As a business owner, you are your own copywriter. You probably write all of your content, including marketing copy, articles, blog posts, and web copy. You might be a good writer, but there's always room for improvement. Telling your story to the right audience is an art. It takes confidence, skill, and knowledge of your reader's mindset. What you say and how you say it can influence the success of your business. Good writing means engaging readers with your story, reaching out to those who would otherwise not know about you, positioning yourself as the expert in your industry, and getting past the emotional barriers that make people reluctant to buy from you.
Whether you are writing a blog post or copy for email, each piece of content should be geared toward one stage of the journey. A lot of companies are guilty of writing blog posts that are meant to appeal to everyone at every stage of the buying process. This results in content that is overly general and doesn't compel anyone to take action. It is much better to write blog posts that target specific customer personas at specific stages of their journey. Let's look at 10 copywriting strategies that will help you improve your writing skills, boost your conversion rates, and ultimately increase sales.
- Product and service descriptions should include the benefits of what you are offering.
When it comes to writing product descriptions, the first thing you should do is be sure to include the benefits of what you are offering. Product descriptions that highlight benefits instead of features have been shown to improve conversion rates. For example, if you were selling a pair of shoes online, you would want to describe the shoes in terms of what the customer can get from wearing them, instead of how they look or how well they are made. You might say “Feels light on your feet so you can jog for miles without getting tired” instead of “Breathable mesh upper with padded overlays for comfort.” Including benefits in your product descriptions not only helps sell more products by making them sound more appealing, but it can also make your product descriptions easier to write.
- Connect with your audience through storytelling.
Whether you are writing a blog post or creating social content, you want to connect with your audience—and there is no better way to do that than through storytelling. Telling a story allows you to share individual pieces of information and make them relatable to how your customers live their lives. That's why so many business owners include personal anecdotes on their blogs and websites. You can also use storytelling to promote your brand—for example, by giving real-life examples of how your products have helped people. Your customers will feel like they are part of something bigger, and will be more likely to spread the word about your business.
- Make sure that you sound like an expert.
We have all been there: you are looking for a new product and you are feeling a little apprehensive about making such a large purchase online. You want to trust that the website you are buying from is legitimate, but how do you know? One of the best ways to boost your credibility in the eyes of your customers is to use statistics and numbers. If you're writing about your product or service, make sure that any data you use is legitimately sourced and then refer back to the source. If you are including statistics on your website, make sure they are up-to-date, factual, and relevant. Avoid grandiose claims without real numbers to back them up.
- Build a sense of urgency.
Creating a sense of urgency can help persuade customers to make a purchase. A sense of urgency creates the perception that this is a limited time offer and if the customer does not act quickly, they might miss out. For example, you can add a countdown timer to your sales page and emphasize that time is running out on the offer. Another way to create a sense of urgency is to explain your product’s limited availability. Not only will this make your potential customer feel like they need to act immediately, but also they may be more likely to buy because there are not many options left.
- Find a way to trigger an emotional response.
People are wired to make decisions first and justify them later, particularly when it comes to purchases. The same emotion that makes you fall in love with your favorite pair of jeans also can compel you to buy a car or a face cream. In fact, research shows that about 90 percent of our purchasing decisions are made on an emotional level, and the rest 10 percent is rationalization. This is why marketers spend so much time and money trying to get consumers emotionally involved with their products — from product placements in movies to Apple's "Think Different" campaign. The goal is to convince consumers that a product will enhance their lives, so they will feel compelled to buy it.
- Offer your customers exclusivity.
Brands that create an experience for their customers are more likely to succeed. They offer something special and unique. The idea is that by purchasing a product from them, you are part of this exclusive group. If you know who your customer is and what they want, it is a lot easier to tailor your business to them. This means you won't waste time and money on unprofitable marketing campaigns. Your messaging will also resonate more with what your customers want and expect from you. The more you know about them the less guesswork there is about what kind of products and services they will buy from you. The most successful brands in the world have a way of making their customers feel special. Think of Gucci, Apple, Disney, or Starbucks — they all have something unique and very different to offer.
- Always use honesty in your copywriting.
Writing is a powerful tool, and when you're writing copy for your website or blog, you need to always be careful of the words that you use. You should always use honesty in your copywriting so that people will trust you and want to do business with you. The best way to get started with honesty in your copywriting is to make sure that everything you say is true. This will help build up trust for your readers and make them more likely to purchase from you. If there is something about your product or service that you don't want to tell your customers, then do not write about it! There's no reason for you to trick or mislead someone just because they are on the Internet.
Copywriting is one of the most cost-effective marketing strategies for any business. If done properly, it is an extremely effective way to establish a strong brand image and connect with your target audience.