Conversion copywriting: Is it the missing ingredient in your business?

Welcome to the most important piece of content you will ever read. It’s not hype and you won’t regret spending five minutes learning about the magic this type of writing can bring to your business. What type? Conversion copywriting. It is the key to moving prospects from “this sounds interesting” to purchasing your product or service.

We all know the feeling of getting lost in a forest, only to be saved by someone who actually knows where they’re going. And so it is with winning conversion copywriting formulas – there’s no voodoo discovery here. Just tons of experience from experts that we can glean insights from to take our brands and sales to the next level.

Here’s how to do conversion copywriting well.

Justify your claims

Marketing rests upon making claims. You’ll be familiar with phrases like “removes 99% of the dirt” or “lasts twice as long as…”. Just like you, your potential buyer or client has seen it all before, inhabiting a universe rife with claims since they were born. They aren’t going to be so sure about yours, merely because you’re making it.

Copywriters are the ‘sniffers-out of claimable BS’. They’re on guard for anything that smells like a lie. Exactly like consumers are, the difference is that good copywriters will also be able to gauge whether they can justify a claim as well as spot unmade claims that can give your offering a knockout USP.

Think of your sales pitch as a string connecting blocks of trust. To close the sale you need to create long chains that are believable and hold up well when tested with casual statements. Any chink in the chain can lose and not gain you that business – and life changing-deal.

Make your expertise clear

In today’s world, people are looking for experts who can guide them through their purchases. Imagine having a medical scare and then going to the doctor only to find out he doesn’t know what they should do about it. What if they even asked you!

When shopping online or buying any new product or service, uncertainty abounds; meeting a knowledgeable seller prevents the mental red flag from going up. So it follows that to make the most of your copywriting, it pays to make your expertise crystal clear.

For myself, this looks like becoming “The copywriter who is a wise friend who can answer any question I throw at him”.

What’s it for you? Take 20 seconds to pause and think what it would be.

What’s your ‘underdog story’

There is a certain kind of electricity in the air when people come together to celebrate someone who has overcome incredible odds. There’s something so inspiring about these stories that make your heart swell with pride for them, even if you had a poor impression of them previously.

An excellent example is Richard McCann. When he was a child, he went through breathtakingly traumatic experiences that have had a profound impact on his life. Over time he used what he learned and became a world-class public speaker. It’s virtually impossible not to be moved by his story.

The human brain wants to feel good about stories. Your site visitors want you to tell their story by telling your story in an interesting way. One that makes them proud of who they are and what they’ve done and can do. They want to see the struggle so that they know you’re the right person to be dealing with. Something that’s harder has a higher perceived value.

So what’s your underdog story?

Delve into detail

This one is tricky as there is a caveat straight away. Share enough information without sharing too much, as you don’t want to bore the audience.

People don’t typically buy when they’ve only partially gone through the sales pitch. The most important job for marketers is to make sure that an interested buyer spends every extra second with us and finishes reading our copy, because if they’re not around for long, then there’s a superbly high chance this person won’t be purchasing anything.

It’s been found that inserting surprising details at strategic locations along a sales pitch is an effective way to keep your audience engaged and interested in what you have to say.

Visualisation rules the nation

The best way to maximize conversions is by using mental images in your sales pitch. We all crave attention and we’re always looking for ways not just to get what they want but also to feel good about themselves while doing so.

Journalists often cite numbers that seem random to the majority of us. For instance, last November, Global Citizen published an article raising the question of whether $6bn will solve world hunger. An effective way to visualise this would be to compare it with something: The lifetime earnings of 3,000 people could pay off $6 billion in 120 thousand years.

Visualise and you will monetise.

Personalise to hypnotise

You might be thinking that you are motivated by different things than I am, but when we visit the same product page on a retail website both of us see an almost identical description.

At a retail store, it’s different. You have your own personal sales associate guiding you through the selection process. They will not just be getting ideas of what product might work well for you, but also learning about you, making you feel special and solving the problem by figuring out your needs.

The more personalised the text, the better. Focusing on one specific person rather than “everybody” helps you connect with your audience and provides them with a reason to read further. Imagine if the reader could feel like your copy was written just for them?

It would skyrocket your conversion rates.

Rarification is requisite

We’re excited when we find something that we perceive others haven’t yet. We love feeling like pioneers. Even better, when others actually haven’t discovered it.

So while it’s not actually mandatory to include the rarity factor in your marketing and conversion copy. It can go a surprisingly long way to boost success and put you one step closer to your business goals.

Reminding visitors that they’re a little bit special for having stumbled across your piece of content or copy, will work wonders for engagement and conversions.

Answer objections, smash negativity

The brain is a funny thing. It throws up all sorts of thoughts to try and stop us from buying something, but as marketers, we needn’t worry because it’s just a protective mechanism we all have – completely natural. An excellent copywriter will help you to answer and diffuse any mental tensions arising from this process.

Through the correct anticipation and addressing of concerns, sales that would otherwise not happen, will be made.

Missing or subpar features are high on the list of objections with such suspicions likely to come from your audience, no matter how good what you’re selling is.

Confusing elements within your offering are another common problem. As is the cost of it.

But don’t let these things cost you too many sales. Check that there are no objections coming up for all of these four factors. Ensure that if you charge for shipping there is an explanation.

Conclusion

Copywriting when used to boost conversions can be a godsend or the quickest way to alienate prospects and even ‘betray’ your current audience. If it’s used correctly, it could help you achieve the success you’ve always desired. Working with an experienced copywriter is a surefire way not to get it wrong when conversion copywriting. It is simple, but also harder than it looks, especially if you’re someone who hates to write. If that’s you, simply get in touch with me today.

Have you any questions?

Here at Yorkshire Powerhouse, we’re happy to help as much as possible – is there anything else we can do to help you, do you have any further questions or can we help introduce you to an expert – please let us know: