Not everyone can write good copy. That’s why there are professionals just writing copy for small businesses and for graphic/website designers who are creative but just not gifted writers.
IF you decide to write your own copy, here are five mistakes to avoid ensuring people will read more than your home page. (PS – writing for printed materials and other marketing including social media are quite different than websites, so for purposes of this article, we are sticking with website copy.)
1- Don't be boring
There's nothing so deadly as a marketing message that fails to arouse the senses in any way whatsoever. You need to write copy in a way that stimulates, annoys, amazes, depresses, scares or whatever is necessary to shock the senses into awareness that a compelling offer is on its way. So never be boring!
2- No call to action
Here's the rule of thumb to remember: a confused prospect doesn't buy. If you don't give your reader a very clear and specific command to do something, they will take the easy path to doing nothing. So, figure out exactly what you want your copy to accomplish and then very clearly tell your prospect to do exactly that.
3- Don’t be vague
As a copywriter, it’s an easy mistake to make. You write about something you don’t know much about, so you end up with grammatically correct sentences that don’t convey any meaning. Unpersuasive blah-blah-blah
As a small business owner, this is where you have a solid advantage: you know your offer inside and out. And you know your customer. So, review your copy, and ask yourself: Is this concrete or generic? Can I visualize this? Is it making sense to other people?
Blah-blah-blah (Generic and unpersuasive): “We take your marketing to the next level,” vs. Specific and persuasive: “I help you optimize your marketing budget so you can generate more leads and win more clients.”
Make people want to learn more. Don’t skimp on the detail. Design your copy so it’s both easy to scan and easy to read. Share all your persuasive arguments and make people eager to contact and hire you.
4- Don't be me focused
This happens all the time ... the marketing team thinks that the sheer glory of the program/product/service being offered — combined with the stellar history and track record of the company providing same — will be more than enough to close the deal. Wrong. Dead wrong. The reality is you need to express over and over again specific details as to what everything in your sales copy means to the prospect. ME-focused marketing will get you zero.
5- Lack of credibility
Why would readers believe you and hire you? Let’s be frank. It’s easy for web visitors to doubt your claims, to hesitate to believe you and to turn away to go somewhere else.
You can’t assume people will simply believe you. Readers want to see proof. Too often they’ve been disappointed. To build trust, provide external proof for your claims. External elements of proof are provided by experts and other buyers. This can be reviews, review ratings, test results, press coverage, and more. For service providers, testimonials are probably the most commonly used external proof. Make sure your testimonials are persuasive and back up your claims.
About Maria Novak Dugan
Maria L. Novak Dugan is president of Marketing Solutions & Business Development, a firm serving Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland, offering creative marketing services and goal implementation for small businesses. She has more than 30 years’ experience in the Marketing & Sales Industry ... 13 of those as the sole sales representative for a Pennsylvania payroll company growing their client base by over 500%. Maria Novak Dugan is also the former Managing Director of the Delaware Chapter of eWomenNetwork. Creating, developing, and conducting this division of a national organization strengthened her knowledge of networking, event planning, fundraising, and small-business development. For more information, contact Maria at 610-405-0633 or Maria@Maria-L-Novak.com or visit www.Maria-L-Novak.com
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