Getting really good at something means staying rooted in the fundamentals.
When you listen to top-tier copywriters, sometimes they’ll talk about the nuances of their craft — little techniques that can boost results. Or you might hear them tell about a time when they completely reimagined how to reach their audience, coming up with a new format like a magalog or a Video Sales Letter.
But listen long enough, and they will always eventually speak about the fundamentals.
If you want to be a really good writer, pay attention to what’s new and changing, to the tips and tricks other writers are trying… but spend most of your time working on the basics.
And plan to keep doing that for as long as you’re on this career path.
No matter what you’re writing, you’ll always to need to know your audience… craft solid headlines… write copy that’s easy to read… and put together a strong offer and a clear call-to-action.
Those are the things to study and practice the most.
To that end, here are a few tips to make revisiting the fundamentals enjoyable…
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Make a Subject Line Tournament
Sometime in the upcoming week, take a few minutes during the day, and just look at the email subject lines in your promotion tab (assuming you use Gmail). Have a little subject line tournament. Match up the first pair and choose which one wins your attention better. Then look at the next two and pick a winner. And the two after that. And the two after that. Then match up your winners to pick two semi-finalists. Finally, pick the top winner and think for a minute why that subject line beat the others out.
Doing this will give you loads of inspiration for your own subject lines and keep you attuned to what makes a subject or headline work.
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Print It Out, Mark It Up
On occasion, print out an email promotion, a landing page, or even a full-blown sales page. Grab two different colored pens — one red and one blue. Go through the piece and use the red pen to find ways to make it stronger. Use the blue pen to circle things you think work really well and jot down your notes about why.
Doing this will get you in the habit of reviewing copy analytically… and that’s something you can apply to your own work to make it stronger.
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Punch Up the Offer
Also, once a week or so, pick a promotional email or a social media ad, click through to the sales page, and specifically study the offer. What all is included? How did the writer convey the value? And if it were up to you, what would you change about the offer to make it even more enticing?
When you routinely engage with the fundamentals of copywriting, you’ll get better and better at what you do, and that will serve you on every single project… talk about a Return on Investment!
What’s Happening on Digital Copywriter
Quarter 2 Challenge: As a writer, you offer services to your clients. And often, you customize what you’re offering based on their needs. Nothing wrong with that. But having a productized service among your offerings can give you several advantages. See why this is a smart thing to have for your business and try your hand at putting one together in our Quarter 2 Challenge. Now open!
Practice Assignment: Blog posts… articles… content… editorial copy… Whatever you want to call it, content marketing — and all the informative, inspiring, educational copy that goes with it — is a centerpiece for many companies’ online marketing efforts. And that makes it a great project for you to master. You can start honing your skills this month by participating in our “Write a Blog Post” Practice Assignment. Find the details here.
June 26: To further help you work on your blog-writing skills, join us for a mini-workshop. During this live event, I’ll lead you through the steps of writing a blog post… from choosing your framing to crafting your headline to ensuring a good flow and pace… and more. We’ll have plenty of opportunity for interaction during this event, so be ready to share samples and snippets of your writing for feedback from the group. Check it out.
In Case You Missed It
Life happens. And sometimes it happens urgently. If you find yourself facing a sudden personal emergency, it can be extra stressful when you’re also trying to keep your business running smoothly. Jennifer Ayling, Digital Copywriter’s Reality Blogger, faced just such a situation recently, and shares what she learned about getting through difficult circumstances with your sanity intact.
Stories are powerful. They catch attention. Even better, they hold attention. But they can also be difficult to write… especially when you’re trying to integrate them into a sales message. Fortunately, Michele Peterson has put together some guidance to help you make better use of stories in your email marketing. Give her newest Email Marketing column a read.
LinkedIn is THE place for creative freelancers to network, find leads, and stay top of mind with potential clients. But it’s also social media. Which means it’s designed to be addictive and keep you scrolling on the platform as long as possible. If you have a hard time enjoying LinkedIn because of that, you’ll find some tips in Bonnie Fanning’s latest Social Media column to help you curate your feed so you get more of what you want — and less of what you don’t.
3 Things You Might Enjoy…
Constant Contact shares tips for writing stronger headlines — the kind that get clicked on and shared.
If you haven’t crafted an offer before, you’ll find some good ideas here about how to approach the process.
And the five tips here make for an easy checklist for writing easy-to-read copy.
That’s all for now!
