Tuesday, February 2, 2016
En Route to Infusionsoft HQ, Chandler, AZ
At 30,000 feet all I see is a white blanket of clouds and blue sky above.
I’m not even thinking about the aircraft aiding my escape from a snowy, frigid Denver airport.
All I know is, I’m getting a few tasks knocked out on my way to write for the February 2016 Infusionsoft Implementation Accelerator.
I’m not thinking about ailerons, thrust, cabin pressure, wind speed, air lanes, radar…
Heck, I’m just mulling over whether I should make like a monkey and grab at the peanuts the flight attendant is tossing us…
Rosser Reeves, in his book Reality in Advertising, says something to the effect that…
Good sales copy has more in common with a jet plane than a Picasso.
And I say, amen brother.
A LOT goes into writing copy that sells.
Yet if it’s really effective, the copy itself is almost invisible to its target prospect… You hardly notice it. You’re just thinking about your hunger, or hurt or secret desire, and how maybe you’ve come to the right place…
Why Great Sales Copy is Like a Jet Plane
Like Rosser says, I think of good sales copy like a jet plane – a complex piece of precisely engineered “equipment”.
Anyone can create it, but it does take knowledge of the craft, practice and, above all else, a keen awareness of your market… And, if you really want to crack the code, the deepest desires and pain points your ideal prospect is going through and wants to do something about.
So, I pull out the Southwest magazine from the seat back in front of me. The second page I land on is a fold out.
There’s a full size picture of a fortune cookie, broken open, revealing a message inside with a couple of smiley faces:
“You don’t get what you deserve. You get what you negotiate.”
On the lower left, the words, “karrass, fortune without luck”
Intrigued?
If you want more out of your business and personal life, maybe so.
Hmm… Were you thinking of the words and fortune cookie, or reflecting on how your life could be different, better in some way?
A pretty good headline for a course on negotiating, don’t you think?
I’ve seen it before, and based on how long ago that was, I suspect they’ve been running that four page spread for months, maybe years, so chances are, something’s working for them.
Did the writer come up with that hook overnight?
I doubt it.
Was it all about product? Or more about triggering emotions already present within the reader, pertaining to their product?
You can vastly improve sales when you set aside concern with product, and instead focus first on your prospect.
It’s a blind spot we all suffer from.
And it’s why marketers find copy critiques helpful.
That high altitude perspective can make all the difference between a campaign that flies, and one that never gets off the ground.
