Copywriter asks, "why bother?"

So I'm working on direct response copy today and instead of writing, 'we'll send you...' I write: 'we'll RUSH you.'

And I'm looking for a slightly softer word than 'FAST' plus I'm trying to tone down a paragraph and make it more readable, more conversational. And yet 95% of the direct mail I receive is poor and obviously pounded out by someone without a direct response background. Or it's been watered down by lawyers and/or our brothers and sisters in branding.

I should have written the last sentence in the active voice: Lawyers and/or our brothers and sisters in branding have watered down the copy.

So...why bother? Why obsess over finding the perfect word and writing copy in the active voice and spending plenty of time really finding out what's going to motivate the reader to buy or hand over their email address? Why include specific numbers? Why do I write 'discover' instead of 'learn?'

BECAUSE...it's all about MAXIMIZING RESPONSE...we're different in direct marketing. All of us MUST use every technique and obsess over every word and sentence so that we maximize response for clients. Serious direct marketers understand it's all about maximizing response. And it works. A page I wrote is getting more than a 30% opt in for a special report and the client's client is swamped with qualified leads.

Sometimes people ask me, 'why do you like direct response?' Because it's all about the results and the results of the results.

*

I'm a direct response copywriter based in Charlotte, North Carolina. I specialize in providing copy and content for the direct marketing environment--for clients around the world. Enter your info to the right for my free series: Seven Steps to High Converting Copy. Or contact me here for a quote.