What Never to Do When Writing Compelling Copy for Sales
Powerful and compelling copy makes money, and that’s why it’s essential to promote your business with the right choice of words. But it’s not just the words that have to be right, it’s also the level of content, passion, spelling, grammar and timing.
In this article we’re going to look at the most common mistakes that business owners and writers make when they’re looking to deliver a professional marketing message. Once you’ve read this you’ll know the pitfalls to avoid and what it takes to craft copy that leads to sales.
Here is what to avoid when you want to promote your product:
The offer is simply not relevant to the reader
This usually comes about from not investing enough time and effort into researching your market. It could also result from not being thoughtful enough about who is going to receive your communication – sometimes it’s both of these. It’s essential to get clear about who you want to market to and where you can find them. You need to match the wants and needs of your target market with your offer wisely and give them the right words, and you also need to ensure that your copy is being exposed to the people that you wrote it for.
There is not a clear message
Readers can become confused by copy that contains too many messages. Remember that most people are going to be new to your business and/or what you are promoting. You need to make it easy for them to understand what it is that you are offering. You need to deliver only one marketing message in each piece, so that it’s clear to them what you want to tell them, and what you want them to do.
The copy has been rushed
This often happens when business owners suddenly feel panicked that their monthly income has gone down. They scrabble to claw back some customers so that they can get the revenue turning over. The problem is, is that thought needs go into writing compelling copy. It’s not about sending out a newsletter or a sales letter so that marketing activity has been ‘achieved’, it’s about thinking carefully about the target market and writing so that the readers are gaining value. They are only concerned about ‘what’s in it for me’ and once you understand that, your material will be something that generates leads and sales.
There’s not been any market research performed
This might take the form of looking at what your competition is doing, viewing publications that your target market are reading and understanding more about the demographics involved. Thorough market research needs to be undertaken before you start writing so that you mentally visualize who it is you are writing to. Whatever you write, write it in a one-to-one fashion. You should also consider what your readers are being exposed to that can influence their buying decisions.
The communication is not at the right level
Either it is wrong because it’s been written with the assumption that the reader already knows about the business, or it’s been written at too simple a level for those who know more than nothing. Quite often it will be written as a celebration of how great the business is by the business owner. This isn’t going to appeal to the reader. Again, it needs to be written by somebody who has taken the effort to stand in the shoes of the target market to consider their perspective and needs.
It’s not looking professional enough
Home created flyers, newsletters and websites are usually of poor quality. Consumers aren’t impressed by the home-created style and will often move onto another company to provide them with what they want. Any material that is produced needs to have a good design, be well written and if printed, then it should be on quality paper. Marketing material speaks volumes about the company and conveys information about the brand. It needs to appeal.
It’s not passionate enough
‘About Us’ web pages that are dull and boring, don’t deliver the contagious enthusiasm and passion that make people want to buy. It can be challenging to convey the same passion that gets communicated in person, on a page. Time, effort, skill and enthusiasm has to be put into copy for it to stir up excitement and interest in the reader.
It’s written for the business
Copy that doesn’t use an abundance of ‘you’, ‘your’ and ‘you’re’ but has a high number of ‘we’, ‘I’ and ‘us’ is not written from the perspective of the customer. Boasting about a business might feel good for the ego, but it won’t result in sales. Compelling copy is bursting with benefits that tie into the emotional and practical wants and needs of the reader.
It’s got spelling and grammar mistakes
There’s no easier way to distract the reader from the message of your communication than by presenting a series of spelling and grammar mistakes. All of their focus will go onto which words have been wrongly spelled, how the grammar could have been used and your marketing message won’t even get a look in!
The personal preferences of the business are used
Cartoon characters, swear words and slang can all be fun at the right time, but not are not appropriate in business. Ensure that all copy is written in the right language, using appropriate themes and that it educates readers as to why they need to solve their problem with your product.
The timing of the marketing message is not correct
Sending out flyers for Halloween Specials in July is going to be a mismatch for the market. If the flyers are sent out early to middle October, they’ll have much more of a positive impact and will be more likely to tie in with the needs and wants of the market.
Going on and on
Some sales writers craft several pages for their sales message, but it’s not always a wise idea. The best approach is to write copy that contains the message that you want to deliver and includes a clear and concise call to action. Boring readers will only lose them and they’ll be off to do, read or buy something somewhere else.
The material is not suitable for the stage of the buying process
In the buying process there are several stages. In particular in the business to business area, most buyers need to be drip fed information about you and what you offer over a period of time before they will feel comfortable enough to make a major purchase. It’s important to build a relationship with buyers and to provide them with several encounters with your business and it’s products, even if this is through ads or the written form. The continuum of buying process includes these stages:
There are plenty of mistakes that can be made when writing compelling copy, but now that you know what to avoid it will be easier to create something that’s right.
Takeaway Steps on What Never to Do When Writing Compelling Copy for Sales
Compelling copy needs to be written in the right way for it to be successful, ask yourself these questions about it before using it:
The offer is simply not relevant to the reader
In this article we’re going to look at the most common mistakes that business owners and writers make when they’re looking to deliver a professional marketing message. Once you’ve read this you’ll know the pitfalls to avoid and what it takes to craft copy that leads to sales.
Here is what to avoid when you want to promote your product:
The offer is simply not relevant to the reader
This usually comes about from not investing enough time and effort into researching your market. It could also result from not being thoughtful enough about who is going to receive your communication – sometimes it’s both of these. It’s essential to get clear about who you want to market to and where you can find them. You need to match the wants and needs of your target market with your offer wisely and give them the right words, and you also need to ensure that your copy is being exposed to the people that you wrote it for.
There is not a clear message
Readers can become confused by copy that contains too many messages. Remember that most people are going to be new to your business and/or what you are promoting. You need to make it easy for them to understand what it is that you are offering. You need to deliver only one marketing message in each piece, so that it’s clear to them what you want to tell them, and what you want them to do.
The copy has been rushed
This often happens when business owners suddenly feel panicked that their monthly income has gone down. They scrabble to claw back some customers so that they can get the revenue turning over. The problem is, is that thought needs go into writing compelling copy. It’s not about sending out a newsletter or a sales letter so that marketing activity has been ‘achieved’, it’s about thinking carefully about the target market and writing so that the readers are gaining value. They are only concerned about ‘what’s in it for me’ and once you understand that, your material will be something that generates leads and sales.
There’s not been any market research performed
This might take the form of looking at what your competition is doing, viewing publications that your target market are reading and understanding more about the demographics involved. Thorough market research needs to be undertaken before you start writing so that you mentally visualize who it is you are writing to. Whatever you write, write it in a one-to-one fashion. You should also consider what your readers are being exposed to that can influence their buying decisions.
The communication is not at the right level
Either it is wrong because it’s been written with the assumption that the reader already knows about the business, or it’s been written at too simple a level for those who know more than nothing. Quite often it will be written as a celebration of how great the business is by the business owner. This isn’t going to appeal to the reader. Again, it needs to be written by somebody who has taken the effort to stand in the shoes of the target market to consider their perspective and needs.
It’s not looking professional enough
Home created flyers, newsletters and websites are usually of poor quality. Consumers aren’t impressed by the home-created style and will often move onto another company to provide them with what they want. Any material that is produced needs to have a good design, be well written and if printed, then it should be on quality paper. Marketing material speaks volumes about the company and conveys information about the brand. It needs to appeal.
It’s not passionate enough
‘About Us’ web pages that are dull and boring, don’t deliver the contagious enthusiasm and passion that make people want to buy. It can be challenging to convey the same passion that gets communicated in person, on a page. Time, effort, skill and enthusiasm has to be put into copy for it to stir up excitement and interest in the reader.
It’s written for the business
Copy that doesn’t use an abundance of ‘you’, ‘your’ and ‘you’re’ but has a high number of ‘we’, ‘I’ and ‘us’ is not written from the perspective of the customer. Boasting about a business might feel good for the ego, but it won’t result in sales. Compelling copy is bursting with benefits that tie into the emotional and practical wants and needs of the reader.
It’s got spelling and grammar mistakes
There’s no easier way to distract the reader from the message of your communication than by presenting a series of spelling and grammar mistakes. All of their focus will go onto which words have been wrongly spelled, how the grammar could have been used and your marketing message won’t even get a look in!
The personal preferences of the business are used
Cartoon characters, swear words and slang can all be fun at the right time, but not are not appropriate in business. Ensure that all copy is written in the right language, using appropriate themes and that it educates readers as to why they need to solve their problem with your product.
The timing of the marketing message is not correct
Sending out flyers for Halloween Specials in July is going to be a mismatch for the market. If the flyers are sent out early to middle October, they’ll have much more of a positive impact and will be more likely to tie in with the needs and wants of the market.
Going on and on
Some sales writers craft several pages for their sales message, but it’s not always a wise idea. The best approach is to write copy that contains the message that you want to deliver and includes a clear and concise call to action. Boring readers will only lose them and they’ll be off to do, read or buy something somewhere else.
The material is not suitable for the stage of the buying process
In the buying process there are several stages. In particular in the business to business area, most buyers need to be drip fed information about you and what you offer over a period of time before they will feel comfortable enough to make a major purchase. It’s important to build a relationship with buyers and to provide them with several encounters with your business and it’s products, even if this is through ads or the written form. The continuum of buying process includes these stages:
- Unaware
- Aware
- Considering
- Desire
- Action
- Repeat purchase
- Recommendation
There are plenty of mistakes that can be made when writing compelling copy, but now that you know what to avoid it will be easier to create something that’s right.
Takeaway Steps on What Never to Do When Writing Compelling Copy for Sales
Compelling copy needs to be written in the right way for it to be successful, ask yourself these questions about it before using it:
The offer is simply not relevant to the reader
- Is there one clear marketing message for the readers?
- Have you taken a look at the market to see what it is that appeals to your market, how the competition are advertising and what influencers buying decisions?
- Has time been taken to understand the market and what they are looking for?
- Is the copy written at the right level for the buyers involved?
- Check whether the right image is being portrayed and appropriate language is used.
- Passion and enthusiasm needs to shine through, check that it’s got that.
- Check that It’s been written for the market, and not as a pat on the back for the business.
- Proofread the copy, and proofread it again.
- Editorial calendars can avoid timing issues. Plan in advance so that you can take the best opportunities.
- Is the copy suitable for the stage of buying that the reader is in and is it the right length for them? Avoid boring them or you’ll lose them altogether.