Speed is a Strategy. Direct Response Copywriter Email Archive June 2017 2.

June 2017 2

From the desk of Scott Martin, direct response copywriter, Aspen, Colorado.

I'm a slow eater, a slow skier (mostly), and a slow runner but I'm a fast golfer and fast writer. I know a fair number of copywriters but there's only one copywriter I know who is faster than me when it comes to writing copy. I have written 4,000 word promotion in about 6 hours and the promotion met the needs of the client.

My initial mentor in this business always says "speed is a strategy" and I agree. Far too many companies take way too long to get their copy up and running.

One famous direct response company took EIGHT MONTHS to get my copy live. The fee seemed decent but when I looked at the time I spent on the project, the remuneration was low. I have one client who has my copy live in 7-10 days. They give me a week to write a 4,000 word promotion.

No problem.

I understand the client's market plus I have templates I can use based on promotions that have worked in the past. The fee may seem a little low but, based on the time I spend on the copy, it's solid.

So ... two thoughts.

One ... find clients who are ready, willing, and able to move quickly. Two ... make writing quickly a goal. Yes ... the quality has to be there and using templates will save hours of time. But ... here's something vital ... while you are working on becoming faster, also work on becoming BETTER.

Let's go back to the world of skiing. I know a lot of people who ski super-fast. However, technically, even based on my somewhat nascent knowledge of skiing, they are not technically sound. Put these speed skiers in more difficult terrain and they fall over. Becoming a faster skier is a wonderful goal, provided your technique improves.

I don't know any direct response copywriters who bill by the hour. I know plenty of lawyers who bill by the hour and feel they have this special right to keep the meter running. I wrote a book several years ago and I'm trying to get the rights back from the publisher. I hired a lawyer to help me. He's not done a thing, billed me for work he said he wasn't going to bill me for, and sent me a bill for $938.

There's going to be an interesting conversation in the next few days.

As you grow as a copywriter, find ways to be faster, while maintaining and improving the quality of your work.

Scott Martin Direct Response Copywriter