Increasing Sales With Advanced Copywriting Tactics

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Thank you for stopping by Copy Tactics! My goal is to make this your number 1 stop for information on getting the most from your sales copy but I need your help…

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That said…

Enjoy and God bless,

Andy Havens

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Last I wrote, I was going to test the Virtual Sales Agent (VSA). I know it’s been a while, more on that in a moment…

What about the test? In the markets I tested them in (non-Internet Marketing) the VSA didn’t fare so well.  As a matter of fact I noticed no increase in optins or sales at all. So was the experiment a complete bust? Maybe not.

I’ll be the first to admit I’m not solid on this technology. Maybe I went about it the wrong way or came off too snide. It could be the markets I tested in were wrong for a VSA. It’s also possible I would have experienced better results with a better script. It’s hard to say. It wasn’t a total failure either…

One of the tactics I tried was admitting the VSA was indeed, well, virtual and then I tried to elicit some questions from the visitors. I did get some questions. I dropped that ball because I left out any way for respondents to receive an answer. So how would I fix this?
When I do this again,  I may try a couple of different ideas. First is to simply add a place to gather an email address so I can reply with an answer.  But what about  the increasing resistence to email marketing? Hence idea number two…

Tell readers up front I will select the best questions and post them on the blog.  I say the “best” for  a couple of reasons. First, this gives me an out from posting every question. Second, should I not get ANY quetions (yes, it can happen - even with substantial traffic) I can post an entry dealing with this with no loss of respectability.  This second option offers several advantages:

1. No worries about emails such as resistance, fears or spam complaints .
2. Makes the site “stickier” because vistors will return for answers.
3. Builds traffic as answers may draw more vistors
4. Builds content as questions are answered

Of course you can do all of this with a simple poll. There’s no real need to use a VSA to do this but it’s worth testing both to see which garners the most response. Especially since the VSA script is so cheap. Plus it works really well.

Now about that personal confession…

You may have noticed my blog entries have dwindled lately. It’s because my wife and I have been preparing to sell our house. Where are we moving too? We are not sure yet.

This may sound crazy but we believe God is moving us to get out of this mortgage. Whatever we do, our plans right now are to get out from under.

Unfortunatley, this is the worst possible time to sell. But we are trusting in God to provide. The nice thing about this is, even if we are wrong about what God wants, we can trust Him to help us out if we get in a big pickle.

As I said this may sound  crazy, but in my over 30 years as a  Christian, God has never, EVER failed  me.

I’m not even sure I’ll continue copywriting or marketing via the Internet. Bluntly put: everything is in God’s hands and I’m committed to doing His will no matter what.

I will keep you up to date on what’s going on.

God bless,

Andy

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Maybe you’ve seen this claim. Maybe not. At first glance the statment is impressive but there is also room for a great deal of skepticism. And there should be. Before I delve into this particular claim, how about we lay some groundwork for such claims in general?

One of the first questions I always ask is “40% of WHAT?”. It makes a difference. You’ve seen figures like this before in my posts.

For example: increasing from one sale a day per 100 visitors to two sales a day brings in a 100% increase in sales from just one sale. However…

If you ring up 20 sales a day that one extra sale is now only a 5% increase so the first thing you want to know is where the claimant starts from.

Next I want to know the conditons of the “miracle”. Where did the prospects come from? Was it search engine traffic? Did trafic come from somone’s list or a big promotion? As always the “quality” of the traffic needs to be considered.

Plus what is the market? Is it a hot market or just lukewarm? The more resistance to sales the more I’m impressed by big victories.

Finally… who’s making the claim? Are they trustworthy? Well-known? You and I will have a lot harder time selling something in the same market as someone with established credentials in the field.

Now about the claim starting this whole post… a 40% increase in sales :

Let’s start with who is makeing the claim and for what.

The statement is by Dave Guindon for his Virtual Sales Agent He shows results from a number of marketers - most of whom are well-known or at least already successful. What does this mean? Well, for one thing… results WILL vary i.e. don’t expect to get the same.

In addition it seems these figures all come from the sizzling IM field where pickin’s are relatively easy and traffic is hot and heavy. Now don’t get me wrong…

Dave is a smart guy and an excellent marketer. Plus he doesn’t churn out junk. As a matter of fact his Virtual Smart Agent is an excellent product in itself. But will it work for you? Maybe. Maybe not.

In principle exit polls and/or offers tend to be very effective. Again several factors need to be taken into account. Credibility, the offer and the market itself to name a few. But overall invasive techniques work well. By invasive I mean something like a popup that people forced to pay attention to. And while the Virtual Sales Agent is not much different than a pop up it is perceived as having more class.

Plus, unlike a popup, the Virtual Sales Agent is interative. Getting your visitor involved makes a big difference in sales. Dave’s script allows you to offer different responses based on certain keyword “triggers” you define. What does that mean?

If your prospect types in “Is there a discount?” (sale, promotion, whatever keywords you define) the program responds with the reply you provide - “Yes, I can give you a discount. Click on this link for details.’ (and then provide a link to your discount page or a coupon code) or you can respond any way you prefer.

But what if visitors ask questions you didn’t anticipate?

Prospects are famous for that. Dave has a couple of ways to deal with this. First, all questions are logged so you can spot common themes in the questions ask. Is everyone asking for a feature you didn’t think of? Are many looking for a bonus? This script is an excellent marketing tool in the right hands.

Prospects can also contact you with questions that don’t get answered in your canned responses so no burning question gets ignored.

All in all there are a lot of advantages to using this script. It is well-thought out script with a lot of powerful features. Is there a downside? Well…

It is a bit pricey. It’s regularly priced at $197 and I’ve seen Dave offer a discount as much as 50% (give or take a dollar). Still there’s no reason to think the lower price will return (if it’s not still available). Might there be future promotions? It’s certainly possible. Meanwhile unless you have enough sales to justify the hefty pricetag , it’s a bit much if you simply want to see if the technique will work for your market. Fortunately, there’s a very affordable alternative if for those who want to get their feet wet without a lot of expense…

It’s called Sales Bot Generator. It’ s nowhere’s near as fancy as Dave’s script but it’s

easy to install (just ftp one folder to your host)

easy to use - open an html file, add your domain path the to the script right in your browser and then copy and paste it to any page you want to use the Sales Bot.

Now all you do is tell your “virtual sales agent” what to say. Her name is Carol, but this is

easy to change to any name you any name you want. Simply highlight “Carol” and drop in any name that suits you.

You can use html to dress things up or pop in links to send your customers.

You won’t get all the “bells and whistles” Dave offers, like the ability to respond to certain keywords or track questions but this should give you an idea whether it would be worth the investment to spring for Daves Virtual Sales Agent or not for a very low price. How low?

How about $10? Yep, ten bucks. I’ll even toss in resale rights. Subscribers to my Copytactics blog alerts save even more, however that email already went out. If y0u missed it now’s a good time to sign up so you don’t miss the next great deal.

Click here to find out more about the “Sales Bot Generator”

I’m in the process of testing this on several pages myself. I’ll let you know as soon as the results are in.

God bless,

Andy

P.S. There’s a suprise bonus waiting for those who pick up the Sales Bot Generator. It’s worth the price of admission all by itself. Find out more…

Click here for more information about Dave Guindon’s Virtual Sales Agent.

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No, I haven’t been hiding under one but it’s been a busy time.

My wife and I have decided to sell our house so I’ve been working like a madman getting it ready. With that and trying to keep clients happy, I’ve barely been able to keep up.

More on selling our house in a future post - nothing has been written in stone yet.

So what else is new?

I’ve had canniptions  testing for one client in particular.  This one is a total web site re-design… something I normally run from. I’m not doing the design work per se but we’ve been testing pages with and without headers and that’s where we’ve run into trouble…

Let me tell you - if you’re going to purchase design services make sure the site works with and without a graphic header!  I’ve never had a problem like this come up but basically this site was designed so you can’t simple pop off the header or pop on a new one. One has to do some major fudging to do this.

In my “graphically challenged” opinion - this just doesn’t work. Sorry but too many of us testers are finding out some markets simply buy more with less “eye-candy” so I will look for those design factors from now on.

What other considerations should one consider?

First, keep in mind, I am NOT an expert here. My thingy is copy not “pretty”. On the other hand I’m not convinced an ugly site with good copy will outsell a pleasant-looking one either.  That said there are a few things I like to see…

Clean pages with good colors. Don’t get gaudy on me.

What happens when you want to test the name of a product or a slogan? Is it going to be easy or difficult?

No Clutter. I’m not partial to pages with a gadzillion thingys going on all at once.

A strong message. When I land on your page I’d like to know what you’ve got to offer.

Does this mean there’s not room for portal pages or other general-type sites with lots to offer?

I think there’s plenty of room for those types of pages. I just don’t want to be overwhelmed.

What about You?

When you go searching for something - do you want to be bombarded with everything up to and including the kitchen sink?

Do you prefer lots of “action” on the pages you visit?

I’d like to hear what you’ve got to say on this.

Meanwhile, I’ve got house to work on…

God bless,

Andy

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Here’s a simple but deadly effective method to write hard-hitting copy chock full of benefits your readers will eat up like a chocoholic at a candy factory…

It’s called the “so what” test. Michel Fortin teaches it, but I learned it long ago in one of the many sales training courses I’ve taken. However I must say it took me a long time to take the bone out of my head about applying it to “salesmanship in print”. Here’s how it works…

Write down something about your product. Anything.

It comes in “Candy Apple Red” (I must have sweet tooth today :-). So what?

So it’s sexy. So what?

So girls love it.  So What?

So you’ll attract girls attention. So what?

So you’ll be more popular with the girls. So what?

So I’m married and I’ll get into a lot of trouble if I continue so I’ll stop here. But you get the idea.

Notice only the FIRST thing I mentioned is tangible. Everything else is imaginary. Benefits are not touched they are felt and that is what makes them so powerful.

Use the so what test in your copywriting and you’ll invoke more emotion so you’ll sell more. So you’ll make more money. So you can hire more people to do your work. So you can spend more time with your family. So you can afford better stuff…

But do me one favor please? Don’t get too wrapped up in the “things”. There really is more to life than can be purchased with cash.

God bless,

Andy

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The following is a response to a blog entry to Ray Edwards (the Florida Ray).

I’ve known Ray for a few years now and I count him as a friend. But we differ a bit on this issue.

You can find Ray’s post here:

http://www.webcopy-writing.com/blog/2008/05/27/how-to-you-measure-your-copywriting-skills/

Basically Ray says the copywriting industry per se needs some sort of ’standard’. I disagree. I see Ray’s proposal as a first step in restricting access to the field. Granted anyone can hang a shingle and call themselves a “copywriter”, but there’s more to succeeding in this field than being able to spell the term.

I’m not sure I can agree with your conclusions. There are lots of new products in new markets that could eat even a veteran copywriter alive.

Let’s take another look at this - what makes for bad copy? How do you know what works and what doesn’t?

I know of instances where what you and I would agree is “lousy copy” that sells well - as you yourself pointed out - and seen this same “lousy copy” be replaced by “professionally written” copy that produces worse results.

I’ve written copy myself that failed to do better than the original. Why? In the case I’m thinking of it was because I had a total lack of enthusiasm for the product.

I’ve had other projects take off after an initial failure. The entire copy wasn’t bad - it just needed tweaking.

You’ve read Halbert and Carlton. I’m sure you came across their method where they suggest recording a live pitch from a top salesman and turning into written copy.

So what’s the answer?

I’d say the ONLY measure of good copy is results. I don’t think one can measure results soley by conversion rates because said rates will vary with the market and a whole bunch of other factors. However with good testing procedures and a solid basis on what makes good copy, I believe just about anyone can write copy.

So how do you get results? Write copy and test it in the marketplace. Do this enough and eventually one will either learn how to improve copy in ANY market or quit.

This is one reason I started guarantying results. The only blessings I need on my copy is God’s and the markets’. Anyone else can take a hike.

I am one of the few who dares guarantee results because I insist on testing. Anyone can write copy that fails to convert in any market.  The real measure is how you handle failure.

For me the process is simple. I deliver results or it costs my clients nothing.

God bless,

Andy

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Few things strike more fear into a marketer’s heart than an “over the top” guarantee. I mean Gutsy with a capital “G”. And yet few elements of a sales page exude more power. Why?

Because your reader doesn’t trust you. Not at all. Few marketers have earned enough trust to risk even a few dollars for something “unknown”. Not all marketers have this problem…

A few years ago I bought a high ticket item from a marketer - it wasn’t even his product - he was an affiliate. By “high ticket” I mean over $1500. Online. And I didn’t blink an eye. Why is that?

I knew the product. The company it came from is a leader in the field. The marketer who sold it has a way about him I find very trustworthy. He is always helpful. He gives a lot of good information away at no charge. And I’ve never seen a “hypey” sales pitch from him. In short - he has positioned himself far above many of those in his field.

So my first suggestion to you is to follow this lead. Take the high road. Avoid anything that hints of shady practices or shoddy products. Be worthy of trust and people will trust you.

Secondly, gather as much proof as you can. Social proof (testimonials, etc.), scientific proof, endorsements, anything you can gather to back up what you say. And don’t say anything you can’t back up.

Finally, offer the absolute strongest guarantee you dare. This is where things get interesting. You see, when it comes right down to it…

You Don’t Trust Your Customers!

Why else would you fail to guarantee an information product forever? Do you think hordes of customers are going to way 7.33 years and then descend on you at once for a refund?

The most common objection for strong guarantees is thieves. Yes some people will take your product and then ask for a refund. You will get that no matter what guarantee you offer. Think about the psychology of a thief for a moment…

They lie, cheat and steal… right? Do you expect them to be patient also? How long do you think a thief will wait to get a refund? A year? Not if they can get it in minutes. Or a week. In other words, guaranting your product for a year will make NO difference with thieves. So what does that leave?

Marginal customers. Customers who bought your product but don’t really want it because it doesn’t meet their needs or expectations. It happens.

The fact is you should be EAGER to give a refund to marginal customers. WHAT! Why?

Because these are the customers who will tell you what’s wrong with your product or your sales approach. Not only should you be able to cut down on future refunds but you should also armed to get more customers by refining your product and/or sales letter!

On the other hand the general rule is the more solid the guarantee the greater the sales. Yep more people will buy if you convince them they have absolutely NO risk if they decide to buy your product. Just make sure you honor this!

Now for that “Gutsy” Guarantee…

If you really want to “Go for the Gutsy” here one of the most daring guarantees going:

FREE If You Choose!

At firt it even chills me to the bone, but think about it…

You’re selling a digital product so what are the chances someone will get the refund and then delete your product from their hard drive? (I do but I think I’m the exception here.)

What are you going to do otherwise? Go to their house and check? Yeah, right. So why not take advantage of this and say “go ahead and try it if you don’t like it, I’ll refund your money”

I’ve seen others do this, most recently, Brad Callen for his SEO Elite product. I was impressed. If you get something different it’s because he’s testing and you’ve hit an alternate offer - it happens.

Other Gutsy Guarantees include offering to give back more than the reader paid - 10%, 20% even double your money back! Frankly, such offers scare me as a buyer and as a seller.

The bottom line is you should offer the best guarantee you can and still sleep at night.

One final note - is this rule written in stone? No. One very successful marketer comes to mind… Matt Furey.

Matt offers NO guarantee at all. Matt makes far more money with his products than I do. I’m fairly certain Matt tests his messages but I’m still not convinced this concept would be valid in most markets.

I’ve done this myself on occasion because I offer a product so cheap it would nearly cost me money to refund it. I’m not a fan of this tactic. I’ve come to believe you are better off offering value and getting a fair price for that value.

The best overall advice I can offer is to test your own market.  See what is acceptable to them. There’s no reason you can’t limit your tests in extreme cases to just a few hundred or even 1,000 visitors.  Even if you have a 5% conversion rate and your “double your money back” guarantee doubles this you’ve only risked 100 refunds.  If your refund rate remains  less than 50% and you’ll still make a gross profit.

God bless,

Andy

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Your P.S. is an integral part of your sales message.  Many marketers contend a large majority of readers fly from headline to P.S. making it the second most read part of your sales letter. I noticed I do this but I may be conditioned by my copywriting and testing studies so I cannot consider my own habits valid. Besides I always stop by the price myself on the way to the P.S.

If you’re stuck for a P.S. here’s one thing not to do and a couple of things TO do…

First what NOT to do: Don’t summarize your offer. If you put you’re whole offer in a nutshell and tack it on to the end of your sales page - you are essentially counting on one or two paragraphs as your entire sales page. Why?

Because the “summary offer” generally answers the questions most people have - what is it and what does it cost? So what can you do?

One method is to simply put a couple of testimonials in your P.S. this can work very well especially if the testimonials offer up some good benefits.

Another thing you can to is try to invoke curiosity by stating a benefit from your body copy or bullets.  This can be tricky but it can work well too.

Finally you can add another bonus to your product - one that changes every now and then. You can tell the reader this bonus is “for a limited time”. The magazine “Fly Fisherman” did this well by offering creels. They said they only had so many and when they were gone…

If you sell a physical product this can be a very effective method - especially if your product is a high ticket item with a good profit  margin because you can afford to offer high value bonuses.

This last method is one of the easiest and most effective ways to add a P.S. but you really should change your bonus from time to time so your readers know you mean business. And you might be surprised at how many stop again to see if you’re “limited time offer” was for real or just another gimmick.

God bless,

Andy

P.S. Do you have a favorite technique? One other one is to add some tidbit not found in the body copy.  My own favorite is number two above.

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Hi,

I know I haven’t posted so much lately. I finally realized I was posting too often. From now on expect 1-2 posts per week. If this doesn’t set right with you, feel free to let me know.

Other changes on the horizon…

I’m dropping the idea of video critiques. The fact is I’m apparently just too brutal. It takes a thick skin to write copy and have it reviewed by someone. I know. I’ve been there. And while I do make every effort to be gentle, I refuse to ignore the concept of “best practices”. What is that?

It’s is what is generally known and proven to work. Does that mean I’ll “attack” anyone or any ideas deviating from “best practices”? Ablsolutely not!

I’ll be the first to suggest testing just about anything. I do draw the line at the “vulgar” and anything that rings of questionable ethics. Other than that, I am all for pushing the envelope. Now for the third and final change…

I’m raising prices substantially for “Sales Page Makeovers” . I just finished a quote for a complete re-write of a sales page. I quoted it both ways - as a straight copy job (something I rarely do these days) and as a makeover. I was stunned at what I’ve been giving away!

No more.

I’ll post more on this next time but the figures justify much higher prices for this service. If no one is willing to pay then I’ll just have to focus on maximizing conversions on my own products.

Until next time…

God bless,

Andy

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