WORDS THAT WORK

With so much emphasis today placed on how things look, it is often easy to forget that once you have grabbed an audience’s attention, what you have to say is even more important.

Focus on a well constructed message and deliver it regularly and consistently

So, when drafting any copy, irrespective of its purpose, consider the following:

Who is your audience? If there are multiple audiences can you talk to them in the same way?

What is the focus of your story? Pick one core subject or objective and make sure all  arguments support it.

Find a unique selling proposition. The more your offer stands out from the competition, the better your chances of getting a response.

Use a strong and compelling heading that grabs the attention of your target audience. People have limited time and you need to convey something that interests them immediately.

Be assertive not conditional and write in the present tense.  Banish words like may, hope, could, etc. Be confident in your writing style and use active words.

Customer quotes speak volumes. A single line about you from a satisfied customer is worth an entire page that you write about yourself.

Edit, edit and edit again. Once you have drafted copy, go away for a while and then come back with a fresh eye. Trim and refine your text until it is concise, clean and informative.

And finally.

Know your strengths. If you are not a natural wordsmith, consider using a professional writer.  It will be much cheaper, quicker and more effective.