like to hurt; Physically and Mentally

o   Criticism – people don’t like to be negatively criticized for things they do

o   Risk – most don’t like the gambling feeling that they can lose

o   Discomfort – awkward moments, feelings, and positions

o   Worry – fear of things not turning out right

o   Work – being lazy is hard work

o   Doubt – not knowing things are going to be ok

o   Guilt – no one wants to let the guilt eat them from the inside out

o   Boredom – and the worst of all… the ultimate mind-killer… NOT HAVING ANYTHING TO DO

Therefore...

Hit one.

Hit two.

Hit a combination and you will definitely make the sale.

* The Feelings – go for the emotions, rip and tear them up, and sell them something in their emotional fervor

The After: Free Audit/Info Audit

Have a great product?

But need to get in front of your audience to make the sale?

Then here is a technique for you.

·         The Free Audit.

·         And it’s Cousin, The Info Audit.

Now how do they work…

The free audit is a free service you provide where you come in and audit something of your customer that directly relates to your business products or services.

When you audit, you take notes of the customer’s environment and situation.

Once complete you give them a report of problems you saw, potential problems they can have, and recommendations on how to fix them. And perhaps put a pitch in their about how your specific products and services can help. Maybe.

And a perfect way to advertise it is to have a Pre-appointment package (by mail, email, or phone), that notifies beforehand of a meeting. Then you show-up, audit them, and close deal. And for the kicker leave them a gift basket.

The other is the Info Audit.

Where you come in.

Interview customers, reps, and others.

Build a report with the problems and the potential problems you see.

Be an Expert for them and give them the best solutions.

And Create Value.

* The Audit – come in, find the problems, give the solutions, and sell your product.

3 simple techniques

You can use to catch the eye of your prospects.

Lowering their guard.

Touching their emotions.

And finding places to create value.

Did you have success with these techniques? Or do you have your own techniques you would like to share?

4 Comments

Have you taken a photo recently?

5/29/2014

3 Comments

A Dilemma

It used to be so simple to sell our products …

Make them available in stores and salesmen’s sample cases …

Now people just want to be impressed … to be sold on the product before they buy it.

What can I do to sell these products?

How can I turn all of those flat pages of copy into beautiful, marketing media?

As I turn to face the window, I wonder … what will attract my buyers to buy our product? How can I entice them to look beyond the surface … to see the benefits that it can bring to their existence … to show them why our products are better than the others?

An Idea

Images … photos … they will show the details of our widgets. That will give customers something more than black words on stark, white pages.

I can find a photographer to take pictures of our widgets.

As I talked with the photographer, I learned there is more to picture taking than I thought … I never knew so much detail went into it. Let’s see … how did he explain those elements?

A Photographer

Sir, he said, photographs used for marketing are as important as family portraits. Many things must be right to showcase your products well. To display their benefits we use the “eye of the camera as the eyes of the buyers.”

First we look at the lighting. If the light is not right the product may hide in the shadows or be masked by glare, concealing their benefits. When lighting is perfect all the hidden aspects will be visible.

Another consideration is timing. Photos taken at the perfect moment where everything is right. The lighting, the motions, and setting all roll into one beautiful shot … natural and artificial will match.

Next we will judge composition. Your photos must be balanced, focused and well framed. Linear elements should be framed to draw the eyes through the image into the focal point.

Color is also important. It gives your photos a sense of mood, place, and season. It can also move the eyes around the photo’s composition, creating a sense of depth and space.

The final aspect is editing. Editing can perfect what has escaped in previous elements. It can bring your subject closer and give balance where it is lacking. You can straighten your shot, adjust contrast and correct color. You can also resize and sharpen your images. When complete your photographs will be the best images of your products they can be.

Sir, when I am finished taking photographs of your products, using the elements discussed, they will give your marketing the boost it deserves. They will drive customers to your front door.

An Epiphany...

You know …

I think that photographer is right!

Professional photographs will make all of these stark, white pages pop. They will create a new surge of customer interest in our products.

3 Comments

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Techniques of the Week: Chronicle 8

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Techniques of the Week: One. Two. Three...

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