The Marlon Sanders
12-Step Cybercopy Formula
Headline + Opening Hook + Features and Benefits + Unique Selling Proposition + Credibility + Bullets + Price and Bargain Appeal + Guarantee + Don't Decide Now + Bonuses or Price Discount + You Can't Lose + P.S. = Money!
This is my personal formula for writing an online sales letter that will rocket your conversion rate by a minimum of 30%. It's based on my knowledge of psychology and human behavior, as well as many years of experience writing direct response advertising and direct mail.
Think of it like this: People have psychological BUTTONS that stimulate them to take action. When you know WHAT buttons to push, and HOW, WHEN and in WHAT order to push them, you maximize your chance of making sale. These buttons don't force people to do anything, but they do provide the impetus and mental stimulation leading them to act.
If you examine a random sampling of web sites, you'll discover that 99% do NOT push even half the buttons in the formula. Which is good news for you! Because that gives you a huge competitive advantage in marketing your Web site.
Let's get started...
Step One: The Headline
Crystallize the biggest end-result you create or problem you solve into a clear, compelling headline.
Your headline determines 80% of the response to your sales letter and acts as an ad for your ad. To be effective, it needs to clearly convey how your product or service will benefit the reader or solve an urgent problem.
One good way to get headline ideas is to scan magazine racks for article titles that grab your attention. You'll notice certain words and combinations of words are particularly powerful.
Here are the 16 most important words to use in your headlines. Of course, you don't want to use all the words in every headline! But using one or two makes sure you're on track:
1. You
2. Free
3. New
4. How
5. Money
6. Save
7. Results
8. Easy
9. Secrets
10. Health
11. Safety
12. Love
13. Discovery
14. Reveals
15. Proven
16. Guarantee
Here are several headline formulas that are proven classics in direct response advertising:
A) How to
Begin your headline with the words "How to." For example, "How to write potent online advertising copy that practically forces people to give you money."
If you're in a pinch and need a headline quickly, these types of headlines are the easiest to start with. The formula is simple, simply say "How to get X benefit" or "How to avoid X problem."
Make certain your benefit statement is specific. For example, "How to save money on your phone bill" is not as powerful as "How to save at least $36 a week on your phone bill just by dialing 4 extra numbers."
A variation of the "how to" headline is the "how I" headline. For example, "How I saved $36 on my phone bill last month." People love reading stories. This headline has the appeal of offering a specific benefit plus a story with human interest.
B) News + big benefit
Begin your headline with words such as announcing, new, now, at last, introducing,. For example, "At last, a proven way to use your camera to make money -- even if you've never had a photography class and you take horrible Christmas pictures."
We live in a news-starved society. We have 24-hour news on the radio and TV. We have newspapers, newsletters and news magazines. When you offer news, you capture attention. Then all you do is tie that news into the benefit of your product or service.
C) How, why, which, who else
These words have also been proven as powerful words to begin headlines with and get read. For example,
How I make $1,000 a week in the stock market
Why men crack
Who else wants to make money writing at home?
Which of these mistakes do you make in marketing?
Before you settle on a headline, you'll want to write 50-100. This sounds like a lot, but it goes fast once you get started. For more information on headline formulas, refer to the book Tested Advertising Methods by John Caples.
Test your headlines with this quiz to make sure each one covers the major bases.
- Does the headline talk about your company, your products and what you want to sell or about your customers, their wants, their needs and what they want to buy?
- Does the headline create a vivid picture of an end result highly desired by your target market?
- Does the headline rely on curiosity alone? (Curiosity alone isn't enough. Your headline should convey a clear benefit.)
- Does the headline use one or more proven words?
- Does the headline compel you to read more?
If you've read my materials, you know my philosophy, "Do not create mediocrity when you can copy genius." Look at back issues of magazines your prospects read and find the direct response ads - the ones selling something direct from the ad - to study and learn from.
Compare the back issues to current ones. Ads that have been running for some time are successful. Borrow the ideas and success elements in the ads. Don't violate copyright laws when you do this.
Headline Examples
The following examples illustrate the essential elements of writing good headlines. A good headline makes a promise of a specific benefit desired by the reader. It often paints a picture or denominates a specific end result. It shows you how to get pleasure and avoid pain. It explains what a product or service does for the reader and not just how great it is.
Hot new report reveals 12 secrets of xxxx
New report shows you exactly how to xxxx
Free information kit shows you how to xxxx
Free newsletter reveals proven secrets of xxxx
Famous advertising writer reveals the 7 forgotten secrets of selling by mail
How I made $157,356 in one year by placing classified ads on the Internet
Former banker reveals "hush-hush" secrets of making 16% interest on your money -- safely and legally!
Do you make these mistakes in xxxx?
What your xxxx doesn't want you to know about xxxx
"My web home page brings me 2,000 leads a day -- imagine!" says famous businessman Rick Jones
Imagine Harry and me advertising our pears in Fortune! (Legendary ad that started a new industry - selling fruit by mail)
How I improved my memory in one evening The amazing experience of Victor Jones (Famous ad for David Roth memory course written by Wilbur Ruthrauff.)
How to collect from social security at any age
Why some people almost always win at xxxx
The ultimate tax shelter (Famous ad written by Ted Nicholas)
Only way left for the little guy to get rich. Here is the uncensored message my wife asked me not to write (Another famous ad by Ted Nicholas)
How to win friends and influence people
How to make money writing short paragraphs
Create your own web page in 60 minutes -- or your money back
Step Two: The Opening Hook
Your headline presents your biggest benefit or problem you solve. Your first paragraph has to further hook the reader and pull them into the letter.
One easy way to do this is with an "if - you - then" statement. For example: "If you want this benefit, this benefit and this benefit, then this might be the most important letter you'll ever read."
Or, if you're using a problem-solving approach, you can say, "If you want to solve, this problem, this problem and this problem, then I urge you to read this letter -- immediately."
Here are a few other if - you - then examples:
If you'd like to obtain a steady stream of new customers for your business, slash customer service costs, and boost your advertising response, then this might be the most important letter on Internet marketing you'll ever read. Here's why..."
If you're sick and tired of getting screwed on your insurance premiums and paying out the nose for other people's bad driving habits, then here's good news...
If you want to feel an immediate surge of energy within 60 seconds -- without the up and down roller coaster high of caffeine -- then please accept my free sample gift
You can also use a story format to pull prospects into your letter. People love stories. Newspapers, news shows, TV talk shows and talk radio stations all succeed because people have an insatiable desire to hear stories about other people.
By telling a story you paint a picture of a successful end result and seduce your reader into reading the rest of your sales letter. Here's an example of how you might use a story to begin a sales letter...
| Dear Friend,
I've never written you a letter like this before. But I have something weighing heavily on my mind I've got to tell you about . . .
It's outrageous.
You pay at least $50,000 for your son, daughter, niece, nephew or family member to obtain a quality education. And the happiest day of your life is when they trot through the graduation line to receive a diploma. But then only weeks later -- disaster strikes!
They walk into the college placement office! Oh boy, now that's an experience. It goes something like this:
"Hello, I just graduated from your fine university, and I'm here for a job."
"What's your degree in?" the placement officer asks. That's the trick question, right there! You see, no matter what your response, here's the answer you get . . .
"You know, it's a shame you didn't get a degree in xz@#!. We have lots of companies interviewing in that field!! Tell you what -- there's some books on the shelf in the corner by the water fountain. Why don't you go look through those?"
Exaggeration? Maybe. Realistic? Yes.
In my humble opinion, colleges and universities do an excellent job teaching biology, algebra and great literature. But they do a lousy (if not deplorable) job of preparing young adults for a career and helping them find a niche in the work world.
Like it or not, colleges and universities don't get paid to place graduates in jobs. They get paid to issue diplomas. Plain and simple. Whether or not they're fulfilling their responsibilities is debatable. Nevertheless, the unassailable fact of job hunting is this:
Your young adult can't rely on their college placement office to find them a job. And they aren't going to find a good one in the newspaper either.
...etc.
|
That's an example of a story that illustrates a problem. Want to know how to tell good stories at the start of your sales letters? Just peruse articles in Reader's Digest. They almost always begin each one with a relevant story.
Stories aren't essential, but they are one powerful way to pull people into the balance of your copy.
Step Three: Features and Benefits
People do not buy products and services. They buy an end result....what a product or service will do for them. They buy solutions to problems. They buy to avoid pain and gain pleasure.
People don't buy drills, they buy holes. They don't buy hammers, they buy the doghouse the hammer will help them build. They don't buy homes, they buy a feeling of security for their family. They don't buy novels, they buy escape from reality. They don't buy advertising, they buy increased sales at a lower cost.
Most companies spend all their time talking about the features of their products and services, and not about how those features will produce a desirable result or benefit for their customers. They focus on how great their newest widget is instead of how their newest widget solves annoying problems for their customers.
Here are several ways you can make sure you talk in terms of benefits to your customers instead of features.
Ask your customers why they purchased from you instead of your competition.
Don't assume you understand why your customers buy from you. Instead, ask a lot of questions and listen for hot buttons. Look for key advantages you have compared to your competition.
Don't assume your readers understand the benefits of your product or service.
Picture all the ways your prospects will benefit when they buy from you. Spell out the benefits so they are crystal clear. Leave nothing to the imagination.
Benefit chain
Benefits have layers like onions. Your job is to peel through the layers to reach the deepest, most meaningful advantages of your product or service. In order to do that, take each of your benefits and ask yourself, "Why do I care about that?" Or ask, "What will that do for me that's even more important?"
Keep asking questions until the answer is self evident. The process looks something like this:
Benefit---> what's important about that?---> which means that---> Benefit
When you write your sales letter, be sure to point out all the benefits that surface from your benefit chains because any one of them could be the hot button that causes a prospect to order from you.
Step Four: Unique Selling Proposition
Pre-empt your prospect's desire to shop around by explaining the advantages they'll get only if they buy from you.
How can you package a big picture solution no one else offers that delivers more of what your prospects want and less of what they don't? The answer to that question is commonly referred to as your Unique Selling Proposition or USP.
In other words, why should someone buy a product or service from you instead of anyone else in the world? Answers such as "quality" or "service" are cop-outs. When you say quality, what does that mean? How does your quality differ from anyone else's? And more importantly, what difference does it make to the customer? How does your quality provide a benefit?
Quality is only a benefit if it provides me with some advantage. Does the product last longer? How much longer on average? Does it require less maintenance? And if so, how much savings (in dollars and cents) does that translate into?
When you state your benefits, be as specific as possible. If you say your product or service saves a customer time, how much time on average? Over a period of five years, how many hours, days or weeks could you save a customer?
The same theme applies to the idea of better service. When you say you offer better service, what does that mean specifically? Does it mean you fix problems faster? How much faster on average?
Does it mean you respond to telephone calls within 3 hours? What exactly does it mean? Denominate as completely and specifically as possible what better service means, and the advantage or benefit your customers will receive as a result.
One other important point about the Unique Selling Proposition: It's more important to be first in the mind of the consumer than to be better. Modern-day marketers call this idea "Positioning."
Step Five: Credibility
Show people why they should believe you will deliver the benefits you promise by using powerful testimonials. You can't have too many strong testimonials in your sales letter or sales presentation. I currently have over 100 pages of testimonials, and add more all the time.
Powerful testimonial characteristics:
State specific results. "I used X product and I solved these problems" or "I got these results."
Target common objections. Let someone else answer common objections for you with a testimonial.
Avoid "pat-on-back" verbiage. People care about results and benefits, not how great the creator of the product is.
Provide full name, city, state, occupation, and photo, if possible.
To obtain good testimonials, you can interview your customers, record the conversation, transcribe it, boil it down to a testimonial, then obtain written permission to use it.
Other important techniques for building credibility include:
Tell why prospects should believe you are a credible source.
Support statements with logic and proof. If you need additional help in this area, read the book "My Life in Advertising and Scientific Advertising" by Claude Hopkins. It's inexpensive and will give you numerous examples.
Give reasons why for price reductions or special offers. "Clearance sale" and "Blowout sale" have no credibility. If you have a price reduction, explain why you're able to sell the merchandise for less money.
Use specifics. People believe specifics. It's far more powerful to say "Increase your profits by 33.7% in 9 months or less" than "Make more profits." Instead of a real estate agent saying, "I can help you sell your home faster" he could say, "My listings sell 3 months faster than the average property in the Multiple Listing Service."
Avoid statements that stretch believability, even if they're true.
Show popularity and approval by experts. This is called social proof. People tend to believe premises accepted by a large number of others.
Give a phone number with a "live" answer. If you can't have a live answer all the time, a professionally produced answering machine or voice mail message will boost credibility. A poor quality answering machine message can hurt your business.
Step Six: Bullets
Encapsulate your benefits into tantalizing bullet statements. Here's why bullets are important online:
People scan information quickly. Bullets are mini-headlines that scream, "Print out a hard copy now. You need this information!" Research has shown that people are more likely to order when they print out a hard copy of your sales letter.
As much as half your sales letter should be bullets online. Bullets are very important psychologically. They build benefits and condition people for the price, which is what you're going to give them in the next step of the formula. And they create the emotion for the sale.
Spell out the complete thought in your bullets. At times use a whole second sentence in parenthesis. Paint a clear picture of the benefit. Arouse strong curiosity.
Sample Bullets
Why normal networking wastes your time and what to do instead.
How John Doe started a billion dollar business from home on a shoestring (and you can too).
The amazing, little-known secret of direct mail that doubles or triples response.
How to know any likely objections to an idea, product, service or proposal BEFORE you even meet with your contact. Have all the time you need to prepare your answer in advance, complete with support information, charts or other resources.
How to use a board of directors to become a major power broker (for personal or business benefit). Who to put on your board, how to recruit them, how to use them.
Tradeshow bonanza -- How to be THE big hit at any trade show. Turn this normally mediocre activity into a wildly profitable money maker, and avoid the profit-killing mistakes most people make.
Secrets of gaining endorsements by celebrities and major business figures. Why this can send you soaring into the big leagues.
Competition squeeze? Jump out miles ahead with this covert (but entirely legal) strategy.
How to transform a business, career or fundraising effort from small potatoes into the big leagues.
Step Seven: Price and Bargain Appeal
Now that the bullets have psychologically conditioned your prospects, you're ready to give your price. But you want to soften the blow. You do that by comparing your price and showing that it's a bargain.
You can compare your price to what you used to sell your product for, what you plan to sell it for, or what your competition sells it for.
In addition, you can create a bargain appeal by showing the prospective customer how your price is only a fraction of the cost of not owning the product. You can remind him or her how much time, money, inconvenience, pain, hassle or trouble your product will save.
Even luxury purchases can be sold on a bargain appeal. For example, a friend may justify the purchase of a Mercedes (or other luxury car) to you by explaining how that it's really a bargain when you take into account the resell value. If a car retains a great deal of its resell value, it can look like a bargain compared to a cheaper car that loses its value quickly.
A luxury car purchase could also be justified by talking about the greater reliability, reduced time off the job due to breakdowns, better gas mileage and lower maintenance costs. These factors may or may not in reality justify the purchase of the car. But they certainly provide a logical justification for an emotional purchase, which is what you want to do.
Step Eight: Guarantee
Provide a guarantee that denominates the required performance. For example, "If you don't get this result, if it doesn't do this, if that doesn't happen...then just send it back for a complete, 100%, no-hassles refund."
Also try out different guarantee lengths. In many cases, a longer guarantee will perform better than a shorter guarantee since it gives people an opportunity to procrastinate. If your guarantee is only for 30 days, prospects may be worry they won't be able to return your product in time to receive their refund. Test a guarantee that is twice the length of your competitors. This can be a strong selling point and increase conversion rates dramatically.
When you offer an unusual guarantee, explain why you're offering it. Explain that you can offer such a guarantee only because you are so confident your product will perform to meet or exceed the customer's expectations.
Even if you can't guarantee your full transaction with a customer, you can usually guarantee the very first purchase or the initial step. Your goal is to get someone to do business with you one time, knowing your profits will come from repeat business.
Step Nine: Don't Decide Now
This is the classic puppy dog close, "Don't decide now if little scruffy is for you. Just take the puppy home and let Jimmy and Suzy play with him all weekend. If you aren't happy, bring him back on Monday." (You'll never see little Scruffy puppy again!)
Here's how you adapt the concept to a product within the context of a direct response sales letter, "Don't decide now if this product is for you. Just check it out, try it, give it a whirl. At worst, you'll get your money back."
Why does this close work? Because people associate making a decision with pain. You don't want people to be in pain when they give you money. You want them to be ecstatic. So don't ask them to make a decision.
Of course, you still get their money. But let them try your product on a trial basis. This method does not apply to all products and services, but when appropriate, it's very powerful.
Step Ten: Bonus or Price Discount
Human beings procrastinate. You have to give them reasons to NOT procrastinate. You can do this by offering a free bonus or a price discount for acting within a limited time frame. A ten day deadline works well for many products.
Another important factor in your bonus is scarcity, or a limited supply. Regardless of how many bonuses you have on hand, your supply is still limited. So tell the customer, "We have a limited supply of these bonuses. We can only guarantee you'll receive them if you order within the next 10 days."
Multiple free bonuses often work better than single ones. Many marketers have found that information products such as reports and cassette tapes make good free bonuses, regardless of what you are selling. The bigger the problem, the bigger price tag for the solution. Information products that help solve big problems can have very high perceived value to the customer.
In a price sensitive market, you may find that discounts work better than free bonuses. But in most cases, you'll probably get better results with multiple free bonuses for taking immediate action.
One powerful technique is to make the free bonuses actually worth more than the product itself. For example, the product sells for $100 and the free bonuses are worth $400. You have to use this method carefully, but it's worth testing.
Step Eleven: You Can't Lose
Explain to your customer why they can't lose by buying from you. The worst case scenario is they get their money back and get to keep some valuable free bonuses.
What this means to the customer is they don't have to worry about screwing up, making a mistake, or being embarrassed in front of their friends, family or co-workers. It's a risk-free transaction from their viewpoint. In fact, they can ONLY come out ahead because of the free bonuses.
