If You Can Sell, You Can Write
 

When I tell people I'm a direct response copywriter, it's not unusual to get a few oooohs and ahhhs. (not as many as I'd like but...)

Anyhow, as the person I'm talking to thinks about my copywriting skills and then holds them up against their own, I can almost see them envisioning a wide gap between the two.

In other words, they think I'm light years ahead of them.

But the truth is, it's not nearly as far as they think.

Sure, I have 20 years experience and a track record but, from a pure "writing" point of view, the gap isn't that wide. 

Here's why:

In 1905, John E. Kennedy, then a relatively unknown copywriter, described promotion and advertising as "salesmanship in print".

Many of my clients and prospects are good salespeople . 

Otherwise, they would not be running successful businesses.

So I'm here to tell you that If you can sell, you can write effective sales copy.

You just have to think about making sure your sales copy takes into consideration all of the important elements you consider in a selling situation.

That's what this post covers today.

Your hear a lot of copywriters, content marketers and social media communicators talk a lot about conversion rates but...they rarely discuss the basic foundation behind a successful promotion - good salesmanship.

And, they rarely tell you how to do it.

I think part of that is because many of them have never worked as a professional salesperson.

I have a successful 20 year sales career in telecommunications and advertising that I draw on as a copywriter and it's a huge leg up.

To write effective sales copy, you need the same characteristics and qualities a good salesperson has. 

You need to understand psychology. Be curious. Compassionate. Knowledgeable. And, have an unwavering laser like focus on your prospect's needs, not your own.

You also need to know how to anticipate and address objections - in advance.

Then, blend those elements into your copy.

• Tell a story in a human voice that connects with the reader.
• Let your reader know you understand what she want by speaking to her needs.
• Use emotion in your copy. Stir up their passion. Be enthusiastic.
• Back your offer up with logic. People buy based on emotion but you need to make sure you equip them with facts they can use to validate their buying decision. 
• Anticipate and overcome objections. The same ones you hear face-to-face. Don't ignore them.
• Make sure you follow  through by providing other information, links, and contact information that would be useful to the customer.

OK, so where do you start?

Whenever you are writing sales copy...web copy, email copy, a landing page or any sales related content, focus on the following:

1.    What do you want your web copy, sales letter, blog post or newsletter to accomplish?

2.    Who is going to read what you wrote?

Understanding your intention and knowing who your audience is will give a big head start towards writing sales copy that sells. 

Maybe not as big a deal as you thought, huh?