You can write great copy.

You can improve response rates.

You can build relationships with clients.

All you must do is stop talking about yourself, whether it’s in what you email, on your website or spread over every page of a direct mail piece.

Great copy is conversational—a shared story—between you and client, or you and prospect. Marketing is your chance to tell your client, “It’s all about you!”

Find out how by watching this “You Orientation” video (about one minute).

Want me to critique your piece…free? Send it to craig@cdmginc.com.

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How you start your letter, your brochure, your website or, for that matter, any other direct response piece could mean the difference between success and failure.

Consider what I call the “three-paragraph rule.” This direct marketing copywriting rule states simply that with most sales pieces, you can cut out the first three paragraphs and start with the fourth.

Yes, this rule is a bit arbitrary, but it tends to prove true when reviewing drafts from companies or copywriters. The copywriter will warm up to the subject, but the critical lead paragraph is buried further down in the fourth or fifth paragraph.

A great sales piece will get to the point right away.

Your objective is to demand and attract the interest of the reader. It is not to set the groundwork for understanding the piece. Rather, it’s to generate immediate interest in the theme that you have chosen.

Also, the beginning paragraph should be in the first person. The fastest way to destroy a letter or other direct response piece is to talk in the third person or have a lot of “we’s” in the copy. You WILL cripple your response if you start your sales message with the word “we.”

Instead, when you begin a letter with the word “you,” it immediately involves the reader in the copy. A “you”-oriented letter speaks directly to the needs of the prospect.

No dogmatic formula exists for writing a lead-in paragraph, but there is a similarity in style from the industry’s great copywriters. Your letters will produce better responses if you follow, rather than break, these rules.

To learn more or even have me evaluate your opening paragraph, simply contact me today at craig@cdmginc.com.

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In recent issues, we’ve been talking about the power of video to supercharge your response. But video alone is not enough.

The truth is nobody really wants to see another video. They can already go look at 120 million of them on YouTube right now.

No, the key to getting people to view your video is using the right words to lead them there.

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Copy tip · copywriting · Direct Marketing · video

If you are like many readers, you haven’t read every word of this email. Instead you scanned it until something interesting caught your eye.

It works the same way for prospects reading your website. They don’t read your web pages word by word. They scan them and focus on individual words, phrases or sentences.

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Copy tip · copywriters · copywriting · Direct Marketing · primacy · saliency

Your goal as a copywriter is to convince prospects that your product or service is right for them. You must leave no room for them to think, “I understand what this is…but do I really need to have this now?”

In other words, your copy must answer the burning question “What’s in it for me?”

A simple way to qualify your audience is to ask the question “Who relies on [Product Name]?” or “Who needs [Product Name]?” Then show photos of people in your target audience and list how certain groups benefit from what you’re selling.

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Copy tip · copywriting · Direct Marketing

A common, tried-and-true copywriting tactic is to tease your reader with a big promise and then show him the proof. But be wary of promising too much.

Sometimes copy that is too bold, confident or outlandish casts doubt on your credibility—and can cause readers to disregard your message because it seems too good to be true.

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copywriters · copywriting

Pull out the latest copy you’ve written. Have you ever stopped to count the number of times you used the word “that”? Believe me, the total will amaze you!

Here’s the reason: “that” is one of the most overused and generally unnecessary words in copywriting!

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copywriters · copywriting

With the skyrocketing number of spam messages sent per day, spam filters have really had to step up their game. But that’s bad news for marketers like you.

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Direct Marketing · Internet · spam triggers · Web strategy

I just reviewed a video of a large, powerful group of consumers urging viewers to boycott companies that take the politically correct tact by simply not saying Merry Christmas in their catalogs and mailers and on their websites.

It is important as marketers that you sound authentic and not “politically correct.” If you have Christmas decorations to sell in your catalog, don’t call them “peace ornaments” or “sparkle trees” or “personalized velvet stockings.” You end up sounding odd and political when you are not trying to be.

And you’ll be listed in the boycott.

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copywriting · Direct Marketing · politically correct

Looking for a checklist to ensure your copy is its level best? Try looking to the 5 U’s. These are 5 key elements your copy must have to get the job done.

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copywriting · Direct Marketing · Direct Response