Copy That Sells (By Design)
May 23, 2023The good news is that nobody is born knowing how to sell.
What you may not know about me is that I worked a sales job, traveling Australia, for a company that fundraised for Green Peace, Amnesty International, & WSPA. Organizations, and causes, I am wildly passionate about!
A month in I left a city 2 days early crying because I was so passionate about what I was selling yet I couldn’t sell to save my fucking life.
Since then you name it, I tried selling it, even getting fired from jobs for being crap at sales.
What I realized along my journey is this:
- It is about selling something people WANT & NEED (selling a painkiller not a vitamin).
- Selling is the easy part, it is getting in front of the right QUALIFIED people that is part that requires skill.
- Good copy connects with you on an emotional level, not necessarily logical (people buy with emotions & justify with logic).
- Passion isn’t enough. Understanding how to get your message out is critical.
- Positioning based on Human Design & Gene Keys is critical. I was trying to ride the 2nd line “passion” wave for sales, which did not work.
A lot of people in the online space have been taught that copywriting is simply putting thoughts on to paper & praying that works. While it mayyyy work for those that know you well & have built up significant intimacy with you (maybe in other containers you are in) it will not work with strangers or in building authority. This is also where people get stuck in the pay to play game. They have to pay to convert because it isn’t the copy that converts, it is people knowing them that does. This creates a glass ceiling fast as you burn through warm leads and/ or have to continually sell new things to the same people (enter, hamster wheel).
Copywriting is about structure & strategy.
Now, I have never & likely will never actually write the entirety of someones copy, just like I will not (personally) hire someone to do mine in its entirety. I believe that no one can sell your shit like you can & no one will write better copy about YOUR offers (after practice) than you can.
Does it take time to learn it? Yes. I started learning it over 10 years ago, when I worked with someone to learn how to write for my personal training studio. I have taken it more seriously in the last 5 years (I am kind of a copy nerd). It will be work, just like anything else that is worth it, yet when you learn how to speak through your openness & apply basic strategy it is SO worth it!
So, what is sales copy & how is it different than the thoughts that stream through your head or what you write in your journal?
Sales copywriting is anything intended to move a qualified reader, viewer, or listener to take a specific action.
And as Ra says “we sell through the not self” YET ( and this is not a direct quote) people like us help transform peoples lives by moving them OUT of the not self. This isn’t something to feel guilt over or be ashamed of.
From my experience the BEST sales copy happens when people don’t realize they are doing it because the topic is so interesting to them. This is where your programs will begin selling like hot cakes! From a copywriting perspective we then just go in & add some glitter & gold to your message so that it converts.
How?
Well, copy that sells is not about magically making people do what they wouldn’t have ordinarily done. The truth is people love to buy shit, and if they don’t buy from you they will buy from someone else.
Like the old quote says (Not my own & unknown who originally said it): People love to buy, they hate to be sold.
I want you to write these down:
People will buy when they feel like something will make them feel better or help them get what they want because it uses familiar, comfortable, words that address their fears & desires.
Copy should feel like speaking to a friend, not trying to sell.
This works even better when we sell through our openness & write copy based on the wisdom we gained through “going to school through our openness” while positioning ourselves based on the LINE of our Brand & Life’s Work Gene Keys.
Copywriting also comes down to intention.
What do you want someone to do as a result of reading, watching, or listening to what you created? I like to work backwards from the ultimate goal with clients, which is typically an upcoming launch in the next 6 weeks- 3 months.
Sales copy therefore isn’t just a sales page.
It can be a tweet, article, podcast, post, coloured background on FB, any of it! It is about being in front of the targeted, qualified, audience (which also requires knowing where they are!).
Put value in front of them.
Give them security (1st line brand), show your passion (2nd line Brand), make them laugh (3rd line Brand), show your heart through genuine honesty & openness (4th line brand), give them practical solutions (5th line brand), & share your vision (6th line brand).
Copywriting doesn’t have to be hard, but it does take practice to nail. This is why I created You Are The Brand; Copy That Sells (By Design) my upcoming June workshop for only $55!
Inside the Effective Copywriting Through Your Openness workshop I am going to teach you 5 copywriting strategies leveraging both tried & true industry "secrets" AND your Human Design/ Gene Keys that will help you write genuine content that doesn't FEEL salsey (because it isn't) AND converts!
How, you ask?
My copywriting techniques are heart-centered, rooted in creating genuine connection with others, & are based in Human Design. I can promise you that you will leave this workshop feeling equipped with what you need to begin nailing your copywriting to convert the dreamy clients that GET RESULTS!
The truth is: I want it to be easy for you because people like us?
We got shit to do that doesn't include staring at our phones wondering what to post.
If you desire for copy to be easier, I invite you into this workshop.
ABE