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 Copywriting Tips & Services

Expert copywriting is an art.  Translating "words that sell" into sales letters can make or break a campaign. Ken Charles is an expert copywriter and specializes in direct sales letters and campaigns for the Internet and the Direct Marketing Industry.  His proven strategies sell and sell, time and time again.  His compelling messages have accelerated many would- be dying campaigns into winners.  Don't leave your sales ads to just anyone.  If you want your products or services to sell, trust the copy to an expert.  Just one wrong word in the wrong place can mean the difference between success or failure of your campaign.

Ken specializes in:

• Internet and Direct Marketing Sales letters
• Web Site Content & Copy
• Classified Ads
• e-Mail Campaigns
• ezine and traditional articles

If you need copy done right, contact Ken for a FREE--NO OBLIGATION estimate for your upcoming campaign.   Request an Estimate Now Or, if you're on a tight budget and just starting out...READ ON >>

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Copywriting & Direct Marketing Tips from the Experts >>>

• Personalize Your Copy

  The most important word in direct mail copy (aside from free, of course) is not "you," as many of the textbooks would have it, but "I." What makes a letter seem personal is not seeing your own name printed dozens of times across the page or even being battered to death with a never-ending attack of "you's." It is, rather, the sense you get of being in the presence of the writer - that a real person sat down and wrote you a real letter. A heavily computerized letter, by contrast, seems less personal. Direct mail recipients, after all, don't need to be reminded that they are real human beings with real names. To the contrary, they need to be assured that the letter they are reading comes from a human being, not a computer and not a committee. 

  (Taken from 2,239 Tested Secrets for Direct Marketing Success, by Denny Hatch and Don Jackson).

• Tell Them More
  by Ray Jutkins

  "The more you tell the more you sell." There is no such thing as too much copy. Remember, "Nobody reads the white space." The United Postal Service, from a recent 
  Household Dairy Study, found that: "…64% of the households don't really mind an influx of direct mail packages as long as they are interesting." Similar results are reported by Schlenker Research Services about outbound telemarketing. Overall 38% of consumers 
  "don't really mind" receiving a telemarketing call. And the number gets higher -47%-- with calls to those under 35 years of age. Make your message interesting, and say all 
  there is to say. Never mail blank pages. Use all the space available in a magazine or newspaper. Keep your catalog full. Say or write enough to get the lead. Or enough to get the order. Whatever it takes, do it.
   
                                           (Taken from Direct Marketing News)

• Parameters for Successful Copy
  by Andrew Byrne

  Do not write a word until you have studied your product or service and dug out every possible benefit you can, along with the selling points. Don't try to do it on your own. Talk to people. Talk to the buyer, the product manager, the account executive...everybody you can find. Look at ads and direct mail packages for competitive products. If it's possible, try the product or service yourself. Then build your copy skeleton. List the benefits and selling points; make an outline. This is the tough part of copywriting. It will take more time than actually writing the copy. Yet it is the most vital and important part of copy writing, because it forms the basis for every word you write.
  

  (Taken from Inside Direct Mail.)

• Know Your Market
  by Andrew Byrne

  Learn your market. To whom is this product or service going to be sold? What is their like? What are their demographics, their lifestyles? Where do they live? Don't try to reason this out for yourself, get others to help you. Then visualize your prospects and talk directly to them, as if you were selling in person. Keep in mind that you are selling, and that you're substituting the written word for the spoken word. This is another part of the writing process that lies underneath that iceberg which is visible-your copy. 

  (Taken from Inside Direct Mail.)

• Talk to One Person
  by Andrew Byrne

  Write your copy as if you were talking to just  one prospect, not all readers. This is where the copywriter has an advantage over the face-to-face salesperson. A sales person will generally sell one product or a line of products and services to many different kinds of audiences. It's almost like being an actor, talking with kings and princes, peasants and paupers, and speaking to each group so that they understand you and, more importantly believe you. Try making a promise to your prospect, and then prove that you can deliver what you promise. Make that promise right away, and get to the point. If you take your time you'll loose the attention of your prospect, be clear and direct.

  (Taken from Inside Direct Mail.)

• Should You Make it Funny?

  A copy appeal that attempts to take a humorous approach will be largely ineffective. Proof is in the number of times a funny advertisement tends to win an award, but fails to sell anything. Copy can have humorous aspects to it as long as the selling points and benefits do not rely on the humor itself to tell the story.

• Headlines That Boost Ad Response
  by Dan Rieck
  

  Since the headline is responsible for about 80% of your response, it is vital to write one that works. Here are three kinds of headlines that have been proven in millions of print ads.

  Pose a Provocative Question
  Asking a question directly involves your reader. However your question cannot be random or just clever. It must relate directly and clearly to the major benefit of your product/service. It must prompt the reader to answer "yes" or at least "I'm not sure but, I want to know more."

  Bark Command
  Many ads fall flat because they fail to tell the reader what to do. This headline type allows you to be direct, relay a benefit, and take a commanding posture simultaneously.

  Relay an Honest, Enthusiastic Testimonial
  A testimonial headline can do two things for you. First, it presents your reader with a third-party endorsement of your product and service. Second, it capitalizes on a consumer's desire to know what other people are saying.

  (Taken from Direct Marketing News)

• Writing Powerful Brochures 
  by Dan Rieck
  
  Your brochure should be factual support for your sales letter, meant to be scanned or read in any order. It should illustrate features, list benefits, provide proofs, make comparisons, and list technical details to lend credibility to what your letter claims. Here are some tips to keep in my when constructing your brochure:

            Use Benefits
  Start strong on the cover and put a big benefit in your main headline on the front. Use secondary headlines for secondary benefits. Then use copy and graphics to lead your reader through the rest of the brochure.

            Develop Benefit
  Develop your big benefit immediately and use your first sentences to summarize what the rest of the brochure will detail.

            Present Offer
  Restate the offer clearly to present a persuasive pitch for the offer in your letter, highlighting the toll free number and ordering instructions as well.

        Show Guarantee
  Feature a strong guarantee placed prominently in your brochure to increase customer confidence in both your offer and product.

  (Taken from Direct Marketing News)

• Personalize Your Copy Again
  by Ray Jutkins
  

  One of direct mail's biggest advantages over mass media is its ability to make personal one-to-one contact with your prospect. So don't blow it by leaving out the most personal part of your package-the letter. It doesn't have to be too long or fancy, but you should have some kind of letter. In most cases 65% of your response will come because of the copy in the letter. You can even include one in your catalog and self-mailers by printing a simulated letter or memo. Always remember, write to people not companies. People make decisions, companies don't.

  (Taken from Power Direct Marketing News)

• The ALL-IMPORTANT Call To Action
  by Susan K. Jones
  

  The goal of every component of a direct marketing campaign is to induce action: whether ordering by mail, calling, agreeing to buy, or coming into a store. This action must be spurred by the copy, but without coming on too strong. Here are a few action-inducing possibilities.

  • Limited quantifies or edition
  • Premium for response by a certain date
  • Early bird special
  • Preseason discount

• Writing The Perfect Marketing Letter 
  by Dan Rieck
  

  Despite the variety of formats we have available and all the hoopla over the media, the letter remains one of the most effective delivering a powerful sales message. Here are a few basics for writing the perfect sales letter.
  

  First sentence should be attention grabbing.
  You must instantly involve the reader. Make a startling statement. Tell an interesting story. Hit an emotional hot button or just state the offer and get to the point. This last tactic is often the best tactic and offers the least room for error.

  Present your offer on the first page. 
  If you don't give your offer in your headline or first sentence, you should put it somewhere on the first page. Be clear and specific about what your reader will get by responding.

  End the first page in mid-sentence. 
  Whether it’s curiosity or an urge for closure, cutting a sentence in two at the bottom of a page helps encourage readers to flip the page and finish the sentence. You can also use this technique on successive pages where the reader must turn the page over or go to a separate sheet.

  (Taken from Direct Marketing News)

• The Post Script
  by Susan K. Jones
  

  Studies of direct mail readers tell us that when they pick up a letter, prospects look first at the signature and next at the P.S. Thus the P.S. provides such a vital selling opportunity that almost every direct mail letter includes one. The P.S. may be used to restate the prime product benefit; highlight the urgency of the offer; refer the reader to the brochure, order form, testimonials or other component of the package. The P.S. can be utilized to remind the prospect about the premium offer, a toll-free number for ease in ordering, or emphasize the no risk nature of the offer due to Free Trial or Money-Back Guarantee

• Demand Creative Excellence
  by Scott Waltz
  

  A modest investment in delivering quality creative will separate your work from the also-rans and pay big dividends by improving response. Take a look at your direct- marketing efforts. Do they stand out? Does the work beg to be read? Is the concept single-minded and compelling? Does the content entertain and inform. Is the information personally relevant? Does it speak to the reader's interests, rather than your own? Have you taken some emotional approach (other than boredom)? Does the effort leverage some connection to a past action, interest, or correspondence? Does it cause you to smile, think, feel empowered, or act? If your creative isn't personally relevant and doesn't establish some emotional connection, it isn't working hard enough.

• Increase Your Response By 30%: 
  The Letter,
  by Ray Jutkins
  

  A letter is the most important and most powerful part of a direct mail package. Its pulling power is so strong there are times when the letter can work just by itself. But is it really a letter? No it isn't. A letter is a personal correspondence you write to one or two people. When you send it to 10, 10,00, or 10 million people, and it's designed to sell your product, it's really an ad. So make your letter a great one. Don't try to write it in half an hour. It takes five to eight hours to write a tight, crisp, one-page letter. The letter is the place to sell the benefits of owning and using your product. This is where your powerful benefits generate the response, which is the objective of the letter. Use short action packed words. Flaunt your best benefits, then ask the reader for a response in the letter copy several times. Include your signature legibly written. Then add a P.S. that reemphasizes your best offer and asks again for a response. Everyone reads the P.S., make it an order clincher. Allow five to ten hours for writing, editing and layout.

  (Taken From Direct Marketing News)

• What To Do With Teaser Copy
  by Ray Jutkins
  

  Well-written teaser copy can increase response by whetting a customer's appetite, they will want to open the mail piece to see what's inside. Here are few things to keep in mind if you elect to use teaser copy:

  Make sure the teaser relates to the offer.
  Don't mislead the customer just to get them to look inside.

  Think benefits with teaser copy.
  No benefit, no reason for the audience to look inside.

  Does the teaser copy urge action?
  A call to action should always be in your teasers, something like "Limited Offer."

  Does the teaser copy on the outside tie in to what's on the inside?
  Make sure it does. The audience will better understand what you are offering.

  Do the graphics and copy work well together?
  Make sure they complement the issue, not confuse it.

  Does your teaser copy have a "YOU" attitude?
  Make certain the customers knows what they will gain, in their language.

  Does the teaser copy talk with the reader?
  Don't speak at them or to them, but speak with them.
  
              (Taken from Direct Marketing News) 

• Believability When You Write
  by Linda Westphal
  

  Use lots of specifics. Yes, writing specifics is hard work, but it builds trust. When generalities are used throughout an ad or direct mail package, a reader isn't able to feel confident that your company or product could offer what they want. Facts give proof. Facts sell. And they give believability to a product. I can't help but admire the specifics that Richard Warren Sears used in his 1902 Sears Roebuck catalog. He went on for paragraphs and pages in details. His readers believed --sight unseen-- in the value of his products.

  (Taken from Direct Marketing News)

• 8 Ways To Lift Response
  by Don Cimei
  

  Simplify
  Keep your offer and your language clear, crisp, and concise.

  Begin With The Benefit
  Benefits aren't everything, they are the only thing. Use them generously

  Give 'Em The Facts
  Do it with a selling proposition that’s packed with reasons why.

   Do It With A Difference Part I
  We must cut through the clutter and get our message noticed.

  Do It With A Difference Part II
  Today we have to generate excitement, before we can generate response.

  Test And Test Again
  We're not learning anything from the one-shot, one-package, one-offer programs that have become commonplace. Test. It's the only way to be sure.

  Build Your Brand
  Even today a strong brand name can create a strong brand preference.

  Make It Easy To Say Yes
  Give prospects a variety of convenient, no hassle ways to respond. You'll lift your overall response just by offering choices.

  (Taken from Direct Marketing News)

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