Entries Tagged 'copywriting' ↓

Your call to action is probably one of the most powerful parts of your advert. Assuming your copy has been compelling enough to keep your reader engrossed to the very end, you want to make sure you end with a bang not a whimper.

The following list shows 8 desire drivers that will convince your reader (if they aren’t already) that your product is the one for them.

Your call to action is your last opportunity to get your reader to buy. By utilising the power of these desire drivers you will optimise your chances of making that all important sale.

1. End on a high note – tell them how better their lives will be if they buy your product. Use the most powerful benefit your product has as the example.
2. End with a warning – this is the opposite of number 1. Tell them what will happen if they don’t use your product.
3. End with a short review of your advert – repeat all the major benefits and features they will receive.
4. End with a deadline – restrict your product with a limited time offer or closing date.
5. End with a guarantee – this will add peace of mind. If you guarantee the product it shows that you have faith in it and that so should they.
6. End with a testimonial – use one or two of your customers’ testimonials but make sure they are believable and contain specific results.
7. End with a free bonus – this could be a free sample or a trial period. Whatever it is, it will add to the perceived value of your product.
8. End with a discounted price – further up in the body of the ad you can show your normal price but offer a discounted price if they order straight away.

Using desire drivers is a simple but highly effective way of achieving a sale. Why not try it out on your next ad.

Sally Ormond is a professional freelance copywriter. She works with businesses covering a diverse range of industries helping them save time and money while enjoying higher visibility in their market place and increased sales.

It doesn’t matter how many people see or read your advert or website, if it doesn’t compel them to buy it’s no good.

How many times have you landed on a sales page or looked at an advert just to think “interesting…” and then move on to something else?

Interesting doesn’t get you sales. Your copy and your approach has to be proactive to make people part with their hard earned cash.

Here are 7 tips to help you convince people to buy from you.

1. Make your ad copy like a conversation

Don’t talk at your readers, talk to them. Write as though they are in front of you and you are having a conversation with them. Use words such as “you” and “your” to build a relationship with your reader.

1. Participate in online forums

Online forums are great for promoting yourself and increasing your credibility as an expert in your field. Fill out your profile (gaining those all important back links) and visit the forums as often as possible. Why not contribute articles – giving free advice helps build trust.

1. Make your call to action clear

A website sales page is no good if you don’t tell your reader exactly what you want them to do. Your call to action must be clear, leaving them in do doubt about what they need to do – tell them to “buy now”, “subscribe to your newsletter”, “call to make an appointment” etc.

1. Focus on your reader

There is only one thing your reader is interested in, and that’s themselves. You must focus your copy on what it is they want. If they can’t see what’s in it for them, they won’t be interested.

1. Keep it simple

There is only one thing on your website that will sell to your reader – words. Graphics and pictures all look pretty but they won’t sell a sausage. It is through the power of the written word that you will convince your reader your product is the one they have been searching for.

1. Create your own ad copy

You will probably have several competitors out there. By all means study their copy but don’t be tempted to copy their style and content. Try something different – stand out from the crowd.

1. Update regularly

Your readers will get bored if they are constantly faced by the same old adverts and web copy. Change your ads regularly to keep them fresh and relevant. Don’t forget people normally have to see an ad 7 times before they actually buy anything – they’ll soon get fed up if they keep reading the same stuff.

Sally Ormond is a freelance copywriter offering a comprehensive range of copywriting services to businesses locally, nationally and internationally.

“Freelance copywriting is like a box of chocolates!” Has she gone completely mad?

No, not completely.

You may recall I have also likened it to a bowl of cornflakes so you should be getting used to my bizarre food analogies by now.

So what am I getting at?

Well, we all remember the famous line from Forest Gump when he sits on a park bench and tells us that “Life if like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re going to get“, well that is just what sales writing is like.

Think of your readers as chocolates – they’re all different. Some have soft centres, some are nutty, some are caramel but the one thing they all have in common is that they are covered in chocolate.

Therefore, although your audience is diverse they all have one thing in common – they are all searching for a solution to their problem.

So, as a freelance copywriter, when I come to write an email, newsletter, direct mail or web page I focus on the fact that no matter who my readers are, they are all united by one thing – a problem. It is my job to convince them that the product or service I am writing about is the solution they’re looking for.

It all comes down to knowing how to make them buy and that means selling the benefits of the product.

Remember, it is the benefits that will make the sale, not the features.

There are numerous freelance copywriters out there and even more copywriting jobs, so there is plenty for everyone.

I often get asked by new copywriters how they can quickly find work to build up a portfolio. Well, as a starting point, there are a few websites that post jobs but you have to learn how to make sure to set yourself apart from all of the other freelancers out there.

First stop is www.elance.com – an online marketplace where customers post jobs for freelancers to bid on. It has a very strong following as more than 100,000 potential customers come by the website each week.  You are able to sign up to sell your services and the system allows you to upload your best work to sell yourself to potential clients.  There is also the facility to jobs that meet your criteria e-mailed to you on a daily basis.  There is a cost for subscription to this particular website, but with a ready market it’s worth it.

Next is www.guru.com, the largest online freelance marketplace on the Internet to look for online jobs including freelance copywriting jobs. It basically does the same as elance so both are well worth a look.

If you search Google, you’ll find a number of sites like these such as www.getafreelancer.com and www.directfreelance.com.

Set yourself apart

Now here’s a tip for you, when you are bidding on projects, companies that are looking at the bids will not be looking just at price but also at how their work will be done.  To do this you will want to set yourself apart.  To do that you could:

• Include copies of your best work
• Include testimonials
• Add a sales letter outlining why you are the best bidder on the project

This will help improve your credibility and firmly anchor you as a potential candidate who can get the job done.

Hopefully this article on freelance copywriting jobs has helped you.  It is important to know which websites you should use in finding work but it is also important to find ways to set yourself apart.  By creating a website as well as creating an advertising package that shows off your best side, you are setting yourself up to stand apart from other freelancers.

If you look through my blog you will find numerous outpourings on article marketing, blogging, web site content etc.

Content is crucial in your online marketing efforts. I have banged on about how ‘content is king’ (sorry to use such an awful cliche) and how the internet runs on the stuff. Let’s face it, without content there wouldn’t be any search engine results so the whole point of the internet would be rather redundant.

Just to drive my point home a bit more, I would like to draw you attention to a great blog I found on Copyblogger today. Here, Sonia Simone outlines 49 Creative Ways You Can Profit From Content Marketing.