3 Knockout Tips to Give Good Copy
Do you know the 3 knockout tips to Give Good Copy? 😉
(Yeah, it probably isn’t wise to ask your grandma this question.😀)
So, together, let’s unlock the exact copywriting strategies and insider secrets to attract a steady stream of “come n get it” ideal buyers and boost sales without begging, bribing, or badgering.
I want to show you how you can “give good copy” the moment you’ve finished reading this article!
And why should you listen to me preach about how important good copy is?
Well, in 2020, I worked with the world’s #1 chat marketing platform, ManyChat, as a content consultant.
And in that same year, for ManyChat’s Conversations conference, we managed to sell more tickets six weeks out this year than any other year in the history of the conference, with ZERO ad spend, and that is because of my copywriting strategies.
So you can see how important good copywriting is(and its potential to turn your readers into buyers).
That’s the power of copywriting.
So let’s dive right into the tips to give good copy.
Give Good Copy Tip #1
Good Copy always begins with a hook
Just like a hook of a pop song (You Can Call Me Al, anyone?)…
A ‘hook’ answers the question, ‘what gets people excited about what I am writing?’ Include a ‘power’ word like powerful, great, top, or best, and a persuasive writing technique.
This can be applied for your lead magnets, emails, landing pages, and even your Messenger chatbots.
Using persuasion techniques and “power” or “trigger” words that get people excited, will encourage others to read (or tap a button) to learn more.
You could see a 12.7% increase in your conversion rates simply by sprinkling a few power words into your copy.
I now call this combination of a hook plus power word, The Two-Step ‘Hooker’ System (because hook + power = hooker). 😉
Let me show you an example.
Want to know the foolproof LinkedIn formula for attracting high-ticket B2B prospects without feeling like a salesy slime ball?
A sponsored message campaign for this blog post received 48 optins at a cost of just 13 cents per open, and made 5x ROI.
Let me dissect the copywriting techniques I used in this message.
I used trigger words in the first sentence: “foolproof” , “formula” and another one following closely: “high-ticket”.
I used a persuasive technique coined by Bushra A, called “YAY without the BOO” (put simply, the good without the bad). The entire sentence is a YAY “Want to know the foolproof LinkedIn formula for attracting high-ticket B2B prospects” without the BOO “without feeling like a salesy slimeball”.
I deliberately chose what I call a disruptor with alliteration of the letter S: “salesy slimeball” which deviates from the regular copy you’d associate with B2B/business/LinkedIn, to grab attention.
Then I follow up with my favourite part of the entire message: the button. The button copy is my favourite because it’s amusing and ties into the “salesy slimeball”. #NoMoreSlimeballs
If you are doing a similar technique for social media post, you could start it with something like
“I got fired.”
“I quit.”
“I lost everything.”
“I lost [x] dollars.”
“I gave up.”
“We were on the brink of failure.”
All of these are an irresistible hook.
So remember your tip #1 for giving good copy — Always start with a hook.
Give Good Copy Tip #2
It speaks to your ideal client in a way that they understand.
Make sure you write at a 6th grade reading level, and write simply — like you’re explaining your idea to a 5-year-old.
A general rule is to keep paragraphs around 1–2 sentences. Use 12–15 words per sentence to make your writing easier on the eye. And try not to go over 300 words.
Remember: Write simply! Warren Buffett uses just 13 words per sentence in his emails
This includes setting up expectations in your chatbot for your users.
For example, if you need your users to perform a certain action, like tapping a button.
Include a line of copy that reads: “Tap one of the buttons below. Please don’t type anything in as it confuses our system. Thanks.”
The same goes for capturing their email address to give a free guide. You can include a line that reads: “So I can send you a copy of <guide>, please type or tap your email address below. Don’t worry — I promise to keep your details safe.”
Tip #3 to Giving Good Copy
It tells people what to do — with a call-to-action button.
Now in real life people aren’t always happy when you tell them what do to but in copywriting, telling your audience to perform your desired action is totally okay — in fact, they love it!
So a CTA button is a call-to-action button.
People have to be forced to change. In screenwriting, this is the inciting incident.
People don’t take action unless they are challenged to take action.
So we can do this with Direct CTAs. These are:
- Buy Now
- Schedule An Appointment
- Let’s Do Business Together
- Register Today
Where a transitional or indirect CTA asks your audience to get a free piece of content from you in exchange for their details.
These could be:
- Lead-generating PDFs
- Checklists
- Cheatsheets
- eBooks
- Webinars
Think of it this way…
A direct CTA is “will you marry me?”
Transitional or indirect CTA is “can we go out on a date again?”
Using indirect CTA creates reciprocity that makes people feel indebted to you (by giving a free piece of content).
In emails, and on sales pages and websites, you need to add a CTA (call to action) at the end. The CTA is one of the most important parts of conversion tactics. It is the action you’d like your readers to perform after they have read your email.
CTAs include things like:
Buy Now
Buy Now & Save $X
Read This:
Watch This:
Learn More About…
One of my favourite things to do to make your CTAs really stand out and convert more readers faster is a technique I honed during the time I wrote emails as dating expert Matthew Hussey.
We wrote his CTAs as direct response (which stirs up emotions), and here’s a few I wrote for him:
Click Here to Get Instant Access to <Program Name>
Add Our LIVE Session to Your Calendar Now
Download Your Cheat Sheet Here
All of these should hyperlink to your video, free gift, blog post or sales page. If you have Google Analytics (UTM link) or a link management tool like bit.ly you can include a trackable link so you can see the source (your email) and how many people clicked on it.
Of course, email software like MailChimp does have this kind of tracking itself, but this is a good way to track links in a centralised place.
To Wrap Up…
So there you have 3 knockout tips to give good copy:
- Start with a hook
- Write for your ideal clients — at a 6th grade reading level
- Always include a CTA
I’m going to leave you with a challenge..
👉 Look at your website, emails, Instagram or Facebook post or whatever copy you’re writing, and make sure you have applied these tips.
Not sure where to start?
Now if you’re not sure about any of these tips, I have a couple of guides that can help you:
- Perfect Match Ideal Client Workbook that helps you unpack your ideal client and uncover their deepest desires, push their emotional hot buttons and throw their hand-earned cash at you.
- Too Hot to Handle Lead Magnet Workbook so you can craft the perfect free piece of content to attract a constant stream of ideal buyers.
- Proven Profit Boosters copywriting templates to download my copywriting brain and get the shortcut to click-worthy, sales-boosting copywriting.
…And if you buy me a coffee (a large almond honey latte 😉) you can grab one of these guides for just $7 each.
You’ll have lifetime access to them, so you can use them again and again. Trust me, you’ll make back your investment 10 fold!
👉 Grab your favourite here and boost your bottom line!
