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The Power of Words

David Denis — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 12:00:42 +0000

So, do you still think quality copy is not worth paying for?

Tip of the hat to Purplefeather Online Marketing

Standing out in the marketplace

David Denis — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 03:14:58 +0000

It is axiomatic — everyone knows that every business must have a website. The trends are clear that more and more people are going to the web to engage in the market place. If you want customers to find you, if you want to effectively call out to them and be heard, you must begin with a website. If you don’t understand this, see my post on Google’s e-book Zero Moment of Truth.

I say “begin with a website” because that is only the start. There are search engine optimization tactics and traffic driving strategies. There are inbound marketing tools and email list building. All of these methods are simply ways to attract potential customers and then engage them.

It’s like a farmer’s market. Exciting displays of the freshest produce, colorfully spilling over the crates stops you from wandering by. It looks so good! You are overcome by the desire to squeeze and sniff the fruit, to fondle and thump the cantaloup. Then you ask the farmer “how much…?”

That display is your website. The keywords help them see you. Your content is the bushels of beautiful fruit that entice potential buyers to stop their mad clickfest and actually learn about the value that your company offers. The single common key to making this whole thing work is CONTENT. People come to your website for the useful and clear information – just like shoppers stop by your stall for the freshest fruit and vegetables.

Your content could be video, audio or photos. But the type of content that will do the bulk of the heavy lifting is your writing. The copy. The text. The words.

Your visitors will quickly size up your website and make a decision about whether it offers them the information they seek or not. If your content is clear, compelling and accessible, there is a good chance they may spend a few minutes listening to what you have to say.They will watch your video, look at your photos. They will spend the bulk of their attention on your text. If they like what they read, then you have an opportunity to continue to engage their attention. This is where you offer twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn. This is where you provide free articles in exchange for their email. This is where they may even pick up the phone and call you. Perhaps they will even act to place an order there and then.

It all starts with the usefulness and clarity of your content.

It ends there too, because it’s the rest of the content that continues to move them down the buying path.

Invest in quality content. Spend good money for the best writing possible — writing that informs, excites and most of all, writing that sells.

Read. Feel. Act

David Denis — Tue, 25 Jan 2011 17:17:14 +0000

What causes people to shell out good money to buy something, even something expensive?

It’s not necessarily because it makes sense — although that is important.

The point of decision (buying) is motivated more by emotion than logic. If not skillfully targeted at the right kind of emotion, most appeals will fail to convert into action.

So if you rely solely on overwhelming logic to close sales, you may find that your revenue is not keeping up with your vision. If you keep waiting for people to see the light of your unassailable logic, you will still be waiting long after the cold dead corpse of your business has been picked clean by the buzzards of the auction. What you need to do is light the fire.

Dan Heath of FastCompany explains that emotion, not logic, facts or statistics, is the key to moving people to change. He uses examples of helping people change direction and adopt new habits such as healthy eating or saving money. Imagine, on the other hand, what this means applied to selling YOUR product or service.

Simply put, you cannot merely list features or facts and expect people to make the connections. You must connect those facts to the strong emotions that motivate people to take action. The formula is simple: First people see what they want. Then they feel the need. Then they change.

Applied to writing copy, that formula can be translated as Read-Feel-Act.

That’s the signature quality of truly effective copy.

If your copy needs to create action, rather than simply inform, you must write to touch the heart as well as provide necessary information. One of my mentors put it this way, “People buy (act) based on emotion, and then they justify their action with logic and facts.” Humans act because they want something (love) or wish to avoid something (fear). If your writing taps into either of those primal emotions, you have a much better chance of getting the result you want.

So when it comes to creating your marketing materials or your website, find a copy writer that understands how to really sell you, your company and your products. The best writers get inside the head of the prospect and write copy that throws gasoline on their personal emotional woodpile and tosses on the match. It’s touching that emotional flashpoint that gets things jumping when it comes to your prospects deciding to buy.

That’s why buzzards hate bonfires.

Write for the Occasion – Copy Writing that Fits

David Denis — Wed, 24 Nov 2010 01:09:35 +0000

A friend in his early 20’s was recently telling me his plans for the evening, which included attending an awards dinner for his girlfriend’s lacrosse team. The question on the table was “what to wear?” This dinner was to be an event – but apparently not too much of an event. So what kind of clothing was appropriate?

A Suit? If a suit, then tie or no tie? How about just a shirt and nice pants? Thankfully, sneakers, jeans and shorts were clearly a no go. Apparently a sense of propriety does still survive somewhere in the 21st century.

Choosing the right Outfit

If I had been in his place, I probably would have worn a sport jacket with a tie, minimum. It was an awards dinner, for goodness sake. A celebratory event. An event where you dress to honor those being awarded.

But I am an old man of 47. I generally favor dressing a little more up than down. I still wear a suit and tie to church even though it is considered odd by the majority of the sandal-footed Hawaiian shirt crowd that seems to dominate certain types of churches these days. But my tendency toward dressing better and not worse isn’t about showing off. It’s about respect.

Dressing properly is very much about respect for other people (the ones who have to look at you). A slovenly casual appearance, while fine for many things, is inappropriate for many public occasions. It displays a lack of respect for the moment or for the people, or for both.

Nevertheless, the rule for our current culture seems to be “How bad can I dress and not actually be mistaken for a homeless person? ”

I suggest that a better standard is “how can I dress to raise the level of the event just a bit without going so far that it seems that I am merely trying to attract attention?”

Tailoring your Copy

I look at writing in a similar way. I’m not a huge fan of the “write for the 4^th Grade Level” approach to writing. On the other hand, I have little patience for those who attempt to write everything on a post-doctorate level. Neither am I a stickler for correct grammar. I appreciate the skillfully bent rule — as long as it actually improves the message rather than detracting or distracting from it.

So what is the guide for writing? How can one decide on the best tone and style when writing? It’s just like dressing. One should write for the occasion.

If you are selling, write in a manner that will sell. If you are teaching, write in a manner that will teach. If you are telling a story, write in the way that best tells the story.

If your audience is 4^th graders, by all means, write on a 4^th Grade level (although I think stretching up to a 5^th grade level wouldn’t hurt anything). Whether your audience is gray haired ladies, long haired PhDs, the crew cut or the carefully coiffed, write in whatever style is right for the audience.

Good writing is neither about being showy, nor about dumbing down. By writing at the appropriate level and tone you treat your audience with respect. Every person and group is different. To treat them all to the same lowest common denominator will ultimately do your message more harm than good. So take the time to do the alterations your specific audience requires, and if you don’t know your audience well enough, you had better get out your measuring tape and figure it out.

Good content makes sure all the pieces coordinate perfectly. Good content lets it out where it’s too tight, and takes it in where it sags. Most of all, good content suits the occasion. Write content that really fits, and just like when you dress right, you will always come out looking great.

Copy Writing and Monkey Business

David Denis — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 13:22:12 +0000

Perhaps you have heard of the Infinite Monkey Theorem.

It goes like this. If a monkey were to type for an infinite amount of time, eventually he would produce Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

The truth of the theory can be mathematically demonstrated. The key concept here, of course being “eventually.” If that monkey could keep going long enough, “eventually” he would strike the correct keys in the correct order to produce Hamlet. Presumably, not only hamlet, but virtually every other work of fiction and non-fiction ever written, or that ever will be written.

Including the copy for your website. Or your blog post. Or your status update. Or your brochure, fund raising letter, postcard or sales letter.

The Monkey with Infinite Time could do it all.

So, do you have one of those? I didn’t think so. That leaves the responsibility for getting the writing done up to you.

Is Writing it Yourself the Highest ROI?

You, however, do not have the luxury of infinite anything. You enjoy the use of a rather limited slice of the time-space continuum, and you have much to accomplish within that span. The most important skill that you can develop as a business person is the capacity to identify and focus on the highest payoff activities. For many of you, that absolutely does NOT mean writing copy.

Understand what I am saying. You may be good at lots of things, but nobody is good at EVERYTHING. You have certain skills. Only when you leverage your best skills to the maximum degree can you obtain the greatest payoff for your effort. These skills may involve selling, or managing, or calculating, or planning. Whatever those skills are, those are the activities that you should focus on.

You should write for your marketing program ONLY if by writing it yourself you will receive the greatest possible payback. Chances are, if you are in position to make decisions about such things, you are much better off getting someone else to do the writing. You should focus on making good decisions. It’s simply a matter of getting the best return on the investment of your limited time.

The same calculation is true for your staff. Before you hand the writing off to them, be sure that writing is the highest value activity for their skills and talents. If not, you should hire it out to someone who will give you the biggest bang for your buck. Make ROI a key factor in your decision making.

Freelance writers are not monkeys. Find a good dependable writer who will deliver well within the agreed upon deadline. That will save you time, save you money and remove much of the stress that comes from worrying about your project. You focus on what you do best, and let the writer focus on what he does best.

We haven’t even mentioned that well-crafted content actually gets better results.

Stop dreaming about the monkey. You really don’t have time for that.

Copywriting Tip: Why Bad Writing happens to Good People

David Denis — Mon, 10 May 2010 16:00:08 +0000

It’s called a POINT for a reason — it’s not dull.

Most people, probably you in fact, are scared by hard concrete words. We think that we must use safe language. Language with the teeth and claws pulled out. Language that is soft, squishy and fuzzy. We think sounding obtuse makes us sound smarter.

The urge to de-fang strong direct sentences is a powerful one. The fear of offending someone, or excluding something makes us queasy. We are afraid to write with words that poke at, or strike, or (God Forbid) even explode upon the reader’s consciousness.

Listen to what Dan Heath from Fast Company says about this, as applied to the writing of Mission Statements.

This is not just about your mission statement. It’s about your website. It’s about your brochures, tear sheets, email campaigns and print ads. It’s about any message you put out there to promote your business that sucks because you were too scared to say it outright and let it go at that.

Stop trying to sound like a PhD in Blabology (unless of course you actually are a PhD in Blabology). Start writing and talking like a real flesh and blood human being with a beating heart and a brilliantly electric brain. Your readers will respond with cheers and hoots and hollers and probably more than one standing O. Why? Because they like reading things that don’t sound like they were penned by a moron.

Got it? Good. Now go do it. I dare you.

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To learn more, or request a quote visit http://www.rocksolidwriting.com/freelance-writer-quote/

Copywriting Tip: Exploit the Curiosity Gap

David Denis — Fri, 07 May 2010 15:09:19 +0000

What’s Your Copy Writing Secret Weapon?

The “Curiosity Gap” is the difference between what you know and what you want to know. When used properly, there is no defense. Your readers will be unable to resist the lure and will come to your website over and over again to satisfy the itch of their curiosity.

It’s not just about headlines, as in the example presented here by Dan Heath of Fast Company. It’s about providing value that your clients and prospects really want. If you regularly post information that is useful, helpful or revealing, people will keep coming back just to see what you are going to post next. The Curiosity Gap will draw them in.

It’s not all about keywords and search engines. It’s also about content and visitors.

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David is a freelance writer for hire offering article writing, sales letters, training manuals, speech writing, seo content, sales writing, blog articles, copywriting service, sales scripts and business name ideas.
To learn more, or request a quote visit http://www.rocksolidwriting.com/freelance-writer-quote/

Content is Exercise – Blog Post

David Denis — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 00:38:49 +0000

In a recent post on her Fast Company Blog, Wendy Marx came up with a great twist on an old saying.

The saying goes that Content is King. And these days that’s becoming more and more true. I can see it as someone who works to make a living providing content. Many of my clients are small to medium businesses — tile cleaners, pallet makers, management consultants, shipping and fulfillment specialists, roofers, pest control technicians and so on. Their common thread is they all aim to bring in new customers using internet marketing tools like websites, blogs, and email. Content.

These aren’t big companies with enormous budgets. Nor are they on the cutting edge of business practices. They are the kind of bread and butter businesses that form the DNA of our economy. Individually, they may not need the volume of content of the multinational corporation, but they certainly need content and need it on an ongoing basis. It’s a matter of both quality and quantity — and frequency. Your successful content strategy must

Offer information that actually helps your prospects and customers
Create enough content to be actually useful
Provide new content regularly to maintain the interest and attention of readers.

That’s why Wendy Marx is spot on when she says Content is Exercise. Read her blog post to see what she means and a list of important questions you should be asking about your content strategy.

Google Likes Websites with Quality Content

David Denis — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 01:40:05 +0000

I talked yesterday with Neil Burtt, CEO of You Promote in Concord NH. Neil observed that the Google search algorithm seems to be shifting, so that quality content is more important than ever for creating high search engine rank results. It’s not all about the header, the title bar, and the meta tags. Google likes websites that give web users what they need, and it rewards those sites with higher search ranking that make them easy to find.

This is especially critical for small businesses that want their websites to pull in qualified prospects and create selling opportunities.

When your website contains strong compelling content that answers the searchers questions, everyone wins. In its Webmaster Guidelines, Google explains how it views content as part of the whole Search Engine Optimization recipe:

Create a useful, information-rich site, and write pages that clearly and accurately describe your content.

Make pages primarily for users, not for search engines. Don’t deceive your users or present different content to search engines than you display to users, which is commonly referred to as “cloaking.”

If you have plentiful, high-quality content that accurately describes what your business does, Google is more likely to place your business higher in the rankings. That means your prospects will find you more easily.

Once they find you, quality content becomes even more critical. It is a standard principle of selling that people buy BENEFITS, not features. If your website describes your product, but does not help people to quickly see the benefit of your product, you won’t get the return you seek from your web marketing investment. Good content should move your prospect to act, and that action should be contacting you.

If writing copy and content isn’t your thing, then get some help to get it done right. Don’t underestimate the power of well-crafted paragraphs for your business website. It need not be fancy, but it should drive customers to your door. What happens then is up to you.

Rock Solid Writing can provide your website with compelling, high quality content that will create more opportunities for your business. Go to the Request a Quote page to contact me about how I can help you get the most from your web investment.

Quality SEO content gets search engine results

David Denis — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 18:56:38 +0000

The good folks at Danconia Media services note some recent changes in they way Google handles local listings. This may have some powerful effects on the internet landscape, especially for smaller businesses that depend on trade from their immediate area. This may or may not be a bad thing, but as the Danconia blogger observes, “Obtaining organic search engine results will now be more important than ever.”

In the big picture, these changes mean that the results your business gets from organic search are going to become more and more important. When your prospects search for your business, what are you doing to show up high on the search results listings? Of course you must pay attention to your keyword research, meta tags, alt text, headings and all that. But none of that really works properly if you don’t have compelling content that is fresh, valuable to your prospects, and well written for web searching.

Writing is the key

Basically, its all about the content. Make sure your website contains useful, well-written information that will be a resource for your prospects and draw them back to your site repeatedly. What’s more, don’t just set it and forget it. Regularly post new content to keep your site fresh. Sure it takes time and effort, but better organic search results don’t happen by accident. They must be cultivated.

Note these comments from A Beginners Guide to SEO Best Practices:

Having good content is one of the most important things you can do for your page. Like I said earlier, content is the foundation for SEO, you need to have great content. Not only is it better for users if you have really good content, but search engines’ algorithms try to reward pages that have great content. If you have good content people will be more likely to link to you, causing search engines to see more value and authority in your page.

You must offer web copy that has appeal to both the human reader and the search engines. It’s not an either/or proposition. It’s really both/and. When you offer content that hits the sweet spot for both kinds of readers, you can really start to hit it out of the park in terms of search results.

Make it easy for your clients to find you. It’s a beautiful thing.