OH MY GOD. MY COPY DIDN’T CONVERT… NOW WHAT?!?!
Hey, Posse! What’s up? It’s Alex.
Welcome back with another tutorial where I teach you everything I know about copywriting, marketing, and sales strategies that WORK.
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Now it goes without saying that copywriting – or really, any marketing role – can be a high-stress job.
I mean think about it…
Businesses hire YOU to make THEM money.
They’re literally banking on you with the success of their business…
Hiring you – and trusting you – to write words that don’t just sound good, but also bring in serious sales and mad conversions.
So what happens when you write a sales page, email sequence, or Facebook ads for a client and…
Conversions are LOW?
Well, first of all – don’t panic! This happens to all of us from time to time.
I know it can feel like the end of the world when you write something you think is great and it just doesn’t perform well.
But listen…
No one can get it right ALL the time.
Sometimes you’ll write a winning sales page that brings in record-breaking conversion…
And other times you might write something that falls flat.
When the latter happens, it’s important that you DON’T panic and ditch your client.
Instead – view the situation for what it is…
A LEARNING OPPORTUNITY. An opportunity to grow and get better at what you do!
Every single time I’ve written something that didn’t convert well (yes, it has happened to me too – multiple times even!)…
I always use the “failure” as a sort of research project…
“Hmmm… well that really didn’t work. Interesting! I wonder why?”
Then I ALWAYS go through what I’ve written with fine-tooth comb, looking for 9 very important things…
- How was the headline?
- Is there an S-hook?
- Do I CLEARLY address the core pain/problem?
- Is the offer stated?
- Did I talk about the benefits?
- Is there social proof?
- Where is the scarcity?
- Does it feel risk-free?
- Is there a call to action included?
These 9-component are part of what I like to call my HOT OFFER CHECKLIST. And I’ll have a free copy of it waiting for you at the end of this blog.
Now, what’s interesting about ANY offer that fails to convert is – they are almost ALWAYS missing one or more of these core components.
But more specifically…
They are almost always failing to do ONE of these things correctly… I’ll get to that ONE THING in a minute.
But first, let’s quickly run through all 9 components of the checklist – because they are ALL necessary if you want to maximize conversions…
#1 – The Headline
Headlines are strategically written, attention-grabbing statements with the sole purpose of getting a viewer to engage with you.
In the case of writing sales copy, the goal of the headline is to pique your prospect’s curiosity enough to get them to continue reading or listening.
If your headline isn’t strong enough, then you won’t have very many people interested enough to keep reading.
#2 – The S-Hook
In copywriting, a hook is any idea that hooks the viewer’s interest.
You should open a loop with your headline, and then continue on with the hook concept as you begin your sales message.
It should provoke an emotion and help the reader identify with you.
This is when your prospect self-selects. It’s when they decide if you’re actually talking to THEM!
Now, I call it an S-Hook is because this is most easily done with one of 3 types of hooks: Story, Science or Supposition.
The beginning section of your sales message needs to include at least one of these things.
#3 – The Problem
Put quite simply, you MUST address the pain or problem the viewer is feeling.
You want them to know that you understand what they’re going through, that they are not alone and that you’re here to help.
#4 – The Offer
This is where you present your solution to said problem.
The #1 most important thing to remember about your offer is that the value should always be GREATER than the price!
Now, obviously, in the case of a landing page that simply asks for an email opt-in, the price is zero. However, there is still a cost associated with giving an email address – your prospect will always ask, “Is it worth it?”
And you MUST offer value to overcome this perceived cost.
#5 – The Bennies
Where the solution is WHAT you’re offering, the benefit is WHY someone should buy it.
This part of your sales copy should list all the benefits one can expect to receive when purchasing from you (or opting in with their email address).
#6 – Social Proof
Social proof allays your prospects’ fears, creates massive trust and builds authority.
In any way you can, you want to show how many other people have benefited from your product or service. This can be done through showcasing reviews, testimonials, social media comments or follower size.
And this goes without saying, but USE ONLY REAL SOCIAL PROOF.
#7 – Scarcity
In marketing, scarcity is the principle of making products or services seem limited in some way, and therefore harder to obtain.
Scarcity gives your prospect a reason to buy NOW. In order to have a compelling and effective offer, you should absolutely be including scarcity in your sales messaging.
When done right, it should never seem hypey or pushy.
#8 – Risk Reversal
Hopefully by this part of your sales offer you’ve built up so much value and created enough trust that all you need to do here is share all the stuff that just makes for good business – your guarantee, payment terms, and purchase expectations.
These should be written in very concise and clear terms to make it as easy as possible for your prospect to get off that fence.
# 9 – CTA
And finally… obviously you need to tell your prospects what you want them to do!
On your sales or opt-in pages, include copy that tells people exactly what to do next. For example… “Click the button below now to get instant access.”
The most important rule of copywriting is to have only ONE CLEAR AND CONCISE call to action. You should only be asking your prospect to do one thing—and that’s to sign up or buy.
Not share, comment, watch, like, sign up AND buy.
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Now, ALL of these components are necessary for maximizing your conversions and I find that most people tend to include most of these elements.
But I also see that a lot of people get ONE of these components very, very, very wrong…
And in most cases, THAT’S the thing that’s killing their conversions.
Can you guess which one it is?
#3 — THE PROBLEM.
One of the most important aspects of successful sales is being able to REALLY put yourself in the shoes of your customers and REALLY get to the core of their pains, problems, and current feelings…
Current feelings being the key words here!
You want to put into words the ripple effect of emotions and pains that their problem is really causing.
It means that you’re putting yourself in their shoes and REALLY getting to the core of how these “big” problems are affecting their daily lives…
This means you don’t just say “having trouble sleeping” – but instead you dig deeper into how this might be affecting their life.
So maybe you might focus on…
- The double shot of espresso they rely on every morning even though it leaves them feeling anxious and foggy-headed…
- The disappointment in their children’s eyes when they reply that they’re “too tired” to play with them tonight…
- The number of close calls they’ve had while embarking on that monotonous commute from work to home…
- The physical and mental health problems that have suddenly appeared thanks to sleep deprivation…
Basically – you want them to know that you understand what they’re really going through and experiencing on a daily basis, that they are not alone and that you’re here to help them.
When you’re able to relate to your customer’s REAL and ACTUAL problems on such a deep level…
You’ll almost always be able to sell them your product (assuming you’re selling a good product that actually works and helps people…)
So the next time you write something that doesn’t convert…
- DON’T PANIC.
- Review the Hot Offer Checklist.
- Focus on the REAL problems they’re facing.
I hope this was helpful! Don’t forget to snag your free copy of my Hot Offer Checklist before you go.
And until next time, I’m Alex. Ciao for now!
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