Direct Response Copywriter on Political Advertising

Here in Charlotte, where I’m a Charlotte copywriter…

Sorry…I had my SEO copywriter boots on…let me start again. Apologies…

Here in Charlotte, where I’m a Charlotte direct response copywriter, we just hosted the Democratic National Convention. Quite a circus. A huge event for Charlotte. Those guys were on spring break.

The center of Charlotte, the intersection of Trade and Tryon, was a zoo. We had three days of near chaos and more police than I've ever seen in one place.

For the record, I vote. I’m not registered with any political party but I vote. And it's private.

So please understand: this blog is not a political broadcast. I’m not taking sides.

The election is almost seven weeks away as I write and I have some advice for politicians based on speeches I’ve heard recently and, especially, on the mail I receive from candidates.

Use direct marketing techniques and hire a direct response copywriter.

Political advertising is extremely poor. Why? I’m not really sure. My guess: the world of politics is full of consultants and ‘experts’ who don’t know much and certainly have never picked up a book about direct marketing.

It’s extremely rare in direct response to see advertising that shamelessly bashes the competition. But in political advertising, it’s the norm: hammer the other candidate even if you lie.

In direct response, we shamelessly promote the benefits of a product. Yes—there might be the occasional harmless comparison chart but that’s pretty much it when it comes to being nasty about the competition. Data shows that saying rude things about the competition doesn’t sell stuff.

A politician is a product and the goal is to persuade the voter to buy the product. The voter, like a good consumer, is asking, “what’s in it for me?”

So, dear politicians, ANSWER THE QUESTION.

I’m dying for a political speech that gives me:

• A reason to get excited.
• The big idea.
• Something even vaguely approaching a USP.
• Concrete benefits.
• An irresistible offer.

My mailbox will soon be overflowing with vague and vacuous postcards and letters from candiates. Many politicians don’t even list their party affiliation. And the promises are clichés.

"I'm here for you."

"You can be confident I will represent YOUR interests."

"I will FIGHT to lower your taxes."

The problem is obvious. Politicians (and their expensive consultants) use branding advertising instead of direct response advertising. It’s all about image.

Yet every politician strives to look exactly the same. Dark suit. White shirt. Bright tie. And for the women: bright suit. Wide smile. Country club hair. So the image advertising isn't about differentiation or standing out. It's about looking the same as everyone else. Bizarre.

If I were a politician, I would use every direct response tactic in the book. If you’re a politician and you’re guaranteed to win due to the demographics of your district, well done.

But if you’re a politician and you’re in a tight race, ask your marketing people how much they know about direct marketing or direct response copywriting or Dan Kennedy or Scientific Advertising.

If your ‘team of experts’ stares back blankly when you ask them about Dan Kennedy, find a team that can execute direct marketing techniques. You’ll win. Going away.

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I'm a direct response copywriter. I specialize in providing content and copy for the direct marketing environment for clients around the planet. I specialize in sales page copy, landing page copy and copy that just plain persuades readers to pull out their credit card and buy. Enter your info to the right for my free series: Seven Steps to High Converting Copy. Or contact me here if you have a project you'd like me to quote.

Direct Response Copywriter on THE TRUTH

I was driving around this morning listening to a radio station. I heard a radio spot for a local jeweler: Diamonds Direct.

With the NFL season coming up, the jeweler is making a big deal of their affiliation with the Carolina Panthers.

“The Official Jeweler of The Carolina Panthers.”

It’s impossible to measure the ROI on this type of marketing spend but that’s fodder for another blog.

During the radio commercial, the breathless announcer says that Diamond Direct ‘earned’ the right to be the official jeweler of the Carolina Panthers.

Earn.

Proof that one word can make a big difference in copy.

You don’t ‘earn’ the right to sponsor a team. You BUY the sponsorship. You write a big check.

So they’re not really telling the truth.

I have to admit I would rather have razor wire stuffed up my nose than go anywhere near a jewelry store. One reason: I can think of 490 better ways to spend the cash I would likely drop in the place like Diamonds Direct.

Anyway…why would I give a chunk of business to a company that fibs in their copy?

It’s not a major thing perhaps and I might be the only person who cares but it's important to remember that listeners, readers, and viewers are extremely skeptical when it comes to advertising. Why fuel that skepticism? Remember, in direct response copywriting, we’re writing every word to maximize response.

As a direct response copywriter, I strongly believe in verisimilitude which is placing the product or service in the best possible light. But verisimilitude is not fibbing.

So my brothers and sisters at Diamonds Direct…don’t tell me a fib. Instead, persuade me to walk in the door or visit your website. Tell me why I have to buy from you instead of the bazillion other jewelers on the planet. Prove that you do what you say.

And just in case you care, the fact that you’re the official jeweler of the Carolina Panthers means nothing to me and I’m a huge fan of the team. You’re better off spending your money on a direct marketing campaign where you can closely track the ROI.

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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. I increasingly specialize in sales pages and landing pages. Enter your info to the right for my free series: Seven Steps to High Converting Copy. Or contact me here.

Direct Response Copywriter Word of the Night: AIDA

OK. Admittedly, it's an acronym. But for the direct response copywriter, AIDA is an extremely important word. It’s the baseline copywriting formula for direct response copywriting.

A = Attention

I = Interest

D = Desire

A = Action

Let’s go through these briefly.

The headline and opening must get the reader’s attention. The reader is the target prospect.

Interesting facts come next in order to hold the interest of the reader. The deeper the research, the stronger the overall interest. It’s where the direct response copywriter states the problem.

In the desire section, the product/service gets introduced as the solution to the problem. It’s time to discuss features and benefits and also include testimonials and proof. Don’t forget the guarantee and the offer.

At the end, demand action by telling the reader what you want them to do.

Sounds easy, doesn’t it?

It takes a lot of work to get it right and convert readers, viewers, and listeners into buyers.

However, for any copywriter, including the website copywriter, it’s important to use the AIDA formula.

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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. I increasingly specialize in sales pages and landing pages. Enter your info to the right for my free series: Seven Steps to High Converting Copy. Or contact me here.

Copywriter Looks at Beautiful Website...and Weeps

What's the point of investing in a new website?

This might seem like an obvious question...along the lines of 'why put gas in your car?' But very few companies know how to answer the question, 'what's the point of investing in a new website?'

Just this afternoon, I received an email (unsolicited) from a company trumpeting the launch of their new website.

Take a look here.

It's beautiful and expensive (I'm certain) and the photos are professional.

BUT...what's the point of the website?

• To look great?
• To enhance the brand?
• To get great search results?

The site is for a chain of marinas. A marina makes money by renting slips and providing boat services. A marina needs leads; it needs a database of prospects; it needs repair business...and all the marketing 'juice' it can get to generate revenue from its core business.

Yet this gloriously produced website lacks:

• A call to action. (DUH!)
• Any way to opt in to a database.
• An offer (DOUBLE DUH!)

If you feel so moved, check the site against my direct response checklist.

Does this company want a pretty website or does it want leads and revenue?

I don't design and develop websites, but, as a direct response copywriter, I write copy for websites. There's only one goal of every word of my direct response copywriting: persuade readers to take the next step in the sales process. So I get a bit upset when a company spends a small fortune on a new website yet completely misses the point...or boat...

A couple of additional notes:

• Big Flash presence (distracting).
• Cliché copy with no meat or CTA (shoddy).
• I don't blame the website company but I question the marketing knowledge of the decision maker at the marina company.

Memo to all business owners: TELL YOUR WEBSITE COMPANY YOU WANT YOUR WEBSITE TO HELP YOU MAKE MONEY.

Apologies for getting ornery and weepy, even. In future posts, I'll focus on websites that 'get it.' Send me examples.

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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 direct response copywriting quote.

Copywriter on Content. Part 5. Selling Happiness.

What do people really want? In his excellent book, 2,239 Tested Secrets for Direct Marketing Success, Denny Hatch writes about motivators and lists two pages of them. Two of the most important are happiness and ease. Hatch breaks these down into 100 motivators and I won't go into all of them here and there's no need for most businesses to worry about precise motivators--leave this up to us direct response copywriters.

However, if you make a big effort to base your content on happiness and ease, you'll be way ahead of most of the competition.

Six steps to selling happiness through content.

1. Find out what makes your clients and customers really happy. Then show how you deliver.
2. Ease is always huge. Make everyone's life a lot easier.
3. Tell stories about just how happy clients and customers have become since making the decision to do business with you.
4. Show happy people in photos and videos (this may seem obvious but there's a lot of morosity on websites).
5. Make sure testimonials are teeming with happiness.
6. Your special report and free content should be organized around making people so happy they have to buy what you have to offer.

Also...try to organize your content so the happiness is digestible.

• Captions under photos.
• Pull quotes.
• Subheads.
• Bullets.
• Copy doodles.

Let's take a look at some websites and pages that really sell happiness with their content.

I'm not a huge flash fan and there's a lot of flash on this site but it's selling happiness throughout. Think it's hard for a dentist to sell happiness? Think again by clicking here. And I think Jim McLean, the golf instructor, is really good at showing results on his site.

Take a look at your site and your content. If you think you're selling happiness really well, leave a comment with a link.

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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 direct response copywriting quote.