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How to Succeed as a Writer
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The Bible - The Source Of All Copywriting Secrets
I've been a student of the Bible for practically all my life.
There is a lot of reason why this book remains the number one
best-seller year after year. I think that it is the source of
ALL wisdom, yes, including successful copywriting!
What do I mean by this?
Simply put, every copywriting strategy can be found FIRST in the
Bible. This may appear to be a strong statement but I challenge
the reader to prove otherwise. As I did the research for my
latest ebook "77 Ways to Skyrocket Your Website's Conversion", I
kept saying to myself "but that's in the Bible ... that's in the
Bible."
I would like to take a look at FIVE copywriting principles and
show you that they are as old as the Scriptures. This article is
not meant to 'convert' you so read with an open mind ... ready?
Let's go!
1. Stress benefits not features.
It's the Garden of Eden. The serpent approaches the woman Eve to
get her to take of the forbidden fruit. Does he rave about the
color, taste and texture of the fruit? No, he sells Eve on
benefits. "Your eyes will be opened, you will be like God ..."
(Genesis 3:4). Now that's a benefit, not a feature at all. And
did Eve fall for it? She surely did.
That may seem like a 'negative' example - a plain deception. But
look at what the book of Revelation promises the "overcomer".
Eternal life, health, recognition, wealth and mansions without
mortgages.
2. Use lots of testimonials.
If you have just a cursory knowledge of the Bible you know that
the gospels of Matthew, Mark Luke and John make up the first
four books of the New Testament. They all cover the same ground
and share many common stories. So why would we need four
different people saying practically the same thing?
You see they all wanted to tell THEIR story about the Rabbi
Jesus Christ. So the writers (all satisfied customers) relate
the life-changing encounter they each had - the more testimonies
the better.
The entire Bible relates stories of peoples encounter with the
supernatural and how it affected their lives. In fact, Jesus
related to the disciples after His miraculous resurrection that
all the Old Testament was really about Him.
3. "Create a damaging admission and address flaws openly"
That's the title to chapter 3 of the master copywriter Dan
Kennedy's book "The Ultimate Sales Letter". He goes on to
explain that if you openly admit the drawbacks of your offer
then your credibility goes up instantly with the customer. For
example, your price may be higher than your competitors so you
may say: "If you are looking to save a few bucks then you can
find many other companies who will be willing to give you
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some
'quick fixes'. But we provide a very thorough and expert
service, hence the higher price"
You are admitting that you are expensive but showing why - the
customer gets a superior service.
In the gospels we see many potential disciples who wanted to
follow Jesus and he told them openly that it was a sacrificial
walk. He told them in no uncertain terms that it involved a
"cross", leaving father and mother behind, even possible death -
but you will gain eternal life in the process. Talk about a
"damaging admission.
4. Place a limit on your offer to motivate procrastinators.
This is a very important element of the "call to action" section
of any sales letter. Humans are naturally procrastinators. We
always put off what should be done now for a 'later' that never
arrives. That is why the copywriter must show that supplies are
limited or the special offer is for a 'limited time only'.
In many 'call to action' sections of the Bible we see the same
warning to procrastinators. "Today if you hear my voice do not
harden your heart .." (Hebrews 3:7). In the story of the great
flood procrastinators were found outside the ark. Jesus told the
story of the covetous farmer who built bigger barns to store his
grains not knowing that death would come knocking on his door
that very night.
Jesus never sent one of his listeners to go away and think about
it. Today ... now, was the only time that anyone had. His
message was "ACT NOW!"
5. Research your potential customers to know their problems and
needs.
Dan Kennedy refers to this as "getting into the customer".
Getting into the head and experiences of the customer -walk in
his moccasins.
The whole Christmas story is about Jesus getting into the skin -
literally - of the customer. The writer of Hebrews says that
Jesus is touched by our feelings and infirmities. He became like
one of us so that He may understand "the customer" better. That
is why he could speak to the needs of the human heart with such
authority because he knows what is in man.
I've just briefly looked at 5 copywriting principles but this
applies across the board. Whether you accept the Bible as just
another book or as inspired writings, there is no denying that
the principles are there.
I would love to hear from the reader if he or she would like to
challenge me on finding a useful copywriting principle that's
not in the Bible.
About the author:
Ray L. Edwards is a master copywriter, published author and
Internet Marketing Consultant. You may find more of his
inspiring articles by visiting his website. More Copywriting
Articles
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