Direct Response Copywriter Learns from Teenagers

Teenagers are an interesting group. Vivacious. Moody. Unpredictable. Trying to be old. But still so young. I want to tell them...in 20 years, you'll want to be young again. Enjoy being young!

I hang out in a coffee shop and there are plenty of teenagers, especially later in the afternoon on weekdays; there's a high school with over 3,000 students less than a mile away.

Teenagers LOVE to tell other teenagers how brilliant they are. "I came first in this...I got this new pair of shoes...my new boyfriend is...my new girlfriend is..."

Of course, we all love to boast. In fact, I often come across websites that are one big boast.

Several years ago, a magazine here in Charlotte called "Charlotte's Best" would let advertisers call themselves...Charlotte's Best...So Bob's Taxidermy would tell everyone, "We're Charlotte's Best Taxidermist."

Don't you hate it when the person next to you in the coffee shop spends 30 minutes telling you how brilliant they are? It makes me want to bang my head against the wall.

I recently received an email newsletter from a local company. Look at it now.

It's one big boast and fails to answer THE question the prospect is asking, "What's in it for me?"

I'm just as guilty as anyone when it comes to this...I'm about to re-do my website and while my current direct response copywriting site is not replete with boasting, I'm going to be careful on the new one to make sure every word is directed to ensuring I'm addressing the needs of my prospects.

Yes--a track record is important. And testimonials are vital too. But it's much more important to find out what really matters to the prospect--and tell them how your product or service applies to what really matters or solves their problem.

For example...I'm going to ask those teenagers, "would you like a product that will make you look 10 years older?" Or perhaps I will tell them, "I'm Charlotte's best."

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I'm a direct response copywriter. My full website is here.

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